Purpose First Event series - Part 4: Sustainable Cities and Communities

What are businesses, founders and the public sector doing to ensure we have sustainable cities and communities which thrive in Islington and beyond? What opportunities are there to work or start businesses that tackle these issues? How can the ecosystem players work together?

You can expect an hour's panel discussion on our speaker's career journeys and their advice and perspectives on Purpose-first Sustainable Cities and Communities

This event's panel includes:

Jess Thompson, Founder and CEO of Migrateful

Jess Thompson, prior to setting up Migrateful, studied abroad in Mexico, where she learnt about the causes of the global migrant crisis being rooted in the legacy of colonialism and the inequalities of the capitalist global economy. She then spent two and a half years working on the front line to support migrants and refugees in Ceuta, Dunkirk, and London. In 2017 she completed the Year Here Fellowship which gave her the training and network to set up Migrateful. She was featured on the 2020 Forbes 30 Under 30 List and also the 2020 Women of the Year List in recognition of her achievement!

Olu Alake, Chief Executive Officer of The Peel Institute

Olu Alake is Chief Executive Officer of The Peel Institute, a community development organization based in Clerkenwell, London, that has been connecting communities for over 100 years.

He has held senior management and trustee positions for several organisations working at the intersection of culture, social justice and human rights, including London Marathon Charitable Trust, Arts Council England, and Equality & Human Rights Commission. As a freelance consultant, he has developed and delivered cultural policy plans and programmes, diversity in arts and heritage initiatives, and project reviews for clients across Europe, the Caribbean and Africa. 

Olu is currently the Chair of the Programme Advisory Committee of the International Federation of Arts Councils & Cultural Agencies (IFACCA)'s 2022 Global Summit. He is also a trustee of The Reader Organisation and the Octopus Network. 

Christofi Christou, Inclusive Economy Manager at Peabody

Christofi is responsible for leading the Economic Inclusion approach across the Peabody Foundation, working to facilitate programmes that support improved economic outcomes across enterprise, employment, training, skills, new business and social value for Peabody residents and the communities in which they reside.

This series of in-person panel events will explore the variety of ways that we can make a living whilst creating social impact and address the problems that matter to us.

We’ll hear from start-up founders, corporate employees and civil service personnel who’ve all worked with purpose to create social impact in their areas. We’ll hear about the guest’s personal journeys; their driving purpose, their decisions, their insights and advice, before opening the floor to a Q&A and networking.

Find out about the other events in this series here