Green Infrastructure and Conservation

Environmental and Public Health

Economy

Social/Cultural

Climate Adaptation and Mitigation

Green Economy/Jobs

Traditional food , gathering spaces, ceremony

stormwater management, climate adaptation, less more biodiversity, food production, sustainable energy production, clean water, and healthy soils.

Parks, community gardens, open public spaces, increased property values, lower energy costs, recreation,


1. Intro: What is the green economy? Build a shared analysis on what the green economy is, specifically in Oregon.

What kind of jobs exist here?

Ex. Intertribal Gathering Garden

Ex. Thomas Cully Park

Intro

Green Divide

Creating a new narrative and environment for immigrants and people of color. What actions can we take to ensure the green economy, green infrastructure benefits immigrants and people of color?

Ex. Jade District

Ex. How to create a rain garden?

Partnerships, community outreach and visioning


● Explain the financial, political and community engagement process that was required to create these projects


● Demonstrates the benefits of community designed, green infrastructure

● Cully Park as a concrete example of multiple benefits.

4. Advocacy

● What does a participant need to understand in order to participate in green infrastructure advocacy? How do we convince people that they should be part of the green economy.

● Who is fighting for equity of workers (specifically ppl of color and women) who don’t have representation?

● How do we advocate for resources, policy and implementation practices that benefit our community?

3. Entry and Training (Opportunities and Barriers)

2. New Economy

How is the green economy developing and what are the opportunities? Where are these opportunities being created and for whom?
● How do we shift the focus of the green/clean economy to create community benefits (building wealth in communities of color)? Ex. Elon Musk investing in solar city here in Oregon. How can we build wealth in our communities?

  • How do you form local economy

● Verde has existing Social Enterprise Trainings
● Verde Energy-- social enterprise in energy efficiency.
● Verde landscape- bioswale,etc. success data

● What institutions exist for certification, etc.? What training programs exist? This training normally lands on the unions. (add’l business opportunities to train people for jobs)

Presenters-Maurice Rahming, Kelly Haines, Connie Ashbrook, Joanne Hardesty/NAACP, Ricardo Moreno

better air quality, reduces heat island effect

Activity: ● Use short video clip on Cully park advocacy at City Hall and start conversation there.
○ How do we capture story of City Hall advocacy, coalition building and organizing?

Activity: ● Divide into small groups, define issues and what they mean to attendees? Ex. what is the green economy?

Activity: Sociodrama (skit) on green economy workers. Each character acts out their tasks and each can talk about what they are contributing to the green economy, what are the barriers they are facing in the green economy (as a person of color, as a woman), identify examples of how they fought for changes.

Activity: ● Trivia: http://ceed.org/document/toxic-trivia/

Green infrastructure is a cost-effective approach to managing urban problems and climate change

●East Portland is disproportionately underinvested when it comes to green infrastructure
●Residents on the West side of the river have much greater access to parks and public spaces, as well as green infrastructure
●As times goes on, climate change will have a significant effect on communities of color and households living below the median household income
●The city must increase investment in these neighborhoods

Displacement can be accelerated by green infrastructure investments, so future investment should align with anti-displacement policies

Recommendations

●Work with City to make green infrastructure investments a higher priority in East Portland neighborhoods undergoing urban renewal.


●Ensure that percentage of Tax Increment Financing funds are allocated towards increasing access to parks and green spaces.


●Leverage Community Bioswale + Green Steward Programs (Bureau of Environmental Services) by reallocating funds from city budget.


●Work with Portland Bureau of Transportation to increase bikeway accessibility in Jade and Lents Districts.


●Ensure that anti-displacement policies are enforced as part of the Portland Comprehensive Plan

Food Justice

Overview, Details

Outside Tour: , Thomas Cully Park (food garden, rain garden, green streets, )**, Zenger Farm. (Danny, WOTE, Momentum Alliance, AA Food Sovereignty), Green Lents (Rose CDC, Malden Courts Community Orchards, Johnson Creek Water Shed, Diesel testing, interns)

Goals:

Objectves

Messages:
● We won’t accept any policies that don’t provide multiple benefits (cobenefits)

  1. Relational Worldview Model- how are we connected to earth./ Why we look at everything through a sustainability lens. Build relationships b/w communities and organizations
  1. How do we look at green infrastructure from an equity perspectve?
  1. What are the benefits of green infrastructure that benefit all communities of color? Get communities excited to implement green infrastucture projects.

●Three 2-4hr workshop to adapt to organizations? ●Saturday afternoon session tour?
●Train the trainer

Schedule: 3-4 stations


  1. Rain Garden-- Environmental Benefits
  2. Thomas Cully Park-- Economic Benefits
  3. ITGG- Social/Cultural Benefits.
  4. Green Streets- Community planning, Careers, Equity lens

Connect with nature: Connecting communities to Troutdale. What are the political and cultural

BBQ at Living Cully Plaza: Habitat Humanity and Cully on Green Technology/green roofs; Share out from Living Cully Partners

Community watershed program, past PIC recipients, Metro's Nature in Neighborhoods

Asks:
-Connect people to climate justice conversations (i.e. how can climate policies tangibly provide benefits)

  • get people to step up for leadership opportunities- ex. sitting on grant committees
    -Get people to take advantage of federal programs like housing and energy efficiency
    -Make a connection between urban and rural areas
    -Get people to write their own PIC grants/see existing resources
    -Advocacy opportunities.
  • See people reconnect to plant world
    -See relevance and grounding in all the work we do-- 7th Generation Approach. Informed, educated and engaged-- not hard work.
    -networking opportunity
    -encourage people to make their own projects.

-- People should have concrete ideas of how to apply these learnings to their own communities.