November 19, 2024 • 38 mins
In this episode, we talk with Jennifer Leshnower, Bridging & Democracy Advisor at AmeriCorps.
Jennifer and I discuss the importance of bringing people together… and how relationship building through service, and looking outward from ourselves to see others, can help build meaningful relationships to tackle sticky problems and strengthen communities.
To learn more, go to americorps.gov.
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Episode Transcript
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(00:00):
Welcome to This is Civity.
(00:15):
I'm Gina Baleria.
Civity is a culture of deliberately engaging in relationships of respect and empathy with
others who are different, moving people from us versus them to we all belong.
To learn more, go to civity.org.
In this episode, we talk with Jennifer Leshnower, Bridging and Democracy Advisor at AmeriCorps.
(00:36):
Jennifer and I discuss the importance of relationship building through service and how looking outward
from ourselves to see others can help build meaningful relationships, bring people together
and tackle sticky problems to strengthen our communities.
Let me talk to you about what AmeriCorps is to you and why it matters to you.
(01:01):
I don't know how cheesy this will sound, but AmeriCorps was my past and it's our future.
That's what first came to my mind as you asked that question.
I started my career as an AmeriCorps VISTA member in Wilmington, Delaware.
I knew I wanted to do AmeriCorps as I was completing college and it really set me on
(01:21):
a path that I, 24 years later, can see it.
I can see that path and it hasn't been linear, but there's been really beautiful threads
that I think National Service and my experience at AmeriCorps and the 1.3 million alums who
call AmeriCorps one of their places of home can look back at of just community, of building
(01:46):
friendships, of making a difference in their slice of the world.
I think it's our future.
Early after I started this role, Governor Wes Moore said, service will save us.
I think it's that kind of vision for what National Service is and certainly the agency
(02:06):
is a proud place where we are the home for National Service and volunteerism and we see
the value of coming together to solve real problems, to be part of the solution, to see
people as all of the assets and strengths that they have and work together collectively.
So I think for me AmeriCorps has meant a home, a starting place, and something now I get
(02:32):
to come back to day in and day out to think through how can we continue to make National
Service a real answer to today's challenges.
Service as a way to heal and a way to manage and deal with whatever you've got going on,
also a way to connect.
And it sounds like a little bit for that for you, people can recognize that service is
important, but why for you was it I want to dedicate my career and my time to service?
(02:58):
I think I'm pre-programmed to be a doer.
When you join AmeriCorps, when you choose service, whether that be National Service
like AmeriCorps, public service, military service, you're called to do something about
something.
And so that's my orientation.
(03:21):
But also I have family and mentors who have instilled in me this sense of responsibility
to something bigger than myself.
That can be one more person.
I think I learned early on that I'm not ever positioning myself as like I'm going to save
(03:44):
the world.
I can't do that.
But I can be a part of my community and my world.
And AmeriCorps was the answer to that.
And service has continued to be that, whether it be those values, those principles of being
in relationship with others, caring about something deeply and deeper than your own
(04:08):
personal pain, but also drawing on that.
You've mentioned the healing power.
There's just so many benefits and there's things I think we don't realize hurt us in
our history of growing up that we tap into.
And for me, I think that was always a sense of awkwardness and maybe a little bit being
(04:31):
outside the bubble or the circle of coolness.
And I found my people and my community, my tribe in helping, in doing, in serving with
others.
And so that's just kind of what service has meant to me.
And AmeriCorps has been a big conduit for that.
(04:51):
I've always been the one to say, I'm going to save the world.
But it's like, that's impossible.
You just encapsulated and articulated exactly what is more helpful, I think, is I am going
to be active and engaged in my community and try to contribute here at this place, which
is very civity, like build relationships, look for small scale interactions and ways
(05:11):
to connect and serve.
And on the civity note, you are the bridging and democracy advisor.
What is the significance of that role being intentionally and explicitly named and filled
in the AmeriCorps context?
I think it's the first of its kind in federal government and certainly at the agency to
have someone who gets to think full time, both strategically and practically about how
(05:33):
do we continue to infuse the practice of connecting with one another across lines of difference?
How do we help members be their best selves so that they bring out the best in others?
How do we continue to utilize national service as this demonstration of a multiracial pluralist
(05:57):
democracy?
And so the concepts of connecting across lines of difference, of making sure people feel
like they're seen, heard, and valued, that sense of belonging, that not only our members
but our community have agency, that's the type of work that I get to be thinking about
and then hopefully putting into practice.
And it's the long road and my time at the agency is on that timeline very short.
(06:25):
And so I always like to think that I'm trying to not just stand on the shoulders of folks
who've been doing this work for decades, but also join the movement, join the work in a
way that feels accessible.
And so what it means to have this at the agency is really prioritizing.
(06:48):
This is something as an agency we value.
It is a reflection of the Biden-Harris administration's priority of how do we unite this country?
And I think we've always asked that question in this country.
How do we bring people together?
And service has always been an answer to uniting people.
So putting someone in this role, I think has meant for me and for the agency and for the
(07:13):
partners that I work with of let's be intentional.
Let's dig in.
Let's do the hard work.
Let's figure out what works.
Let's be creative and think outside the box.
And let's tap into our history, but be open to what's possible.
And so I have this really great role where I get to be both the very practical logistics
(07:37):
person, but also work with people who are dreamers and visionaries.
And so I'm trying my best to be both maybe idealistic and realistic at the same time.
And that's what this position affords me the opportunity to do.
You've connected a little with Civity and we obviously see a lot of Civity echoes in
(07:59):
your work.
And how do you see the intersections between AmeriCorps work and Civity?
So my position sits on the strategic partnerships team at the agency.
And I think that's really intentional.
We are the body, we're the department within the agency that creates that through line
between all of our amazing streams of service, our private and philanthropic partners who
(08:26):
are already or who want to invest in national service as both a national and a place-based
solution to pressing social challenges.
But it's also the space in the team that speaks to the connections between national service
and climate, national service and food security, national service and education.
(08:49):
And so we really have the responsibility of tying together, weaving together these big
ideas and showing and demonstrating what power can be leveraged when you put people behind
big, sticky, audacious problems and really center on like a strengths-based positive
approach.
And so I think Civity is very much that as well.
(09:11):
It starts from, I want to be in relationship with you because we each have something to
contribute.
And then I think once you're in relationship, the other thing I've really appreciated about
the Civity approach or ethos is that idea of solidarity.
But before that, you need trust.
And I think national service and our service members, our AmeriCorps members really build
(09:37):
that first.
