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Capacity-Building for Community Driven Planning

June 1, 2022

Capacity Building for Community Climate Leaders

In 2020, Climate Innovation joined with Facilitating Power and the NAACP to launch the Vision Power Solutions series based on the Framework for Community-Driven Climate Resilience Planning featuring grassroots leaders from across the country who exemplify vision, power and community solutions for climate justice. 

The final session in the 12-month-long series on March 24 highlighted the power and wisdom of community participation in policy making- a fitting topic for the end of a year-long training exploring the essential elements of community-driven climate resilience. The audience for the series was those looking to play a facilitative role in community planning or working in partnership with organizations rooted in communities disproportionately burdened by pollution, toxins, displacement, and other impacts related to climate and racial injustice. Over 100 community-based organizations were represented from across the country with 45 percent attending for a free or discounted cost.

Of the 220 people who registered for the series, many felt they “had found their tribe” delving into the core values and framework of community-led climate solutions and participatory policy and research. The amazing facilitation and experience of Rosa Gonzales of Facilitating Power, Julian Mocine-McQueen of Million Person Project, and PCIC’s Corrine Van Hook-Turner and Michelle Garielfoff-Parish, created a digital environment of joy, justice and juicy conversation. Many participants shared that they felt welcomed into the space and conversation about how communities can guide and lead their futures, for some participants for the first time. Averaging 135 registrants for each session, 35 percent of whom were NAACP members, the vibes were high as guest facilitators spoke of on-the-ground people’s planning, dealing and embracing conflict, and sharing stories of abundance and breakthrough. 

As part of the series, PCIC has extended NACRP membership to the 60 percent of participants who completed six or more of the 12-month series, so we will be welcoming over a hundred new members to the network! We are also excited to begin to plan for the 2022 Vision Power Solutions Facilitative Leadership training taking the best of the best content from the series and hosting a facilitation training and NACRP certification cohort for the first time ever. The vision is to see hundreds of trained and supported community-based facilitators across the country asserting community-driven climate planning as the norm, shifting away from a top-down paradigm of local planning. 

Join us in changing the climate resilience future! Donate today to support this amazing and timely work and stay tuned for more news about the 2022 Vision Power Solutions plans!