Get to Know the Neighboring Movement

 

The Neighboring Movement—born and thriving in Wichita, KS—is on a mission to turn ordinary neighborhoods into extraordinary communities. How? By discovering, connecting, and mobilizing the gifts of the people who already live there. They believe that when you know your neighbors—and actually like them—a culture of scarcity can be flipped into a culture of abundance, filled with joy, friendship, and shared resources.

Instead of starting with city hall, they begin at the front porch. Right now, they’re especially focused on individuals and church congregations, but they’ve got bigger plans brewing. This summer marks the launch of We Care ICT—a bold step in their brand-new “theory of change” that starts in Wichita but is designed to spread to cities everywhere.

Here’s the idea: give out hundreds of free We Care yard and door signs to anyone in Wichita who wants to make kindness impossible to miss. These aren’t just pretty signs—they’re conversation starters, neighborhood beacons, and an open invitation to deeper connections.

“We’re creating visible signals of care all across the city,” says Ian Campbell. “If someone wants to build stronger relationships on their block, these signs show them exactly where they can find an ally.”

The Neighboring Movement backs up those signs with training sessions throughout the year, introducing people to their 8 Front Door Challenge:

  1. Find a fellow “neighboring ally.”

  2. Meet the 8 closest households to your home.

  3. Plan a simple get-together.

  4. Host it in a way that sparks real connections.

It’s not rocket science—it’s relationship science. And it works.

This year, the goal is to have 100 “block connectors” across Wichita host gatherings for National Good Neighbor Day. From there, many will step into ongoing pathways (some even paid) for deeper, more intentional work on their block or in their building—continuing to shift the culture, one relationship at a time.

Want to test it out where you live? You can start the 8 Front Door Challenge right now at the Neighboring Movement’s website. And if you’re dreaming about launching something similar in your own city, they’d love to hear from you.

Because changing the world doesn’t start at city hall—it starts with knocking on the door next to yours.

You can start the 8 Front Door Challenge by going to the Neighboring Movement website. If you are interested in exploring a similar path for your city, you can reach out to us through our website!


MORE INFORMATION

Does this article make you interested in taking the Engaged Neighbor pledge? Five categories and 20 principles to guide you toward becoming an engaged neighbor. Sign the pledge online at http://engagedneighbor.com.

Contact the blog author, David L. Burton at dburton541@yahoo.com.

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