Looking for Boulder organizers...

Dear Boulder friends,

My name is Jenny Leis and I am a community organizer and cross-pollinator from Portland, OR. I will be in Boulder from Sunday, February 3rd to Wednesday, February 6th and I'm looking to connect with creative grassroots changemaking people and community organizing efforts. Do you know of any groups or people in Boulder who I should meet? I am also hoping to host a slideshow on Tuesday, February 5th about my last year as a traveling organizer, cross-pollinating among social and eco-justice groups across the US and Africa! Do you know of a venue or group that could host me?

Here is some more about me and what I'm looking for in Boulder, if you know of anyone to forward this to:

I’ve been community organizing in Portland, OR for about six years, focused on creative ways to localize and focalize around community and the environment. I’ve been organizing with The City Repair Project for our community placemaking projects (“Intersection Repair” is a neighborhood vision, decision-making and design process for creating place and addressing local issues), as well as outreach, slideshows and workshops about our work (www.cityrepair.org). Over the last three years, I’ve also co-founded Tryon Life Community Farm (www.tryonfarm.org), a seven-acre urban sustainability education center that integrates human residences, permaculture gardens, natural building, urban density, community design and wilderness preservation. Two years ago (today!) we were birthed after a yearlong fight to protect the land, raise $1.6 million as a volunteer effort, and found the 501(c)(3)! Now we are an active education hotspot and forum for many networks throughout Portland, bridging ecological, social justice, economic, political, cultural and spiritual realms.

Over the last year, I took on the label of “cross-pollinator” in order to explore the idea that social change efforts today are often disconnected, especially between the people- and earth-focused movements, and that if we found ways to link or learn from each other, we would collectively be a whole lot more effective. So, I took off for a year to observe and become part of many diverse changemaking efforts worldwide. I started in the US, and then went to the World Social Forum in Nairobi and spent six months in Africa connecting with social movements and changemakers (check out: http://journeydejenny.blogspot.com). Across the globe, I found many isolated projects as well as an emerging ecosystem of linked strategies. It quickly became apparent that: that we are truly an emerging network of social change efforts; and, there is a yet-to-be-recognized formal role for “cross-pollinators” that, once fully explored, could be critical links for creatively intertwining cross-issue and cross-sector exchange.

I am hoping to coordinate a slideshow for Tuesday, February 5th. This slideshow could be about our work in Portland (City Repair or the story of how we saved TLC Farm), but I am hoping to share my experience as a cross-pollinator and host a discussion about activism and organizing today. Do you know of a venue or group that could host me?

I will be in Boulder to babysit my 6-month old niece while my sister is at a conference, which means that I have lots of time to hang out and meet people!! I would love to learn about changemaking efforts in Boulder and meet any people or groups doing creative, effective grassroots organizing (around any issue! It’s all connected!).

Thanks so much!

In community,
Jenny Leis

jenny@cityrepair.org
http://journeydejenny.blogspot.com