Alexandra Steinberg, our Policy & Research Manager, and Lucy Berman, our Associate Director of Advocacy & Organizing, joined other experts and activists Feb 20-22, 2024, on framing housing justice and using media and art to advance it at the Housing Justice Narrative Convening in Phoenix. The poster behind them reads: "Housing Justice is Racial Justice! It is not our job to do what is popular, it is to make popular what is important to do."
Several ONE|NB staff members traveled to national conferences in late February and early March to share their expertise, learn from others, and network with professionals in their fields.
NeighborWorks America National Training Institute, San Francisco, (Feb. 26 – March 2)
This conference focused on creating an equitable future in housing and community development.
- Karen Zuñiga, our Director of Resident Services:
Zuñiga spoke at the NTI symposium – called “Co Creating an Equitable Future at the Intersection of Health, Housing, and Community Development.” It was an inspiring experience, she said, bringing together Black and Brown leaders and organizations from across the United States. Zuñiga was on a panel that delved into the crucial discussions surrounding the advancement of health equity through various initiatives, services, collaborative partnerships, inclusive decision-making processes, resident leadership development, and mobilization for systems change.
“We heard and witnessed the acknowledgment of Rhode Island’s contributions to health equity advancements through our Health Equity Zone model,” Zuñiga said. “The discussions during the panel, and beyond filled me with renewed determination to continue the impactful work we do.”
- Dennis González, our Housing Programs Manager:
González reflected on his NTI experience as incredibly enriching, enhanced by San Francisco’s beautiful weather and great food. He began his week with a Project Management course, leading to the symposium where Zuñiga spoke on engaging resident voices and building meaningful relationships. González found inspiration in hearing about the recognition of Rhode Island’s work and the model’s influence on other communities.
“I concluded the week with a Community Building course that truly marked my life,” Gonzalez said. “I am a proud Puerto Rican Native and credit a lot of my work to how I learned what community is from growing up in Puerto Rico. To my surprise there was a group from Puerto Rico who was also taking the course and I loved hearing all about the ways they are engaging communities and hearing all the stories about generational community leaders and it was such an uplifting and inspiring end of the week. It served as a reminder that this work will continue even after we are no longer in it and how important it is to pave the way for future leaders.”
- Elois Rodas, our Community Organizer:
Rodas said he gained strategic insights and inspiration at the San Francisco training, connecting with experienced instructors and community catalysts nationwide. He highlighted the importance of local empowerment, stating, “The sessions illuminated the need to support and celebrate our collective power beyond the challenges our residents know all too well.”
Rodas plans to implement new strategies in Central Providence, emphasizing the use of a racial equity lens and the significance of community identity in shaping the city’s future. He reflected, “This was an exceptional opportunity to see the dedication of community organizers and leaders in fighting for their neighborhoods’ futures.”
- Isaac Rubinstein, our Associate Director of Evaluation and Learning:
Rubinstein took courses on marketing organizations and emotional intelligence at work.
“While my work … is focused on the back-end of programs, discovering their impact and effectiveness, it was an important opportunity to learn about how we can market our programs through the lens of impact evaluation, and how our marketing and evaluation tools can reflect each other,” he said. “Additionally, in the Emotional Intelligence workshop, I considered tools to develop our team’s capacity to deal with change, and how to implement resilience-oriented programming into our learning and evaluation activities.”
Tennessee Housing Conference, Nashville (Feb. 29-March 1)
The conference brought together developers, lenders, investors, and policymakers to discuss the latest trends and challenges in affordable housing finance.
- Michelle Bleau, our Director of Housing Development
Bleau participated in a panel discussion on tax credit financing, where she presented a case study using our proposed East Providence Center City Apartments development on twin modeling of 4%/9% tax credits. Twin modeling is a technique that combines two types of tax credits – 4% and 9% – to maximize the equity and feasibility of a project. She explained how ONE|NB applied this technique to the proposed Center City Apartments in East Providence, highlighting the benefits and challenges of this approach.
Housing Justice Narrative Convening, Phoenix, Arizona (Feb. 20-22)
Organized by Race Forward and Community Change, the convening brought together housing justice organizers and advocates from organizations across the country, as well as Race Forward Artist Fellows.
- Alexandra Steinberg, our Policy & Research Manager, and Lucy Berman, our Associate Director of Advocacy & Organizing:
Steinberg and Berman attended the convening, which focused on how to frame discussions on housing justice and how to use mediums like video, music, and cultural organizing to advance housing justice. Steinberg and Berman learned from participants who shared their stories and strategies on how to shift the narrative on housing from a commodity to a human right, and how to mobilize people and resources to fight for housing justice.
“This convening was well-run, intentional, and grounded in place, and it challenged me to dream bigger,” Steinberg said. “I learned so much from the facilitators and other participants.”
Berman said they learned that cultural organizing as well as political organizing can advance racial, health, and economic equity in our communities. “This convening provided us with some critical tools to do that across all our focus areas,” they said. “I’m excited to bring the ideas raised at this convening back to all the CPO-HEZ Working Groups, not just the Housing group.”
