Making an Action Plan
The major hope of a good global or local leader is to accomplish plans and projects for the good of the common good or what some call “the public square.” This civic engagement is intended to create trust and serve the values of the community. Also local projects often are connected to global efforts discussed in the next module or human rights and a global ethic.
The major hope of a good global or local leader is to accomplish plans and projects for the good of the common good or what some call “the public square.” This civic engagement is intended to create trust and serve the values of the community. Also local projects often are connected to global efforts discussed in the next module or human rights and a global ethic.
Goal setting is often defined by five important traits. A goal for an action plan to implement values, tactics, and strategies for the common good will be SMART:
Specific
Measurable
Achievable
Realistic
Timely
More recently, students have adapted to the term SMARTIE. SMARTIE stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, Timely, Inclusive, and Equitable. By incorporating an equity and inclusion component to your SMART goals, you can make sure your commitment to those values are anchored by tangible and actionable steps.
Web Resources
The Dialogue Institute's Online Introduction to Dialogue Course
The 17 Sustainable Development Goals
Belinda Robnett - Informing Activists: What are the different types of leadership I can choose from?
Technology Resources
Canva - A design resource that can be used to create presentations, social media posts, videos, and more. Users can use the basic design resources for free.
Prezi - A platform that creates engaging, visual presentations which incorporate motion.
Draw.io - Free Flowchart and Diagram design. Create an outline, flowchart, or visual organization relating to your goal.
Twine* - Twine is an open-source tool for telling interactive, nonlinear stories. You don't need to write any code to create a simple story with Twine, but you can extend your stories with variables, conditional logic, images, CSS, and JavaScript when you're ready. Here are some examples of stories/games created with Twine.
Social Media
Facebook Groups, Whatsapp, Discord, LinkedIn Groups, Instagram, Twitter
Creating groups on any of these platforms can be a really effective way to organize with others who are interested in similar causes.
Creating a virtual space can be useful for many reasons. A website can be a place to showcase your work, highlight important events, connect with new people by having them contact you, and explain your project and its goals. Try some of these platforms to create a simple website or landing page for your project.
Consider these options to create a virtual space. Most have free options that will work well:
Mozello – Create Simple Multilingual Sites
Independent activists the world over are using the internet and digital tools to build their community, connect with other similar-minded people outside their physical surroundings as well as lobby, raise funds and organize events.
Here are a few digital tools you may want to utilize to help reach your goals:
Online petitions. Websites such as Change.org, ipetitions.org, Avaaz.org are hubs of online activism, where people can communicate with others worldwide regarding their cause.
Follow up with your own list of contacts via email or telephone. Create an e-mail list to keep in touch.
Networking and Connections
Amnesty International - Connecting people with nonprofit organizations to inspire kindness.
Create the Good - Create the Good connects you with volunteer opportunities to share your life experiences, skills and passions in your community. Join others or recruit others to join your cause.
IFYC is a national nonprofit that equips the next generation of citizens and professionals with the knowledge and skills needed for leadership in a religiously diverse world.
Check out Interfaith Youth Core’s Interfaith Leadership Institute
Explore KAICIID's Dialogue Knowledge Hub
Look through the Promising Practices database for guidelines and focuses on the concrete implementation of interreligious and intercultural dialogue practices around the world
Looking to join in on some casual conversations? This group hosts weekly meetings every Tuesday at 7:30pm CDT to talk about the intersection of faith and daily life.
Citizen Diplomacy International
Citizen Diplomacy International connects Philadelphia with leaders worldwide and promotes our city as a global hub of commerce and culture through Youth Exchanges, University Student Exchanges, Internships & Scholarships, and Professional Leadership Exchanges.
An international movement of ordinary people working to end the age of fossil fuels and build a world of community-led renewable energy for all.
Global Exchange - A membership-based international human rights organization dedicated to promoting social, economic and environmental justice around the world.
Race Forward - A public policy institute advancing racial justice through research, advocacy and journalism
Grassroots International - Promotes global justice through partnerships with social change organizations and through grantmaking, education, and advocacy.
Global Rights - An international human rights advocacy group that partners with local activists to challenge injustice.
