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It Takes a Village to Raise a Child. But Somebody Still Has to Build the Village.
We’re told it takes a village to raise a child. It’s one of those phrases everyone loves. Politicians use it. Community leaders use it. Parents use it. We repeat it so often that it has become accepted wisdom, the sort of thing nobody would dare disagree with. The trouble is that we’ve become so busy…
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Too Close to the Work: When Independence Becomes Convenient
Proximity can create bias, but distance can create ignorance. Good governance does not choose one automatically. It identifies, tests and balances both. I have noticed something curious about expertise. When an organisation needs somebody to build a program, manage a complicated partnership, solve operational problems and remember why a decision was made three years ago…
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When Process Becomes More Important Than Purpose
I have lost count of the number of times I have heard someone say: “We followed the process.” Usually, they deliver it with the quiet confidence of someone placing the final card in a royal flush. Process followed. Boxes ticked. Decision made. Matter closed. Everyone can go home. Now, I like process. Anyone who has…
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The Myth Of The Non-Emotional Decision: Why “It’s Just Business” Is Usually A Fairy Tale
One of my favourite phrases in the community sector is: “It’s not personal. It’s a business decision.” Every time I hear it, I become suspicious. Not because the decision is necessarily wrong. But because human beings have an extraordinary talent for convincing themselves they’ve reached a completely rational conclusion while standing waist-deep in history, relationships,…
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Chicago’s Settlement Houses Are Still Fighting the Hardest Battles in Community Work
Chicago’s settlement houses are not museum pieces. They are frontline institutions carrying impossible loads in a political and economic climate that keeps asking community organisations to do more with less, hold more complexity, and justify their existence repeatedly. After a week inside these centres, that much was unmistakable. Across visits to Gads Hill Centre, Erie…