Now What?

I've read When Helping Hurts—
but what do I do next?

The paradigm-shifting book—When Helping Hurts—has caused many churches and ministry leaders to ask:  What do we do next in our efforts to help people who are poor at home and abroad?  How can we shift our efforts from dependency to empowerment?  How can we get our entire ministry network on the same page?

In response, co-author of the book—Dr. Brian Fikkert of the Chalmers Center for Economic Development—is offering a one-day, regional training seminar entitled Helping Without Hurting: The Next Step.

View a short video about the seminar by Brian and his co-author, Steve Corbett (2 minutes and 40 seconds long). 

What to Expect – This one-day event is divided into two sessions. The morning session gives an overview of the core principles of When Helping Hurts and is designed to get the entire ministry network (churches, ministries, board members, financial partners, and volunteers) thinking out of the same framework. The afternoon session applies the concepts from the morning session, empowering your church or ministry with the knowledge and tools to take the first steps in using Asset-Based Development (ABD) at home or abroad.

Morning session topics include:

• The Definition of Poverty
• The Role of the Church
• The Central Role of Repentance
• Relief, Rehabilitation, and Development
• Asset-Based and Participatory Approaches
• The Role of Short-Term Missions
• Economic Development in North America
• Holistic Microfinance in the Majority World

Afternoon session topics include:

• Understanding the Process of ABD
• Working with Individuals, Households, and Communities
• Tools for North America and the Majority World
• The Proper Role of Community Outsiders
• Plans for Getting Started

Note that onsite registration opens at 7:30am and the program begins at 8:00am and goes until 5pm.  Also, your registration includes lunch.

Who Should Attend?

• Pastors, deacons, and elders
• Church benevolence committee members and food pantry volunteers
• Home and foreign missions committee members
• Missionaries and short-term missions teams
• Relief and development agency staff
• Ministry leaders and volunteers
• Christian community development teams
• Christian business people interested in microfinance and microenterprise development
• Christians donors thinking strategically about foreign missions with poor people

Learn More – Visit the "When Helping Hurts" web site and the Chalmers Center web site.

We look forward to you joining us for this exciting ministry training seminar.  Please feel free to share information about this seminar with your ministry team and others in your ministry network.

Dr. Brian Fikkert is the Founder and Executive Director of the Chalmers Center for Economic Development, a research and training center that is dedicated to helping churches and missionaries to declare the kingdom of God by bringing economic development and spiritual transformation to the poor (www.chalmers.org). Brian also serves as a Professor of Economics and Community Development at Covenant College. Brian received a Ph.D. in Economics with highest honors from Yale University, and a B.A. in Mathematics from Dordt College. Specializing in Economic Development and International Economics, Brian has been a consultant to the World Bank, the Inter-American Development Bank, and the United States Agency for International Development. He has published articles in both leading academic and popular journals. Prior to coming to Covenant College, he was a professor at the University of Maryland and a research fellow at the Center for Institutional Reform and the Informal Sector. He, his wife Jill, and their three children live in Chattanooga, Tennessee where he is an active member of New City Fellowship Presbyterian Church (PCA).