A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of attending a monthly progressive community discussion forum in a small town south of Reno, NV. During the course of the evening I remarked that this type of meeting was beginning to burgeon in communities across America, alongside other locally-grown action groups. This seemed to surprise a number of those in attendance, who hadn't heard of such meetings existing elsewhere. Despite the growing numbers of concerned progressive citizens forming new grassroots groups to build community or solve local ills, as a whole we remain unorganized and unaware of each other. Outside of major urban centers, it can be very difficult to link up with other progressives or progressive organizations. At the conclusion of the meeting, the organizer of the meetings and I decided that what progressives perhaps most desperately needed is simply access to one another.

Thus an idea was born: we would create a national directory of progressive, community-based organizations to better bring us together as a movement. It has proven to be a formidable, though very fulfilling task. We have been able to identify over a thousand progressive community groups through various media and personal contacts, but if this project is to be truly successful, we must find a way to reach progressives in even the most rural locations, to reach those with the most modest technology. This is where we are requesting your aid.

If you believe that this is a worthy goal, we ask that in your next issue, you might include a small blurb describing our project along with our contact information - asking any and all readers to send us the names, contact information, and basic description of any groups or organizations they know of which fit the criteria. Please don't hesitate to contact us if you have any questions.

As of this moment, our general categories are:

1. Food (CSAs, local food security, sustainable agriculture, permaculture, hunger)
2. Conscious Eating, Animal Rights
3. Prison and Legal Reform
4. Gender, Race, Sexuality Issues
5. Environmental Justice, Indigenous Issues
6. Sustainable Energy and Transportation
7. Salons, Discussion Groups, Community Forums
8. Alternative Spirituality, Health, Psychology, Personal Growth
9. Education Reform
10. Alternative Media, Media Reform, Art/Performance
11. Changing Values, Challenging Technologies
12. Affordable and Environmental Housing
13. Trade Rules and Corporate Reform
14. Eco-villages, Co-ops, Communes, Buying Collectives
15. Political Parties, Democratic Activism
16. Humanitarian, Service, Peace/Justice, Conflict Resolution
17. Sprawl, Land-Use, Land Protection

Please contact us at:
Progressive Voices
attn: Doug Morrow
6469 Ral Mar
Rockford, IL 61109

or: progressive_voices@hotmail.com

to tip us off to local and progressive organizations that you know of, or work with, that ought to be included. Eventually, our intent is to publish the entire directory in searchable format on the web.