That’s so nice.

When I tell people about our work at Einhorn Collaborative — a foundation dedicated to addressing America’s growing crisis of connection — I often receive this response. The implied subtext is, “That’s all well and good, but how are you actually changing people’s lives?”

In America, polarization, social isolation, and “othering” have reached a generational high. We increasingly sort ourselves into like-minded groups, shunning those who don’t think, look, act, pray, or vote like us. Such division has meant many Americans no longer trust those on the “other” side. Without trust, it’s harder to extend care and compassion and it also becomes much easier to harbor contempt. As a result, we can quickly find ourselves on one side of the chasm with no bridge to the other.

Since I started doing this work, I’ve engaged with numerous people who are skeptical that addressing this crisis of connection can actually help alleviate other, bigger challenges facing our nation, like economic inequality, structural racism, climate change, and the protection of voting rights. However, I’ve come to believe — through partnering with some of the most remarkable leaders and organizations on the ground helping Americans bridge our divides — that effectively addressing those challenges requires creativity and compromise.

Unless there are “bridgers” — people who have the motivation, mindset, and skills to help others navigate divides and work together — we will continue down this path of “othering” and dehumanization. And that’s when I really start to worry: to what end?

Whatever your philanthropic focus, the case I would make to those who are skeptical of the value of bridging is that intentionally bringing together diverse leaders and funders who have different priorities, worldviews, and theories of change to focus on shared interests will no doubt help heal our culture of divisiveness and deliver better outcomes. Put another way, solving our most complex social problems becomes much harder if we don’t see, hear, and understand each other first.

Read the full article about bridging our divides by Jenn Hoos Rothberg at The Center for Effective Philanthropy.