Strategic Dialogues

In its first three years, the Poverty Initiative’s Poverty Scholars Program has held eight large Strategic Dialogues for 50 – 100 leaders per gathering, and many more smaller gatherings, educationals, strategy sessions, and network building opportunities.

The eight Strategic Dialogue gatherings incorporate methods of collective study and teaching in dialogue and have focused on leadership development and organizing principles through study of the uniting of leaders, lessons from history, social movements, economics, politics, Human Rights, religious strategy, art and culture, media and communications, and the development of curriculum and pedagogy – teaching as we fight, learning as we lead, and struggle as a school.

Please see below links to highlights of the Strategic Dialogues gatherings offered in 2008 – the Poverty Scholars Program’s first three Strategic Dialogues:

Strategic Dialogue #1 September 18-21, 2008

On September 18th, sixty people representing more than fifteen organizations gathered at Union Theological Seminary for the first Poverty Scholars Program Strategic Dialogue. Participants came from across the U.S. (Detroit, MI, Atlanta, GA, Charleston, WV, Philadelphia, PA, Wilkes Barre, PA, Ithaca, NY, New York City, NY and more). Sessions focused on: The history of the Poor People’s Campaign launched by the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. in 1968; Poor people organizing today; Poverty and inequality; The art of new leadership and strategies for organizing.

On November 6th, seventy people representing more than twenty organizations gathered at Union Theological Seminary for the Second Poverty Scholars Program Strategic Dialogue.

Just two days before, the United States – for the first time in its history – elected as President a mixed heritage, African-American man, Barack Obama. In the weeks just before, the global economy became increasingly immersed in the largest economic crisis of our lifetimes. The reality that poverty is the defining issue of our time is more present than ever in people’s lives and consciousness.

Strategic Dialogue #3 March 26-29, 2009

More than seventy leaders gathered at Union Theological Seminary for the third (and final) Poverty Scholars Program Strategic Dialogue. The highlight of the weekend was the commitment of the assembled leaders to this growing process – leaders from California, Colorado, Georgia, Iowa, Michigan, Maryland, Minnesota, Maine, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia.

Participants studied the root causes and results of the continuing massive economic crisis and shared experiences of organizing in local communities where homes are being foreclosed and people are losing their jobs.The rest of the gathering’s agenda focused on preparation for the August 2009 Leadership School. The group determined: the overall goals for the School; the core theme of “Economics and Politics” for the plenary sessions; the topics, curriculum, and pedagogy for Skills and Organizing tracks; the videos, field trips, art and culture through which participants will study the local history of the Coal Wars in Appalachia, and more.