The Art of Community, Second Edition

Chapter 14. Community Case Book

“Learning never exhausts the mind.”

—Leonardo da Vinci

When I started writing the first edition of The Art of Community, my primary goal was to distill and present one man’s thesis and approach to community management and leadership. The logic was simple: I have a pretty firm grasp of my own experiences, opinions, and approaches, and I could confidently articulate them.

As I continued writing the book, I found myself wanting to include some of the knowledge I was fortunate enough to glean from others. I included this content, cited it where relevant, and provided props to those who helped me to define and grow my career. While this knowledge was useful in augmenting the content of the book, I didn’t have the space to tell the stories or feature those insights in greater detail.

When I started writing this second edition of the book I really wanted to include this additional content. There are so many inspirational and fascinating community stories going on right now in the world, and this chapter pulls together many of them.

Included here is a collection of interviews with various friends who have been doing great community work over the years. These stories are diverse and cover technology, music, business, and other areas, and I encourage you to read them all, even though it takes a bit of a time commitment. They tell the stories and perspectives of many community leaders who are at the forefront of change and innovation within their respective worlds. ...