(Excerpts from global participant survey responses)
Learnings from Communities for Change - Inclusive Cities
Be in tune with possibility
- “If we are able to harness the minds of citizens then we can face and conquer challenges that are present in our city. The answer lies within the people.”
- “I found out that there are positives in negative places.”
- “I see more opportunities in places where I didn’t see any before.”
- “I can maybe do something to change it [my city].”
- “Big lesson learned is not to see everyday challenges as normal.”
See beyond your own perspective
- “I see immigrants and business owners so much more. And by seeing, I mean, I am noticing them and making a concerted effort to patronize their businesses and ask them about themselves if they have time.”
- “Being around others who are from different sectors and come from other experiences as my own was helpful and I can better perceive that the city is not one thing, it’s a mixture of so many parts -and it’s only made real by the people and their experiences of it.”
Find courage and confidence
- “I have not experienced myself as a public speaker so far, but I realized that putting my gift verbally out is challenging my own assumptions about the right to speak and be heard of other people. I am not identifying with the pattern of silence as much and I am able to then invite story-telling without this pattern in place.”
- “I’ve become more courageous, I can imagine how I can become a tool to build the future.”
- “I have become more confident in myself.”
- “For me personally, I think it not only helped me be a better listener but also to speak up more.”
Enhance mindfulness & deep listening
- “I’m not stuck as often or for as long. I can come out of circular thinking quicker.”
- “I think differently. I consciously choose what to let my mind ponder upon. And that has assisted me in curbing negative thoughts and procrastination.”
- “I am now pausing and listening as opposed to preparing an answer/rebuttal/story.”
- “Through the C4C program, I have learned to listen and I have been able to let go of things because of my new open mind approach.”
Connect
- “Surprisingly all of the participants have become valuable connections. Some provided new perspectives during the cohort and others will continue to be strong connections and players moving forward.”
- “I don’t feel that I am as alone in trying to tackle seemingly insurmountable issues.”
- “Within our Impact Hub, I believe its [C4C’s] greatest benefit wasn’t the prototypes generated but the deeply connected community of practitioners that developed in a very short time. That’s a goal of co-working spaces globally, and I think it could serve an important community-building function throughout the Hub’s global network.”
