Event Description

Equitable Adaptation: Collaborating for Resilience
December 1, 12 - 1 pm EST

Climate change impacts disproportionately affect low-income and communities of color, those with the least resources to prepare for, withstand and recover from extreme events. How can municipal and county decision makers and civic leaders support social cohesion, and promote effective engagement with all community members, especially those that are most likely to be impacted? This webinar will cover:

Tips for promoting effective engagement with community-based organizations and historically marginalized populations

Useful methods for building equity into resilience and adaptation planning and implementation.


Presenters:

-Abigail Abrash Walton, Antioch University New England

-Damaris Reyes, Executive Director, Good Old Lower East Side, Inc. (GOLES).

This webinar will be moderated by Christine Ash, U.S. EPA Region 2 Environmental Justice Coordinator.


Damaris Reyes, Executive Director of GOLES, is a lifelong resident of the Lower East Side and has been with the organization since 2000. She has been involved in community organizing and housing issues both locally and nationally for nearly 20 years. She is the chair of LES Ready, a recovery and disaster network, and a member of the NY Rising committee, created by the Governor's office to develop resiliency initiatives. Reyes currently sits on the Center for Neighborhood Leadership advisory board, the National Center for Law and Economic Justice board of directors, and the Southside United HDFC - Los Sures. She is also a member of Community Board 3 and sits on the first ever Public Housing Committee, its Land Use, Zoning & Housing committee, and the Waterfront Taskforce, charged with the East Side and Two Bridges Coastal Resiliency Project, which to date has been awarded more than $700 million to design flood protections along the East River. A regular public speaker around public housing and resiliency, her work has taken her internationally to learn about flood protection strategies and to share best practices in community engagement, resiliency, and disaster-preparedness. She has received numerous honors for her work, including the 2006 New York Women's Foundation's Neighborhood Leadership Award and the 2009 Jane Jacobs Medal from the Rockefeller Foundation and the Municipal Arts Society.

Abigail Abrash Walton serves as Co-Director, Center for Climate Preparedness and Community Resilience, Antioch University New England; and as faculty in the Department of Environmental Studies, where she directs the Advocacy for Social Justice and Sustainability master's concentration. Abigail is lead author of the Center's new report and has served as P.I. for two climate resilience Facilitated Communities of Practice, including local government professionals engaged in road testing the U.S. Climate Resilience Toolkit and focused on coastal resilience on Maryland's Eastern Shore. She chaired the City of Keene's Planning Board (2011-2014) and served on the Steering Committee for the City's Master Plan, which focuses explicitly on sustainability, climate change mitigation and adaptation. She has served as a commentator for The Washington Post, The New York Times, National Public Radio, "Democracy Now!" and "The News Hour with Jim Lehrer," among other media outlets. Abigail holds a PhD in Leadership and Change from Antioch University, a M.Sc. in Political Theory from the London School of Economics and Political Science, a B.A. in International Relations from the University of Pennsylvania, and a Permaculture Design Certificate from the Occidental Arts & Ecology Center.

Weathering Change: Local Solutions for Strong Communities is a free webinar series presented by Antioch University New England, in partnership with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). For more information, visit our website. To view past webinars, visit Upcoming and Past Webinars.

To learn more and to register: http://bit.ly/2ghtgSL