Brenda Herchmer
Brenda Herchmer is a community builder, systems catalyst, and innovator who has spent her career helping municipalities and organizations move from silos to systems and toward a more whole-community, or ecosystem, approach.
As Founder and Principal Collaborator of Campus for Communities of the Future, the Lead Catalyst behind RESET Communities, and Co-Chair of the Canada Chapter of Catalyst Now.
She works primarily with communities and neighbourhoods to strengthen leadership, organization, and community capacity for local economic, social, cultural, and environmental wellbeing. These are typically framed by global priorities like the 17 UN SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals).
A sought-after facilitator, educator, and author, she is known for translating systems thinking and practice into plain language, practical tools, and hopeful, future-focused strategies that help leaders connect the dots between local insight and broader systemic change. A speaker, trainer, and consultant across Canada, and now globally, she is a former professor and director at Niagara College, Director of Alberta's ACE Communities initiative, and worked for local government and a number of social purpose organizations and businesses.This eclectic background provided a practical, cross-sector lens and understanding of what it takes to tackle “broken systems” and complex challenges and opportunities.
Brenda is the Chair of Catalyst 2030, Canada Chapter, author of three books, and has been honoured as a YWCA Woman of Distinction and a Brock University Distinguished Graduate. She and her family live in Welland, Ontario, Canada, where they also own a Board Game Café and an online kite store.
Selected Testimonials
As local communities and regions attempt to respond to an increasingly fast-paced and complex society, pockets of “transformational change” have only recently begun to emerge. From a global perspective, this is one of a very few initiatives that, in my opinion, is well on the way to understanding how to design and implement the new concept of “Comprehensive Community Transformation”. The transferable frameworks, tools, training, and resources are some of the most innovative and important I have seen.
-- Rick Smyre, Communities of the Future and Global Rural Networks
The resources, training, and inspiration found here, will transform the way communities and their leaders get things done.
--Ian Hill, Award Winning Humanitarian and Innovator
This is how learning should be done, with the theory and the practical happening simultaneously.
-- New Brunswick Participant
Thanks so much for providing these opportunities to our community so we can grow together and strengthen London as a city, one community and neighbourhood at a time.
-- Karen Oldham, City of London
These learnings have added immense value and hopefulness for me… One of the most interesting and interactive trainings I have participated in.
--International Participant
I learned the starting point is not the service providers, it's the communities who are the experts. I know that it's okay to step back and release the reins....A good leader knows when to step back and watch the geniuses do their work.
--Ontario Elected Official
We adopted community development strategies and built trusting relationships, applied holistic systems thinking, engaged many sectors of the community and invested them with a true sense of ownership.
-- New Brunswick Horizon Health
The information in this webinar is so great - I was on the first module and had already taken 3 pages of notes!
-- City of London Participant
Our Clients
We empower communities by supporting local leadership, organizational and community capacity for a whole-community, sector-connected approach to social, economic, cultural and environmental well-being.
Individual and organizational future-readiness is supported increasing capacity for (1) community and stakeholder-led development, (2) systems-practices, (3) strategic foresight, and (4) digital optimization. We've learned these four components are necessary for the project and systems collaboration and informed decision-making we have experienced as being essential for transformative change and innovation.
Innovative approaches require being bold, perseverance, tenacity and a sprinkle of panic.
-- Michelle Baldwin
Many situations in life are similar to going on a hike: the view changes once you start walking. You don't need all the answers right now. New paths will reveal themselves if you have the courage to get started.
--James Clear
Leadership today is about courage. Courage to realize our challenges are complex and no one individual, organization, or sector can resolve them on their own. That means we have to let go of the idea that we alone have the answers. Instead, we need to strengthen our individual and organizational competencies in order to become sector connectors who call meetings before we have the answers, aren't intimidated by messy, and can ensure a culture where all voices are heard. Only then, can our collective gifts, experience, and wisdom be focused on building a better future for all.
--Brenda Herchmer
In times of change it is the learners who inherit the future. Those who have finished learning find themselves equipped to live in a world that no longer exists.
-- Eric Hoffer
