What happened in Workshop 1
This is trailblazing! Very few people have ever walked this path before and because of that there are very few maps. What we are going be doing in the first few sessions together is build a map to help you navigate around the world of social investment. What is more, because this is so ground-breaking and very individual, you are going to have to build that map yourself. Our job is to help you do that.
Lara Norris, Senior Consultant, The Curiosity Society
The group took part in three exercises, via Zoom, using a tool called Mural which allowed us – with a bit of instruction – to collaborate online as if we were in the same room.
First Lara asked members to select which two of the themes from the LBBD Borough Manifesto they personally would prioritise and to think about why those two themes meant the most to them.
For the second exercise, members were asked to choose the two themes that they would prioritise if they were choosing for their neighbours rather than themselves. Interestingly, just one participant retained the same two priorities they’d selected in the first exercise.
When we looked from our personal experience it was from my work which led me to housing here I am comfortable and have direct opinions....[when thinking about my neighbours]…I took a more general view - one for the many … and shifted to safety.
A workshop participant
Investing in oranges, apples or lemons
The final exercise, called The Big Picture, gave members a chance to make theoretical decisions about where to invest their own money. It took place in three stages, with Lara from Curiosity Society revealing more information, about three anonymous organisations she’d given the pseudonyms “Oranges” “Apples” and “Lemons”, at each stage.
You can see exactly how this exercise took part by doing it yourself. The results of the Big Picture exercise remain anonymous but if you take part, you will see how other people voted. So, which would you choose; Oranges, Apples or Lemons? Take part in the quiz to find out:
What next for the CSG?
The next CSG members workshop takes place on 16th December. Before then the members have been asked to do some reading and learning about social investment (the process of using financial resources to achieve a social outcome, as well as a financial return).
Workshop 2 will also be facilitated by The Curiosity Society who will introduce participants to their Bullseye Model for making decisions about social investments and will help them evaluate the strength of various funds and investments in line with their priorities.
If you would like to find out more about the CSG or the Community Endowment Fund you can contact Cameron Bray at hello@bdgiving.org.uk or sign up to our newsletter to stay in the loop with all of our work in the brough.