The Neighbor Next Door

We are so honored to present a podcast episode with Majora Carter! Majora is one of those people who is changing the world in incredibly visible, physical ways. As an urban revitalization strategist and real estate developer, she is taking the lead in facilitating neighborhood-level economic development that is both led by - and directly benefiting - neighbors. Tune in to hear all about this amazing, powerful work!It was such a joy to interview Majora for the podcast, and we are so appreciative that she said yes. With countless accolades to her name, and so many projects she is always taking on, she could have been doing anything else, so we were so excited to get a chance to sit down with her and share her wisdom with you all!Born, raised, and still living in the South Bronx, Majora has been championing her low-status community her entire life. Now, she's at the forefront of incredibly massive and innovative neighborhood development projects that are not predatory or gross but instead are neighbor-driven and give neighbors a slice of both the communal and economic benefits. Her work is so so inspiring, and as a nonprofit that is also now starting to dip its toes into economic development in our neighborhood - and attempting to do so in a way that is not harmful to, but instead happily rooted within, the identity of the neighborhood - we cannot get enough.The subtitle of Majora Carter's 2022 book Reclaiming Your Community, also quoted on a wall at the Smithsonian Museum of African-American History and Culture in DC, says it all: "You don't have to move out of your neighborhood to live in a better one." Enjoy this powerful episode!And, to learn more about Majora's work, check out the links below:Majora's 2022 book Reclaiming Your Community: You Don't Have To Move Out Of Your Neighborhood To Live In A Better OneMajora's websiteMajora's projectsMajora's InstagramMajora's LinkedIn

In this episode of The Neighboring Movement Podcast, host Adam sits down with long-time friend and colleague Dr. Nate Regier. A former psychologist - and now leadership consultant, speaker, and author - Dr. Regier presents his newest book and wisdom around the culture-changing practice of compassionate accountability.Nate Regier, PhD, is the CEO and founding owner of Next Element Consulting, a global leadership consulting and training firm helping build cultures of compassionate accountability. Dr. Regier is a former practicing psychologist and expert in social-emotional intelligence, interpersonal communication, conflict skills, and leadership. Recognized as a Top 100 keynote speaker, he is a Process Communication Model® Certifying Master Trainer. Nate is the author of four books: Beyond Drama; Conflict without Casualties; Seeing People Through; and his newest book, Compassionate Accountability. He hosts a podcast called “On Compassion with Dr. Nate,” writes a weekly blog, contributes to multiple industry publications, and is a regular guest on podcasts.To check out and purchase Dr. Regier's newest book, click here. Or, to see what all Next Element is up to, visit their website here! Finally, to get in touch with Dr. Regier and his team, email them here.

Have you met Ian yet? Ian's our newest staff member here at The Neighboring Movement, and he's making the move from Dallas to Wichita in the next couple weeks! In this episode, hosts Adam and Kristopher ask Ian about his past neighboring, what drew him to this work, and what he's looking forward to as our faith-based organizer. We're so excited to introduce Ian to you all!Amongst so much more, Ian is an incredibly kind, thoughtful, and intentional person. Conversations with him tend to end up around deeper subjects, and he has a true gift for drawing out a person's giftedness! As you hear in this episode, Ian has been very intentionally practicing neighboring for many years now and also brings with him so much organizing wisdom. Whether with folks on Zoom in different countries, or on his own block, Ian is truly committed to the neighboring life, and it's so inspiring to hear his many neighboring stories.We hope you enjoy this fun episode in which we introduce Ian to you all, and we also hope you can meet him some day soon! To learn more about the Good Neighbor Experiment and our faith-based organizing work Ian is helming, click here.

Welcome back to The Neighboring Movement Podcast and Part 2 of our conversation with community animators Melissa, Emily, and Eric from Austin, Texas! In this episode, hosts Elizabeth and Catherine ask them about the ways they navigate resistance to neighboring, where they're currently discovering energy, and what they're each curious about in their next year of neighboring.In short,  Elizabeth is the director of the Community Animator Network (or CAN), in which we hire folks from various communities, train them in the principles of asset-based community development, and then companion them in their organizing work within their individual communities. You can learn more about CAN here! Melissa, Emily, and Eric are three neighbors from a neighborhood in Austin, Texas, three of our community animators, and neighboring rockstars! We have been so honored to journey alongside them as they experiment with neighboring in their own context.So, we were super excited for the chance to sit down with them on the indoor front porch and interview them about their recent neighboring efforts. This episode is the second part of a two-part conversation, so if you have not yet tuned into "Texas Neighboring (Part 1): Good Neighbor Fest", we would encourage you to do so now. As always, thanks for listening, and happy neighboring!And, don't forget to check out the work of Emily and Eric's nonprofit We're All Neighbors at: www.wereallneighbors.org! They're doing such incredible work!

