Dear Friends of Civity- We hope you all are holding up (and for many of us, holing up) and staying safe and healthy. We realize the current environment is unsettling, disconcerting, and scary. For us, it is a time to be grateful for the people we are in relationship with – our loved ones, our …
Continue reading “We Are All Connected: Civity in the Time of COVID-19”
The civity work of building relationships in communities doesn’t fit into standard categories . . . People sometimes ask us: Is civity about inclusion, diversity, and equity? (Yes.) Is it connected to democracy? (Yes.) Is it like community organizing? (Yes.) And what about civic engagement? How does civity relate to that? Both Malka and I …
When we seed civity in a community, we start with a workshop for leaders in which participants practice being authentic and putting difference on the table. We follow up with support and coaching that assists these leaders as they incorporate civity into their groups and organizations. The root of seeding civity is awareness of the …
This line from an essay by writer Rebecca Solnit has been stuck in my mind recently: “I always pair privilege with obliviousness…” Talk of privilege often centers on tangible advantages. White people generally are cushioned by greater wealth than people of color. That’s White privilege at work. Men generally don’t need to fear sexual assault …
In Civity’s work with communities, work that we call “seeding civity,” we start with the soil. We find communities, organizations, and institutions where a handful of local leaders already see the value of relationships and the importance of bridges over differences. Government and community leaders recognize that connectivity across social dividing lines reinforces their collective …
“File:Vitoria – Graffiti & Murals 0392.JPG” by Zarateman is licensed under CC0 1.0 The word most frequently used to describe a group of people who are linked in some way is “community.” Community asserts similarity: These people have something in common, and they become a group. Civity recognizes that similarity is only half the story. …
Continue reading “Putting Difference on the Table: A Civity Tribute to Toni Morrison”
At Civity, we are about cultural change. We use the word “civity” to describe the particular change that we want to see: a culture based in positive relationships across difference. We see a lot of civity out in the communities we encounter – relational respect and empathy across social differences, including differences in how we …
Wangari Maathai was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2004 for her vision and creation of the Green Belt Movement, which empowers people to plant trees in parts of Africa where deforestation is affecting people’s daily lives and environments. Starting in 1977 with a few rural women in Maathai’s native Kenya, the Green Belt Movement …
Continue reading “From a Hummingbird to a Wave: Civity and System Change”
In our civity work, we have discovered the power of “both-and” stories. Both-and stories portray people as multi-faceted, as not simply one thing or another. By introducing complexity or even contradiction into narratives about who or how people are, both-and stories counter the single-story stereotypes that seduce us into compartmentalizing and marginalizing other human beings. …
At Civity we talk about the power of relationships to make it possible for different people to “see” others and care about their well-being. Relationships – especially relationships between people with different social identities – enable communities to face tough challenges together rather than splintering apart. To create and strengthen relationships that bridge our differences, …
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