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Michelle Geiss

Silo Breakers – Michelle Geiss

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Editor’s 0714_WVanthem …

What with ChangeEngine being the free-wheeling, spontaneous social change platform that it is, we’re not surprised to see a chain-reaction of inspirations leading us to the first in what we hope will be a long and illustrious series of profiles in silo-breaking from change-makers in Baltimore and beyond. Inspired by the recent Community Design Lab, Adam’s magnificent post on the perils of silos set off a dynamic discussion on boundaries, barriers, and busting through to cross-pollination and inclusion … which brings us full circle to the first of our Silo Breakers, Community Design Lab Co-Organizer Michelle Geiss…

Michelle Geiss

My primary silo is the world of global health, with sub-silos galore — malaria, family planning, social marketing, social franchising, and so on. Each sub-silo has its own culture, practices, lore, dynamic and wonky terminology. And each has almost no idea what happens in the silo next door.

Funding structures reinforce this state of disconnectedness. In each country, the weight of coordination falls largely on the backs of underfunded, overwhelmed and disorganized ministries of health, which themselves are siloed to match donor interests (sound familiar?). Though the silos lead to duplication and disproportionate efforts towards the issue-du-jour, they are very deeply entrenched and massively difficult to change.

I try to break out of silos by taking on projects across a range of health areas and technical areas, and by cross-pollinating or encouraging integrated approaches when I can. Gradually, I’m also learning the contours and constraints of Baltimore and its challenges, which gives me the opportunity to experiment with plugging my global health skills into entirely new areas of focus. It has been humbling and inspiring to step out of the world of multi-million, multi-country malaria grants and into the heart of small, homegrown grassroots efforts in Baltimore scraping by on volunteer time and a few hundred dollars.

I’m a big believer in using design thinking methods to show that inspiration can come from the darndest of places and that everyone can be innovative in their work if they respect creativity as a process. My second hat as a Community Design Lab organizer is born out of that belief. That and a nagging feeling that a better Baltimore is right at our fingertips if we could just mix the amazing change-makers, creative minds and communities together in the right way.

One thing that struck me about our inaugural Design Lab was how many folks in the room were natural silo breakers. Nearly everyone had an affiliation with forward slashes. Adam’s three hats — City Health Department / ChangeEngine contributor / free-range potter — were the norm rather than the exception. The SocEnt breakfasts are also full of the city’s renaissance men and women who rattle off two or three projects or affiliations during the around-the-table intros.

I see this as an encouraging sign that there is a growing community of people who want to listen, collaborate and share ideas, and who see this as the only way to begin breaking down the inefficiencies, injustices and inequities of the city. The issue of inclusion is on a lot of people’s minds and I hope we’ll continue to challenge ourselves to be better and better at this. If we continue to acknowledge that we don’t have all the answers and that we need community leaders in the room, I’m optimistic we’ll keep moving in the right direction.

Michelle is a freelance public health consultant and co-initiator of the Baltimore Community Design Lab.

TAKE THE BREAKOUT CHALLENGE! What’s YOUR silo? And how do you break out of it? Let us know @ChangEnginefacebook.com/ChangingMedia, or email hasdai@changingmediagroup.com.

IMAGE CREDIT. www.chrissauter.com.