American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) - An organization which includes people of various faiths who are committed to Quaker values of social justice, peace, and humanitarian service.
The Interfaith Rainforest Initiative
The Interfaith Rainforest Initiative brings the commitment, influence and moral authority of religions to efforts to protect the world’s rainforests and the indigenous peoples that serve as their guardians.
Intersections International is an organization dedicated to building systemic change that promotes justice, reconciliation and peace across lines of difference: religion, culture, class, race, ideology, national borders and other boundaries that divide humanity. Our programming covers a range of topics, including LGBT issues; values-based leadership; the transitioning of veterans back to civilian life; global peacemaking initiatives; and the role of the arts in change for social justice.
The Hague Peace Projects is a Peace and Human Rights organization based in The Hague, ‘The International City of Peace and Justice’ since 2014. There are currently 110 peace projects in motion across 4 continents.
Greenfaith is a worldwide, multi-faith climate and environmental movement. Read about their international network.
Interfaith Alliance for Safer Communities
The Interfaith Alliance for Safer Communities is a network of advocates from civil society and faith communities. Our goal is to empower faith leaders to work for the safety and security of our communities, tackling issues such as child sexual abuse, extremism and radicalization, and human trafficking.
Religions for Peace (RfP) is the largest worldwide alliance of religious communities. The global Religions for Peace network consists of close to 100 national member associations (referred to as “Interfaith Councils”) in almost as many countries, six regional interfaith committees, as well as the Global Women of Faith women’s network and a global interfaith youth network.
Faith in Action brings people of faith together to transform communities and fight for racial justice.
The Peace First Challenge helps young people (ages 13-25) create and lead projects that address injustice in their community through compassion, courage and collaborative leadership. The organization provides mini grants up to $250, digital tools, mentorship, and access to a global community of changemakers.
United Religions Initiative - Global
URI unites to bridge differences between people of all beliefs, to create community, and to solve local and global challenges. URI’s network of grassroots groups works in over a hundred countries around the world, gathering groups of people from different cultures, faiths, and traditions to work side-by-side for a common cause.
Living Room Conversations are a simple way to connect across divides - politics, age, gender, race, nationality, and more.
Getting at the heart of what we share in common with one another, these conversations have powerful, positive impacts across society – including a sense of respect, understanding, and even friendship in unexpected places!
Seeds of Peace develops courageous leaders who work to create more just and inclusive societies.
Alliance for Peacebuilding is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit, nonpartisan network of over 140 organizations working in 181 countries to end conflict, reduce violence and build sustainable peace.
Recognizing the rapid rise in intolerance in most parts of the world, it is imperative to teach young children about the need for diversity and inclusivity. Diversity Dialogue aims to actively engage students by educating them about hate speech, conflict and peace. Read their story here.
Founded in 2015, hash.peace is a youth-led advocacy group committed to catalysing conversations and developing programs that contribute towards sustainable social harmony. hash.peace is dedicated to inter-ethnic and inter-belief engagements that help to combat problems in society.
The 'Let's Talk Peace' Podcast is a platform that amplifies the voices of individuals that are changing the game. The purpose of this project is to foster radical empathy, creative problem solving, and critical thinking.
The G20 Interfaith Forum is a platform where a network of religiously linked institutions and initiatives discuss global agendas (primarily and including the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals or SDGs). The Forum meets annually in the host country of and near the time of the G20 (Group of 20) Summit. You can read more about the Forum here. You can also find information on this year’s Forum here.
The United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) was established in 2005, as the political initiative of Mr. Kofi Annan, former UN Secretary-General and co-sponsored by the Governments of Spain and Turkey. Since its inception, the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) has become a leading United Nations platform for intercultural dialogue, understanding and cooperation. It has connected governments, lawmakers, local authorities, civil society organizations, the media, and individuals devoted to promoting understanding across diverse communities.
"At the Fetzer Institute, we believe in the possibility of a loving world: a world where we understand we are all part of one human family and know our lives have purpose."
If you’re looking to take your online volunteering worldwide, this is the place to start. UNV connects you with organizations working for peace and development in need of skills like research, writing, art, and design. There are already over 12,000 volunteers from 187 countries lending their talents to organizations around the globe.
