Moreover, there is a crucial role for educational institutions to raise up the next generation as agents of change. They are able to train youth to develop themselves academically and professionally and, at the same time, to become a source of good to others.
These youth learn to foster a global outlook and see themselves as agents of change in building a better future for themselves and others. It includes the development of essential capacities that are needed to bring people together, to build trust, and encourage collective action.
Schools and universities, similar to companies, are social spaces where people work and study together. It is here that the lessons of community building can be applied, transforming educational institutions into learning communities.
In addition, in collaborating with educational institutions in various parts of the world soul.com is developing a curriculum for youth to rigorously examine the assumptions underlying social and economic life and to contribute to the body of knowledge about community building.
Communities can not be built by people from the “outside’. Individuals within the organisation themselves are in charge of their own personal and collective development. Transforming into a community is thus, in essence, a capacity building process. The more capable we become to foster community life, the faster our transformation process will be.
A process of community building can start in many different ways and usually consists of a combination of training, workshops, and accompaniment. We distinguish several different areas depending on the needs of the institution.