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The Optimistic Anthropologist Volume 34
Finding the Balance Between Engaging & Asserting in 2021
DECEMBER 2020 | VOLUME 34
Dear ,
This past weekend, I joined a group of neighbors from
and other movements
at
. My motivation for being at the protests was twofold. On the practical level, I showed up to help defend the space. Since this summer, BLM Plaza has served as a powerful space of resistance, a symbol of the fight for justice and liberation, a sanctuary - particularly for Black people - to publicly express joy and grief and anger. During a previous protest, it and Black organizers were targets of violence by supporters of the current president.
Looking through my systems lens, I showed up because our systems aren’t broken, they function the way that they are designed to. 2020 has provided a lot of evidence of how our systems are structured to produce negative and inequitable impact – from state violence against our country’s own BIPOC and Immigrant residents to the incredible struggles so many people are facing in having their basic needs met in the midst of a global pandemic. So, I didn't feel I could abide people coming to DC to manipulate our system of democracy through intimidation and violence.
I share this because throughout much of my career, my focus has been on working across difference, collaborating to change systems and institutions. At the same time, I have – often consciously and unconsciously – avoided participating in spaces and activities focused on asserting my own, strongly-held beliefs because I worried they might undermine the collaborative work. However, in Adam Kahane’s wise book
he wrote:
If we embrace harmonious engaging and reject discordant asserting, then we will end up suffocating the social system we are working with…If we keep asserting and pushing past the other’s attempts to resist, then the result will be our forcing or imposing what matters to us onto them…if we keep engaging others beyond the point where they feel they are being compromised then the result will be our manipulating or disempowering.
This year has been filled with so much (often needed) asserting. And as we look to the months and years ahead, if we are going to make our systems and institutions more equitable and positive, I think we will need to strike a balance between asserting and engaging, protesting and collaborating so that we can meet a critical mass of people where they're at and bring them along.
And to fuel us along the way, we’ll need to rely on and support the people who make up the hearts of our communities - our closest friends, our families, our partners. I know I wouldn't have had the energy to show up at BLM Plaza without mine.
As 2020 is drawing a close, I wanted to share how grateful I am to also have you as part of my community of changemakers. I will commit to doing all I can to keep you and your loved ones safe – whether that means asserting or engaging, staying home or protesting. I hope you will do the same for me, for one another, and for your neighbors.
Happy holidays!
P.S.
I always welcome your feedback, a
or chance to catch up about work you have brewing. Feel free to
!
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OA'S 5 MOST POPULAR BLOG POSTS IN 2020
2020 has been a year of great challenge and complexity. One that revealed to many people who had not been focusing on it that our economic, governmental, and social systems are not broken but intentionally designed to produce inequitable results. And a year that demonstrated the tremendous power we have to respond to even the most acute crises when we work and learn together as well as the wisdom and abundance of community.
So, it shouldn’t be a big to surprise that the posts people clicked on most this year related to methodologies aimed at navigating the unknown, and engaging in cross-sector collaboration and with community. But, it’s still delights us that what we love working on and sharing about resonates with all of you!
We're excited to share that OA Founder
is adding an exciting new role to her portfolio: professor. This January, Alison will be joining the faculty of the
in San Francisco where she'll be teaching a course on multi-sector strategic partnerships to grad students in the school's MBA, MPA, and Dual Degree programs.
Alison is excited to contribute to the Presidio Graduate School’s mission of educating changemakers to build a flourishing future for all, especially because of PGS's commitment to the
of systems thinking, community, environmental sustainability, and social justice in its curriculum. If you're familiar with the work of Optimistic Anthropology, it probably comes as no surprise that those values resonate!
Alison would also love input from fellow multi-sector partnership practitioners on the curriculum that she's developing for the course.
If you're game, say hello or grab a slot on her calendar!
Our colleagues at
just released
, to convey the magic of how multi-stakeholder partnerships at country level can deliver significantly towards the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals and provide guidance on how to build robust, effective collaborations that achieve extraordinary results. A rich resource for anyone working on cross-sector collaboration.
THE RIGHT PEOPLE ON THE BUS: JOBS, RFPS, AND FELLOWSHIPS FOR NOVEMBER 2020
Folks we know are recruiting for a lot of cool things! Each month, we share
, a monthly round-up of job, consulting, and fully- funded fellowship and accelerator opportunities that people and organizations connected to Optimistic Anthropology are recruiting for.
(our list reaches ~1200 great people!)
GOOD LISTENS & WATCHES FROM NOVEMBER 2020
We love music, podcasts, movies, tv, and documentaries! And we see connections between all kinds of culture and the work we do. Here's what we have been listening to and watching this past month!
Ear Hustle Episode 50: Crew No. 7(Podcast Episode) Incarcerated people have long played an important role in firefighting in California. This episode focuses on a group of men just out of prison who are training to become professional firefighters.
Getting Curious with Jonathan Van Ness Episode 187: Are We Imagining A Better Future Into Existence? with adrienne maree brown. (Podcast Episode) A joyful, educational, and insightful conversation about emergent strategy, pleasure activism and much more.
Home Cooking Episode 13: Thanksgiving, Part 2: Umami and Me. (Podcast Episode) Chef Samin Nosrat and musician Rishikesh Hirway created this podcast for quarantine, and this episode - during the editing of which Rishi's mother passed away - explores the powerful connections between food, culture, and family.
It's Been a Minute with Sam Sanders: Life in the Time of Coronavirus (Podcast Episode) Sam talks to people of all ages - from kids to a 99-year old about their life this year. It's incredibly moving, and if you are like me, you will cry repeatedly.
Ted Lasso Season 1 (Apple TV). A podcast discussion about this show - which centers on a college football coach hired to manage an English Premiership soccer club - piqued my interest. The show proved to be smarter than expected, and a thoughtful exploration of American positivity and its limitations.
ABOUT OPTIMISTIC ANTHROPOLOGY
helps organizations and cross-sector collaborations trying to solve some of the world's toughest problems - racism, genocide, health inequity, poverty - answer two critical questions: 1) How did our current reality come to be? and 2) What will it take to shape a positive and equitable future.
We do this by: Developing cross-sector collaborations and community engagement strategies. Building your team's emergent learning and emergent strategy practices. Articulating theories of change and evaluation plans. Conducting qualitative research and creating learning experiences.Cooking up something and could use our help? Schedule time to chat with our founder Alison.
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