Building Branches from the Inside and Out Initiative

By Nikki Abeleda (She/They)
Field Facilitator, WILPF US

September 2021

Five WILPF US Branches: Sacramento, San Diego, Des Moines, Boston, and Philadelphia have been working on the Inside and Out Initiative through the Asset Based Community Development (ABCD) framework. Nikki Abeleda, Field Facilitator has organized and facilitated meetings: “Collecting Your Stories” and “Exploring Your Gifts, Assets, & Strengths” utilizing the ABCD framework. After each meeting, a virtual Cohort Social was organized for all Inside and Out branches to attend to build community, learn more tools, and to socialize. 

“Because stories operate at both individual and collective levels, they can bridge the sociological/abstract with the psychological/personal contours of daily experience. They help us connect individual experiences with systemic analysis, allowing us to unpack, in ways that are perhaps more accessible than abstract analysis alone, racism’s hold on us as we move through the institutions and cultural practices that sustain racism.”
            — Lee Anne Bell, Storytelling Project Model

The He(ART) of Healing Through Storytelling

Within the ABCD framework, telling one’s story is the first step of the process. The first individual branch meeting, Collecting Your Stories allowed members to use storytelling as a tool to explore and reflect on their why, what brought them to WILPF, and what brought them to the work of social justice. Members challenged themselves to be creative, work through their discomfort, and tell their story through a writing prompt, which led each branch to write an empowering collective poem. 

The first cohort social on Sunday, May 16, 2021, “The He(Art) of Healing through Storytelling,” members (1) learned about storytelling as a theoretical framework, (2) created an interactive space to utilize storytelling as a tool of empowerment, (3) connect storytelling to community organizing, and (4) start the journey of telling their story. Members engaged in interactive activities that allowed them to practice their storytelling skills. 

Inset: An example from WILPF Sacramento’s collective “I Am” poem. 

"When I dare to be powerful- to use my strength in the service of my vision, then it becomes less & less important whether I am afraid."
    — Audre Lorde

Lead-HER-ship as a Strength & Asset

The second step of the ABCD framework is for members to highlight their individual gifts, assets, and strengths. Through a strengths exploration worksheet as a guide and reflection, members in the second meeting discussed their strengths in different domains of their lives (relationships, profession, and personal fulfillment) and how they can contribute these strengths to their branches. 

The second cohort social on Sunday, June 27, 2021, “Lead-HER-ship,” the Field Facilitator used the Compass Leadership Self Assessment by Be the Change Consulting. Through this assessment, members (1) connected gifts, assets, and strengths to leadership, (2) deepened their appreciation for everyone’s work styles, (3) understood the need for a variety of work styles, and (4) learned qualities to develop to become better leaders. 

Next Steps

The Inside and Out Initiative took a break from July 2021 to August 2021 due to preparation of WILPF’s 34th Triennial Congress. Inside and Out will relaunch, September 2021 for fall and will continue working on the next phase of the ABCD framework. Stay tuned for more details and updates to come!

Questions about the Inside & Out Initiative? Please email Nikki Abeleda (nfortuno.abeleda@gmail.com) or Mary Hanson Harrison (harrison0607@msn.com).