An Open Streets Family Reunion: Reflections from the 2018 Open Streets Summit

By Ryan O’Connor, Director of Programs, 8 80 Cities Recently 8 80 Cities wrote a blog post about open streets being a labour of love. That being the case, the 2018 Open Streets Summit in New Orleans felt like a family reunion of sorts. It was rejuvenating to see old and new friends who share our passion for open streets and are working tirelessly to create healthier, happier, and more connected communities across the world. The event, which took place on September 15-16, brought together more than 50 leaders who currently organize open streets programs or are interested in bringing the...

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Open Streets Summit Draft Agenda

We hope you are getting ready and feel excited about the Open Streets Summit in Gretna/New Orleans! Taking place from September 15-16, 2018, the Summit will feature tours, presentations and networking opportunities with open streets champions and organizers from across the continent. Attendees will learn about the nuts and bolts of starting or scaling up open streets programs, including: Route design and planning Partnerships with business and officials Social inclusion Safety and logistics Marketing and promotion Program evaluation through measurable goals and metrics If you haven’t done it yet, click here to register for the Open Streets Summit only or...

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Open Streets Summit Speakers Announced!

The Open Streets Project is proud to announce that Ed Solis from Viva Calle (San Jose, CA), Romel Pascual from CicLAvia (Los Angeles, CA), Jaymie Santiago and Charles Brown from New Brunswick Ciclovia will join us as speakers for the 2018 Open Streets Summit in New Orleans and Gretna! Taking place from September 15-16 2018, the Summit will feature: Behind the scenes tour of the City of Gretna’s inaugural open streets program. Workshops, presentations, and networking opportunities with open streets champions and organizers from across the continent. Training and inspiration for both -novice and experienced- open streets organizers and supporters...

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Supporting Small Businesses & Their Workers: A Quality Jobs Roundtable

People of color disproportionately bore the brunt of small business closures during the pandemic, even as large corporations reaped record profits. But the pandemic has also sparked creative and thoughtful responses to support an equitable recovery among small business owners, while helping them create quality jobs. The LISC Institute for Community Power hosted a conversation with three individuals that have been at the forefront of that experimentation.

Wells Fargo Foundation Awards $22.5 Million to LISC to Expand Homeownership for BIPOC Families

LISC program offices in Houston, New York and Richmond, Va. each received $7.5 million from the Wells Fargo Foundation to lead local collaboratives designed to address systemic roadblocks to homebuying for Black, Hispanic and other underserved individuals and families. Homeownership is a critical part of LISC’s efforts to upend racial health, wealth and opportunity gaps. The three LISC-led collaboratives aim to create 15,000 new homeowners of color by the end of 2025.

LISC-NPQ Series: Centering Food Justice + Indigenous Maternal Knowledge

Our series with NonProfit Quarterly, Community Strategies for Systemic Change, concludes with an essay by the founding directors of the Cihuapactli Collective, a Phoenix-based organizations that offers healing services to urban Indigenous people "from womb to tomb." Nurturing the inextricable links between Native food sovereignty and mothering practices, they argue, supports community, land and spirit, and paves a path to equity and wellbeing. All photos courtsey of Cihuapactli Collective.