The Neighboring Movement podcast is back from a brief hiatus! We're so excited to kick things off with this episode from some of our community animators! Tune in as hosts Elizabeth and Catherine interview three of our animators from Texas - Melissa, Emily, and Eric - about their recent event: Good Neighbor Fest.In short,  Elizabeth is the director of the Community Animator Network (or CAN), in which we hire folks from various communities, train them in the principles of asset-based community development, and then companion them in their organizing work within their individual communities. You can learn more about CAN here! Melissa, Emily, and Eric are three neighbors from a neighborhood in Austin, Texas, three of our community animators, and neighboring rockstars! We have been so honored to journey alongside them as they experiment with neighboring in their own context.So, we were super excited for the chance to sit down with them on the indoor front porch and interview them about their recent neighboring efforts. In this first episode, we dive deep on their recent neighboring mega-event: Good Neighbor Fest. There's so much neighboring wisdom in this episode, so we're very excited to share it with you all. Enjoy!And, be sure to check out the work of Emily and Eric's nonprofit We're All Neighbors at: www.wereallneighbors.org!

Welcome back to The Neighboring Movement Podcast! We know it's been a long break, so we really appreciate you sticking around and staying in the loop! Here's an episode with some updates and celebrations around what's up ahead for both this podcast and The Neighboring Movement as a whole. As always, we hope you enjoy, and stay tuned!In this episode, hosts Aileen Rueda-DaCosta, Adam Barlow-Thompson, and Kristopher Swanson give some updates on how the podcast will look moving forward, plus what our nonprofit as a whole is looking towards in the coming year. One of the updates is that - perhaps unsurprising to some after our long break - we will from here on out be releasing episodes irregularly. Because things are really busy here at the moment (in the best way, too!), and because we desire to put out episodes as the conversations naturally come up between us and our colleagues, we are moving to this system of sporadic release. If you've been listening for a long time, thank you, and you will know that this has always slightly been our release style anyway; we are now seeking to formalize this and simply put out content as the conversations spring up. As ever, we hope the content will be helpful and encouraging to you in your neighboring experiments.Once more, thank you so much again for being a loyal listener and sticking with us, even as we adjust and pivot. We really appreciate you and your support. Happy neighboring! 

Happy Hispanic Heritage Month! Even though the podcast is on a short break, we wanted to release this amazing episode in honor of the celebratory month. In the episode, hosts Aileen Rueda-DaCosta and Kristopher Swanson sat down with Cecilia Thibault and Danny Barrera from Young Latino Professionals of Wichita in order to talk about their organization's powerful work and the many ways in which this aligns with abcd (asset-based community development). We hope you enjoy, and again, happy Hispanic Heritage Month!Young Latino Professionals of Wichita (or YLPW) was started in 2018 and "aims to create and leverage an entire network of Latinos to positively influence our community". As you'll discover in this interview, their work is so grounded upon relationship and connecting, and it's truly wonderful to see the amazing impact - and growth - they've had in the Wichita community over a period of only 4 years. Cecilia and Danny are both leaders within the group, and they have so much wisdom and insight around leading in these kinds of community spaces in an asset-based way. We're so excited to share this episode with you all!You'll learn so much about YLPW in the midst of this interview, but to learn even more, check out their website here! And, to get more details about their Art After Hours event mentioned in the episode, check out their Instagram here!

Hello friends and loyal listeners! In this episode, we give a couple quick updates. First, our online store called the "Neighborhood Shop" is now live! Listen to the episode to learn all about the 3 items that are now available for purchase there, and visit the shop by clicking here: https://neighboringmovement.org/shop. Second, due to a busy season here, we'll be taking a little break from the podcast. We'll keep you all posted, so stay tuned, and as always...thanks for listening, and happy neighboring! 

Hello friends! This week, we're presenting a neighboring tip episode. For those who don't know, we send out weekly neighboring tips - simple ways to get to know your actual, literal neighbors - via email and social media. So, in this week's episode, a few of our staff members sit down to spotlight this week's neighboring tip: Check in on a neighbor, bring a casserole.We hope you enjoy this episode, and to sign up for our emailed, weekly neighboring tips, scroll to the bottom of our home page at https://neighboringmovement.org/.

Welcome to the series finale of The Neighbor Within! This episode is the fifth and final segment of a multi-part series from The Neighboring Movement staff members Elizabeth Ramirez and Maddie Johnson. In the series, Elizabeth and Maddie examine the importance of self care - or neighboring within - before being able to be a good neighbor to others. We hope you enjoy this powerful conclusion to the series!In this series - which we can attest is exponentially more thought-out than pretty much all of our other staff episodes - Elizabeth and Maddie walk listeners through their personal journeys of how they arrived at The Neighboring Movement. These episodes are, in many ways, deeply personal, so we thank Elizabeth and Maddie for their willingness to share their stories with us and our audience.It goes without saying, but as this is the final episode of a five-part series, we would encourage you to listen to Parts 1, 2, 3, and 4 first, as the content of Elizabeth and Maddie's episodes follows a chronological order. Within this series finale, the two hosts discuss the moments immediately following their final decisions, how they felt after leaving their respective toxic places, and the wisdom they now carry into their next phases of life and have to share with us all. We hope you enjoy this final episode, and we would love to hear your feedback. As always, thank you for listening, and happy neighboring within!

