Steve Peake 07766 566691 (UK) 0278918422 (Ghana) This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Education

1988-91           London School of Economics, Houghton Street, London WC2A

BSc (Econ) International Relations, awarded Upper Second.

Other activities include :

• Social Secretary of Carr-Saunders Hall of Residence, promoting parties and other multicultural events
• Regular college DJ and multi-cultural events promoter
• President  - European Society

1991-93           London School of Economics.

MA International History, focusing on the decolonisation of the British Empire, anti-colonial African nationalism and the politics of culture, identity and ethnicity in Europe and Africa.

Dissertation : The Cultural Legacy of Decolonisation in Ghana, 1952-58.

Experience

1991                National Democratic Institute for International Affairs, Washington DC.

Public Relations Intern for a human rights organisation specialising in election monitoring and democratic development in developing countries, responsible for publicising the Institute to the with press and Houses of Congress.

1992                Donald Anderson MP, Labour Front Bench Spokesperson on Foreign Affairs with responsibility for Eastern Europe and Africa - Research Assistant.

1994                The Panafest, Capecoast, Ghana

Attending the academic colloquium at the ’94 Panafest provided me with a valuable education in the principles of the Pan-Africanist cultural and political agenda. I have since visited Ghana on ten other occasions, gaining further understanding of Africa and her people and the role of traditional culture, music and dance, particularly in urban areas.

1995-97           EcoTrip, the DIY Cultural Caravan

Founder, Artistic Coordinator, Events Promoter and Treasurer for a collective of cultural and environmental activists, raising awareness of issues of local cultural, social and  environmental empowerment at clubs, festivals and the local community of Brixton. I developed excellent contacts in the field of cultural education, acquiring skills and experience in the marketing and administration of an arts and cultural education project.  

1995-               Kakatsitsi, Master Drummers from Ghana

Manager, organising and managing the successful 1996, ’99, 2000 and 2001 UK tours and the aborted 1997&98 tours, responsible for handling all aspects of the marketing and management of the group.

1997-               Indigenous People, a cultural and environmental education charity raising awareness of the United Nations Local Agenda 21 through creative media, working with traditional music and dance companies from Africa, Australia and elsewhere, highlighting the importance of preserving global bio-cultural diversity and reappraising notions of progress and development. The organization has worked with a large number of partners throughout the UK and has developed excellent links with the movement for global social justice, working with the Drop the Debt campaign at the 2001 G8 summit in Genoa and with the Make Poverty History Campaign in Edinburgh 2005, where Kakatsitsi led the march around the city.

1997-8             Freelance Journalist, writing on issues relating to African, alternative and dance culture and Green/protest politics for the Big Issue, West Africa, The Voice, Dream Creation and Mixmag magazines.

2001-02           Liquid Spiral Collective - an underground ‘Conscious Partying’ organisation organizing multimedia arts installations in underground premises in London, attracting in excess of 2,000people.

2002-2005       The Synergy Project - founder and co-director.

An umbrella organisation seeking to promote links between non-governmental organisations and artists, producers and promoters working on the alternative festival and clubs scene.

Room Coordinator - programming an indigenous and world music space including all aspects of production management.

Executive Committee member - responsible for financial planning, budgeting, marketing, press and public relations, venue liaison and organisational development.

2005-               The Synergy Centre – founder and co-director

The Synergy Centre is a community arts centre in Camberwell with a strong creative and environment ethos. Its general purpose is to provide facilities for the local community as well as offering work-based learning opportunities in a number of different areas.

2010-               Act for Change, Jamestown, Accra, Ghana – a member of and pro bono consultant to a group of young theatre performers seeking to bring about behavioural change in a deprived community through the use of participatory theatre.