People-Centered Poverty Fighting: Circles

If you aren't familiar with the Circles® Initiative, then this is a great, albeit short, introduction.

"Circles® is an innovative model based on a body of research suggesting that in order for families with low income to improve their situation, they must have bonding social capital within the community, bridging social capital to access the resources contained by higher income networks, and linking social capital that connects the first two with public institutions." --Via http://movethemountain.org/introductiontocircles.aspx

The person in poverty is the Circle Leader, while the partners in the middle class are allies. The tremendous success of the program is only amplified by the personal narratives:



This is a powerful story (and here are some other stories) on how individuals can make a difference in the life of one family in poverty. This is exactly how citizen-powered poverty alleviation works. Move the Mountain, the brainchild of Circles® founder Scott Miller, is an organization that promotes the program throughout the country. At its most basic level, Circles® is about creating empathy and relationships between people in poverty and those in the middle or upper classes. That relationship, and unlocking the 'secrets' to middle class success, is really focused on the individual cases of poverty, and getting into "their shoes." This is just the model that needs to be expanded and explored further.