FIND RESOURCES
Here all of our resources are collected together. Find a resource based on a geography, issue, cultural practice, or impact by using the map and menus below.
Muslim Women Write the Body
Muslim Women Write the Body was a series of workshops organized with writer Roohi Choudhry (Nov-May, 2022), focused on Muslim identity and the gray areas of faith, particularly for women. Participants explored their identities in relation to past, present, and future, considering gender, culture and more. Choudhry and guest artists Nsenga Knight, Demo Ibrahim, Hala Shah, Aizzah Fatima led workshops on Zoom with follow up debrief and coaching sessions. The creative work was presented live at our annual Community Iftar on the Avenue C Plaza.
Community Iftar
Getting Out the Vote with the Arts!
Storytelling in Crisis
The virtual dialogue, Storytelling in Crisis, presented by Storyline, Arts & Democracy, The Laundromat Project, Naturally Occurring Cultural Districts NY (NOCD-NY) and US Department of Arts and Culture (USDAC) explored strategies for crafting storytelling responses that center care and connection, amplify resistance, and support resiliency. We heard from storytellers who have learned from their experience of making work grappling with pandemics; epidemics; and natural, social, political and economic disasters. Michael Premo (Storyline) facilitated a discussion with Steven Thrasher (Northwestern University), Nick Slie (Mondo Bizarro, Cry You One, I -10 Witness Project), and Regina Campbell (Rikers Public memory Project).
Midwest , Northeast , Southeast , Criminal Justice , Health , Human Rights / Social Justice , Film / Video / Audio / Digital , Theater / Performance / Spoken Word , Multi / Inter-disciplinary , Alliance / Movement / Field Building , Community Engagement , Political Engagement , Policy / Law Change
Program
Prokash / Reveal
Led by artist Monica Jahan Bose, the bilingual workshop series Prokash/Reveal took place from July - Oct 2021 providing an opportunity for immigrants and first generation youth to bridge multigenerational points of views related to identity, immigration, and biculturalism. The culminating performance on October 9 at the Ave C Plaza in Kensington, Brooklyn featured a community scroll that connected the tapestries created by participants and an open mic.
Northeast , Environment , Human Rights / Social Justice , Immigration , Visual Art , Multi / Inter-disciplinary , Community Engagement
Program
Kensington Cares
Kensington Cares honored community members who led mutual aid efforts in Kensington, Brooklyn. We created this public art exhibition at the Ave C Plaza with photographers Anna and Jordan Rathkopf, Photoville, and ArtBuilt. Programming around the exhibit included a community celebration honoring the groups featured in the photographs and a neighborhood food tour. The exhibit was included in Photoville's fall festival and featured at our October concert on the plaza.
Northeast , Health , Human Rights / Social Justice , Visual Art , Community Engagement
Program
A Quest for Home Upside Down Edition
Cultural Organizing for Community Change 2020
National , Northeast , Multi / Inter-disciplinary , Alliance / Movement / Field Building
Program
Activating the Cultural Power of a Movement
On Oct 9, 2020, Arts & Democracy, The U.S. Department of Arts and Culture, and NOCD-NY convened Activating the Cultural Power of a Movement, an event that showcased inspiring, movement based organizations across the country. The webinar featured presentations by leaders from racial justice, environmental justice, immigrant rights, and economic justice groups including Michelle Ramos (Executive Director, Alternate ROOTS), Angeles Solis (Director of Worker Organizing, Make the Road Action), Ash-Lee Woodard Henderson (a member of Movement for Black Lives’ policy table leadership team), Charon Hribar (Revivals Coordinator, Poor People's Campaign), and Nina Eichner (Creative Projects Manager, Sunrise Movement).
Artwork by Melanie Cervantes, Dignidad Rebelde
NOCD-NY
- NOCD-NY website
PB NYC
- Participatory Budgeting video by Meerkat Media
- Participatory Budgeting NYC website
A Quest For Home
Every Saturday morning for six weeks, 10 strangers with different paths came together to write away their thoughts. At first, they all believed they had nothing in common. But they all yearned for love and acceptance. They were all on a quest for home. Read here about this journey and download the Zine that grew out of this workshop with Roohi Choudhry.
