Community Revolution

MAKE A DIFFERENCE, BUILD COMMUNITY, END POVERTY, COLLECTIVELY! That's what we're doing, and we're having fun doing it. Join us!

[one27global-blog]

5 easy steps to build community

In recent years, community has become an often used buzzword.  everyone wants community, and everyone wants to be part of a great community.  Now we can debate what community is for a real long time, and that would be fun, but after hours, days, we'd still have ways to go.

So to save us from that, lets get right to it, and let's start by jumping into the "How we can build community"

Here are some simple steps I have found really important. And some of them are harder then I toughed when I started this journey to create intentional, deeper community.

1. Community is not about you

This was a hard one for me to understand, and yet, it's true. Despite of what you may think, despite the many benefits a great community provides to you. Community is not about you!  It's more the opposite. It's about asking yourself, what do I have to give and how can I contribute to the community, rather than receiving from it.

2. Community is not about them either

Building community is not easy. And being with people is, well...., being with people.  we all have experienced frustration and hurts from people closest to us. We often tend to approach community from our western mind set of right or wrong. And of course, we're [a;ways] right, and they are [always] wrong.  This view often leads us to make community about "them". We judge, we gossip, we get distracted by others, and loose focus on the real thing. We need to work hard to not let that happen, and to genuinely develop love for the people we're in community with.

3. Don't make friends just to make friends

My son is now almost 7 years old. The other day my wife Emily and I were wondering how a little guy can be cool, handsome, funny, smart, and talented all together. We pretty much agreed that usually there is the smart kid, the funny kid, or the cool kid (among some). Well, Dylan is all of the above. Yes, I probably am a bit biases, but he is pretty cool, and funny, and handsome, as well as smart and talented.  Everyone in his class wants to be his friend, and everyone wants to come over and play with him. And yes, hey, that's cool and makes us super proud.  But it also made me think how easy it is to loose track of what's important. It's easy to build a tribe or community with many friends. It's harder to build a community based on intentional, authentic, and genuine friendships.  Unfortunately we don;t really have the right words to describe this in English. I mean, who wants to say: "hey, your my acquaintance."   That's just wrong. But, friendships and community, not build on genuine and authentic relationships, will fail, and will cause harm and pain to everyone involved.

4. Express happiness

Now this is an easy one, right! Be Happy. Go all out in showing your tribe that you love to be in community with them. Yes there are days when you;re totally not feeling up to that.  But especially on those days, expressing your happiness about others, can make community come alive for you, and help you overcome your frustration.  You don't even have to be in real life contact with everyone, all the time, to express your happiness and gratitude to them. After all, we're living in the most connected of times, ever! So send of a tweet, text or email. Place that call. Or even better, go and visit your friends and show them how happy you are about being in community with them.

5. Connect

Always be aware of the needs of your community and ways you can help and participate. Make connections where ever you go, and make sure that everyone stand to benefit. Remember, much good comes from these relationships. And keep 1. and 2. in mind and remember not to expect or get anything in return. Just know that you are spreading goodwill for your community.

These are a few starting points that I am still working on for myself, but that have helped me already to participate in community and to build my tribe.

[one27global-blog]

It starts now...

I often find myself wondering if what I am trying to do really can and will make a difference in the lives of people.

In a time that's increasingly polarized, and [in a sense] divided, it's sometimes hard to tune out all that white noise to find common ground.

That common ground comes from deep within me, its my WHY, my passion and my drive to see people in community with each other, and as a result poverty as we know it, will be made history.

Too often I had found myself thinking about what to do next, where to go, and what to do.  What's the program I can join or start. As so many of us, I took my time.  I wanted to make sure that what I eventually will do is really doing good, really making that difference.  It's a bummer really. Doing all this soul searching,a ll this thinking, just to come to realize that all it takes is here and now.  All it really takes to make a difference is right in front of me. Actually, right inside of me. My WHY.

I believe we all have that WHY inside of us. We all want to have purpose, make the world, and our lives in it, better. We want to "do good, better".

