Strong neighborhoods don’t just happen—they are built by people who care enough to connect, serve, and create spaces where everyone feels included. One of the most effective ways to inspire this kind of engagement is to celebrate those already doing it well. That’s where a citywide “Most Engaged Neighbor” nomination program comes in. This initiative (done as part of Missouri Good Neighbor Week) provides residents with a platform to recognize neighbors who go above and beyond to build connection and community. It also raises awareness about the importance of neighboring, generates positive media coverage, and deepens trust between residents and city government. If you’re ready to start your own program, here’s a comprehensive step-by-step guide—complete with ideas for forming a selection committee and celebrating winners in ways that leave a lasting impact. Step 1: Planning and Gaining Support (4–6 weeks before launch) Before launching the program, secure buy-in from city leader...

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Residents of Missouri are encouraged to participate in appropriate events and activities to help establish connections with their neighbors during the fourth annual Missouri Good Neighbor Week from Sept. 28 to Oct 4. The official website for the week can be found at http://missourigoodneighborweek.com . The celebration is created, organized and supported by two organizations: University of Missouri Extension and The Hopeful Neighborhood Project. Missouri Good Neighbor Week was established by legislative action in 2022 and signed into law by Missouri Governor Mike Parsons on July 1. This weeklong effort was recognized nationally in May of 2023 at the annual Neighborhoods USA conference as the “Neighborhood Program of the Year for the United States.” In 2024, over 31,000 acts of neighboring were reported across Missouri, 20 individuals were recognized as “Missouri’s Most Engaged Neighbor” and five cities earned the title of Missouri’s Most Neighborly City: Houst...

At a time when political arguments fill our screens and loneliness grips entire neighborhoods, Tim Jones has a radical remedy: set a longer table.  As the founder and executive director of the nonprofit Longer Tables, Jones has spent the last decade reclaiming the table as a place of connection, storytelling, and human belonging. I met Jones for the first time in 2023. But when I heard about his plan for a mile-long table in Denver on July 26, I bought a ticket—and then began thinking how we might do something similar during Missouri Good Neighbor Week. The Mile Long Table—a 5,280-foot table (symbolic of Denver’s altitude) – this year seated 3,650 people for a communal meal.  From Tacos to Transformation “I half-joke that I believe tacos could save the world,” began Jones. But behind the humor is a deep truth—food is universally human, and the table is a place where everyone belongs. “I have a hard time thinking of a place that feels like home, no matter where you grew up, how...

Kirk Wester‑Rivera makes a compelling case, in his essay  “The Neighborhood Is the Unit of Change: Rethinking Scale in Philanthropy”  that the neighborhood—not citywide or program-based funding—is the ideal scale for driving lasting social change . He argues that despite decades of well‑meaning philanthropic investment, improvements in poverty, education, and health equity have remained elusive. Wester‑Rivera calls for a strategic pivot: organizing around specific neighborhoods with deeper, long‑term commitments rather than fragmented, short‑term city-level initiatives. Four Key Lessons from the Article 1. Place-Based Investment Over Programmatic Structure Traditional philanthropy tends to categorize giving by issue: health, education, workforce development. Wester‑Rivera argues this often bypasses local realities. A neighborhood-centric approach flips the script: resources align to place, resident-defined needs, and lived experience , rather than abstract categories. Funding ...

The Resource Guide for Belonging-Builders by the Othering & Belonging Institute (OBI) at the University of California Berkely, is a concise yet ambitious publication aimed at practitioners, policymakers, and community leaders seeking to cultivate more equitable and inclusive structures. It serves as both a conceptual primer and a practical toolkit, centering on three key frameworks: othering and belonging , design principles for belonging , and targeted universalism (TU) .  While the guide excels in its clarity and conceptual breadth, it faces certain limitations that warrant critical examination. Strengths of the Guide Clear Conceptual Frameworks The guide presents a well-structured framework for understanding belonging, defined through four mutually reinforcing components: inclusion, recognition, agency, and connection. This model offers a nuanced perspective that moves beyond token diversity efforts, emphasizing both the emotional and structural dimensions of belongin...

We all want our neighborhoods to be better—cleaner, friendlier, safer, more connected. But too often, we fall into the trap of believing it takes something big to spark that change. When we stop looking for silver bullets and start taking small, daily actions, change sneaks up on us. Trust is built. Pride returns. So the next time you wonder how to make your neighborhood better, just do one thing today that moves your street in the right direction. Then do it again tomorrow. Because better neighborhoods aren’t built in a day. But they are built every day. One Percent Better: A Neighborhood Poem I don’t need to leap the tallest wall, Or change the world with just one call. The mountain isn’t climbed in flight— But step by step, from dark to light. A whisper more of patience shown, A moment when I stand alone And choose the harder, kinder way— That’s how I rise, day by day. Not all at once, but bit by bit, With effort shaped in quiet grit. Today, I give a little more, Than I was capable ...