Project Transparency

Don't villainize the community, work with the community.

The man holding this sign is Richmond (CA) police chief Chris Magnus, whose department has not lost an officer or killed a citizen since 2007, the year after he took over. This is not an accident, this peacefulness is the direct result of his leadership. Police departments across the country should be looking to his department as an example to be followed.

'Chief Magnus changed the department from one that focused on "impact teams" of officers who roamed rough neighborhoods looking to make arrests to one that required all officers to adopt a "community policing" model, which emphasizes relationship building.

"We had generations of families raised to hate and fear the Richmond police, and a lot of that was the result of our style of policing in the past. It took us a long time to turn that around, and we're seeing the fruits of that now. There is a mutual respect now, and some mutual compassion."'

www.contracostatimes.com/news/ci_26482775/use-deadly-force-by-police-disappears-richmond-streets

58 Powerful talks for the changemaker in you Ashoka Fellows around the world have presented at TED and TEDx events around the world. Each of these Ashoka fellows are leading social entrepreneurs- Jimmy Wales, William Muir, Jill Vialet, Mary Gordon and hundreds of others are inspiring change and tackling pressing social problems around the worl…

In 2014 we connected with Laughter For A Change , a great non-profit that uses improv, comedy, and laughter to help build self-confidence and make meaningful connections within communities such as veterans groups, homeless youth, senior groups, and middle school students. They work with other non-profits and community groups, such as the NOW (New Open World) Academy at Robert F. Kennedy Community Schools, the Koreatown Youth and Community Center, West LA Veterans Administration, Ascencia: Lifting People Out of Homelessness, the Pacific Lodge Boys’ Home, and the New Community Jewish High School. When we first encountered Laughter for a Change we heard they did great work around town, but it wasn’t until we got to know them more that we realized the immense power that laughter and improv can have on the individual and within communities. We were excited to create a narrative video about them, and share with the world the richness of what they do. Stay tuned…