So what are we waiting for. Is it really that hard to start?

It starts now...

Whatever it is, just go for it.

Let's not worry so much anymore if what we're doing is good, bad, whatever. Let's just do something. Let's make mistakes, let's learn, and better yet, let's start now...

Poverty is a huge crisis.  There is really no area of life that's not affected by poverty in one or the other way. So start, go out there, join an organization, or simply start by getting to know your neighbor. And be surprised by what will happen!

It starts now... 

[communicatewithcreativelife]

[one27global-blog]

Not your average nonprofit...

Most of us very familiar with the traditional model [most] nonprofit organizations are operating by:

Identify a need;

Create a program to address the need;

collect donations to fund the work.

(very, very simple way to look at it, of course...)

This is a great model, and many amazing organizations have been created, doing incredible work.

In recent years, a newer model has emerged. This, we call "Social Enterprise"

community-wealth.org describes Social Enterprise as follows:

Social enterprises are defined in many ways, but typically are nonprofit organizations that operate businesses in order to generate revenues and fulfill their missions. The concept has become increasingly common in the past three decades as a result of a combination of government funding cuts to social programs. Other factors promoting the growth of social enterprise include growing nonprofit recognition of the importance of earned income to enabling their organizations to use independently generated revenue to support programs that make sense for their communities, build community wealth, and directly improve the job skills of people facing barriers to entry in the workplace.

Social enterprises play a critical role in building community wealth for several key reasons:

These businesses build locally controlled wealth, which helps stabilize community economies.

Social enterprises can provide valuable training opportunities and supportive jobs for those who have been excluded from the traditional labor market.

The revenue organizations generate through such enterprises helps reduce their dependence on government and philanthropic funding, and thus, often encourages nonprofits to adopt more innovative, community-driven approaches.

Through the development of such businesses, nonprofit organizations can strengthen their management and business capacities, which, in turn, can boost their overall program effectiveness.

One 27 Global adopted this new, innovative model.  On one hand we're working tirelessly to build a community where poverty is history, and on the other hand, we're creating some amazing events that generate the revenue to enable us to do just that!

Join us! 

[one27global-blog]

Community Involvment

We're really excited to share with you all that our CEO and Founder Tobias Marx among other incredible Lowellians has been accepted to be part of Public Matters, an initiative of The Lowell Plan.

The Lowell Plan, Inc. is a private non-profit economic development organization that (1) provides a forum for private and public sector leaders to discuss Lowell’s economic, educational, and cultural development; and (2) supports and advocates for partnership programs that advance the strategic goals of the organization.

The Lowell Plan's Public Matters Initiative is a Program in Civic Engagement, and a leadership initiative conducted in partnership with Lowell National Historical Park. The mission of Public Matters is to foster and enhance the knowledge and skills of leaders in Lowell, Mass. We invite qualified individuals to become members in a rigorous and challenging program in civic engagement. Throughout this program, members will learn how to contribute more effectively to a diverse and mutually supportive community. Our goal is to ensure that the Lowell of tomorrow will be served by inspired stewards of our history, natural resources, social and cultural capital and economic and government institution.

We'er super excited, and cant wait to see this group of amazing people in action.

Here is link to the bios of every member of the 2015 Public Matters class.

http://www.lowellplan.org/content/class-2015

[one27global-blog]

Great Video from FSG, explaining collective impact! 

[one27global-blog]

Why working together is so hard!

We all want to do it, we know we can achieve more by working together, and we know all about team work.

Why then is it so incredible hard for us to truly work together? 

Purpose!

What? Yes, purpose! Think about it. We all want to have purpose in life. In our family, relationships and work life. But I don't think we really understand what purpose really is, or what it means to have some.  We mistake purpose for belonging, for participation, or for fitting in.  But purpose is so much more.

Purpose is the core of our being, the motivation, cause and reason for everything. Purpose is our WHY!

To easy we see purpose as our how or what.  Let me just "do this" and I have purpose.   But we're lying to ourselves. To find your purpose means to connect with your inner, most deepest part of your being, your soul. Purpose is what gives your life meaning and drive. Everything else is just a form of complacency.  Purpose is your conviction!

