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Andy Fife

@andyfife.bsky.social
27 followers 47 following 5 posts
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Andy Fife @andyfife.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
5/ I get asked a lot whether we can just get rid of the board altogether. The problem: accessible, transparent power-sharing has no formal home anywhere else. Many boards are arcane and bureaucratic. But we still need the function. That's what I want to dig into this fall.
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Andy Fife @andyfife.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
4/ Those are the muscles of governance, and they atrophy when unused. In a lot of organizations the structures meant to carry them have gone quiet. Boards ratify rather than decide. Voting memberships exist on paper. Staff and donors get consulted after the decision.
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Andy Fife @andyfife.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
3/ Not a substitute for democratic government — and there's plenty of disenfranchisement among workers too, thanks late stage capitalism. But these are where we actually practice self-governance: having a real say, being outvoted and keeping a voice, holding someone accountable.
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Andy Fife @andyfife.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
2/ Meanwhile we spend our days inside institutions where we have far more proximity than we'll ever have in national politics. A nonprofit, a congregation, a small business, a co-op, a union local, a school.
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Andy Fife @andyfife.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
1/ Whew, there's a lot of hand wringing about the state of democracy right now. And it often feels like there's so little to be done about it individually. Vote, donate, call an elected's office, refresh the news. The gap between the worry and the available action is demoralizing.
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