I don't think you could get to solidarity without trust building.
And so when someone shows up in community, oftentimes who live in that community and
say, I'm going to serve with you to solve a problem we share or experience or see, that
builds like just all these little tiny threads and fabric of trust that leads to solidarity.
(10:01):
And lastly, I really like the idea of resilience, that when we are connected, when we are powered
to work together, we can really accomplish a lot.
And before that is having faith in one another.
First as an individual, like I have faith that I can make a difference.
(10:22):
And quickly, I think through national service, the transition is I have faith that we can
make a difference together.
And then when you put all these individuals together who are positively thinking about
what change can we make, you start to build a sense of trust in the larger us, right?
(10:45):
The institutions.
So we have individuals who are making a difference in their hometowns, very local solutions.
That builds this kind of huge movement of now towns are invested in this work.
Now cities, now rural, right?
It's just an amplifier effect.
(11:05):
And so when you start with the individual and then grow to institution, that is what
I think builds resilience.
And those are the connection points I see between the amazing work Sibyty does in framing
this sense of connection, collective action, belief in one another.
Those are the same principles that I think move national service from like, oh, isn't
(11:28):
that nice to really affecting change?
And that's what's so important, right?
I sometimes feel like I get woo woo-y.
This is just lovely.
We're all just super connected and like, yes, Anne.
Yes, yes.
It takes work.
Yes, Anne.
It takes work.
It takes intentionality.
You mentioned all of this.
And that idea that so many people I think still think or have always thought traditionally,
(11:53):
oh, that's nice.
Oh, that's nice.
But you're right.
It's not just nice.
It's critical.
And we need to build those foundations.
Yes, and of course, at Sibyty, we believe the exact same thing and work toward that
goal as well.
I'm wondering if you can share any examples from your work where you felt that sort of
connection started to happen or those webs of relationships starting to form in a community
(12:16):
when you were doing your work.
Maybe it's when you first started at AmeriCorps.
Maybe it's more recently.
I did AmeriCorps VISTA right after college, 2000, and I was a young whippersnapper.
There's beauty in that moment in your life where you're like, I can just take on anything.
I remembered I worked at a school in an afterschool program and was tasked with helping build
(12:41):
capacity for a middle school to support young people after school in mentoring programs,
both academic and social.
And we had money left over at the end of the school year where we could have left it on
the table or we could have continued.
And because I'd had a year of building trust and relationship with not just the students,
(13:06):
but the parents and the teachers, I remember in the spring starting to go into homes and
visiting with parents and hopefully being very humble in my approach, maybe not as much
as I should have been.
But we had conversation about what their hopes were for their kids in a summer where there's
(13:28):
less supervision, less access to meaningful programming.
And I said, I think I have a solution.
Would this be something you'd be interested for your family, for your children?
And it was just really nice.
I remember making the choice to go to the home as opposed to asking parents to come
to me and sitting on couches, having families, grandparents, parents open the door to still
(13:55):
a stranger.
They knew that I worked with their children, but who is this person?
And we just had, what do you hope for your kids?
That conversation helped me create a summer program that really reflected what the community,
what the parents, what the kids were interested in.
Because what I learned in service is that yes, I have an idea of what I think is needed,
(14:18):
but I think the beauty of conversation leading to something that shared visioning is a real
key piece.
And that's where we connected.
That's where people were like, okay, I trust that you have not thinking about yourself,
you're thinking about us.
And that's a moment that I think I've carried with me of really trying to engage with folks
(14:39):
in question and conversation and critical discussions to figure out, well, what are
the many solutions we can get to and how can I help get there?
Right?
And so I think that's just one of the more memorable moments early on that I've carried
throughout my career.
You're listening to This is Civity.
I'm Gina Baleria.
We're talking with Jennifer Leshnower, Bridging and Democracy Advisor at AmeriCorps, about
(15:04):
the importance of relationship building through service to strengthen communities.
And then I also did Peace Corps.
So I've had the benefit of taking my skills from VISTA, working in the nonprofit space
and then having the courage or interest and also thinking about, hey, my world is larger
than the city I live in currently.
(15:26):
And I get to think about how to do this work with other communities in another part of
the globe that also care about their community.
How can I be part of that?
Right?
And so the connection at a different scale, different location where I certainly couldn't
call home, there is a whole facet of connection points of like getting people to know who
(15:48):
I was beyond the label of American.
Everyone is just an American when they're abroad.
And it takes time to refine what that means for people abroad.
And I understand that.
That is an accurate description, but not the only one.
And so it's through relationship building and teamwork and going to community meetings
(16:09):
and listening to people and just being a listener instead of a doer.
That is, again, I think helped me with connection because I think people want to be heard.
They don't want to be talked at.
Right?
And I think that's so funny because I feel like I'm now talking way too much.
That's the point of this whole thing.
But I think that's the beauty that at least for me, service has always been that shining
(16:38):
bright light of like, just start with listening.
Before you do anything, listen to someone else.
And that's where I think you fuel connection, you fuel relationship, you fuel trust.
Then you can do stuff.
If you haven't started with the listening, you can't do anything that's going to sustain
or be helpful to someone else because you don't actually know.
(16:58):
Yes, listening.
And that was what you were also doing with the parents in that AmeriCorps job is walking
in and really listening to their story and their needs and their hopes for their kids.
And then saying, okay, I hear all of that and I can now work with you and co-create
(17:18):
something that's going to be helpful to the community rather than coming in and saying,
I know what's best for you.
I'm going to help you by imposing this thing.
So the idea of listening is so foundational to civity and so foundational to the work
you're doing to make sure that you are co-creating and building as you've so astutely said.
I think the double tap on listening for sure, but that recognition of power differential,
(17:43):
which I've really appreciated both Palma and Malka speak to in the work that they do at
Civity and just the work of Civity is really to the world is built on power differential.
It's just about acknowledging that.
And that's the piece I find so unique about civity's work.
I like that frame of reference of just first starting with acknowledging power difference.
(18:05):
So yes, I did go to the, I went to the homes of families because I thought that would erase
some power difference between the two of us.
But I also really on reflection, I don't think as a 22 year old, I was thinking about as
much as I should have, but there's still always going to be a power difference.
(18:26):
And so I'm not afraid of the word humility and humbleness.
And I would categorize myself as a humble leader.
And I think that's a strength because I think I recognize the many privileges I have in
my own life.
And that doesn't take away from my own struggles.
But I think I have power.