People with true purpose have no trouble to work with others. They know what role to play, they are not afraid of being manipulated, not afraid to loose. People of purpose are excited to seek out teams, collaborations and collectives, because people of purpose know that when they do, it will bring them closer to achieve their goals, confirming their purpose feeding their passion.

It's hard for us to work together, because  we rarely spend time to  find our purpose.  We spend too much time in the doing, the what, the how.

Let's change that! Find your purpose. Find out what really moves you, what makes you tick, what drives you. And than, seek out partnerships and collaborations that help you reach your goals.

You can do this. We can do this. We are not made to work alone, we're created to work together.  It's hard, I know. But that's what community is for!

To help you get started, here are some of my favorite articles on finding your purpose:

http://markmanson.net/life-purpose 

http://zenhabits.net/life-purpose/

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mo-seetubtim/finding-your-purpose-in-l_b_5571582.html

http://www.lifehack.org/articles/lifestyle/how-find-your-lifes-purpose-and-make-yourself-better-person.html

[one27global-blog]

Some Pictures from our first ever Craft Beer Walk on November 14 at Mill No. 5 in Lowell, MA.  We had a great time!

[one27global-blog]

The Harvester and The Community

4 years ago we took a family trip to Germany to be part of my parents anniversary celebration.  It was an interesting trip all around, especially if you consider taking your 4 children for a 4 1/2 day trip to Germany, the same weekend some volcano in Iceland decides to start interrupting international air-traffic.

So, besides having to worry everyday that our flights might be delayed, crazy little kids dealing with 6 hour jet-leg, and an absolute ridiculous schedule trying to meet all the friends and family we had't seen in a long time, our trip was quite nice.  To be real bloody honest, it was probably the worst trip we have ever taken.  Much too much stress.  And we actually needed a few years to go on another family trip that involved flying because of those experiences.

However, there were also some really great experiences during that trip.  One in particular taught me a lesson about responsible community.

It all started when we went to visit my brother in-law's farm.  His brother is now running the family farm which is the oldest in our town and has been an active part of the community for well over 400 years. Yes, 400, how crazy is that, right?

Of course I had to take my son Dylan to go and to see the tractors, machines and all that good stuff.  He was most amazed when he saw the huge new Harvester they just bought.  And how could he not be.  I mean, seriously, that harvester was so big, its crazy.

While we were cruising through the barn, looking at all the equipment, I started a conversation with Mr. Machtens.  He is my brother in-law's dad.  Now well in his late 70's he started telling me about how amazing this new harvester is.  He went on and on, and eventually became a little sad. When I asked him why this conversation saddened him, he started telling me some about farm-life during his child hood.

You see, he grew up on this farm, and he remembered that when he was young they had well over 200 people working for them.  Not just during the season, but year round. He said that this new harvester can do the work those 200 people did in a month, in one day!  Wow!

And of course he thinks that's amazing, but he also believes something got lost over those years.  Whatever productivity this harvester might have, it also took away opportunity for the farm to be a provider for the community.  Like he said, 200 people worked year round on the farm.  They did not go home in the winter, or got laid off if there was a bad harvest. No, they worked year round.  During the slow or winter months, these guys would maybe work a little less, take time to be with their families, but still get paid their regular wages.  Not from the government, but from the farm.  Workers would work to maintain and repair equipment, the barn, prepare for the spring, or help in the community.

Imagine that.  200 workers paid all year, even during months where their productivity was not that great.

Why?

Why do that?

Well, its a much more simple response as any CEO would give us today. 

Responsibility.

The Family (Farm owners) believed it was their responsibility to provide for these workers, their families and their community.  And the workers believed it was their responsibility to use their time wisely and contribute to the community, even if that meant, they would do all kinds of different work.

All this created a responsible community in a small town, that now, after almost 1000 years is still flourishing, helping each other out in times of need, and provides opportunity for the next generation. A community where most people stay instead of moving away, and where its still safe for children to walk to school because everyone knows each other and watches out for each other.

