The Equity Action Team (EAT) is a coalition of community members and City of Austin staff focused on advancing racial equity in our communities through partnerships with City departments, non-profits, philanthropic entities and community-based groups.
The EAT meetings are dedicated to critical discussions and strategizing on how to best improve the quality of life for most directly impacted communities in Austin. Join the EAT and find more information on the dashboard.
Everyone is welcome to join the EAT! As a member, your responsibility is to attend and bring your community with you. During our meetings, we hear from community members and City staff to understand community needs and City projects and work together to produce better outcomes for all.
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EQUITY OFFICE ANNOUNCEMENTS |
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With gratitude for our amazing EAT,
-Natalie Hulsey, Equity Office Public Information Specialist, Sr. and the Equity Office team |
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BUDGET SEASON EVENTS & RESOURCES |
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It’s that time of year again! The City is about to allocate billions of dollars this budget cycle, and I want to make sure you’re included. I firmly believe that our budget is a moral document, and should work for everyone in our communities. That’s why in July, we’re partnering with City Staff to host our District 2 Budget Town Hall.
At our event, you will have a chance to:
- Learn how the City budget process works
- Have dinner and drinks on us
- Get your budget questions answered
- Interact with various City departments
I encourage District 2 residents to attend and make their voices heard. I hope to see you there!
RSVP HERE to let us know you’re coming.
This RSVP count determines the event area setup and how much food we order.
WHEN: Wednesday, July 17th, 6 – 7:30 PM
WHERE: Bedicheck Middle, 6800 Bill Hughes Rd
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District 9 Budget Town Hall: Invite from Councilmember Qadri
Starting very soon, meetings are going to begin regarding the City’s Budget for the next fiscal year. The first step to watch for will be an initial Budget proposal from City Manager T.C. Broadnax, after which Austin City Council will have an opportunity to debate, discuss, and amend before final passage.
The budget is always a difficult process where we must weigh and compare the countless priorities we share as a community. Which is why, before it comes time for us to make any amendments, I want to hear from you. I will be holding a Budget Town Hall on Saturday, July 20th, at 10 a.m., at the Central Austin Library, 710 W Cesar Chavez St., where you will have the opportunity to submit any questions or feedback you may have on the Budget, and hear from City Staff about the initial proposed Budget.
Please RSVP here.
Whether you are able to make it to the town hall or not, I hope you’ll make sure to send in your feedback or questions to our office. We truly value your opinions, and they help us shape the many decisions we face as we craft our annual Budget.
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If you have any questions, concerns, comments, or events you’d like us to know about, reach out to the District 9 office via email at district9@austintexas.gov or call us at (512) 978-2109. You are also welcome to schedule a time to join the weekly virtual office hours that I hold every Friday from 10 a.m. to noon.
You can find individual staff contact information on our web page at www.austintexas.gov/department/district-9/contact.
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Join me for a District 10 town hall on Monday, August 5 at 6:30 p.m. at St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church (8134 Mesa Drive). I’ll discuss my priorities for the FY25 City budget deliberations, and we’ll hear from City staff about the budget adoption process and ways you can get involved. I hope to see you there!
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District 6 Budget Town Hall with Mackenzie Kelly
Date: Monday, July 15
Time: 6pm-7:30pm
Location: Austin Public Library-Spicewood Springs Branch, 8637 Spicewood Springs Rd., Austin, TX 78759
As we examine the City of Austin’s 2024-25 budget, I invite you to join us in shaping our city’s future. Mark your calendars for July 15th, when we’ll hold the District 6 budget town hall meeting at the Austin Public Library—Spicewood Springs Branch from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m., where the city’s budget office will present the proposed budget.
This town hall meeting allows us to come together as a community and make our voices heard. I value your input and participation, which are crucial in shaping the decisions that will impact our city’s future.
