Democratic Faith
  • HOME
    • Newsmakers Archives >
      • NEWS Jul-Dec2018
  • BOOKS
    • Michael Gecan
  • Craft
    • Victories
    • Leaders
    • Organizers
    • Cutting Edge
    • Gold Standard
  • Faith
    • Under Siege
    • Money
  • Alinsky
  • Blog
    • Notes on Organizing
    • DF Journal
    • Just Art
  • Contact

BLOG

Taking Stock of IAF

11/2/2014

1 Comment

 
Picture
Frank C. Pierson, Jr.


As still another electoral cycle in the USA  plays out, questions again arise about the consequences of a process driven by ever bigger donors, inane campaigns and zero clarity from candidates about how to pull the nation together.  

Rather than abandoning hope, it’s a good a time to consider what IAF brings to the table of democratic renewal. 

Six major strengths of IAF are generalizable network wide:

IAF organizations are built on face-to-face relationships.

IAF’s focus on face-to-face relationships grounds network organizations in local needs,  interests, institutions and money.

IAF organizations consistently initiate, sustain and evaluate creative solutions to complex, even apparently intractable, problems.

IAF organizations are obsessive about understanding power relationships in order to fight for recognition and strategic advantage.

IAF organizations sharpen the tension between the values of member institutions and their real world behavior.

IAF organizations invest in the development of the skills of leaders and organizers, conceptual and practical, that translate into public action, evaluation and reflection.


Share
1 Comment
Paula Osterday
11/4/2014 04:58:28 am

The strengths outlined articulate and clarify how and why IAF organizations are different from other non-profits that seek social change. These points, incorporated into stories, can be the basis for gaining more financial support and more partnerships that support this work.

Reply



Leave a Reply.

    Picture

    Frank C. Pierson, Jr.

    Frank Pierson retired after forty years of work with the Industrial Areas Foundation (IAF) as a professional organizer. He began his career in 1971 in Chicago, moved to Queens, New York City and migrated west to work in Arizona, New Mexico, Nevada and Colorado.  He resides with his wife, Mary Ellen Kazda, in Oracle, Arizona.  He may be reached at alinskynow@gmail.com

    Picture

    Archives

    June 2018
    May 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    October 2017
    August 2017
    June 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    August 2016
    January 2016
    August 2015
    May 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    September 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013

    RSS Feed

HOME   |    BOOKS   |  CRAFT   |   FAITH   |   ALINSKY  |  BLOG   |   CONTACT

Alinsky Now
Picture
Citizen leadership in predatory times.
© 2019 Democratic Faith/Alinsky Now | All rights reserved.
  • HOME
    • Newsmakers Archives >
      • NEWS Jul-Dec2018
  • BOOKS
    • Michael Gecan
  • Craft
    • Victories
    • Leaders
    • Organizers
    • Cutting Edge
    • Gold Standard
  • Faith
    • Under Siege
    • Money
  • Alinsky
  • Blog
    • Notes on Organizing
    • DF Journal
    • Just Art
  • Contact