People like you are building power from the ground up to create community resilience.
Relationships are the bedrock of your well-being. Building solidarity across seeming divides in local communities is crucial. When organizers are equipped with communication, networking, and emotional intelligence skills, they can lead through times of struggle.
“Money-Wise Women” guest Sarah van Gelder wrote The Revolution Where You Live: Stories from a 12,000-Mile Journey Through a New America. She is a founder of YES! Magazine and of PeoplesHub, a new non-profit that offers workshops and trainings for community organizers.
During her solo road trip around the country that resulted in her book, Sarah met with individuals and innovative organizations. Many of these groups are led by women and address economic justice, race relations, and climate change.
“When we build power together, we have the opportunity to create change. We can do extraordinary things together, that we cannot alone.”
You have a natural desire to steward your resources, water, seeds, and other community assets. PeoplesHub offers the tools and trainings for better leadership and community organizing. With these trainings, they enhance the abilities of community leaders who are tending to the needs of caring for the social fabric that makes life richer.
Sarah describes common barriers to effective change. Many organizations suffer from boring meetings and conflict that exhausts everyone. Often there is a lack of focus and nothing gets done. People suffer from a lack of confidence and burnout, because they don’t feel up to the challenge.
“We are building the power to change the circumstances that are creating so much poverty and hardship. Many people are traumatized by violence and poverty. When people are burdened by debt, they often feel like they have failed. Once this shame is freed up, it unleashes a lot of energy and creativity.”
Some of the nation’s leading trainers, organizers, and leaders came together to create PeoplesHub. These advisors and core team members live and work in communities from Puerto Rico to Detroit, Washington, DC., to Appalachia, Seattle to Hawaii.
Workshops and trainings are available online and in person for community organizers who want to increase their impact and influence. A healthy local economy develops as people contribute to their communities while having their needs met. Your well-being depends on the health of your local community. You may be hungry for a deeper sense of belonging. The soul is nourished as communities come together to share and care.
Sarah van Gelder is YES! Magazine co-founder and author of the new book, The Revolution Where You Live: Stories from a 12,000-Mile Journey Through a New America (Berrett Koehler, 2017). She is founder of PeoplesHub. YES! Magazine is a publication that is nationally recognized for exploring leading-edge solutions to the major ecological and human challenges of our times. The magazine has won national awards for its coverage of such topics as the cooperative economy, mass incarceration, neighborhood sustainability, and personal resilience.
