Engaging conversations for people making communities and organizations work better
Alex Torpey speaks with municipal leaders, public employees, boards, nonprofits, civic organizations, professional associations, and community groups about leadership, trust, governance, politics, technology, communication, and the real work of getting things done.
Sessions combine real-world experience, good stories, useful ideas, audience interaction, and a friendly, approachable style designed to leave people thinking differently — and ready to do something with what they learned.
Good ideas should be able to travel
Speaking and professional development are part of Rethink Local’s broader public-benefit mission: helping useful ideas, lessons, and practical approaches move between communities and organizations.
We intentionally keep speaking and workshop fees accessible, particularly for municipal, nonprofit, educational, and civic-minded organizations. If a useful session makes sense but budget is a concern, reach out anyway.
Practical topics grounded in real work
Sessions can be delivered as conference talks, interactive workshops, leadership discussions, staff trainings, retreats, or custom programs built around your audience.
Communicating Operational Risk and Needs
Helping operators, department heads, and technical professionals communicate infrastructure, staffing, risk, and operational priorities so boards and communities can make informed, timely, and confident decisions.
Building Trust in Difficult Civic Environments
A practical look at what happens when roles blur, communication breaks down, public conflict escalates, or institutions lose credibility — and what leaders can do to create more stable, constructive civic environments.
Boards, Managers & Getting Things Done
Clear roles, useful goals, better meetings, healthy relationships, and practical habits that help governing bodies and professional staff work through difficult issues without creating unnecessary friction.
Authentic and Effective Public Engagement
One of strongest threads of Alex’s work is what he calls “authentic and effective public engagement,” a clear set of core values that can help reframe the power of building trust in communities and organizations that serve the public.
Running for office and getting involved
Since being elected as a nonpartisan mayor of Alex’s hometown, making him one of the youngest mayors in the United States at 23 years-old, CEO to a $33m organization, Alex has coached, mentored, and inspired dozens to run for office and get more engaged in our politics and civics.
Leadership lessons and insights
Alex is well versed in leadership values that can help nonprofit, company, and public leaders more clearly define their purpose and ability to leave lasting positive marks on the organizations they serve. Integrating relevant examples, such as his Top 15 ICMA article on leadership lessons from Coach Ted Lasso, Alex can help inspire and support leaders to be the best version of themselves possible.
From a keynote to a working session
The same topic can look very different depending on whether you need inspiration, professional development, practical problem-solving, or a facilitated conversation.
Keynote / Conference Talk
Engaging, story-driven presentations that combine useful ideas, real experience, humor, and clear takeaways for a larger audience.
Interactive Workshop
More participation, exercises, discussion, scenarios, and opportunities for attendees to apply ideas to their own work.
Board or Leadership Retreat
Facilitated work around roles, priorities, governance, trust, strategy, communication, or organizational challenges.
Roundtable / Custom Program
A focused conversation for professional groups, staff teams, associations, or communities that want dialogue more than a traditional presentation.
Experience with audiences inside and outside local government
Alex has taught, presented, facilitated, and led conversations with audiences ranging from students and community members to municipal managers, governing boards, public employees, professional associations, and organizational leaders.
A few recent places and organizations where Alex has presented or facilitated
Alex has experience delivering content through hundreds of workshops, keynotes, talks, and classroom experiences. Here are a few.
- Granite State Rural Water Association Annual Field Day Communicating Risk to Decision-Makers
- Primex/MMANH 2026 Building public trust and engagement
- ICMA Annual Conference 2025 Effective board onboarding and orientation
- ICMA Local Government Reimagined 2024 and 2025 Effective Board onboarding and orientation
- Primex/MMANH 2025 Authentic and Effective Public Engagement
- ICMA Annual Conference 2024 Authentic and Effective Public Engagement
- NH Municipal Association 2025 Building public engagement and trust
- Dartmouth Rockefeller Center 2024 Local Government Innovation
See what a session or conversation feels like
Although the majority of sessions are not recorded or available publicly, here are a few examples that can give you a sense of how Alex approaches speaking with audiences.
Local Government – the untapped innovator
Dartmouth’s Rockefeller Center
Hanover NH Candidate Forum
Hanover, NH & Dartmouth College
Local Government Innovation
Belfast Technology Conference
The Local Revolution
Personal Democracy Forum
Speaking should not be limited to organizations with large conference budgets
Fees vary based on format, preparation, travel, audience, and organization type, but Rethink Local intentionally keeps rates flexible and reasonable for municipal, nonprofit, educational, and civic organizations.
Virtual sessions, shorter programs, shared events, and other arrangements can often make a session work for a smaller budget. If cost is the only thing keeping a useful conversation from happening, reach out anyway.
Bring a useful, engaging conversation to your organization.
If you are planning a conference, workshop, staff training, board retreat, professional-development program, or community conversation, send a note.
You do not need to have the format figured out. A topic, audience, approximate amount of time, and what you hope people walk away with is plenty to start.
Tell us about your event
A few sentences is plenty. We’ll follow up to learn more.