The penultimate episode of The Neighbor Within is here! This episode is the fourth segment of a multi-part series from The Neighboring Movement staff members Elizabeth Ramirez and Maddie Johnson. In the series, Elizabeth and Maddie examine the importance of self care - or neighboring within - before being able to be a good neighbor to others. As always, thanks for listening!In this series - which we can attest is exponentially more thought-out than pretty much all of our other staff episodes - Elizabeth and Maddie walk listeners through their personal journeys of how they arrived at The Neighboring Movement. These episodes are, in many ways, deeply personal, so we thank Elizabeth and Maddie for their willingness to share their stories with us and our audience.It goes without saying, but as this episode is Part 4 within the series, we would encourage you to listen to Parts 1, 2, and 3 first, as the content of Elizabeth and Maddie's episodes follows a chronological order. Within this fourth episode, the two hosts discuss how they entered some final meetings in their respective toxic places and the narratives they experienced as a part of this. Enjoy, and stay tuned for next week's series finale!

We are excited to announce the third episode of The Neighbor Within! This episode is one segment of a multi-part series from The Neighboring Movement staff members Elizabeth Ramirez and Maddie Johnson. In the series, Elizabeth and Maddie examine the importance of self care - or neighboring within - before being able to be a good neighbor to others. Welcome back!In this series - which we can attest is exponentially more thought-out than pretty much all of our other staff episodes - Elizabeth and Maddie walk listeners through their personal journeys of how they arrived at The Neighboring Movement. These episodes are, in many ways, deeply personal, so we thank Elizabeth and Maddie for their willingness to share their stories with us and our audience.It goes without saying, but as this episode is Part 3 within the series, we would encourage you to listen to Parts 1 and 2 first, as the content of Elizabeth and Maddie's episodes follows a chronological order. Within this third episode, the two hosts discuss how they began taking action within each of their respective situations, doing so in a way in which they were able to examine their values. As always, stay tuned for next week's Part 4, and enjoy!

Welcome back to The Neighbor Within! This episode is the second of a multi-part series from The Neighboring Movement staff members Elizabeth Ramirez and Maddie Johnson. In the series, Elizabeth and Maddie examine the importance of self care - or neighboring within - before being able to be a good neighbor to others. Thanks for listening!In this series - which we can attest is exponentially more thought-out than pretty much all of our other staff episodes - Elizabeth and Maddie walk listeners through their personal journeys of how they arrived at The Neighboring Movement. These episodes are, in many ways, deeply personal, so we thank Elizabeth and Maddie for their willingness to share their stories with us and our audience.It goes without saying, but as this episode is Part 2 within the series, we would encourage you to listen to Part 1 first, as the content of Elizabeth and Maddie's episodes follows a chronological order. Within this second episode, the two hosts discuss their processes of reflection as they began to ponder leaving their respective toxic places. As always, stay tuned for next week's Part 3!

And...it's the series you've all been waiting for...The Neighbor Within! This episode represents the first of a multi-part series from The Neighboring Movement staff members Elizabeth Ramirez and Maddie Johnson. And it's such a good one! In these episodes, Elizabeth and Maddie examine the importance of self care - or neighboring within - before being able to be a good neighbor to others. Welcome to The Neighbor Within!In this series - which we can attest is exponentially more thought-out than pretty much all of our other staff episodes - Elizabeth and Maddie walk listeners through their personal journeys of how they arrived at The Neighboring Movement. These episodes are, in many ways, deeply personal, so we thank Elizabeth and Maddie for their willingness to share their stories with us and our audience.For this first episode, Elizabeth and Maddie examine the first segments of each of their journeys of leaving toxic places. In their words, they're "spilling some tea"! We hope you enjoy this first episode of the series, and stay tuned for next week's Part 2!

After a short break, we're back! For today's episode, host Adam sat down with Rob Shorter, the Communities & Art Lead at the Doughnut Economics Action Lab. In the episode, Rob explores the necessity of reimagining economies and how this intersects with living in community.Doughnut Economics, you say? That's right, Doughnut Economics! This fun name describes an idea that was first coined and written about by economist Kate Raworth and which essentially outlines how humanity might thrive in this modern era - reimagining economies in which everyone's basic needs are met while also respecting the beauty and boundaries of the planet we call home. And yes, all of this is symbolized by none other than a doughnut! Tune in to the episode to hear Rob describe this fascinating concept and how it intersects with community development.To learn more about Rob's work and Doughnut Economics, visit the Doughnut Economics Action Lab's website here. You can also visit Kate Raworth's website here to learn more about her work and purchase the Doughnut Economics book.Enjoy!

Hello friends! This episode presents just a quick update from host Adam Barlow-Thompson that we'll be taking a little over a month off in order to prepare our future episodes. Tune in to this quick, 1-minute episode for a sneak peak on what we're working on next. Also, in the meantime, check out our podcast essentials playlist here: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1UGIQIj0MvNlW8jyMVPQcY?si=2af29786815c4ebd&nd=1!

"It's time to start thinking about the upcoming election season!" At least, that's what Lindsay Ford says, the guest on The Neighboring Movement Podcast for this week. Lindsay is a friend and the leader of an awesome organization that we partner with out of Kansas City, Kansas - The Voter Network. In this episode, Lindsay shares with us the deep power of doing voter engagement work through the lens of relational organizing."Relational organizing?", you might ask. Relational organizing! It's the amazing way in which the work of our nonprofits intersect. In short, relational organizing is a fancy term for getting things done through the power of your pre-existing network of relationships. In the voting world, this looks like encouraging your family, friends, and neighbors to vote - the idea being that they are way more likely to do so if someone they know is encouraging them to, rather than a complete stranger. This is the work of The Voter Network, an arm of The Mainstream Coalition, where Lindsay is Associate Director. Tune in to the episode to hear more about this work...and maybe get intrigued enough to take part in it!To learn more about the work of The Voter Network, visit their website here. And, for any Kansans out there listening, to join our Neighboring Movement team on Voter To Voter, click here!

