Time to Unleash Our Potential
By Rich Harwood
How can we unleash the full and unbounded potential of people in communities to address the critical fault lines that beset us and transform our civic culture to support such action? This is the question I have been wrestling with.
By answering this question we can unlock a path forward to creating a more equitable, fair, just, inclusive and hopeful society.
After the multiple crises we have been confronting and still face — a global pandemic, economic upheaval, systemic racism and social injustices, and long-term political turmoil and gridlock — there is no going back to “normal.” Normal wasn’t all that good for a whole lot of Americans. And the disparities and inequities and pain have only gotten worse for far too many people through these difficult times.
Surely, action is needed from the federal government and our state capitals. But we need more — so much more. Action must come from our local communities, where people can turn outward toward one another, see and hear each other, afford dignity to all, and build together. Through such actions, we can start to authentically and courageously bridge divides, create a culture of shared responsibility, and generate a new sense of possibility and hope.
Indeed it is through such action that we can restore our belief in ourselves that we can come together and get things done. This is what is so sorely missing from our nation today; it strikes to the core of who we are, and who we seek to become. A restored belief in ourselves is what people yearn for. It is required if we are to make the kind of progress we must have.
And there’s good news to share: change is already in motion across the country. For instance, The Harwood Institute is now working deeply in communities such as Jackson, MS, Reading, PA, Lexington, KY, Clarksville, TN, Clark County, KY, and others to address the fault lines that confront us — from educational inequities to racism and racial divisions to political divides. This work is ongoing and we are ever-committed to this work.
What’s more, just this past week, I released my latest book, Unleashed: A Proven Way Communities Can Spread Change and Make Hope Real for All. It’s based on a 30-year impact study of the Institute’s approach, and in it I lay out how communities have used our approach to unleash a chain reaction of actions and ripples to address fault lines and strengthen their civic culture. There are concrete stories from 9 individual communities. This book is a great companion to the Amazon bestseller, Stepping Forward, which I released a little over a year ago.
My hope is that through the work of the Institute — whether it’s our deep work in communities, new books, trainings, or resources — we’ll continue to illuminate a new path forward to build a more equitable, just, fair, inclusive and hopeful society.
So, as we emerge from the pandemic in the U.S., let us resist the temptation to try and go back to normal. Instead, let’s commit ourselves to unleashing our full and unbounded potential and to setting off a chain reaction of action that builds over time, spreads throughout our communities like a positive contagion, and creates real, lasting hope for all.
It’s time.