We support our community members to access critical services and flex their inherent leadership.
We believe that when our community members have the support and tools to access critical services and exercise their inherent leadership, they will transform our public institutions and community systems to be more responsive to their needs. Three core strategies inform every program, event, workshop, and advocacy effort we undertake:
Community Education: We partner with Latino families to help them navigate the complicated systems that impact their lives from immigration to social services to health care. Nuestra Casa develops our educational offerings in direct response to the needs of our members—ranging from safety net benefits like Medi-Cal, CalFresh, and affordable housing to housing and immigrants’ rights trainings.
Leadership Development: We mentor community members by equipping them
with the tools they need to advocate for change. One example is our Environmental Justice
Academy, which has trained 100s of community leaders who are now actively engaged in projects such as the SAFER Bay Advisory Board, helping to shape flood mitigation and habitat restoration policies critical to shoreline neighborhoods of East Palo Alto and Belle Haven.
Community-Driven Advocacy: We use our collective power to shape policies and programs which can make our community more equitable, prosperous, and healthy. Recent wins include the introduction of the first piece of federal legislation to address the risks of groundwater rise to infrastructure and communities. Our annual report – Impacto Comunitario – shares some of these stories.
