The Lifespan Faith Engagement Office of the UUA is excited to introduce the Common Read for 2025-26, Deepa Iyer’s Social Change Now: A Guide for Reflection and Connection (Skinner House).
In a workbook format, Iyer guides the reader to consider a social justice group or movement as an ecosystem, supported by ten interconnected roles people can bring to the group’s shared mission.
Deepa Iyer, author of Social Change Now: A Guide for Reflection and Connection.
Visit InSpirit, the UU Book and Gift Shop, to purchase the book.
Social Change Now guides readers to examine their personal connection with one or more roles—builder, storyteller, disrupter, caregiver, weaver, and more. Readers explore what each role gives and what people performing that role may need in support.
Social Change Now offers real-world examples, prompts with room to write responses, and suggested practices to try immediately. It is a resource to accompany individuals and organizations throughout their lifelong social change journeys to build connected communities and equitable systems in our world.
UU Connections
Social Change Now is a natural fit with Unitarian Universalism, our shared values, and our missional commitment to social justice. With love at the center, Iyer’s model is grounded in interconnectedness: We need one another, not only to survive, not only to thrive, but to effect the social transformations we seek in the name of justice and love.
This UU Common Read invites our people to connect with Iyer’s framework as a tool for faith development. It invites us into deeper, more rewarding experiences and greater effectiveness as agents of transformative change individually, in our communities, and in the world beyond—as a faith practice.
Common Read Resource Kit
The Resource Kit for this UU Common Read invites congregations into whole church, multigenerational engagement that can span multiple areas of congregational life.
The track for adults, written by Rev. Dr. Tracie Barrett, is adaptable to include older youth. It offers three sessions of reflection, discussion, and group work in a small group ministry format. Participants will work together to apply the Social Change Ecosystem model to their own congregation or justice group. As they explore Iyer’s ten roles and examine how they are expressed, relied upon, and supported in the congregation, participants will build wisdom together and strengthen their capability to drive change—both within the congregational community and, in turn, in wider communities where we work for justice with others.
A second Common Read track, by religious educator and education consultant Rebecca Figueroa, is intentionally multigenerational. Incorporating Iyer’s children’s book, We Are the Builders!, it into a series of active workshops for children, youth, and the adults in their faith community to experience learning synergy together. This resource includes an insightful, practical tip sheet for facilitating multigenerational groups.
Orientation for Planners and Facilitators
On Wednesday, July 30 at 5 pm Eastern/4 pm Central/3 pm Mountain/2 pm Pacific, a live webinar for planners and facilitators provides an Orientation to this UU Common Read with Resource Kit creators Barrett and Figueroa, facilitated by Nao Bethea, the UUA’s Co-director of Lifespan Faith Engagement. Learn how congregations can create whole church, faithful engagement around Social Change Now.
Register now, or plan to watch the recorded webinar later in the summer. It will be posted on the Social Change Now! Common Read page.
Get Started!
More ways to engage with this UU Common Read:
- Watch UUA President Sofía Betancourt’s invitation to this UU Common Read (Vimeo, 3:13). She describes the power of Social Change Now to transform how our UU communities work toward justice.
- Watch the Introduction (Vimeo) to this UU Common Read (Vimeo, 30:47). Deepa Iyer, author of Social Change Now, presents the Social Justice Ecosystem framework and talks with Nao Bethea about connections between UU faith engagement and the purpose and goals of Iyer’s work.
- Register now for full access to the Social Change Now UU Common Read Resource kit, including both Common Read tracks, the necessary handouts, and the tip sheet for facilitating multigenerational groups.
- Purchase Social Change Now! from InSpirit, the UU Book and Gift Shop. Bulk discounts are offered for orders of 10 books or more.