As we prepared for 2022, we found ourselves deeply convicted by the mandate on which POPUP was founded more than 20 years ago. Birthed from a compassion for the pain, lostness and brokenness of our cities, we found ourselves challenged on our commitment to this conviction.
When a need is as glaring and seemingly insurmountable as the brokenness of our cities, it is easy to feel overwhelmed. Where do we start? What do we prioritise? How do we measure impact?
Getting back to the Heart
As we grappled with these questions, we felt guided to start with the end in mind. If we could define what a ‘whole city’ looks like, all we need to do is find sustainable ways to address that which distracts from this ideal.
There are so many ways to attempt to define this concept. Fundamentally though, cities are about the people who live there. We concentrate around these nodes for education, work, quality of life, opportunities and countless other things. Ultimately, a whole city is a place where every resident is ‘whole’.
A ‘Whole Person’
How we define a healthy individual is of utmost importance. The way we think about people defines the interventions we prioritise, measure, and fund. If we believe a whole person is financially able, ie. above the bread line of $2 per day, focusing on education and employment opportunities would make a lot of sense. Conversely, if a whole person is someone who grows up with a present father our priorities and interventions would be very different. The first step then, was to define what a whole person is.
To get to grips with the concept of wholeness, we explored various dimension which we as individuals engage:
- My Value – Inherent dignity
- My Destiny – Unique significance
- My Contribution – Positive engagement with my environment
These three dimensions strike a balance between the identity of the person, their responsibility, or external engagement, and their legacy, or impact.
A Whole City
A whole city is a place where every resident:
- Is treated with Dignity
- Lives with Significance
- Contributes Positively
The Profound Implication
As soon as this truth dawned on us, the first realization was that we could never hope to achieve this alone. Our mandate for ‘Whole Cities’ was far greater than our ability to achieve it. We needed to radically alter our approach if we were to ever make progress towards this Transformative Purpose.
Towards a City Transformation Model
Radical city transformation required us to engage our city in a more holistic way. This has implications for our interventions, our partnerships and our
footprint.
We came to understand that our learner is the object of our Transformative Purpose. Every ‘whole’ learner becomes an agent of change in our city to bring about transformation in their own way. To better serve our learners, it is imperative the we design our interventions to support their journey ‘From Hopelessness to Impact.’
This journey requires taking hands with many organisations at a national, provincial, municipal and impact point levels. To serve accurately and efficiently the need at each of our local engagements requires the formation of Impact Eco-Systems with other like-minded entities who dream about a whole city.
Harnessing the power of such partnerships would improve efficiency, remove duplication, and drive more sustainable impact outcomes.
Understanding our Cities
Cities are large places. Given our ethic, cultural, economic and language diversity our local cities consist of countless microcosms each with very distinct
challenges and socio-economic expressions.
Serving our cities with compassion requires us to take stock of the unique expressions in each of our impact zones to design Intervention Streams fit for purpose in partnership with the local Impact Eco-Systems.
Prioritising our Interventions
In response to these implications, the nature of our interventions must be considered. Before all else, we must address the Dignity and Significance of every learner. It is with our Life Skills interventions that we begin to restore the individual into their rightful place in society and set them up for positive contribution.
Our key focus remains on the youth that get stuck in the NEET’s funnel (Not in Education, Employment or Training). It is in service of the Hopeless youth that POPUP exists.
From this posture, we define our interventions into three streams focusing on our secondary outcomes:
- Restore NEET’s Learners to give them access to further education opportunities.
- Equip Learners with employment opportunities through learnerships and internships.
- Empower learners to create their own enterprises through a structured multi-year discipleship programme.
A Planting Season
These certainly are brave steps into a new season. We are convicted by the work that lies before us. We are inspired by our Transformative Purpose to see our cities ‘Whole’.
We are encouraged by the knowledge that the way is prepared before us and look forward to how this journey to ‘Whole Cities’ will unfold. Thank you for your continued support and commitment to this vision.
May you be blessed with incredible opportunities to be the change you wish to see.