Northeast , Human Rights / Social Justice , Immigration , Literary , Multi / Inter-disciplinary
Program
Cultural Organizing for Community Change 2018
See What the People Can Do: The Accomplishments of the People's Budget
on May 6, from 1-2:30 PM
On this free walk, we learned more about PB, visited projects that our community chose to invest in, & spoke with City Councilmember Brad Lander, who helped bring PB to NY.
Cultural Organizing for Community Change, Brooklyn 2017
Cultural Organizing for Community Change, Brooklyn 2016
Creative Housing Activism and Engagement
Adda Art
- AddaArt workshop flyer
- AddaArt performance flyer
Social Media Workshop
Cultural Organizing for Community Change, Brooklyn 2015
Creative Transformation: Arts, Culture, and Public Housing Communities
Recognizing an opportunity to further integrate arts and culture into the transformation of public housing communities, NOCD-NY brought together a diverse range of tenant leaders, residents, elected officials and staff, city agencies, artists, cultural institutions, advocates, funders and community organizations in an Arts, Culturem and Public Housing Roundtable on July 27, 2015. Drawing on interviews carried out in the field, the roundtable was designed to:
• Showcase exemplary partnerships that illustrated equitable, long-term approaches
• Identify barriers and challenges
• Develop recommendations and discuss how to move them into action
• Identify pilot project(s) that could be supported
• Build and strengthened relationships amongst participants.
2014 Cultural Organizing for Community Change, Brooklyn NY
At Groundswell, Reel Works and Spaceworks, 540 President Street, Brooklyn
Organizers, artists, media makers, educators, and policymakers came together to learn effective ways to deepen our work and engage our creativity in organizing for community change. The day included a cultural organizing framework, hands-on skill building workshops, case studies, resources, and networking opportunities.
Co-sponsored with Naturally Occurring Cultural Districts NY (NOCD-NY)
Just Economies: Part 2
just and democratic economies Part 2, July 22, 2014
In the face of growing economic inequity, people around the country are coming together to reimagine and rebuild their economies and communities based on the values of equity, democracy, cooperation, self-determination and sustainability. This New York City focused call featured the POINT, Solidarity NYC, Trade School, Our Goods, and The Rockefeller Foundation's support of the area of work. The call was cosponored by NOCD-NY.
PB workshops and Expo
Arts and Culture for a Just and Equitable City
Dear Mayor-Elect de Blasio, City Council Members (new and continuing), and Transition Team Members,
Congratulations! We, leaders from across sectors, write to share how arts and culture can and should play a vital role in achieving the inspirational One City Rising platform.
Arts and Culture for a Just and Equitable City
This policy brief by Arts & Democracy, Groundswell, and Naturally Occurring Cultural Districts New York (NOCD-NY) recommends maximizing the role of arts and culture to advance a transition agenda for a just and equitable New York City. Art and culture can provide the inspiration, tools, and capacity needed to unify New York City into one city for all.
Cultural Organizing for Community Change - Brooklyn
Cultural Organizing for Community Change provided a space where artists, media makers, organizers and policy makers could learn effective ways to deepen their work and strengthen their capacity to connect creativity, culture, and organizing for community change.
What Would it Look Like if NYC invested $50 Million in its Communities?
New York City’s recent capital investment of $50 million dollars in the Culture Shed mega project begs the question – how would a $50 million dollar capital investment in the culture and wellbeing of New York City’s diverse neighborhoods look?
