Hope Unraveled: A resource for moving your organization and community forward

Friday, November 4, 2005

(The Harwood Institute for Public Innovation)All across the country, foundations, community organizations, national nonprofits, and public institutions all have been using Rich Harwood’s latest book, Hope Unraveled: The People’s Retreat and Our Way Back, as a powerful tool to spark critical thinking and discussion about how to accelerate the important change work these groups are undertaking every day.

Hope Unraveled explores the context of today’s politics and public life. As Rich points out, people have retreated into their close-knit circles of family and friends, and this retreat has certain implications for how we as public innovators pursue our public-spirited work on a day-to-day basis. Understanding this retreat will help you and your organization effectively move in two critical yet seemingly opposite directions – becoming more “ruthlessly strategic” in the initiatives you pursue, while also being more hopeful.

Here are some ways people are using Hope Unraveled:

  • In Portland, the Oregon Community Foundation convened a forum of community leaders and foundation executives in their conference room for an afternoon session to hear Rich speak about what his book says about the context of today’s politics and public life, and what that means for the work they’re doing. Rich has already met on the same topic with individuals from the Peninsula Community Foundation in San Mateo, California; the East Bay Community Foundation in Oakland; and the Greater Kansas City Community Foundation. Later on this year, he’ll be speaking with funders in Atlanta, Flint, Newark, and Minneapolis.
  • Wisconsin Public Television recently purchased copies of Hope Unraveled to give as gifts to people who pledged $150 or more during their fundraising drive. Public broadcasting stations across the country are seeing the value of this tool as a way to re-engage citizens. For example, Minnesota Public Television is hosting Rich next week for a community forum around the book.
  • The Maryland Nonprofits Association is providing copies of the book to attendees of their 2006 state legislative preview session. Rich will also be the keynote speaker at the session, discussing how his findings impact the nonprofit sector.
Neither Rich Harwood nor The Harwood Institute receive any proceeds from the sale of this book, which is published by Kettering Foundation Press. Our mission is simply to spread these important ideas.

If you are interested in accelerating the important work your organization is doing or would like to start a meaningful conversation around the conditions in your community, consider purchasing copies of Hope Unraveled. Here are some ideas we think would be useful to you:

  • If you head up an organization, foundation, or are in a position of leadership, consider purchasing copies of the book for your staff. Hope Unraveled is a great tool to use for staff development. The implications of its message for people doing public-spirited work are profound.
  • Purchase copies of the book to help those you work with, such as your grantees, your network of volunteers, or even your board of directors, better understand the challenges you are dealing with on a daily basis.
  • Send copies of the book to people in your network as holiday gifts.
You can purchase Hope Unraveled at Amazon.com. If you want to place a bulk order, please fill out this form, and we will arrange for you to receive your copies directly from the Kettering Foundation Press at a wholesale rate.

 

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