Leah Stern

Since June 2026 I have served on the board of Planned Parenthood of Metropolitan Washington, DC.

Women’s health and rights have run through my work from the start: program and policy work at Legal Momentum, the oldest legal advocacy group for women in the United States; the global health program at the Center for Health and Gender Equity, which advanced sexual and reproductive health and rights around the world; and materials on health and human rights for the Pan American Health Organization.

I spent nearly seven years at Forum One advising nonprofits and government agencies on organizational strategy, communications and constituent engagement, and I hold a Master in Public Policy in organizational management from Harvard Kennedy School.

When you’re a progressive leader, it’s easy to lose track of why you’re here and what you’re trying to accomplish. When you burn out and don’t have a way to recover, you get stuck in a pattern that feels demoralizing and overwhelming.

I worked on progressive causes for more than a decade, and I’ve been through the burnout cycle myself. As Leo tells Josh in The West Wing, “I’ve been here before, and I know the way out.”

Who I work with

• You’re ready to level up your management and leadership skills so you can be even more effective.
• You feel disconnected from your work, even though it matters deeply to you.
• You want a coach who understands the complexity of working in advocacy, policy and activism.
• You want a coach who can talk about privilege and power with thoughtfulness and empathy.

Maybe you’ve been promoted to manager and feel like you’re fumbling in the dark. Maybe you’ve tried to get out of burnout on your own and it hasn’t worked.

What clients learn

• Articulate their personal goals and vision.
• Manage people and teams more effectively.
• Make better decisions in complex environments.
• Live and work in a more authentic and grounded way.
• Get out of the burnout cycle.

I have coached since 2018 as Managing Partner, Leadership Coaching at Zahar Strategy Group, and hold an Executive Certificate in Leadership Coaching from Georgetown University.