Lauren's story
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I would advise anyone not to be intimidated by the challenge of it. It’s a fantastic opportunity to grow your skillset and your knowledge.” lauren banham
International Dvelopment BA
“I founded Legal Pact for the Future in March 2023 when I was in my first year. I’d worked in UN spaces for a few years and I was aware that we shared the same frustrations about the lack of enforcement which made it hard for things to come to fruition.
We wanted to focus on enforceable rights and building the judicial architecture to support these. I’d seen from other organisations like Stop Ecocide International and Rights for Nature that the law can mirror and catalyse change, so that was what inspired us. We want to see a redistribution of human rights among the regional courts, the Inter-American Court of Human Rights and the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights to enable everyone to have equal access to the law.
I came to Sussex after a chance conversation. I began working with Peace Child International at the age of 17 and met Sir Richard Jolly, who had been the second Director of the Institute of Development Studies in the 1970s. I was doing some work relating to the United Nations’ 75th anniversary when he asked what I was thinking of studying. I mentioned international development, and he responded: “So, are you going to Sussex?” I hadn’t considered Sussex before then but when the time came to look at options, it was a no-brainer.
I almost didn't attend that event. I had struggled with my mental health - I felt underprepared and had a panic attack. But if I hadn't gone, my life would look completely different now.
When I first came to Sussex, I found writing assignments really hard, but now I have found my own style and enjoy writing. I would advise anyone not to be intimidated by the challenge - it’s a fantastic opportunity to grow your skillset and your knowledge. I hope that I have made the most of having such high-quality teaching, and I’m really going to miss being at Sussex.
The module I studied in my first year with Dr Katherine Kruger on social justice, leadership and organising was a fantastic opportunity to explore both the practical side and theory side of what I was already working on, along with other social justice movements. My tutors did a really good job of helping us to feel part of the Brighton community, especially when we did a citizens' assembly as a group, which gave us a real-life understanding of world issues.
When I took Will Lock's second year module on social culture, I felt incredibly validated by much of what he was saying: it was what I had been thinking, but didn’t have the academic basis at that point to back it up. I'm passionate about offering a civil society perspective of what needs to be done, so I’d been working to expand the range of perspectives that feed into the UN. However, many of the power dynamics I’d experienced were reflected in the module that Will was teaching. Working with the UN can feel like you’re pushing on a brick wall at times, but we need to make sure that it properly represents what people think and feel.
The other most valuable skill I’ve gained is an understanding of colonial legacy. Everyone who works in these spaces should understand the history of colonialism and its ongoing impact. It can be hard to de-centre these perspectives if you don’t understand where they come from.
I’ll soon be taking up a new role as a political strategist for Stop Ecocide International, and I wouldn’t have had the insights I’ve been able to provide without studying at Sussex and being able to think about things in a different way. I have a better understanding of global power dynamics and historical imbalances of power, and how to consider the perspectives that shape how they operate.
It can be very demoralising to understand where humanity has gone so wrong, but critical hope comes from understanding these issues and being able to make changes. You start from what you want to see in the world, and go from there.”