Welcome to this week's episode of The Neighboring Movement Podcast! In this episode, we had the honor of interviewing Howard Lawrence in Edmonton, Alberta. Amongst so much more, Howard is an experienced neighboring practitioner, an expert on asset-based community development, and the leader of Edmonton's Abundant Communities Initiative.As host Adam names in this episode, if you've been in the ABCD (asset-based community development) world for long, Howard's name is gonna crop up! He has been experimenting with various neighboring and ABCD practices for years, and he is also at the helm of this work within a city with incredible neighboring infrastructure. In this episode, Howard dives deep into how this work looks on the ground in Edmonton and also other contexts, and it's jam packed with resources, stories, and learnings. We are so very excited to share this one with you all, and we hope you enjoy!And, to learn more about Howard's work and the Abundant Communities Initiative, visit Edmonton's city website here.

Hello friends and faithful listeners! This week, we had the pleasure of interviewing Jennifer White, the founder and executive director of ICT SOS, an anti-trafficking organization in our hometown of Wichita, Kansas. In the episode, Jennifer gives an overview of her nonprofit's work while also discussing the intersection of this work with making connections and building community.Amongst so much more, Jennifer is an extremely bubbly individual with a deep passion for her community and boundless energy to connect. In the conversation, she talks with host Adam about how she lives into this personality in the midst of her work and the theories and practices that form the backbone of her organization. Listeners, you're in for such a treat! ICT SOS is doing such amazing connecting work in our community, and it's a joy to hear Jennifer talk about the reasons why and ways in which they do this. To learn more about ICT SOS, visit their website here! We would also encourage you to consider either volunteering for them or donating towards a special initiative they have coming up, both of which you can hear more about in the episode. To investigate what volunteering might look like, click here, and to donate, click here. You can also learn more about the initiative they have coming up here. Finally, they also have an app! You can download it from either the Apple App Store or Google Play Store, and the links to both of these can be found here!Enjoy the episode!

This week on the podcast, we had the honor of being joined by Brandon Wrencher - a pastor, author, speaker, organizer, and nonprofit leader. Brandon has his hands in a lot of different initiatives, one of which is organizing with a nonprofit called the Good Neighbor Movement and another of which is researching with the Liberating Church Project. Tune in to the episode to learn more about these fascinating organizations and Brandon's powerful work!Amongst so much more, Brandon possesses a deep passion for the intersection of spirituality and social justice, contemplation and activism. Along with this, his love for the church and yet desire to hold it accountable has led him to pursue efforts in decolonizing new and existing faith communities. In the midst of this episode, Brandon explores each of these various topics and the work that is at the forefront of his mind right now, and it's all so very beautiful and important! We are so pumped to share this episode with you all. To learn more about the Good Neighbor Movement, click here. To learn more about the Liberating Church Project, click here. And, spoiler alert, Brandon has a new book out that is discussed in the episode - check it out and purchase it here!Once again, as Brandon is a pastor and doing work with faith communities, we preface this episode with a disclaimer that it contains discussion of spiritual topics, specifically around Christian spirituality. Though this is the case, we believe this episode will be helpful and powerful regardless of your relationship to spirituality and Christian spirituality. Enjoy!

For today's episode, we had the honor of interviewing our friend Valecia Vogts-Scribner. Valecia is a pastor in our community of Wichita, Kansas, who has recently been volunteering at our nonprofit as a part of her seminary work. She possesses a deep passion for social justice, and in this episode, we examine her journey of becoming a pastor and how she thinks about neighboring in the context of her church setting and social justice work.Leaning into both experimentation with neighboring and work upon local social justice issues, Valecia and her church have been helping organize various neighborhood events in collaboration with the neighbors around their church. These events have been creative and wildly successful, and it's such a joy to witness the church live into their new vision statement that revolves around neighboring. We can't wait to see where they go next! In this episode, Valecia gives us a peak into that work while sharing how she arrived at this place and her theories around the importance of these efforts. As one final note, this episode - like some of our others - revolves around a discussion of spirituality, most particularly Christian spirituality. As Valecia pastors a United Methodist Church, this tradition's language is reflected in the conversation. This being said, we hope this episode is thought-provoking for you, regardless of your faith tradition or relation to spirituality. We hope you enjoy!

In the midst of today's episode, we are so delighted for you to get to know Aileen Rueda-DaCosta! Aileen is the newest staff member at The Neighboring Movement and our Communications Director/Storyteller, and she has not yet been introduced on the podcast! So, for today's episode, staff members Adam and Kristopher sat down with Aileen to talk about her passions and gifts, her creative storytelling vision, and what drew her to this work. We're so honored to introduce her to you all!Among so much more, Aileen is an incredibly kind-hearted, justice-oriented, and honest person. A mom with all kinds of job experience and a deep passion for storytelling, she has brought her creative vision to our work, and we are so honored and grateful! It has been such a joy to have Aileen join our staff, and since she started at the beginning of the year, she's been completely transforming our website, social media, email communications, etc. It's been amazing to witness, and we are so excited for her to be on the podcast and for you all to get to know her a bit more!As Aileen mentions in the episode, follow her on Instagram! Her handle is: @the.nacera.project. Enjoy the episode!

