What is the
CREATE KINDNESS INITIATIVE (CKI)?
It’s about encouraging others to be the change they want to see.
The Create Kindness Initiative embraces 4 goals...
IMPACT
Culture
by first changing...
the way we see and treat others.
DO-able Goals
like committing...
to complete one random act of kindness a week.
RESPECT Others
who are different from you...
and showing them kindness, no matter their response.
TAKE
Action
by being aware...
of how small choices can have big consequences.
Academic Kindness
What if we switched from a scarcity to an abundance of kindness model in Academia?
The Create Kindness Initiative is now Partnering with Academic Kindness on Tumblr to raise awareness about how being kind can change the culture of the Academic Life!
The challenge of being kind in the world of Academia
The world of academia operates on a scarcity model, a mentality that there is never enough of anything. Those of us who work at Universities and Colleges know they are often places full of competition and negativity. There never seems to be enough time, money, resources or volunteers to go around and meet departmental needs and people’s expectations. Because of this atmosphere there is often also a scarcity of kindness!
What if we switched from a scarcity of kindness to an abundance model?
But what would happen if we switched our mindset to an abundance of kindness model. Abundance focuses a positive outlook seeing the plenty of resources that do exist. Those abundant resources are human creativity and care. What if we adopted an outlook that was positive and creative. What if we took on an attitude that embraces a hopeful belief that if I do my part, there will be more good to go around.
We can live out this mindset through academic kindness. This means seeing colleagues as a potential friend, rather than as competitors. Seeking out opportunities to give, without focusing on what we can get in return.
Academic Kindness might look like...
- Volunteering time to mentor a junior colleague or provide feedback on a work-in-progress.
- Committing to offer constructive & affirming feedback in article reviews, consciously resisting becoming Reviewer #2.
- Attend a colleague’s presentation, and write them an note afterwards about what you appreciate & learned from them.
- Invite a staff person who seems to be struggling out to lunch, and be there just to listen and encourage them.
- Offer to write a reference letter for a colleague applying for a job, fellowship or award.
Random Acts of Academic Kindness can start here, with you!
For more ideas check out:
Academic Kindness on Tumblr
Backstory to CKI
I am a professor at Texas A&M University and spiritual director. In my free time, I like to cook, meditate and find creative ways to spread hope. The vision for CKI came to me in spring 2019, after a time of prayerful contemplation about how my academic work could be used to make a more positive and tangible impact on my community. CKI is my attempt to put practical action behind my current research on "lived ethics and dangerous discourses in digital culture”, which is a project I am pursuing as part of my 2019-2020 Faculty Development Leave with Texas A&M University.
