
The statement from the new director of CIE prompted some reflections from Kaki about her experience at CIE.
One of the joys of joining CIE after 15 years in the field was finding a group of people committed to liberationist, emancipatory perspectives and approaches. As I called it, reading books by people who thought like I did, and then having a healthy, grounded debate about what works or doesn't in the real world. The diversity of ideas and perspectives available was fabulous.
One of the ideas I took away from CIE is that of being a deep practitioner, of doing the work in the world and always deepening one's understanding and learning about how things work and could work. It is so hard to carve out time to keep doing the learning, to keep bringing the best of others' ideas and questions into one's work, but it is so rewarding when it happens. [8-18]
Earlier she wrote:
After 9 years in Nicaragua, I’ve been back in the States for over a decade, and am now Director of the Center for Nonprofit Excellence at the Community Foundation for Monterey County. It’s an interesting perspective combining philanthropy and capacity building for nonprofits. I’ve been there long enough to develop some new programs, several working with cohorts of organizations combining peer learning, small grants, individualized consulting and coaching.
I also founded and co-facilitate a year-long leadership training program for nonprofit staff moving into executive positions. It’s so exciting to see their intelligence, curiosity and commitment to shared leadership and significant community change. We have a 10 year commitment to the program, by which time a significant percentage of local leaders will have participated. I also consult with local organizations and am interested in doing some international work again.
On the volunteer side, I recently stepped down from a long stint on the local Women’s Commission, where I headed up a study on the status of women and girls, especially the economic elements. And I’m active in the co-housing where I live, practicing democracy with my neighbors. If you’re ever in the San Francisco/Santa Cruz area, let me know! [6-13]
Email: krusmore@gmail.com