Join us for this week's episode of The Neighboring Movement Podcast, where we had the honor of interviewing our friend Lisa Paine, the executive director of Juniper Arts Academy. In this episode, Lisa talks about the ways in which art and relationships intersect and the work of her recently founded nonprofit.Lisa, a friend and frequent collaborator, has worked at a different nonprofit in our neighborhood for years. But, as of the last few weeks, she has stepped into her role as executive director at the nonprofit she recently founded - Juniper Arts Academy. The Academy seeks to provide excellent fine arts education to teens in the juvenile justice & foster care communities. And, they do this through the primary medium of relationships. So, this week, host Adam sat down with Lisa to hear about her organization's powerful story and work and also their theory of relationship in the context of this work. We hope you enjoy!And, if you would like to learn more about, volunteer for, or donate to Juniper Arts Academy, you can visit their website here!

This week on the podcast, we had the honor of interviewing Dr. David Docusen - a speaker, author, and professor who recently wrote a book called Neighborliness. In the episode, David shares about how his faith informs his radical pursuit of neighboring, gives a sneak peak of the book's content, and encourages people to neighbor by crossing dividing lines. In the midst of his pastoral work, David discovered the power of neighboring and became convinced that building relationships with the people who live around us is a meaningful way to live out the Bible's Greatest Commandment. Since then, he has devoted his work to practicing, writing, and speaking about the subject in all kinds of places and contexts. Within this, David gives great attention to the ways in which we must address subjects like race and politics and how we must intentionally foster relationships with people "across dividing lines". This episode speaks ever so powerfully to these subjects in great detail.To learn more about the various ways in which David engages in this work, visit his website by clicking here. And, to learn more about his work with The Neighborliness Center, visit their website here.As one final disclaimer, this episode is one in which spirituality - and specifically Christian spirituality and church life - is discussed quite heavily. While this is the case, we hope the content is impactful and helpful regardless of your relation to Christian spirituality. Enjoy!

Welcome back, friends! For this week's episode, we had the honor of interviewing - for the second time on this podcast - David Burton. David is the County Engagement and Community Development Specialist at the University of Missouri Extension Office, and this week, he shared with us both his journey of neighboring and advice he would give to others seeking to neighbor. Enjoy!David is a frequent collaborator and a neighboring guru. He teaches a class with Missouri Extension called Neighboring 101, and it's an awesome, free course that dives deep into the practical elements of fostering relationships with your neighbors. We're honored to have him back on the podcast in order to continue sharing about his awesome work and also to share his great wisdom with us. 

Welcome, listener, to The Neighboring Movement Podcast! For this episode, we had the honor of interviewing Dr. Shareika Fisher, the executive director of Rise Up For Youth here in Wichita, Kansas. Tune in as Dr. Fisher shares about the powerful work of her organization and also her deep wisdom around forming connections and fostering intentional relationships!Relatively new to Rise Up For Youth, but not as new to Wichita, Dr. Fisher shares about the incredible work of her nonprofit and also what drew her to this work and the Wichita community.  As she does so, host Adam cannot help but find many parallels with our work at The Neighboring Movement.We are so excited to share this episode with you all, and if you would like to learn more about, donate to, or volunteer for Rise Up For Youth, you can visit their website here. Enjoy!

Hello friends and loyal listeners! We are so psyched to welcome you back to our nonprofit's podcast after a brief hiatus...and, we are so excited to announce that The Neighbor Next Door is now officially The Neighboring Movement Podcast! In this brief introductory episode, staff members Elizabeth, Adam, Matt, and Kristopher sit down to talk about the podcast's name change and re-imagination. Welcome to the next chapter of our podcast!

You know how Spotify has "This Is" playlists for popular artists, filled with songs considered to be their classics? In this bonus episode - which we are calling "This Is The Neighbor Next Door" - we reveal our Spotify playlist, filled with classic episodes from our nonprofit's podcast. Stay tuned for the next chapter of the podcast, and in the meantime, check out the playlist here: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1UGIQIj0MvNlW8jyMVPQcY?si=b2f0c384ca734e44. Happy neighboring!

Happy New Year, friends! In this short New Year's episode, hosts Adam and Matt sit down to discuss a theme that they are sensing for 2022 and also to announce that we will be taking a break in which to re-examine, and retool, the podcast. Don't worry, we're not going away, and we'll be back! Just taking a break in which to prepare for the next chapter of the podcast....Stay tuned, and we'll see you on the front porch soon!

