Submitted by Marjory on Tue, 2010-06-08 08:38

Filed under:

• Social Change in Oregon
• Western States Center. CSTI

When I was a kid, June meant the end of school and time to get ready for summer camp. Each year, I’d be excited and nervous about meeting kids from around the state, and wonder if my friends from the year before would be back.

Community organizers in Oregon can re-live the anticipation by registering for Western States Center’s annual Community Strategic Training Initiative, July 30-August 1 at Reed College in Portland. CSTI draws social justice activists from throughout the Pacific Northwest for three days of networking and workshops with trainers from around the country. I’m on the Center’s Board of Directors, so I get to see what goes into making CSTI work--it’s kind of like watching the camp directors make sure there are enough counselors and ice cream sandwiches--and I can tell you, we're in good hands!

One highlight this summer is national communications consultant Celia Alario, who has been assisting MRG grantees through our MIC program. At CSTI, folks can spend the day with Celia and other leaders from smartMeme learning about story-based strategies for framing, messaging, and campaign design. Bilingual trainers from Colectivo Flatlander will teach basic organizing strategies in their Introducción a Organización Comunitaria workshop (other workshops will offer those same skills in English). And youth organizers from Juventud Faceta will share their perspective on youth voices and leadership.

That’s just the beginning. CSTI offers trainings on fundraising, communications, movement building and organizational development, all from a clear social justice perspective. Or you can go deep with issue-specific workshops on racial justice, LGBTQ equality, immigration and reproductive rights from leaders in the field. This year MRG is co-hosting a happy hour for regional and national social justice funders, and we hope they'll be on hand during CSTI to witness the innovative collaborations in our region. Like camp, there's something happening all the time--new people to meet, movies, and art breaks between workshops--but the food is better.

I hope you can join me and organizers from around the region at CSTI this summer. Registration is open through June 30th.

See you at camp!

Photo: Mujeres Unidas at CSTI, 2009, courtesy of Western States Center