Our Focus Areas
Collaborative Engagement
The Institute is committed to boosting the civic engagement of communities of color through robust research, scholarship, and outreach. We are actively enhancing our partnerships with Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), nonprofit organizations, and local communities to support inclusive policy development and community empowerment.
Resilient Virginia
About the Collaborator
Resilient Virginia is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization focused on accelerating resiliency planning in communities across the Commonwealth. The organization has an extensive history of working in the state since 1995, as the Virginia Sustainable Building Network. They help communities adapt to climate, environmental, social, and economic challenges by educating key groups about models for resiliency planning.
Collaboration Overview
Resilient Virginia is partnering with RISE to shed light on climate justice issues in the Commonwealth through the Environmental Justice Data Project. The project is focused on data collection and community outreach to inform researchers about the impact of disasters and environmental hazards on critical infrastructure. Resilient Virginia and RISE will work with three local governments representing historically marginalized and underserved communities to secure funding for climate resilience projects. To that end, efforts will involve finding grants that address specific community needs and assisting local governments in applying for them. Our partnership will work to elevate the voices of those who have been routinely ignored in the fight for a more resilient future.
Virginia Union University
About the Collaborator
L. Douglas Wilder Library and Learning Resource Center at Virginia Union University is in honor of L. Douglas Wilder, humanitarian, civil rights leader and the first elected African-American governor (1990-1994) in the nation. The library houses The Wilder Collection, which is a very popular national and international attraction. The library provides their students and members of the community with support to help them find and evaluate the information sources they need. To explore the library’s online interactive guides, catalogs and periodicals, consider visiting the campus of Virginia Union University.
Collaboration Overview
To continue promoting civic engagement in communities of color, we are expanding our collaboration with L. Douglas Wilder Library and Learning Resource Center at Virginia Union University. This includes examining and applying the leadership legacy of Governor Wilder to undergraduate and graduate students, student scholarships, and the digitization of the extensive Wilder library collection.
Girls for a Change
About the Collaborator
Girls For A Change (GFAC) is a nonprofit youth development organization aimed at empowering Black girls in Central Virginia with a mission to support and inspire young Black and other girls of color to visualize their potential through discovery, development, and social change innovation within their communities.
Collaboration Overview
Girls For A Changes (GFAC) initiated a partnership with researchers at RISE to conduct a program evaluation of GFAC and its five programs. The primary goal of this project is to curate a State of the Girls RVA report. We envision the report will illuminate the lived experiences of Black girls across Central Virginia and produce an empirical-based report on the findings to benefit future offerings of GFAC, Black girls across the region, contributing an asset-based perspective to the body of research on Black girls.
Research & Analysis
Policy Solutions
Learning & Development
Collaborative Engagement
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