Fall Friends & Allies Summit
Thursday, October 20, 12:00-6:30pm
McMenamins Kennedy School

Keynote

Relational Worldview: Indigenous Theory and Application
Terry Cross, citizen of the Seneca Nation, Founder and Senior Advisor of the National Indian Child Welfare Association

This keynote presentation will examine how the National Indian Child Welfare Association (NICWA) has used the intersection between the linear worldview of Western culture and the relational worldview of Indigenous peoples and organizations to advance the interests of Indigenous children and families. NICWA’s success as a community development, training, and advocacy organization has been built on its culturally based approach. Dr. Cross will share the story of the development of this approach including examples of the NICWA’s application of its Relational Worldview Model ™. The model of balance within the relational worldview can also be applied to organizations and communities. Dr. Cross will explain how each element of the individual model has a parallel in an organization and will discuss the essential elements for sustainability and balance within any organization.

Workshops

Accessibility - It's More Than ADA
facilitated by Will Cortez, Accessibility Project Manager, Metro Parks & Nature

Over the course of this workshop, we'll familiarize ourselves with accessibility standards with a focus on where they are confusing, vague and maybe even missing. We'll learn about and practice what it means to bring an intersectional equity lens to accessibility work. You'll leave with tools, ideas, and the foundation for a framework for accessibility work in your organization. This workshop will center outdoor professionals (environmental educators, park rangers/workers, park planners, etc.), community based groups, and other folks working with/for parks & nature organizations.

(De)Constructing Org Culture: Weaving Empathy Into Equitable Action
facilitated by Ruby Joy White, Creative. Sociologist. Writer. Social Equity Strategist & Consultant

Culture activates the identity and ideological framings of an organization, impacting everything from hiring practices, staff retention & morale, safety and wellness, and social equity implementation. Much of an organization’s innerworkings stem from White Supremacy Culture, and operating from a point of having “power over.” Within this paradigm rests old systems of injuries, activating a lack of cultural empathy, an unwillingness to take equitable risks, and an avoidance to truly reflect on how personal identity, power, and collusion hinder true progress. In this workshop, folks will participate in deep personal reflection, group conversations, and engage with evidence of organizational harm to develop personal risk inventories that will guide the implementation of equity through a lens of empathy.

Empowering You to Submit That Grant Application
facilitated by Jessica Green, Operations and Program Director, Portland Parks Foundation and Subashini Ganesan-Forbes, Founder/ED, New Expressive Works & Oregon Arts Commissioner

How often have you started reading a grant opportunity with a feeling of optimism and ending with a feeling of overwhelm and exhaustion by the end of the document? Or you think, “I know our project deserves to be considered, but I am overwhelmed by the criteria, guidelines, and questions!” While many public and private foundations that offer small grants are making their applications more equitable, the grant world is still a bit mysterious and unwieldy for so many of us to access. 

This workshop will help you start demystifying grant lingo and to think about telling your story in authentic and persuasive ways. We will break down the elements of commonly asked questions in grants so that you can walk away with basic language about your project that can be used for future grant opportunities. Be prepared to think deeply about your plans, to put these ideas on paper, and to develop narratives for future funding opportunities!  

This workshop will benefit project and/or organizational leaders who are seeking funding for a project(s) they have already planned for OR are still in the process of developing. You will gain tools to create an overarching document that describes the mission, vision, values, history, programs and impact of your project/organization. The ultimate goal is that this document will serve as a homebase, if you will, so that you don’t have to feel like you are starting from scratch, every time you write a grant proposal. 

Trauma-Informed De-escalation Strategies For You and Your Organization
facilitated by Vo Vo

An introductory workshop for folks needing to form trauma-informed responses to various states of mental health, crisis, or working with the public. We will address definitions, de-escalation, calming strategies, and how to integrate knowledge and trauma informed practices into our responses. Depending on the needs of participants, we may start to look at space agreements, and/or roleplaying a de-escalation procedure. 

*Masks are required for this workshop

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