Bridging to Belonging empowers belonging by growing skills and providing bridging experiences in small, diverse groups.
The work of creating spaces of belonging is at the foundation of all the other great work being done in the community. It supports successfully of co-creating the future together.
This program has been developed in partnership with Vitality Source, LLC. It utilizes science-based principles and methods, and is intended for all community members.
Provided by Vitality Source LLC Copyright 2022
We need your voice!
There are many ways to get involved in Bridging to Belonging. Select a tab below for more details.
Join a Bridging to Belonging group!
Our Bridging to Belonging model utilizes storytelling, listening, values recognition and appreciation, and group engagement to build trust and practice engaging with others in a way to build belonging.
Each group consists of 6-8 people with a moderator, designed as a safe space to come to learn from each other and share our stories. It is built around 3 discussions, with online learning modules before each session, where participants share their story, explore their values and then dialogue about how to collaborate moving forward.
We are looking for sponsors for Bridging to Belonging groups!
Bridging to Belonging is the foundation of creating sustainable change in communities and organizations because it fosters bringing together all voices to co-create together.
Consider if you experience the following:
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Siloed groups/communities
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Polarization / Division
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Lack of progress / resistance in problem-solving
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Little engagement in inclusion and belonging
Bridging to Belonging will help you build bridges that enable problem-solving, collaboration and belonging.
Do you love to bring people together? Do you naturally connect with people from all backgrounds?
Be a Bridgebuilder with us!
When people start the work of building belonging and unity within a community, we usually start with who we know. The problem is that none of us know everyone! We all have our blind spots – the voices and spaces in the community that we just do not have much connection to. We need people who are passionate about identifying all the voices in a community to help us as bridgebuilders!
Bridgebuilders can do many things in this work – identify sponsors, help sponsors scan the community and identify all of the voices and places people already gather and connect, and build relationships of trust to invite in voices that are missing.
To be a bridgebuilder, you start by participating in an existing program in order to align with the principles of how we do this work. Then, you can give whatever amount of time you have available to start building bridges across differences!
Become a Moderator
Our program relies on trained moderators to ensure that the group experience creates a space of belonging.
You can receive training and become a moderator for groups that fit your schedule.
The first step is to join a group and tell us that you would like to be a moderator!
Wondering How to Create Belonging in Your Organization?
Belonging is at the heart of why people join, contribute and stay in organizations. The most important steps you or leaders in your organizations will do is to learn and practice intentionally building bridges across differences. Our human tendency is to try to create belonging through conformity – recruiting and gathering with those who seem most like us. However, true belonging comes when we know that we are heard, seen, valued and can contribute even when we are different. Because the reality is that we are all different in many ways.
If you want someone to engage and contribute more, first ask “Am I showing them that they belong and I want what they bring?”.
Our Impact So Far
Bridging to Belonging aims to have short and long-term impacts in 2 areas: Increased sense of belonging & Increase the number of people practicing bridging skills to engage across differences in the community. Click below for our latest impact report.
Additional Resources
If you are not quite ready to get involved in the program, start your learning about how to build bridges of belonging here. Each one of us is needed to co-create the future and we welcome you in whatever way you can join us!
There are many ways to start learning how to build unity and bridges across differences.
- If you disagree with someone, spend time finding out the story of why they think the way they do. Everyone has a reason they see the world as they do.
- One of the most impactful ways to build belonging is to look for what you appreciate in others. Find something you appreciate in someone around you and practice telling them about it!
- Understand your own story. What experiences have been most impactful on how you see the world? How do you try to make a difference and why?
Watch for a Bridging to Belonging library coming soon!
We work with many partners at a local and national level to build unity and belonging in the community. We have curated a list of their learning resources in our Bridging to Belonging Library.
