This week Hélène Himmer, a French national with roots in the Caribbean island of Guadeloupe, now based in Portugal joins me in conversation about her current work at African Futures Lab (AfaLab) leading a project on climate reparations. I met Hélène last November at FORGE: Harnessing Creative Arts for Reparatory Justice, a convening of artists, media, cultural workers, civil society, and government leaders across Africa, Europe and the U.S. to further the movement for reparations. The event took place in Accra, Ghana and featured Glocal Citizens Esther Armah, Makmid Kamara, and Nyamal Tutdeal as facilitators. In addition to meeting so many dynamic diasporans I was introduced to organizations like AfaLab, an international non-profit organization supporting racial justice movements in Europe and Africa through conducting research and developing policy and legal strategies to empower civil society actors and public and private institutions in their fight for justice and reparations. Currently the Policy and Advocacy Officer at AfaLab, Hélène is a committed activist and professional with a diverse background in human rights law, corporate social responsibility and international development.

Her activism began in her early teens with a youth organization focused on education, youth rights and inclusion. She then spent several years working for racial justice in France. Moving to the corporate sector, Hélène worked in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) in start-ups and technology companies. However, her passion for social impact led her to international organizations where she specialized in advocacy, project management and partnerships. Her work has focused on climate justice, peacebuilding, anti-corruption, women's empowerment, youth cooperation and inclusive societies across Europe, Sub-Saharan Africa and the MENA region.

Where to find Hélène?
AfaLab Policy Paper "Unlocking Climate Reparations: Key Obstacles in the Emergence of a Climate Reparations Framework"
Listen in on AfaLab’s Season 3 Podcast Future Perfect | futur antérieur on Climate Reparations
On LinkedIn
On Instagram

What’s Hélène reading?
REDD-Monitor

Other topics of interest:
[Brittany, France](linkhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brittany)
A bit about Guadeloupe
Who is Dr. Farhana Sultana?
About the Loss and Damage Fund
Center for International Environmental Law

Special Guest: Hélène Himmer.