At the Bush Foundation, we believe that the best way we can help communities tackle their toughest problems is by fostering courageous leadership.

Courageous leaders aren’t content to sit on the sidelines. Courageous leaders create new opportunities. They mobilize people to tackle tough problems and seize the chance to make a difference. They take pride in their successes, but also carry wounds from times they gave voice to unpopular points of view.

We recognize that those with authority may or may not practice courageous leadership, and those who practice courageous public leadership may or may not have authority. Our goal is to build the capacity for courageous leadership, wherever it is found, and to build the public will to press for courageous decisions to solve tough problems. Real change will only happen with both.