Progress 03/31/14 to 12/01/16
Outputs
Target Audience:Participants in focus groupsfrom Deanwood and Congress Heights, Washington, DCneighborhoods; and Residents and broader public and private sector stakeholders engaged in economic development initiatives in Washington DC. Changes/Problems:
Nothing Reported
What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?The project report, and especially the future vision of successful sustainable development outcomes the report paints, lays the groundwork for identifying the skills needed to implement the vision. This encompasses three broad areas of skills sets: 1. skills associated with urban food production 2. skills associated with nutrition and wellness 3. skills associated with green infrastructure and storm water management 4. skills associated with alternative energy and especially bio-digestion 5. skills associated with green buildings and climate change mitigation Workforce development training in green infrastructure management has already been implemented in collaboration with the local water authority, DC Water, through the CAUSES Center for sustainable Development and Resilience (CSDR). CAUSES also offers non-credit bearing courses and workshops in hydroponic and aquaponic food production, urban agriculture, green roof production, food safety, food management, composting,soil enhancement, small business development. A website announces upcoming course offerings. http://docs.udc.edu/causes/CAUSES_Workshop_and_Certificate_Offerings_for_Spring_2018_updated2.pdf In addition an innovative curriculum entitled 'Taste and See' has been developed for middle and high school students. The curriculum is intended to supplement existing STEM curriculum and introduces students to innovative ways of food production in the urban environment, food preparation and nutrition education, and food distribution and its impact. http://docs.udc.edu/causes/Taste_and_See_Curriculum How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? Dissemination of Results: A preliminary meeting with focus group participants form both neighborhoods regarding the proposed dissemination of the report revealed a strong preference for a web-based dissemination strategy. The PI has identified a UDC student who will assist in developing a website that displays the indicators collected in the Five Pillar areas. An initial six indicators will be selected for each of the Five Pillar areas for a total of 30 selected indicators for each of the eight Wards or a total of 240 indicators. Even at six indicators per Pillar this constitutes a significant amount of data that will have to be updated annually to indicate a trend in the data. A website has been developed to make the report widely available. In addition, several hard copies will be distributed especially to those involved in local development initiatives in Ward 8 in Washington DC. This Ward has historically had the lowest income, the highest unemployment, and the largest percentage of African American residents. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?
Nothing Reported
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
The following project components have been successfully completed: Data Collection: In its initial phase, the research project developed a sizable data base of indicators by Ward that provide information of five key areas that are indicative of a community's economic development potential, the five pillars of economic development: (1) health, (2) education, (3) social and cultural amenities, (4) environmental quality and (5) access to information and transportation. Focus Groups: In addition to these quantitative indicators, the researchusesan innovative story writing process in the Deanwood and CongressHeights neighborhoods that represent the different histories, economic conditions, and demographics within the most underserved Wards, Ward 7 and 8 of Washington DC. To assist with the logistics of the research project, the PI hired a three-months full-time project coordinator who is a recent UDC graduate and resident of one of the neighborhoods where the two focus group meetings were held. Fourteen UDCstudents were trained to engage in the various aspects of the research project, including as focus group facilitators, recorders, and as research assistants. The project's PI, Dr. Sabine O'Hara, designed the focus group process and content and held two training sessions for facilitators and recorders prior to conducting the focus groups. During the introductory segment of the two focus group meetings, the PI educated more than 200 DC residents and CAUSESfaculty and staff members onthe health disparities and economic development disparities in Washington DC and introduced the community based approach to economic development that the Five Pillars model offers.To provide appropriate background information for the focus group participants, the project PI and project coordinator prepared and disseminated quantitative data about key quality of life indicators in the two selected neighborhoods that were taken from the previously selected database of indicators. The project PI briefed all participants on the major findings of the quality of life comparisons between the eight Wards in the District of Columbia. In addition, flyers were available during the focus group meetings to summarize the data collected. The Story of the Future of the Selected Neighborhoods: Based on the focus group results, a first story draft was developed thatrecords thecollective vision of success and prosperity 25 years into the future. This community based vision of economic development success will yield invaluable information about the aspirations and needs of local residents, demographic sub-groups, and key stakeholders including the business community, service providers, the public sector and other relevant groups.The story also indicates a significant level of awareness among Deanwood and Congress Heights residents about available sustainable economic development options that the two neighborhoods wish to explore. Story Feedback: In March 2016, the focus groups reconvened at DC Scholars Public School on East Capitol Street in DC's Ward 7. Three CAUSES staff members who had been involved in the focus groups took turns reading the story to meeting participants. Overall, the story was well received and meeting participants confirmed that the story captures well the discussion the focus groups had had about their future vision of their neighborhoods with respect to the Five Pillar areas. Meeting participants requested, however, that the story be further personalized and that there be one protagonist created for the Deanwood neighborhood and one for the Congress Height neighborhood. This has since been accomplished and the story has been re-written in a more personalized story format based on the demographic characteristics of the majority populations in the two neighborhoods. Two final neighborhood meetings will be held in early May of this year, one in Deanwood, and one in Congress Heights to share the final version of the story and to solicit feedback