(18:48):
I have power in this role that others don't have who are working just as hard as I am
to make a difference.
And so I always want to acknowledge that I have inherited power that is just there because
of circumstance.
And then I have the opportunity to share that power at times.
And also, I think there's real power in just acknowledging like, hey, there's a difference
(19:12):
here.
And so I respect that I'm coming in with baggage or experience that puts me in a different
position.
And so I just think that part of it is really helpful in bridging work.
We don't have an equitable society.
And so to think that we just through conversation are going to create equity isn't there yet.
(19:35):
But I think once you acknowledge the power difference and figure out how to just understand
that, I think then the conversation you have can be so much more productive.
I really appreciate that point and definitely want to call it out as well.
And again, it's that intentionality of naming something that's hard for us to name.
It can be scary or uncomfortable to name that there's a power differential.
(19:56):
But what I also love about civity is you know what, this is actually part of the process
and it's part of the way we get to true connection and relationship.
And you called that out a little in your when you talked about Peace Corps, because you're
walking into a different cultural context.
And so often, I mean, I hate to call it Americans, but I think so often we as Americans walk
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in and oh, we can fix it.
You know, we're here to take care of it and solve it and help you rather than we're here
to sure maybe help because we have that privilege that we were born in the US or our citizens
here live here.
But the idea of you know, being respectful enough to listen and to acknowledge the power
(20:37):
differential.
All this is to say that I really appreciate your reminder of the importance of acknowledging
the power differential and finding humility when you do walk into the room with the power
differential, which of course, again, is so civity as well.
And I think naming these things and being intentional is something that's that's new
for a lot of people, especially when they feel squishier, they feel like nice to haves
(21:01):
rather than critical haves.
And so again, in your work, it sounds like you're doing all of that.
And I appreciate that that we're part of the same sort of trajectory of wanting to get
that integrated.
I'm curious, if you have any anecdotes from your current work, either of your experiences
or engagements or how you watch the people you work with benefit from these sort of civity
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oriented ideas and the ideas that you've infused into your work?
You know, I believe there are probably 1.3 million stories of bridging.
If we were able to reach every AmeriCorps alum and ask, how did you build a relationship
with someone who you've never met before to accomplish something powerful and needed in
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the community you lived and served in?
That's a huge number.
But I'll share two anecdotes of recent AmeriCorps alums who were actually honored by Service
Your Alliance, who is a close partner of ours in this work.
What was their moment or what were their reflections on how they bridge differences through their
service and how that's impacted their own lives?
(22:15):
And so there's two quick stories I'll share and the full story can be found on the Service
Your Alliance website.
But Shelley served with the American Indian Higher Education Consortium as a Tribal VISTA
program member.
And through her year of service, she worked with a team and community to apply the medicinal
and seventh grandfather teachings to a mental health program to guide culturally connected
(22:38):
values and practices for this community.
And so I think that recognition that we need to be grounded in a local, culturally responsive
framework.
There is no one size fits all.
And also, there is a community that needs their values and principles and ideals to
(23:04):
be seen, to be modeled and to be mirrored for people to buy into it.
And so that work of really connecting historical generational knowledge to an issue that obviously
today is still a very pressing one.
Youth mental health, community mental health, mental health well-being is an issue that
(23:25):
affects everyone.
But I think remembering to make sure it's really reflective of the community you're
working with.
And there's just so much power in that.
Remembering that our knowledge comes from this combination of experience, cultural practice,
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family history.
Those are all strengths and assets that we need to pull into to help solve problems.
It's not just academics that are going to help get us through a solution.
It's not just data.
It's really a combination.
And so that's one example of someone who really understood the value of building from the
(24:11):
ground up and building together.
You're listening to This Is Civity.
I'm Gina Baleria.
We're talking with Jennifer Leshnower, Bridging and Democracy Advisor at AmeriCorps, about
the importance of relationship building through service to strengthen communities.
Another quick example, we have approximately 13,000 veterans and National Guard members
(24:31):
who serve in national service annually.
One of those stories is Christina, who herself was a military veteran who chose national
service as a way to continue giving back.
She was placed at the American Red Cross in Washington in a community that had been recently
affected by two wildfires.
She established this program called Operation War Axe, which was a reforestation initiative
(24:56):
aimed at restoring damaged lands and promoting environmental awareness.
But it wasn't about planting trees.
It was about involving the community and co-creating a shared sense of purpose.
Because when you're in a disaster community, she knows the best is like, there is not one
solution.
There is not one need.
And so how do you take the pulse of your community, reflect solutions that are the ones that the
(25:21):
community needs?
And she did that so brilliantly and really made sure that the work she was doing again
wasn't what she thought was needed.
But using her skills and experience to generate conversation, to generate ideas, and to come
together with, you know, here's a way that we can come together to collectively address
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our healing as a community from both the disaster, both the physical, you know, damage, but also
the mental and emotional strain that that puts on both the individual and the community
trying to come out of disaster.
Our AmeriCorps members more and more today are from the communities that they are serving
in and then live in this community.
So it's really just these examples of service really helping bridge differences and bring
(26:08):
in, I think, the wisdom and knowledge of a community to be their own problem solvers.
I love hearing that more and more volunteers are from the community.
That just shows that your work has allowed them to see the possibility of bringing themselves
into that space.
If you could discuss maybe some persistent challenges you see and face as you do this
(26:29):
work.
I think the challenges are both at the individual and institutional structural level, right?
We're still working to really bring clarity to what we mean in national service about
bridging.
I think there's something really powerful about shared language.
And so for us, we define bridging as coming together across divides to listen and understand
(26:53):
each other, to find common ground, build relationships, and to make collaboration a norm.
Now that's a long definition.
And the short version is how do we come together across lines of difference to make change?
But I think there's real power to help reduce fear and discomfort to just say intentionally
what we need and to elaborate.
(27:14):
Because that I think helps hook people in.
Okay, this is what it means.
So then the next challenge we have is like, what does that look like?
I think that's another challenge of because bridging doesn't mean one thing to one person
or the activities or skills underneath bridging are variety.
(27:35):
I think it sometimes is hard to pinpoint, but that's why the storytelling is so important.
That's why things like recognizing and celebrating those differences people make are so critical
because then it helps people see themselves and someone else's success.
I think another challenge is, and I have been in the nonprofit world and now working in
(27:56):
the government sector, both at the state and federal level.
I don't think I'm saying anything super, but like we oftentimes operate from a scarcity
mindset.
I know I do.
I was like, there's only so much time to do this.
There's only so many resources.