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As June and PRIDE month officially comes to a close, we look back on LGBTQ+ History in Austin
Learn more from the
By Isabel Alonzo: "Chronicling a brief history of the LGBTQ+ activist movement in Austin involves recounting a series of linear events in time. That being said, this chronicle must be prefaced with the fact that history, particularly that of a marginalized community, is rarely linear or well documented. Beneath the apparent, albeit slow moving, progress of the LGBTQ+ community's journey toward liberation - there is a complex, underlying history, rich in culture, threaded together by deep collective traumas and healing that are difficult to represent in their totality. LGBTQ+ stories have always existed, though they have been shrouded in ways including but not limited to repression, shame, fear, and hatred. This project seeks to introduce and imbue the ever-present, often untold history of LGBTQ+ activism as a key element in Austin’s broader city history."
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Many folx know of May being Mental Health Awareness month, but did you know that
"It is a time to bring awarenss to the unique challenges that racial and ethnic minorities in the United States face when it comes to mental illness" as stated by the FDA.
For July, we are recommending two fantastic reads from the Health, Healing & Self-Care section of the Equity Office mini-library...
While African Americans managed to emerge from chattel slavery and the oppressive decades that followed with great strength and resiliency, they did not emerge unscathed. Slavery produced centuries of physical, psychological and spiritual injury. Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome: America's Legacy of Enduring Injury and Healing lays the groundwork for understanding how the past has influenced the present, and opens up the discussion of how we can use the strengths we have gained to heal.
A bridge that interrupts a legacy of pain with the honest sharing of stories. Sana, Sana is a witness to the multiple wounds etched into the landscape of Latinx experience and a testimonial to community efforts to heal them. A multi-genre anthology rooted in the deep desire to not only acknowledge and name the various forms of pain and trauma Latinx people experience regularly, but to do so in the service of imagining new futures and ways of being that prioritize healing and justice not just for Latinx people, but for Queer BIPOC communities and, ultimately, for all people. The book's vision and understanding of Latinidad is broad and expansive. It centers Black, Indigenous, Queer, Trans, and Feminist Latinidades. By advancing an unapologetically radical antiracist, anticapitalist, feminist, and queer politic Sana, Sana holds creative and defiant space for identifying economic, social, political, emotional, and spiritual strategies to forge individual and collective healing and justice.
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SURVEYS & COMMUNITY INPUT |
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Non-profit Stakeholders: Help Strengthen the City's Mass Care Planning & Response Capabilities for Emergency Resources During Disaster Events
HSEM is working alongside a Project Steering Committee with representatives from City agencies and Hagerty Consulting, a contracted third party, to assess and strengthen the City’s mass care planning and response capabilities. This effort builds upon the City’s existing mass care planning efforts, highlighting how the City and key partners, including nonprofit organizations, may provide emergency resources during disaster events.
As part the City’s mass care planning efforts, HSEM and the Project Steering Committee are asking nonprofit stakeholders to participate in a “Partner Capacity Assessment.” This Assessment includes an online survey followed by a more in-depth interview. The goal of the Assessment is for the City to further understand existing mass care capabilities in the community and to identify and then work to resolve gaps in resources required for emergency mass care. Please note that responses provided in the Assessment do not imply commitment.
Response Requested:
Your organization is a key stakeholder.
We request you complete the Partner Capacity Assessment Survey
This survey is designed to gather information on current resources, processes, and capabilities in relation to an emergency that might require a mass care response.
Please email Rachael Wells@hagertyconsulting.com and Haley Broder@hagertyconsulting.com with Hagerty Consulting with any feedback and/or questions about the project.
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Tu aporte es invaluable mientras trabajamos hacia un sistema de atención médica más equitativo.
Fecha: lunes, 1 de julio de 2024
Hora: 11 a.m. - 1 p.m.
Local: City of Austin Permitting & Development Center
6310 Wilhelmina Delco Dr., Austin, TX 78752
Conoce las prioridades de Central Health para 2025 y cómo estamos abordando las brechas de atención médica en el condado de Travis. Sea parte de la solución a las desigualdades en atención médica en el condado de Travis - juntos, podemos construir una comunidad más sana y fuerte para todos.
