Event

Update on leadership transitions within Delete Nothing

July 12, 2023
- Mishaari Weerabangsa

Dear friends and supporters of Delete Nothing,

We are writing to share an important update about Delete Nothing, an initiative that was co-created 5 years ago and is slowly but surely contributing to feminist engagements with technology and digital justice in Sri Lanka, South Asia and beyond. Some of our milestones over the last 5 years have been:

  1. The launch and socialisation of the Delete Nothing trilingual documentation tool;
  2. The creation and sharing of spaces and knowledge on feminist approaches to technology and OGBV;
  3. The launch and implementation of Prathya, a trilingual ecosystem of support for survivors of OGBV, in collaboration with Hashtag Generation;
  4. Continued financial support from feminist funds

The co-creators of Delete Nothing — Jayanthi Kuru-Utumpala, Sachini Perera, and Zainab Ibrahim — created, scaled up and sustained the initiative over the last 5 years, in mostly a voluntary capacity. As the scope and work of Delete Nothing has become wider, deeper and more defined, however, it has also become evident that Delete Nothing requires a more structured team, and a time commitment beyond voluntary hours. Therefore, the co-creators will be stepping out to make space for a new structure, governance, and feminist energy for Delete Nothing. They will continue to be part of the local, regional and global feminist movements in their respective capacities:

  1. Jayanthi as Chairperson of the Boards of Women and Media Collective and the International Centre for Ethnic Studies, in Sri Lanka; former Chairperson and Committee Member of the Sexual Harassment Complaints Committee of the Sri Lanka National Olympic Committee; board member of the Women’s Resource Centre in Kurunegala, Sri Lanka, and trustee of UK-based charity Women of the World Foundation;
  2. Sachini as a member and Executive Coordinator of Realising Sexual and Reproductive Justice (RESURJ), Co-Chair of the steering group of the Alliance for Feminist Movements, and advisor to Nebula Fund and the W7;
  3. Zainab as Feminist Knowledge, Learning and Publications Officer for the Asia Pacific Forum for Women, Law, and Development (APWLD), core group member of SANGAT South Asian Feminist Network, and trustee of The Collective for Historical Dialogue and Memory in Sri Lanka.

They will also continue to support the new team of Delete Nothing, with the specific means of support to be defined by the outgoing and incoming teams. 

Delete Nothing will now move forward with a structure of two young feminists taking up the roles of Co-Leads, and we are thrilled to introduce them:

  1. Misha’ari Weerabangsa as Co-Lead, Programmes
    Misha’ari is a queer feminist social psychologist interested in intergroup dynamics, social justice and inequality, gender and sexuality, and the ways in which these processes manifest on the internet and social media. Misha’ari holds a PhD in Psychology from the University of Nottingham and worked as a sub-editor, lecturer, and academic administrator, prior to taking on the role of full-time Coordinator at Delete Nothing in 2022.
  2. Priskila Arulpragasam as Co-Lead, Operations
    Priskila is a social worker with extensive experience volunteering and working on issues related to gender and sexual and reproductive health rights in Sri Lanka, including with UNFPA Sri Lanka and United Nations Volunteers Sri Lanka. She holds a Bachelor of Social Work from the National Institute of Social Development, Sri Lanka, and is completing a PG.Dip in Gender Studies at the University of Iceland. She also serves as the Director for Organisational Development and Administration with Youth Advocacy Network Sri Lanka (YANSL) in a voluntary capacity.

Together, they will lead the next chapter of Delete Nothing, and we appreciate your continued support, collaboration, and solidarity with them, just as you have demonstrated for the outgoing team. Misha’ari and Priskila can be contacted at:

  1. mishaari.weerabangsa@gmail.com
  2. priskilaarulpragasam94@gmail.com
  3. deletenothingcontact@gmail.com

Watch this space for updates from Delete Nothing!

In solidarity,

Jayanthi, Misha’ari, Priskila, Sachini, & Zainab

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