$1,000 Grant Goes to Virginia Community Voice

Congratulations to Virginia Community Voice being selected by the panel of judges as one of the thirty grants being awarded in our 2022 Green Grant Program!

The mission of Virginia Community Voice is to equip neighbors in marginalized communities to realize their vision for their neighborhoods and prepare institutions to respond effectively. Their vision is a Commonwealth where decisions are made equitably.

For the “Youth-led Creative Placemaking in South Richmond” project, approximately a dozen Black and Latine youth between ages 14-18 living on the Richmond Highway Corridor will participate. The RHC is a historically marginalized community, with lower incomes, higher poverty, and poorer life outcomes than the rest of Richmond. Richmond’s Southside has been designated as a heat desert with lower tree canopy and less public green space than other areas of the city. RHC’s youth come from modest-income homes, with no creative placemaking programs available to them with the exception of programs through Virginia Community Voice.

The Green Grant Community Beautification project will involve youth in the development and design of artwork for Broad Rock Creek Park, a newly designated city park in South Richmond. Youth will work with artist co-leads to design and install art on topics relevant to them and their vision for Southside as a whole and for the park.  Grant funds will be used to purchase supplies for planning and designing the mural, as well as for paint, paintbrushes, spray paint, painter’s tape, stencils to complete the artwork.

Artist co-leads will facilitate conversation and design activities, encouraging youth to take the lead on art and space design. Youth will create public art installations in the new park, will learn about the historical significance of greenspace and how to create inviting public spaces that are inclusive of people of all ages, identities, abilities and language.

In addition to the completion of this creative placemaking project, we will measure youth’s increase in civic advocacy skills. Civic advocacy skills will be measured by pre- and post-surveys and conversations asking about knowledge of different ways to engage with communities and public officials, and self-efficacy for advocacy.

Good luck completing your artwork at Broad Rock Creek Park this summer, we can’t wait to see the beautiful mural that the youth of Richmond Highway Corridor will create!