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Abundant Community: An Interview with Paul Born

I sent an email to Paul Born, the other day. It was a quick exchange – and from this a blog post was created. 

For this interview, I did not personally know anyone that was an abundant community pioneer, so I reached out to some of the resources listed in the back of a book. I got a response from Paul Born, who is the Co-CEO of Tamarack Institute in Canada. This institute focuses on being a connecting force for community change by offering tools, training, consulting, and learning communities to get from theory to practice to impact. Paul is also the author of four books, including two Canadian best sellers. The interview questions I asked were the following;

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Welcoming the Stranger

In the next 25 years, if things go as planned, Canada will accept some 7.5 million immigrants and will receive nearly 1.5 million refugees. But, how many of us think things will go as planned in the next 25 years?

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What to Expect When Joining Your Local Poverty Alliance

At the end of 2017, I was looking for ways to get more involved in my community. When I first heard of the Leeds Grenville Poverty Alliance, I was intrigued, but could not figure out exactly what their mission was. When I attended my first meeting, I was quite intimidated, walking into a large boardroom with people who work on these issues every day. It soon became apparent that the work they do is meaningful, and that I was fortunate to be able to listen and learn. The following are some of the things I’ve learned about being a part of this group.

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Canada’s First Poverty Reduction Strategy: Opportunity For All

The Government of Canada’s first Poverty Reduction Strategy, Opportunity For All, was released on August 21, 2018 in Vancouver, BC. Based on a vision of a Canada without poverty, and on the principle that all Canadians deserve a fair and real chance to succeed and live with dignity; the strategy commits to strengthening the middle class and helping those who are working hard to join it. Informed by an extensive community engagement process, Opportunity For All is organized by three pillars, establishing a working definition of poverty and official income poverty line, and a commitment to reducing the poverty rate in Canada by 50% by 2030.

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Friends, Neighbours and the Sweet Taste of Community

Taking time to share food with the people close to us — whether it’s friends, neighbours, or a bit of both — is good for the belly, and the soul and the people around you.

It was a long time ago and a ridiculous day.

I went for a sleepover. "Chris has invited you," I was told by the grownups around me. So with my pyjamas and such, I walked some distance to my friend's house. Chris wasn't home, so I sat and waited. His sister looked at me like I was from Mars. I waited. And waited.

Finally, Chris came home with his mother. Neither knew a thing about any sleepover. Then that mother gave Chris supreme %$^&*. "Christopher! Have you been fooling around with that phone again?" she yelled. Nobody, least of all me, knew what was going on.

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A Beginner’s Guide: Communities of Practice

Kids know the best way to learn double dutch or how to solve a Rubik’s cube is to watch their peers do it, collect tips and tricks, and then practice the skill themselves. It’s simple: observe, apply, practice, refine.

The same is true in our professional lives when we seek to tackle a complex challenge; there are rich lessons to be learned from our peers that can be applied to make our work more effective. Joining a Community of Practice is one way to tap into our peers’ knowledge.

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