Ford Foundation Announces Winners of 2004 Leadership for a Changing World Awards
18 Recognized for Outstanding Leadership in U.S. Communities
Program challenges conventional ideas about leadership
New York, N.Y., ;October 11, 2004. The Ford Foundation today announced the 2004 winners of the Leadership for a Changing World awards. The 18 awardees, chosen by a national selection committee from a pool of nearly 1000 nominations, are individuals and leadership teams tackling some of the nation's most entrenched social, economic and environmental challenges.
"These awardees are making a difference in communities across the country and are showing us new ways to exercise leadership in challenging times," said Susan V. Berresford, president of the Ford Foundation. "The LCW program not only recognizes their accomplishments but also seeks to explore what constitutes effective leadership today and to share those insights more broadly."
Each awardee will receive $100,000 to advance their work and an additional $15,000 for supporting activities over the next two years. The winners will also participate in a multi-year collaborative research initiative exploring how leadership is created and sustained.
A full list of the Leadership for a Changing World award winners is attached.
The Award and Research Program
Launched in September 2000, Leadership for a Changing World is a program of the Ford Foundation in partnership with the Advocacy Institute in Washington, D.C. and the Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service at New York University. By 2005 the LCW will have recognized nearly 100 outstanding leaders and leadership teams not broadly known beyond their immediate community or field. LCW provides financial and other support for their programs and leadership, and engages them as partners in ongoing research about leadership.
"In a time when the public is taking a keen interest in the quality of all leaders, we believe the winners of the Leadership for a Changing World award epitomize the best kinds of leadership," said Kathleen D. Sheekey, President and CEO of the Advocacy Institute. "These individuals and groups serve as examples of the richness and diversity of American leadership. From them, we can learn about the complexity of successful community leadership, and take hope."
The 2004 Leadership for a Changing World Awardees
- Malika Saada Saar and Imani Walker, The Rebecca Project for Human Rights, Washington, D.C.
- Mily M. Treviño-Sauceda, Organización en California de Líderes Campesinas, Inc., Pomona, CA
- Ron Chew, Wing Luke Asian Museum, Seattle, WA
- Carolyn L. Dowse, Sapelo Island Cultural and Revitalization Society , Sapelo Island, GA
- Pablo P. Alvarado, National Day Laborer Organizing Network , Los Angeles, CA
- Sandra Kay Barnhill, Aid to Children of Imprisoned Mothers, Inc. , Atlanta, GA
- Hugh S. Espey, Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement , Des Moines, IA
- Vic Rosenthal, Jewish Community Action, St. Paul, MN
- Robert Dostis and Joanne Heidkamp, Vermont Campaign to End Childhood Hunger , Burlington, VT
- Anthony Flaccavento, Appalachian Sustainable Development , Abingdon, VA
- Jill Renee Morrison, Powder River Basin Resource Council, Sheridan, WY
- Diana A. Bustamante, Rubén Núñez, and Mary Ann Benavidez, Colonias Development Council , Las Cruces, NM
- David Kakishiba, Isabel Toscano, Dung Thi Tran, Rosa Vicente, Lew Chien Saelee, Evangelina Lara, East Bay Asian Youth Center, Oakland, CA
- Greta Gray Holmes, Alice Kim, Noreen McNulty, and Joan Parkin, Campaign to End the Death Penalty , Chicago, IL
- Juan E. Rosario, Misión Industrial de Puerto Rico, Inc. , San Juan, Puerto Rico
- Dázon Dixon Diallo, SisterLove, Inc., Atlanta, GA
- Monifa Akinwole-Bandele, Pamela Sah and Sarah Ludwig, Neighborhood Economic Development Advocacy Project , New York, NY
- Beatrice Clark Shelby, Boys, Girls, Adults Community Development Center, Marvell, AR
The Leadership for a Changing World National Selection Committee
The 2004 National Selection Committee was co-chaired by Peter Edelman, Professor, Georgetown University Law School and Wendy Johnson, Program Director, Ruth Mott Foundation. Members included Barbara Schaffer Bacon, Project Director, Animating Democracy Initiative; Rod Bremby, Secretary, Kansas Department of Health and Environment; Rosa de la Vega, Program Coordinator, Youth Build Albuquerque; Joan Garner, Executive Director, Southern Partners Fund; Alice Ito, Interview Programs Manager, Densho Project; Stewart Kwoh, Executive Director, Asian Pacific American Legal Center; Gara LaMarche, U.S. Program Director, Open Society Institute; Tomas Perez, Professor, University of Maryland; Alfonso Wyatt, Vice President, Fund for the City of New York.
The Ford Foundation is an independent, nonprofit grant making organization. For more than half a century it has been a resource for innovative people and institutions worldwide, guided by its goals of strengthening democratic values, reducing poverty and injustice, promoting international cooperation, and advancing human achievement. With headquarters in New York, the foundation has offices in Africa, the Middle East, Asia, Latin America, and Russia.
The Advocacy Institute, founded in 1985, works to make a difference around the world by strengthening movements for political, social and economic justice through leadership support, networking and development. With its partners, it helps make democratic institutions accountable. The Institute's actions link it to a global community of grass-roots activists and nongovernmental organizations that tackle critical human rights issues such as gender equity, peace, sustainable development, public health, ending poverty and protecting the environment. www.advocacy.org
The Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service, established in 1938, offers advanced programs leading to the professional degrees of Master of Public Administration, Master of Urban Planning, Master of Science in Management, and Doctor of Philosophy. Through these programs, the Wagner School educates the future leaders of public, nonprofit and health institutions as well as private organizations serving the public sector. As the largest school of public service in the country, it is committed to preparing people who can translate ideas into action. www.nyu.edu/wagner
2005 Nominations Now Being Accepted
The Advocacy Institute is accepting nominations for the next round of awards. For more information, visit the program's web site at www.leadershipforchange.org or call (202) 777-7575. Information about the program can also be found on the Ford Foundation's Web site at www.fordfound.org/news/more/09182000leadership/index.cfm
To be eligible for a Leadership for a Changing World award, candidates must be nominated by someone familiar with their work who can attest to their qualifications. Nominations are reviewed by regional selection committees and site visits to the recommended finalists. A national committee of independent experts in different fields, the Advocacy Institute and the Ford Foundation select the awardees.
For additional information or to download a nomination brochure, go to www.leadershipforchange.org. Specific questions can be submitted via email (info@leadershipforchange.org), phone (202) 777-7560 or by writing to Leadership for a Changing World, Advocacy Institute, 1629 K St., NW Suite 200 Washington, DC 20006-1629.
MEDIA: Leadership for a Changing World awardees, researchers and representatives of the program are available for interviews. Please contact Deborah Walter at (908) 522-1677 or mediahits@comcast.net
Contact: Deborah Walter
Leadership for a Changing World, Advocacy Institute
(908) 522-1677 or (908) 400-0641 (mobile)
The Ford Foundation is an independent, nonprofit grant-making organization. For more than half a century it has been a resource for innovative people and institutions worldwide, guided by its goals of strengthening democratic values, reducing poverty and injustice, promoting international cooperation and advancing human achievement. With headquarters in New York, the foundation has offices in Africa, the Middle East, Asia, Latin America, and Russia.