Dear Pollenites,
I want to share something special with you that Pollen has been working really intentionally on for the last few years.
VIDEO AND PRODUCTION Benji Pérez and Andrés Pérez
We’ve been coming into a deeper understanding of how Pollen uses story, art, human connection to build narrative power. How the practice and knowledge of narrative change can break down harmful narratives, and build up new narratives rooted in justice, community, and our shared humanity.
Not only has Pollen been refining our purpose and point of view as an organization, but we’ve been thoughtfully building our operational structure and capacity to match our ambitions.
And as part of that, it’s time for me to make space for new leadership. By the end of the year, I will be leaving one of the best jobs I could have ever imagined for myself — the role of Executive Director of Pollen.
We don’t have all the answers yet
Our board members and staff have been working closely on this leadership transition for the past two years and we’re going to pull back the curtain and share what we’ve been learning about executive leadership transitions.
Here’s what we do know
We know why we are doing this: To build on our past growth and move into our next evolution as leaders in narrative change by sharing stories, art, and connections to help us imagine a better, more just future.
We know how we will make this transition happen: We will center our values of racial justice and trust, and together our board and staff will imagine a new way to evolve through leadership transitions.
We know what our outcome will be: A new organizational structure that builds on our current strengths while also furthering us as experts in the methodology of narrative change to imagine this better future.
Being Pollen’s executive director has been rewarding, challenging, fun, creative, and soul-fulfilling. This opportunity has helped me grow in ways I could have never envisioned for myself.
Lars Leafblad founded Pollen in 2009 and when Meg Murphy and I joined as volunteers in 2011, neither of us had any idea that 10 years later we’d both still be here at Pollen loving our work and who we work with.
Going forward in this process I am deeply committed to growth — both for Pollen and for myself. I’m excited for Pollen to keep growing and learning, and for our next executive director to get the opportunities to work with this caring, creative, committed team, and with all of you — our incredible community of Pollenites.
Bloom With Us
Just like you, we have been up to a lot lately, navigating change and imagining what our next season of blooming could look like. You are a part of this change and growth, so what better way to share in this journey with each other than in person. That’s why we’re hosting a gathering on Thursday, June 30, from 6:00 to 9:00 PM at The Trailhead in Theodore Wirth Park for all of our Pollenites.
