--News Direct--
At a time of seemingly insurmountable divisions, a new national organization has emerged to awaken a sleeping giant: the 700,000 graduates of local leadership programs trained to address societal problems collaboratively, civilly and positively.
The National Leadership Network looks to support and inspire these diverse local leaders to demonstrate the models of civic engagement, civil discourse and collaboration they learned in local leadership development programs in all regions of the country.
“As societal divisions make for daily headlines, I am encouraged by leaders who champion and are committed to finding common ground,” says Mike Ritz, who, as the executive director of Leadership Rhode Island, co-founded the National Leadership Network. “These leaders recognize the opportunity to strengthen and grow our communities through the sharing and activation of diverse ideas, perspectives and experiences. The National Leadership Network plans to harness the energy of tens of thousands to do just that.”
National Leadership Network is targeting the graduates of long established Community Leadership Programs (CLPs), organizations that began to pop up in the 1970s and 1980s in cities, regions and states throughout the country to develop local leaders.
In a national survey conducted for the National Leadership Network, graduates of leadership programs conveyed an overwhelming desire to share fresh ideas and participate in learning opportunities with other CLP alumni who are wrestling with pressing issues in their respective communities. A whopping 83 percent of the respondents said they feel they “have an obligation to publicly demonstrate how local leaders from different backgrounds can work together to improve their communities.”
The need for a national organization to encourage collaboration and networking beyond geographic borders has been discussed among CLP executive directors for several years. The pandemic, which pushed everyone to virtual platforms, and an awareness that the nation was becoming paralyzed by growing divisiveness, accelerated the national network’s formation. In 2020, Discussions that Matter, the network’s signature event series, attracted more than 2,000 participants from 47 states to address timely issues, including Policing and Protests and Fair Elections and Security.
The network’s first national discussion of 2021 will be held February 23 on the topic of Trust, one of the four characteristics Gallup research has determined that followers want from leaders. Compassion, Stability and Hope - the other traits of a successful leader - will be the topics of subsequent virtual discussions this year. More details and registration can be found at https://nlndiscussions-trust.eventbrite.com.
Community Leadership Programs
In the mid-1970s, communities across the United States began to establish leadership development programs to encourage and prepare residents to address local challenges or to accept larger roles of responsibility in the private, government and nonprofit sectors. Today, approximately 800 such Community Leadership Programs (CLPs) exist, some city-based, some region or county-based, and others, state-based. Some are affiliated with Chambers of Commerce; others are independent. To date, more than 700,000 individuals have completed or graduated from an established Community Leadership Program.
National Leadership Network
About five years ago, senior executives of a small group of CLPs began to realize that plenty of issues and problems stretch beyond geographic boundaries and that networking with alumni of other CLPs had the potential for achieving more lasting local impact or change on a larger-scale.
In 2017, Starr Opinion Research conducted a survey of CLP executives which found significant agreement on values and practices, regardless of whether they were in the north, south, east or west. For example, executives from all regions agreed that inclusion of a diverse group of community members increases the likelihood of lasting change; that honest, open discussion paves the way to meaningful change, and that nonpartisan solutions are possible when people forego rigidly held positions.
In 2020, as the opportunity to launch the National Leadership Network neared, Star Opinion Research conducted another national survey, this time of alumni - those who had completed a local leadership development program.
The multi-faceted survey, conducted in July-August 2020, included 4,534 online interviews of a nationally representative sample of community leaders, all of whom were alumni of a community leadership program,
Subsets of survey participants were asked about some of the most significant topics affecting our country today, including the value of CLP programs, collaborative leadership, systemic inequities, and local responses to COVID-19.
Significant findings included:
- 98 percent agreed “frank discussions among leaders allow them to work towards meaningful change”
- 97 percent agreed “bringing together a diverse group of community members increases the ability to implement sustainable change”
- 97 percent agreed “it’s important to confront complex problems in our community”
- 92 percent agreed “it is important to [find] non-partisan solutions”
- 78 percent believe their local community response to the pandemic was less than well-prepared
- 35 percent worry their community will emerge worse from the pandemic
For more information about National Leadership Network or to participate as a CLP program, alumnus, or corporate partner, visit NationalLeadershipNetwork.org. Full national survey results are available by request.
About National Leadership Network
The National Leadership Network is a collaboration between the 800-plus community leadership programs (CLPs) and 700,000 alumni throughout the United States by harnessing the power of many to address the most significant challenges facing our communities. NationalLeadershipNetwork.org
Contact DetailsNational Leadership Network
Mike Ritz
+1 617-462-6908
mritz@nationalleadershipnetwork.org
Michael Masseur
Company Websitehttps://www.nationalleadershipnetwork.org
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