Vietnamese American memorial planned for Dorchester sparks intergenerational conversations

A team of Western art conservationists trained a community in Tibet how to restore historic monasteries that were crumbling due to the effects of climate change. Over decades of restoration work, the team sparked a cultural renaissance in the region and is providing economic opportunities for women.

Ten Mile, a community in South Carolina settled by freed slaves after the Civil War, is fighting climate gentrification and flooding by preserving land through forestry projects, land trusts, and greenbelt initiatives. Saving green spaces this way maintains the character of the historic Black neighborhood while promoting flood resiliency.

Fiddler Dennis Stroughmatt plays French Creole music, sings, and speaks in Missouri French to raise awareness about the language and culture no longer widely practiced in the region.

HEAR/HERE is a mobile digital history project that documents and shares the stories of Black Oaklanders. The HEAR/HERE truck visits community events and gathering places and asks attendees to answer questions that are designed to help them connect with their neighbors.

Philadelphia-based artists and community members came together to create the Heat Response PHL initiative to use art to engage with and educate locals about climate change and drive conversations about solutions to urban heat.

When the Public Iconographies project asked people in St. Louis "how would you map the monuments of St. Louis?", it got 750 hand-drawn maps telling stories of often-overlooked sites throughout the city. By letting people from the community determine what is important, the project ended up with a data-filled report channeling freeform responses. They included the spot where a Ferguson police officer killed Michael Brown, the site of a 1917 race riot, and Cahokia Mounds, a pre-Columbian site in the city. The project formed a counterpoint to efforts to remove problematic symbols, like a Columbus statue.

The U.S. Board of Geographic Names and the Oregon Geographic Names Board are changing offensive and racist geographic place names in the state. When looking to change a name, the boards reach out to community members and experts for recommendations. They also review new name proposals that locals submit for both unnamed and named locations.

Local art businesses, like dance studios, record stores, and tattoo parlors, that have historically served as community centers for local creatives are working with community members to help rebuild their facilities after catastrophic flooding.

Chicago students organized and, for the first time, convinced the city to rename a park in honor of Frederick and Anna Murray Douglass. The former Douglas Park was named after a Civil War era Illinois senator who advocated to expand slavery, and whose wife owned slaves. Not daunted by the city’s bureaucracy, the students canvassed in their community and gathered over 10,000 signatures for a petition to change the park’s name. The campaign, which began in 2017, was much harder and longer than the students anticipated, but by forming a coalition and continuing to speak out they persevered.

Pacific Islander communities in Hawaii have formed their own Covid-19 task forces to stop the virus’ spread, rather than wait for the government to respond. Despite a lack of resources, the task forces conduct community outreach providing protective gear and food and have partnered with community groups, recognizing the role of active community engagement and participation to achieve success. The task forces use a model that recognizes the significance of cultural nuances and language challenges, which has added to its success in keeping the infection rate among Pacific Islander communities relatively low.