Forum on ‘social capital’ to be held Tuesday in Princeton

By Lauren Otis, Staff Writer
   The Princeton Area Community Foundation and the Princeton Regional Chamber of Commerce Foundation are presenting a Tuesday forum on “social capital.” The forum follows on a survey of the state of “social capital” in the central New Jersey region the two organizations issued in 2007.
   The forum is entitled “Better Together” and will be held at the conference center of Mercer County Community College in West Windsor.
   ”It’s really designed as a conversation,” said Nancy Kieling, president and executive director, of the Lawrence-based PACF. “The individual sessions will be framed by people who are knowledgeable in the subject area but are not designed to be the authority,” she said.
   The intent is to examine why social capital matters and what can be done to improve it, Ms. Kieling said. Social capital refers to friendships, acquaintances and working relationships that tie people together, according to the PACF and PRCC.
   ”The bonds of social capital make neighborhoods safer, schools better and people healthier. When people are invested in each other and their communities, they are more likely to vote, volunteer, care for one another, and cooperate even though they have differences,” according to the PACF and PRCC.
   Ms. Kieling said she was pleased by the response to the upcoming forum, with 225 people already signed up to participate (the MCCC conference center has a capacity of 250). Those who have signed up come mostly from the central New Jersey survey area, but also from much further afield, she said.
   The forum features “conversations” on several topics, including: the 2007 social capital survey; “Creating Organizations, Creating Change;” “Civic Engagement over 60;” “Virtual Communities, Real Connections; “Differences that Strengthen Communities;” and “Place Matters.” A keynote address will be given by Lewis Feldstein, co-author of “Better Together” and president of the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation.
   The forum seeks both to educate and inspire, with participants asked in the end “what is possible?” Ms. Kieling said. “What we do want is to walk away with a sense that people understand and are even more committed to building social capital,” she said.
   Ms. Kieling said the hope was for the forum not to be a one-off event. “We’ll see how this one goes but I think it’s entirely possible that it could become an annual event,” she said.
   For information on, or to register for the Oct. 28 “Better Together” forum, go to www.bettertogethercnj.org , or call 609-219-1800 or e-mail [email protected].