Gifts

The house pictured here stands amidst a grove of trees in the Newton community of Surrey, British Columbia, my hometown. The ‘bricks’ are mainly encyclopedias, textbooks and reference books. All were discarded, unwanted and destined for the dump until...

1. Keep a Gratitude Journal Establish a daily practice in which you remind yourself of the gifts, grace, benefits, and good things you enjoy. Setting aside time on a daily basis to recall moments of gratitude associated with ordinary events,...

Cincinnati, Ohio, is among the fastest growing cities in the Midwest. It hosts corporate giants like Procter & Gamble and Kroger, and some of its close-in neighborhoods have become chic, with coffee shops and new condominiums. But prosperity is not...

Peter Block is the author of Community: The Structure of Belonging and one of the leading thinkers about community development. We were very excited when he became a member of New Scoop last winter and recently asked him why he joined...

It was a good night, all the food groups were covered in the potluck and in the conversation.  There was the delicious randomness of potlucks — vegetarian loaf, bruschetta, fresh bread, brie, samosas, salad, pecan pie, mini cream puffs and...

I love my solitude. I also love my community. But my independent nature has never been unusual in this town. The first time I heard the expression “There’s no ‘I’ in ‘team,’” I swore off organized school sports. I told...

The Lanark County Food Bank in Ontario, Canada, believes in a little friendly competition, especially one like the Great Veggie Grow Off that benefits people who rely on the Food Bank to put nourishing food on their tables every...

There are more than 7,000 groups in Cincinnati who want to better the community in one way or another.  A Small Group has opened a dialogue so groups can work together – as citizens committed to change – to...

Conversation with John McKnight, Peter Block and Guest Edd Conboy TalkShoe Radio  ~  August 8, 2015 https://www.talkshoe.com/recording/attachment/key/19dba83a6619d51024249edf98bb5c335fa30d23.mp3 Peter: I met Edd Conboy about three years ago when I was a guest at a daylong conference and I was able to get a...