County Health Rankings & Roadmaps’ Post

The idea that civil society organizations should be involved in wealth creation is still confusing to many in the civil society sector, particularly in the Caribbean. The idea and practice of community wealth creation is certainly not new. However, the fact that many still believe that civil society organizations should not make profit or create wealth confirms the extent to which we have been brainwashed by colonial/imperial forces and current elites. As the great Bob Marley said in Redemption Song (Bob Marley and the Wailers): "Emancipate yourselves from mental slavery None but ourselves can free our minds". The movement in the US continues to grow. https://lnkd.in/dTWA8GJY #justtransition #cooperatives #communityeconomicdevelopment #economicjustice #sustainablesociety #community #socialandsolaridityeconomy

👥 Can ordinary citizens solve our toughest problems, even in the 🇺🇸 USA? "Putting power in the hands of citizen assemblies is a popular idea in Europe. It hasn’t found nearly as much traction in the United States, but advocates hope it can be a salve for the country’s toxic division... Assemblies can 'create the conditions to overcome polarization and strengthen societal cohesion,' says Claudia Chwalisz, founder and chief executive of DemocracyNext. Chwalisz hails these gatherings as ways to “create the democratic spaces for everyday people to grapple with the complexity of policy issues, listen to one another, and find common ground.” Read this in-depth report on the Deschutes Civic Assembly from George Anders and The Chronicle of Philanthropy:

The latest issue of Local Development & Society focuses on an incredibly important topic for institutional philanthropy - place-based grantmaking. There is far too little research guidance on this form of philanthropic practice, but the articles in this issue help fill this void.

A quarter century ago, American political scientist Robert D. Putnam diagnosed our country's failing civic health. In his book, Bowling Alone, he recorded the major decline of social clubs and social engagement, the growth of isolation, and divides of all kinds. In a conversation with Eric Liu, CEO of Citizen University, and fellow graduate school scholar, Robert D. Putnam, they discussed Robert's explorations of a civic revival, examples of civic emergences in the past, and what we can learn to help restore faith in our democracy and each other. Read The Chronicle of Philanthropy article by Drew Lindsay or listen to Eric and Robert's conversation in full: https://lnkd.in/eGbiDKuz

Looking forward to the systemic changes that are established and reinforced beyond 2028 as a result of this resource being utilized in the work committed to community capacity building initiatives across sectors. https://lnkd.in/g8G9i534

DEI has been at the center of community rec centers’ missions for years and allows the industry to see local communities through a different lens. But how can YMCAs, JCCs and community rec centers create real, impactful change versus just adding a blanket statement to their homepage? Read here the insight from industry leaders on the issue: https://hubs.la/Q02nHfvl0

“There’s so many issues that are happening to us locally. And when we feel that we’re not being heard as communities, when we feel that the local issues that we have are not being addressed… we lose trust in institutions and we also start to lose trust in each other.” Civic engagement at the local level is critical to building system-wide change. Interesting look at what Trust for Civic Life is doing to bridge the gap.

The Equity, Engagement, and Evaluation program at CETE, in partnership with organizations like the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce and Ohio Head Start Association, allows us to offer strategic planning, logic model development, and comprehensive evaluations tailored to benefit our educators and youth. Equity, diversity, and inclusion are integral to our work, and we work to center the needs and voices of the communities we serve, through: 🤝 Equity and Inclusion: Providing equal access to opportunities and resources. 💪🏾 Empowerment: Creating clear access to opportunities for marginalized groups. 🏘️ Community Strengthening: Fostering an inclusive, resilient society. https://lnkd.in/dB5vHnng

Early on in my role here at Committee for a Better New Orleans I had so many ideas I couldn’t see straight. I took to writing every idea on a post-it and sticking them up on a whiteboard to get them out of my head. I went through them this week and was humbled to find so many that we’ve done in the last 3 years— Public Official Speed Dating, Budget Storytime, Art as civic engagement, and my proudest accomplishment: ”Block Parties with a purpose” We’ve held 6 block parties & counting, and debuted our signature Better New Orleans Block Party in St Roch this year. On the most perfect spring day, we got 350 people together from across the city for live music, good food and good times, and while we were at it; we: 🌳 Gave away 50 trees, 🛍️ Supported 8 local businesses; 🗳️ Registered a dozen voters; 🚌 Collected 70 transit rider surveys for our project to revamp New Orleans bus stops, 📈 Educated hundreds of people about the City budget, 🩺 Gave away free health screenings, 🧑🏽🎓 Connected youth with pre-college activities 🎉 and engaged hundreds of people in housing, street safety, justice, and climate issues in our city with partner organizations. It took longer than I’d have liked, and the path to get here was harder than I could have imagined, but I’ve learned this — that people are drawn to new ideas. And when you get people together, powerful things can happen. Low-turnout meetings are the norm for civic engagement, but we have so many better ways to meet people at our fingertips. I’ve dedicated my tenure at CBNO to this question: What if we tried something else? In the past 3 years, we’ve dreamed up so many joyful, meaningful, and yes, educational events that motivate communities from the heart. We couldn’t have done these events without the flexibility to try out new ideas, play, and dream together. GiveNOLA day gives a rare opportunity for us in the nonprofit world to dream. It provides the unrestricted funding we need to try out new things, fail, test ideas and go after unrealized opportunities. I hope you’ll join me in supporting some of the hard working community groups making the city better today, and would be delighted if you’d join our cause. Givenola.org/cbno

I had the privilege of addressing youths in Matero and here are some points as to why Youth Engagement is important. Youth engagement is critically important for several reasons: - Fresh Perspectives and Innovation: Young people bring new ideas, creativity, and fresh perspectives to societal issues and challenges. Their innovative thinking can lead to novel solutions that benefit communities and society as a whole. - Empowerment and Participation: Engaging youth empowers them to actively participate in decision-making processes that affect their lives and futures. This fosters a sense of ownership and responsibility towards their communities. - Building Civic Responsibility: Youth engagement helps in cultivating civic responsibility and a sense of duty towards society. When young people are involved in community service, volunteering, and advocacy, they develop a deeper understanding of social issues and the importance of contributing positively to society.