Stepping Forward: A Positive, Practical Path to Transform Our Communities and Our Lives - Hardcover

Richard C. Harwood

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1626346763 ISBN 13: 9781626346765

Publisher: Greenleaf Book Group Press, 2019

Synopsis

The Hope We Share

How do we bring people together when our society is breaking apart? What will it take to bridge our divides, overcome mistrust, and restore our belief that we can get things done together as Americans. In Stepping Forward, Richard C. Harwood gives us a new and inspiring blueprint to rediscover what we share in common and actively build upon it. He argues that to get the country moving in the right direction, these efforts must start in our local communities. 

Harwood shows us how we can reach within and beyond ourselves to address our shared challenges and create more purpose and meaning in our lives by
Being a part of something larger than ourselves and truly making a difference in our communities
Refocusing on the desire for good in each other
Unleashing a greater sense of shared responsibility 
Finding the courage and humility to take such a path

Americans are yearning for answers to the countrys rampant polarization, hate speech, and gridlock. Stepping Forward shows us how to channel our frustrations, energies, and aspirations to get on a more hopeful path.

About this title

About the Author

Rich's perspective is unique--and urgently needed today. For over 30 years, he has invested his career in revitalizing the nation's hardest-hit communities, transforming the world's largest organizations, and re-connecting institutions like newsrooms and schools to society. He has been recruited to solve some of the most difficult problems of our times, including being called into Newtown, CT after the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School. Rich has innovated and developed a new philosophy of Civic Faith and the practice of Turning Outward for how communities can solve shared problems and create a civic culture of shared responsibility. Thousands of community leaders, officeholders, foundation and corporate executives, clergy, journalists and government officials around the globe are using his approaches. He is an inspiring, sought after speaker, who regularly keynotes major conferences. He appears regularly on major media outlets, He has written several books and numerous ground-breaking reports. 

Review

''For anyone looking to ratchet down the shouting and ratchet up the solutions in today's society, look no further than Rich's book. Having dedicated his career to community building, Rich understands that people - and their dignity - lie at the heart of strong communities. Rich knows how to heal divides, build bridges, and help all people find greater opportunity, and his experiences weave together a story of hope and purpose that we can all use to build better selves and support the places we call home.''
--Brian Gallagher, President and CEO, United Way Worldwide

''Stepping Forward is a profound and inspiring book by one of our leading organizers. Blending memoir, reporting, and razor-sharp, strategic analysis of how social change happens, Rich Harwood offers an unforgettable account of what it means to connect, engage, and transform the world. It's a powerful call to action, a necessary read for these difficult times.''
--Eric Klinenberg, Professor of Sociology at New York University and author of Palaces for the People: How Social Infrastructure Can Help Fight Inequality, Polarization, and the Decline of Civic Life

''Reflecting on thirty years of transformational work in the field, Rich Harwood presents a critical case of people-centered service, which keeps intact human dignity, connection, and individualism - a message especially important in this time when mistrust and divisions dominate the headlines. He shares poignant lessons from his journey, laying a compelling framework to guide us forward, to a hopeful future.''
--Michele Nunn, President and CEO, CARE USA

''Stepping Forward thunders with optimism amid an America overwhelmed with worry. Decades of work in communities large and small informs Harwood's unique perspective on an America that has lost its way. Eschewing mere diagnosis, Rich Harwood teaches us how to bind our cultural wounds, embrace our shared humanity, and, in so doing, remake our Republic. In an America where too many have weaponized difference for their own ends, Stepping Forward is a well-timed act of civic faith, reminding us that none are exempt, as Senator Edward M. Kennedy said, 'from the common obligation to give of ourselves.' ''
--Melody Barnes, Co-Director, Democracy Initiative, University of Virginia and former Director, White House Domestic Policy Council (2009-2012)

''Many people are distressed by today's bitter divisiveness and feel powerless to affect the forces shaping their lives. Rich offers up a set of simple but profound insights for making a difference, drawn from a lifetime of reflection and working in communities around the country. Stepping Forward is a powerful and timely book.''
--David Mathews, President, Kettering Foundation

''Richard Harwood has written a practical book about dreams. This is no oxymoron. In Stepping Forward, Harwood shows how community transformation involves unlocking personal aspirations and linking them to our innate desire to be part of something larger than ourselves. He captures the spiritual essence of what it has meant in our past to be American, inviting each one of us to be part of that great journey. It is therefore really a book about the human soul. The very language of the book tells it all: covenant, resilience, dignity, loyalty, faith, and love. When we discover each other's deep humanness, we forge bonds that enable us to create our future together. Rich Harwood shows us how.'' ----Rabbi Daniel G. Zemel, Temple Micah, Washington, DC

Edition details

• Publisher: Greenleaf Book Group Press
• Publication date: 2019
• ISBN 10: 1626346763
• ISBN 13: 9781626346765
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 168