Reflections from the Studio on Community: Helping the Nation Grow
The Harwood Studio on Community was established in 2017 to create the time and space within the Institute necessary to explore new areas and innovate around complex civic challenges, and to be a space where individuals can spend time at the Institute to develop their own ideas and skills.
The following reflections come from Harrison Stoneking, a senior at the Ohio State University who joined the Institute as a Studio Associate for fall 2024.
I was initially drawn to policy work during the turbulent 2016 election, something that granted me an understanding of the importance of having good people in leadership. However, as time has gone on, I have further developed my understanding of what that means, both in regards to good leadership and good people. Good people, I realized, need to work with compassion at the forefront, seeking not the power in place but rather a means of helping people. My conception of good leadership has been developed both through my studies academically and my work here at the Institute. Good leaders need to know how to utilize and motivate those around them, which is something I learned throughout my career and academics. However, through the discussions I had throughout the office, along with my reading of the Institute’s immense volume of work, I learned that that good leaders also need to listen to those around them, learning about their aspirations, struggles, passions, and motivations, learning about them on a deeper level and looking to see how their work and leadership can contribute to those people as individuals.
As I continue my academic journey, I hope to eventually make my way into working in labor law, representing workers who are driven by a passion and care for their work. In developing my thoughts around that work, I was initially drawn to the Harwood Institute due to its focus on community, something that I view these union members to exist together in. These workers are united not by a community of location, but rather a community of labor and passion and as such, I wished to learn from the Institute’s work to gain a deeper understanding of communities so I may better apply that to my future line of work, seeking to support those communities who may struggle to get by. Additionally, learning about the connections needed to create change and the emphasis on balancing discussion with action to ensure every voice is heard while also managing to achieve our collective goals is a key takeaway that I will make sure to carry forward to my work with the unions so that I may better be able to represent and support those who fight for fair treatment for the hard work and passion that goes into their jobs.
Finally, one teaching from the Institute that has been crucial for me due to the journey I have taken and due to recent events is that we need to learn how to turn outward and think more about others on a deeper level. While I may be opposed to someone’s opinion on an issue, this lesson of turning outward has helped me to gain a better understanding of why those people may have come to that opinion, preventing myself from falling into the trap of vilifying them and instead trying to understand and connect with them. This understanding and connection, I hope, will lead to a solution to the current issues of division throughout the nation, allowing people to discuss their struggles in a civil forum and putting aside attacks, misinformation, and vilification to instead learn from each other and work together on the areas where we can find common ground.
I hope that in the end, these teachings I have gained from the Institute will help me work to create a better world, and help the nation to grow, rather than regress, bring people together to support each other and engage with their communities so that those who are struggling most may finally pull themselves above the crashing waves of the sea.