We are so excited to present the fourth and final episode in the 8 Front Door Initiative series! In this finale episode, we hear final reflections from our youth and listening teams, along with (teaser!) some hilarious clips that had not yet made it into the series. We hope the entirety of this 8 Front Door Initiative story has been both entertaining and thought-provoking for you, and we hope you enjoy this concluding episode!As one perhaps obvious reminder, as this is the fourth and final episode of the series, now is the time to tune into the first three episodes if you have not already! In the first three episodes, we give you an introduction to the team, an introduction to the initiative itself, examples of some of the resistance the team experienced throughout the summer, and examples of how the team pivoted in the midst of experiencing that resistance. In short, in the midst of the 8 Front Door Initiative, we encouraged every household within the northern-most portion of our neighborhood (about 400 homes) to get to know the neighbors behind the 8 front doors closest to their own. This was accomplished through the work of an awesome team made up of both staff members and high school students who live in our neighborhood and/or attend our neighborhood high school. These high school students paired up with staff members to form listening teams, and these listening teams checked in with each of the 400 households weekly! The students were such incredible listeners and so beyond fun to work with. You'll get to know them, and hopefully get such a fantastic taste of the summer, through this series!We're excited; this series is a bit different than anything we've ever released! Throughout the summer, our host Matt was very intentional about sitting down with the listening teams that went out and interviewing them about their experiences. This series is a compilation of those many recordings and an attempt at telling the story of this transformative initiative. Again, we hope you enjoy the entirety of this summer's story, and we hope you enjoy this series finale! Happy neighboring!

Welcome to Part 3 of the 8 Front Door Initiative series! Last week, in Part 2, we ended on a bit of a sour note, so this week's episode is all about how the team responded to the resistance they were experiencing and pivoted in a variety of ways. The initiative was indeed a long haul, but the team never let their practices stop evolving, and you'll get to hear the nitty-grittiness of that process in this episode.As this is the third episode of this particular series, if you have not already, now is the time to tune into Parts 1 and 2! These first two episodes give you a fantastic introduction to the team, and the initiative itself, so you will definitely want to tune into those episodes before listening to this third one.In short, in the midst of the 8 Front Door Initiative, we encouraged every household within the northern-most portion of our neighborhood (about 400 homes) to get to know the neighbors behind the 8 front doors closest to their own. This was accomplished through the work of an awesome team made up of both staff members and high school students who live in our neighborhood and/or attend our neighborhood high school. These high school students paired up with staff members to form listening teams, and these listening teams checked in with each of the 400 households weekly! The students were such incredible listeners and so beyond fun to work with. You'll get to know them, and hopefully get such a fantastic taste of the summer, through this series!We're excited; this series is a bit different than anything we've ever released! Throughout the summer, our host Matt was very intentional about sitting down with the listening teams that went out and interviewing them about their experiences. This series is a compilation of those many recordings and an attempt at telling the story of this transformative initiative. We hope you enjoy and stay tuned for the series' final release next week!

Hello friends! Thank you for joining us on the front porch for Part 2 of our 8 Front Door Initiative series! In this second episode, we hear more from the team about their initial door-knocking experiences, examine an event the team organized with the neighbors they were meeting, and start to feel some of the resistance the team experienced throughout the summer. Enjoy!Again, as this is the second episode of this particular series, if you have not already, now is the time to tune into Part 1! The first episode of the series was released last Tuesday and is titled "The 8 Front Door Initiative (Part 1): Meet The Team". In that episode, you get to hear more about the initiative itself and meet the team that made it happen!In short, in the midst of the 8 Front Door Initiative, we encouraged every household within the northern-most portion of our neighborhood (about 400 homes) to get to know the neighbors behind the 8 front doors closest to their own. This was accomplished through the work of an awesome team made up of both staff members and high school students who live in our neighborhood and/or attend our neighborhood high school. These high school students paired up with staff members to form listening teams, and these listening teams checked in with each of the 400 households weekly! The students were such incredible listeners and so beyond fun to work with. You'll get to know them, and hopefully get such a fantastic taste of the summer, through this series!We're excited; this series is a bit different than anything we've ever released! Throughout the summer, our host Matt was very intentional about sitting down with the listening teams that went out and interviewing them about their experiences. This series is a compilation of those many recordings and an attempt at telling the story of this transformative initiative. We hope you enjoy and stay tuned as we continue to release the rest of the series!

Hello listener! Thank you for joining us on the front porch. This week, we are so excited to present the first episode of a four-part series around the 8 Front Door Initiative, an extensive neighborhood-wide experiment we kicked off this summer. The series ranges everywhere from heartwarming to hilarious, and we hope it is also so insightful regarding our work here at The Neighboring Movement and this project in particular. We hope you enjoy, and stay tuned for Part 2 next week!In short, in the midst of the 8 Front Door Initiative, we encouraged every household within the northern-most portion of our neighborhood (about 400 homes) to get to know the neighbors behind the 8 front doors closest to their own. This was accomplished through the work of an awesome team made up of both staff members and high school students who live in our neighborhood and/or attend our neighborhood high school. These high school students paired up with staff members to form listening teams, and these listening teams checked in with each of the 400 households weekly! The students were such incredible listeners and so beyond fun to work with. You'll get to know them, and hopefully get such a fantastic taste of the summer, through this series!We're excited; this series is a bit different than anything we've ever released! Throughout the summer, our host Matt was very intentional about sitting down with the listening teams that went out and interviewing them about their experiences. This series is a compilation of those many recordings and an attempt at telling the story of this transformative initiative. We hope you enjoy and stay tuned as we continue to release the rest of the series!