But I think the challenge in our mindset is to move to an abundant mindset.
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Because when I've been helped there, then I am just more able to lean into the possibility
and the potential versus like why we can't do something.
But I think it's a continual challenge.
It's always just retraining the brain.
How do we work from an abundance?
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The last thing on the maybe individual level that I think affects institutional change
is bridging is a confusing or unfamiliar term.
I like the way civity breaks this down into really understandable, tangible words that
(29:02):
everyone knows.
Because when you say bridging, you're like, are you building a literal bridge?
What does this mean?
And so I think what we've tried to do through our definition is not lean on the word bridging,
but to lean on the ideas behind it.
Lean on the values of collaboration, connection, relationship building.
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And then also, I think speaking to the skills.
And then I'll just say two structural ones is in my job, I see one of my responsibilities
or opportunities is to really try to start merging two sectors.
The national service field, which is immense and has a long history and the bridging work.
How we marry these two sectors who are both doing really independently important work.
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I think the other thing that I'm excited about that we've done to help make the structure
responsive to the priority and to the urgency of this work is AmeriCorps has stated civic
bridge building as a funding priority and multiple notices of funding opportunities,
which I think is just an important signal that we value this work, not just because
(30:08):
national service is a organic vehicle to bridging, but that there's an intentionality that we
can really tap into.
So I think it's just the push pull of individual struggles, structural and systemic struggles.
And really, again, just ultimately both overcoming those challenges to be like, we're going to
do this anyway, even though it's hard.
(30:30):
I'd like to ask you what your plans or hopes for the future are.
You mentioned that you wanted to merge two sectors.
You mentioned that you're supported in your funding work because this has been intentionally
named as an important funding spoke.
But what are your hopes for the future with this position and with the work you do and
(30:51):
for AmeriCorps and the bridging in our communities?
I'm hopeful of several things.
Again, we have an MOU with Service Your Alliance who are really close partners in this work
in making sure we can have an initiative focused on how do we integrate bridging practices
in national service?
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How do we support the field in that work?
And so I'm hopeful that that work continues well beyond its first phase, which is three
years because I think there's this recognition that this work takes time.
But within these three years, what I'm hopeful about and excited about already seeing is
like the momentum that's created when you have, for example, a community of practice
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of national service practitioners and leaders who have said and then acted on this priority
of like, I know this is important and I'm going to figure out how I can apply what we're
learning in this community of practice to my program with my members and with my colleagues.
So, I'm excited and hopeful about what that learning community can do to help influence
(32:02):
the rest of the field.
The other thing I'm both hopeful and really enthusiastic about is the connections we've
started making between the community of practice and what we've referenced internally as like
applied practice partners of which Civity is one of them.
When we start to, I think, responsibly connect these two sectors like we're doing, there
(32:27):
is a level of support and relationship building and merging of two communities in productive
and thoughtful ways.
And so I'm hopeful that we can model just in our design of this initiative, what Civity
is all about.
What all of our applied practice partners are about, Braver Angels, Bridge USA, Living Room
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Conversations, Essential Partners, like we're all about let's not try to take on the world,
let's really focus on what is the relationship needed to help move this work forward together.
So those two pieces.
And then third, I would say we have a fiscal responsibility to show that we can do this
(33:17):
effectively, and that it makes a difference.
One of the ways to do proof of concept is through thoughtful evaluation and monitoring.
And so with the help of the Bridging Movement Alignment Council, we've introduced a kind
of a shared measurement tool to really help prove whether or not intentional bridge building
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happens, the member experience, their skill, and their attitude towards wanting to practice
these activities and this approach, not only in their service year and in the field, but
throughout after their alums.
So we're in the early stages of really understanding what's the data that backs this hypothesis
(34:08):
that when we're intentional about how we train, how we support, how we treat one another,
that it will, the ripple effect of that will be well beyond the initial challenges and
struggles of course any new idea has.
Is there anything you want to say that I haven't asked you that you feel it's important for
(34:28):
people to know?
I think we each have individual stories of what draws us to this work and who I am as
a person and what I've chosen to study in my life.
So I've always felt like I've straddled multiple worlds in my life.
And I think that's what brings me to the bridging work is I myself and like, right, like a transnational
(34:50):
adoptee, my mom was white, I'm brown.
And so I've through a lot of identities, not just racial, my religious and spiritual connections,
my queer identity, I've always been in this position of how do I fit in?
How do I make meaning of who I am in a world that sometimes reflects who I am and often
(35:12):
doesn't?
How do I put myself in a place where I feel empowered and who do I lean on to help me
do that?
And that's always been not like just through individual work, but like finding, again,
finding your community, finding people who support who you are and see you.
So there's the personal piece of what connects me to the bridging work of this sense of like,
(35:33):
I can be seen, I can be heard, I can make a difference.
But also I went to graduate school for a dual degree in social work and public administration.
And I remember when I applied, I always I chose the dual degree because I wanted to
make policies that work for people.
And I love the idea of both bridging and civity talks about meeting people where they're at.
(35:59):
And that's what social work, school teaches you as well.
And I think bridging is, I think there's this notion that bridging is well, everyone is
a 50-50, you come in the middle.
And that has not been my experience.
And bridging is sometimes you come 20, they come 80, you know, the percentages are all
over the place.
But I think ultimately, right, it's that willingness to find someone else.
(36:26):
Be true to yourself, but just connect and have the conversation, have the relationship,
build the relationship to like get to a shared outcome.
And so I think those things have been interesting strands as I think about how I do the work,
how I've learned about the work and how I continue to practice it.
(36:50):
Like I am no expert in this.
Like I have not perfected this and I don't think I ever will.
And that's okay.
I think the other piece of bridging is it's a muscle that needs constant exercise.
It's not like you can run a marathon tomorrow.
But if you run every day, you can build the mileage, you can build the muscle memory,
you can build the confidence.
(37:10):
And that's what I think we're asking, not just members, but the agency to do, our colleagues
to do, our program leaders to do is like, we all have work to do in this.
This isn't just the responsibility of a few, but of everyone.
Thank you to my guest, Jennifer Leshnower, Bridging and Democracy Advisor at AmeriCorps.
(37:31):
To learn more, go to americorps.gov.
Civity is a culture of deliberately engaging in relationships of respect and empathy with
others who are different.
Bringing people from us versus them to we all belong.
To learn more, go to civity.org.
Civity's theme song is Common Ground, performed by Tommy Castro and the Painkillers, written
(37:53):
by Tommy Castro and Kevin Bow, and used courtesy of Alligator Records and Dangerous Entertainment.