This volunteer search tool is exclusively for online volunteer projects. Each one has a timeline that can range anywhere from an hour to a few weeks. So whether you have an afternoon or several, you can help not-for-profit with tasks like writing thank you letters or editing photos.
Sign up for a volunteer, social change, or civic action campaign to make real-world impact on a cause you care about.
generationOn inspires, equips and mobilizes millions of people to take action that is changing the world.
Human Rights Without Frontiers International
Human Rights Without Frontiers International (HRWF Int’l) is a non-profit association that seeks to shape European and international policy in ways that strengthen democracy, uphold the rule of law and protect human rights globally.
WIN is a women's charity committed to building a better, more inclusive society through promoting friendship and embracing difference. WIN members form grass-root social groups, arranged by geographical area, that undertake a diverse range of activities.
Still looking for connections? Here’s another list of social justice organizations.
Video Resources
Jennifer Earl - Informing Activists: How/When do movements affect culture?
Rachel Einwohner - Informing Activists: How do I build identity and solidarity in a movement?
Paul Chang - What kinds of repression should I anticipate when I am active in a democratic country?
David Meyer - Informing Activists: How much does the political environment affect my cause?
Katrin Uba - Informing Activists: How/When do movements make a political difference?
Dana Moss - Informing Activists: How do I support movements in other countries?
The Center for the Study of Social Movements at the University of Notre Dame
Literary Resources
Biggs, M., & Andrews, K. T. 2015. Protest Campaigns and Movement Success Desegregating the US South in the Early 1960s. American Sociological Review, 80(2):416-443.
Chang, Paul. 2015. Protest Dialectics: State Repression and South Korea’s Democracy Movement, 1970-1979. Stanford University Press.
Chan, Kin-man and Yan Zhou. 2014. “Political Opportunity and the Anti-Dam Movement in China: A Case Study of Nu River.” Pp. 311-30 in Social Issues in China, Vol. 1, International Perspectives on Social Policy, Administration, and Practice, edited by Z. Hao and S. Chen: Springer New York.
Earl, Jennifer. 2011. “Political repression: Iron fists, velvet gloves, and diffuse control.” Annual Review of Sociology 37: 261-284.
Keck, Margaret E., and Kathryn Sikkink. 1998. Activists Beyond Borders: Advocacy Networks in International Politics. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press.
Kitschelt, Herbert P. 1986. “Political Opportunity Structures and Political Protest: Anti-Nuclear Movements in Four Democracies.” British Journal of Political Science 16(1):57-85.
Koopmans, Ruud. “Dynamics of repression and mobilization: The German extreme right in the 1990s.” Mobilization: An International Quarterly 2.2 (1997): 149-164.
Melucci, A. 1988. Getting involved: Identity and mobilization in social movements. International Social Movement Research 1:329-348.
Meyer, David S. and Debra C. Minkoff. 2004. “Conceptualizing Political Opportunity.” Social Forces 82(4):1457-92.
Moss, Dana M. 2016. “Transnational repression, diaspora mobilization, and the case of the Arab Spring.” Social Problems 63(4): 480-498.
Gamson, William A. 1998. “Social Movements and Cultural Change.” in From Contention to Democracy, edited by M. G. Giugni, D. McAdam and C. Tilly. Lanham, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield.
Gordon, Hava R., and Jessica K. Taft. 2011. “Rethinking Youth Political Socialization Teenage Activists Talk Back.” Youth & society 43(4):1499-1527.
Smith, Jackie. 2004 “Transnational Processes and Movements” Pp. 311-36 in The Blackwell Companion to Social Movements, edited by D. A. Snow, S. A. Soule and H. Kriesi. Oxford: Blackwell Publishing.
Snow, D., Tan, A., & Owens, P. 2013. Social movements, framing processes, and cultural revitalization and fabrication. Mobilization: An International Quarterly 18(3):225-242.
Suh, Chan S., Ion Bogdan Vasi, and Paul Y. Chang. “How social media matters: Repression and the diffusion of the Occupy Wall Street movement.” Social Science Research 65 (2017): 282-293.
Van Dyke, N., & McCammon, H. J. 2010. Strategic alliances: Coalition building and social movements. U of Minnesota Press.