This week, we are so excited to present our 2021 End of Year Highlights and Future Plans episode! With this episode, we want to give you a quick update on our past year at The Neighboring Movement, what we're looking forward to in 2022, and also how you can further take part in this work. We hope you enjoy!In the episode, hosts Adam and Matt interview fellow staff members Catherine, Elizabeth, and Maddie, as they each tell stories of their work from the past year and what they're looking towards in the year to come. It's a joy-filled episode that gives a great snapshot of the scope of our work here at The Neighboring Movement, and we are so excited to share it with you!We also want to take a moment to remind you that our fundraising week is next week! The work we do is supported by generous donations from listeners like you, so if you would be willing to consider donating towards this work, we would be so very honored by your gift. As always, there are countless ways you can take part in our work here at The Neighboring Movement (primarily, by getting to know your actual, literal neighbors!), but if donating financially is an option for you, we would greatly appreciate your gift! You can make donations here: https://neighboringmovement.org/donate-today/Happy neighboring! 

Hello, and welcome back for our second episode with Kristina Swanson! This week, we once again had the great pleasure of interviewing Kristina for our podcast, but this time, Kristina brought a special guest with her: her neighbor, and master of neighboring, June Ann. You're not going to want to miss this delightful, hilarious, and inspiring interview!Again, this is our second episode with Kristina, so if you have not yet listened to the first one, now is the time! We recommend listening to that episode first, as it provides the heartwarming background and story from which this episode follows. Kristina's first episode is titled, "Kristina Swanson (Part 1): Because This Is Our Home", and after this one, is the most recent episode in our feed.As teased in Part 1 of this two-episode series, for this episode, Kristina has brought with her onto the front porch her neighbor June Ann. As you'll discover in this episode, June Ann is such a kind person and such an incredible neighbor, and it was a true joy to have the two neighbors sit down with one another and share their wisdom with us. We are so excited to share this episode with you all, and we hope you enjoy it as much as we have!Happy neighboring!

Hello friends! This week, we are so honored to be joined on the virtual front porch by Kristina Swanson. Kristina is a student who lives in Dublin, Ireland, and just recently moved to a new home, where she has been doing - and has been witness to - some incredible neighboring! We brought her on to share about these experiences and were so inspired. Enjoy!Kristina is the sister of Kristopher on our staff, and when she told him the amazing story you're about to hear, he exclaimed, "Do you want to share that story on the podcast?!" She was so graciously willing to do so, and because of this, you all are in for a treat! Kristina's neighboring experiences encapsulate so many of the things we teach about at The Neighboring Movement, and to see them so seamlessly woven into a series of abundantly joyful neighboring experiences is a true gift. We hope you are just as inspired as we are! Also, stay tuned; Kristina will be back on the virtual front porch next week with a surprise guest!

Hello friend! Thank you, as always, for joining us on the virtual front porch! Today, we are re-releasing an episode from August 18, 2020, where we had the honor of interviewing Claire Branstetter. In the episode, Claire presents practical advice on how to neighbor when language barriers are present. ¡Disfrutar!Among so much more, Claire is an incredibly kind person with a true passion, and gift, for welcoming the stranger. Claire actually used to be one of our previous interns at The Neighboring Movement, but she now does beautiful work with a refugee resettlement organization where she companions refugees as they become integrated in our town of Wichita. We are so honored that she was willing to sit down with us and share some of her deep wisdom! Claire speaks multiple different languages and has tons of experience communicating with people who speak different languages than she does, so in today's episode, she shares advice on how to neighbor when language barriers are present. These barriers are real, and we are so thankful for Claire's very practical tips on how to address them!

This week, hosts Adam and Matt are joined by Kristopher Swanson for a new Neighboring Tip. This tip is more of a brainstorm on how we can be a welcoming presence in our neighborhoods, not necessarily to new neighbors, but the neighbors we know and have established a relationship with.We would love to hear your ideas on how you can be more welcoming to your neighbors! You can share your ideas with us and find more information about the Neighboring Movement on our website, www.NeighboringMovement.org.

This week on the podcast, hosts Matt and Adam are joined by Rev. Donna Thompson who hails from the crystal coast in North Carolina. Newly appointed to a church in the community, Donna shares with us her experiences of meeting the 8 front doors around her new home, her excitement in finding the gifts of the people in her new community, and her vision for neighboring moving forward.To find out more about the Neighboring Movement, go to www.NeighboringMovement.org.

For our 100th episode, it's appropriate that we have the Chairman of the Neighboring Movement's board of directors on the podcast, Trevor Hinz. Trevor has been with the Neighboring Movement since the very beginning and this week he sits down with hosts, Matt and Adam, to talk about our humble beginnings, some of our pivoting moments, and where we are now.To learn more about the Neighboring Movement, go to www.NeighboringMovement.org.

This week on the podcast, hosts Adam and Matt re-examine our 3nd ingredient in our Good Neighbor Soup: Joy. At the Neighboring Movement, joy isn't just another word for happiness. To live and neighbor joyfully and authentically, joy must encompass happiness as well as emotions like grief and gratitude. If you haven't listened to the first two ingredients, Relationship & Abundance, those were aired September 14 & September 28.Find out more about what we are doing at The Neighboring Movement by visiting www.NeighboringMovement.org.

This week on the podcast, Matt and Adam continue to interview members of the Neighboring Movement board of directors. Myrna Craig has been a part of the Neighboring Movement since the beginning and recently joined the board again. In this episode she shares some of her stories of moving onto a new block, what it is like to neighbor as an introvert, and following your gut instincts on how to neighbor in a way that you are comfortable with.To learn more about the Neighboring Movement or to find our Block Map Magnet, go to www.NeighboringMovement.org.

