We need the Civic Canopy to thrive

As a little non-binary faerie, y'all know that when faced with a binary, I love a mysterious third option. Known as "the third sector," civil society is everything in between the government and the economy. It's my grandma's quilting club, my mom's bible study, my neighbor's emerging librarian's union, our neighborhood school, our state university, our local newspaper, and it's the many nonprofits I have worked for. It is where and how and who we organize. And as Skye Perryman, President and CEO of Democracy Forward, said in an interview with Nonprofit Quarterly, “fundamentally, people in communities are strongest when individuals are able to craft the futures that they want, to be able to thrive.”

Civil society in the United States (and beyond) is being systematically threatened and dismantled by starving it of resources and, most effectively, by promoting fear.

The Civic Canopy has been up to something long before the current Trump administration took power. We have been working to strengthen, build, and nurture the webs of civic connection in Colorado for over 20 years. 

And our founder, Bill Fulton, puts it best:

"With the political sphere beset by polarization, and the economic sphere too prone to monopoly and inequality, this moment calls for rediscovering the third sphere of society—civil society itself—as the space where democracy learns, grows, and renews. Through bonds of trust and affection, and networks of collaborative partnerships, civil society enables the many to work as one for the good of all." - Strengthening the Civic Roots of Democracy

And we need your help to continue towards that vision, that ideal that we have never reached but are steadfastly striving for. 

Yes, this is a fundraiser for a nonprofit. But it is also so much more than that. This is an investment in the mycelial networks that connect our civic ecosystem in Colorado. 

I hope you'll join us.