City As Playground

What if we reimagined our cities—not as battlegrounds of division, but as playgrounds of connection and possibility?

City as Playground invites you to see your urban environment in a whole new light. Through 19 thought-provoking essays and conversations, this collection draws on the wisdom of academics, practitioners, theologians, and leaders from diverse fields to inspire a collaborative vision for city renewal.

You’ll discover how embracing the metaphor of a playground can transform how we interact with our communities. This idea unlocks new paths to collaboration, fosters stronger neighborhoods, and equips us to confront challenges like polarization, inequality, and systemic strife in innovative ways.

Contributing authors to City As Playground include:

• Dr. Dave Hillis, Leadership Foundations
• Chelsea Langston Bombino, Fetzer Institute
• Dr. Dale Irvin, Former President, New York Theological Seminary
• Father James Martin, American Jesuit priest, writer, and editor-at-large of the Jesuit magazine
• Rev. Jen Bailey, Author and Founder and Executive Director of the Faith Matters Network
• Romanita Hairston, CEO of the M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust
• Abhishek Gier, Founder and Executive Director of Catalyst Leadership Foundation in New Delhi
• Rev. Dr. Mark Labberton, Former President of Fuller Theological Seminary
• Dr. Randy White, Author and Founder, Center for Community Transformation, Leadership Foundation of Fresno
• Dr. Luke Bretherton, Author, Theologian and Robert E. Cushman Distinguished Professor of Moral & Political Theology at Duke University
• Father James Alison, Author, Priest and Public Theologian
• Aaron Dorfman, Founder and Executive Director of A More Perfect Union: The Jewish Partnership For Democracy
• Rev. Dr. Troy Jackson, Author and Co-Founder of UNDIVIDED, State Strategies Director, Faith in Action
• Curtis Chang, Author and Founding Executive Director of Redeeming Babel
• Kerry Alys Robinson, Founding Executive Director of Leadership Roundtable
• Noel Castellanos, President, Camino Alliance, Former CEO of the Christian Community Development Association
• Rev. Dr. Terry McGonigal, Retired Director of Church Engagement and Dean of Spiritual Life at Whitworth University
• H. Spees, Former director of Housing and Homelessness Services, Fresno, CA
• William “Blinky” Rodriguez, Executive Director, Champions In Service, Leadership Foundation of San Fernando and Greater Los Angeles

Whether you're a community leader, faith practitioner, academic, or simply someone passionate about urban change, City as Playground provides a bold roadmap for creating cities that reflect our shared humanity and reimagine possibilities for collective flourishing.

Don't just see a city—see a playground.

"In a time of alarming polarization, City As Playground brings together a remarkable and diverse group of Christian practitioners and thought leaders who can help us transform how we think about cities and make the spaces we inhabit together look more like God’s reign of justice, righteousness, and steadfast love."
–Rev. Adam Russell Taylor, author of A More Perfect Union: A New Vision for Building the Beloved Community and president of Sojourners

City as Playground demonstrates how our choice of metaphor for representing any reality can both unlock and limit our imagination of what's possible. For cities, often viewed as intractable Gothams of strife, the metaphor of "playground" unlocks new visions of collaboration among civic tribes without surrendering a vigilance for "bullies."
–Louis Kim, VP, Hewlett Packard