No matter your role in your community, UMBC’s Community Leadership program strives to empower those looking to enhance their leadership skills.
In today’s industry news, we’re celebrating all forms of community leadership, from natural disaster survival to the power of literature.
How Communities Can Prepare for Extreme Weather
With natural disasters becoming increasingly common, it’s important to keep yourself and your loved ones safe. However, extreme weather conditions aren’t something you can take on alone. According to the article below, it takes the collaboration of an entire community to truly prepare for such a disaster. Building a local support network within your community is essential in times of crisis, as well as giving and receiving help from those around you.
New to Activism? Here’s Where to Start
The journey to leadership often starts with small steps. An interview with writer and activist Brea Baker describes the little things regular people can do to make a difference in their communities, and how lobbiers can avoid burnout from today’s onslaught of negative news when fighting for change. According to Baker, activism starts at the local level, and no contribution to the greater good is too small.
Founding a City Away from Violence
In the wake of 2020’s increased police violence, three mothers decided to go rural. After reading an NBC article about the low prices of southern land, particularly Georgia, Renee Walters and two of her friends decided to take the plunge. Collaborating with 19 other families, the friends purchased a 97 acre plot in the country. Although it will take many years to set up the infrastructure of the town – the plot is not currently on electricity or water grids – the women are dedicated towards creating a peaceful community for their children to grow up in.
Celebrating Social Activist Barbara Ehrenreich
Barbara Ehrenreich, an author and activist, has recently passed away at the age of 81. Over the course of her career, Ehrenreich wrote over 20 books analyzing the human condition from the perspective of the working class. Her work, which covers topics like class, war, and globalization, are proof that stories can be both entertaining and thought-provoking, speaking to the power of art to promote change.