Challenge Toolkit: Build Connections
Below are some inspiration and ideas to help you complete the Community in Action: Build Connections challenge:
INSPIRATION: Why Build Connections?
By broadening our relationships and connecting with people that have varying life experiences and perspectives, we can create a stronger sense of community and gain a better understanding of the world.
Excerpt: "Creating Community as We Grow Older"
Happiness and the New Simplicity: The Living Room Revolution of Community
Inspirational Poem: "Same Inside"
IDEAS: Things YOU Can Do to Build Connections
Here are some ideas for things you can do to build connections, in the three areas of our challenge:
INDIVIDUAL Challenge: Introduce Yourself to a Neighbor
Say hello and spark a conversation with a neighbor you haven't had a chance to get to know. If you're feeling especially motivated, drop off some cookies or another treat (homemade or store-bought!) There’s nothing like food to bring people together.
Embrace Diversity in Your Relationships
Find Someone Who Will Open the Door
GROUP Challenge: Host a Neighborhood Gathering
Invite your neighbors to hang out. Whether it's a soup swap at your place or a meet-up at a favorite local venue, communities grow when we regularly do things together that give us a chance to connect and build trust.
Start a "Community Conversation"
Join Your Neighbors for a Really, Really Big Lunch
Organize an Event to Support Newly Arrived Refugees
Host a Clothing (or Other) Swap
Start a Local Resilience Circle
Host a Climate Action House Party
EXTRA Challenge: Organize a Neighborhood Improvement Project
Start a shared project to do good in your community, and enlist your neighbors to join in. Plan a neighborhood yard sale to benefit a local nonprofit or organize a "walking school bus" for your kids.
Set Up a Local Permaculture Park
Other New Dream Resources
Family Celebrations: A More Fun, Less Stuff Guide to Life's Joyful Events – with a special section on "Community-Building Celebrations"
Community Action Kit: Guide to Going Local – tips for building stronger, healthier, and more vibrant communities
Community Action Kit: Guide to Sharing – tips for exchanging stuff, time, skills, and space
“Community is a sign that love is possible in a materialistic world where people so often either ignore or fight each other. It is a sign that we don't need a lot of money to be happy—in fact, the opposite.”
― Jean Vanier