ABOUT US
The Organizing Center strives to bring rigor & resilience into the craft of basebuilding so that organizers are equipped to take on the awesome responsibility of lifelong political leadership & organizations across the country can build durable power that results in transformative wins. We have a team of veteran organizers, strategists, and seasoned movement leaders on deck to offer training, facilitation, and coaching that helps organizers reach the next stage of development and helps leaders cultivate resilient organizational cultures to win power and improve the material conditions of our society.
Rigor without resilience is a campaign that can’t survive setbacks, and resilience without rigor is a movement that can’t convert passion into progress. We believe a balance of both is needed to make movements strong.
OUR KEY INTERVENTIONS
Increasing organizing rigor without compromising resilience
We help organizers and organizations step up their game by training and coaching on the most important organizing skills, practices, and structures that lead to growing bases and campaign wins.
Building alignment on standards
We help organizations across and within movement ecosystems align on the standards for rigorous basebuilding and resilient org culture, and provide a community of practice that supports stronger implementation.
Going beyond training
Training is critical to helping organizers build new skills. But to transform organizations need support for the work that happens after a training, when a leader is trying to take what they learned and implement it to see tangible results. We support organizations to navigate the challenges of implementing new organizing structures, practices, and cultures of resilience via facilitation, coaching, and longer term support.
HOW WE WORK
Long Term Vision
Our work is rooted in a long term vision of a radically reshaped society where everyday people participate in the governance of society and set the conditions of their lives. Our work focuses on supporting organizations in building the power to move in this direction.
Relationships At The Center
We are organizers first. The way we are building The OC is through trusting and long-term relationships with organizations. This means that our work is often slower than an approach that prioritizes scale over depth.
Direct Feedback
We do not shy away from giving direct feedback to the organizations we work with. Because we believe in people’s capacity to change and have a position on what it will take to reshape society, we don’t see ourselves as just service providers. We make assessments, put forward a vision, and give direct and clear feedback to organizational leaders.
WHO WE WORK WITH
We center basebuilding organizations led by People of the Global Majority, as well as other movement groups and individual organizers working toward justice and liberation. Who we work with represents what we value: collective power, self-determination, hope, respect and accountability, and imagination. And we bring these values into every partnership and all of our work.