- Conoce nuestras prioridades: conoce las áreas de enfoque clave para Central Health en el próximo año fiscal, incluidas las ampliaciones en atención especializada, servicios de salud mental y atención médica para personas sin hogar.
- Comprende nuestro impacto: mira cómo nuestros planes están diseñados para satisfacer las necesidades de atención médica de nuestra comunidad, con iniciativas específicas destinadas a mejorar el acceso a atención de alta calidad para poblaciones desatendidas.
- Interactúa con el liderazgo: reúnete con nuestro equipo de liderazgo y la junta directiva, has preguntas y comparte tus ideas sobre cómo podemos servirte mejor a ti y a tus seres queridos.
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Date: Monday, July 1
Time: 11am to 1pm
Location: City of Austin Permitting & Development Center
6310 Wilhelmina Delco Dr., Austin, TX 78752
Learn about Central Health's 2025 budget priorities and how we are addressing healthcare gaps in Travis County. Be a part of the solution to healthcare inequities in Travis County – together, we can build a healthier, stronger community for all.
- Get to know Central Health's priorities: Learn about priorities for the upcoming fiscal year, including expanded specialty care, mental health services and healthcare for the unhoused.
- Understand Central Health's impact: See how budget plans are designed to meet community need while providing high-quality care
- Engage with leadership: Meet Central Health's leadership team and board of managers, ask questions, and share your thoughts.
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Austin Parks Foundation, in coordination with the City of Austin Parks and Recreation Department (PARD), will conduct community engagement and develop a concept plan to guide the future development of Jamestown Neighborhood Park.
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CITY & COMMUNITY HAPPENINGS |
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On Sunday, June 29, Future Front Texas is partnering with Pease Park for Pride Picnic--a day of abundant sunshine, community vibes and a delightfully queer celebration of the summer solstice.
The picnic will be from 10am to 2pm. Free and open to the public. No RSVP required.
Bring your blanket, families, friends, and lovers. Get ready to support more than 30+ LGBTQ-owned businesses at the pop-up. Pack a lunch or grab food and beef from some of our incredible vendors once you arrive. It's up to you!
Family-friendly. Dog-friendly. Human-friendly.
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Saturday, June 29, 204
George Washington Carver Library & Museum
1161 & 1165 Angelina Street
Austin, TX 78702
10am to 4pm
Join the Austin African American Book Festival for their 18th Annual event at the Carver Library & Museum! Author and poet Nikki Giovanni will headline the event. This year's theme "Black Feeling, Black Talk: Activism in Poetry and Prose" embodies Giovanni's work "Black Feeling, Black Talk" as "an acknowledgement of the awareness and consciousness required to confront the ongoing challenges facing Black communities, particularly in the realm of civil rights". Discussions are centered arond what Black people are feeling, and the festival promotes honest and transparent conversations about the lived experiences, struggles, and successes within the community, with a goal of turning those feelings and discussions into meaningful action.
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With the Emma S. Barrientos Mexican American Cultural Center
Location: Oswaldo A.B. Cantu Pan American Recreation Center
Tuesdays: July 9, July 16, July 23, July 30
6:00pm-9:00pm
Join the Facebook Event!
✨ The Oswaldo A.B. Cantu Pan American Recreation Center and Neighborhood Park along with the ESB Mexican American Cultural Center, present Austin's longest running free concert series!
The Pan Am Hillside concert series has been a tradition for many families in East Austin and this year is the 65th year!
Grab your lawn chairs and coolers and get your
familia together for this anticipated yearly event!
✨Free live music!
✨Bring blankets/ lawn chairs
✨Free children's activities
✨Refreshments for sale
✨DJ & Color Guard Performances
Check out the tentative performance schedule here!
