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WE RISE & WIN Together
Calm in the Chaos
Reclaiming Rest, Love and Joy in Justice Work
| | Photo from Goegedacht Farm in Cape Town, South Africa— a reminder that justice work, like the land, flourishes with rest, love, and care. | | |
By Irmin Durand
Senior Fellow, WE in the World
How are you? Truly? When last did you get some bone-deep rest? Feel the deep love in the work you do? Feel a surge of joy or even just a tingle?
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Justice work can be draining. The urgency, constant demands, and crises. It’s easy to feel overwhelm, anxiety, fear, anger, grief. To lose focus. To feel exhausted yet unable to afford the ‘luxury’ of rest. This is part of the path.
So too are rest, love and joy. They are not a detour; they are an essential part of the journey. For balance, for wellbeing, for the energy to keep showing up and doing the work.
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The Peace of Wild Things - by Wendell Berry
A Poetry Film by Charlotte Ager & Katy Wang
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“I come into the peace of wild things... I come into the presence of still water.”
- From The Peace of Wild Things by Wendell Barry
(Listen to the poem below)
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This month, we invite you to pause with us. Let’s rest; let’s ground ourselves in what sustains us from within. Whether that is community, faith, nature, creativity, movement, or a combination.
Let’s remember the love that brought us to justice work and the joy it brings us. Because caring for our wellbeing is part of building wellbeing for all.
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To “weather the storm like Jesus” in today’s America might mean:
- Staying grounded while everyone else is yelling
- Listening without assuming
- Being informed without being consumed
- Taking action, not just sharing hot takes
- Keeping calm not because things are fine, but because calm helps you think clearly
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Featured Book of the Month | | | | |
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Bright Spot
Nostalgia is the rocket fuel that powers hope and change
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With everything competing for attention and headlines shifting daily, it’s easy to feel lost in the drama. But leaning into nostalgia- those past moments of collective resilience and breakthroughs- can calm us and fuel our imagination for new possibilities. Research shows that reflecting on what has worked before builds stability and optimism, grounding us to act in the present.
“It focuses us, with sensory immediacy, on what we most value – and, by extension, on what we want to reflect to the world.”
-Elizabeth Svoboda
Aeon Magazine
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Published on the day of his funeral, civil rights icon John Lewis urged a new generation to carry forward justice through “good trouble” reminding us that democracy is an ongoing act of courage and love.
He called on young people to “let freedom ring” by standing for truth, peace, and the possibility of redemption in America. Click to read letter here (Paid Subscription).
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Resting In Shared Humanity: The Beetle in the Box Analogy
By Ludwig Wittgenstein, Philosophical Investigations
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When we struggle alone, it’s easy to believe our pain is uniquely ours and drown in isolation. However, when we create space for connection, we’re reminded that we are more alike than different. In shared stories, we find belonging. In shared struggles, we find collective strength.
Philosopher Wittgenstein once said that empathy isn’t about fully understanding another’s pain, it’s about choosing to stay close, even when we can’t. That choice to connect is what makes healing and changemaking possible. Everything we’re reaching for already lives in our shared humanity and sometimes, the most radical thing we can do is rest there.
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Explore curated tools and insights designed to strengthen community, deepen belonging, and build resilient coalitions that drive lasting change. | | | | |
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Type: Foundation
Funding: $250000
Due date: Sep 15, 2025
Overview:
A research institution and a public/nonprofit agency will co-develop a sustained research-practice partnership aimed at reducing inequality in youth outcomes. Funding supports planning, research, mid-career fellowships, and institutional reform.
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Type: Foundation
Funding: On need basis
Due date: October 15, 2025
Grant Duration: 2-3 years
Overview:
This fund supports scientists, anthropologists, engineers, technologists, creatives, and others to imagine what the world might look like in the next 10 to 100 years. With this RWJF funding, they explore how those futures may unfold in ways that could slow down or speed up our collective efforts to dismantle structural racism and improve health equity.
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Leonard Litz Foundation
Type: Foundation
Funding: Up to $200,000 over 1 year
Due Date: Rolling
Overview: This program is designed to fund nonprofit organizations that advance the interests and well-being of the LGBTQ+ community through advocacy and with programs and services that meet the needs of LGBTQ+ people.
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The Standard
Funding: $500 – $25,000
Match Required: No cost share
Deadline: Rolling
Overview:
The Standard supports organizations that align with its four focus areas:
- Healthy Communities
- Disability and Empowerment
- Cultural Development
- Education and Advancement
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Social Justice Grant Initiative
Funding: $1,000 - $15,000
Match Required: No cost share
Deadline: Rolling
Overview:
The Dominion Energy Charitable Foundation funds projects in four key areas: meeting basic human needs like food, housing, and healthcare; protecting natural resources and promoting energy efficiency; advancing education, especially in STEM and energy careers; and strengthening community vitality through diversity, neighborhood revitalization, and cultural programs.
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