We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Stacy Barnes a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Stacy, you’ve got such an interesting story, but before we jump into that, let’s first talk about a topic near and dear to us – generosity. We think success, happiness and wellbeing depends on authentic generosity and empathy and so we’d love to hear about how you become such a generous person – where do you think your generosity comes from?
I have worked in some of the most resource and conflict prone countries on earth, yet the people I’ve met in these places have shown me tremendous generosity, joy, and kindness. I want to give that energy back and I’m inspired to be like so many of the people I’ve met.
Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?
I am a human-centered researcher, strategist, and innovator. I work with international non-governmental non-profits (NGOs) and for-profit institutions to understand how they can solve social or business problems. The most important part of solving these problems though is by speaking with the people experiencing the challenges first. Doing this ensures the solutions are born from insight, advice, and lived-experience, as opposed to wild guesses and biased ideas.
I’m currently working with Alight (formerly the American Refugee Committee) a global humanitarian NGO based in Minnesota that has championed refugees, economic migrants, and trafficked persons for over 40 years. Our work provides healthcare, clean water, shelter, protection and economic opportunity to more than 4 million people annually in over 20 countries.
My specific focus with Alight right now is helping them build a variety of different programs to serve displaced people arriving in the United States. Our work is centered on serving newcomers (refugees, asylum seekers, and immigrants) – and the communities that embrace them – to unleash the abundance of all.
I’m passionate about this work because we live in one of the most abundant countries on earth; unleashing the wealth of generosity and skill that resides in millions of people across our nation feels inspiring and critical–especially in our current political climate.
A specific new initiative I’m involved in is spreading the word about Private Sponsorship. Becoming a Private Sponsor enables a refugee family (or individual) to legally relocate to the U.S. and rebuild their lives. (wearealight.org/sponsorship)
We work with private sponsors all over the country to make sure they have the support and information needed to walk alongside a refugee family (or individual) as they resettle into their new community. Private Sponsorship is a life-changing act of service that has the power to make positive generational change for a person, a family, a community, and the world–we need people like you to join us in this effort!
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
1. Curiosity.
Always ask people to “say more” when giving their perspective, ideas, or opinions. Opening up space for people to sort out why they feel a certain way will give you rich insight AND it will be a rewarding conversation for them.
2. Connecting dots between disparate ideas.
Inspiration from outside influences and industries is key when making changes to a program, product, or organization. Coming up with something totally new is very rare, utilizing models that work in other context is less difficult, but can be equally impactful.
3. Make your ideas tangible, FAST.
Getting people to realize they are saying similar things/have similar ideas but are using different words can be really difficult. I think relationships in work and life become strained because people “miss” each other in these ways. Sketch out your ideas, write them down, role play them, WHATEVER you can do to make something more concrete so others can contribute or identify what don’t agree with, will make conversations and decisions move faster.
How can folks who want to work with you connect?
As mentioned, I’m actively recruiting private sponsors who will step up and help refugees eager to rebuild their lives in the United States. My team can work with people located anywhere in the United States to become a private sponsor.
If becoming a private sponsor isn’t the right fit, I would love to connect with anyone eager to share their abundance–please email me and we can create a bespoke volunteer opportunity!
Lastly, if contributing financially is a form of support a reader would like to show, please do so at:
Please visit: https://wearealight.org/
Contact Info:
- Website: https://wearealight.org/sponsorship
- Instagram: we.are.alight
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WeAreAlight/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/wearealight/
- Personal Email: [email protected]
