Investing in the Next Generation of Civic Leadership
Services: Program Design / Project Management / Stakeholder Engagement
Emerging Leaders Corps
Pew Charitable Trusts, Philadelphia, PA 2023-2026
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic and recovery, Philadelphia experienced significant workforce turnover across the public and civic sectors, accelerating the loss of institutional knowledge and the informal relationships that enable effective cross-sector collaboration. Recognizing this challenge, The Pew Charitable Trusts identified a need to intentionally prepare early- and mid-career professionals to lead in an increasingly complex civic environment.
As part of this effort, Rvesta Consulting, in partnership with Anavi Strategies, co-designed and co-leads the Emerging Leaders Corps (ELC). The program equips rising civic and policy leaders with practical tools, applied data skills, and cross-sector networks, while connecting them with established policymakers to build systems thinking, collaborative problem-solving capacity, and long-term public sector resilience.
The 8-week curriculum focuses on housing, budgeting, and economic development, giving participants shared tools, skills, and professional networks to analyze trade-offs, build coalitions, and advance equity-driven leadership. By connecting rising leaders and established policymakers, the program supports sustained collaboration and more coordinated civic leadership across Philadelphia.
To date, ELC has engaged 80+ participants across four cohorts from 48+ organizations, with 100% of participants reporting they would recommend the program to peers.
“The program was really helpful for me in numerous ways. The group of Emerging Leaders that was in my cohort were very impressive and they are experts in their fields. Learning from them was beneficial. The expert speakers added formality, and learning about the city budget – to have someone who has worked in the process break it down for you was invaluable, and we didn’t feel dumb or uninformed for not knowing.”
“All of the discussions we had really brought clarity and transparency. You don’t know what you don’t know, and I learned a lot. It also gave me more confidence. The curriculum touched on a lot of different topics. It was very well-rounded”
