Community Development

As a response to the increasing violence in our culture, the widening ideological divides, and the growing gap in economic well-being, there is greater awareness that a deeper sense of community is desperately needed. But even as we acknowledge the need to build community, the dominant on-the-ground practices about how to engage people, civically and organizationally, remain essentially unchanged. We still believe community is built with better messaging, more persuasion, and social events for people to get to know each other better. All of which is naïve.

Have you experienced a moment when you realized your career wasn’t as secure or fulfilling as you thought it was going to be? Maybe you’ve thought about using your skills to start your own consulting business – but you haven’t had the confidence to go for it. Donald Miller has been consulting and coaching for over two decades. He’s consulted some of the world’s top brands including TOMS Shoes, TREK Bicycles and Tempur Sealy.

Addressing the pervasive longing for meaning and fulfillment in this time of crisis, Nature and the Human Soul introduces a visionary ecopsychology of human development that reveals how fully and creatively we can mature when soul and wild nature guide us. Depth psychologist and wilderness guide Bill Plotkin presents a model for a human life span rooted in the cycles and qualities of the natural world, a blueprint for individual development that ultimately yields a strategy for cultural transformation.

This book is a guide for leaders seeking to build a community, to strengthen the community they already have, or who may not think of themselves as community leaders but who are envisioning a group they hope to create. These communities can be formal, with official memberships and administrations, or informal, tied by shared values and commitments.

From intimate relationships to global politics, Sarah Schulman observes a continuum: that inflated accusations of harm are used to avoid accountability. Illuminating the difference between conflict and abuse, Schulman directly addresses our contemporary culture of scapegoating. This deep, brave, and bold work reveals how punishment replaces personal and collective self-criticism, and shows why difference is so often used to justify cruelty and shunning.

It’s the great paradox of the digital age, what Radha Agrawal calls “community confusion” - the internet connects us to hundreds, thousands, even millions of people, and yet we feel more isolated than ever, with one in four Americans saying they have zero friends to confide in. Where are our people? The answer is found in Belong, a highly energetic guide to discovering where and with whom you fit.

How do we say what we truly mean? How can we learn to listen with compassion and understanding? How do we find true connection with one another? Celebrated Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh shares the five steps to truly mindful communication. Drawing on his experience working with couples, families, colleagues and even on international conflict, the world's most famous monk has created a simple guide to communicating with yourself, others and the world.

In The Soul of Desire, psychiatrist Curt Thompson suggests that underneath all our longings is the desire to be known - and what's more, that this fundamental yearning manifests itself in our deep need to make things of beauty, revealing who we are to others. Weaving together neuroscience and spiritual formation to open up new horizons for thinking not only about the nature of the mind but about what it means to be human, The Soul of Desire is a mature, creative work.

After almost every presentation activist and writer Mia Birdsong gives to executives, think tanks, and policy makers, one of those leaders quietly confesses how much they long for the profound community she describes. They have family, friends, and colleagues, yet they still feel like they're standing alone. They're "winning" at the American Dream, but they're lonely, disconnected, and unsatisfied.

No one understands better than Joseph Michelli how businesses create and leverage world-class customer experiences. In The Airbnb Way, he shows how innovative leaders have managed to build an unique brand by inspiring and engaging a community of hospitality entrepreneurs - a feat unparalleled in the shared economy.

Get Together is a practical and heartfelt guide to cultivating a community. Whether starting a run crew, connecting with fans online, or sparking a movement of K-12 teachers, the secret to getting people together is this: Build your community with people, not for them. In Get Together, Bailey, Kevin, and Kai share true stories of everyday people who created thriving communities, both in-person and online.

Like many people navigating adulthood, Lane Moore thought she would have friends by now. Movies, books, and TV shows tell us we should’ve already found our people by the time we’re adults, or there must be something wrong with us. But where do you find these close friends once you’ve left high school or college? Is it even possible? You Will Find Your People is the groundbreaking guide to making—and keeping—the friends we’ve all been desperately waiting for.

The key to a booming business is your community. Founder of social media consultancy The Selfhood Daisy Morris is here with the ultimate guide for all the side-hustlers, creators, business owners and freelancers looking to build a genuine community on social media. This audiobook drops the jargon - Daisy will teach you how to take your community on a journey. From brand awareness through to conversion, you will have the confidence to expand your reach while nurturing your existing fans, followers, subscribers and customers to turn them in to loyal and repeat customers.

With roughly 95,000 blogs launched worldwide every 24 hours, making a fledgling site stand out isn't easy. This authoritative audiobook gives creative hopefuls a leg up. Joy Cho, of the award-winning Oh Joy!, offers expert advice on starting and growing a blog, from design and finance to overcoming blogger's block, attracting readers, and more. With a foreword from Grace Bonney of Design*Sponge plus expert interviews, this book will fine-tune what the next generation of bloggers shares with the world.

Tackling some of the world’s most profound questions through the intimate lens of fatherhood, Bayo Akomolafe embarks on a journey of discovery as he maps the contours of the spaces between himself and his three-year-old daughter, Alethea. In a narrative that manages to be both intricate and unguarded, he discovers that something as commonplace as becoming a father is a cosmic event of unprecedented proportions.

Acclaimed author, process-oriented therapist, and earlier Jungian analyst Arnold Mindell teaches us how to find the power to make our own choices and control our own lives. Drawing on his experiences with "witch-doctors" and shamans in Africa, Japan, Russia, and India, Mindell leads us on a "death walk" through our worst fears and deepest emotional crises to wake our inner shaman - which he calls our "dreamingbody." Methods for tapping the wisdom hidden in crises free our own internal sorcery for use in our daily lives. These methods enable us to become whole from within and to avoid the phantoms of unrealistic hopes and desires that limit our lives.

So, let's talk about loneliness. Human connection specialist Simone Heng knows a lot about being lonely. She left an enviable career and social life to move back to her family home to care for her mother. All alone in a house filled with memories but devoid of people, she was faced with the realization that human connection is one of our most essential needs. Simone shares her journey to understanding the value of human connection and explains how to distinguish authentic relationships from fake substitutes.

Author and pastor David Kim shares his experiences with loneliness as a Korean American immigrant and delivers compelling research about belonging that includes the revolutionary five anchors for developing meaningful relationships.

Raising kids in America is difficult—no federally supported parental leave, a lack of mental health support, a crushing combination of workplace pressure and aspirational parental perfection, and the fresh hell that is the playgroup Facebook page. But what if there was another way? Parenting—and specifically motherhood—looks wildly different across nations. Please Yell at My Kids is an around the world journey and a practical guide to rethinking parenting. What can we learn from Brazilian birth parties, Singaporean grandparents, and Danish babies sleeping soundly outside of coffee shops?

A beautiful resource for nature advocates, parents-to-be, animal lovers, and anyone who seeks to restore wellbeing on our planet, The Evolved Nest reconnects us to lessons from the animal world and shows us how to restore wellness in our families, communities, and lives.