Rich Harwood is the president and founder of The Harwood Institute.
The organization's mission is to nurture a world where community is a common and enduring enterprise – where everyone can come together amid their differences to solve the complex challenges that affect us all.
I spoke with Rich, whose columns are frequently published on the Fulcrum. He was a guest on a recent episode of the Fulcrum Democracy Forum (FDF). The program engages citizens in shaping a more effective government to better meet the needs of all people. Consistent with Fulcrum's mission, FDF strives to share diverse perspectives to broaden our audience's viewpoints.
He shared the work the institute leads, including his philosophy of civic faith.
"How does change actually happen in a way that both addresses what really matters to people and that strengthens the civic culture of communities," Rich said. "One of the discoveries that we've made is that the biggest predictor of whether communities move forward it's actually the civic culture of our communities and whether or not we have the right kind of enabling environment that allows change to take root and grow and spread over time."
We also spoke about his new book, "The New Civic Path." "I wrote it because I believe that we as a country are stuck, and at the same time that people are hungry for an alternative path forward. We don't need more divisive politics, but that I believe we need a new civic path, a path that begins in our local communities and brings us together," Rich said.
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Dedicated to transforming public and political lives by supporting individuals, organizations, and communities in their quest to create change, Rich told us about the four things that inspire his work, including frustration. "Too many nonprofits are afraid to get dirt under their fingernails and do the really difficult work that we need to do in really difficult places. And that too many of us live off of soft money and aren't creating the impact we say we are. I was frustrated by that, and I wanted to see whether or not something else could happen."
SUGGESTIONS:
Michael Rivera: The Importance of Getting Involved
Gregg Amore: Faith in Democracy
Nate Gilliam: Love & Frustration
Hugo Balta is the executive editor of the Fulcrum. He is the publisher of the Latino News Network and an accredited Solutions Journalism and Complicating the Narratives trainer with the Solutions Journalism Network.
