DrawHistory

"To have a house like DrawHistory for Counterbrace, the social research and learning practice I’ve relaunched, would have always been enough for me. As a lone social researcher and community educator for so long, I quickly realised there was so much I couldn't do—I needed to find a place amongst like minded people.

To then find a team like DH be so invested in not just helping me make it a reality, but so generously willing and able to help nurture it, is what makes DrawHistory a home.

On top of all of that, to then be able to create the room for others to come and experience what our home feels like, via our first-ever Counterbrace Live goes beyond anything I ever thought was possible.

For every ounce of gratitude I feel, I selfishly have twice as much excitement for what lies ahead."

— Kosta Lucas, Head of Community Practice

Less than 1 week to go! Come down to The Bird next Tuesday the 11th @ 6

Join us for Counterbrace Live, where we discuss the topic Race vs Ethnicity, with special guest Dr Farida Fozdar from Curtin University and our very own Kosta Lucas, our Head of Community Practice.

✷ Date: Tuesday October 11th
✷ Time: 6:30pm
✷ Venue: The Bird $10

Link to tix in bio.

Counterbrace Live is a series of events hosted by Counterbrace, a new social research lab within .history. At Counterbrace Live, we seek to spark purposeful and fearless conversation, with a view to better understanding ourselves, and each other—because the more we understand, the more we can be understanding.

We get to share the love today and are incredibly happy to announce that one of our talented humans, Abi Coldrey, has been promoted to Senior Designer!

Joining us at the onset of the pandemic, Abi has grown into a fierce thought partner — bringing boundless creativity and advocacy for impactful work with organizations such as Karitane, Multicultural NSW, and Kin Advocacy.

Congrats, Abi (and thanks for keeping our playlists interesting)!

The expectations and variety of roles that social media influencers play have increased exponentially, mirrored by increasing scrutiny and policing of how their behaviour plays out amongst their communities and followers.

The shifting expectations of followers on influencers has prompted a reappraisal of the status quo by those such as Lillian Ahenkan, AKA FlexMami .mami.

We speak with Lil about how she grew into becoming a social media influencer, as well as her drive to shift the goalposts through the creation of follower-funded curated communities. We explore how the popularity and abundance of social media content has led to this situation and how some influencers are evolving by leaving existing social media platforms in pursuit of more flexible and transparent approaches.

Link in bio!

Photography .store

Young voices really matter. But too often, young Australians and the things they care about go unheard by the leaders who represent them.

If you're a young Australian between 14-24, we want to hear from you. Take 's Youth Survey today—it closes this week! Link in bio.

Undesign is back with Season 2!

After a period of significant global change and flux, coinciding with the pandemic, it’s often said that we’re all thirsty for more precedented times. In Season 2, we dive headlong into examining the ways people have been endlessly evolving and adapting, in response to the novel circumstances the world presents.

This time, we talk with , , .Mami, and more. We uncover the roles of technology as both friend and foe in hastening and helping in some of these unanticipated challenges, as well as exploring opportunities facing humanity across areas such as online dating, gaming and violence prevention, gender justice, and modern morality. With a dash of levity, our very own Host and Head of Community Practice, Kosta Lucas, and his guests provide potential solutions for curious people engaged in undesigning some of life’s most troubling conundrums.

Episode 1 with Dr Lauren Rosewarne from is out now! New episodes drop every Tuesday. Check it out on Spotify, Google, Apple, and other podcast platforms. Link in bio.

Season 2 of is scheduled to drop in a few weeks! While you’re waiting, join host Kosta Lucas with DrawHistory founders Angel Chen and Jeffrey Effendi while they discuss what inspired the podcast, insights from behind the scenes, as well as opportunities and pitfalls for aspiring podcasters seeking to make change in the world around them.

What does responsible online behaviour look like during times where a seemingly endless stream of bad news takes up our newsfeeds?

At DrawHistory, we advocate for being community members who look out for each other. We also advocate for giving people the space to look after themselves too. There was a time when engaged community members had to look for causes to apply their efforts. Now, with an inundation of concerns, it seems you either get overwhelmed, or switch off to it altogether.

Here are some thoughts on navigating the current state of the world and staying engaged without burning out.

Tip #1:
It’s okay not to engage with every cause or crisis. This doesn't mean you don't care or that you're being a bad ally. It's impossible to be equally dedicated to everything. Choose what really moves you and focus your energy on that.

Tip #2:
Switch off news notifications. Schedule your news intake for certain periods of the day, so it’s not constantly taking you out of your day. Be sure to take time off socials and news if you need it! Free up brain space for the things that bring you joy and let your friends know when you need some time out from conversations about certain topics.

Tip #3:
Focus on the things you can control, like the well-being of yourself and those around you. Acts of support that you can witness and be part of help affirm our sense of selves and community.

Tip #4:
If you're not okay, talk about it. Whether it’s to a trusted friend or family member or a mental health professional (such as ), asking for help when you need it is one of the best things you can do!

International Women’s Day inspired conversations around this year’s theme of “ .” Within the DrawHistory team, we shared what breaking the bias means to us to listen and learn from different perspectives.

The team, a majority of which are women (over 70% of us!), shared some of their thoughts over a roundtable discussion. Here’s what some of these brilliant humans said about breaking the bias.