Thank you for listening to This is Civity.
Welcome to This is Civity.
(00:15):
I'm Gina Baleria.
Civity is a culture of deliberately engaging in relationships of respect and empathy with
others who are different, moving people from us versus them to we all belong.
To learn more, go to civity.org.
In this episode, we talk with Jennifer Leshnower, Bridging and Democracy Advisor at AmeriCorps.
(00:36):
Jennifer and I discuss the importance of relationship building through service and how looking outward
from ourselves to see others can help build meaningful relationships, bring people together
and tackle sticky problems to strengthen our communities.
Let me talk to you about what AmeriCorps is to you and why it matters to you.
(01:01):
I don't know how cheesy this will sound, but AmeriCorps was my past and it's our future.
That's what first came to my mind as you asked that question.
I started my career as an AmeriCorps VISTA member in Wilmington, Delaware.
I knew I wanted to do AmeriCorps as I was completing college and it really set me on
(01:21):
a path that I, 24 years later, can see it.
I can see that path and it hasn't been linear, but there's been really beautiful threads
that I think National Service and my experience at AmeriCorps and the 1.3 million alums who
call AmeriCorps one of their places of home can look back at of just community, of building
(01:46):
friendships, of making a difference in their slice of the world.
I think it's our future.
Early after I started this role, Governor Wes Moore said, service will save us.
I think it's that kind of vision for what National Service is and certainly the agency
(02:06):
is a proud place where we are the home for National Service and volunteerism and we see
the value of coming together to solve real problems, to be part of the solution, to see
people as all of the assets and strengths that they have and work together collectively.
So I think for me AmeriCorps has meant a home, a starting place, and something now I get
(02:32):
to come back to day in and day out to think through how can we continue to make National
Service a real answer to today's challenges.
Service as a way to heal and a way to manage and deal with whatever you've got going on,
also a way to connect.
And it sounds like a little bit for that for you, people can recognize that service is
important, but why for you was it I want to dedicate my career and my time to service?
(02:58):
I think I'm pre-programmed to be a doer.
When you join AmeriCorps, when you choose service, whether that be National Service
like AmeriCorps, public service, military service, you're called to do something about
something.
And so that's my orientation.
(03:21):
But also I have family and mentors who have instilled in me this sense of responsibility
to something bigger than myself.
That can be one more person.
I think I learned early on that I'm not ever positioning myself as like I'm going to save
(03:44):
the world.
I can't do that.
But I can be a part of my community and my world.
And AmeriCorps was the answer to that.
And service has continued to be that, whether it be those values, those principles of being
in relationship with others, caring about something deeply and deeper than your own
(04:08):
personal pain, but also drawing on that.
You've mentioned the healing power.
There's just so many benefits and there's things I think we don't realize hurt us in
our history of growing up that we tap into.
And for me, I think that was always a sense of awkwardness and maybe a little bit being
(04:31):
outside the bubble or the circle of coolness.
And I found my people and my community, my tribe in helping, in doing, in serving with
others.
And so that's just kind of what service has meant to me.
And AmeriCorps has been a big conduit for that.
(04:51):
I've always been the one to say, I'm going to save the world.
But it's like, that's impossible.
You just encapsulated and articulated exactly what is more helpful, I think, is I am going
to be active and engaged in my community and try to contribute here at this place, which
is very civity, like build relationships, look for small scale interactions and ways
(05:11):
to connect and serve.
And on the civity note, you are the bridging and democracy advisor.
What is the significance of that role being intentionally and explicitly named and filled
in the AmeriCorps context?
I think it's the first of its kind in federal government and certainly at the agency to
have someone who gets to think full time, both strategically and practically about how
(05:33):
do we continue to infuse the practice of connecting with one another across lines of difference?
How do we help members be their best selves so that they bring out the best in others?
How do we continue to utilize national service as this demonstration of a multiracial pluralist
(05:57):
democracy?
And so the concepts of connecting across lines of difference, of making sure people feel
like they're seen, heard, and valued, that sense of belonging, that not only our members
but our community have agency, that's the type of work that I get to be thinking about
and then hopefully putting into practice.
And it's the long road and my time at the agency is on that timeline very short.
(06:25):
And so I always like to think that I'm trying to not just stand on the shoulders of folks
who've been doing this work for decades, but also join the movement, join the work in a
way that feels accessible.
And so what it means to have this at the agency is really prioritizing.
(06:48):
This is something as an agency we value.
It is a reflection of the Biden-Harris administration's priority of how do we unite this country?
And I think we've always asked that question in this country.
How do we bring people together?
And service has always been an answer to uniting people.
So putting someone in this role, I think has meant for me and for the agency and for the
(07:13):
partners that I work with of let's be intentional.
Let's dig in.
Let's do the hard work.
Let's figure out what works.
Let's be creative and think outside the box.
And let's tap into our history, but be open to what's possible.
And so I have this really great role where I get to be both the very practical logistics
(07:37):
person, but also work with people who are dreamers and visionaries.
And so I'm trying my best to be both maybe idealistic and realistic at the same time.
And that's what this position affords me the opportunity to do.
You've connected a little with Civity and we obviously see a lot of Civity echoes in
(07:59):
your work.
And how do you see the intersections between AmeriCorps work and Civity?
So my position sits on the strategic partnerships team at the agency.
And I think that's really intentional.
We are the body, we're the department within the agency that creates that through line
between all of our amazing streams of service, our private and philanthropic partners who
(08:26):
are already or who want to invest in national service as both a national and a place-based
solution to pressing social challenges.
But it's also the space in the team that speaks to the connections between national service
and climate, national service and food security, national service and education.
(08:49):
And so we really have the responsibility of tying together, weaving together these big
ideas and showing and demonstrating what power can be leveraged when you put people behind
big, sticky, audacious problems and really center on like a strengths-based positive
approach.
And so I think Civity is very much that as well.
(09:11):
It starts from, I want to be in relationship with you because we each have something to
contribute.
And then I think once you're in relationship, the other thing I've really appreciated about
the Civity approach or ethos is that idea of solidarity.
But before that, you need trust.
And I think national service and our service members, our AmeriCorps members really build
(09:37):
that first.
I don't think you could get to solidarity without trust building.
And so when someone shows up in community, oftentimes who live in that community and
say, I'm going to serve with you to solve a problem we share or experience or see, that
builds like just all these little tiny threads and fabric of trust that leads to solidarity.
