Shift the Country - Let's Do Helpful Things

We're in a Disaster But We Can Do Things To Help People Through, Hold It Together, & Make Change

We need everyone who can do anything anywhere to jump in and help Shift the Country . 

We can take care of each other.  We can help each other through.  We can hold this country together through a very rough winter.

The US is in the biggest set of crises in decades with a pandemic, a tenuous presidential transition, widespread science denial endangering public health, insidious disinformation efforts, upcoming complicated vaccine distributions, empowered hate groups, institutional erosion, and intensifying disasters.

Change is coming… whether we drive it or not.  Chaos and trauma push us into shock, inaction, and hand-wringing.  All of us can help in ways that are decisive, impactful, and purposeful; and that pull us forward through overwhelm and crisis.

When millions of people each do something helpful… shift can happen.  We find our way through.  Together.

We have an approach to get this shift going.  It’s a framework with a 5-part strategy, a 4-part mission, 4 principles, 15 tools for doing helpful things, and 10 structural areas for action anywhere.  It’s adaptable, scalable, and flexible.  It’s made up of parts that any person or organization can use at any level in any way that works.

5-PART STRATEGY TO MAKE SHIFT HAPPEN

We can create something like a phenomenon by doing several things in combination.  It doesn’t have to be a huge phenomenon. It can be in a small, rural town. It might be in a regional community, or a national online interest group. It can be anywhere.

Any person, tiny informal group, or big organization can find a way to make some shift happen somewhere with this approach. It might just be about looking after neighbors. It might be a regional public health push. It can be anything.

THE 5-PART STRATEGY IS:

1.  DO HELPFUL THINGS.  Create A Groundswell of People Doing Helpful Things.

2.  GET GROUPS TOGETHER TO DO BIGGER THINGS.  Build Power with More Teamwork & Greater Alliances.

3.  RAISE A RUCKUS.  Create Spectacle.  Drive the Public Agenda.  Drive the Narrative.

4.  SPREAD THE RUCKUS THROUGH OUR NETWORKS.  Make Shift Go Viral by Creating Tipping Points in Social Networks Online & In Real Life.

5.  COUNTER FEAR.  Embrace Humanity But Take Risk Seriously While Taking Action.

Details for each tool are in the 15 Tools For Doing Helpful Things section. The first 5 tools are the same as the 5-part strategy.

The interrelated parts of the approach here are designed to Create Something Like A Phenomenon when used together.

WHAT'S NEXT....

We're rolling out a big push in early December to ramp up some serious ruckus and get stories out that are happening anywhere in contagion country.

The idea is to help bring attention to the massive public health and other needs out in this country.   Events to get this rolling will be on our Eventbrite  page. 

A main storytelling page where you can record & share stories is under development now, planned to launch 12/2/20, in a workshop that day.

HOW FUNDING HELPS MAKE SHIFT HAPPEN...

We're super-brand-new as of July 2020. We're at the very very beginning of fundraising. Every bit of help helps us make more shift happen.  We're asking for $11,000 per month for our initial start-up and launch expenses - with heavy digital marketing planned for the storytelling initiative as per the 5-part strategy.  Contributions are not deductible for federal income tax purposes as charitable contributions.

Expenses include strategy and content development, social media, promotion, marketing, graphics, supporting videos and podcasts, subscriptions, hardware, software, other technology, and hosting and platforms for email, outreach, and websites.   EXTRA funding on top of what we're asking for can help us do WAY more marking - and to make even bigger shift happen.

WE CAN HELP WITH THIS DISASTER

The US needs action, coalitions, ideas, and empowerment now. 

The Shift the Country framework can help catalyze organic, structural, systemic action and transformation in US communities as we find our way through, together.

** Shift the Country website 
** The 15 Tools for Doing Helpful Things
** Upcoming Events on Eventbrite
** Like us on Facebook 
** Subscribe to our YouTube Channel 
** Follow us on Twitter
** Email:  shiftthecountry at gmail dot com.
** Info About the Founder 

Change is coming, whether we drive it or not. 

We can all help that change be transformation.

Thank you.  Be safe.  Be well.  Love some people.  And try not to get dead. 

There are ways through this.  We find them together.

Onward.