The Change Network helps civic and cultural organizations make lasting, inclusive change.
Keep reading for more information on who it’s for, how it works, its proven impact, what it costs, and how to apply. Or, check out a recording of our most recent info session about the program. You can also download our application checklist for deadlines and details on how to build a strong application.
Have more questions? Email us anytime.
Who’s it for?
The Change Network is for civic and cultural organizations that are committed to inclusive change.
The Change Network program has helped organizations in different sectors, budget sizes, and regions of the world. Based on our members’ experiences, we’ve learned that the you will be most successful if your team is:
Ready to commit time and resources to the work. Change Network members build cross-functional project teams of 2-10 people who devote 1-4 hours per week to OF/BY/FOR ALL activities (on their own schedule). Each team has a brave Team Champion who leads the charge and coordinates the work (maybe you?).
Working with support from organizational leaders, executives, and/or the board. While not all leaders directly participate, they endorse the effort and make resources available as needed. And in many cases, they get involved. You’d be surprised how many board members love being part of this effort.
Driven by your own “why.” Effective teams come in with a compelling reason to make change, whether that be external, like funding or demographic changes, or internal, like new leadership or strategic vision.
Ready to learn and grow collaboratively. Strong teams bring together colleagues from different departments and levels of the organization. They are comfortable using online tools and video calls to learn, plan, and track progress.
“It’s the simplicity of the overriding principles of the program—of, by, and for—that no matter what department you’re in or what level you’re at in the organization, with a simple sentence, people can relate to it.”
How it Works
The Change Network combines self-guided activities, progress reports, & videocalls in a comprehensive program that grows alongside you.
The Change Network program is designed to offer you a healthy balance of action, reflection, guidance, and accountability.
When you join, you’ll get access to the full program, which includes:
A toolbank of concrete, structured activities to help your team grow of, by, and/or for your community.
A community of helpful members around the world who meet up via videocalls, online chats, and an annual in-person retreat.
An experienced coach who will help you through rough patches and challenge you to go further.
A structured Change Plan template to enable you to set electrifying, achievable short- and long-term goals for community involvement.
Monthly progress reports to help you reflect, celebrate, and stay accountable to your commitments.
You’ll start with structured support in a cohort of 25-50 organizations.
In 2022, we are expanding to offer three cohorts. Entry is by application only.
In your first month, you’ll start with a series of cohort videocalls, getting to know your coaches, tools, and fellow members in a supportive environment.
We’ll set up your dashboard with a set of startup tools to help you articulate your vision, select one community of interest, and learn more about what matters most to them. You can set due dates, assign people to certain activities, and get feedback from us along the way.
Based on what you learn from your community, you’ll build the first draft of your Change Plan—your inclusive change “to do” list for the rest of the year.
Where you go is up to you and your community partners.
Once you have your Change Plan, we’ll offer you tools tailored to your specific goals.
We’ll connect online in monthly network-wide videocalls to keep building momentum, relationships, and collective support for change. There’s also one annual members’ retreat where we connect and learn together in person.
You’ll track your progress via monthly reports and receive written feedback from your coach along the way.
You’ll have a quarterly coaching call to review your progress, brainstorm around tough issues, celebrate growth, and discuss surprises.
We’ll connect you to specific members who have experience with similar challenges and communities.
As you develop adaptations of our tools (or invent tools of your own), we’ll celebrate and share your innovations with the wider Change Network. We’ll also look for opportunities to help you share your story at conferences, with funders, and online.
Get ready for an adventure.
Institutional change journeys are full of twists and turns. We’ll support you along the way, but we can’t script every move. Change can be messy, exciting, and sometimes downright confusing. All our members wrestle with setbacks and surprises as they grow. When we were leading change in community organizations, we struggled too. We came out the other side with stronger organizations, more involved communities, and lots of tangible strategies to share with you.
We are not taking you on a set journey to a specific destination. We’re offering you a toolbox—and lots of friendly instruction and supportive guidance—so you can go on YOUR journey with YOUR community. We don’t know where you’ll end up. But we feel confident it will be worth it.
“Before we thought of our community more broadly; it had never been a targeted audience. We hadn’t reached out to specific groups. OF/BY/FOR ALL is more structured. It was like overlaying project management onto community engagement, and there are goals and tasks that keep you moving along.”
What’s the Impact?
Change Network members make lasting change with their communities.
The Change Network program helps member organizations make concrete changes to institutional policies, processes, and programs—changes that are of, by, and for their communities. The program helps you go beyond one-off engagement projects to do more sustained and sustainable community work.
Change Network members grow in many ways.
