Ben is the Founder & CEO of Grassroot Communities, a Youth and Community worker, Educator, Environmentalist, and City Fellow. He’s passionate about supporting individuals, communities and organisations to be the changes they want to see. Grassroot Communities is an organisation that tailors and delivers school, youth and community work projects based on the wants and…
Coordinated and Produced by Elisa Garbil This week we hope to gain an insight on Grassroot Communities and the challenges faced by underserved communities and the wider voluntary sector. In an era of rising inequality, political polarisation, and climate instability, grassroots organisations are becoming critical pillars of resilience, not just locally, but globally. Today we explore…
Written by Elisa Garbil – 29.05.2025 Grassroots organisations have emerged as vital engines of change in communities around the world. These entities, often volunteer-led and deeply embedded in local contexts, deliver a broad array of services that formal institutions struggle to reach, from youth empowerment and mental health to housing, public health, and civic participation….
Juanita Goebertus Estrada is the Director of the American Division at Human Rights Watch. Between 2018 and 2022, Juanita was a Congresswoman in Colombia, dedicating her term to the implementation of the Peace Agreement between the Colombian government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). Previously, she was head of the transitional justice group at the…
Written by Elisa Garbil – 24.02.2025 Since Nayib Bukele came into power on the 1st of June 2019, El Salavador has seen a drastic change in the safety of the country. El Salavdor has come from the world capital for murder into a country safer than Canada. Citizens can move freely in former gang-controlled areas…
Coordinated and Produced by Elisa Garbil Dive into the impact on women, girls, and children of Bukele’s mass imprisonment. We are joined by Juanita Goebertus Estrada who is the Director of the American Division at Human Rights Watch. She tells us about: Juanita Goebertus Estrada is the Director of the American Division at Human Rights Watch. Between 2018…
Ellen Van Damme, PhD, is a criminologist specialising in ethnographic research on women, gangs, and migration. From 2016 to 2020, she was a PhD fellow of the Research Foundation-Flanders (FWO) at the Leuven Institute of Criminology (LINC), KU Leuven. Her doctoral research focused on the role of women in and around gangs in Honduras. In…
Coordinated and Produced by Elisa Garbil This week Dominic is joined by Ellen van Damme. They dive into the multifaceted complexities of gang violence in Honduras. Hear Ellen discuss her PhD research on gangs, violence and women, as well as her thoughts on how women and girls fall into gangs. They discuss the difference between narcos…
Written by Elisa Garbil – 17.02.2025 History Honduras is situated between Guatemala, El Salvador, and Nicaragua. Most of the population tends to live in the mountains, which is generally quite isolated. It is a developing nation, with significant economic and social challenges, as well as climate challenges as it tends to have occasional violent tropical…
Juan David Rojas is a Columnist at Compact and a Consultant. He is a subject matter expert on Latin America, where he provides advice and analysis on political, economic, foreign policy, energy and security topics. Juan is a columnist at Compact Magazine and has his work featured in American Affairs, Americas Quarterly the Journal of…
