MAKE-SHIFT, Ideas to change Wolverhampton

What is MAKE-SHIFT? 

MAKE-SHIFT is a two-day event intended to surface good ideas and to attract mentors and champions who can take these forward.

 

We hope to draw a wide audience, from grass-roots community members and university students to local business leaders, innovators and change-makers. MAKE-SHIFT will be open to anyone who lives in and cares about Wolverhampton. 

Over two days, facilitators will help participants develop project ideas that will build social capital and give communities the confidence that they can change things and make a difference in the city. 

Day 1 will be spent developing concepts in teams. Day 2 will be spent working up projects to take away at the end of the event. 

An important aspect of MAKE-SHIFT will be the sourcing of community ideas in advance, so that no time is wasted in ‘starting from cold’. A marketing campaign prior to the event will stimulate contributions from across the city. In particular, we want to find ideas champions who can source ideas from their individual communities. 

We positively encourage contributions from people who would like to hold workshops and other sessions on either or both days of the event. We will also be hosting a market-style skills exchange where people can make informal connections with other individuals and groups. 

What will MAKE-SHIFT do for Wolverhampton? 

We believe that Wolverhampton has uniquely valuable resources to draw on – the strengths, passions, capacity, knowledge and potential of its communities. 

MAKE-SHIFT will unlock this potential, helping local people to take an active role in improving their own lives and communities, re-imagining their own public services and community resources. 

However, it’s not just about empowerment and independence for individual people. By encouraging people to ‘make their own connections’, it will help build greater resilience within communities and across the whole city. 

MAKE-SHIFT – when and where? 

The core MAKE-SHIFT events will be held at The Lighthouse in Wolverhampton city centre on Friday 21 and Saturday 22 September 2012. 

Who should I contact for more information? 

Ring Sam Axtell, Wolverhampton City Council’s Consultation And Community Involvement Officer on 01902 554 918 or e-mail sam.axtell@wolverhampton.gov.uk or visit our website http://maketheshift.org/ - you will be able to submit your ideas online from 13th July.