The new ADI 100 program aims to train 100 dialog facilitators from communities across the Adirondack Park. To date, ADI has received 22 applications since the program’s “soft launch” this November. A bigger push will occur in January 2021. To learn more or sign up, please contact Nicky at nhylton-patterson@adirondack.org.
ADI’s Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (EIB) Internship Program will welcome 34 undergraduate interns and 6 graduate fellows for paid/unpaid internships for the 2021 academic year. These interns are affiliated with Clarkson University, SUNY Potsdam, and Adirondack Experience, the Museum on Blue Mountain Lake.
Talking Wings, a St. Lawrence University documentary program, will feature ADI’s work at the intersection of environmental and racial justice in the Adirondacks.
Queer of Color Voices is a partnership with the Adirondack North Country Gender Alliance. ADI Director Nicky Hylton-Patterson sat on the panel of queer activists and organizers involved in the Transgender Day of Remembrance and Pride activities in Keene and Plattsburgh. The series will resume in January 2021 and will center the lives of LGBTQI+ lives in the Adirondack North Country.
ADI’s Cultural Consciousness Program, facilitated by Nicky, is currently being engaged by four organizations in the Adirondacks: Eagle Island Camp, Northern Lights School, North Country School and ANCA.
The Bi-directional Exchange Program will continue in March 2021 (COVID-19 conditions permitting).
• The University/College Program will welcome its 2021 cohort under the Alternative Spring Break banner with BIPOC students from SUNY Potsdam and Hunter College. ADI is working to expand program partnerships to include students from other Adirondack North Country/NYC colleges.
• The Youth Program, which was postponed due to COVID-19 restrictions, is on schedule to welcome the inaugural cohort of 55 students from Bronx area schools June through August 2021. Each group will be joined by peers from schools across the Park. Students will be hosted by North Country School/Camp Tree Tops, Paul Smith's College and Eagle Island Camp. ADI is still accepting applications from students enrolled at Adirondack region schools! Contact Nicky for more information: nhylton-patterson@adirondack.org.
ADI’s new Community Wellness Initiative focuses on five areas of engagement across the Adirondack North Country:
• K-12 to Ranger School Pipeline with SUNY-ESF
• ADI's Community Policing is led by Core Team members Pete Nelson and Chris Morris (also ADI liaison on the Village of Saranac Lake’s policing reform community advisory group). ADI is working with Renz Consulting to provide cultural consciousness development to law enforcement agencies across the Park. Several municipal leaders and law enforcement agencies have signed on and will begin training in February 2021. On December 15, ADI initiated discussions with Hamilton County local government and organization leaders. Keep an eye out for our community forum with RENZ consulting and local law enforcement!
• Community Health Officers: stay tuned for updates!
• The ADI Youth Advisory Council is being convened under the leadership of CorrieAnn Stoner of Keene and Jada Meadows of Saranac Lake. Thank you CorrieAnn and Jada!
• Local Government Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Policy Conference: ADI is planning this virtual conference to coincide with Governor Andrew Cuomo’s Executive Order 203 deadline on “Policing Reform” in April 2021.
The new ADI School Board Liaison Program aims to have a representative voice on every school board in the Adirondack Park. To date, ADI liaisons have been identified and are serving on Saranac Lake and Lake Placid school boards. In October, ADI convened its first Community Advisory Council in Keene Valley. The Council is currently recruiting members.
Planning retreat: On Saturday, December 5, Nicky and the ADI Core Team gathered for the Initiative’s first (virtual) annual planning retreat. The day's conversations focused on ADI’s redesign and relaunch, which aim to reflect the current local and national climate around racial and environmental justice.
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