I know we've been quiet, but the Leadership Team has been hard at work putting together a plan for the next phase of Santa Clara Housing Advocates. And we're very excited to share (some) of it with you!
When we discussed our possible next actions, we focused our conversations against the Mission, Values, Strategy (MVS) statements we wrote last summer. We came up with 3 Things that fit within the vision of our Group and prioritized them based on their connection to our MVS, our existing and expected capacity, and internal interest.
Priority 1: Uhhhh We'll Let You Know...
We DO in fact have a Priority 1, and it's a project that we're very excited about. SCHA plans to take actions to fulfill our MVS within our city and the entire region. We hope to be able to share specifics very soon.
Stay tuned for updates on this project and how to get involved!
Priority 2: Project Advocacy
SCHA began as a group of neighbors organizing in support of a housing project, and we plan to continue this work. The level of action we will take on any given project will depend on the project, our capacity, the context, timing, and relation to MVS. At a minimum, we hope to evaluate housing projects in Santa Clara and write statements in support or opposition, and ideally encourage our networks to attend meetings when applicable.
If you know of a housing project that you think SCHA should look at, you can preview survey questions here and submit a survey here.
If you would like to be part of the evaluation and advocacy process, please Join our Discord and select Project Advocacy on the #Welcome Channel.
Priority 3: Public Education
From the very beginning of SCHA we have talked about educating the public on housing issues in our city. In fact, a lot of our advocacy for the Benton project revolved around learning and teaching facts. With that in mind, we have an idea for a Public Education session that is in the works, and we hope to work closely with one or more of our amazing Ally organizations to implement it.
Stay tuned for updates on this project and how to get involved!
Also
- We're hoping to increase these update emails at a reasonable frequency to keep everyone informed and involved as these projects move forward
- These update emails will be posted as blog updates on our website at schousingadvocates.org/updates
- Join our Discord where most of our conversations and action will be taking place, and to get updates more frequently than these emails. You can select the level of involvement you want to participate at.
- Help SCHA grow: Tell your friends to join our email list by submitting a Contact Form on our website and send them the link to Join our Discord