From SPU's Day of Common Learning: Powers You Possess
YOU HAVE THE POWER TO ...
Listen Like a Therapist
In their presentation “We Call It the ORCA-Stance,” faculty, students, and alumni from the Marriage and Family Therapy program in the School of Psychology, Family, and Community spoke about how they teach future therapists to listen to clients. Based in Christian theology, these are principles anyone can use, says Claudia Grauf-Grounds, director of clinical training and research and professor of marriage and family therapy.
They use the acronym “ORCA” to remember to approach others with:
Openness: You can be impacted by and receive what others give.
Respect: You can see and respond to another person as a unique and valuable creation of God.
Curiosity: You can wonder and reflect about others’ lives without immediately trying to fix them or solve problems.
Accountability: You can take responsibility for the social power within the relationship, and take ownership of your behavior.
YOU HAVE THE POWER TO ...
Vote With Your Dollars
In a world where $88 trillion is spent every year by businesses and consumers, shoppers have the power to vote with their dollars, according to Geri Mason, assistant professor of economics. In her presentation, “The Power of Consumption,” Mason said that while 70 percent of consumers surveyed would spend more money on a product unconnected with human rights abuses, most consumers don’t know the history of their purchases.
Here are some of her tips to become informed and eliminate the practice of supporting modern slavery:
- Know the top offending industries, countries, and companies. The industries are minerals, electronics, textiles, chocolate, coffee, and seafood. See how your favorite companies rate at free2work.org.
- Go to slaveryfootprint.org to discover how many slaves work for you.
- Ask servers and sales clerks where items come from in order to encourage companies to become aware and choose fairly sourced items.
YOU HAVE THE POWER TO ...
Be a Citizen Journalist
In his presentation, “Practices of Power: Social Media, Citizen Journalism, and Mars Hill Church,” Assistant Professor of Journalism Rick Jackson discussed how the Internet has put the tools of journalists in the hands of citizens, allowing people to break stories long before traditional news outlets covered them. He documented bloggers’ coverage of controversy at Seattle’s Mars Hill Church as a case study.
“Legacy media had a role to play, but it was a passive role,” he said.
For would-be citizen journalists, Jackson says, “I would love them to aspire to the standards I think any journalist should aspire to.” He recommends:
- Verify your sources.
- Quote people by name whenever possible.
- Make sure to double-check your information.