GUIDING TRANSFORMATION THROUGH LIVED EXPERIENCE
From Independence To Interdependence
| |
|
“Every experience has its own horizon; every experience has its core of actual and determinate cognition, its own content of immediate determinations which give themselves; but beyond this core of determinate quiddity, of the truly given as "itself here," it has its own horizon. This implies that every experience refers to the possibility. . . of obtaining, little by little as experience continues, new determinations of the same thing. . . And this horizon in its indeterminateness is co-present from the beginning as a realm (Spielraum) of possibilities, as the prescription of the path to a more precise determination, in which only experience itself decides in favor of the determinate possibility it realizes as opposed to others.”
— [Edmund Husserl, Experience and Judgment,
trans. James Spencer Churchill and Karl Ameriks
(Evanston: NorthwesternUniversity Press, 1973), p. 32.]”
― Edmund Husserl, Experience and Judgment
| |
|
The Power of Interdependence and Shared Empowerment in Community Work
By: Marissa Radcliffe
| |
When you come from a place of "lived experience," being interdependent becomes a way of life. My adult life has taken a path where I had to rely on systems that only cared about the boxes I checked and the blanks I filled, determining the extent of assistance I could receive to feed my children. This experience is sometimes breathtakingly embarrassing and disheartening, making me feel like I don't want to depend on such systems. However, this same "lived experience" has also molded and propelled me into roles and spaces where I can accomplish things that give being interdependent a whole new meaning.
Now, as an Executive Director of a nonprofit and a Community Healthcare Worker, I find my interdependence in partnerships with some of those same agencies, organizations, and programs I once depended on differently. This evolution is beautiful, as it signifies progress and growth. The work we are doing now involves intermingling resources, building bridges to equity, and exercising shared power. It demonstrates how interdependence can transform into a collaborative effort to create a more equitable community.
To me, being interdependent and having shared power within communities means working together toward shared goals and bringing empathy into the room. Even in community work, we must carry a sense of understanding when creating programs and championing people's futures. Shared power requires authentic connections among all involved parties. We must remember that legitimacy doesn't come with power; it is strongest when there is transparency in our work with the communities we serve. By showing and supporting the values in their voices, we truly share power with these communities.
I urge you to embrace interdependence in your own communities. Engage authentically, listen empathetically, and work collaboratively towards shared goals. Together, we can build bridges to equity and empower one another, transforming our shared spaces into thriving, inclusive communities.
|  | |
|
“We argue with stories, internally or out loud. We talk back. We praise. We denounce. Every story is the beginning of a conversation, with ourselves as well as with others.”
—Aeon Magazine
| |
|
WIN Changemaker Spotlight
Meet Danna Torres and Chiquitta who are applying lived experience in guiding transformation in their community. They are part of our larger Better Ancestor movement and changemaker ecosystem. Listen to how they do what they do.
| |
A short interview with Danna Torres | |  |
Chiquitta's Transformation story | | |
|
Shared Lived Experience Forms Connection: The Power of Peer Support | Beth Walters
How does it feel when you have a conversation with someone who has had a similar experience as you? From pursuing her dream of becoming a clown for Ringling Brothers Circus to now working in the behavioral health field as a Certified Recovery Peer Specialist, Beth Walters shares about the impact of connection through peer support.
| | |
| |
|
BEACON For Equity: Building Equitable Thriving Communities
Is your community ready to assess where they are on the journey to racial equity? Over the next six months, we will be exploring the 6 modules in the BEACON assessment. When your community collaboration completes the first module, you will examine the progress the collaboration is making towards sharing leadership and power with people with lived experience. You can learn more about BEACON and take the assessment here.
| |
|
Experience
By Jane Taylor
| |
|
That lesson, learned aright, is valued more
Than all experience ever taught before;
For this her choicest secret, timely given,
Is wisdom, virtue, happiness, and heaven.
Long is religion viewed, by many an eye,
As wanted more for safety by and by,
– A thing for times of danger and distress,
Than needful for our present happiness.
But after fruitless, wearisome assays
| |
|
To find repose and peace in other ways,
The sickened soul – when Heaven imparts its grace, Returns to seek its only resting place;
And sweet Experience proves, as years increase,
That wisdom ways are pleasantness and peace.
Yes, and the late conviction, fraught with pain,
On many a callous conscience strikes in vain …
| |
|
What is ‘lived experience’?
The term is ubiquitous and double-edged.
Lived experience is an embodied, not a purely cerebral, affair. As such, it involves thought, feelings and activity...We interact with our environment because we have concerns and purposes. This means that, in lived experience, we respond affectively and volitionally to a world that shows up as immediately meaningful and significant.
| |
|
The Power Of Story
Across time and culture, stories have been agents of personal transformation
For thousands of years, we’ve known intuitively that stories alter our thinking and, in turn, the way we engage with the world. But only recently has research begun to shed light on how this transformation takes place from inside.
| |
|
"Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much."
– Helen Keller
| |
|
Would you like to be a part of the WE WIN Together Week 2025? Contact us at WIN@weintheworld.org.
Interested in joining the WIN Network? Visit our site. Your support and participation are crucial to our success. Here’s how you can get involved 🤝
Stay connected by signing up for the WIN Digest. We would like to continue to hear from you! Invite others to join Mighty Networks, propose conversation topics, and remember to follow us on social media!
Stay in the know. Check out our events calendar and find something that inspires you. Whether it's a local celebration, a virtual panel, or a community service opportunity, there’s something for everyone.
Join our community of Better Ancestor by Signing The pledge and commit to making the world better for our children and generations after them. We owe it to them. Share widely and contribute to a thriving world.
| |
|
Secure Funding
Leonard-Litz LGBTQ Foundation: LGBTQ+ Community Grants (New Hampshire)
Type: Foundation
Due Date: Rolling
Match Required: No Cost Share
Overview: The purpose of this program is to help LGBTQ+ people fulfill their potential by funding nonprofit organizations that advance the interests and well-being of the LGBTQ+ community through advocacy and with programs and services that meet the needs of LGBTQ+ people. Funding will be provided for life-affirming services that address one or more of the following focus areas:
- Health and wellness
- Crisis intervention
- Racial justice
- Advocacy and community engagement
- Social assistance and programming
Huntington National Bank: Charitable Grant Program (Wisconsin)
Type: Foundation
Due Date: Rolling
Match Required: No Cost Share
Overview: The purpose of this program is to contribute to the development of healthy, vibrant communities. Funding will support projects that improve self-sufficiency and quality of life, as well as advance social and economic equality, in communities served by the funding agency.
Support will be provided for projects in the following focus areas:
- Community revitalization and stabilization
- Community services
- Affordable housing
- Economic and community development
- Racial/social equity
| | | | |
