San Mateo County Times, August 21, 2002

    Volunteers play key role in starting new think tank

    Volunteers are playing a vital role in helping to establish the Commonweal Institute, a new moderate & progressive think tank in Menlo Park, as a premier organization for changing public policy.

    Last fall, Leonard Salle and Dr. Katherine (Kate) Forrest, of Portola Valley, founded Commonweal Institute with the purpose of ãadvancing ideas for the common good.ä

    According to Salle, ãWe founded Commonweal Institute to help provide a balance in information that reaches the public. Too much of what weâre hearing these days comes from the conservative perspective, and clearly this is pushing the national agenda further and further to the right.ä  

    Almost immediately, volunteers came forward to help build the organization, which they see as having the potential for making a major impact on public opinion and policy throughout the country.  

    ãWe owe much of our progress to the work of our talented, dedicated volunteers,ä Salle says.  ãThey are excited to be part of something they believe will make a difference.ä

    You may ask, ãWhat does a think tank have to do with societal change?ä When people think of changing society, they donât usually think of think tanks. In fact, people donât generally think about them at all. But perhaps they should.  

    Traditionally a think tank is an organization that does objective research and analysis, and generally publishes its results in scholarly papers.  Its research influences what happens from tax policy to military policy, from education to health care, from the environment to genetic engineering, and just about everything else of political significance. All of our lives likely have been influenced in one way or another by think tanks.

    Over the past quarter-century, however, well-funded conservative think tanks like the Heritage Foundation and the American Enterprise Institute have engaged in issue advocacy in an attempt to move society in their ideological direction. They get messages into the major media, provide information to political decision makers, and work with other organizations and businesses to influence public policy.

    Balance of ideas

    So what is there about the Commonweal Institute that has made it such a magnet for enthusiastic volunteers?  For them, this new think tank represents a moderate to progressive perspective that they believe is in the public interest. They want to help build an organization that will create a better balance of ideas that reach the broad public and protect what they value, such as public education, reproductive choice, civil liberties and the environment.  

    Commonweal Instituteâs first volunteer, Dennis Paull, is now the organizationâs webmaster and a member of the Advisory Board.

    ãIn todayâs world a Web site for an organization like Commonweal Institute is a necessity.  The Web site is the public face of the organization, and is essential for developing the support we need,ä Paull said.

    To provide support to Paull, a Web site committee was formed at one of the organizationâs  volunteer meetings.  

    ãNow that we have the site map, volunteers help develop content and test changes before theyâre posted on the site,ä he explained.   The volunteers on the Web site committee are a talented group, ranging from their 20s to 70s.  Some have very good computer and graphics skills, others do web searches, and a few concentrate on creating databases. Most provide both a critical eye and creative ideas.

    On July 25, Commonweal Institute held its first public event, a celebration of having moved the organization out of a converted garage in the foundersâ home and into an office in Menlo Park.  Fittingly, the office they moved into had previously been occupied by the Hewlett Foundation. ãAs all Silicon Valley residents know, William Hewlett and David Packard started their company in a garage.  Just as they built Hewlett-Packard into a major company, we hope to build Commonweal Institute into a major think tank,ä Salle said.

    Former Assemblyman Ted Lempert, who is now CEO of EdVoice, generously and enthusiastically agreed to be the featured speaker at the July 25 event.

    In his speech, Lempert said, ãI run an education nonprofit which is non-partisan, and we seek information from think tanks all the time.

    ãMost of what I receive is from think tanks on the right. I rarely receive anything from progressive think tanks. Commonweal can fill that void and provide sound research and a progressive perspective to governments and non-profits.ä

    Lempert added, ãWe need to get people to vote. Voting participation, especially in low income areas and among young people, is frighteningly low. Commonweal can work to inspire civic participation, and get more people involved. That involvement is crucial to the fabric of our democracy.ä

    A helping hand

    The reception drew a large, enthusiastic crowd, and volunteers contributed much to its success. Under the direction of Einat Sandman, a Commonweal Institute employee who started as a volunteer, event volunteers ran errands, set up tables and food, greeted guests, answered questions and manned the contribution table.  In addition, eight of Commonwealâs supporters volunteered to serve on the host committee.  

    A number of the event volunteers were recruited through announcements in the San Mateo County Times and other local papers. As they have learned more about the organization and its goals, they have said that they would like to volunteer again at future Commonweal Institute events.

    ãInvolving many people in your endeavor raises the profile of an organization and opens new opportunities,ä co-founder Forrest said. ãPeople move from initial contact to deeper levels of involvement with the organization and its issues.

    ãEven people, who donât think of themselves as volunteers may get involved. Many have provided us with valuable advice, spread the word about what we are doing, and made important introductions.ä

    Forrest met one such informal volunteer at a Sausalito meeting about clean money campaign finance reform.  

    ãA week later, I received a call from a radio station in Mendocino County asking to interview me about Commonweal Institute,ä Forrest said. ãThe person I met in Sausalito liked what Commonweal Institute is doing. She mentioned it to her friend, who happened to be a radio talk show host. We would never have had that access without the word-of-mouth contact.ä

    Salle described other important roles that volunteers are playing.

    ãWeâre in start-up mode, and as such, we need all kinds of help,ä he said. ãWe have volunteers preparing PowerPoint presentations, editing documents, and planning events. They have essential skills that help us.ä

    A number of Commonweal Instituteâs volunteers are currently unemployed or are transitioning to new careers.  Based on her previous experience with nonprofit groups and industry, Forrest explained, ãVolunteering is an excellent way to make contacts and learn more about new career possibilities. I have seen volunteers discover their real passion this way, and move into an entirely different field of work.ä   

    The members of Commonweal Instituteâs Advisory Board are all volunteers.  Board service is a vital role that experienced professionals and people with wealth and contacts play in the nonprofit world. Some bring special expertise and guidance. Others bring public recognition and help an organization gain access to potential major donors.

    The Commonweal Institute welcomes volunteers.  For more information, call 650-330-1395 or visit www.commonwealinstitute.org.

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