I don’t think I know anyone at the Strategic Doing Institute, but I really like their model. Groups of people come together, identify the resources that they personally control and are willing to deploy for their shared cause, and design a short-term project that they can do themselves–without any external support or permission–to build capacity for more ambitious work later. At any rate, that is my casual summary of their model.

It is consistent with the argument of my new book, What Should We Do?. I propose a general “theory of civic life” that is meant to apply to all kinds of groups, at all scales–including legislatures, nonprofit corporations, and social movements. For better or worse, my book is not a hands-on planning tool. Different kinds of groups need different sorts of tools, and I focus on more general concepts and values. That said, if you want an experience that is closely congruent with my argument, and if you are at an early stage of forming a voluntary coalition to address an issue, the Strategic Doing model looks like a good choice.