From Roles to Ripples: Deepa Iyer on Ecosystems, Solidarity & Building Movements

In this soulful and practical conversation, Nikki sits down with Deepa Iyer — author of Social Change Now, host of the Solidarity Is This podcast, and Senior Director at the Building Movement Project — to explore how real change happens when we see our work as an ecosystem of interdependent roles.

We unpack the 10 roles from Deepa’s framework (Visionaries, Builders, Disruptors, Caregivers, Experimenters, Weavers, Storytellers, Healers, Guides, Frontline Responders) and how teams, networks, and even funders can map their strengths and gaps to move from overwhelm to agency.

Deepa shares moving classroom stories from her children’s picture book We Are the Builders and offers grounded guidance for practising solidarity as a verb — including assessing risk, building the “muscle” of action, and creating communities of shared safety and belonging.

Listen for:

• How to use the 10 social change roles to energise your team and avoid burnout/boredom cycles.
• Practical ways disruptors, builders, experimenters and caregivers work together (and why no single role can “win” alone).
• A simple mapping exercise to spot role imbalances (e.g., too many builders, not enough storytellers) and gendered patterns of visibility.
• Why solidarity is iterative and how to take principled risks with your community at your back.

Learn more and connect with Deepa

• Visit Deepa’s solidarity hub: Solidarity Is – https://solidarityis.org
• Learn more about the Building Movement Project – https://buildingmovement.org
• Listen to the Solidarity Is This Podcast - https://www.solidarityis.org/podcast
• Check out Deepa’s work & books – https://deepaiyer.com