February 2025 (already!)

Although I’m still saying Happy New Year to most people I see, time is feeling more and more fluid lately.

About two weeks ago we shared space with close to 250 people during the January 2025 Partner Convening. We started just two days after inauguration Day, and we anticipated the week might feel heavy and tense – we even considered rescheduling it. And we are so happy that we stayed the course. 

I think about gratitude a lot – it’s my constant reminder that even when dark forces are afoot, there is so much to be thankful for, that people are doing amazing things in communities every day. You nourish and restore, and for that our team is grateful; you share your struggles and your journeys with us and with each other, and for that we are grateful. And you share your passion, creative ideas, and future opportunities with each other – that is the radical imagination that Angela Glover Blackwell calls for in her Radical Imagination podcast and what we lift up in North Sound Voices (our podcast). You all are making change in real time!

Sometimes I get to sit back and watch the work that you do, and the relationships you form with each other. I hope that you have some sense of the magic that you create when you work together. We live in a time where outside forces want us to be afraid of each other, to separate us, but being in space with you feeds our souls, nourishes the heart and connects us to each other. We will advance thriving and equitable well-being because we believe in the importance of our relationship to each other and the world around us. 

Believe it or not, we’re already talking about the August Convening. There are close to 240 partner organizations in the Collaborative Action Network, so imagine having one or two from each organization in space together – wow. More to come as we pull initial ideas together.  

Be well, and we look forward to seeing you soon again –