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Date: Friday, July 12
Time: 8:45am-10am
Location: 3212 East Cesar Chavez, Austin, TX 78702
Start your day by connecting with like-minded individuals who are passionate about finding solutions to homelessness.This event aims to bring together professional fundraisers, marketing experts, and nonprofit leaders to share ideas, resources, and success stories.Together, come and help make a difference for our community and work towards a future where homelessness is rare, brief, and nonrecurring. So, mark your calendars and get ready to rise and shine with Sunrise Homeless Navigation Center and other stakeholders working with our unhoused neighbors! |
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August 3rd in Georgetown, TX
This is going to be an amazing day filled with:
✨ Fun & Games
🍔 Delicious Food
✂️ Hair Cuts & Quick Styles
🏰 Bounce Houses
🎒 Trunk or Treat School Supply Giveaways
🎶 Live Concert
iFosterCare is bringing our foster care community together for a day of fun and celebration as we prepare for the new school year.
Please save the date!
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💖Festival begins at 11am
🏳️🌈 Parade begins at 8pm
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GRANTS | TRAINING | SERVICES |
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The Cultural Arts Division i s announcing over $13 million in support through the Thrive and Elevate Grant programs, offering funding to local arts organizations and artists. Applications open June 25 and close July 23.
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First Baptist Church Austin will have its first ever
Hot Weather Items Giveaway Event on July 7th at 1PM!
They're calling it COOL-A-PALOOZA!!
They will have food, cool treats, music, and of course various items to help our unhoused neighbors face the heat of summer.
Questions? Reach out to Selena Steward, Community Care Coordinator: 512-476-2625 Ext. 227 |
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Date: Saturday, July 20
Time: 10am - 2pm
Location: AARC at 8401 Cameron Road, Austin TX
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Children need nutritious meals to learn, grow, and thrive—even when school is out.
Austin ISD is providing free breakfast and lunch for students at many schools throughout the summer through a federally funded Texas Department of Agriculture meal program.
Who qualifies:
● Students participating in on-site summer programs at eligible schools.
● Any child in the community younger than 19.
● Enrolled students with disabilities up to 21 years old.
How to find free meals this summer:
● Call 2-1-1 to speak to a live operator.
● Visit www.SummerFood.org for an interactive site locator map.
● Text FOOD or COMIDA to 304-304.
● Families may also find district meals sites on the AISD website.
How it works:
Children in the community enjoy free meals regardless of household income and without any registration or identification. To receive a free, healthy meal, children may simply visit the cafeteria at any participating site during designated service times. Children do not have to be enrolled in AISD to receive free summer meals.
Good to know:
All AISD meal sites are closed July 1-5. Meal sites and times are subject to change.
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The Food and Climate Equity (FACE) Grants program supports a more just and resilient Austin by providing direct funding for community-led solutions that enable transformative change in the areas of food, climate, and resilience. The program aims to uplift the experience of those most impacted by systemic and structural inequities, eliminate disparities in health outcomes, and improve quality of life for all.
By offering grants up to $3,000, we hope to support community organizations that represent and/or serve racially and economically diverse Austinites and have unique insight into their communities' needs.
Learn more about the Food & Climate Equity Grants (FACE) and apply here by July 18th!
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Funding Opportunity:
Community Driven Change--Equipping Communities to Achieve their Health Priorities
The Community Driven Change open call is focused on elevating organizations engaging community members in decision making and leadership to foster healthier communities in our Central Texas region of Bastrop, Caldwell, Hays, Travis, and Williamson counties. The one-time grants awarded as part of this open call will support the community to achieve their health priorities.
Awarding up to $10M through this open call, grant recipients will receive an unrestricted, one-time operating grant based on organization size, with funding expected to be distributed in October 2024.
Learn more about the Community Driven Change funding opportunity here!
Eligibility Requirements
- Located and operating in Bastrop, Caldwell, Hays, Travis, or Williamson counties.
- Classified as a tax-exempt organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.
- Annual operating budget of at least $250,000.
- Evidence of work engaging community members in decision making and leadership to foster healthier communities
Important Dates
- Open Date: May 29th, 2024
- Letter of Intent (LOI) Deadline: June 28th, 2024 by 5pm
- Application Deadline: August 29th, 2024 by 5pm
Contact Information:
For programmatic questions, please email: questions@stdavidsfoundation.org
For technical questions, please email: grantsinfo@stdavidsfoundation.org
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This free, 2-hour course is open to community members, regardless of preparedness knowledge. The course will provide an introduction from the experts on how to practice the four steps of emergency preparedness: making a plan, building a kit, knowing your neighbors, and staying informed. Attendees will gain practical knowledge on how to prepare their home, family, and community for a variety of hazards.
