Have you ever been in a situation where you come together with others to try and solve a big social problem, and the conversation keeps going in circles because of misunderstandings or the different interests that surface? I found myself in these situations a lot, often asking myself the same question:
“Are we even talking about the same thing?”
It makes sense though; social change instigators are often comprised of smart, passionate, deeply committed individuals that care about enormous, complex issues, like extremism or climate change, that come equipped with their own reasons, pressures and understandings to the problem-solving table. And in cases where these issues feel pressing, getting on the same page often feels like a luxury.
It’s not anyone’s fault, but I felt strongly about addressing this gap. That is why I started my consultancy, SynqUp, in November 2016.
As SynqUp, I devoted my life to creating that space for people to enrich their collective understanding, and hence their collective mission, to solve problems that affect some of the more vulnerable members of our communities. And I can honestly say that by holding that space for others to explore the issues they are trying to solve, I saw some amazing things happen: increased resolve to continue, increased confidence to navigate the unknown, and increased desire to do more. To go further than what I, as one man, could provide. Once I realised this, I knew it was time to evolve: both in scale and ambition.
This is why SynqUp became Counterbrace – a social research and learning lab devoted to investigating and evolving the multitude of unjust systems holding people back.
While there will always be a space for getting on the same page, Counterbrace is about helping people go where they don’t feel they can in order to unlock meaningful progress: through deep social research, robust community engagement, program and learning design and strategy.
And this is why DrawHistory was the natural home for Counterbrace – a social change agency whose talents and commitment to reframing social issues and surfacing important stories through communications is bar-none. As an agency, DrawHistory prides itself on finding progress by refusing to play things safe; and Counterbrace is the extension and evolution of that mission.
Take a look at Counterbrace to see just how this evolution looks – in what we have done and in what we can do with you.
ABOUT COUNTERBRACE
Counterbrace is a social research lab. A focused division within DrawHistory, Counterbrace is a social research lab that goes where others won’t to investigate and evolve the unjust systems holding society back.
About Kosta Lucas
Kosta Lucas is a researcher, practitioner and writer in the field of preventing and countering violent extremism in Australia and abroad. He is the Head of Community Practice at DrawHistory, a design and strategy agency for social impact initiatives where he leads their social research division and hosts Undesign, their podcast. To date, Kosta has amassed over 10 years of experience in policy, research, community service and private industry roles. Kosta is also a member of the inaugural Independent Advisory Committee for the Global Internet Counter-Terrorism Forum, where he is currently one of the sole Australian civil society representatives advising on how social media companies can manage extremist use of their platforms.
