Sunday, December 6th 2020
9pm Ireland / 4pm NYC
presented with The Consulate General of Ireland in New York
Future Action Now
An intergenerational, trans-Atlantic conversation: I.NY, The Sanders Institute and Mothers Of Invention host a conversation with U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders & former Irish President Mary Robinson in conversation with Thimali Kodikara and invited climate and social justice activists.
Following the most consequential American presidential election in living memory, we are all increasingly impacted by this unique time of turbulent global governance and climate urgency, and the deep challenges to social justice, equality and essential emigration created by both. I.NY, The Sanders Institute and Mothers of Invention host a conversation across generations to wrestle with the question ‘what is demanded of us now, and how do we act today, in the interest of all?’.
Two of the world’s most progressive and influential thinkers and activists invite next-generation climate and social justice activists for a conversation which will comfort and challenge, enlighten and embolden, emphasise urgency and raise up possibility.
Merging the experience, advice and influence of U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders and former President of Ireland Mary Robinson, with the action, communication and future leadership vision of the next responsible generation, this conversation showcases the potential of intergenerational collaboration to drive practical, hopeful and immediate action.
Bernie Sanders
Bernie Sanders is a U.S. Senator from Vermont. In 2006, he was elected to the U.S. Senate after 16 years as Vermont’s sole congressman in the House of Representatives. Bernie is now serving his third term in the U.S. Senate after winning re-election in 2018 with 67 percent of the vote. Born in Brooklyn, New York, he attended James Madison High School, Brooklyn College, and the University of Chicago. After graduating, he moved to Vermont where he worked as a carpenter and documentary filmmaker. In 1981, he was elected as mayor of Burlington, the state’s largest city, by a mere 10 votes.
In Congress, Bernie has fought tirelessly for working families, focusing on the shrinking middle class and growing gap between the rich and everyone else. Bernie has been called a “practical and successful legislator” and he was dubbed the “amendment king” in the House of Representatives for passing more amendments than any other member of Congress.
Bernie lives in Burlington, Vermont with his wife Jane. He has four children and seven grandchildren.
Mary Robinson
The first woman elected as President of Ireland (1990-1997), Mary Robinson has been credited with transforming the role with a presidency of inclusiveness, equality and peace building, and with creating an important dialogue at home and overseas about Ireland and the Irish Diaspora.
As a barrister advocating human rights and women’s equality in the Irish and European Courts, an academic and as a member of the Irish Senate representing the University of Dublin (Trinity College) constituency from 1969-1989, Mary Robinson’s work played a pivotal role in shaping modern Ireland.
Mary Robinson is a founding member of The Elders, a group of global leaders brought together by Nelson Mandela and Richard Branson. The Elders use their independence, collective experience and influence for peace, justice and human rights worldwide. Mary’s work with the United Nations, Oxfam International, the Mo Ibrahim Foundation, the GAVI Alliance, The Mary Robinson Foundation – Climate Justice, and others, advocates good governance, and a voice for the vulnerable in our world.
Thimali Kodikara
Thimali Kodikara is a multi-disciplinary creative strategist & ethnographer, and the host and producer of the Mother of Invention podcast. A graduate of London’s Central Saint Martins College of Art & Design, she exploited her degree in advertising to explore visual, verbal, emotional and musical linguistics, by studying the narcissistic traits and propagandist nature of consumer media.
She moved to Bushwick, Brooklyn in 2004, and founded OneLoudBellow five years later, as a one-woman creative brand consultancy for community-centric small businesses and charitable institutions, and was a field producer for Getty Images New York, conducting interviews with notables from Michael Shannon, Darren Aronofsky and Isabel Allende, to Meryl Streep, Ludacris and Ciara.
I.NY Project Partners
