Hi, {{FirstName or "Friend"}}
You'll notice the OBI newsletter looks a bit different today. In an effort to make belonging a global norm, and the work of the Institute more accessible, we've worked to make our design, news, and content more user-friendly. You'll still be able to learn about our critical research and events, but we've added a few new features, including a regular spotlight on OBI programs. We start today with the Network for Transformative Change and their groundbreaking new partnership, Bridging for Democracy, which will create a new path for organizers to bridge across long divides in a time of deep polarization.
|
|
|
The Bridging for Democracy project (B4D), part of the Network for Transformative Change, aims to advance a sense of belonging in response to the increasing fragmentation in the U.S. Since spring 2024, OBI and its partner organizations have worked to sustain a strong social foundation for pro-democracy support by employing door-to-door canvassing, research and message testing in cities across the country that will develop a model that community-organizing groups can use to bridge across racial, ideological, and urban-rural divides.
The partners, all leaders in community organizing, are stepping out of their comfort zones to develop the skills for cross-group dialogues with voter groups they had previously written off: Not to persuade, but to listen and understand one another. |
|
|
Bridging for Democracy door-to-door canvassing |
Canvassers have knocked on 22,000 doors across Nevada, Illinois, Georgia, and Tennessee, with over 2,000 successful “long-bridging” conversations. The project is currently active in Wisconsin and Michigan.
B4D partners include: OBI, Workers Center for Racial Justice, Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, Make the Road NV, Metropolitan Organizing Strategy Enabling Strength, and Showing Up for Racial Justice. |
|
|
Last week our book club held a thought-provoking discussion on the definition of belonging, followed by a Q&A with john a. powell. It's not too late to join us for further discussions at OBIU.org for Belonging Without Othering: How We Save Ourselves and the World. We'll be discussing belonging and bridging in real time with others worldwide.
Check out the short #AskOBI clip on the four elements: |
|
|
#AskOBI video "What is belonging?" |
|
|
Belonging without othering Is:
Inclusion: Belonging requires inclusion, equity, and creating spaces where everyone can fully participate and have their voice heard.
Connection: Belonging thrives when there is a deep sense of connection, binding people to their community, institution, or group, ensuring solid and meaningful relationships.
Recognition: Recognition and visibility foster a sense of belonging and deepen our connections.
Agency: Belonging requires agency - the power to act and influence the systems we are part of. This means having control over our own lives and decisions and the collective power to shape the institutions, groups, and communities we belong to. Stay connected with OBI at our virtual book club at OBI University! |
|
|
| Michael Reich interviewed for Spectrum News |
|
|
“There is this deep yearning among the campus community to not feel so separate from each other, and also to not have to worry about hurting somebody else while trying to connect with them,” McKeown said. “That’s what bridging does. It addresses structural marginalization by providing spaces for people to speak freely and to hold each other’s humanity and shared interests.”
|
|
|
Solar panels in a field in rural California |
|
|
Today, OBI's Democracy and Belonging Forum launched a news series "Processing Politics.” Co-facilitated by Sarah Crowell and Evan Yoshimoto, this series gives attendees a space to collectively process ongoing political developments through a bridging and belonging lens. You can register for this new series here.
OBI's Ashley Gallegos moderated "Belonging in San Diego," a workshop during San Diego Design Week today! It explored designing for belonging in San Diego and beyond.
|
Flyer for the the Belonging in San Diego workshop |
|
|
“We're approaching design as something everyone interacts with and contributes to, even in everyday objects like a coffee pot,” said Gallegos. “Though we might not have created it, our use and decisions around it shape our and others' experience with it. How can we re-design or co-create systems and communities that foster belonging without othering?”
|
|
|
OBI scholar Hilary Hoynes, Chancellor’s Professor of Economics and Public Policy at UC Berkeley, has been awarded the 2024 Daniel M. Holland Medal by the National Tax Association for her radical work on child poverty. Huzzah, Hilary!
Also shout out to OBI scholar Jovan Scott Lewis who took over as the Haas Distinguished Chair in Economic Disparities this past summer. |
|
|
-
Join john a. powell and visionary civil rights leader Valarie Kaur on Thursday, Sept. 26th for the Revolutionary Love Tour, an immersive experience of storytelling, music, song, ancestral wisdom, and community-building. Additional guests include poet and activist Malkia Cyril, and journalist and immigration rights leader Jose Antonio Vargas.
|
| Revolutionary Love is the Call of our Times |
|
|
Cultural Week of Action on Race and Democracy 2024 |
|
|
Together, we can make belonging the norm, not the exception. – The Othering & Belonging Institute |
Othering & Belonging Institute, University of California, Berkeley | Privacy Policy 2024 Copyright © Othering & Belonging Institute. All rights reserved. |
Othering & Belonging Institute University of California, Berkeley 460 Stephens Hall Tel: 510-642-3326 Berkeley, CA 94720 United States If you no longer want to receive our emails click (Unsubscribing is not supported in previews). |
|
|
|