Unbridged Island Community Resilience: The Impact of Nonprofit Leadership
Document Type
Oral Presentation
Department
Leadership and Organizational Studies
Abstract
Leadership is recognized as being an essential component of community resilience, supporting communities as they navigate anticipated, as well as unforeseen change. An essential segment of leadership lies within the nonprofit industry. While the resiliency of inland communities has been extensively examined, the resiliency of Maine’s unbridged island communities has been largely neglected in the academic literature. The intention of this research is to determine what impact nonprofit leadership has on the resiliency of the Peaks Island community in Maine. The researcher builds on existing literature in social-ecological systems (SESs) that examines the complex conditions that effect community resilience and the capacities that aid in building and maintaining resilient communities. Based on interviews and secondary data collected from ten nonprofits serving the Peaks Island community, the results show that nonprofit leadership has a significant impact on community resilience on the island. This study highlights the role that nonprofit leadership plays in helping island communities anticipate and prepare for shocks to their SESs, how they position their organizations relative to other actors in the SESs, how priorities are determined, and how nonprofit leaders determine efficacy in advancing the visions and needs of the unbridged island community of Peaks Island.
Unbridged Island Community Resilience: The Impact of Nonprofit Leadership
Leadership is recognized as being an essential component of community resilience, supporting communities as they navigate anticipated, as well as unforeseen change. An essential segment of leadership lies within the nonprofit industry. While the resiliency of inland communities has been extensively examined, the resiliency of Maine’s unbridged island communities has been largely neglected in the academic literature. The intention of this research is to determine what impact nonprofit leadership has on the resiliency of the Peaks Island community in Maine. The researcher builds on existing literature in social-ecological systems (SESs) that examines the complex conditions that effect community resilience and the capacities that aid in building and maintaining resilient communities. Based on interviews and secondary data collected from ten nonprofits serving the Peaks Island community, the results show that nonprofit leadership has a significant impact on community resilience on the island. This study highlights the role that nonprofit leadership plays in helping island communities anticipate and prepare for shocks to their SESs, how they position their organizations relative to other actors in the SESs, how priorities are determined, and how nonprofit leaders determine efficacy in advancing the visions and needs of the unbridged island community of Peaks Island.
