Commonwealth/Worcester Green Low-Income Housing Coalition aims to introduce changes and best practices into the fabric of housing and other opportunities for homeless people. They are currently working on a “Green Homes for the Homeless” campaign to ensure the antiquated shelter and housing stock in greater Worcester takes advantage of multiple efficiency and energy programs, alleviating the stress on housing and program dollars, while also reducing the carbon footprint of the social service housing stock. Grassroots Fund spoke to Dave McMahon, one of their founders, to learn more.
DOT-I is a leadership development and organizing training program for Vietnamese American young adults (16-30) in Fields Corner, Dorchester. DOT-I provides leadership development and organizing training in a culturally-specific frame with the intention to move participants towards engaging in organizing issue-based campaigns.
SunPoint Farm Sanctuary is an island of rural New Hampshire nestled in suburban Derry, NH: the farm is 24 acres that abuts 128 acres of conservation land. SPFS works with refugees from Manchester NH, and provides space for them to garden and farm. In the ten years of this program, we have welcomed refugees from Bhutan, Congo, Turkey, and Iraq. What has been dawning on us over the years is to actually integrate the knowledge and skill of the traditional farming methodology from the refugees’ home country and adapt it to the particular challenges of farming in New England.
Social Emergency Response Centers (SERCs) are temporary, emergent, and creative pop-up spaces co-led by activists and artists around the US. They function as both an artistic gesture and a practical solution. As such they seek to find the balance between the two, answering questions like: “How will we feed people--and their hunger for justice?” “How will we create a shelter--where it's safe to bring your whole damn self?” “What will reconstruction--of civil society--look like?” The space will include opportunities for participants to step into creative action, healing, collective making, performances, and more.
