Reflecting on a Successful Year of Engaging and Supporting Community

As we wrap up 2024, we want to reflect on the past year and the many accomplishments of our areas of service. Supporting, engaging, and empowering community is always our number one focus, and over the last 12 months Department of Neighborhoods (DON) staff as worked diligently to build and deepen partnerships, amplify community voices, empower civic engagement, harness youth leadership, and strengthen the One Seattle Vision.

Collaboration Across City Departments

*Sokha Danh talking with other City staff at the DON open house*

This year we partnered with other departments to create citywide impact by coordinating efforts to serve Seattle communities more effectively. Our Equity Engagement Advisors (EEA) supported projects for the Seattle Department of Transportation and Seattle Public Utilities to make sure that residents who are impacted by these projects are in the know about what is happening and have a voice in the decision making process. In June, we held a citywide open house to connect with our colleagues to discover more ways we can work together to better support communities across the city. We look forward to expanding our strategic partnerships next year with Seattle City Light, Seattle Parks and Recreation, Seattle Human Serviced Department, and Community Assisted Response and Engagement (CARE).

Civic Engagement

*DON staff at the All-American City presentation*

Seattle’s innovative civic engagement programs were nationally recognized this summer, earning the prestigious 2024 All-American City Award. Three DON programs were highlighted in earning this award including:

The Community Liaisons, who act as a bridge between historically underrepresented communities and City government.
People’s Academy for Community Engagement (PACE), a culturally-relevant civic leadership program that supports and trains community members on how to be an effective civic activist and community leader.
Indigenous Advisory Council, a group of nine members representing Indigenous communities who advises the Mayor, City Council, and City departments on government issues affecting American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian people residing in Seattle.

Community Wealth and Equity

*Generational Wealth Initiative community celebration*

DON advanced community wealth and equity through the Generational Wealth Initiative (GWI) which focused on community wealth building by working with organizations and communities of color to better understand the racial wealth gap in Seattle and piloting solutions to address to the racial wealth gap. We also strengthen trust and capacity of the Chinatown International District (CID) Visioning Advisory Group advancing the CID Community-Led visioning and coordinating efforts for a CID Interdepartmental Team in 2025.

Elevating Community Voices

*An illustration created for DON Disability Activism storytelling project*

We’ve continued amplifying communities’ voices through our storytelling projects by partnering with community organizations to host events like the Griot Party Experience and Disability Activism Panel, collaborating with community members to tell their own stories, digging into the untold stories and histories of our city, and highlighting the work of projects supported through our community grant programs.

Supporting Community-Led Projects

*DON staff with community at the Beacon Food Forest Open House & Concert*

Last year, DON continued our investment in project for community, by community. Our P-Patch program helped the 90 community gardens grow and thrive by evaluating and coordinating garden maintenance activities, providing trainings and educational opportunities for organic gardening, delivering materials and supplies to gardens, fostering environmental ethics and food safety, and prioritizing equity and inclusion. Our community grants program invested more than $3 million in community-led projects through our Neighborhood Matching Fund and Food Equity Fund.

This support will enable us to create BIPOC community-owned spaces in North Seattle to share nutritious food and build community. We are committed to advancing food equity and amplifying the voices of BIPOC communities and people with lived experiences who are often left out of food justice conversations. This grant will be instrumental in helping us achieve our goals.”
— Srijan Chakraborty, Co-Executive Director of Hunger Intervention Program.

Looking forward, as part of $4 million awarded in participatory budgeting, DON in partnership with the Office of Sustainability and Environment will activate two publicly owned greenspaces to lease for urban agriculture and support food equity programs.

Amplifying Youth Leadership

After a two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic, DON re-activated the Seattle Youth Commission, a partnership with the Mayor’s Office and City Council that engages youth between the ages of 13-19 to connect with elected officials to advise City policies and discuss issues impacted youth in Seattle. We also collaborated with FIUTS and the University of Washington to host civic engagement events, hosted Seattle Prep students at City all to create opportunities for local students to explore their role in civic leadership.

Thank you to all of the people who make our work possible! We look forward to continued partnership in supporting communities throughout Seattle in 2025!

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