Staff, self-advocates and family members invited to contact newsroom
Michelle Strutzenberger

As the start of 2013 inspires thoughts of fresh direction, the posAbilities Today newsroom foresees a slight shift for the news.

This past year saw much of the news covering successes and new initiatives introduced by various departments within posAbilities.

While these kinds of stories will continue, the news team is also keen to have more members of the posAbilities community, including staff, self-advocates and family members share their own news tips. What story do they want to have told?

The news that posAbilities Today provides is anchored in the principles of Appreciative Inquiry (AI). AI is a development approach that begins by seeking to uncover the strengths and assets of a community, with the understanding that “what you focus on grows.” It then builds on those strengths to dream and design a new future.

People who work at posAbilities or those who receive services from the agency can think about what they’ve done or what they’ve seen others do, that appears to be working.

It might be that a person served by posAbilities has had an unprecedented opportunity to explore an interest and become more involved in the local community as a result.

Or it could be that a family member has taken initiative to create a circle of support for a loved one with a significant disability.

Other news leads may focus more on people’s aspirations and ideas for co-creating a different future.

People can contact the newsroom to suggest the news lead to a writer, who will then follow up with the appropriate people to get more details, visuals and write a news piece. The article will be published to the posAbilities Today section of the posAbilities website, as well as in the monthly posAbilities Today e-newsletter.

As these stories are written, shared and discussed, the opportunity to accelerate and amplify positive social change, which posAbilities seeks to be a part of and drive, is heightened.

“I’m convinced there is no profession so well-placed to change the mind of the world than journalism,” says Peter Pula, founder and CEO of Axiom News, which provides the posAbilities Today news service.

For this new kind of journalism to be most powerful and effective, it requires both journalists with a different mindset and a community open to sharing their stories for the benefit of the greater good.

Start sharing your news leads now. Contact the newsroom by calling 800-294-0051, ext. 27, or e-mail michelle(at)axiomnews.ca.