This is a community where people, regardless of wealth or status play and eat together and respect each other.  Where it doesn't matter if your rich or poor.  Where it doesn't matter what neighborhood you live in, or what your background.  And where when you move there, your greeted with love and hospitality.

My life's journey brought me here to Lowell, and yes, I moved away from the community described in this post.  But my heart was formed their.  My roots are still there as well.  And just as a plant spreads our with new shoots.  I am hoping I can be a shoot for a community like that right here where I am settling down.

It does not take a lot.  It just takes for us to consider the people around us, and believe in them.

We can be a responsible harvester!

[one27global-blog]

The Human Face of Poverty

It’s almost impossible to avoid hearing about poverty.  Every day we hear news items about cuts to aid programs, local and federal budgets being squeezed ever tighter, and all the problems associated with poverty.  We face growing concerns about how to deal with an ever increasing number of people affected by this crisis.  Some are outraged and some are fatigued by the steady flow of bad news related to poverty.  Some don't think about it, some don't see the connection to themselves and some simply don’t care.  And this bad news is about us, about our communities.  Those living in poverty are our neighbors and co-workers.

We describe poverty with statistics.  We talk about the issues associated with poverty.  And poverty at its core is about people.  People live in poverty.  Individuals and families live in poverty.

So often when we see someone on a street corner dressed in rags and begging or we wait in line behind someone using food stamps, we see a problem rather than an individual.  We see our assumptions about poverty, whether laziness or the abuse of the system, rather than a human being.  We are not paying attention to the person in front of us.

[madeinafreeworld]

Whether we realize it or not, we are all connected to slavery. The good thing is, we can do something about. Discover your Slavery Footprint, then send a note to your favorite brands asking #WhoMadeMy stuff?

Discover your footprint.

[one27global-blog]

Christmas Surprise 2013

[one27global-blog]

Christmas surprise 2013 (at Kerouac Park)

[one27global-blog]

Christmas Surprise 2013 (at Kerouac Park)

[one27global-blog]

Solidarity

SOLIDARITY

1. unity or agreement of feeling or action, esp. among individuals with common interest; mutual support within a group.

synonyms: unanimity, unity, like-mindedness, agreement, accord, harmony, consensus, concurrence, cooperation, cohesion, fraternity, mutual support; formal concord

"our solidarity is what gives us the credibility and power to make changes"

It’s a pity that it is somewhat difficult to talk about solidarity in current times.  For decades most of us have been taught the “American Dream” [btw. you can interchange “American" with German, French, Canadian, whatever you feel like] as a way of living.  It’s interesting really, as an immigrant to the US, I can truly identify with the “American Dream”.  At least with the original idea behind it from James Truslow Adams.  Let’s take a look:

The American Dream is a national ethos of the United States, a set of ideals in which freedom includes the opportunity for prosperity and success, and an upward social mobility achieved through hard work. In the definition of the American Dream by James Truslow Adams in 1931, “life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement” regardless of social class or circumstances of birth.[1]

The idea of the American Dream is rooted in the United States Declaration of Independence which proclaims that “all men are created equal" and that they are "endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable Rights" including "Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." (Source, wikipedia)

In earlier days, people believed the American Dream meant to have a plot of land, having enough money to live comfortably, and having work that would provide enough money to clothe and feed the family.

The modern American Dream has turned into a race to become rich and famous.  Now, the American Dream has turned into greedy materialism.  And greedy materialism has turned into selfishness, and an egocentric thinking that says, “It’s all about me”.

Please understand my true heart on this.  I am not coming at this believing that having things, becoming rich, being able to afford things, or maybe even becoming a millionaire is a bad thing.  Not at all.   I have friends who are millionaires, and their generosity, solidarity and compassion are unmatched.

The trouble lies not in achieving material richness.  The trouble lies in the misinterpretation of the the above interpretation of the American Dream from 1931:

"life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement" regardless of social class or circumstances of birth.