in the overall structure of the final report of the Five Pillars of Economic Development research project. Since the data collected is extensive, the final report will only include selected indicators in the five pillars areas, with additional data being made available in an appendix to the report Dissemination of Results: A preliminary meeting with focus group participants form both neighborhoods regarding the proposed dissemination of the report revealed a strong preference for a web-based dissemination strategy. The PI has identified a UDC student who will assist in developing a website that displays the indicators collected in the Five Pillar areas. An initial six indicators will be selected for each of the Five Pillar areas for a total of 30 selected indicators for each of the eight Wards or a total of 240 indicators. Even at six indicators per Pillar this constitutes a significant amount of data that will have to be updated annually to indicate a trend in the data. In addition to the website design, a final report and publishable article are currently in preparation. Extension The Five Pillars research project revealed several areas for follow up work in the cooperative extension programs of CAUSES. The desire to create energy at a neighborhood scale from alternative energy sources, including solar, bio-digestion, and geothermal, played a prominent role in the focus group meetings. This unexpected result of the Five Pillars research project has resulted in a reconsideration of the energy sources for the UDC Urban Food Hubs. The first component of the Urban Food Hubs, Food Production, has long focused on energy efficiency and on designing aquaponic and hydroponics systems that are highly energy efficient; and the fourth component of the Urban Food Hubs, Waste and Water Recovery, has long focused on waste reduction and water reuse; the East Capitol Street Urban Food Hub will now add a solar energy component. Three solar panels were installed at the site in late September 2016 and the 30x90 ft greenhouse was operated largely off the grid. CAUSES is currently identifying additional funding sources to add an alternative energy source to all of its food hubs and to begin a workforce development and training program in solar installation and maintenance in collaboration with the District Department of Energy and the Environment. The final published document is available on-line at https://www.fivepillarsdc.org. It is entitled: 'The Five Pillars of Economic Development: A Study of a Sustainable Future for Ward 7 and 8 in Washington, D.C.' Residents from Wards 7 and 8 were closely involved in the development of the final report and especially of Chapter IV, entitled 'A Community Based Vision of Successful Development Outcomes'. This chapter describes the story of a successful sustainable economic development future for the neighborhoods of Ward 7 and 8, which are some of the most underserved neighborhoods in Washington DC.
Publications
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Progress 10/01/14 to 09/30/15
Outputs
Target Audience:The target audience during the reporting period were residents, businesses, non-profit organizations and public sector/governance representatives in two underserved neighborhoods in Ward 7, at the southern end of the North East quadrant of Washington DC. A Ward 7 resident and former UDC CAUSES student recruited the target audience to participate in two focus groups. Participants represented a wide spectrum of age, socio-economic, and educational characteristics and occupations. The focus groups were organized and facilitated by faculty members, landgrant staff, and students. The project's PI. Dr. Sabine O'Hara, designed the focus group process and content and held two training sessions for facilitators and recorders. Changes/Problems:The project implementation timeline was significantly delayed. However, we anticipate being able to complete the project with only minor delays overall. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? The project PI, Dr. Sabine O'Hara, conducted four meetings to educate more than 60 CAUSES faculty members, landgrant staff members and students about the the Five Pillars of Economic Development approach and its implementation in two of DC's underserved neighborhoods. The project PI conducted three training sessions for eight focus group facilitators and 12 recorders to ensure the successful implementation of the qualitative data collection aspect of the Five Pillars of Economic Development project. The project PI engaged more than eighty community members in the two focus group meetings and started each meeting by providing an overview of the Five Pillars of Economic Development approach versus traditional economic development models. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?To provide appropriate background information for the focus group participants, the project PI and project coordinators prepared and disseminated appropriate quantitative data about key quality of life indicators in the two selected neighborhoods. The project PI briefed all participants in the major findings of the quality of life comparisons between the eight Wards in the District of Columbia. In addition, flyers were available during the focus group meetings to summarize the data collection process. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Upon the completion of the focus group analysis (February 2016), focus group participants from the two neighborhoods, Deanwood and Congress Heights, will reconvene (March 2016) to review the draft narrative of the collective story that was prepared based on the focus group information collected during the two neighborhood meetings. The purpose of the follow up meeting is three-fold: To solicit feedback on the narrative constructed by the PI and other UDC project collaborators based on the qualitative data collected during the two focus group meetings. To solicit feedback on the overall report structure for the Five Pillars report which will consist of a quantitative data analysis section and a qualitative data analysis section. To discuss strategies for disseminating and using the report after its expected completion in the fall of 2016 to drive changes that will improve the quality of life and economic development opportunities in the two selected neighborhoods. In addition, the PI intends to submit an edited version of the Five Pillars Report to a peer-reviewed journal as well as present at a conference. We also anticipate to disseminate the report through the Landgrant system to provide an analytical example of stakeholder engagement in cooperative extension and research.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
Completed the collection of all of the quantitative data/ objective indicators for the project Completed the collection of all of the qualitative information/ subjective indicators Engaged with the DC community, its leaders and residents Provided a platform for DC residents to highlight areas of opportunity that they consider viable pathways for sustained neighborhood based economic development.
