Mehrdad Azemun encountered ICL in the first week of his professional life in the early 1990’s as an organizer for National Wildlife Federation’s campus program, ‘Campus Ecology’

“I hold ICL responsible for a lot of my growth as a leader,” says Mehrdad.  “The skills I’ve come away with have paid direct dividends inside the environmental movement, and since then paid dividends in the immigrant rights movement.” 

Then, as a young executive director of the small grassroots organization, the Chicago Recycling Coalition, Mehrdad had passion for his work but needed to learn about how to run an organization.  “I was absolutely a spring chicken,” says Mehrdad.  “In the ICL Executive Director Leadership Program I learned the hard skills that helped keep the organization effective, as well as the importance of self care.” 

The ICL staff modeled a collaborative style that stayed with Mehrdad, and he has continued to use that style in organizing and developing other leaders.  The way the program was designed with an initial training, coaching, action planning, and peer support enabled him to apply what he was learning directly in his organization. 

Today, as field director for Reform Immigration for America Campaign, Mehrdad sees young leaders in the same position he was in – many of them deeply frustrated and ready to walk away.  “It was a reflection of myself when I was younger, only the difference was someone had invested in me,” says Mehrdad.  “And, that organization was ICL.”

“In the book about the civil rights movement called I’ve Got the Light of Freedom, there is a chapter named “Slow and Respectful Work” – about what it takes to really build trust and build a leader.  That is how I think of ICL’s work.  None of this is fast, none can be taken for granted.  It is thoughtful, deliberative work.  There is a reason I can’t point to one campaign or piece of legislation that ICL has affected – it is actually many pieces of legislation and many beautiful, ecologically important places that ICL has helped preserve indirectly.  These things happen because ICL  has done that thoughtful, slow, deliberative work with so many leaders and so many organizations.”

 Mehrdad Azemun, Field Director