“The Green Agenda for Jackson Heights” is the product of a five-month, community-wide visioning process designed and led by Pratt Center with the goal of creating a “green agenda” for the community to follow in seeking improvements to infrastructure and services in Jackson Heights.
Pratt Center designed and disseminated a workbook that allowed small and large organizations throughout the community to provide input on their needs and concerns. It included five simple, self-guided activities designed to help participants identify their collective values and develop a vision for the future. The workbook approach brought visioning directly to community members, and community groups. Using the workbook, more than 400 community members contributed to multilingual grassroots planning sessions, which were held by volunteers in living rooms, schools, houses of worship, community centers, and senior centers.
Participants identified priority areas for greening Jackson Heights, including expanding open space, reducing waste, and many other steps toward environmental and economic sustainability. Residents proposed strategies that built upon existing strengths while addressing neighborhood concerns. The final Green Agenda document includes goals as well as recommendations that can be implemented legislatively, by community-based organizations, and by individuals.