(10:01):
And lastly, I really like the idea of resilience, that when we are connected, when we are powered
to work together, we can really accomplish a lot.
And before that is having faith in one another.
First as an individual, like I have faith that I can make a difference.
(10:22):
And quickly, I think through national service, the transition is I have faith that we can
make a difference together.
And then when you put all these individuals together who are positively thinking about
what change can we make, you start to build a sense of trust in the larger us, right?
(10:45):
The institutions.
So we have individuals who are making a difference in their hometowns, very local solutions.
That builds this kind of huge movement of now towns are invested in this work.
Now cities, now rural, right?
It's just an amplifier effect.
(11:05):
And so when you start with the individual and then grow to institution, that is what
I think builds resilience.
And those are the connection points I see between the amazing work Sibyty does in framing
this sense of connection, collective action, belief in one another.
Those are the same principles that I think move national service from like, oh, isn't
(11:28):
that nice to really affecting change?
And that's what's so important, right?
I sometimes feel like I get woo woo-y.
This is just lovely.
We're all just super connected and like, yes, Anne.
Yes, yes.
It takes work.
Yes, Anne.
It takes work.
It takes intentionality.
You mentioned all of this.
And that idea that so many people I think still think or have always thought traditionally,
(11:53):
oh, that's nice.
Oh, that's nice.
But you're right.
It's not just nice.
It's critical.
And we need to build those foundations.
Yes, and of course, at Sibyty, we believe the exact same thing and work toward that
goal as well.
I'm wondering if you can share any examples from your work where you felt that sort of
connection started to happen or those webs of relationships starting to form in a community
(12:16):
when you were doing your work.
Maybe it's when you first started at AmeriCorps.
Maybe it's more recently.
I did AmeriCorps VISTA right after college, 2000, and I was a young whippersnapper.
There's beauty in that moment in your life where you're like, I can just take on anything.
I remembered I worked at a school in an afterschool program and was tasked with helping build
(12:41):
capacity for a middle school to support young people after school in mentoring programs,
both academic and social.
And we had money left over at the end of the school year where we could have left it on
the table or we could have continued.
And because I'd had a year of building trust and relationship with not just the students,
(13:06):
but the parents and the teachers, I remember in the spring starting to go into homes and
visiting with parents and hopefully being very humble in my approach, maybe not as much
as I should have been.
But we had conversation about what their hopes were for their kids in a summer where there's
(13:28):
less supervision, less access to meaningful programming.
And I said, I think I have a solution.
Would this be something you'd be interested for your family, for your children?
And it was just really nice.
I remember making the choice to go to the home as opposed to asking parents to come
to me and sitting on couches, having families, grandparents, parents open the door to still
(13:55):
a stranger.
They knew that I worked with their children, but who is this person?
And we just had, what do you hope for your kids?
That conversation helped me create a summer program that really reflected what the community,
what the parents, what the kids were interested in.
Because what I learned in service is that yes, I have an idea of what I think is needed,
(14:18):
but I think the beauty of conversation leading to something that shared visioning is a real
key piece.
And that's where we connected.
That's where people were like, okay, I trust that you have not thinking about yourself,
you're thinking about us.
And that's a moment that I think I've carried with me of really trying to engage with folks
(14:39):
in question and conversation and critical discussions to figure out, well, what are
the many solutions we can get to and how can I help get there?
Right?
And so I think that's just one of the more memorable moments early on that I've carried
throughout my career.
You're listening to This is Civity.
I'm Gina Baleria.
We're talking with Jennifer Leshnower, Bridging and Democracy Advisor at AmeriCorps, about
(15:04):
the importance of relationship building through service to strengthen communities.
And then I also did Peace Corps.
So I've had the benefit of taking my skills from VISTA, working in the nonprofit space
and then having the courage or interest and also thinking about, hey, my world is larger
than the city I live in currently.
(15:26):
And I get to think about how to do this work with other communities in another part of
the globe that also care about their community.
How can I be part of that?
Right?
And so the connection at a different scale, different location where I certainly couldn't
call home, there is a whole facet of connection points of like getting people to know who
(15:48):
I was beyond the label of American.
Everyone is just an American when they're abroad.
And it takes time to refine what that means for people abroad.
And I understand that.
That is an accurate description, but not the only one.
And so it's through relationship building and teamwork and going to community meetings
(16:09):
and listening to people and just being a listener instead of a doer.
That is, again, I think helped me with connection because I think people want to be heard.
They don't want to be talked at.
Right?
And I think that's so funny because I feel like I'm now talking way too much.
That's the point of this whole thing.
But I think that's the beauty that at least for me, service has always been that shining
(16:38):
bright light of like, just start with listening.
Before you do anything, listen to someone else.
And that's where I think you fuel connection, you fuel relationship, you fuel trust.
Then you can do stuff.
If you haven't started with the listening, you can't do anything that's going to sustain
or be helpful to someone else because you don't actually know.
(16:58):
Yes, listening.
And that was what you were also doing with the parents in that AmeriCorps job is walking
in and really listening to their story and their needs and their hopes for their kids.
And then saying, okay, I hear all of that and I can now work with you and co-create
(17:18):
something that's going to be helpful to the community rather than coming in and saying,
I know what's best for you.
I'm going to help you by imposing this thing.
So the idea of listening is so foundational to civity and so foundational to the work
you're doing to make sure that you are co-creating and building as you've so astutely said.
I think the double tap on listening for sure, but that recognition of power differential,
(17:43):
which I've really appreciated both Palma and Malka speak to in the work that they do at
Civity and just the work of Civity is really to the world is built on power differential.
It's just about acknowledging that.
And that's the piece I find so unique about civity's work.
I like that frame of reference of just first starting with acknowledging power difference.
(18:05):
So yes, I did go to the, I went to the homes of families because I thought that would erase
some power difference between the two of us.
But I also really on reflection, I don't think as a 22 year old, I was thinking about as
much as I should have, but there's still always going to be a power difference.
(18:26):
And so I'm not afraid of the word humility and humbleness.
And I would categorize myself as a humble leader.
And I think that's a strength because I think I recognize the many privileges I have in
my own life.
And that doesn't take away from my own struggles.
But I think I have power.
(18:48):
I have power in this role that others don't have who are working just as hard as I am
to make a difference.
And so I always want to acknowledge that I have inherited power that is just there because
of circumstance.
And then I have the opportunity to share that power at times.
And also, I think there's real power in just acknowledging like, hey, there's a difference
(19:12):
here.
