In courses like the School’s Community Development Academy, community development professionals are taught to celebrate small victories. Perhaps the victory involves a strong volunteer turnout for a neighborhood cleanup day; or perhaps an owner agreed to remove an unsightly vehicle from view of the … Read more

This is part of a series of posts on the topic of leadership and management as applied to community and economic development, authored by UNC School of Government faculty member Willow Jacobson. Community and economic development (CED) professionals are often responsible for managing and coordinatin … Read more

The need for collaborative leaders in communities and regions has never been greater. Most, if not all, of the community development issues we grapple with are highly complex and “boundary crossing,” meaning they cut across organizational, jurisdictional, and sectoral boundaries. Collaborative leade … Read more

Community and economic development professionals, in working to accomplish their goals, must often lead and manage organizations. In recognition of that fact, this post is offered as part of series on leadership and management, written by faculty and staff who focus on those topics at the UNC School … Read more

An organizational culture will be established or will occur… be proactive.    Elected leaders in Oceanboro promised voters that they would transform the way economic development services are delivered in the city—incentive policies, support for entrepreneurs, and new industrial sites—but they haven’ … Read more

One of the cases I have students read in the leadership class I teach is the story of the Endurance expedition to Antarctica, led by famed polar explorer Ernest Shackleton. This story has received a tremendous amount of attention in the last several years, with several books and documentaries, a fou … Read more

A new book by David Chrislip and Ed O’Malley titled For the Common Good is a highly recommended source of ideas on how civic leadership can facilitate meaningful change in our communities. The title captures how the authors argue we should redefine civic leadership. Rather than being motivated by pe … Read more

Over the next few months I will be posting notes from conversations with advisory board members for the Rural Center project.  The notes will not name names, but will, we hope, give everyone an idea of what others are saying, keep you informed, and spark other thoughts and discussions.  Here are the … Read more