Harwood Initiative of Logan County
Turning Outward. Taking Action. Building What Matters.
Logan County is strongest when we work together. The Harwood Initiative helps our community turn shared hopes into shared action.
United Way of Logan County is leading this work locally in partnership with the Harwood Institute for Public Innovation, equipping residents and leaders with tools to listen deeply, act intentionally, and strengthen how we move forward together.
What Is the Harwood Approach?
The Harwood approach centers on a practice called Turning Outward — intentionally shifting from leading with our own agendas to listening deeply to what matters to residents. It helps communities surface shared aspirations, understand where people are starting, and take practical steps forward rooted in public knowledge rather than assumptions.
In February 2024, 55 community members came together for a two-day Public Innovators Lab to learn and practice this approach. From that shared experience, three cross-sector action teams emerged, focusing on priorities residents identified:
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Youth
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Health and Mental Health
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Seniors
Since then, these teams have been engaging residents in conversations, gathering public knowledge, and taking meaningful steps rooted in what they are hearing.
Why This Matters in Logan County
Logan County is close-knit, and local pride runs deep. At the same time, our community faces real challenges and important choices about the future.
This work strengthens our ability to listen, respond, and take action together so Logan County is ready not just to address today’s needs, but to shape what comes next.
Read the Harwood Report on Logan County: Forging a Bright Future
Two Years of Building Momentum
The Harwood Initiative began in 2023 through the generous support of Honda, which funded a two-year investment in strengthening Logan County’s civic capacity. That investment made it possible to bring the Harwood approach to our community and provide coaching, learning experiences, and support for local action teams.
Over the past two years, residents and leaders have hosted conversations, tested ideas, and taken practical steps forward. Along the way, small actions began building on one another — creating “chain reactions” of trust, collaboration, and progress across the county.
As the formal coaching period concluded in February 2026, the community gathered for a Story of Change Celebration and released a new report, Logan County’s Story of Change: Building a Bright Future, highlighting what has taken root and how this momentum continues to grow.
This work does not end with coaching. It continues as an ongoing practice embedded in how Logan County works together.
What’s Happening Now
The initiative continues to grow through:
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Ongoing community conversations
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Action teams applying the Harwood approach
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Coaching and learning opportunities
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Cross-sector collaboration among residents, organizations, and leaders
This work is designed to create momentum- small actions that build trust, strengthen relationships, and spread throughout the community over time.
Get Involved
Strong communities are shaped by the people who live in them.
Whether you’re curious, hopeful, or ready to lead, there is a place for you in this work.
You can:
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Join an action team
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Attend an orientation session
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Host or participate in a community conversation
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Receive updates and stories of change
United Is the Way, and this is one way we live it out.
For more information or to sign up for an action team, contact the Harwood Initiative Coordinator, Jamie Morley at jamie@uwlogan.org
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