Developing Leaders From Within

Photo Credit: Youth UpRising

I have grappled with the question of who is best positioned to ignite change in deprived communities—community members or professionals?  This question tends to lead me to thinking that the most ideal situation would actually involve a professional from the community.  Such a person would have the tools and skills that community organizers or developers possess, while also having knowledge of the community and a true stake in its success.  However, a growing body of literature suggests that such an approach is getting ever more unlikely, as the areas that need skilled professionals are not producing them, and when they do, those professionals are drawn away.  Such a phenomenon made me consider the implications of the segmented labor force on community development, and how communities can seek to engender growth.

A number of recent articles have examined the widening inequality gap that has resulted from the concentration of professional, high earning jobs in specific metropolitan areas.  Through this “clustering,” areas with a professionalized labor force have seen a growth in their skills and economic standing, while areas that were mostly low-earning and blue collar jobs have remained disadvantaged and have lacked growth.  Richard Florida’s article, “More Losers Than Winners in America's New Economic Geography,” noted that such segregation not only perpetuates income inequality, but also significantly advantages the amenities to which people within the professionalized clusters have access to.  What this means is that the current segmentation of the labor market is propagating a gap that is leaving many American cities, and their residents, behind.

Furthermore, the divide between professionalized and low-skilled/blue-collar areas creates a talent pull that impedes the ability for weakened communities to renew.  In a recent New York Times Op-Ed piece, David Brooks examined the abundance of meritocracy and how it not only advantages the areas that are already highly concentrated with skill, but also draws expertise away from the communities that might benefit most from those skills.  As a poignant example, Brooks refers to the Obama administration, which has engaged in substantial discourse on combating inequalities and fostering community growth, but carries out this platform from the Capital, through professionals with high standing merits.  Brooks writes:

…the income disparities are a downstream effect of the human capital and geographic disparities. Pumping a few dollars into San Joaquin, Calif., where 2.9 percent of the residents have bachelor’s degrees and 20.6 percent have high school degrees, may ease suffering, but it won’t alter the dynamic…in an effort to reduce the economic concentration of power, the administration is concentrating political power in Washington. If the problem is that talent is fleeing blighted localities, it’s hard to see how you make that better if decision-making and resources are concentrated faraway in the nation’s capital. [italics added for emphasis]

These closing observations by Brooks succinctly identify a tremendous issue for those seeking to encourage urban renewal.  There is not only a systems level component that is concentrating growth, but also an individual level factor that is thinning the availability of expertise. 

One potential response to the clustering is to develop leaders from within communities.  Such an effort would embolden residents with skills and experiences that they can utilize to strengthen themselves and their communities.  For example, the organization Youth UpRising works to advance community well-being in Oakland (CA) through the development of youth leadership.  By providing support that facilitates consciousness raising, personal transformation, and the development of leadership and hard skills, Youth UpRising seeks to help youth reach their potential and be the change agents of the community. The video below shares the voices of some of Youth UpRising’s staff and members, who explain how the organization is deepening participants’ commitment to the community while providing them the skills they need to act on that commitment.

The potential effect of developing leaders and building experts from within communities is multifaceted.  First, it deepens the individual talent that resides in communities, enabling community members to gain skills that make them more competitive in the national market.  This fostering of talent in turns strengthens the community, uncovering an essential resource for renewal.  A community member with skills and knowledge is not only positioned to drive change, but can do so from the perspective of an insider who understands the needs and strengths of the community.  Such efforts empower people, building on the strength evoked from people who have real stake in the situation, as well as knowledge of the community. However, the final component to successfully utilizing this approach is the ability to keep these experts within their communities.  By focusing the skill development efforts within a community perspective, such efforts may encourage members to understand their own growth within the context of their community and inspire them to see the positive change that can be created.

In addition to the resources included within the post, readers who enjoyed this discussion may be interested in the following:

• Native National Rebuilders: The Bush Foundation is a Board governed organization that is focused on fostering leadership that supports community vitality.  One program of the Foundation is “Native National Rebuilders,” which provides training and resources to tribal community members so they can effectively support community well-being efforts.
• Finding Common Ground: The Importance of Place Attachment to Community Participation and Planning: This piece, from the Journal of Planning Literature, explores the importance of place attachment in community development.  Bridging place attachment and community planning literature, the authors explore how the experiences and meanings people associated with their communities influence their participation and can be used as assets in rebuilding.
• The Power of Transformative Youth Leadership:  This 2012 report, prepared for the Heinz Endowments' Education Program, reports findings from an assessment of the Pittsburgh area's "capacity to engage in youth organizing strategies that strengthen the city's education system."  In addition, the report identifies a number of positive outcomes that can result from youth engagement and leadership efforts, including personal growth, improving community capacity, and increased civic engagement.