By Hildy Gottlieb

John McKnight, professor emeritus of social policy and education at Northwestern University and most recently the author of The Abundant Community has had a life's worth of experience in galvanizing communities.

Mr. McKnight cut his teeth as a community organizer in Chicago, then went on to work with the Kennedy administration to draft the blueprint for affirmative action. At Northwestern University, he helped create a new urban-development department aimed at teaching and producing scholarship on progressive policies.

In the latest episode of Making Change, Mr. McKnight speaks to Hildy Gottlieb, the host, on what works -- and what doesn't -- in community organizing, and how to spark social-change movements from inside your neighborhood.

Hildy Gottlieb is the co-founder of Creating the Future and author of The Pollyanna Principles: Reinventing "Nonprofit Organizations" to Create the Future of Our World. In this podcast, Making Change, she interviews leaders to discuss how those who are working for the greater good can effect more social change. New episodes of Making Change appear on the second Thursday of every month.