Everybody's an activist today. This site will make you a better one.
Hey :). I’m Mehran Khalili, and I’ve worked on over a hundred campaigns as a grassroots organiser, political consultant and corporate comms person.
Subvrt brings together what I’ve learned so far on how to confront power and make change happen. It’s a free, weekly newsletter and website, sometimes podcast interviews and video guides, with tips and tactics you can use right now.
There's no BS or moralising here. My take on activism is simple, practical, and based on what gets a result. It draws on project management and marketing, but also psychology, culture and even meditation.
Whether you want to build a volunteer-powered international campaign, or just be more persuasive in standing up for what you believe in. Whether you’re impact-curious or a full-on shark… Subvrt is for you (and if you find it isn't, unsubscribe with one click).
About the newsletter
Season Two of this newsletter concluded on December 6, 2021. I explored topics like:
- How governments could increase COVID vaccination rates (7 min read)
- Confronting ideological bias (10 min read)
- Hacking for media coverage (7 min read)
- Selling in radical proposals (5 min read)
- Finding the right skillsets for campaigning (5 min read)
- Taking better team decisions (5 min read)
- Being self-critical (5 min read)
- Moving from outrage to impact (4 min read)
- Reining in ego (7 min read)
- Leveraging typography (5 min read)
- An interview on fixing climate activism (8 min read)
- Reaching the working class (7 min read) and
- Targeting for your cause (4 min read)
The next edition will be out on Thursday, January 13, 2022.
A bit about me
Co-founded the political consultancy Clearcase. Adviser to the Democracy In Europe Movement (DiEM25); coordinator of the Campaign Accelerator programme. I also run community projects and take black-and-white photos.
Previously: Management consultant at Andersen; PR adviser to tech companies (Philips, Xerox and Novell), based in London.
Async, remote-first and working out of Crete, Greece.