🎶This coming Sunday why not join Commonweal for a workshop on the role of music within social change movements?🎶 As part of HONK! Bradford, a festival of activist and community streetbands there will be a series of FREE workshops open to all. Link for more info and booking in comments below.

In the current political climate, the wealth of wisdom contained in the Collection is needed more than ever. Our Annual Report reflects a time of global uncertainty, increasing authoritarianism and rising right-wing populist politics, and what we are doing in response. bit.ly/4608qzR

Commonweal Ceilidh with the wonderful Ey Up Klezmer! Sunday 12th October 6.30-10.00pm Join us at the Saltaire Bar BD18 3HN(formerly the Shipley and District Social Club) for an evening of dancing and a buffet. Help us help activists build a better world! www.ticketsource.co.uk/commonweal/t...

CRAFTIVIST WORKSHOP! Wednesday 13th August 1.00pm - 2.30pm at Room 0.17 in the JB Priestley Library, ground floor, University of Bradford, Richmond Road, BD7 1DP. Hear about the history of craftivism, how it's a form of activism & have a go at crafting an olive branch as a symbol of peace.

The old and the new! We have just received a wonderful donation of books about South Asia, pre- and post- independence, along with other books about empire, colonialism and slavery. Thank you so much Barry Pavier.

There are so many wonderful pamphlets in the Commonweal Collection, covering a huge range of topics - from student protest to the animal liberation freedom struggle, from anarchists to feminists, from theory to practice. Drop us a message if you would like to help us with our summer stocktake 😊

Collection workdays - this summer! www.tickettailor.com/events/commo...

I've produced a reading guide in collaboration with @commonwealuk.bsky.social on the topic of Greenham Common Women's Peace Camp, site of Britain's largest antinuclear protest. You can find it, and other guides to books about peace activism, here: www.commonwealnonviolence.org/reading-lists

When we ask people what gives them the resolve to keep campaigning, people often refer to past protests that succeeded such as the campaign against the Poll Tax - a mass movement that defied the state and won. This, and many other books about successful campaigns, are available in the Collection💥

Banner making workshop at Commonweal this morning. Some great ideas for designs and motifs expressing participants' desire for peace and justice across the world. Thank you to the workshop leader Mussarat Rahman, and all the people who came and helped. #Craftivism #PeaceAndJustice

So interesting to visit the Working Class Movement Library in Salford, a radical library enabling working class people to learn from and interpret their history so they can apply a class perspective to contemporary politics and economics. Looking forward to future collaborations!

Lovely to have Bridget Sojourner visit Commonweal today. Bridget was a Peace Studies student in Bradford in the 1980s when she was a regular protestor at Menwith Hill US Air Base. She was delighted to know that there are still regular protests happening at the US base.

Read about how stories and poems in the Commonweal Collection address the barriers to peace and the denial processes in which we engage in a world filled with war, and help us navigate a world in conflict in this blog by volunteer Josie Mulligan. www.commonwealnonviolence.org/blogs/talkin...

💥New shelving being installed as the Collection continues to grow. Thank you to our wonderful colleagues at the JB Priestley Library for your help to make this happen.

💥Opportunity💥 Commonweal are looking for new Trustees who share our values and who are interested in the power of peace and nonviolence to change our world for the better. Fins out more: www.commonwealnonviolence.org/blogs/become... #SocialChange #Peace #Commonweal

Commonweal recently held its first nonviolent direct action reading group at The Peace Museum. Read the brilliant blog by Ludi Simpson, activist & group participant summarising session one. Can books inspire or just inform? Let us know your thoughts. www.commonwealnonviolence.org/blogs/what-r...

The conflict in the DRC is long running and complex. Join Bradford Congo Campaign and the Peace Society this Wednesday to find out more about the challenges faced during decades of war. And if you would like to read about the history of the conflict, do get in touch 📚

In the Leeds Sanctuary podcast Outreach Worker Emma talks about the Bristol bus boycott in response to black and brown people not being employed by the Bristol omnibus company. Read more about the boycott in Memoirs of a Black Englishman by Paul Stephenson, available to borrow from the Collection.

💥How have activists stood up to power and won? Listen to Outreach Worker Emma talking about the campaigns that have inspired her in her activist journey in this new podcast from Leeds Sanctuary. soundcloud.com/leedssanctua...

A peace camp at RAF Lakenheath is protesting plans to reintroduce US nuclear missiles to the UK. The right to protest and the history of campaigning for nuclear disarmament feature in many of our books, including Angie Zelter's most recent book - Activism for Life. www.youtube.com/watch?v=L8XY...

📌Our new NVDA Reading Group starts this Thursday at The Peace Museum and will consider how writers over the decades have assessed the success, failures and potential of nonviolent direct action. There are just a couple of places left - register here: www.tickettailor.com/events/commo...

📣 We are looking for new Trustees who share the Commonweal Trust’s values and who are interested in the power of peace and nonviolence to change our world for the better. www.commonwealnonviolence.org/blogs/become...

What are you reading today? K is reading about Chile for a book she is writing: "I am very surprised to find information about my country. There is a full collection of Chile Fights. The time when Pinochet was the president and how my own country became corrupt and the freedom struggle."