And so I respect that I'm coming in with baggage or experience that puts me in a different
position.
And so I just think that part of it is really helpful in bridging work.
We don't have an equitable society.
And so to think that we just through conversation are going to create equity isn't there yet.
(19:35):
But I think once you acknowledge the power difference and figure out how to just understand
that, I think then the conversation you have can be so much more productive.
I really appreciate that point and definitely want to call it out as well.
And again, it's that intentionality of naming something that's hard for us to name.
It can be scary or uncomfortable to name that there's a power differential.
(19:56):
But what I also love about civity is you know what, this is actually part of the process
and it's part of the way we get to true connection and relationship.
And you called that out a little in your when you talked about Peace Corps, because you're
walking into a different cultural context.
And so often, I mean, I hate to call it Americans, but I think so often we as Americans walk
(20:17):
in and oh, we can fix it.
You know, we're here to take care of it and solve it and help you rather than we're here
to sure maybe help because we have that privilege that we were born in the US or our citizens
here live here.
But the idea of you know, being respectful enough to listen and to acknowledge the power
(20:37):
differential.
All this is to say that I really appreciate your reminder of the importance of acknowledging
the power differential and finding humility when you do walk into the room with the power
differential, which of course, again, is so civity as well.
And I think naming these things and being intentional is something that's that's new
for a lot of people, especially when they feel squishier, they feel like nice to haves
(21:01):
rather than critical haves.
And so again, in your work, it sounds like you're doing all of that.
And I appreciate that that we're part of the same sort of trajectory of wanting to get
that integrated.
I'm curious, if you have any anecdotes from your current work, either of your experiences
or engagements or how you watch the people you work with benefit from these sort of civity
(21:25):
oriented ideas and the ideas that you've infused into your work?
You know, I believe there are probably 1.3 million stories of bridging.
If we were able to reach every AmeriCorps alum and ask, how did you build a relationship
with someone who you've never met before to accomplish something powerful and needed in
(21:51):
the community you lived and served in?
That's a huge number.
But I'll share two anecdotes of recent AmeriCorps alums who were actually honored by Service
Your Alliance, who is a close partner of ours in this work.
What was their moment or what were their reflections on how they bridge differences through their
service and how that's impacted their own lives?
(22:15):
And so there's two quick stories I'll share and the full story can be found on the Service
Your Alliance website.
But Shelley served with the American Indian Higher Education Consortium as a Tribal VISTA
program member.
And through her year of service, she worked with a team and community to apply the medicinal
and seventh grandfather teachings to a mental health program to guide culturally connected
(22:38):
values and practices for this community.
And so I think that recognition that we need to be grounded in a local, culturally responsive
framework.
There is no one size fits all.
And also, there is a community that needs their values and principles and ideals to
(23:04):
be seen, to be modeled and to be mirrored for people to buy into it.
And so that work of really connecting historical generational knowledge to an issue that obviously
today is still a very pressing one.
Youth mental health, community mental health, mental health well-being is an issue that
(23:25):
affects everyone.
But I think remembering to make sure it's really reflective of the community you're
working with.
And there's just so much power in that.
Remembering that our knowledge comes from this combination of experience, cultural practice,
(23:49):
family history.
Those are all strengths and assets that we need to pull into to help solve problems.
It's not just academics that are going to help get us through a solution.
It's not just data.
It's really a combination.
And so that's one example of someone who really understood the value of building from the
(24:11):
ground up and building together.
You're listening to This Is Civity.
I'm Gina Baleria.
We're talking with Jennifer Leshnower, Bridging and Democracy Advisor at AmeriCorps, about
the importance of relationship building through service to strengthen communities.
Another quick example, we have approximately 13,000 veterans and National Guard members
(24:31):
who serve in national service annually.
One of those stories is Christina, who herself was a military veteran who chose national
service as a way to continue giving back.
She was placed at the American Red Cross in Washington in a community that had been recently
affected by two wildfires.
She established this program called Operation War Axe, which was a reforestation initiative
(24:56):
aimed at restoring damaged lands and promoting environmental awareness.
But it wasn't about planting trees.
It was about involving the community and co-creating a shared sense of purpose.
Because when you're in a disaster community, she knows the best is like, there is not one
solution.
There is not one need.
And so how do you take the pulse of your community, reflect solutions that are the ones that the
(25:21):
community needs?
And she did that so brilliantly and really made sure that the work she was doing again
wasn't what she thought was needed.
But using her skills and experience to generate conversation, to generate ideas, and to come
together with, you know, here's a way that we can come together to collectively address
(25:43):
our healing as a community from both the disaster, both the physical, you know, damage, but also
the mental and emotional strain that that puts on both the individual and the community
trying to come out of disaster.
Our AmeriCorps members more and more today are from the communities that they are serving
in and then live in this community.
So it's really just these examples of service really helping bridge differences and bring
(26:08):
in, I think, the wisdom and knowledge of a community to be their own problem solvers.
I love hearing that more and more volunteers are from the community.
That just shows that your work has allowed them to see the possibility of bringing themselves
into that space.
If you could discuss maybe some persistent challenges you see and face as you do this
(26:29):
work.
I think the challenges are both at the individual and institutional structural level, right?
We're still working to really bring clarity to what we mean in national service about
bridging.
I think there's something really powerful about shared language.
And so for us, we define bridging as coming together across divides to listen and understand
(26:53):
each other, to find common ground, build relationships, and to make collaboration a norm.
Now that's a long definition.
And the short version is how do we come together across lines of difference to make change?
But I think there's real power to help reduce fear and discomfort to just say intentionally
what we need and to elaborate.
(27:14):
Because that I think helps hook people in.
Okay, this is what it means.
So then the next challenge we have is like, what does that look like?
I think that's another challenge of because bridging doesn't mean one thing to one person
or the activities or skills underneath bridging are variety.
(27:35):
I think it sometimes is hard to pinpoint, but that's why the storytelling is so important.
That's why things like recognizing and celebrating those differences people make are so critical
because then it helps people see themselves and someone else's success.
I think another challenge is, and I have been in the nonprofit world and now working in
(27:56):
the government sector, both at the state and federal level.
I don't think I'm saying anything super, but like we oftentimes operate from a scarcity
mindset.
I know I do.
I was like, there's only so much time to do this.
There's only so many resources.
But I think the challenge in our mindset is to move to an abundant mindset.
(28:20):
Because when I've been helped there, then I am just more able to lean into the possibility
and the potential versus like why we can't do something.
But I think it's a continual challenge.
