Community Care | The Power of Partnerships

This month is all about the power of partnerships. Sometimes, the best way to bypass a broken system is to team up with someone who brings a completely different skill set to the table. 

If you need a little inspiration, check out these stories about dynamic duos, odd-couple partnerships, and everyday people doing hard things: 

On the lighter side:

• Abbott Elementary (Hulu/Max): This is the perfect, lighthearted parallel for our sector. It follows a group of under-resourced, but wildly passionate, public school teachers who unite to find creative workarounds for their kids when the district (a.k.a. the system) fails them.
• 21 Jump Street (2012): A classic, laugh-out-loud “buddy cop” movie where two polar opposites must leverage each other's strengths to survive the assignment. (Check your local library for a DVD copy!)

On the thrilling and reflective side:

• The Martian (2015): When Mark Watney gets stranded on Mars, he’s forced to get creative with his limited resources to survive—at least until a massive, multi-agency partnership can finally bring him home. (Again, check your local library if you can’t find it streaming.) 
• Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo: A fun fantasy heist novel. The catch? A group of outcasts has to pull it off, and their survival depends entirely on their ability to leverage each other's unique talents.
• Katabasis by R.F. Kuang: A dark academia novel where two rival graduate students are forced to journey to Hell together to save their professor's soul.

For your commute:

• How I Built This (Podcast): An inspiring listen about the stories of innovators, idealists, and everyday people who used creative problem solving and out-of-the-box thinking to build movements and businesses from the ground up.
• The Moth (Podcast): Sometimes, the best way to feel connected is through stories. This podcast features everyday people telling real, personal, and deeply human stories. 

For your professional toolkit:

• Partnership Power: Essential Museum Strategies for Today's Networked World by Marsha L. Semmel: A highly practical guide for museum professionals working to create sustainable, relevant collaborations.

This blog post content was originally included in our community newsletter: The Moment -- where we respond quickly and thoughtfully to impactful events and decisions that challenge or disrupt our profession.