IACD’s Directors are all over the world
IACD has a Board of eighteen Directors from every region of the globe. In March, we caught up with Regional Director for Latin America and the Caribbean, Ursula Harman and she told us about the fieldwork she was undertaking in Bolivia. We had an update on her work and how it was affected by Covid-19.
We also caught up with Regional Director for Europe, Colette McGarva — she featured on our Member Mondays post on Instagram.
Get to know Colette McGarva!
Colette McGarva has been a Board member of IACD for six years and is a European Director based in Scotland.
She has played an integral role in the strategic developments of IACD and is actively involved as a member of the Membership, Communications and Marketing Committee and the HR Committee. She manages our Administrator/ Membership Secretary, Mere Greta who is based in our Headquarters in Glasgow, Scotland.
IACD recently caught up with Colette for an interview. Colette told us, “For me, community development is about creating a more socially just and equal world. I believe it is our moral obligation to never allow neo-liberalism to prevail. For this reason, I chose to work in community development in Scotland and beyond.
I become involved with IACD to help bring more people and organisations together to enable solidarity and collective practice globally.”
As a Community Development Consultant, she co-ordinates the Community development Alliance for Scotland @cdascotland bringing together 120 national organisations creating a strong coalition who promote and implement policy and practice in community development. She also produces a comprehensive monthly bulletin which highlights community development policy and practice in its broadest terms including an International section featuring international practice including IACD and has subscribers from all over the globe.
Colette continued, “I became involved with IACD through my community development work in Scotland. Having worked in community development, community regeneration and community led health for the past 20 years in Scotland, North America and Africa, I was asked by our partners in Scotland to sit on the IACD Board to further develop our strong partnerships in Scotland as well as on an international platform.”
She also facilitates community led health & wellbeing programs in Scotland utilizing her skills, knowledge and experience in community development, music, dance, fitness, art and the great outdoors.
Colette has a particular affinity to jazz female vocalists and loves Nina Simone, Etta James and Amy Winehouse — “I love the depth of jazz vocalists and remember, an image portrays more than 1000 words! You can feel the heart and soul of Nina Simone in her facial expressions. Music is an outlet for pain, sorrow and anger- I always listen to AC/DC if I am feeling stressed!!”
She also loves the great outdoors, being beside the sea, music and dancing and watching movies. On to the interview:
IACD: “If your life was to be a movie who would you cast to act as you?”
Colette: “This is a difficult question- I would say Uma Thurman for “Smeddum”.
IACD: “Who was your first hero / heroine and why?”
Colette: “David Carradine in Kung Fu- all about wisdom!!”
IACD: “How would you describe yourself in three words?”
Colette: “A person with integrity, principled and reliable.”
IACD: “Tell us something people don’t know about you.”
Colette: “I’m a musician, singer and dancer!”
IACD: “What makes you nervous / angry?”
Colette: “People who talk all the time- mostly about nothing- my pet hate!!”
IACD: “What is your working style?”
Colette: “Having worked in community development, the Merchant Navy and hospitality I have experienced various management styles and personality types, years ago, I had only ever experienced authoritarian managers, then it was all laissez faire!! For me, the balance of the two is best.”
IACD: “What tips and advice would you give to students?”
Colette: “I have always enjoyed mentoring students and have always kept in touch with all my former students who I mentored on placements. Young people, of course, are great. They have a much more difficult time than we did when we were young in relation to family, identity etc but for young and older alike, this would be my advice. To impart knowledge is one of the greatest gifts. It is always good to share your knowledge and wisdom- If I was to share three pieces of wisdom with young students, it would be this:
1: Always be true to yourself; 2: Always look after your health; and 3: Know your Myers Briggs- it will help you understand yourself and why you are the way you are- embrace yourself!!”
IACD: “Any final thoughts?”
Colette: “I love Spain and Flamenco- I love the strength and passion in the faces of flamenco dancers. I would love to help bring together our IACD European members for a zoom “ gathering” perhaps in June!!”
Catching up with Ursula Harman
We also had a virtual interview with Regional Director for Latin America and the Caribbean, Ursula Harman.
IACD: “Ursula, last time we spoke, you were in the middle of a twenty-day field excursion in Bolivian mines studying the resilience characteristics of three communities in Bolivia that will be affected by the future closure of the mine. What can you tell us about that work? Has your work been affected by Covid-19?”
Ursula: “My fieldwork was indeed interrupted by Covid-19. I was supposed to stay until March 28 but on March 16, Peru closed frontiers and Bolivia did the same on March 22. So, I returned to La Paz on the 18th, and fortunately, on the 21st 40 Peruvians returned to Lima in a solidarity flight arranged by both Bolivian and Peruvian authorities. It was kind of stressful.”
IACD: “What can you tell us about your local situation?”
Ursula: “San Bartolo, the beach town where I live, is a small community and we are all very collaborative, people are respecting the lockdown regulations, we are supporting the most vulnerable groups (elders, disabled, informal workers, etc.) with groceries, and as a local government, we are working with the community in a participative way in education and health campaigns related to the pandemic.”
All photos above courtesy of Ursula
What’s next?
Keep an eye out for our May Newsletter focusing on community rights and justice-based approaches to Covid-19. All IACD members will receive the newsletter directly via email.
