Our mission and values

Hope to Action™

Our mission at The Obama Foundation is to inspire, empower, and connect people to change their world.  

We seek to build an active democratic culture where people are equipped and motivated to make change in the communities where they live, work, and play. 

We created the Hope to Action Values Framework to support new generations to draw on the values that have motivated President and Mrs. Obama. This Framework defines a set of values that anyone, anywhere, can put into play to build trust, activate participation, and expand opportunity in their community.

“ There are values that transcend race or culture, that move us forward, and there’s an obligation for all of us individually as well as collectively to take responsibility to make those values lived.”

–President Obama

Just as President and Mrs. Obama learned these values from those who came before them, we see new generations putting these concepts into play to overcome challenges and move us forward together. As we built this framework, we worked in close partnership with a global group of emerging leaders to understand their experience with values-based leadership and define an approach that resonates across contexts and audiences. 

Through programs, events, and the Obama Presidential Center, we invite audiences to explore these ideas and contribute their own values to help build a better world. We’re empowering rising leaders around the world to more powerfully participate by connecting them with the skills, resources, and networks to maximize their potential and take their local impact global. We’re forging pathways to essential opportunities for young people through education, mentorship, and career development, no matter where they’re from.

Right here on the South Side of Chicago, we’re building a home for this vision, a global center for change with a range of opportunities—coordinated programming, community outreach events, educational moments, and more—that invite visitors from down the block or across the globe to turn hope into action. 

The words surrounding the Museum Building are drawn from President Obama’s remarks on the Edmund Pettus Bridge, commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Selma to Montgomery marches. “Oh, what a glorious task we are given, to continually try to improve this great nation of ours.” 

President Obama’s words animate our values and commitment to building active citizenship in communities across the globe.

At the Obama Presidential Center, you’ll see our values in action as you:

• Engage with over 20 art installations that bring the value of Imagination to life and spur new ideas and energy.

• Experience our commitment to environmental sustainability and organizational Resilience—including sourcing 100% of the Obama Presidential Center’s electricity from renewable energy.

• Connect to the local community that gave President and Mrs. Obama so much. Read about some of the community members who inspire our work and how we’ve designed the Obama Presidential Center to invest in the community.

As a mission-driven organization, our values help align and direct our work as individual staff members to achieve a collective impact. Our values define not just what we aim to achieve, but how we go about it. 

Whether you’re looking to join our team or you’re inspired to live these values in your community, we invite you to join us—and let's bring change home.

Which of these Hope to Action Values are you putting into action?