Collective Planning by Building Partnerships for Impact

1. Collective Planning by Building Partnerships for Impact Laura E. Gomez Rodriguez Community LIAISON Federal Inter-Agency Initiatives

2. Unique Situations, unique problem solving • PRESENT DAY: • Resources are not in abundance • Funding diversification is needed at local levels in order to execute daily services within a city/county • Competition against larger MSA’s is tough • Not one organization is an island, people are migrating in between cities and regions • COLLECTIVE PROBLEM SOLVING: • Partnering for better success with different organizations outside of the traditional, via leveraging constituents, resources/monetary, or logistical. • AI approach: (1) focus on strengths rather than weaknesses, (2) ask powerful, positive questions, and (3) use positive images of the future to motivate positive action. • Each of these practices can strengthen relationships and decision-making every day, as well as in large-scale planning or organization change efforts.

3. SC2 Brownsville Practices: Building Collective Impact • Creating a ‘Strong Foundation' by building up on current assets (ie. Federal, state, local & outside sources). • Work together internally and externally within organizations, who could become partners to implement local goals. • Create the time and space in order to evaluate your city and region’s assets in order to build a collective vision to strengthen & rebuild local economies. • Approach is about facilitating peer-learning and knowledge exchange between public servants of both levels of government in order to directly serve communities. • Not "one size" fits all approach; learning about how to tailor equitable approaches that meet community needs according to your city.

4. Case Study: City of Brownsville Environment and Infrastructure: Preparing for Climate Change and Natural Disasters through Smart Growth The Brownsville federal-interagency team is working in support of Mayor Martinez's and the Brownsville Community vision for a sustainable and climate ready city. The federal interagencyteam: • Worked with the City to analyze and invest in strategic infrastructure that supports sustainable climate practices for reducing Stormwater; • Started a dialogue paring scientific researchers with city "real world" researchers to understand principles of hydrology; • Identified opportunities for training and development around environmental health, hydrology and smart growth with federal agencies and local academia; • Community convening's with partner organizations and interdepartamental planning using tools like ENVIRO ATALAS, Smart Growth Guidance. • Brownsville is one of six cities nationwide to participate in the Greening Americas Communities technical assistance program provided and funded by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

5. Case Study: SC2 City of Brownsville Health and Wellness: Develop a blueprint to encourage healthy living and smarter choices in how the City grows. In support of Brownsville's goals for health and wellness which includes neighborhood revitalization and preparing for public health risks, the federal interagency team worked with the City of Brownsville to align community efforts and partnerships that will: • Neighborhood Revitalization- Pilot one project that would assess neighborhood revitalization by selecting one site within the city that would benefit from revitalization efforts. • Educate and empower the community with information, tools, and data around public health issues of concern in order to promote more informed decisions. June 2016, the Housing Authority for the City of Brownsville (HACB) and the City of Brownsville partnered, submitted and was granted a HUD Choice Neighborhoods grant to transform the Buena Vida neighborhood. City of Brownsville was awarded the GAC assistance and incorporating HACB as part of the planning efforts needed for community input and design charettes.

6. Case Study: SC2 City of Brownsville • Environment and Infrastructure: Reducing Municipal Energy Costs • The Brownsville Federal Inter-Agency team worked with the City of Brownsville to encourage leveraging opportunities: • Worked with the City to prioritize and invest in strategic infrastructure that supports sustainable climate practices by introducing renewable energy options for the community; ie, Solar; • Started a dialogue on energy & efficiency needs for low income housing;(HUD, EPA, DOE) • Identified opportunities for small business training and development around energy and innovation (HUD, EPA, DOE, EDA, SBA) • On June 2, 2016, Brownsville is one of 30 cities nationwide to participate in the SolSPARC technical assistance program provided by the Solar Foundation and funded by the Department of Energy. • The outlined process that the City of Brownsville developed was recently highlighted as an example for cities by The Solar Foundation. • As of April 2017, the City of Brownville passed a local ordinance supporting Solar Energy for commercial and residential use. Draft: please do not cite or distribute. Thank you.

7. ENVIRO ATALAShttps://www.epa.gov/enviroatlas Example images showing EnviroAtlas spatial extents. National data (left) are aggregated to 12-digit HUCs, while community data (right) are aggregated to census block groups. Draft: please do not cite or distribute. Thank you.

8. National Resource Networkhttp://www.nationalresourcenetwork.org/en/ideas/resource_library Draft: please do not cite or distribute. Thank you.

9. THANK YOU L.E. Gomez Rodriguez Gomez.laura@epa.gov