This article was originally published in the Dead River Journal on February 12, 2013 – see http://deadriverjournal.org/regenerating-nj-shore-communities):
Through our new nonprofit, the Center for Regenerative Community Solutions (CRCS), we have begun the work of rebuilding NJ’s shore communities in a more sustainable way. As part of the basis for this work, we’ve published the following article, originally posted January 12, 2013, and most recently revised February 11, 2012: RegeneratingNewJerseyShoreCommunitiesJan2013r
We’ve also been sharing the following message with a number of Shore-based and statewide nonprofits:
CRCS is looking to partner with other nonprofit and civic organizations to host a series of community dialogs regarding the long term sustainable reconstruction of the NJ shore. Our team has substantial experience and expertise in community engagement, urban planning, anthropology, organization development, project management, leadership development, finance, and permaculture, as well as the broad topics of sea level rise, coastal ecosystem integrity, and climate change.
While we are a newly registered entity, CRCS comes out of work that we’ve done for a number of years through the Institute for Sustainable Enterprise at Fairleigh Dickinson University, the Center for Leadership in Sustainability, and through several other nonprofits.
As set forth in our non-profit charter, CRCS was created to:
Provide local communities with educational services on the effects of climate change and other related issues that can affect their long term ability to regenerate their ecological and economic systems,
- Provide local government institutions with assistance to undertake actions and initiatives to reduce and ameliorate present and expected extreme weather and other climate change effects,
- Help small businesses and non-profit organizations obtain funding and other resources to undertake actions and initiatives to reduce and ameliorate present and expected negative climate change effects in low and moderate-income communities, including communities impacted by Hurricane Sandy.
- We are inviting inquiries and expressions of interest from shore-based and statewide nonprofits such as yours to work with us to organize these kinds of community conversations, with the intention of launching an on-going process of sustainable design and redevelopment for coastal communities.
We invite your participation in working with us to host these community dialogs. If you are interested, please contact me at jcloud@crcsolutions.org.
We are also seeking funding to expand this program, and to assist communities in implementing the elements of sustainable design and redevelopment at the Jersey Shore. If you can assist us either directly or by joining with us in fund raising, please let us know this also.
