A new annual gathering will focus on community-based events and action-oriented learning experiences to share, network, and prototype solutions to social and environmental challenges
(DETROIT, October 26, 2017) – Today, Independent Sector, the only national organization representing nonprofits, foundations, and corporations advancing the common good, announces the launch of Upswell, a new social change and learning experience.
Upswell will give changemakers the opportunity to participate in community-based events and action-oriented experiences to learn, network, and prototype solutions to critical social and environmental challenges with local importance and national relevance, culminating in a major annual event. Changemakers are individuals who are committed to advancing the common good, wherever they operate – locally and nationally, across nonprofits, foundations, community groups, social movements, research communities, and businesses-doing-good. The main Upswell event will take place in Los Angeles November 14-16, 2018.
This new experience will replace Independent Sector’s traditional annual conference to provide a richer, more meaningful, and long-lasting event. Independent Sector has already begun the planning necessary to connect the learnings and deep relationships built at Our Common Future, the 2017 annual gathering in Detroit, to lead toward the development of Upswell in 2018.
“At the most basic human level, people are successful in creating positive social change through relationship and service to one another,” said Daniel J. Cardinali, president and CEO of Independent Sector. “We are looking at how we can get back to these fundamentals to ensure we are deeply understanding of the communities we visit on an annual basis and take those learnings to the national level for all changemakers.”
Before convening in Los Angeles, Independent Sector will work with local leaders and trained community organizers to identify challenges that are locally grounded and nationally relevant. This yearlong, place-based engagement will serve as the scaffolding for the Upswell experience, and the lessons from Los Angeles will inform a similar engagement process for Upswell 2019 in Chicago.
For more information, visit upswell.org.
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Independent Sector is the only national membership organization that brings together a diverse set of nonprofits, foundations, and corporations to advance the common good. Learn more at independen1stg.wpengine.com.
