Neighborhood Partnerships celebrated their 20th anniversary and launched the Leadership Salon and Leaders Advocacy and Messaging College in a whirlwind of well attended events in mid-September.
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Special guests Patrick Bresette and Larry Wallack headlined many of the events with key partners from across the state. Bresette and Wallack are experts in framing and messaging. They are working with Neighborhood Partnerships to aid organizations and coalitions to improve communications and advance a broadly shared agenda for Oregon’s future—one where the opportunity to thrive is real for a diversity of Oregonians, there are adequately supported public systems that support pathways out of poverty and disenfranchisement, asset building is a priority and citizens are engaged together in creating our future.
Bresette, Associate Program Director of the Public Works Program at Demos: A Network for Ideas and Action and Larry Wallack, Dean of Dean of the College of Urban and Public Affairs for Portland State University addressed the salon and college with the basics of framing and messaging, derived from extensive research and experience. They challenged leaders from across the state advocating on a host of issues to work together in coalitions and across issue silos to articulate the underlying values that help frame the importance of and call the public to support the common good.
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The hundreds of people who attended the events came from foundations, non-profits, business and all levels of the public sector, working on a variety of issues—housing and homelessness, hunger, human services, family friendly workplace policies, immigration reform, economic and microenterprise development, equity and non-discrimination, public health, justice system reform, election reform, sustainable development and tax policy.
October is the next opportunity for the Leadership Salon and Leaders Advocacy and Messaging College to work with Bresette and Wallack, who will be delving deeper into framing and messaging and translating the concepts into practical tools to realize the vision of an Oregon we cherish. If you are interested in learning more, please contact Janet Byrd, Executive Director of Neighborhood Partnerships.
Janet promised a special 21st anniversary celebration for Neighborhood Partnerships next year. And with hard work, we can also hope also celebrate a state that looks more like our vision of equity and opportunity for all Oregonians.
**This guest post was written by Kathy Turner. Kathy is a consultant for Neighborhood Partnerships.