Join climate activist Ludi and others for our new Reading Group at @peacemuseumuk.bsky.social on 17 April. We'll be talking about how writers over the decades have assessed the success, failures and potential of nonviolent direct action and sharing texts that have inspired us. bit.ly/3RalgTK

We're delighted to be at the Northern Race Equality Conference today. Great conversations, fantastic speakers and a chance to talk to people about Commonweal and the Collection. Thank you to the Race Equality Network and others for organising such an inspiring and thought-provoking event.

"This book is a must-read for anyone who believes a better world is possible.” A new addition to the Collection, and a timely read for current times.

Commonweal Connections yesterday focused on Community of Care: How do we create a community of care within social change movements? We talked about the cycle of despair & action, the need to find people who share your perspective, the need for time out, to get away from it all & for moments of joy.

Inspiring time becoming a member of @commonwealuk.bsky.social today - now I’ve access to 14,000 books, pamphlets and journals on social change and activism!

Exciting to be adding new books to the Collection! These were donated and are now available at Commonweal. If you have any books you think would enhance the Collection do get in touch. We're especially looking for books on disability rights, and on peace building by authors from the Global South.

Wednesday 2nd April - Commonweal Connections: Lunchtime meet-up and Collection open afternoon - Community of Care Join us to talk about how we create a community of care within social change movements. We'll be exploring grief and fear, and how to not do the work of an oppressive system.

Nonviolent Direct Action (NVDA) Monthly Reading Group. Join us to consider how writers over the decades have assessed the success, failures and potential of nonviolent direct action. Starts 17 April, 2.00 - 4.00pm at The Peace Museum, Saltaire. Register here: www.tickettailor.com/events/commo...

C is for Christian Action, a journal in the Collection which looks at the social & political responsibilities of Christians. It encourages its followers to challenge the status quo and to address inequalities in society by learning of the ‘levers of power in society’. Read more: tinyurl.com/yc7w92a4

Donate now to the wonderful @peacemuseumuk.bsky.social and your donation will be doubled! The Peace Museum have been pledged £5,000 in match funding via the Big Give. For every £1 you donate, your support will be doubled during from 18th to 25th March. donate.biggive.org/campaign/a05...

Our first Commonweal Connections today focused on Women and Peace. Lots of good conversations inspired by the books and resources in the Collection, and of course by the people who came. Next session - Wednesday 13 May, on how we create a community of care within social change movements.

Tomorrow! join us to talk about the role of women in war and peace, or spend a bit of time volunteering in the Collection.

We were delighted to welcome Stephanie Urchick, president of Rotary International, to the Collection today. In Bradford, the Rotary Peace Centre hosts and supports ten fully-funded MA Rotary Peace Fellows from around the world, including Commonweal volunteer Precious!

Commonweal Connections - Women and Peace Wednesday 12 March 1.00 - 2.00 pm: Lunchtime meet-up, a chance to talk, network, inspire & be inspired. 2.00 - 7.00 pm: Collection open afternoon, drop in any time to have a closer look at the books and periodicals. buytickets.at/commonweal1/...

B is for Between the Lines, a Palestinian publication that originated during the Second Intifada. Over the next few weeks we'll be highlighting a different journal each week with an accompanying blog written by Commonweal volunteer Josie. www.commonwealnonviolence.org/periodical/b...

Outreach Worker Emma talks about her book of inspiration - all about love by bell hooks. Are there any books that you have read and felt inspired by? Are there books that have had an impact on your activism journey? www.youtube.com/shorts/NUHEc...

Our theme for March is women and peace - exploring the disproportionate impact of war, how those less likely to be directly involved in fighting are impacted and celebrating women’s roles in nonviolent social change. Today Emma & Precious asked students about women who have inspired them. #IWD2025

A is for The Abolitionist. Over the next few weeks we'll be highlighting a different journal every Wednesday to give an idea of the breadth of the Collection, with an accompanying blog written by Commonweal volunteer Josie. www.commonwealnonviolence.org/periodical/t...

Some wonderful books have been donated to the Collection by one of our Trustees including some great new fiction, books about disability rights and about race. If you have any books that you think would enhance the Collection, please get in touch.

How do we remain hopeful in the face of adversity? Today Emma was talking to students about where they find hope, and the role it can play in social change. #Hope

Why block airports and throw soup? Join the Commonweal Trust for a thought provoking talk and Q&A session exploring nonviolent direct action with Professor Rachel Julian and activists Mollie Somerville and Ludi Simpson. Book FREE tickets here: app.tickettailor.com/events/commo... Tues 11 Feb 5-6:30

Lots of lovely conversations with people at our Open Day yesterday about the activists who inspired them to campaign for change and how we can support a new generation of activists to be take up the baton. Thank you to all those who came.

Call in and say hello tomorrow! We'll be in the Collection all day from 10.00am to 7.00pm and would love to see you there.

At the Re Freshers Fair, talking with students about how nonviolent activists have stood up to power and won - and how to find out more from the books and resources in the Commonweal Collection. #ChangeTheWorld

Commonweal will be at the Re Freshers Fair tomorrow 15th January, talking to students about the Collection and events. If you're around, come say hello 👀

📣Who inspires you? Who made you want to change the world? Who has made a difference? Who should we be celebrating? Let's recognise activists, uncovering hidden voices past and present. If you would like to find out more about the activists pictured, we have books about them all in the Collection.

Drop in at Commonweal on Wednesday 22nd January 10.00am - 7.00pm to become a member, have a look around the Collection and meet staff and trustees and others working for social change. JB Priestley Library, University of Bradford BD7 1DP