Paul Born

President, Tamarack - An Institute for Community Engagement

Profile photo of Paul Born

Paul Born is the cofounder and President of Tamarack Institute, a global leader on issues of place, collective impact, and community innovation. The author of four books, Born is internationally recognized for his community-building activities that have won awards from the United Nations and as a senior fellow of Ashoka, the world’s largest network of social innovators.

Paul Born grew up in the Fraser Valley of British Columbia as the son of Mennonite refugees. This in part is what made him deeply curious about and engaged in ideas that cause people to work together for the common good, work that he describes as collective altruism. He holds a Masters degree in Leadership is considered a global leader in helping organizations and communities to develop innovative ideas that motivate people to collaborative action.

Paul is a motivational speaker, facilitator and large scale community change consultant. Paul resides in Waterloo, Ontario.

Area of Expertise
Community Engagement
Community Development (Deepening Community)
Collaborative Leadership
Movement Building
Fundraising for Collective Impact
Recent Work
Deepening Community. Finding Joy Together in Chaotic times. 2014. Berrett Koehler Publisher, San Francisco. (A best seller with over 8,000 copies sold in the first year)
Community Conversations. Mobilizing the Ideas, Skills and Passion of Community Organizations, Governments, Businesses, and People. 2012, BPS Books Toronto. (A Canadian best seller with more than 20,000 copies sold)
Creating Vibrant Communities. How Individuals and Organizations from Diverse Sectors of Society Are Coming Together to Reduce Poverty in Canada. 2008, BPS Books, Toronto.
Leaderful Communities. A Study in Community Leadership. 2008, VDMVerlag
Seminars and Workshops
Deepening Community for Collective Impact
Deepening Community for Organizations
Community Engagement and Systems Change
Community Engagement Principles to Build and Sustain a Common Agenda
Community Conversations – Large scale Engagement
Top 100 Partners Tool
The First 12 Months – Effectively Launching a Collective Impact Initiative
Fundraising for Social Change

Five Good Ideas by this presenter