Leaders for Equitable Local Economies Leaders for Equitable Local Economies

One of the Boston Fed’s key responsibilities is to promote a strong and sustainable regional economy. Our long commitment to the Working Cities Challenge, which we created to help strengthen economies in New England’s smaller cities, has taught us that when leaders work together toward a shared vision, they can strengthen their civic infrastructures and change systems in ways that make local economies work better for all people. Today, we also know that the fiscal and health impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic have been disproportionately severe in New England’s smaller cities and in communities of color. This means that economic recovery efforts will only work to the extent that recovery strategies—and the leaders deploying them—are racially equitable and inclusive.

Leaders for Equitable Local Economies, or LELE, is an initiative aimed at supporting and strengthening the leaders taking on the critical work of rebuilding economic systems in Massachusetts’ smaller cities. It’s about making those systems work better for residents who have been excluded.

What will LELE accomplish?

LELE invests in leaders from every part of a community. It aims to strengthen the influence of those taking bold action on behalf of their cities. It will help them work as a cohort to achieve results by sharing new lessons and insights into how to increase racial equity across sectors and circumstances. A successful pilot program will create a cohort of representative leaders with increased individual and collective impact. It will inspire projects that lead to real, measurable improvements. It will encourage institutions that support smaller cities—including the Boston Fed— to adopt new practices and make investments that more effectively assist leaders working toward racial equity

How?

LELE has selected pairs or trios of leaders from five smaller Massachusetts cities to work together over 18 months, starting in the summer of 2021. These 10-15 leaders will receive coaching, stipends, and access to flexible grant dollars to develop and test local strategies to advance racial equity and inclusion in their cities. Through a “community of practice”, the leaders will share lessons and insights that strengthen local efforts. This community will build cross-city networks and influence thinking and action among peer cities and prominent institutions - including government agencies, philanthropic organizations, and the Boston Fed.

Who is LELE for?

LELE is for leaders already working to build a more racially equitable and inclusive local economy. It provides support that can take their efforts to the next level. This is an opportunity for emerging and mid-level leaders to elevate and amplify their influence and test concrete ideas in their communities. Through an application process, prospective participants will identify ways LELE can strengthen, sustain, and deepen the racial equity focus of existing community investments.

LELE encourages a collaborative approach, because it recognizes that leaders cannot successfully advance racial equity and inclusion alone. The model calls for 2-3 leaders from a given city to apply as partners. They, in turn, will enlist at least 3-5 senior-level leaders from their city as “champions.” These champions commit to using their own influence to open doors, unlock opportunities, and advance critical conversations around racial equity in their communities. Champions will also be given learning opportunities, potentially extending LELE’s influence to a network of 40-50 leaders across Massachusetts.

A robust community of practice requires diversity of backgrounds, strategies, city contexts, and experience levels to generate insights and make a difference. Therefore, LELE encourages leaders to apply from across sectors, organizational affiliations, ages, and racial and ethnic backgrounds.

We also encourage leaders who apply to offer a range of strategies. These can include traditional, explicitly economic levers – like small business development, neighborhood revitalization, workforce development, and community investments. Or they could aim to strengthen civic engagement or child and family well-being, which are just as foundational to racially equitable economies. Building and sustaining pipelines of leaders who are representative of a city’s residents is essential to economic inclusion and equity, so LELE will select at least one team that adopts this strategy.

What cities are eligible?

LELE is rooted in lessons from the Working Cities Challenge. Teams participating in the WCC learned how essential it was to give voice and power to community members. They moved away from programs and toward changing local systems that keep obstacles in place. They embraced a mindset of continuous learning and adaptation and built coalitions around a shared, long-term vision. These lessons will be essential to the success of LELE. That’s why LELE participation is restricted to leaders in the 16 cities that won a Working Cities Challenge implementation grant or took part in MassDevelopment’s Transformative Development Initiative, which is also built on collaboration and community engagement. Those cities are: Brockton, Chelsea, Chicopee, Fall River, Fitchburg, Haverhill, Holyoke, Lawrence, Lynn, Lowell, New Bedford, Peabody, Pittsfield, Revere, Springfield, and Worcester.

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A photo of mill buildings in Chicopee, MA.

Winning Teams

Pittsfield

Team Name: Leaders for an Equitable Pittsfield (LEP)
Team Members: Auric Enchill, A.J. Enchill, and Marcus Coleman
Mission: Supporting BIPOC businesses by working with city and key institutions to shift approaches to small business support and purchasing 

New Bedford

Team Name: Nurturing Motherhood-Revitalization of community in Mother/father/parenthood
Team Members: Samia Walker, Lucia Soraya DosSantos
Mission: Strengthening systems to support Black, indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) women and families through and beyond the birthing process to improve economic wellbeing for those families.

New Bedford

Team Name: New Bedford Doer’s Lab
Team Members: Chandrea Grant, Jacob Miller, Peter Lonelle Walker
Mission: Youth development approach to strengthening civic engagement and economic opportunity  through peer learning and exchange

Worcester

Team Name: Reimaging Civic Engagement in Worcester, MA
Team Members: Casey Burns, Gina Plata-Nino, Etel Haxhiaj
Mission: Advancing BIPOC representation in leadership through community engagement and city-level policy changes.

Fitchburg

Team Name: Marites MacLean and Beth Robbins
Team Members: Marites MacLean and Beth Robbins
Mission: Creating a more equitable child care system to help Fitchburg families get access to high quality child care to find and maintain gainful employment in order to actively participate in the economy.

LELE Advisory Group

  • Maria Fernandes-Dominique—Blue Cross Blue Shield of MA
  • Pierre Joseph—Formerly Solidago Foundation
  • Claudia Cardozo—HarborOne Bank
  • Alex Nova—Lawrence Partnership
  • RJ McGrail—Lincoln Land Institute
  • Karleen Porcena—LISC National
  • Anabelle Rondon—MassDevelopment
  • Noah Koretz—MassDevelopment
  • Michael Molina—NeighborWorks
  • Marty Jones—WCC MA Steering Committee

LELE Supporters

  • Doris Duke Charitable Foundation
  • Barr Foundation
  • NeighborWorks