…Life should be better and richer and fuller…

We’re talking about one’s life here, not just their possessions.  Seeking after material riches will never fulfill anyone.  It might for a while. It will give you the illusion it does.  But if we’re really honest, it does not work.  For life to be truly better and richer and fuller, we need community.  We need to be in community with our family, friends, neighbors, city, and nation.  Community can only be achieved if we seek it.  If our entire focus is on building material riches, we won’t ever have time to build community. We simply won’t have time.  Hence, we will never have a life that’s better, richer, and fuller.

…opportunity for each according to ability or achievement…

We have to realize that not everyone is meant (created) to do everything.  Another illusion our system has created.  Yes, we can learn everything.  Yes we can be trained to do anything.  Yes, we might even be good at it.  But, and this is a huge BUT, we’ll never be happy, truly happy.  Real opportunity comes when we’re finding our ability.  That will lead to achievement.  However, we’re not learning to learn about our abilities.  Who we are, what we’re mean to do, and whose we are, is all part of our ability.  Our purpose in this world (or on this planet). You see, its not just about who we can imitate.  Not just about, where the money is.  It is about who  we were created to be. (I leave this up for your interpretation, I realize some won’t share my believe in a God and creator, but I hope you get the point).

This is where Solidarity comes in

I want to believe that as Americans we are proud of our independence.  We are proud to be American, and we are proud of the freedom we can enjoy.  We love our constitution, and we hold it above many things. We value our declaration of independence.  We often forget this in today’s time, but there is much Solidarity deeply embedded in all of this.

"Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." 

Life, better, richer, fuller.  

Liberty, the power to do or choose what you want to.

Happiness, the state of well-being and content.

This is our common goal, isn’t it. Life, Liberty and Happiness (or justice) for all, regardless of social class or circumstances of birth.  This is what we should all strive for.  But we won’t ever be able to do that without solidarity.  We will have to let go of the modern day American Dream that tells us it is all about ourselves.  It’s not!  It’s about all of us, living together in solidarity to achieve Life, Liberty, and Happiness for all.

We can do anything, achieve everything, make millions through whatever we want. If we don’t have solidarity for our fellow community members, friends, family etc., it’s all for nothing.

Do not misunderstand solidarity. Solidarity is not socialism.  It’s not communism.  But it is also not [just] capitalism.   Solidarity is based on responsibility.  Responsibility for those who have, and those who don’t have.  Solidarity is the only (yes, I believe that) true way to end national or global problems like poverty and injustice.  

It’s not easy to relearn solidarity.  It’s hard work.  It’s not just money, not just compassion.  It’s all of us, together, in unity for the common good. in unity for the common goal, that all people, regardless of circumstances at birth, place of birth, ability, gender, race, whatever, you name it. Can life a better, richer, and fuller life in liberty. Experience happiness and justice, and be part of the great experiment to make this world a better place.

Join me because poverty ends where you begin…

[one27global-blog]

Why we're having a hard time ending poverty

You might find it strange that the one running an organization on a mission to end poverty, is openly admitting that there is little hope to actually end poverty as we know it.  Yes, we all heard or watched Bono (U2) give an amazing Ted talk a few months back.  Yes, I agree with everything he mentioned in his talk.  He is right (in my opinion) that if we continue the path we're on, and if the rich nations continue their path.  By 2030, extreme poverty can be eliminated.  Please understand.  People like Bono have dozen of researchers and professionals that have done their research well.  It's "proven" that this can work.  It's even proven that it will work.  And I applaud their efforts.  I admire them.

But what if there wrong?

What if we ignore the "Human condition" behind the current approach to reach an end to poverty?

What if, what we believe is poverty, is actually wrong?

Where do we begin?

To once and for all eradicate poverty from our world, we need to find and fight the root cause of poverty.  Many have identified different root-causes of poverty.   As for me, I certainly believe lack of education is one cause among the many root-causes of poverty.

But what if I am wrong as well?

To understand this, we need to find out what poverty really is, and who are the once living in poverty.

