Community Building through the Development of a Shared Understanding – Lessons From C2C

Brian Kazungu, 02/01/2021

I have quite often seen individuals coming into groups for a certain purpose and yet to suddenly witness a serious disintegration of the same groups without members having achieved that which brought them together in the first place.

Even though this sudden breakdown of groups seems to be a common reality, I never understood why such things happen until I became part of the Connections2Communities (C2C) powered by the 1873 Network.

The C2C initiative seeks to empower and capacitate people to collaborate in solving problems as well as in collectively utilizing opportunities as compared to doing it individually.

It achieves these goals through facilitating literacy programs on matters of interest as well as through engaging in networking activities that creates business opportunities for its members and it also advocates for the improvement of systems and policies which helps to make people’s lives better and enjoyable.

In this regard, one of the best lessons that I have learnt from being a C2C member in relation to group success is the need for developing a shared understanding in the whole team on whatever project that has to be undertaken.

I discovered that it is important for members to talk things through before they commit to work on something as this approach helps to get issues clarified so that people can get the same and clearer picture of what must be done, how it must be done, by whom and for what purpose.

When this is not done, many people may labor under a mistake in way that generates tension, brews confusion, causes burnout as well as interference with mission accomplishment.

I also noted that developing a shared understanding does not undermine the essence of diversity and more-so, it does not mean that people lose their individuality in the course of engagement but it rather helps to bring out the strengths in members in a way that limits or erases the weaknesses and limitations of others.

On various C2C platforms, I have had an opportunity to participate in brainstorming sessions where members come up with different innovative business solutions to address various challenges especially those which are faced by people from time to time.

A case in point is a virtual meeting conducted yesterday by C2C members including Lovemore Chanengeta, Jajit Singh, Mutumwa Mawere, Janice Greaver and Joseph Mudekunye.

The agenda of the meeting consisted of issues such as promises and challenges of building community power around a problem as well as the pros and cons of community approach versus adopting an individual approach.

Also touched on were issues on fears or concerns about working together as well the idea behind ecommerce platforms like The Mall of Things and their relationship with the C2C initiative.

In such meetings, I have had an opportunity to interact with people like Mutumwa Mawere whose approach to conversations usually provokes others to look at issues that may otherwise remain overlooked when people are not challenged to think deeply and widely on such matters.

The same also applies to Jagjit Singh from The Royal India Restaurant who has a rare ability to make people to quickly and easily understand certain things that they may be finding to be looking or sounding complicated.

I have also come to cherish the frame of thinking, open mindedness and attention to detail displayed by Janice Greaver when she asks prying questions that helps to ensure that critical issues are exhausted before people can blindly pursue projects without a shared understanding.

In building sustainable groups through shared understanding, I have also seen that there is need for people like Lovemore Chanengeta who have an ability to clearly explain projects, products and services in way that community stakeholders can effectively grasp before or during engagement.

When such minds meet even together with people like Joseph Mudekunye who believe in the power of the Forth Industrial Revolution (4IR) to address problems associated with buying and selling through the adoption of e-commerce platforms, it then means that current challenges get to be effectively addressed from different perspectives for the common good.

As such, in short, the development of effective community initiatives needs collaboration which is based on a shared understanding by different players in their diversity who openly combine their strengths to solve problems for mutual benefit and for the common good of society at large.

Through the C2C initiative, I have come to know that without a shared understanding on matters of interest, even the best of ideas can fail and mankind will always succumb to challenges but when there is a shared understanding goals will be efficiently achieved to everyone’s advantage.