Dear friends,

Many of you might have already seen the exciting news about our founder, Joe Kennedy. Earlier today he was formally appointed by the Biden Administration to serve as Special Envoy to Northern Ireland for Economic Affairs.

In this role, Joe will work within the U.S. State Department to advance “economic development and investment opportunities in Northern Ireland. His role builds on the long-standing U.S. commitment to supporting peace, prosperity, and stability in Northern Ireland and the peace dividends of the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement.” You can read more about the appointment here.

This is a tremendous honor for Joe and an exciting new chapter in his public service career.

But you might be wondering: What the heck does this mean for Groundwork??

The good news is, not much! The Special Envoy is a part-time position that will allow Joe to continue his existing work with our organization and other key projects in his portfolio. This appointment will not change Joe’s role with, or commitment to, Groundwork Project and our urgent mission of helping build sustainable political infrastructure in regions of the country historically under-resourced, excluded and ignored. He will continue to support our grantees and partners on the ground and work to shed a light on the tremendous organizing happening in our focus states.

We’re thrilled to see him take on such an important position and excited for this new chapter in his public service career!

Best,
Emily

—
Emily Kaufman (she/her)
Executive Director
Groundwork Project