SCDN Leadership Forum: Attracting Residents & Building Community Resiliency through Cultivating Diversity

City of Duquesne Municipal Building
12 South Second Street
Duquesne, PA 15110

Register Here
Light dinner will be served
FREE

5:30 pm – Registration opens
6:00 pm – Speakers begin

As communities in Southwestern PA struggle to maintain their current populations and work to attract new residents and businesses, it is helpful to understand what current residents expect and what new residents and employers desire. Please join the Sustainable Community Development Network (SCDN), facilitated by Sustainable Pittsburgh, along with the Local Government Academy (LGA) for an evening Leadership Forum discussing the numerous advantages of fostering a diverse and innovative workforce and how communities can improve economic and community growth through implementing equitable policies.

Please share with your elected municipal officials and community leaders!

A diverse workforce (age, gender, race, etc.) has been shown to encourage innovation and creativity and is now sought after by employers and jobs seekers alike. A workforce that includes varying socio-economic backgrounds provides the employer with access to broader social networks for talent attraction and other inherent benefits. The SCDN Forum kicks off with a conversation about how your municipality or organization can lead by example by creating an inclusive workplace.

Melanie Harrington, Executive Director of Vibrant Pittsburgh, will how discuss how cultivate proactive leadership to foster diverse workforces that accelerate economic growth and workplace success.

anupama jain, Executive Director, City of Pittsburgh’s Commission on Gender Equity, will introduce her new position with the city and share her extensive academic and organizational work with gender equity solutions.

Shon K. Worner, Senior Associate, Campbell Durrant Beatty Palombo & Miller, P.C., specializes in labor and municipal law and will explore the legal aspects of equitable access to employment and human resource concerns.

The SCDN Forum will also include a discussion of how community policy and the enforcement of municipal laws can affect people with different abilities, incomes, and/or social capital/access to power.

Shad Henderson, Director of Community Partnerships and Investments, Neighborhood Allies, will talk about the “All In Pittsburgh” initiative and how equitable development can ensure that everyone participates in and benefits from the region’s economic growth.

Laura Poskin, the Director of Age Friendly Pittsburgh – a program of the United Way, will illustrate the need for policy that addresses the varied ages and abilities of residents and how it will create a stronger, more resilient region.

Wasi Mohamed, Executive Director, Islamic Center of Pittsburgh and a steering committee member for Change Agency and the All for All Initiative, will talk about the creation of programming that can provide simple actionable steps to improve community equity.

SCDN and LGA are excited to bring together these regional experts who focus on issues of racial, gender, age, religious equity and more.  They will discuss how you can assess the equity of community development work and create policies that will improve the creativity, innovation, and economic development in your workforce and your community.

Questions?  Please contact Jim Price, Sustainable Community Manager, Sustainable Pittsburgh at jprice@sustainablepittsburgh.org or (412) 259-5331.