Aleksandar Elezović

About me

My main approach is holistic activism rooted in Social Ecology. I like to take structures apart and see how they can be rebuilt in more sustainable and democratic ways. My activist experience and education are varied. I started my journey with Serbian Green Youth in Belgrade after which I spent a couple of years in the field of drama in education. Two years prior to my moving to France I was a member of zajedničko.org – a platform for the theory and practice of commons. I am currently a member of the Activist Handbook – a collaborative manual for activists. I recently shifted my activism to focus almost exclusively on intentional communities, cooperatives and economies of sharing. I am currently working on a development of a sustainable community model based on Holacracy, social ecology, criptocurrencies and cooperatives.

My skills

1) Holistic Activism I believe nothing can be achieved if the beneficiaries don't play a key part in planning and execution of the actions that aim to improve their ecosystems. The expertise is important but it is not a magic wand. It is only there to facilitate the understanding of our own environment and different approaches we can take based on these expert findings. The decision making on the other hand has to be done by our beneficiaries. 2) A Flexible Toolkit There is a plethora of useful online apps and tools that can create dynamic online cooperative spaces. But they are many and they are hard to get used to. I suggest we view these tools as something that should be implemented organically and not something to build around of and adapt to. 3) Adaptable Approach Knowing our values, having a clear vision and mission are enough to find a flexible trajectory for our activism. I can offer ways in which you can define mutual values, see how they construct a vision of a better world, and finally chose a strategic course of action. 4) Holacracy Horizontal cooperation, decentralized management and organizational governance make up holacracy, a radically different approaches to decision making within organizations. It is based on roles designed by the people who work in the same circles.

Why you should work with me

Most of the time, we organise the events first and invite the audience later. The first step to a successful event is doing research about the beneficiaries’ needs. The most inclusive way to organise an impactful and meaningful event is to view it from the angle of the beneficiaries. We have the tools, we have the data, but we cannot presume that we understand the context or the interests of our audiences.   Events are supposed to make something happen: a lecture, a round table, a discussion... these are all educational events. They do not inspire action. We need to maintain open communication with our beneficiaries, create networks with local organisations that share our values, and stay informed and flexible. We need to plan and execute direct actions with our local communities which means we must learn how to talk to them first.

My work experiences

My approach is interactive and grounded heavily in scripted improvisation. I personally struggle learning through theory so I make my training sessions interactive and create tasks and games for participants so that they can experience what I am talking about in real time. For example: when teaching people about the impact of communication I might put myself in the role of a TV station manager in the middle of a news broadcast. The participants have to spend 15-20 minutes acting as if they were ‘on air’ and have to produce several types of messages about their activities (an ad, a news report, an interview, and an ‘art piece’). As mentioned above, beforehand, I like to send participants some basic questions about what they expect from the training so I know how to prepare.

• The Activist Handbook - a collaborative manual for activists (2020)
  • coordination
  • content writing
  • translation
    Zajedničko.org – a platform for theory and practice of commons (2016-2018)
  • podcast production
  • research and writing
    BAZAART - a cultural association for research and education (2014-2018)
  • office coordination
  • organising conferences
  • training facilitation
    ZOS - Serbian Green Youth (2011-2015)
  • grassroot activism
• membership recruitment

My education & training

I dropped out of the Faculty of Economics at the University in Belgrade, Serbia. Since then, I have been self-educating and honing my skills ‘in the field’ through voluntary work. Self-education and informal education:

• UX Research (Skillshare, 2020)
• Holacracy (Library Genesis, 2020)
• Commons and Cooperatives (Zajedničko.org, 2016/17, Serbia)
• Drama in education for intercultural learning (BAZAART, 2014, Serbia)

My references

• https://www.activisthandbook.org/en/home – Activist Handbook, a collaborative manual
• https://zajednicko.org/mreznabibliografija/zajednicka-dobra-i-granice-kapitalizma – The Commons and Limits of Capitalism (Serbian): a compendium of articles on the role of commons in past societies and their potential for societies of the future.
• https://www.mixcloud.com/komonifikacija (Serbian) – a radio show and a podcast about political issues related to communities and commons