Donate Now

Donate now to support New Libya Foundation initiatives


We are..

Founded Febraury 25th, 2011 in response to the call for democracy in Libya, the New Libya Foundation serves to nurture democratic foundations through the building of Libyan civil society from the ground up. The most vital element of a new Libya is a society that is able to determine the course of its future, and contribute in setting the priorities of its governing body. No call to democratic governance can be realized until people organize to address their concerns and aspirations.

The Libyan people have taken on the cause of building their nation and empowering citizens. The New Libya Foundation is working to provide the resources and means necessary to build the civic institutions of the new Libya and generations to come.

Our Mission
Nurture the successful development of civil society organizations in Libya through training, education, access to resources and financial assistance. Our vision is broad with our immediate focus on: Civic engagement, inclusiveness, and association.

Leadership In Civil Society

LCS Tripoli, 2012

LCS Tripoli, 2012

 

NLF’s Leadership in Civil Society Program is a six month long capacity building program offered in Tripoli (2012) and Misurata (2013), fostering the emergence of a healthy and viable Libyan civil society sector and the development of community  leadership capacity through the launch of 20 sustainable  community based projects in each city.

Horizontal leadership skills will be advanced in young Libyans who seek to launch civil society organizations in their community. NLF identified twenty of the most promising and engaged young Libyan activists in each city and supported them through the implementation of an impactful and sustainable community project in the service of promoting the democratic transition in Libya.

The LCS Program develops the individual participants’ capacity for great achievement and fosters the ability to empower local communities in the pursuit of collective goals, which is the essence of democracy. The program is also focused and democratic transition initiatives and advocacy.

Program Objectives

Individual empowerment: Due to deliberate strategies of the old regime, Libya currently suffers from a critical gap of horizontal leadership skills. Leadership In Civil Society fosters horizontal leadership skills where a participants success is measured by the degree to which they empower individuals and projects in their community toward success. Our objective is graduate 20 highly capable and trained individuals to engage in horizontal leadership and promote leadership qualities such as responsibility, inclusive communication, commitment, integrity and drive which create a standard for CSO employees, volunteers and beneficiaries to follow.

Supporting the launch of 20 viable CSO’s: After four decades of the active de-construction of civic institutions, Libya is a nation with little to no viable institutions that organize people, represent the interest of the people and articulate necessary policies. Leadership In Civil Society fosters the development of sound and viable institutions which adhere to an operationally sustainable structure, address real and pressing needs for democratic development, promote transparency and accountability, engage citizens in local communities for a “bottom-up” approach to progress, operate on high standards for communication, collective participation and transparency, discourage competition and foster partnership and collaboration with other CSOs in promotion of mutual values and objectives for increased output and shared outcomes.

Participant Selection

NLF strives to recruit an equal number of male and female participants representing a wide variety of cities, backgrounds and professions whom share the following criteria:

  • Age 21 through 45
  • Actively engaged in community development.
  • Preferred: Has started a civil society organization or executed a successful civil society based project.
  • Preferred: Fair knowledge of English.
LCS Misurata

LCS Misurata

Program Activities

Opening Seminar

A three week-long active learning seminar articulated around three pillars: leadership, the role of civil society in democracy, and project management. Participants will also visit establishments significant to civil society development, engage in community based service and be visited by various speakers of diverse backgrounds.

Project Presentation

Participants will define and articulate the needs they would like to address in their own community in a presentation of each participant’s CSO project.

The Civil Society Incubator

A working space providing operational resources including computers, printers, internet, phones and office supplies. The incubator also serves as a community meeting space and a “base camp” where participants can regularly meet with each other and with the NLF staff to share their successes and challenges, and to benefit from each other’s experience.

Mentorship

Participants will have the support of the program manager and program officer to mentor, assist and oversee the design, organization and management of their CSO. The program manager and program coordinator will team up with the participant to analyze and solve challenges and problems encountered during the six month mentorship program.

Coaching

Coaching enables the participant to address any breakdown’s experienced in meeting desired goals, address’s the cause of the breakdown, and re-aligns strategies to deliver breakthroughs in goal achievement. Leadership coaching is delivered both in a one on one and group setting.

Closing Seminar

Conducted upon the completion of the program, this weekend seminar addresses challenges and failures of both the participants and the program and celebrates collective achievements. Through the program, participants learn about each others activities, establish partnerships and mutual support mechanisms for the sustainability of their CSO. Each participant will share their experience over the last six months and the outcome of their civil society building project.