Meet Francis Boakye, the dedicated Executive Director of Action Dignity Society (ActionDignity), an organization unwavering in its commitment to fostering transformational societal change by collaborating with ethnocultural, racialized, and equity-seeking groups. Through community-centred prevention, engagement, and public policy advocacy, Francis and their team aim to dismantle systemic barriers and nurture an inclusive society.
Describe your charity/non-profit/volunteer work in a few sentences.
ActionDignity’s mission is to work together with ethnocultural, racialized, and equity-seeking groups to create transformational changes in our communities and society. For more than 20 years, ActionDignity has been at the forefront of the movement for racial equity and justice. In collaboration with grassroots groups, community organizations, and broad coalitions, our organization has benefitted thousands of immigrants, refugees, and racialized communities through approaches of community-based prevention, community engagement and action, and public policy research and advocacy.
What problem does it aim to solve?
Historically, racialized minorities have fared worse than non-racialized groups on a range of socio-economic indicators. A review of recent data supports these trends. ActionDignity has a long history of collaborative work and a strong record of community engagement on human rights and pro-equity issues in Calgary. Community-based problem-solving and influencing systems change has been central to ActionDignity’s programs.
Racialized communities continue to face systemic and institutional challenges leading to inequities, in access to resources and services. At ActionDignity we work toward collective impact through a community-centric approach. Through this approach, ActionDignity aims to build civic infrastructure, empower grassroots social change agents, convene impactful collaborations, and catalyze collective impact.
When did you start/join it?
I joined ActionDignity in November 2021.
What made you want to get involved?
For over 20 years, I’ve been working at the community, organization, and government levels on issues of equitable social and economic integration of racialized communities. ActionDignity’s unrelenting pursuit of equity motivated my career choice. ActionDignity’s practices are organized around the principle of caring with a dual focus on dignity in actions and dignity of actions. Through working at this inspiring organization, we can work together to advance equity and inclusion in our society.
What was the situation like when you started?
I joined ActionDignity right after the Covid-19 pandemic hit. During the pandemic, the inequities in society were highlighted and the organization’s awareness, reach and influence escalated to unprecedented levels. The elevated attention is a well-deserved and welcomed outcome for the organization, however, it also means higher demand and volume of work as well as higher expectations and scrutiny. As a new leader of the organization, I realized the urgency of reaching an alignment of our mission with all the team members, rebuilding our strategic structure, and further amplifying our systemic change work. Our team is dedicated and passionate yet navigating the complexities of addressing deep-seated issues requires strategic clarity and alignment. We had a solid foundation of initiatives and partnerships, but there was a pressing need to further amplify our impact and broaden our reach.
How has it changed since?
After I joined ActionDignity, my focus was on harnessing our collective energy and expertise to refine our strategic direction, strengthen partnerships, and enhance our operational efficiency. A new Strategic Priorities Plan for 2022-2025 was developed, guiding the organization towards our mission more efficiently and intentionally. To effectively transform our society, we continue our efforts in shifting conditions that hold current problems affecting racialized communities in place and organizing our actions in shifting prevailing patterns in Mental Health, Workers’ Rights, Public Safety, Gender Equity, and Social and Economic Inclusion. ActionDignity is accomplishing this through strengthening its engagement and mobilization activities by directly connecting them to systems change efforts.
During the last year, ActionDignity’s programs have engaged 28,483 racialized community members and impacted 95,031 Calgarians, thereby deploying ways of working that boost collective impact by building civic infrastructure, empowering grassroots social change agents, convening impactful collaborations, and catalyzing collective impact.
What more needs to be done?
ActionDignity will continue to focus its work on systems change by contributing to changing institutional practices, addressing systemic racism, and advocating for just policies through strengthened collaborations and well-grounded civic infrastructure, to ensure that Calgary is indeed a community that cares for all its citizens.
How can our readers help?
There are multiple ways to get involved with our meaningful work.
Donate: Support us with a donation.
Volunteer: You can either apply for a General Volunteer, helping with our event organization or daily administrative work or apply for our Board Committee Volunteers, contributing your advisory capacities in our board committees.
Join: Membership is open to all individuals and democratically constituted organizations who ascribe to the vision and objectives of ActionDignity. Together we can build collective impact!
Please check our website to learn more.
Do you have any events coming up?
Yes. ActionDignity is running various workshops, trainings, and events for members and the public. Please visit Events Calendar – ActionDignity and follow our social media for details.
Also, our inaugural Fundraising Gala, “Dignity, Empowerment, and the Future We Envision” will be held on October 25, 2024. This event will bring together influential community leaders and supporters dedicated to advancing equity and justice in our community. To support us: 2024 Fundraising Gala – ActionDignity
Where can we follow you?
Website | Facebook | Instagram | LinkedIn
PAY IT FORWARD: What is an awesome local charity that you love?
Punjabi Community Health Services (PCHS)
