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Community Empowerment
– Bill Stillinger, PV Squared
Over the past two decades Empowerment Institute has developed a highly effective community organizing framework and citizen behavior change and engagement tools which it calls “Social Change 2.0.” It has successfully built the capacity of several thousand community change agents in this approach who in turn have empowered hundreds of thousands of people to adopt prosocial behaviors around many issues.
Empowerment Institute provides community organizers with the strategies, tools and design expertise to integrate the Social Change 2.0 framework into a community initiative. As part of this toolkit it provides four turnkey community-based behavior change programs. These programs can be used as part of an existing initiative or as the foundation for a new one. These programs are described below.
Low Carbon Diet Program
This workbook program contains twenty-four behavior change actions focused on lifestyle practices, household systems and empowering others. It also includes a CO2 Reduction Action Plan, on-line carbon calculator, recruitment tools, and team leader guides for facilitating peer-support group meetings.
An education and outreach application of the Low Carbon Diet is the Cool Community Campaign. It assists local governments, utilities and community-based organizations in empowering citizens to adopt low-carbon lifestyle practices. Empowerment Institute offers two forms of support for deploying a Cool Community Campaign: Social Change 2.0 community organizing leadership certification focused on implementation of the Cool Community Campaign and a customized community training. For more information click here.
Green Living Program
This workbook program contains eighty-one behavior change actions and sustainable lifestyle assessments for solid waste reduction, energy efficiency, water efficiency, transportation efficiency, green purchasing and empowering others. It also has team leader guides for facilitating peer-support group meetings.
An education and outreach application of the Green Living Program is the Sustainable Lifestyle Campaign. It assists local governments, utilities and community-based organizations in empowering citizens to adopt resource-efficient lifestyle practices. Empowerment Institute offers two forms of support for deploying a Sustainable Lifestyle Campaign: Social Change 2.0 community organizing leadership certification focused on implementation of the Sustainable Lifestyle Campaign and a customized community training. For more information click here.
Livable Neighborhood Program
This workbook program contains thirty-five block level actions and livability assessments for health and safety, beautification and greening, resource sharing, and neighborhood building. It also has block leader guides for facilitating team meetings.
An education and outreach application of this program is the Livable Neighborhood Campaign. It serves as a platform for integrating and delivering the programs of local government agencies, community non-profits, and neighborhood and block associations. Empowerment Institute offers two forms of support for deploying the Livable Neighborhood Campaign: Social Change 2.0 community organizing leadership certification focused on implementation of the Livable Neighborhood Program and a customized community training. For more information click here.
Water Stewardship Program
This workbook program contains thirty-two behavior change actions and action plans for water quality, water conservation and community volunteering and advocacy. It also has team leader guides for facilitating peer-support group meetings.
An education and outreach application of this program is the Water Stewardship Campaign. It assists local governments and watershed organizations in empowering residents to reduce pollutants that harm local water bodies and to conserve water. Empowerment Institute offers two forms of support for deploying the Water Stewardship Campaign: Social Change 2.0 community organizing leadership certification focused on implementation of the Water Stewardship Program and a customized community training. For more information click here.
Resilient Community Program
This workbook program which is customized for a city contains thirty-two block and building level level actions and action plans divided into three sections: preparing for energy disruptions; preparing for natural disasters, emergencies and terrorism; and creating a resilient neighborhood. It also has block/building leader guides for facilitating team meetings.
An education and outreach application of this program is the Disaster Resilient Community Campaign. It serves as a platform for integrating and delivering the emergency preparedness program of a local government emergency management agency, community non-profit addressing emergency preparedness and resiliency issues, and neighborhood and block associations addressing safety issues. Empowerment Institute offers two forms of support for deploying the Disaster- Resilient Community Campaign: Social Change 2.0 community organizing leadership certification focused on implementation of the All Together Now Program and a customized community training. For more information about the program and its application in New York City click here.
Community Empowerment Video
Low Carbon Diet Program Testimonials
“Low Carbon Diet is a very effective program for helping people achieve real and lasting carbon reduction at the household level. We gave a copy to each person who was personally trained by Al Gore and The Climate Project to give a version of his slideshow. I recommend it to anyone who wants to do their part to reduce their carbon footprint.”
-- Jenny Clad, Executive Director, Al Gore’s “The Climate Project
Green Living Program Testimonials
"The Green Living Program has demonstrated results and can make a real difference. In our work with communities across America this is exactly the sort of tool for which they are searching.”
– Molly Olson, Executive Director,
President’s Council on Sustainable Development
Livable Nieghborhood Program Testimonials
“I have been personally struck by the remarkable effectiveness of the Livable Neighborhood Program’s ability to engage neighbors and empower them to take and sustain action on a block level. Through our work with this program, I have become absolutely convinced that it’s state-of-the-art ‘social technology’ has immense potential here in Philadelphia and across the country to transform individual behavior and neighborhoods.”
-- Christopher Patusky, Deputy Director,
Fels School of Government University of Pennsylvania
Resilient Community Program Testimonials
"It is the best thing I have seen across the world. And I have observed preparedness practices from the United States to Botswana. And the reason it is, is because it takes people from where they are at the awareness level and raises them to the next level. It empowers them to act now."
– Kay Goss, Associate FEMA Director for Preparedness in Clinton Administration
Water Stewardship Program Testimonials
"Creating watershed stewardship teams has been a powerful outreach tool for our community. It has been exciting to observe the teams in action as they complete projects in their homes, yards, and neighborhoods. In addition, I was struck by the program’s ability to successfully attract Team Leaders. Team Leaders, in turn, indicated the program provided them multiple benefits including the leadership skills of coaching, group facilitation, project management and community organizing.”
– Elenor Hodges, Executive Director
, Arlingtonians for a Clean Environment