B4 - Building Belonging @ Berkeley and Beyond

A Dialogue Series

Background image: Aerial photograph of the campus with the Campanile.
Learning is a process where knowledge is presented to us, then shaped through understanding, discussion, and reflection.
Paulo Freire

These virtual dialogues are grounded in Paulo Freire’s concept of conscientização, or critical consciousness, which embodies a mindset of ‘reading the word and the world.’ The topics and speakers are meant to transgress boundaries (hooks, 1994) of how we envision and practice belonging by critically centering intersecting identities at UC Berkeley.

Building Belonging

Actively engaging in dialogue that challenges colonial and oppressive ideologies and practices by naming the forces that are oppressive and honoring critical forms of consciousness like mestiza consciousness (Anzaldúa, 1987), Indigenísta thought (Grande, 2004), and Black Feminist Thought (Hill-Collins, 1990). 

Series Goals

  • Develop a deeper understanding of structural and internalized oppression.

  • Engage in collaborative efforts to overcome and dismantle structural and internalized oppression. 

  • Develop transformative practitioners whose work centers on restoring shared community values, and equality and social justice. 

Previous Building Belonging at Berkeley and Beyond (B4) Dialogue Series recordings:

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B4 Dialogue Series: Safety
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B4 Dialogue Series: Beyond Land Acknowledgement
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B4 Dialogue Series: Disability Justice, Part II
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B4 Dialogue Series: Disability Justice