The “Leaders of Change” research project was carried out by Action Research Associates with 72 change leaders over a period of one year and eight months, resulting in a report detailing recommendations for the Lebanese change movement to move forward.
The Leaders of Change project involved two parts. In a first stage, we cooperated with 52 prominent activists and change figures from the 17 October revolution, to study the change movement in general and to identify the components of the uprising and its community. The research team first conducted individual interviews to collect data, which was then analyzed in 8 focus groups that combined all 52 participants. The final report includes a summary of this analysis in addition to 5 basic recommendations the change leaders came up with, revolving around the following themes: – Restoring the movement’s momentum – Preparing for elections – Involving people in political life – Leveraging foreign relations and the Diaspora – National values. In the second part of the research project, these recommendations were discussed over several meetings in five working groups, each of which studied and addressed one recommendation, in order to develop a number of talking points that would serve the change movement in their debates and media appearances. Furthermore, some suggestions for practical activities were made.
In November 2021, each working group presented the outcome of its study in a gathering of the most prominent activists, political groups and new parties initiated after the 17 October revolution. The group agreed to implement a media plan to maintain the relationships formed between the participants and to follow up on some meaningful discussions that would advance a participatory spirit in the further development of the change movement.
