When: Thursday, March 26, 5:30-7:00 p.m.
Where: Whatcom Museum of History and Art
Rotunda Room, 121 Prospect Street, Bellingham
RSVP: Friday, March 20 

·         Join supporters, volunteers, Leadership Whatcom current participants and alumni to celebrate LW projects that are improving community health across Whatcom County.

·         Be the first to hear about LW's 2009-2010 alumni initiative that will connect skilled, collaborative leaders with community organizations in need.

·         Enjoy wonderful refreshments and interesting conversation.

·         Help build a lasting legacy of leadership, civil dialogue, and collaboration.

·         The event is free and open to public. For more information and to RSVP, call (360) 715-1061 or e-mail aroberts@whatcomcoalition.org.

Leadership Whatcom’s programs prepare leaders and community members to work across sectors, jurisdictions, and political camps to effect positive change in our communities. Our nonpartisan approach to community leadership development brings existing and emerging leaders, subject matter experts, and community members together to examine how growth and changes in Whatcom County are affecting our community health. Leadership Whatcom programs provide participants skills and opportunities to consider how they can contribute to more civil and productive community engagement.

As Whatcom County changes and grows, we must continue to broaden the base and diversity of leaders who can work together to improve the vitality of our communities.

Leadership Whatcom’s nonpartisan programs develop community leaders and community members who:

Are prepared to work on public issues that are often polarized.
LW trains participants to find areas of common ground and work with conflict productively.

Know that lasting solutions involve multiple stakeholders.
LW provides rich experiences working in diverse groups of all sizes and professional training on how to promote dialogue in mixed groups and support action-oriented teams.

Recognize that the issues are never as simple as they seem.
LW encourages a nonpartisan look at the tough issues our communities face and challenges participants to examine all sides of an issue and the assumptions that may limit creative solutions.

Understand how to leverage community assets.
LW introduces our participants to the systems –social, professional, and cultural– that comprise healthy communities and promotes an asset-based approach to expanding networks across sectors, perspectives, and geographic communities.

Believe that we can accomplish more together than we can alone.
LW trains participants in the core competencies of community-based collaboration and builds the necessary networks to put these skills and attitudes to work for our communities.

We need to give people experience in working together to solve complex community problems by encouraging communication that respects different points of view while looking for the common ground that leads to healthy solutions. Leadership Whatcom can build relationships and skills that will lead to a more connected community." - Pete Kremen, County Executive Whatcom County, Washington