Impact Story: How OBI's conference helped me to tell my story

*Note: The author's name was changed to protect their identity amid the ongoing repression targeting student activists. Gathering is a form of disruption. Being in a space of community and love, you disrupt societal norms that reflect apparatus and...

Impact Story: How Targeted Universalism Is Bringing Equity to Chicago's Public Schools

Chicago Public Schools former equity chief Maurice Swinney explains the transformative power of TU and the importance of listening to our young people

Impact Story: What belonging looks like in data

Co-founder of Conscious Community Connectors, Fatima Elkott shares how OBI's recent North American Equity Data convening has impacted them. This is an excerpt of Elkott's first-person narrative which was initially published in full on May 7 here. I...

Impact Story: How libraries can serve as places of belonging

The calluses and scars on Shamichael Hallman’s hands serve as lasting reminders of the frigid Alabama winters he spent as a 20-year-old logger, cutting and bundling 20-foot cedar logs in a Birmingham lumber yard—timber destined to build homes. “I’d...

Impact Story: Making Democracy Better in Oregon

Editor's note: This article belongs to our Impact Stories series in which scholars, activists, artists, policymakers, and everyday people share their experiences putting OBI's research and principles into action in their communities. -- When we first...

Impact Story: Puerto Rico's Energy Insurrection

Editor's note: This article belongs to our Impact Stories series in which scholars, activists, artists, policymakers, and everyday people share their experiences putting OBI's research and principles into action in their communities. -- A couple...

Impact Story: From Blaming to Belonging

Editor's note: This article belongs to our Impact Stories series in which scholars, activists, artists, policymakers, and everyday people share their experiences putting OBI's research and principles into action in their communities. -- I was...

Impact Story: A Spark of Motivation

Editor's note: This article belongs to our Impact Stories series in which scholars, activists, artists, policymakers, and everyday people share their experiences putting OBI's research and principles into action in their communities. -- Employees in...

Impact Story: International Cities of Peace

Editor's note: This article belongs to our Impact Stories series in which scholars, activists, artists, policymakers, and everyday people share their experiences putting OBI's research and principles into action in their communities. -- The global...

Impact Story: Healing Through Art

Editor's note: This article belongs to our Impact Stories series in which scholars, activists, artists, policymakers, and everyday people share their experiences putting OBI's research and principles into action in their communities. -- I discovered...

Impact Story: Eviction Resolution

Editor's note: This article belongs to our Impact Stories series in which scholars, activists, artists, policymakers, and everyday people share their experiences putting OBI's research and principles into action in their communities. -- In the summer...

Impact Story: Just Cities

Editor's note: This article belongs to our Impact Stories series in which scholars, activists, artists, policymakers, and everyday people share their experiences putting OBI's research and principles into action in their communities. -- The Othering...

Impact Story: A City of Belonging

Editor's note: This article belongs to our Impact Stories series in which scholars, activists, artists, policymakers, and everyday people share their experiences putting OBI's research and principles into action in their communities. -- When I first...

Impact Story: Safety Through Connection

Editor's note: This article belongs to our Impact Stories series in which scholars, activists, artists, policymakers, and everyday people share their experiences putting OBI's research and principles into action in their communities. -- In 2022, the...

Impact Stories

Since our founding in 2012 we've believed that research shouldn't be conducted merely for the sake of research. An ancient proverb reminds us, "To know and not to do is not to know." In that spirit our commitment has been for our research center to...

Explore Othering and Belonging

E-Newsletter Archive

An Archive of past issues of our bi-weekly newsletter.
Aug
13

Bridging Partnerships for Scaling Housing Justice

Register now Housing justice for all. To truly be for all, we need housing solutions at scale. Scaling just solutions that match what our communities want and need is about more than building more affordable housing units. It requires building...

Blog: Gender, Goosebumps, Grace, and Grieving

Julia McKeown's tattoo inspired by the poetry of Andrea Gibson. “When I left my body I did not go away. That portal of light was not a portal to elsewhere, but a portal to here. I am more here than I ever was before.” From Love Letter From the...