Reflections from the Studio on Community: Sparking a Renewed Sense of Optimism
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 Lucas Powers, a student at American University who joined the Institute as a Studio Associate in January 2025.
When I was 11 years old, I moved from New York City to Puerto Rico just one month before the catastrophic Category 5 Hurricane Maria. The devastation was harrowing, and instead of the organized response I expected from government leaders, I witnessed firsthand how the island’s recovery became entangled with political instability, misinformation, and deep socioeconomic division.
Yet amid the uncertainty and frustration sparked by the empty gestures of “support” from many political leaders, something remarkable emerged from neighbor to neighbor. Communities came together to distribute supplies, rebuild homes, and care for one another when institutions fell short.
So, when I first joined the Institute as a wide-eyed freshman in January 2025, I didn’t want a rose-colored glance at civic action. Rather, I wanted to draw upon my childhood experiences to engage directly with the difficult yet meaningful work of civic engagement that addresses the real challenges facing marginalized communities across the country.
Fortunately, through Rich Harwood’s exemplary approach to civic engagement and my involvement in nearly every facet of the Institute’s operations as a Studio on Community intern, I was able to develop into a skilled and informed contributor to efforts aimed at catalyzing meaningful civic change.
My proudest achievement throughout my tenure was supporting the Institute’s in-depth research on community initiatives. Over the course of six months, I connected our research team with local civic leaders, helping facilitate more than 60 in-depth interviews that surfaced the challenges, aspirations, and lived experiences shaping our partnered communities.
Through this work, I gained firsthand insight into the importance of relationship-building, empathetic listening, and community-driven research in fostering meaningful civic change. I was also privileged to help thematically analyze community testimonies, synthesizing residents’ hopes and challenges into actionable insights that informed our research team’s work and the final Public Capital reports.
Overall, my time at The Harwood Institute sparked a renewed sense of optimism, a realization that people across the country are yearning for something better than the empty promises that have been systematically offered to them for decades. Like in Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria, citizens have often stepped into the gaps left by institutions, coming together through grassroots action, mutual aid, and collective resilience to rebuild trust and create meaningful change from the ground up.
I am beyond thankful to the Institute for taking a chance on me as a freshman, recognizing my potential despite my youth, and investing in my long-term growth as a student, researcher, and civic leader. I will carry the firsthand knowledge and values I gained there into every future initiative I pursue, striving to lead with empathy, turn outward toward communities, and create spaces where people feel heard, connected, and empowered to shape meaningful change together.
