Every city has room for improvement, especially when it comes to social change. There are a lot of different ways that cities can go about changing policies and culture, so it is important to think about all the aspects of a community that need tending to in order to create the positive social change we all hope to see.

Listen To the Community

Arguably the most important thing that city officials can do to create positive change is to listen. Members of the community, across social class, race, religion, gender and economic status know firsthand what needs to change. City officials need to make the time to listen to people who have concerns, no matter how small. Document these interactions, take notes, send out reports to other city officials or better yet, make them public for other people to see the level of engagement city officials have with their constituents. Arrange community meetings or listening sessions that individuals can participate in by allowing open floor time or allowing comment cards to be filled out before or after. Collecting information from the residents creates a better picture for city managers or council members to see what changes need to happen. This is just the first step for what your city can do to show positive social change.

Improve Public Services

One of the best ways to show social change in a community is by making sure public services are reliable, available and accessible. Are public parks in good shape? Does public transportation run on schedule? Do the community centers offer classes, programs or other services that the community wants and needs? Assess the places and services that your city does have and figure out how to improve them. If the community wanted the bus schedules to improve, put together a committee to make it happen. If public parks are looking like they need a face lift, lead a volunteer group to clean them up. If the community center does not have handicap-accessible walkways or entrances, fix that. Invest in some city management software to help keep track of what needs to be done.

Address the Budget

If there are a lot of inequities within your city, or certain public goods are falling to the wayside, addressing the city budget is a big step towards showing positive social change. The People's Budget LA is a great example of a community project to look at what goods and services the community is in need of. The work that was done in LA showed that communities wanted to see a greater investment from their city in universal needs like health and wellness services as well as housing security. Their proposal reallocated money in the budget away from traditional policing and instead invested it in communities within their city that were experiencing homelessness, mental health crises and other failures to help people meet their basic needs. Pay for a study like this in your own city and watch the people tell you what the money should go to. You might find that your city wants bigger investments in education and addiction treatment and the budget the next year can be rewritten to prioritize the needs of people. 

Stay Accountable

While there are many different approaches to showing positive social change in your city, it is important to show the community that city councilors, managers and other officials are also a part of the community. You are accountable to your neighbors. In this vein, it is also important to protect elections so that everyone can vote. Being a leader in a city cannot be about the title - it must be about moving the city forward.