Resilient Virginia

DESCRIPTION:THIS AGREEMENT PROVIDES FUNDING OF $150,000 UNDER THE INFLATION REDUCTION ACT (IRA) TO RESILIENT VIRGINIA. THE PROJECT WILL BUILD LEADERSHIP CAPACITY IN COMMUNITIES DISPROPORTIONATELY BURDENED BY ENVIRONMENTAL HARMS AND RISKS IN WARD 2 OF LYNCHBURG, VIRGINIA, ENABLING THEM TO ADDRESS THE INCREASED EFFECTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE THEY ARE EXPERIENCING, INCLUDING FLOODING EXTREME HEAT, AND OTHER ADVERSE IMPACTS TO HEALTH, SAFETY, AND ECONOMIC WELL-BEING. IN SUMMARY, THE PROJECT ELEMENTS ARE TO VERIFY A PROJECT WORK PLAN WITH PARTNERS, DATA COLLECTION TO ASSEMBLE THE LATEST HAZARD, CLIMATE, AND DEMOGRAPHIC DATA RELEVANT TO THE DESIGNATED COMMUNITY, COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT TO BUILD A COMMUNITY VISION AND GOALS FOR ACCOMPLISHING CLIMATE EQUITY, COMMUNITY CAPACITY BUILDING AND LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT THROUGH TECHNICAL AND CLIMATE EQUITY WORKSHOPS; AND DEVELOP OF A PROCESS FOR CLIMATE EQUITY REPRESENTATIVES INPUT IN REGIONAL RESILIENCY PLANNING.ACTIVITIES:THE PROJECT WILL INVOLVE IDENTIFYING THE COMMUNITY PROBLEMS, INCLUDING FLOODING AND HEAT RISKS, ENVISIONING POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS; AND THEN SETTING GOALS TO ACHIEVE THOSE SOLUTIONS. COMMUNITY CAPACITY-BUILDING AND LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT WILL TAKE PLACE THROUGH INFORMATIONAL AND TECHNICAL WORKSHOPS THAT WILL PROVIDE COMMUNITY MEMBERS IN WARD 2 WITH THE SKILLS, INFORMATION, AND RESOURCES THEY CAN UTILIZE TO BE PROACTIVE IN ENSURING THE SAFETY, HEALTH, AND WELL-BEING OF THEIR FAMILIES. RESILIENT VIRGINIA WILL HOST AN IN-PERSON MEETING IN LYNCHBURG WITH PARTNERS TO PRESENT PROJECT GOALS, ACTIVITIES, AND SCHEDULE. RESILIENT VIRGINIA AND PARTNERS WILL DISCUSS EXPECTATIONS RELATED TO PARTNER INVOLVEMENT IN THE PROJECT. GIS MAPS WILL BE REVISED WITH NEW AND UPDATED DEMOGRAPHIC, ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE, HAZARD, AND VULNERABILITY INFORMATION FOR THE DIAMOND HILL, FAIRVIEW HEIGHTS, TINBRIDGE HILL, AND WHITE ROCK HILL NEIGHBORHOODS IN WARD 2 OF LYNCHBURG, VIRGINIA. COMMUNITY MEETINGS WILL BE HELD WHERE COMMUNITY MEMBERS WILL IDENTIFY PROBLEMS, ENVISION POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS, AND ESTABLISH A VISION STATEMENT. WORKSHOPS WILL BE HELD TO PROVIDE COMMUNITY MEMBERS WITH TRAINING, RESOURCES, AND SKILLS NEEDED TO ACHIEVE THE GOALS DEVELOPED THROUGH COMMUNITY GOAL-SETTING MEETINGS. RESILIENT VIRGINIA AND PARTNERS WILL MEET TO EVALUATE AND REVIEW THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE PROJECT, ANALYZE LESSONS LEARNED, AND DEVELOP POTENTIAL APPROACHES TO MOVING AHEAD WITH THE NEXT STEPS IN THE COLLABORATIVE PROBLEM-SOLVING PROCESS. SUBRECIPIENT:NO SUBAWARDS ARE INCLUDED IN THIS ASSISTANCE AGREEMENT.OUTCOMES:OUTPUTS FROM THE PROJECT INCLUDE DATA UPDATES FOR CLIMATE RISKS AND DEMOGRAPHICS, WARD 2 RESIDENTS THAT ARE ENGAGED IN CREATING VISION AND GOALS TO ADDRESS CLIMATE EQUITY AND CONCERNS, CAPACITY-BUILDING WORKSHOPS, AND MEETINGS WITH PARTNERS AND COMMUNITY LEADERS. OUTCOMES INCLUDE COMMUNITY MEMBERS THAT ARE ABLE TO ASSIST THEIR COMMUNITY WITH ADDRESSING CLIMATE-RELATED RISKS AND COMMUNITY MEMBERS THAT ARE ENABLED TO PARTICIPATE IN REGIONAL FLOOD RESILIENCY PLANNING EFFORTS. THE BENEFICIARIES OF THIS PROJECT WILL BE THE RESIDENTS OF WARD 2 IN LYNCHBURG, VA.

