blog (January, 2007)
participation is passport to effective non-profits
Alex Steffen of WorldChanging suggests that a more personal and empowering kind of participation is becoming the key to maintaining healthy non-profits:
[...] I think that more and more, non-profits are going to be in the business of not so much maintaining memberships, which is what they have done up until now, where basically it's a series of one-to-many communication where you basically send people various form letters and ask them to give you money and to support what you are doing in other ways. I think that is on its way out.
I'm sure they will continue to exist for quite some time, but I think that non-profits that are going to be really effective in the coming decade are going to be the ones that create at least a sense of many-to-many communications, where people feel that they are not just a member, they are a participant [emphasis mine]; where there is lots of communication happening from people in all sorts of positions in the organization, and that there starts to be this blurring of the line, [...]
-- Alex Steffen, Sharing Solutions: An Interview with Alex Steffen of WorldChanging (NetSquared)
I read this and was reminded of Passport Project, a near-and-dear Cleveland non-profit whose maxim is: building community through the arts.
Passport Project is one of the reasons I'm still in Cleveland. I found their Global Community Arts Center (E. 128th and Buckeye) shortly after moving back here ~3 years ago, and began learning Capoeira there. Then some modern dance classes, jazz concerts by excellent (but little-known) musicians, workshops..., and before I knew it I was helping paint the side of the Center, going out with Chloë and Ben, hanging artwork before a party, performing in demos at the Walk & Roll, House of Blues, Parade the Circle...
Chloë and Ben do a great job of blurring those lines of participation. They take sincere interest in those who come share, and infect all with healthy laughter, openness, confidence, and Chloë's mantra of 100% Love. The students become the performers, participants grow into community, and all are invited to the party -- family.
Passport Project has a blog now. A community blog -- everyone can post.