community groups work on collective action

http://rapidcityjournal.com/news/local/new-group-taking-innovative-approach-to-improving-life-for-rapid/article_c4b91cf4-db8e-5cfe-8db6-5bdfbbb6a359.html

"The basic idea is to harness the energy and actions of a wide range of charity and civic groups all at once, and find over-arching goals that can be accomplished more quickly and effectively than if such groups work on problems alone.

The Rapid City Collective Impact group was unveiled at a press conference Wednesday morning at which the group  presented nearly a year’s worth of research on social issues in the area.

Rapid City may be the first in the nation to use this relatively new approach to improve the city as a whole, according to initiative director Albert Linderman."

I can't believe this is a new idea, but I do heartily agree with it.  Community groups working together instead of just doing their own thing makes common sense.

Diversity makes your group smarter

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-diversity-makes-us-smarter/

"The fact is that if you want to build teams or organizations capable of innovating, you need diversity. Diversity enhances creativity. It encourages the search for novel information and perspectives, leading to better decision making and problem solving. Diversity can improve the bottom line of companies and lead to unfettered discoveries and breakthrough innovations. Even simply being exposed to diversity can change the way you think. This is not just wishful thinking: it is the conclusion I draw from decades of research from organizational scientists, psychologists, sociologists, economists and demographers."

So much for the Master Race theory.