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WIC Voucher Program
From April through October, eligible WIC participants can receive Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program (FMNP) vouchers to buy fresh fruits and vegetables at participating farmers’ markets and mobile markets. Each eligible participant will receive $30 in WIC Vouchers.
Bring your WIC Shopping List and WIC card to one of the participating locations listed below.
For more information, hours, and locations, contact the bilingual Help Desk at 512-730-1807 Monday - Saturday 9 AM - 12 PM.
With funding provided through Travis County Public Health, each eligible participant in the Austin area will also receive $30 in Double Up Food Bucks as a match to the $30 in WIC Vouchers. Double Up Food Bucks can be used throughout the entire year!
How to Use WIC Vouchers
To see if you are eligible to receive WIC vouchers, contact your local WIC clinic.
Start your online application at https://texaswic.org/apply.
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Programa Cuponera WIC
De abril a octubre, los participantes de WIC pueden recibir cupones del Programa de Nutrición de Mercados Agrícolas (FMNP, por sus siglas en inglés) para comprar frutas y verduras frescas en los sitios de Austin, Texas. Cada persona elegible obtendrá $30 en cupones de WIC y $30 adicionales en Double Up Food Bucks.Traiga su tarjeta y lista de compras WIC a los sitios participantes para recibir esta promoción.
Para conocer las ubicaciones, envíe la palabra “WIC” por texto a este número (737) 214-7575
¿CÓMO USAR CUPONERA WIC?
Para saber si usted es elegible para recibir Cuponera WIC, entre al chat en este enlace de internet https://texaswic.org/
Inicie su aplicación para beneficios WIC aquí: https://texaswic.org/apply. |
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The Roots & Wings Festival is an annual community-wide celebration of trees, pollinators, and all creatures. This year's festival kicks off Saturday, October 19th and goes through Sunday, November 3rd. The Festival is dedicated to celebrating nature in our neighborhoods. We embrace the idea that we are all connected to each other and to our local ecosystem. Growing these connections creates a stronger, more resilient community.
The Roots & Wings Festival is not just one event. It is many, and it is led by the community in neighborhoods all over Austin. The Festival is more than two weeks long, with fun events and activities happening on different days and at different locations all over town. Community events feature celebrations of our urban forest ecosystem (trees, plants, fungi, soil health, pollinators, birds, bats, and more)!Learn more about the Festival and how you can be a part of it.
The application to be an event host is open until August 1, 2023. Mini-grants are available for event materials. To qualify for funding, you must host your event in Austin.
Have questions? Email us at rootsandwings@austintexas.gov. |
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Join CAN (Community Action Network) for their Race Equity Principles in Practice Training in 2024!
Many of us have taken race equity trainings such as Beyond Diversity or Undoing Racism, and upon finishing, have wondered "what's next?" We have created a series of trainings that will focus on ways to utilize the lessons learned in these race equity trainings in our daily lives, in our work, and in our community. The series of trainings will require you to reflect on your past racialized experiences, research your community and nation's racial history, and learn about ways to actively engage in local work aimed at addressing racial inequality.
In order to participate in the series, you would need to be able to attend all 4 sessions in the series as each session builds off each other. All sessions will be on Zoom from 11:30am - 1 pm. A calendar invite with the Zoom login credentials will be sent to you after you register.
Sign up for the October 2024 Race Equity Principles in Practice Series here--Registration Closes on Oct. 2nd
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This summer, Black Mamas ATX will be piloting a project to provide medically-tailored meals for Black pregnant clients who are at additional risk during pregnancy and postpartum. UWSA was fortunate to partner with Black Mamas ATX during our very popular meal distribution program from 2020-2023. There will be an orientation for drivers.
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