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John Parr is one of America's
foremost counsellors in the area of collaborative government and
citizen involvement.
He is the president/CEO of the Alliance
for Regional Stewardship, coordinating and leading efforts to advance
regional agendas across the United States.
Parr is also co-founder and principal
of CIVIC RESULTS -- formerly the Center for Regional and Neighborhood Action
(CRNA) -- a Denver-based nonprofit that brings energetic urban neighborhoods
to the table in collaborative regional strategies to improve the
quality of life of all residents.
From 1985-1995, Parr gained renown
as the innovative leader of the century-old National Civic League
(NCL) - America's premier organization working to improve local and
state government and promote a strong role for citizens. At NCL,
Parr enlisted Henry Cisneros and later John Gardner as board chair.
He ushered in such projects as the Healthy Cities Program and the
Alliance for National Renewal, and developed the concept of civic
infrastructure and the civic index as a measuring tool for
communities. Under his leadership NCL expanded its work to Eastern
and Central Europe.
Parr is an attorney with extensive
experience in public administration, strategic planning, mediation,
and political organizing. He is a Lecturer in the Graduate School
of Public Affairs of the University of Colorado at Denver.
He has also taught in programs at Harvard University, Massachusetts
Institute of Technology, University of California at Los Angeles,
and the University of Denver. Parr's articles have appeared in
publications ranging from the University of Chicago Policy Review
to The Consensus Building Handbook.
Parr remains active nationally as a
Fellow of the National Academy for Public Administration, chair of
the Pew Civic Entrepreneur Initiative, a trustee of the Institute
for the Regional Community, and a commissioner of the Denver
Urban Renewal Authority.
In the 1970s, Parr played key
roles in the campaign and administration of Gov. Richard Lamm.
He directed the Colorado Front Range Project, a public-private
long-range planning effort on growth issues in Colorado's 200-mile
urban corridor. Later he headed the transition efforts for
Federico Pena as the mayor of Denver. He also served on the
founding staff of Common Cause's first state chapter, Colorado
Common Cause.
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