The Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC) is now accepting applications for the 2023 Regional Leadership Institute (RLI), which brings together a diverse group of established and emerging regional leaders to assess the issues, challenges, and opportunities facing metro Atlanta, such as housing, the economy, transportation and water resources.

The program will be broken into two parts over a three-month period. Part one will take place from August 29 -30, 2023 at ARC’s downtown Atlanta office. Part two will be a retreat will take place from October 8-11, 2023 at the Legacy Lodge at Lake Lanier.

The application period closes on March 13, 2023.

The intensive program invites participation from the 11-county metro area leaders and features subject-matter experts, panel discussions and interactive sessions focused on critical issues like housing affordability, natural resource management, economic competitiveness, and climate change mitigation. These issues require skilled leadership, and RLI is designed to convene metro Atlanta’s leaders to build an intersectional and regional approach to solving them.

RLI also exposes participants to a network of peers and experts from around the region. Since its inception, RLI has engaged 50 leaders annually from a variety of sectors and throughout the metro Atlanta region — building an alumni network of more than 1,500. Leaders are invited to be reflective about who they are as leaders, what tools and approaches they currently use, and what has informed their leadership.

“The Regional Leadership Institute experience has not only deepened my awareness of the challenges facing the region and has allowed me to interact with fellow decision makers and seek out innovative solutions to move our region forward collectively. It was one of my best experiences,” said Gwinnett County Chairwoman Nicole Hendrickson.

RLI’s alumni network is critical to the success of the Atlanta region’s development. These leaders work together to help local governments, businesses and nonprofits collaborate around important issues that cross sectors and political boundaries.

“RLI fosters rich collaboration between regional leaders,” said RLI Program Manager Folashade Alao, PhD. “The program brings together changemakers from around metro Atlanta to better understand some of the most critical issues facing our region so that they are able to work towards equitable and community-centered solutions.”