WLRN journalist Nadege Green is the first Haitian-American honored with the Ruth Shack Leadership Award for her work lifting Miami’s unheard voices
MIAMI – Nadege Green takes her responsibility as a journalist with WLRN seriously. Through her work, volunteerism and advocacy for community connectivity and safety, she embodies what she champions – a commitment to improving the lives of those who need help the most.
On Tuesday, May 1, Green, an alum of Miami Fellows Class IX, was honored for her dedication with The Miami Foundation’s 2018 Ruth Shack Leadership Award.
The award presentation, part of the Foundation’s Civic Leadership breakfast, featured global innovator, author and founder of #GivingTuesday, Henry Timms as guest speaker. More than 100 guests and Foundation friends attended the event at the Miami Dade College Wolfson Campus.
“Today, we continued the legacy of selecting a young person who leads in Miami using the same values as Ruth Shack,” said Javier Alberto Soto, president and CEO of The Miami Foundation. “Nadege Green impacts our community by highlighting our often overlooked neighborhoods and grassroots leaders. She reminds us that all Miamians have a duty and obligation to address critical issues facing our marginalized residents.”
Ruth Shack, president emeritus of The Miami Foundation, always helped pave the way for emerging leaders, whether through the Miami Fellows or as a mentor.
In Ruth’s honor, The Miami Foundation annually recognizes an under-40 leader who exhibits her same qualities – ethical leadership, dedication and service to Greater Miami. The first Haitian-American to receive the award, Green exhibits her devotion to Greater Miami residents through her story-telling, which she believes moves people out of their comfort zone and into spaces where they can connect, understand and help one another.
“I’ve been a journalist in Miami for 10 years, and whether I was covering city governments for the Miami Herald or now social justice issues for WLRN, the lens from which I tell stories is always, ‘How does this impact people?’” she said. “It can be very easy to get stuck at the policy or institutional level, but I consider it my duty to connect how policies and institutions directly impact residents. How does this on-paper, abstract idea play out in real life? Then, we truly understand how our neighbors live or struggle—how they overcome despite institutionalized roadblocks or in some cases, how institutions make it possible to thrive given the right set of circumstances.”
Ryan Pontier of Miami Dade College and Miami Fellows Class IX, submitted Nadege’s nomination and explains why she earned this prestigious title: “Nadege Green unwaveringly lives every moment of her life striving to make Greater Miami achieve its potential. As a social justice reporter with WLRN, she lifts the voices of community members that are often unheard and challenges her listeners, colleagues, and friends to continuously think from the perspective of those who are without privilege or simply forgotten.”
“It’s a little strange to me that as a journalist, I’m regarded as a leader in the community. I try to do my job in a way that will have impact and at the very least, make people think,” continued Green. “Unlike other jobs, the outcome is not always measurable or quantifiable even. You just have to hope it lands.”
