UNHM will feature a discussion about building social capital and strengthening democracy and civil society Wednesday, April 12, presented by Chuck Hotchkiss, lead organizer of the Granite State Organizing Project. “Community organizing and civil society,” will be held from noon – 1 p.m. in the 3rd floor Auditorium.
 
" Civil society," "strong democracy," "and "social capital" have become buzzwords in sociology and political science in recent years.  Community organizing--building broad-based, multi-issue organizations of organizations--is one strategy for building social capital and strengthening democracy and civil society. Hotchkiss will talk about why people organize, how they build community organizations, and what the resulting organizations look like. Drawing on the experiences of Granite State Organizing Project, he will describe how community organizations act to address topics such as affordable housing and access to health care.

Granite State Organizing Project (GSOP), founded in 2002, is made up of 30 religious, labor, and community organizations in Manchester, Nashua, and surrounding towns.

Hotchkiss came to New Hampshire in 2000 to help community leaders create what became GSOP.  He has served as lead organizer of GSOP since July, 2002.  Previously, Hotchkiss was a professor of urban and regional planning at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, where he was a faculty member for 15 years.

This event is free and open to the public. For more information, contact 641-4101.