4 Sharing and scaling overview

Figure 1. Sharing and scaling your project can increase its impact (Nateepitak, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

Taking action is not the last step in a Youth Mayors project. In fact, it can be just the beginning of a longer, exciting journey. People will want to know how it went. They will want to hear what you learned and what they can learn from you. They will want to know your plans. Share with them!

And if your project worked out well, you can start thinking about making a bigger impact. Scaling a project involves taking your action to a larger community. If you started something in your household, consider expanding it to your apartment building, your friends, your street or neighborhood, or your school. If you took successful action in your school, consider multiplying it to other schools. And if you already worked in an external community, consider scaling to the town or city level or connecting with other similar communities in other towns or cities.

Stage 4 modules are all about how to share your project with others after taking action and how you can scale your project to make a bigger impact.

Sharing

Figure 2. There are many reasons to share your projects (Iconstock, CC BY 3.0)

Sharing your project with others is important for a number of reasons. You may want to share your project in order to:

inform the community you worked with about the findings and results of the action;
give advice to others who may face similar problems and needs who are looking for possible solutions;
raise awareness about the project, to look for others who are interested in the same issues and working on solving the same problems;
inspire and persuade others to change their mindset or take action of some kind; or
maybe even just to complete requirements for an educational programme.

Even if you experienced some failure in your project, it is important to tell others about it. Your experience can hold valuable lessons for others, helping them to leap over your mistakes to push progress forward. In your community, being open and transparent about both the successes and failures of interventions can be important for building trust and community collaboration moving forward.

There are lots of ways to share your projects, formally and informally, offline and online. It is important to choose a method of sharing that considers your purpose and audience. And hopefully you have gathered a lot of documentation, so finding material to share should be easy. Module 4(a) will provide some advice.

Scaling

Figure 3. Your project can soar to new heights with the right scaling strategy (Virginia State Parks, CC BY 2.0)

Scaling in the context of social projects and businesses means making something bigger. This involves making changes to your project so that it reaches more people or has a larger impact. Sharing your project and ideas is a key part of scaling; without sharing, scaling cannot happen.

But successfully scaling a project requires more than just informing others about it. You need to consider how to get more people on board to make the project bigger. This might involve persuading people to give you the money or logistical support you need to develop the project further. It might involve inspiring others to make change or join you in your efforts. In all cases you need to inspire, persuade and network. Modules 4(b), 4(c) and 4(d) will help you take the steps needed to scale your project to the next level. Go for it!

Works cited

Iconstock, 5 Sept. 2018, commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Noun_Project_Sharing_icon_1261785.svg.

Nateepitak, Lurson [leket]. “Growing.” Flickr, Yahoo!, 15 Feb. 2007, www.flickr.com/photos/leket/391178268/in/photolist-AyTEU-5JpWyR-5tTDPK-7YBLQ5-6Ad8tc-wSJ7-59w9Su-9LHsLR-9xJCJq-6CJxS3-8tc3Gr-7XZZHC-4Kh8UW-7ep2rJ-g9fSKz-2gfehiZ-apw9Ei-HJ2Ke-4ZXo7-7ep2qs-3rUqt-7ep2rb-4Xy2Ge-6Aim9E-YmkGcE-9VMuwd-qiL3kd-4J6Mrv-q3q3j-ZGXds1-ekuVo-5tXNvz-c6z2Po-8PjtJF-boi96j-dvzh4f-2hhj2bE-v7vLXG-36WoC1-dPp6tx-9Qd63q-e9hoAz-KitsqY-orAYN7-otofu2-6Jyca2-J3vHZ3-KFeMdz-nUz8z4-2cV2F9p.

Virginia State Parks. “Sky Meadows Bald Eagle Soaring.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Commons, 10 Apr. 2016, commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sky_Meadows_Bald_eagle_soaring_(26378727905).jpg.

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