Root Change

TO BRING PEOPLE TOGETHER TO QUESTION ASSUMPTIONS, THINK DEEPLY, TEST IDEAS, AND LEAD THE WAY TO A WORLD BUILT ON SOCIAL JUSTICE PRINCIPLES.

ROOT CHANGE WORKS WITH FORWARD-LOOKING PHILANTHROPY AND CIVIL SOCIETY ORGANIZATIONS AROUND THE WORLD TO DEVELOP AND TEST PRACTICAL METHODS FOR LOCAL SYSTEMS STRENGTHENING AND ADAPTIVE MANAGEMENT TO SUPPORT LOCALLY DRIVEN DEVELOPMENT. ROOT CHANGE DESIGNS PRODUCTS, TECHNOLOGIES, AND INTERACTIVE EXPERIENCES THAT HELP PEOPLE, COMMUNITIES, AND ORGANIZATIONS DISCOVER THEIR OWN SOLUTIONS AND HAS HELPED OVER 1000 LOCAL AND INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS TEST, PILOT, AND LAUNCH INNOVATIVE SOLUTIONS TO LOCAL PROBLEMS. IN 2021, ROOT CHANGE WON A $600,000 AWARD FROM THE RISING TIDE TO FUND THE COMMUNITY INDEPEDENCE INITIATIVE (CII) MODEL OVER A TWO-YEAR PERIOD. THE GRANT IS USED TO ESTABLISH A SEED INVESTMENT FUND TO GROW MICRO-ENTERPRISES AND IMPACT TRADITIONAL SYSTEMS, AND TO ESTABLISH THE CENTER FOR PEER DRIVEN CHANGE TO ACCELERATE THE SPREAD OF THE CII APPROACH. CII IS A PEER-DRIVEN CHANGE MODEL THAT INVESTS IN THE TALENTS, STRENGTHS, AND INGENUITY OF PEOPLE LIVING IN LOW-INCOME COMMUNITIES. CII IS HOUSED WITHIN ROOT CHANGE, WHO PROVIDES TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE TO PARTNERS AROUND THE WORLD INTERESTED IN PILOTING AND ADOPTING THE APPROACH. AT THE CENTER FOR PEER-DRIVEN CHANGE, WE SYSTEMATICALLY PRIORITIZE LEARNING ABOUT THE WAYS THAT COMMUNITIES COME TO DEFINE AND LEAD FOR THEMSELVES THE CHANGES THEY SEEK IN THEIR LIVES. THROUGH ACTION RESEARCH, WE STUDY AND HELP IMPLEMENT MODELS OF MUTUAL AID AND SUPPORT TO FIND WAYS THAT PHILANTHROPY, GOVERNMENT, NONPROFITS AND CONCERNED CITIZENS CAN SUPPORT LOCAL SYSTEMS STRATEGIES WITHOUT GETTING IN THE WAY. ROOT CHANGE ALSO PARTNERED WITH THE CHILD CENTER OF NEW YORK TO SUPPORT THE FIRST 12-MONTHS OF A THREE-YEAR PILOT OF CII AMONG 60 FAMILIES THAT REPRESENT THEIR CONSTITUENTS. IN 2021, WE CONCLUDED PILOTING OF THE CII WORK IN MEXICO, COLOMBIA AND THE PHILIPPINES WITH THE CHILDREN INTERNATIONAL. WE CONTINUED OUR WORK WITH IREX TO IMPLEMENT YOUTHPOWER YOUTH EXCEL, A GLOBAL FIVE-YEAR U.S. AGENCY FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT (USAID) PROGRAM TO STRENGTHEN YOUTH LEADERSHIP IN LOCAL DEVELOPMENT. THIS PROGRAM WILL EMPOWER YOUNG PEOPLE AND YOUTH ORGANIZATIONS TO DRIVE LOCAL DEVELOPMENT BY USING IMPLEMENTATION RESEARCH TO STRENGTHEN LOCAL, NATIONAL, AND GLOBAL DEVELOPMENT SOLUTIONS. WE ENTERED INTO TWO CONTRACTS WITH THE AGA KHAN FOUNDATION ON CONDUCTING NETWORK ANALYSIS FOR TWO OF THEIR EDUCATION PROGRAMS IN COASTAL KENYA. ROOT CHANGE HELPS BUILD THE CAPACITY OF AKF TO COLLECT AND ANALYZE NETWORK MEASURES AND VISUAL RESULTS USING PANDO, WHICH COMBINES SOCIAL NETWORK ANALYSIS AND QUALITITATIVE FEEDBACK. WE SUPPORT THE ANALYSIS AND MEANING MAKING PROCESS OF THE RESULTS AND PRODUCE A LEARNING REPORT TO SUPPORT AKF'S IMPROVEMENT AND EXPANSION OF THE VALUES-BASED EDUCATION (VBE) PROGRAM AND THEIR UNDERSTANDING OF SCHOOL NETWORKS UNDER THE TUKU PROGRAM.