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consulting for social change
ABOUT US
We are a consulting agency with a social conscience. Our mission is to support organisations and communities who are working towards positive and sustainable social change.
Most of our past experience has been in the mental health, addiction, disability and human rights sectors - however we are interested in working with organisations in any field. We have experience working successfully with both government agencies and non-government organisations.
We provide a wide range of services, that are described further on our services page. Our services support organisations to improve the quality of their current operations, and to look at what they can achieve in the future, to contribute to long-term social change.
Collaborative
Our work is varied. We work with a range of organisations, in different sectors, providing a range of services. However in all of our work we take a consistent approach, and we are guided by our four diamond principles:
Collaborative
We believe that social change is complex, and requires input from multiple people/organisations. We focus on enabling such collaboration - we identify opportunities for working together, engage with relevant networks and share information/resources where appropriate.
Human rights-based
We believe that human rights are universal, and that social change is required in order for all people to enjoy their human rights. All of our work is based in a human rights framework - from what projects we take on, to the advice we provide, and how we work with others.
Analytical
We analyse and critique the information provided to us, and provide high quality analysis to our clients. We consider any existing relevant evidence when providing advice.
New
We bring new ideas to our clients wherever possible, and have a strong focus on innovation. We believe that, in some areas, organisations will need to work very differently in the future in order to be sustainable and achieve social change.
OUR APPROACH
OUR name
changem - pronounced chan-gem - was created by combining multiple concepts that reflect who we are, and how we work.
"Change" reflects our core focus on working with organisations who are contributing towards positive social change.
"Gem" is a reference to the name of our founder, Gemma Griffin. We also believe that a valuable part of a consultant role is to provide "gems" of advice that help organisations to move forward - and we aim to provide these to all of our clients.
"Chan" is an acronym of our guiding principles (Collaborative, Human rights-based, Analytical, New). Chan is also the mandarin word for a school of Buddhism that informs our way of working. In English-speaking countries this type of Buddhism is often referred to by its Japanese name - "zen". We apply zen principles in how we undertake and reflect on our work. We are particularly interested in the application of zen principles to change, and to developing communities that promote wellbeing for all.
