Join NGIN’s Community of Practice — a national network where small and midsize city leaders learn, test, and build economic systems together through events peer connection and curated programming.
Community of Practice
Small and midsized cities (SMCs) have a unique opportunity to test innovative economic approaches, yet many face challenges like uneven neighborhood investment, aging infrastructure, and fragmented systems.
Our Community of Practice (CoP) helps leaders connect, share strategies, accelerate innovations, and activate investment.
A Network of Leaders Solving Problems and Leveraging Their Strengths
Through the CoP, you can expect:
Flexible ways to engage. A mix of live sessions, peer conversations, and self-paced touchpoints designed to fit into busy schedules.
Connection that feels useful. Opportunities to exchange economic ideas, learn from peers, and stay connected without overcommitting.
Ongoing access to resources. Tools, insights, and shared knowledge curated to support day-to-day efforts.
Who the Community of Practice Serves
This Community of Practice is designed for leaders from small and midsized cities (30,000–500,000 residents) across three core sectors;
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City leadership includes mayors, city council members, and senior municipal officials who set policy direction and steward public resources.
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Leaders from Economic Development Organizations include public, private, and quasi-public entities focused on business growth, workforce development, and investment attraction.
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Community leaders include individuals from nonprofits and anchor institutions—such as universities, hospitals, and cultural organizations—focused on strengthening communities and supporting long-term social and economic outcomes.
Find Your People.
Connect with peers who understand your challenges and goals. When you join, you’ll be paired with an NGIN advisor to help curate your journey within the CoP, gain access to tailored resources, hear about new opportunities, and receive invitations to special sessions.
Upcoming Events
From Community Priorities to Investment: Building the Conditions for Change
Drawing on the Capital Absorption Framework and lessons from CCI’s Connecting Capital and Community (3C) initiative, this session will explore how local leaders, economic development organizations, and community-based organizations can work together to turn community priorities into investable opportunities. Participants will consider what it takes to strengthen local investment ecosystems, build stronger pipelines of projects, and align partners and capital around a shared vision. The session will leave participants with practical questions and approaches they can take back to their own communities.
Speaker: Omar Carrillo Tinajero, Executive Director, Center for Community Investment
November 17 at 2 PM ET
Virtual
Gather & Grow: A Year-End Celebration
Good connections. Great conversations. A little friendly competition. A whole lot of community.
An interactive gathering designed to bring our Community of Practice members together for an hour of connection, laughter, and celebration. Throughout the year, we've come together to exchange ideas, tackle challenges, and learn from one another. Now it's time to celebrate the people and relationships that make this community special! This won't be your typical year-end webinar. We're trading presentations for playful competition, small-group conversations, and opportunities to get to know the people behind the work.
December 8 at 2 PM ET
Virtual
News from the SMC Hub
Meet Our CoP Advisor
Beka Burton is a Certified Economic Developer with a passion for building communities where people and businesses can thrive. She brings nearly two decades of experience spanning statewide initiatives, cross-sector partnerships, and grassroots engagement.