There has never been a more critical time for South Africans to collaborate. Over the past few weeks, we’ve chosen to march, we’ve taken to social media, we’ve chosen not to march, we’re angry, we’re talked about endings and beginnings and we’ve witnessed collaboration. We’ve seen political opponents take to the streets as one in their tens of thousands, but what now?

As we find ourselves in national political gridlock that marches may in fact not solve, how do we move forward in a collaborative and more unified way?

Collaboration is reliant on a common purpose and that common purpose needs to be about more than the dethroning of our corrupt leadership. We always have more in common than we initially believe, like boosted employment, better education, safer streets, etc., etc.

So, here’s the question, whether you marched or didn’t march, what role do you play in South Africa’s success? And how do you do this in the most collaborative way?

The marches, I believe were something of a wake-up call for many, a call for citizens to be part of the change. Many of us to seem to have left this up to others to tackle for years are starting to understand that there is a role for everyone, but at the same time are unsure as to the ‘how’, the ‘where’, etc. Change has always had the benefit of a strong civil society. This was a thorn in the side of the apartheid government and with collaborative support, can have an even greater impact on where we find ourselves today.

Organisations with limited resources are taking on the Goliaths and winning. http://earthlife.org.za/ and http://safcei.org are a great cases in point, taking the Nuclear deal to the Cape Town High Court and getting government accords with several countries, halted.

Collaborate!

Collaborate!

Collaborate!

 It’s never been more critical.

 Janice Scheckter is a collaboration activist and is co-founder of collaborative ventures in agri/food security, education, tourism and enterprise development and economic development.

 Recommended resource: www.sji.org.za