Many workshops talk about ’empathy’ but few go to the depths of truly understanding what external factors may be at play for someone and how to better empathise with contextual understanding. In this important conversation, Ishara explains what all this means and then opens up to questions for a juicy discussion!
Empathy is defined by Merriam-Webster as ‘the action of understanding, being aware of, being sensitive to, and vicariously experiencing the feelings, thoughts, and experience of another of either the past or present without having the feelings, thoughts, and experience fully communicated in an objectively explicit manner”. Developing empathy is an important trait in building meaningful relationships. It encourages tolerance and acceptance of others. It promotes good mental health. It promotes social harmony and can reduce the likelihood of bullying.
Intersectionality refers to the simultaneous experience of social categories such as race, gender, socioeconomic status, and sexual orientation and the ways in which these categories interact to create systems of oppression, domination, and discrimination.
Combining intersectional thinking with empathy is an important skill in today’s world and this is an enlightening class.
WATCH THE CLASS HERE:
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This class is taught by Ishara Sahama.
Ishara Sahama is a passionate social and gender justice advocate, community organizer and education facilitator. She currently works in the NFP/social enterprise space, providing strategic thinking, community organising, project management and advisory support. Ishara is part of the founding team and board for two upcoming enterprises which focus on:
1. transforming family businesses across Australian/New Zealand to for-purpose and for-planet businesses, and
2. supporting, empowering and up-skilling Womxn in family business by addressing issues concerning intergenerational equity and gender
inequities
Ishara is also a Climate Reality Leader and community organizer for UNAA Young Professionals Queensland and The One Women Project. She has presented and organized several presentations, panel discussions, forums on topics such as the climate crisis, sustainable development goals (SDGs), youth engagement, anti-racism, gender equity in urban planning and environmental concerns and, intersectional justice. Ishara has particular career interest in ensuring that culturally and linguistically diverse and gender-fluid groups are recognized and included in civic decision-making processes pertaining to socio-economic and urban development. Ishara believes that by addressing system flaws and improving them through shared decision-making with diverse citizen participation, can systematically dismantle socio-environmental injustices in rural-urban areas. She graduated at the end of 2019 with a BA Honours Geography and BSc Geographical Sciences, from The University of Queensland.
Ishara is a Womxn of Colour, with mixed Sri Lankan cultural heritage.
Pronouns: She/her