“The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.”

So goes the quote from Martin Luther King that the Disobedience Award highlight to explain their approach.

It’s a simple idea: now in its second year — see the video above for interviews with 2017’s winners — they give a cash prize to support non-violent, creative, courageous actions that are:

“an extraordinary example of disobedience for the benefit of society”

And it’s not small money either or given with lots of conditions: $250,000 with apparently no strings attached (and therefore a lot of trust).

The Disobedience Award has come out of the States, but could we learn from it here? We’ve heard through Civil Society Futures views like:

“charities are seen to have become part of the very system they were set up to challenge”

Some funders such as Edge Fund are trying to achieve more radical change:

“don’t just distribute funds but redistribute power”

Is it time for more of this?

How disobedient do you dare to be?