DESCRIPTION: THE PURPOSE OF THIS ARP FUNDED GRANT IS TO STRENGTHEN THE ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE COMMUNITY'S CAPACITY TO ADDRESS FLOODING AND WATER QUALITY IN LYNCHBURG, VIRGINIA, AN INDEPENDENT CITY IN THE COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA, WHERE FLOOD OCCURRENCE, WATER CONTAMINATION, AND EXTREME TEMPERATURE HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED AS CURRENT HAZARDS WHICH, DUE TO CLIMATE CHANGE, WILL LIKELY BE EXACERBATED DURING HURRICANE SEASON. LYNCHBURG IS KNOWN AS THE 'CITY OF SEVEN HILLS' OR THE 'HILL CITY' AND LIES AT THE CENTER OF A WIDER METROPOLITAN AREA CLOSE TO THE GEOGRAPHIC CENTER OF VIRGINIA. IT IS THE FIFTH LARGEST METROPOLITAN STATISTICAL AREA (MSA) IN VIRGINIA, WITH A POPULATION OF 260,320. ACTIVITIES: THIS PROJECT SEEKS TO ENGAGE LOW-INCOME, MINORITY NEIGHBORHOODS, WHICH ARE DISPROPORTIONATELY IMPACTED BY THESE HAZARDS, TO BETTER UNDERSTAND THEIR RISKS AND TO DEVELOP COMMUNITY CAPACITY TO ADDRESS THEM. PROJECT ACTIVITIES INCLUDE: 1) KICK-OFF AND PROJECT REVIEW THAT PRODUCES A PROJECT WORK PLAN, 2) DATA COLLECTION TO ASSEMBLE THE LATEST HAZARD, CLIMATE, AND DEMOGRAPHIC DATA TO IDENTIFY VULNERABLE COMMUNITIES AT RISK, 3) COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, WHICH INCLUDES FIVE FACILITATED MEETINGS (INCLUDING MVOC CONFERENCE SESSIONS), FIVE SETS OF MEETING MINUTES, A FACILITATION FINDINGS REPORT, AND 15-20 ACCEPTABLE MITIGATION ACTIVITIES, AND 4) OUTREACH AND EDUCATION ACTIVITIES, WHICH WILL GENERATE AN OUTREACH PLAN AND EDUCATIONAL MATERIAL, INTERACTIONS WITH 300 RESIDENTS AND BUSINESSES, AND INPUT INTO THE LOCAL HAZARD MITIGATION PLAN. A LONG-TERM OUTCOME WILL BE THE IDENTIFICATION OF ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE CONCERNS THAT SHOULD BE INCLUDED IN A FUTURE LOCAL RESILIENCY PLAN. . OUTCOMES: THE OBJECTIVES OF THIS PROPOSED PROJECT INCLUDE USING THE LATEST HAZARD, CLIMATE, AND DEMOGRAPHIC DATA TO IDENTIFY VULNERABLE COMMUNITIES AT RISK, ENGAGING WITH COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS AND INDIVIDUALS ON WATER QUALITY AND REDUCING HAZARD IMPACTS, AND DEVELOPING EDUCATIONAL MATERIAL TO PROMOTE HAZARD AWARENESS, AND CARRYING OUT NO-COST/LOW-COST HAZARD MITIGATION AND WATER QUALITY ACTIVITIES. FLOOD AND EXTREME TEMPERATURE HAZARDS WERE IDENTIFIED DUE TO THE LIKELIHOOD OF CLIMATE CHANGE EXACERBATING THESE HAZARDS. THIS INITIAL TASK WILL ALLOW THE TEAM TO MEET, REVIEW PROJECT GOALS AND ACTIVITIES, FINALIZE A SCHEDULE, AND ANSWER ANY STAKEHOLDER QUESTIONS. A LIST OF DATA AND THEIR SOURCES WILL BE PROVIDED TO THE TEAM TO ENSURE ALL RELEVANT INFORMATION IS IDENTIFIED AND CAN BE COLLECTED IN A TIMELY MANNER. THE RESULT OF THIS TASK WILL BE A WORK PLAN THE TEAM WILL FOLLOW. OUTPUTS FROM THE PROJECT INCLUDE: 1) INFORMATION GATHERED TO IDENTIFY NEIGHBORHOODS WITHIN LYNCHBURG THAT WOULD BE DISPROPORTIONATELY IMPACTED IN HAZARD EVENTS, 2) RESIDENTS AND COMMUNITY LEADERS ENGAGED TO LISTEN TO THEIR CONCERNS AND SEEK INPUT ON WAYS TO INCREASE HAZARD MITIGATION ACTIVITIES, AND 3) EDUCATIONAL MATERIALS DEVELOPED AND DISSEMINATED. OUTCOMES INCLUDE: 1) INCREASE THE NUMBER OF STAKEHOLDERS AWARE OF AND ADDRESSING HAZARDS, AND 2) COMMUNITY INPUT INTO THE HAZARD MITIGATION PLAN. THE BENEFICIARIES OF THIS PROJECT ARE THE RESIDENTS OF LOW-INCOME AND MINORITY NEIGHBORHOODS OF LYNCHBURG, VIRGINIA, WHO ARE DISPROPORTIONATELY AFFECTED BY HAZARDS SUCH AS FLOODING, WATER CONTAMINATION, AND EXTREME TEMPERATURES. SUBRECIPIENT: LESLIE KING CONSULTING WILL PARTNER WITH MVOC, A LYNCHBURG NON-PROFIT COMMITTED TO ADVANCING RACIAL JUSTICE IN CENTRAL VIRGINIA BY INSPIRING ACTION AND SOCIAL CHANGE THROUGH EDUCATION, ENGAGEMENT, AND ADVOCACY.