ENTERING THE LAB AS A NONPROFIT OR SOCIAL ENTERPRISE
What might Racism, Sexism, Economic Inequality, and Climate Change be a Symptom of? How do their Roots Show up in Our Work and Organizations?
The assumption behind our work with nonprofits and social enterprises is that if they create dignity-affirming cultures, they will create conditions from which community and principles like racial and gender equity can emerge. By creating a space to develop trusting relationships amongst staff, we can identify the antiquated patterns and values within the organization and ourselves, and work together to develop building blocks for growth skills, systems thinking, emergence thinking, and transformative thinking.
VOL has provided tools for our team in the forms of articles, facilitated small and large group discussions, notes, meditations, and workshops to regularly question our miseducation, reflect on external and internal values, wrestle with our misalignments, and organize ourselves around visions of systems that center human flourishing.
- Angel Brown, Manager, Neighborhood Impact, United Way of the Greater Triangle
Our group and organization programs show people how deeply our sense of self is shaped by larger processes that are invisible to us. We believe that by engaging with the historical roots of our identities and acknowledging the roots of social systems, groups and organizations can create a values-aligned and vision-driven community capable of being their best selves.
Each customized experience for nonprofits and social enterprises includes hybrid workshops and trainings that empower groups to:
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Create a shared vision for their work
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See where they live up to their values and fall short
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Align on the values that will allow them to honor and realize the significance of their work
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Equip themselves with the tools needed to create systems and processes to support staff members in their work and mission and align the organizations actions with it's values