CIVICUS Board Elections 2022

Abigail Freeman

Dylan Mathews

My name is Dylan Mathews, and I am the CEO of Peace Direct, an UK based international NGO that aims to shift power and resources to locally-led civil society organisations working in some of the most conflict affected countries worldwide. I am passionate about the role of civil society in supporting vibrant, peaceful and democratic societies, and my passion for supporting civil society efforts brought me to Peace Direct in 2015, an organisation that has been championing this cause for 20 years. I am particularly passionate about tackling the power imbalances and structural problems in the system that prevent local civil society from playing a more active role in their contexts, including the problem of structural racism, which led Peace Direct to release the report 'Time to Decolonise Aid' in 2021.  ​​

I have spent 20 years working in the international development, humanitarian and peacebuilding sectors, and I speak regularly on Decolonising the sector around the world. I have a MSc in International Development Studies, a Master of Business Administration (MBA) and am now studying for a MSc in Systems Thinking. I have served on various Boards for almost 20 years, most recently as the Chair and Vice Chair of the Alliance for Peacebuilding, one of the largest membership-based peacebuilding organisations in the world.

I would be honoured to serve on the CIVICUS Board as I believe passionately in its mission and feel that I have a lot to offer in terms of governance, management experience and strategy. I also believe that CIVICUS is one of the most important civil society networks in the world and plays a critically important role in championing civil society organisations, when they are under such threat worldwide.

  1. My favorite quote:

I have too many to mention! But the ones I return to most often is 'activism is my rent for living on this planet' by Alice Walker, and '"darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that" by Martin Luther King.

  1. What skills are you proud of:

The skill I am most interested to learn, and one that I am exploring right now is systems thinking. Understanding relational thinking, embracing uncertainty and managing complexity are all important facets of systems thinking, and are critical in our increasingly interdependent world.

  1. Vision for Civil Society:

My vision for civil society is that it is viewed by all governments, donors and communities as a vital and indispensable foundation for healthy, vibrant and peaceful societies worldwide.

  1. Lessons Learned from Failure:

I have learnt so many lessons from failures! In particular I have learned never to give up, to continue to experiment and embrace failure and that failure is a richer source of learning than success. Treat failure like an unwelcome visitor and you may never grow. Treat failure like an aunt or uncle who visits from time to time to share their wisdom with you, and you may develop in ways you never imagined.

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