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Progress 03/31/14 to 09/30/14
Outputs
Target Audience:
Nothing Reported
Changes/Problems: As previously indicated in this report, the proposed approach was to establish a steering committee that would assist the principle investigator in selecting two DC suitable neighborhoods and identify relevant stakeholders in each of the two neighborhoods to engage them in two storytelling workshops that would form the basis for the micro-data collection in each neighborhood. Each steering committee was to consist of five community leaders representing the broad scope of private, public, and non-profit sector organizations to provide guidance on the selection process of workshop participants and on the implementation process of the workshops. Unfortunately, the timing could not have been worse. Following the DC primary elections in the spring of 2014, it became evident that DC would face a change in leadership at the District level. Several community leaders who were approached to consider serving on the steering committee declined citing a high probability of impending changes in key agencies including the District Department of the Environment (DDOE) and the Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD). The result was reluctance in selecting two suitable neighborhoods. In addition, initial investigations into the availability of disaggregated data at the neighborhood level or even the Ward level revealed a persistent lack of data. As a result, the initial phase of the project was modified to focus on identifying suitable indicators to represent the "five pillar" areas and collecting indicator data at the level of the eight (8) Wards that comprise the District of Columbia. A minimum of five indicators were selected in each of the five pillar categories (1) health, (2) education, (3) environmental quality, (4) social and cultural amenities, and (5) Information and Communication Technology (ICT). The five pillar areas thus focus not only on economic factors, but also on the social and environmental context conditions within which all economic development takes place. Given the lack of data and the lack of consistency in formatting and reporting it, the data collection was a necessary starting point for the research project. We expect to publish a "Five Pillars" report for Washington DC's eight Wards within the next three months. The report will serve as an important reference point for subsequent work on this project and will be patterned after a previous report by the PI (O'Hara and Vasquez 2007). We anticipate that the selection of the project steering committee and the two underserved DC neighborhoods will take place later this spring. The new mayor has already made several key appointments and additional ones are expected shortly. The collected data and forthcoming "Five Pillar" report will form an important reference point for the remaining project and the localized information and detailed local knowledge it requires. The proposed story writing approach, in combination with the forthcoming "Five Pillars" report, can thus create much needed micro-data and qualitative context information that opens the planning and development process up to broad participation and community engagement. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?
Nothing Reported
How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?
Nothing Reported
What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? We anticipate that the selection of the project steering committee and the two underserved DC neighborhoods will take place later this spring. The new mayor has already made several key appointments and additional ones are expected shortly. The collected data and forthcoming "Five Pillar" report will form an important reference point for the remaining project and the localized information and detailed local knowledge it requires. The proposed story writing approach, in combination with the forthcoming "Five Pillars" report, can thus create much needed micro-data and qualitative context information that opens the planning and development process up to broad participation and community engagement.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
Regrettably, the research project had to take a somewhat different direction that planned. Building on previous research using the "Five Pillars" approach, the intent was to address the economic development needs of the most underserved neighborhoods in the District of Columbia by generating micro-level data that can be used to identify viable development strategies that promise success even in lagging, and economically underdeveloped areas. The proposed approach was to establish a steering committee that would assist the principle investigator in selecting two DC suitable neighborhoods and identify relevant stakeholders in each of the two neighborhoods to engage them in two storytelling workshops that would form the basis for the micro-data collection in each neighborhood. Each steering committee was to consist of five community leaders representing the broad scope of private, public, and non-profit sector organizations to provide guidance on the selection process of workshop participants and on the implementation process of the workshops. Unfortunately, the timing could not have been worse. Following the DC primary elections in the spring of 2014, it became evident that DC would face a change in leadership at the District level. Several community leaders who were approached to consider serving on the steering committee declined citing a high probability of impending changes in key agencies including the District Department of the Environment (DDOE) and the Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD). The result was reluctance in selecting two suitable neighborhoods. In addition, initial investigations into the availability of disaggregated data at the neighborhood level or even the Ward level revealed a persistent lack of data.
Publications
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