The World Bank Organization describes poverty in this way:

“Poverty is hunger. Poverty is lack of shelter. Poverty is being sick and not being able to see a doctor. Poverty is not having access to school and not knowing how to read. Poverty is not having a job, is fear for the future, living one day at a time.

Poverty has many faces, changing from place to place and across time, and has been described in many ways.  Most often, poverty is a situation people want to escape. So poverty is a call to action -- for the poor and the wealthy alike -- a call to change the world so that many more may have enough to eat, adequate shelter, access to education and health, protection from violence, and a voice in what happens in their communities.” source

I agree with their assessment of what poverty is a lot.  But, in my personal opinion, we have it upside down.

Here is what I mean.

For a moment, imagine that it is not the poor who live in poverty, but the rich.

What?

Really?

Are you serious, the rich?

I get it, it's abstract, but let's take a look!

Questions we need to ask ourselves are:

Is being poor a bad thing?

Can money fix the problem?

Does increasing income form below $1 per day to below $2 per day really end poverty?

Can education and schooling truly end poverty?

As much as I want to believe in that, I know it won't do a thing.  As long we measure poverty solely on access to resources, materials and money, we will always have the problem of extreme poverty.  It's actually quite easy.  The reasons are obvious as well.  It's economic evolution.  Meaning, by the time we reach the global goal of lifting people out of extreme poverty, the assessment of what extreme poverty is, will have to change as well.  I.E.  30 years ago you could (not great) live on a minimum wage job.  Life wasn't as expensive.  Food was available.  Schools were small, neighborhood, close-by schools.  Jobs were local, rent was low.  But that has changed.  And so it will change again and again.  Because that is the whole point of the economic system.  I dare to say the goal of the economic system is to keep people poor.  But I do say, the obvious point of  the (current) economic evolution is to build wealth.  And , as sad this might sound, as much as you might think the opposite, creating wealth for a few, means taking it from a many.

Hopeless?

Maybe?

Maybe not?

What if the solution is actually not (only)  money.  Not  (only) resources.  Not  (only) access to materials.  Not (only) education.

What if, the solution to ending poverty and injustice for good, is embedded deeply within you and me?

What if, the solution to ending poverty is so simple that we ignore it.

If you have a (christian) faith background (or even if you don't), you know (or might now) that Jesus said, always give to the poor.  He also said: "The poor will always be with you".  For me this is important, and I know many of my friends, believe in this.  Some are Christians, some are Muslim, Hindu or Atheist.  We all share a common call to help the poor, the once in need, the oppressed.  But what's up with "the poor will always be with you".  How can this not be, but a call towards us, who have, rather then the poor.  It's a call for us to never forget the poor.  A call to live in community and solidarity with the poor.  Not to be prejudice against them.  Not to ignore them.

And I apologize to my neutral friends for quoting scripture again, but one of the earliest calls to solidarity and community that comes to my mind is written here, in the book of Deuteronomy 15:7-11 , written (as scholars believe the 7th century BCE )

“If among you, one of your brothers should become poor, in any of your towns within your land that the Lord your God is giving you, you shall not harden your heart or shut your hand against your poor brother, but you shall open your hand to him and lend him sufficient for his need, whatever it may be."

Now, I get it, we (especially my fellow believers) try to forget this a lot in our rampages against the poor.  But here, in this, the path to end poverty is revealed.  Clear, open, plain and simple put like this:  Poverty ends, where you begin! (Thanks Brian H.)

In conclusion.

The utmost simple solution to ending poverty, has also become the utmost difficult one to implement.  No, it's not a moral correct, nation that can eradicate poverty. It's a global community that lives together in solidarity and community.

Where people take action to help each other, think less of and for themselves, and share what they have.

Where you and I share AND receive freely.

Where business is done for the common good of all people, not just a few.

Where we don't judge someone based on what he has not, or has.

Where we live in peace because we don't need to have wars over resources and energy.

To close in the words of John Lennon:

"You may say I'm a dreamer But I'm not the only one I hope someday you'll join us And the world will be as one"