Category: DEI

DEI Salon: What is Meaningful Community Engagement? Let’s Talk About It!

Link to Recording

The Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion (DEI) Committee Presents:

Do you find it challenging to get good turnouts at public meetings?

Join us for a salon style discussion to explore non-traditional strategies to collect feedback and gain insight to diverse community perspectives on policies and projects.

This peer sharing opportunity will explore topics such as:

-What does successful engagement look like

-How to create space for overlooked communities to participate in planning processes

-Challenges and barriers to encouraging participation in public meetings

Recorded on October 21, 2025 | 12 – 1pm PDT via Zoom.

What’s Fair: Funding for Food Recovery, 6/25



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DEI Salon: Equity Scans, 2/23

NCRA Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Committee Webinar
Wednesday, February, 22, 12-1:30pm Zoom

EQUITY SCANS
What Are They? How Are They Used?

Introducing the San Francisco Environment Department (SFE)
Racial Equity Program and Policy Scan

Presenters: 

Freddy Coronado
SFE Residential Zero Waste Specialist
and NCRA Board Member

Anne Wong
SFE City Government
Zero Waste Assistant Coordinator

When trying to anticipate the impacts of new programs or practices, many organizations struggle to identify the correct lens in which to understand how proposed changes may impact equity within the communities they serve. The San Francisco Environment Department has developed a new tool to analyze the equity impacts of proposed policies or programs, known as a “Racial Equity Program and Policy Scan.” Join the NCRA DEI Committee to learn more about this tool, why you should strive for equity, how it is used, and practice performing an equity scan yourself. Register

NCRA DEI Training Summary –  Session 1, 4/22

Holistic Underground, the NCRA DEI consultants and the DEI Committee, recently hosted two well received leadership trainings. More than 20 NCRA members took part in session 1 and about 14 in Session 2. (The YouTube links are available from the office. )

By Portia Sinnott, NCRA Executive Director, 4/15/2022

These 2.5 hour engaging and interactive sessions were designed to assist NCRA in:

    • Hosting an inclusive and welcoming Recycling Update that demonstrates our commitment to equity
    • Developing better JEDI skills and cultural competency
    • Building a more diverse membership by fostering an inclusive environment

The first session was focused on tools including a framework for navigating change, an introduction to the principles and terminology of JEDI – justice, equity, diversity and inclusion, a methodology for becoming more inclusive communicators, a framework for moving beyond unconscious bias and tools and best practices for creating inclusive spaces.

Courageous Conversations
I particularly liked the Red Lens/Green Lens breakout exercise that utilized the affirmation above.

But first, I would like take a moment to introduce a simple yet effective approach designed to make sure everyone has a voice – introverts as well as extroverts. Before each exercise we spent 2 minutes journaling focused on questions related to the exercise. For example:

1) How can the Green Lens help you navigate your Unconscious Bias?
2) How can this support you to foster more equity and inclusion in this field?

Then when we went into discussion and breakouts we all were better prepared to share in a more succinct matter.

Green Lens
The Green Lens is a way of seeing and communicating by Dr. Maria Nemeth. Basically it can help you take a pause and listen more respectfully when someone is irritating or disagreeable. Conversely, the Red Lens is the opposite – how to listen disrespectfully. Please check them out above.

For Next Time: Moving Beyond Unconscious Bias
We would like everyone to review the 4-page Three Steps To Moving Beyond Unconscious Bias, with idea of getting a dialog going about the article. Please download and then let us know what you thought of it. Please do not share without with Holistic Undergrounds’ permission.

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