This week on the podcast, hosts Adam and Matt re-examine our 2nd ingredient in our Good Neighbor Soup: Abundance. They explore how a shift of focus, from scarcity to abundance, can change a community. If you haven't listened to the first ingredient, Relationship, that was Episode 95 that dropped September 14.Quotable Moment: "So when we talk about abundance, we're talking about the abundance of gifts that are present in our communities, on our blocks, in our neighbors, and within ourselves. And seeking to nurture a community of collaboration where people are contributing their gifts for the greater good of their community."- Matthew JohnsonFind out more about what we are doing at The Neighboring Movement by visiting www.NeighboringMovement.org.

This week on the podcast, Adam and Matt are joined by Cara Mattson and Dylan Ewalt. They have been knocking on literally HUNDREDS of doors in the South Central Wichita area over this past summer, encouraging people to get to know the neighbors in the 8 front doors closest to them, sharing ideas and what the Neighboring Movement is all about.  Listen in to hear a bit about their work and what happens next!To learn more about the 8 front doors challenge, visit our website at https://neighboringmovement.org/8-front-doors-challenge/.

This week on The Neighbor Next Door, hosts Adam and Matt begin a three part series as they re-examine our Good Neighbor Soup ingredients: Relationship, Abundance, and Joy. While these ingredients haven't changed over the years, Matt and Adam want to add in what they have learned and discuss the nuances of the word "relationship."Quotable Moment: "I heard a definition for the word society as "society is the sum of all relationships"... We are not powerless to society and the societal norms that we don't like about society right now. We have the influence to change it one relationship at a time- one neighbor at a time."- Adam Barlow-ThompsonFind out more about the Neighboring Movement at www.NeighboringMovement.org

This week, hosts Matt and Adam are joined by our newest employee, Elizabeth Ramirez, who is heading up the Kansas Animator Network (KAN) Program. In this episode, she shares some of her background and discusses what she excited about getting started with!Elizabeth just recently published on our blog as well! You can find that here: https://neighboringmovement.org/abcd-application-blog/

This week on the podcast, we have an energizing episode on one of our favorite topics, JOY! Hosts, Matt and Adam, are joined by Jaime Junker, another member of the Neighboring Movement's Board of Directors. She is the Principle at Harry Street Elementary School and in this episode, Jaime shares her wisdom about the simplicity and practicality of joy and how to prioritize it in your life and even in your work environment. Quotable Moment: "...if you prioritize that joy and find that and just be conscious of those moments in the midst of your most challenging times, there are moments of joy, there are silver linings, there are things to celebrate... if you get lost in the challenges, you will not be successful."- Jaime JunkerEditor's Note: I hope you all enjoy this episode as much as I did! The last year and a half of pandemic has been exhausting and in so many ways it has been a thief of joy. So, grab the jumper cables! This is the episode for you if your joy battery needs a recharge!

This week, hosts Matt and Adam are joined by Kristopher Swanson for a new Neighboring Tip! Hosting a "Get Together" AKA a block party! But don't be afraid! They have some great suggestions for how to keep it simple!"Move away from, "did I entertain my neighbors?" which is the trap that block parties fall into... You don't need to entertain your neighbors. You need to help them know each other and know something about each other." -Adam Barlow-ThompsonIf even two neighbors that didn't know each other before, walk away from the event knowing one thing about the other, then it was a success! If you decide to give this neighboring tip a try as the weather cools down a bit, let us know! You can find contact information and more about the Neighboring Movement at www.NeighboringMovement.org.

This week, Adam and Matt are joined by their AmeriCorps VISTA intern Lydia Chappell Deckert. She shares her memories of neighboring, how her travels have impacted her experience of neighboring, and her excitement about what she is doing at the Neighboring Movement as we are growing!Quotable Moments: "...living a whole life includes other people.""My advice for most things in life is to stay curious. When you interact with anyone or anything, if you can go in with a question instead of a judgment or an assumption, then you're probably set up to have an awesome conversation with an unlikely person or friend."

Greetings, neighbors! In this episode, hosts Adam and Matt return to the front porch for a second conversation with the President and CEO of Thrive Allen County, Lisse Regehr.If you have not yet listened to Adam and Matt's first conversation with Lisse, we would encourage doing so before listening to this episode. In that first conversation, Lisse tells the story of her organization and their approach to community development, which provides a perfect foundation for the stories you are about to hear. The episode with the first conversation is titled, "Lisse Regehr (Part 1): The Story of a Thriving Organization".Now, welcome to Part 2! In this conversation, Lisse tells some amazing stories that have blossomed forth from the Allen County community before giving advice on how you can continue to work to make your community a better place. We hope you enjoy! And, if you have not yet had a chance, check out Thrive's website to learn more about their amazing work!

This week we are revisiting a great 2-part episode from 2019! Hosts Adam and Matt sit down on the front porch with the President and CEO of Thrive Allen County, Lisse Regehr. Lisse is an excellent storyteller, and she brings to the front porch a ton of community development experience. Her organization, Thrive Allen County, is a health, wellness, and economic development coalition located in Allen County, Kansas, and her team does incredible work! In this first episode, Lisse tells the story of her organization and what their work looks like throughout Allen County. Check out Thrive's website to learn more about their amazing work, and stay tuned for next week's episode, Part 2: Story's of a Thriving Community.