ICC creates new Emerging Leaders Membership Council.

New council establishes a place for young professionals to learn and participate as true peers in the Code Council.

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International Code Council Board of Directors Immediate Past President Alex Olszowy (front row, left) and Chief Executive Officer Dominic Sims (front row, right) welcome Emerging Leaders to Kansas City: (front row, left to right) Samantha Everett, Rebecca Brown, Elizabeth Arrington, (middle row, left to right) Michael Tomaselli, Ray Hubner, Kent Robinson, Blake Steiner, Andre Jean, (back row, left to right) Jesse De Anda, Benjamin Breadmore, Isaac Mallory, Britton Jaen, Jason Dilworth and Gary Forsyth.

The International Code Council (ICC) has created the Emerging Leaders Membership Council to give the association's future leaders an opportunity to shape its future goals and operations. This new Membership Council is an addition to the five discipline-specific existing Membership Councils — the Building Official; Fire Service; Plumbing, Mechanical & Fuel (PMG); Global, and Sustainability Membership Councils. These Membership Councils offer ICC members a place to come together as a more powerful force shaping the association, and to take them to the next level in their industry, careers and futures. The Emerging Leaders Membership Council establishes a place for young professionals to learn and participate as true peers in the Code Council. "We are providing this opportunity for the leaders of tomorrow because it won't be our world; it will be theirs," said Alex Olszowy III, Immediate Past President of the Code Council Board of Directors. The ICC Board approved the formation of an Emerging Leaders Membership Council in support of Olszowy's "Safety 2.0" initiative, continuing outreach to the next generation of code officials. Research conducted for the Code Council by the National Institute of Building Sciences revealed that over 80 percent of code officials plan to retire within the next 15 years, and more than 30 percent plan to do so within five years. "We are providing this opportunity for the leaders of tomorrow because it won't be our world; it will be theirs." — Alex Olszowy III This Membership Council will serve as a forum for Code Council members who are new to the code enforcement profession. Topics of concern will include new ways in which ICC members can communicate and interact, particularly regarding new technologies and social media vehicles. Code Council members will provide feedback regarding ways to best serve the needs of this next generation of professionals. This group of Emerging Leaders "shadowed" ICC's Board of Directors throughout the recent ICC Annual Conference and Public Comment Hearings in Kansas City, Mo., in October. The shadowing provided an opportunity for them to walk in the footsteps of the association's current leaders, and experience the path of leadership. "This is an opportunity rarely afforded to individuals who will shape tomorrow," said Benjamin R. K. Breadmore, a member of the Advisory Council to the Emerging Leaders. "Most often, breaking through the stigma of tradition can be a daunting task. "However," he continues, "the opportunity we have been given to form what our organization will look like for years to come will without a doubt make us stronger and better prepared for change."