This year, The Pew Charitable Trusts launched a new collaborative learning program in Philadelphia, the Emerging Leaders Corps (ELC), as part of its commitment to support an equitable, inclusive local economy and a city where all residents can thrive. Created in partnership with Anavi Strategies and Rvesta Consulting, and supported in part by the William Penn Foundation, the ELC was designed to help rising Philadelphia leaders tackle some of the city’s biggest challenges.
Seventeen participants—nominated by city officials and local civic, cultural, education, business, and economic development leaders—attended the program’s eight shared-learning sessions. Through facilitated discussions, breakout group activities, and presentations by subject matter experts, these emerging leaders learned about using research and data to inform policies, building relationships, fostering critical and creative problem solving, and assessing consequences and trade-offs.
Anjali Chainani, Ph.D., founder and CEO of Anavi Strategies and former policy director for the city of Philadelphia, and Vaughn Ross, founder of Rvesta Consulting and former deputy chief of staff to Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney, led the sessions, along with Pew experts.
Over the course of the program, participants developed their visions for the city’s future. And in the final session, in April, they shared with policymakers and civic leaders their action plans for advancing those visions through continued learning, collaboration, and advocacy.
In this first session, participants and facilitators discussed the current state of the city and envisioned its future. The ELC directors introduced the program’s goals and objectives, and emerging leaders engaged with their peers through an activity and group discussion.
The second session dug deeper into Philadelphia’s economy, including employment and wage trends and the pandemic’s ongoing impact on the city. Participants heard a friendly debate between a leader in the business sector and a top City Council staffer, spotlighting considerations and trade-offs in competing policy choices.
The third session drew on the expertise of Pew’s Philadelphia research and policy initiative staff to demonstrate how to best leverage local data, peer city comparisons, and promising practices research. Participants used these tools to ground their own vision for the future and assess how they might identify metrics for success.
Session 4 focused more intensely on the trade-offs that decision-makers must wrestle with when operating within tight budgetary constraints. Participants reflected on the city’s budget priorities and policy proposals related to the local economy, and had the opportunity to hear directly from the city’s budget office.
Session 5 focused on the effects that land use and the built environment have on social and community health, capital planning, and fiscal equity. Participants evaluated the consequences and opportunities of possible regulatory and operational changes to municipal land use.
Session 6 focused on how community-based organizations use budgets, fundraising, and partnerships to advance health equity. Participants heard about the social determinants of health and organizations’ role in creating healthy, holistic environments for all residents, particularly the most vulnerable.
Session 7 focused on important considerations for cities of the future and how to leverage federal dollars and philanthropic investments to design and implement meaningful initiatives. Panelists discussed how to achieve stronger outcomes that prioritize the well-being of cities’ most marginalized residents.
For the eighth and final session, the emerging leaders showcased their visions for Philadelphia and received their ELC certificates. They were encouraged to invite guests to join them for this informal graduation gathering.
Following are the 17 participants of the 2023 ELC program.
Stay tuned for more information on the 2024 ELC cohort.