Two siblings realized they hardly knew their neighbors and invited them to a breakfast in their front yard. More than 50 people showed up. Now called We Love Long Beach (WLLB), the non-profit with a vision of “Connecting neighbors one block at a time” in Long Beach, California, continues to organize free breakfasts and opportunities for neighbors to feel connected and experience a sense of belonging in their neighborhood.

WLLB hosted its first Community Conversations featuring guest Cormac Russell at Long Beach City College on March 17, 2018. Cormac shares insights from Asset-Based Community Development (ABCD) in this keynote from his work around the world.

In this video:

  • The egg metaphor (20:55 – 21:49)
  • how ABCD started (29:11 – 31:00)
  • the bridge story (56:28 – 1:01:38)
  • connection, not conversion (1:02:50 – 1:04:00)
  • practical tips on how to connect (1:11:08-1:11:56)

Watch video on youtube

Quotes from Cormac Russell

“The way to show up in somebody’s life, if you want to make a real difference, is to be curious about their gifts and then to figure out with them how those gifts can get received in the community where they live.”

“When we are building connection what we are doing is building empathy, not sympathy.”