April 27th Workshop Tracks & Sessions
The April training was comprised of three tracks: Equity & Inclusion and Innovation (each with two workshops) and Young Adult Leaders (a fully day forum). Additionally, the morning welcome included Catalyst Conversation ice-breakers to get juices flowing and make new connections and our lunch-time session provided time for open networking and a fundraising panel.
Track Descriptions:
The April training was comprised of three tracks: Equity & Inclusion and Innovation (each with two workshops) and Young Adult Leaders (a fully day forum). Additionally, the morning welcome included Catalyst Conversation ice-breakers to get juices flowing and make new connections and our lunch-time session provided time for open networking and a fundraising panel.
Track Descriptions:
- Equity & Inclusion - Putting equity at the center requires each of us to constantly ‘do our work’ - the work of seeing the barriers to true meritocracy; the work of putting ourselves in the shoes of traditionally marginalized voices to learn more about experiences and perceptions; the work of understanding how our biases shape our worldview and self-perceptions; and the work of gaining the skills of deciphering and managing cross-racial and cultural dynamics. That’s a lot of work, but without it, none of us can create fundamental change in our spheres of influence. These workshops open a discussion beyond what it means to be ‘good people’ and starts by trying to be real people. We discussed personal, interpersonal and institutional practices that we can all explore in our community work. View Workshops
- Innovation - The Grassroots Fund encourages grassroots groups to experiment, test and innovate, particularly at the intersections of social and environmental justice. Some of the most exciting local projects are those that are addressing interrelated community challenges in unique and cross-cutting ways, and inviting new, often surprising partners into that work. This track highlighted groups that are working at the vibrant intersections in new and exciting ways, and explored the condition necessary to create safe spaces to foster innovation. View Workshops
- Young Adult Leader Forum - The Grassroots Fund believes that the involvement and leadership of young adults (we define as up to 25 years old) in environmental justice community organizing is a critical component in fulfilling the Grassroots Fund’s mission of creating sustainable communities. We know that empowering young environmental and social justice change-makers from diverse backgrounds and connecting them with their peers and mentors is critical to the future of the environmental movement. We also see the tremendous power of youth at the forefront of grassroots organizing, leading and challenging old ways of thinking and organizing strategies. Yet creating space for that empowerment and next generation leadership is challenging and often new to established organizers and their groups.
This day-long youth forum gave both young adults and folks over 25 an opportunity to dig into effective strategies and barriers to making space for greater young adult empowerment and leadership in grassroots efforts. The morning session was comprised of facilitated discussions among young adults and folks 25 and older that allowed for frank, open conversations. These morning conversations flowed into a post-lunch group discussion that aimed to generate concrete strategies and best practices to support youth leadership, and build understanding and connections across generations, issue areas and regions. Participants were asked to remain in this track for the entire day. View Workshops