Transformative Change Requires Transformative Thinking

When people are ready and eager for positive change and want the best for themselves, their families, and their communities, knowing where and how to start can be just as challenging as accomplishing the larger goal. We sometimes think we need to aim for the highest levels in order for anything effective and sustainable to happen but become discouraged if we fall short. By default, we sometimes fall back on the things we already know how to do because they are easier and more comfortable regardless of whether or not they produce the types of results we actually want. To really effect change, we have to think about the process in a different way. Transformative change requires transformative thinking. We have to move away from the familiar toward a new, inclusive, transformative model of civic engagement.

An individual can certainly initiate and be a leader of positive change in their community, but it can be difficult to go it alone. Plus, when decision-making and leadership isn’t inclusive, important people, issues, and ideas often go unrepresented. People are generally stronger and have access to more resources when the power of the collective is pooled and leveraged. If change for the community is the desired result, the community must be involved. Thinking and behaving individualistically fails to recognize that everyone is part of a larger whole. Acting as a collective acknowledges the connections people have with one another, provides opportunities for more resources, develops and supports leadership, generates more holistic ideas and strategies for addressing community needs, and fuels a more powerful voice.

As an example, the African American Leadership Forum, founded by the Northwest Area Foundation in St. Paul, Minnesota, is a movement of leaders committed to the revitalization and sustainability of vibrant African American communities. The forum extends across four metropolitan areas—the Twin Cities, Portland, Seattle, and Des Moines—and acts as both an umbrella organization for the region and a local organization for each of the areas. Each city recognizes their own issues that need to be addressed in specific ways, while understanding that everyone is part of the same social fabric and that strengthening each city improves the health and success of the entire region. Leadership comes in many different forms, from citizens concerned about their neighborhoods to business executives, and there is space for everyone. The broader forum and its local entities were intentionally created with inclusion and harnessing the power of the collective in mind.

Across the board, whether it’s the African American Leadership Forum or another group of people united in the process of civic engagement, the desired outcome should be positive, transformative change. That is, creating opportunity for marginalized communities through finding new approaches to address problems, being personally and socially responsible, and working to reform the structures that create and perpetuate disparities that disproportionately harm marginalized people. While that may seem like a tall order, collaborating with others allows for the work to be shared, everyone’s strengths to be utilized, and people to feel they are being heard and making a difference.

When it comes to making change, knowing where to begin starts with finding your allies, being intentionally inclusive, discovering your strengths and resources, and developing a plan to effect change at every level possible in transformative ways. People can do more together than apart. Communities may have individual concerns that require unique solutions, but working to address those needs only improves conditions for everyone. Having an inclusive, transformative model for civic engagement is necessary if we want to see real, substantive, sustainable change in our communities.