It's always just retraining the brain.
How do we work from an abundance?
(28:41):
The last thing on the maybe individual level that I think affects institutional change
is bridging is a confusing or unfamiliar term.
I like the way civity breaks this down into really understandable, tangible words that
(29:02):
everyone knows.
Because when you say bridging, you're like, are you building a literal bridge?
What does this mean?
And so I think what we've tried to do through our definition is not lean on the word bridging,
but to lean on the ideas behind it.
Lean on the values of collaboration, connection, relationship building.
(29:24):
And then also, I think speaking to the skills.
And then I'll just say two structural ones is in my job, I see one of my responsibilities
or opportunities is to really try to start merging two sectors.
The national service field, which is immense and has a long history and the bridging work.
How we marry these two sectors who are both doing really independently important work.
(29:47):
I think the other thing that I'm excited about that we've done to help make the structure
responsive to the priority and to the urgency of this work is AmeriCorps has stated civic
bridge building as a funding priority and multiple notices of funding opportunities,
which I think is just an important signal that we value this work, not just because
(30:08):
national service is a organic vehicle to bridging, but that there's an intentionality that we
can really tap into.
So I think it's just the push pull of individual struggles, structural and systemic struggles.
And really, again, just ultimately both overcoming those challenges to be like, we're going to
do this anyway, even though it's hard.
(30:30):
I'd like to ask you what your plans or hopes for the future are.
You mentioned that you wanted to merge two sectors.
You mentioned that you're supported in your funding work because this has been intentionally
named as an important funding spoke.
But what are your hopes for the future with this position and with the work you do and
(30:51):
for AmeriCorps and the bridging in our communities?
I'm hopeful of several things.
Again, we have an MOU with Service Your Alliance who are really close partners in this work
in making sure we can have an initiative focused on how do we integrate bridging practices
in national service?
(31:12):
How do we support the field in that work?
And so I'm hopeful that that work continues well beyond its first phase, which is three
years because I think there's this recognition that this work takes time.
But within these three years, what I'm hopeful about and excited about already seeing is
like the momentum that's created when you have, for example, a community of practice
(31:36):
of national service practitioners and leaders who have said and then acted on this priority
of like, I know this is important and I'm going to figure out how I can apply what we're
learning in this community of practice to my program with my members and with my colleagues.
So, I'm excited and hopeful about what that learning community can do to help influence
(32:02):
the rest of the field.
The other thing I'm both hopeful and really enthusiastic about is the connections we've
started making between the community of practice and what we've referenced internally as like
applied practice partners of which Civity is one of them.
When we start to, I think, responsibly connect these two sectors like we're doing, there
(32:27):
is a level of support and relationship building and merging of two communities in productive
and thoughtful ways.
And so I'm hopeful that we can model just in our design of this initiative, what Civity
is all about.
What all of our applied practice partners are about, Braver Angels, Bridge USA, Living Room
(32:53):
Conversations, Essential Partners, like we're all about let's not try to take on the world,
let's really focus on what is the relationship needed to help move this work forward together.
So those two pieces.
And then third, I would say we have a fiscal responsibility to show that we can do this
(33:17):
effectively, and that it makes a difference.
One of the ways to do proof of concept is through thoughtful evaluation and monitoring.
And so with the help of the Bridging Movement Alignment Council, we've introduced a kind
of a shared measurement tool to really help prove whether or not intentional bridge building
(33:43):
happens, the member experience, their skill, and their attitude towards wanting to practice
these activities and this approach, not only in their service year and in the field, but
throughout after their alums.
So we're in the early stages of really understanding what's the data that backs this hypothesis
(34:08):
that when we're intentional about how we train, how we support, how we treat one another,
that it will, the ripple effect of that will be well beyond the initial challenges and
struggles of course any new idea has.
Is there anything you want to say that I haven't asked you that you feel it's important for
(34:28):
people to know?
I think we each have individual stories of what draws us to this work and who I am as
a person and what I've chosen to study in my life.
So I've always felt like I've straddled multiple worlds in my life.
And I think that's what brings me to the bridging work is I myself and like, right, like a transnational
(34:50):
adoptee, my mom was white, I'm brown.
And so I've through a lot of identities, not just racial, my religious and spiritual connections,
my queer identity, I've always been in this position of how do I fit in?
How do I make meaning of who I am in a world that sometimes reflects who I am and often
(35:12):
doesn't?
How do I put myself in a place where I feel empowered and who do I lean on to help me
do that?
And that's always been not like just through individual work, but like finding, again,
finding your community, finding people who support who you are and see you.
So there's the personal piece of what connects me to the bridging work of this sense of like,
(35:33):
I can be seen, I can be heard, I can make a difference.
But also I went to graduate school for a dual degree in social work and public administration.
And I remember when I applied, I always I chose the dual degree because I wanted to
make policies that work for people.
And I love the idea of both bridging and civity talks about meeting people where they're at.
(35:59):
And that's what social work, school teaches you as well.
And I think bridging is, I think there's this notion that bridging is well, everyone is
a 50-50, you come in the middle.
And that has not been my experience.
And bridging is sometimes you come 20, they come 80, you know, the percentages are all
over the place.
But I think ultimately, right, it's that willingness to find someone else.
(36:26):
Be true to yourself, but just connect and have the conversation, have the relationship,
build the relationship to like get to a shared outcome.
And so I think those things have been interesting strands as I think about how I do the work,
how I've learned about the work and how I continue to practice it.
(36:50):
Like I am no expert in this.
Like I have not perfected this and I don't think I ever will.
And that's okay.
I think the other piece of bridging is it's a muscle that needs constant exercise.
It's not like you can run a marathon tomorrow.
But if you run every day, you can build the mileage, you can build the muscle memory,
you can build the confidence.
(37:10):
And that's what I think we're asking, not just members, but the agency to do, our colleagues
to do, our program leaders to do is like, we all have work to do in this.
This isn't just the responsibility of a few, but of everyone.
Thank you to my guest, Jennifer Leshnower, Bridging and Democracy Advisor at AmeriCorps.
(37:31):
To learn more, go to americorps.gov.
Civity is a culture of deliberately engaging in relationships of respect and empathy with
others who are different.
Bringing people from us versus them to we all belong.
To learn more, go to civity.org.
Civity's theme song is Common Ground, performed by Tommy Castro and the Painkillers, written
(37:53):
by Tommy Castro and Kevin Bow, and used courtesy of Alligator Records and Dangerous Entertainment.
Thank you for listening to This is Civity.
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