Colleen Dougherty

Research officer at the Nowak Metro Finance Lab at Drexel University

Colleen Dougherty (she/her) serves as a Research Officer at the Nowak Metro Finance Lab based at Drexel University. Her primary project is Leveraging SSBCI 2.0: Remaking America’s Small Business Capital Landscape. Prior to her current role, she held positions at the Center for Regional Economic Competitiveness and the Brookings Institution. Colleen recently graduated from Georgetown University’s Walsh School of Foreign Service, where she obtained her M.A. in German and European Studies. During her time as a graduate student, she worked as a graduate research assistant, focusing on post-industrial regions across the transatlantic. Additionally, she holds a B.A. in Philosophy, Law, and Politics and originally hails from Erie, PA.

Democracy Closest to Home: Principles for Local Leadership in Industrial Heartlands 

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This paper highlights insights from our journey and proposes a set of principles for local leadership rooted in our experiences as a younger generation of transatlantic leaders navigating structural change. Our recommendations emphasise civic connection and identity, locally grounded communication, and visible delivery.
Benjamin Harrington, Colleen Dougherty, Emily Adams, Linus Platzer, Milad Tabesch

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