“The energy and culture of care that I felt from the group, even as a witness, was deeply moving and emotional. I felt connected both to people I had met and worked with and to new faces, simply because of a shared intention and commitment to the work of the project. And that spirit of care and empathy was an incredible gift and reminder! What strikes me as most important to share about this work is the power that comes from being in connection with people who share commitments across geographical space. I was moved by how much was catalyzed in people through the simple act of being able to come together–whether it was tangible skills and resources or an increase in camaraderie. Even though now I live in an urban environment, I think we have a lot to learn from this...it can be so easy to center my own needs and organization’s mission, but so much more powerful to get together with others and see what we can share. My last thought has to do with what I hope the project could consider as it looks at itself from other perspectives–the Collective Impact framework in particular. Two of the authors of the original Stanford Social Innovation Review article that established the Collective Impact framework recently revisited it after reflecting that ‘the single greatest reason why collective impact efforts fall short is a failure to center equity.’ They re-oriented the success of a “Collective Impact 2.0” framework around five strategies:
1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
Ground the work in data and context, and target solutions. Focus on systems change, in addition to programs and services.
Shift power within the collaborative. Listen to and act with community. Build equity leadership and accountability.
More information can be found in the article “Centering Equity in Collective Impact”: https://ssir.org/articles/entry/centering_equity_in_collective_impact#. I think so much of what I heard during the RAC convening indicates that the participants are following most of these strategies instinctually, but in particular, I was fascinated by the conversation around how to sustain leadership with/without/beyond an anchor institution and how much this might benefit from looking at the fifth strategy to “build equity leadership” and distributed authority. This is something coming up a lot in my work right now, so I am fascinated to see how this might be explored by RAC! There is such a strong and thoughtful group of individuals working together on the project, and I am very hopeful about how power and decision-making could continue to be developed and shared amongst the group.”
- Michelle Dezember, Director of Learning & Engagement CAM St. Louis
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