We’ve covered catalysts, educational institutions, and infrastructure solutions to accomplish social change. The next three chapters are all about action. Where do we go from here? What are the next steps to accomplish these monumental goals?
The first thing we need to do is gather social entrepreneurs together to build the John and Abigail Center for Social Change and create partner organizations to get boots on the ground. We will accomplish this by holding a Million Dreams Conference.
A New Kind of Conference
In a typical conference setting, attendees are passive observers, listening to presenters and occasionally participating in a Q&A. The Million Dreams Conference inverts this paradigm. Instead of a conference speaker presenting to an audience, the Million Dreams audience is presenting to the speaker. All presenters (subject matter experts and J&A Center personnel) will deliver all of their materials to conference participants beforehand in a series of processes and engagements. Conference participants will be well-versed in the material before Million Dreams starts.
At the conference, attendees will work in groups of four. In each session, groups of four will discuss their questions and suggestions with each other and with the subject matter expert. Instead of making a presentation, the speaker will address topics brought up by the groups of four, likely learning new information and refining their methods in the process. While this is happening, the groups of four are aware that they will take this material and use it to build businesses and help the J&A Center long after the conference is over. In this way, Million Dreams is much less about the conference itself and more about the procedure—what happens before the event and what they accomplish after. The event is meant to focus on the overall process. Participants will work to more deeply understand the purpose of the sponsoring organization.
As part of their preparation for the conference, attendees will examine their own epiphany rate and capacity for change and decide what they need to do to prepare and which sessions they should attend to build themselves and move forward.
Simulations will also play a significant role in the Million Dreams Conference. Organizers can build procedures/simulations into the event and/or have participants build their own. Attendees can choose to be a participant, mastermind, or observer of a simulation. Presentations will also be broadcast to reach more people, including personal relations of those attending.
The Million Dreams Conference has three main goals:
- Demonstrate the new kind of conference
- Fund the Community Plat
- Introduce the John and Abigail Center at a deep level and have people engage with their main interest
The Conference will occur in two parts.
Conference Part 1
First, those who plan to build the Center will come together to review and create 1,000 business proposals, each of which will help the Center accomplish its mission. Attendees will be familiar with the Center’s founding principles and will come with ideas and proposals to discuss. These social Entrepreneurs will propose solutions in several areas of need. For example:
- Government
- Nation state sovereignty
- Local governance
- Elections and legislative reform
- Law reform
- Education
- Optimal collaboration, polishing, correct reach
- Gifts, assets, engagement, might
- Conventions and conference
- Population density, mobilization, empowerment
- Human capital constraint
- Economy
- Finance
- Banks
- Currency
- Religion
- Food, water, utilities and sustainability
- Pollution
- Housing
- Cars and transportation
- Culture
- Western American situation and how to pierce it
- Family
- Media
- Community
- Infrastructure
- Business and Institutions
- Institutionalism
- Health
- Detox
- Habits
- Prevention
- Living
- Teeth
- Technology
- Algorithm threat
As the group discusses and fleshes out these ideas, social entrepreneurs will select and take ownership of the proposals that are best suited to their expertise and interest. The entire conference is a creative business incubator. Through presentations, discussion in groups of four, and simulations, these social entrepreneurs will build a significant portion of these businesses at the conference itself.
All of the businesses that arise from the first conference will be part of the John and Abigail Center for Social Change. The goal is for all of these businesses to be capable of 5 million dollars in liquid capital within two years, allowing them to support the J&A Center and help fund the first City Plat.
Conference Part 2
The second part of the conference is both a follow-up to the first and an expansion. Attendees from the first conference will be invited to observe the second event and perhaps choose to help fund the business ideas that arise.
The structure of the second conference will be similar to the first, though the list of attendees will be expanded to include people who want to discuss business ideas that may or may not fall under the John and Abigail Center. The conference will still aim to help them create businesses that will generate up to five million in the first two years. Participants will be invited (though not required) to give some of that money back to the Center to further their goals.
By the end of the conference, there will be a large group of close-knit social entrepreneurs ready to move forward with the Center to create meaningful social change and fund the first City Plat.
Comments, questions, suggestions? Let us know in the comments.
If you’re interested in joining the mastermind group or launch team for the John and Abigail Center or any of the partner organizations, contact us.