Northeast , Community / Regional Development , Cultural / Media Policy , Multi / Inter-disciplinary
Program
Artful Relief
How Arts and Culture Can Advance a Neighborhood-Centered Progressive Agenda
Northeast , Community / Regional Development , Cultural / Media Policy , Policy / Law Change
Program
Creative Recovery and Cultural Resiliency
From the Neighborhood Up: A Citywide Forum on Culture and Community
Placemaking and Belonging
February 13, 2013
We hear a lot about creative placemaking these days. Some like the term and others don't. On this conference call, presenters discussed what sorts of creative placemaking practices strengthen self-determination and belonging within a community. The call illustrated the power of place-based arts and culture as an integral part of equitable, democratic, and culturally vital communities and explored placemaking in the digital sphere.
- Creative Placemaking and the Politics of Belonging and Dis-Belonging by Roberto Bedoya
Northeast , West , Southwest , Community / Regional Development , Multi / Inter-disciplinary , Community Engagement , Policy / Law Change
Program
Humanity After the Storm
Cultural Organizing for Community Change, Brooklyn, NY
Cultural Organizing for Community Change provided a space where artists, media makers, organizers and policy makers could learn effective ways to deepen their work and strengthen their capacity to use the tools of creativity, imagination and organizing for community change. The workshop included cultural organizing framework, skill building workshops, networking opportunities, and an intergenerational conversation with cultural organizers.
- BAC Sample
Participatory Budgeting NYC Creative Resources
Spacing Out: Innovative Urban Uses of Cultural Space
Northeast , Cultural / Media Policy , Multi / Inter-disciplinary , Community Engagement
Program
Arts & Democracy Testifies at City Council Hearing
Time to Vote!
The Line: An Unemployment Demonstration March 6
Activating the Creativity of Community Development
Jeremy Liu and Gayle Isa talk about the spaces ‘in between’.
By Gayle Isa
Highlights from a Gathering on Cultural Organizing and Climate Solutions
Report from a day-long meeting in New York involving musicians, artists, filmmakers, photographers, theater groups, festival producers, chefs and others working to raise public awareness about the threat of climate change and the promise of clean energy. Sponsored by the Chorus Foundation, the gathering was organized and facilitated by Farhad Ebrahimi, Betsy Taylor, Cuong Hoang, and Lauren Nutter. Arts & Democracy presented on arts and social justice organizing.
BCC: Building Collaborative Capacity - NYC
Creating Transformative Spaces
Harriet Barlow and Kathy Engel talk about the Commons and crossing borders.
By Kathy Engel
NOCD-NY (The Naturally Occurring Cultural District Working Group)
- Play the NOCD audio postcard
- Visit the NOCD-NY website
Walking the Talk and Talking the Walk
Arts & Democracy Project hosted a People's Potluck in Brooklyn. The potluck was part of a series of artist-led conversations and meals focused on interdependence taking place in the summer of 2011 created by MAPP International Productions in collaboration with Samita Sinha and Create Collective.
Taking Over and Talking Back
Marty Pottenger
Urban Bush Women
Incarceration, Fatherhood, and Artmaking
Carol Fennelly and Ayo Ngozi on artmaking with fathers and children in federal and state prisons.
By Ayo Ngozi and Carol Fennelly
National , Northeast , Civil rights , Criminal Justice , Human Rights / Social Justice , Multi / Inter-disciplinary , Direct Action
Program
Multifaceted Art of Community Planning
Ron Shiffman and Anusha Venkataraman consider the intersections of organizing, creative practice, and community-based development.
By Anusha Venkataraman
Tensions and Synergies of Being Strategic and Creative
Brad Lander and Esther Robinson discuss organizing and art, anthropological listening, and whether being holistic is important.
By Esther Robinson
Arts of Regional Change
The Art of Regional Change (ARC) brings together scholars, students, artists, and community groups to collaborate on media arts projects that strengthen communities, generate engaged scholarship, and inform regional decision making. Founded by media artist jesikah maria ross, ARC is a joint project of the University of California at Davis Humanities Institute and the UC Davis Center for Regional Change.
A Youth Voices Curriculum Resource and Guidebook developed to help other communities engage in similar projects is planned for spring 2012.
