Our experience at the People’s Powerhouse Conference 2023
About the day
At the end of November we attended the People’s Powerhouse 2023 conference titled ‘This is the North’.
The People’s Powerhouse fight for every northerner to be heard so they can influence the decisions that affect their lives. They aim to bring northerners together so that they can decide what the future of the North should look like.
This year’s conference centred around the theme ‘A Radical North – The People Powered future starts here’. The conference was hosted at the prestigious Masonic Hall in Preston.
Upon arriving we collected our lanyards and were given the option of the selection of several different workshops such as:
Who does knowledge belong to? – A discussion on making research more equitable.
The black experience up North – An exploration of the experiences of Black Northerners and the Windrush generations.
A long table: Conversations about poverty, inequality, and climate influencing policy – Delving into a new model for discussing challenging issues such as poverty, inequality, and climate policy.
Taking action on climate change through participatory budgeting – and more!
The workshop
Sophie and I opted for the workshop on climate change and participatory budgeting, due to our interest in environmental issues and our involvement with our client, Path Financial, in their efforts to address climate change.
The workshop, facilitated by Shared Future CIC & Southampton University, introduced a role-playing game where we governed the city of Empaville.
Through a simulation of a climate-themed Participatory Budgeting process, we combined in-person discussions with digital voting.
When we walked in the room we were each given a role to play throughout the game with a secret hidden agenda, I was assigned the role of Frances, a 78 year old woman, and Sophie took on the role of Ali, a 34 year old male doctor!
We were then tasked with pitching our budget proposals to the group. I admittedly very enthusiastically rallied our group together to come up with the winning pitch.
The day ended in a captivating ‘lighting talk’ led by Tracy Fishwick, featuring discussions from speakers representing Carley Consultant Ltd, Humans MCR, Historic England, Stockport Refugee Consortium, and Art Gene.
Overall, the day brimmed with an infectious buzz and lots of enthusiasm! If you get the chance to attend a People’s Powerhouse conference, we highly recommend attending next year’s conference.
You can also check out our TikTok capturing some highlights from the day below!