We have identified 3 major areas that we believe fit with our Mission and Purpose. Because everything is connected, changes in one area will have effects across the other initiatives as well.
If we are to truly have a sustainable community, we need a system of support and caring within our local neighborhood or even within the block we live on. To ensure that community needs are addressed by local government, those local areas must be able to come together speak with a strong, united voice. In short, the power to determine community needs and solutions needs to reside with the affected community.
We have called this section our FRONT PORCH Initiative
Addressing inequality and social injustice is necessary if we are to have civil society. We at The Center stand in solidarity with Black Lives Matter and all groups and individuals working for social justice.
Our SOCIAL JUSTICE Initiative includes outreach and support for individuals previously incarcerated, those marginalized by prejudice and income inequality, and the disenfranchised. We support the right of all Americans to vote, regardless of economic or social status. People should not be condemned to a lifetime of discrimination because they had once been incarcerated. Once a person has served their time, they must be fully reintegrated into the community and larger society.
Finally, OUR ECONOMY Initiative looks at the major limitations of the corporate capitalist economic system. There are alternatives to capitalism, and many that do not rely on a Marxist interpretation of economics. We explore many of those alternatives in this initiative. We also look at whether Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is really the best way to measure economy activity. GDP may be an accurate measure of a nation’s spending but is it the best way to measure a peoples’ quality of life? We look at alternatives such as Gross Progress Indicator (GPI), Gross Happiness Index, and many others.