Qraters’ Voices: Let’s Create the Change we want to see

Hi my name is Faeeza Lok.

I am the founder of Voice of the People Movement. Voice of the People Movement was launched this year in April and our goal is to build stronger communities.

We recently launched our first community programme called the Community Enhancement Program (CEP). It was borne out of the belief in order for us to create a better world, we need to create a stronger community and we do that by enhancing the way we connect and relate with each other in the truest sense of Ubuntu.

Strong communities talk to each other and for the past 7 days, we went door to door in Tembisa. We listened and learned from community members on the challenges they face so that we can co-create solutions together. Through that experience I wanted to share THREE things I have learned from the program.

1) The pandemic has shown us we are all intrinsically linked with one another.

All of us share common aspirations- we all want to live in peace and security; to be educated, to work with dignity, to love our families and our communities. we should not be distracted by our differences, rather celebrate our commonalities. That should be the driving force behind our collective vision.

2) The future we want to create requires us to use our imaginations and be open to learn, unlearn and relearn.

The one thing which is constant is change, but when you are open to growth, you see every challenge in front of you as a way to grow and develop as a person, rather than a hinderance. Through this program, we saw positive behaviour change in our team leading and creating change around themselves and their environment independently. When you choose to grow as a person, we grow as a community.

3) Change is always possible when people feel they are involved and listened to.

Feedback and knowledge sharing is part of our culture. We involve community members to co-create solutions and provide feedback on how we can improve as a movement. The goal of every organization is not to solve problems but to make the organization better, we make the organization better but creating a culture of inclusivity. We must be mindful that every voice is involved in the conversation, that every person feels comfortable to join in and offer his or her own perspective. Therefore creating a feeling of belonging and inclusion for everyone in the community.

4) Innovation is not the search for one big idea but the ability to implement small ideas which have a powerful cumulative impact.

As simple and small as starting a WhatsApp group. If you want to learn more about how grassroots organization work, if you want to become a community organiser, a change maker in your community, being part of a grassroots organiser is an opportunity to network, upscale and create change. Let’s help make South Africa better, let’s grow our community together.

Join us and let’s continue to commit ourselves to the future that we want to see.

Follow VOTP on social media:

Join their WhatsApp Group: +27 73 411 0046 | Instagram: @voice_za Facebook: @votp.za Twitter: @votp_za Tik Tok: @votp_za