We’ve seen members successfully use the program to:
Launch community partnerships grounded in building shared value instead of value transaction or extraction
Assess and transform practices across many work areas (i.e. hiring, marketing, board development, volunteering) for greater community impact
Build more effective community advisory groups
Conduct respectful community research that drives better decisions
Grapple with power dynamics and issues of institutional oppression
Rally community support for increased funding and recognition
and much more…
Explore new ways to approach community work
Hone and deepen existing community practices
Build systems to spread effective community involvement practices across departments
Learn more about the assets, goals, and barriers faced in communities of interest that are far from staff members’ own experience
Build strategic alignment across staff, board, and stakeholders
Empower unlikely change agents in their communities and across their organizations
Every organization’s journey looks different.
Each Change Network team starts by listening and learning from their community of interest. Then, they make meaningful changes grounded in shared values, strengths, and goals.
Here are two examples of the Change Network in action:
In the Netherlands, the Stedelijk Museum Schiedam built relationships with Islamic women and leaders at local mosques. They worked together to increase relevance of an upcoming exhibition, co-create community programs, identify and remove barriers to museum enjoyment, and tackle tough issues related to belonging and discrimination. When an influential group of Islamic women threatened to boycott an exhibition over a provocative artwork, the museum director was able to sit down with key community leaders and transform the crisis into an opportunity for deeper partnership. The museum was named museum of the year (2019) in the Netherlands, largely due to its many experiments in creative community partnerships.
In South Bend Indiana, St. Joseph County public librarians built relationships with Latinx artists and service organizations on the West Side. Together, they transformed several library programs to be more relevant and accessible, created a new internship pathway focused on Latinx creatives, and co-created public art in branches. They were surprised to learn that an existing, underutilized library ID card program was in high demand for Latinx families—so the library started offering it at West Side community events. This led to many new library users and relationships. When the library faced a major proposed funding cut in 2019, diverse community members rallied to support the library and preserve all funding.
Meet the Change Network members and read more stories about their experiences here.
“When we started it felt like this was going to confirm what we are doing and learn some good tools to do it more deeply. What became very clear was that we thought we’d been doing things that were “of” and “by” for our community but, like most non-profits, we were doing things “for” the community rather than asking our community if these were serving them in the best way.”
What’s the cost?
The Change Network is a fee-based program on a sliding scale based on your organizational budget.
The Change Network has an annual, renewable fee, paid by your organization. In your first year, your fee covers one team participating in the program. You can involve as many individual team members at your organization as you like. We typically suggest starting with a team of 2-10 people.
Note: the fees listed below are for organizations in the global North with leaders who are not Black, Indigenous, or People of Color (BIPOC). If your organization is in the global South and/or has BIPOC leadership, the fee is reduced. Contact us to learn more.
| If your organizational budget is... | The annual fee for your participation is... |
|---|---|
| Under $100,000 | $1,000 |
| $100,000 - $500,000 | $2,000 |
| $500,000 - $2,000,000 | $4,000 |
| $2,000,000 - $5,000,000 | $7,000 |
| $5,000,000 - $10,000,000 | $10,000 |
| $10,000,000+ | $20,000 |
Need help making the case to participate? Here are five ways to talk about this program with funders or leaders to help them get excited about its value.
“OF/BY/FOR ALL was building on something that was already happening, but made it happen faster and more deliberately. Without it we could still just be sitting here talking.”
When does it start?
We launch new Change Network cohorts multiple times per year by application.
We will be accepting new members for THREE cohorts in 2023 (Q1, Q2, Q3). The Q1 cohort begins in March. Q2 is will begin in June and Q3 will begin in September. We will be accepting and reviewing applications on a rolling basis throughout the year until all cohorts are filled. Cohorts may be closed out if they reach capacity, in which case, we may be in touch with the applying Team Champion to discuss your ability to participate in a different cohort.
You may select your preferred cohort in your application. Apply by January 15th to be considered for the Q1 cohort. Apply by February 15th to be considered for the Q2 cohort. Apply by July 15th to be considered for the Q3 cohort.
Both our new and existing Change Network members have begun exciting new journeys toward inclusive change. Learn more about our members and follow their journeys.
How to Join the Change Network
Change Network membership is by application only. We are now accepting applications for 2023.
We are now accepting rolling applications for three cohorts in 2023. Are you considering applying?
Timing, readiness, and internal capacity are important factors to consider in deciding if/when to apply to join the Change Network. If you are considering applying for a future cohort, here are some resources that might help you to get ready to apply:
Check your readiness. If you are interested in the Change Network but unsure if your team is ready to apply, you can take this 2-minute readiness check to find out. You may discover you have one key element to put in place before you submit an application. We take program readiness seriously and see it as critical to your success. We’re happy to talk with you to help you assess when the best timing is for you to be successful in the program.
Build Buy-In. Here are 13 Reasons to Join the OF/BY/FOR ALL Change Network to help you advocate with decision-makers at your organization.
Get Prepared. Learn about what you will need to be able to build a strong application. Complete the form below and we’ll send you our free Application Checklist so you can start preparing.