Cultural festivals flourish through sustainable, collaborative values

Posted on June 21, 2022 by Alyse Horn

When it comes to setting the culture of community events, artists hold power. They create opportunities for others to become immersed in their environment and help establish sustainable, equitable pathways for the future.

During the weekends of May 14th and 20th, Pittsburgh saw the kickoff of festival season around the city, three of which included the Greater Pittsburgh Festival of Books (GPFB), Millvale Music Festival (MMF), and Pittonkatonk. GPFB and Pittonkatonk being fiscally sponsored projects of New Sun Rising (NSR) and MMF as a project of Millvale Ecodistrict partner, Millvale Community Development Corporation (MCDC).

This was the first year of the GPFB and founder Marshall Coehn said well over 2,000 people pre registered for programs, which were all free and spread across six venues in East Liberty.

“The poetry tent was filled. The children’s events were filled. Billy Porter’s event was filled within the first 20 minutes it was announced,” Cohen said. “The feedback we are getting has been really good and we are very pleased with the turnout.”

Cohen attended his first book festival around 30 years ago in New York City, and since then he and his wife have traveled far and wide to experience others. The two that stand out to him are held in Los Angeles and Boston, and as the GPFB grows, he hopes to emulate Boston’s model. Cohen said he is sending out a survey to those who registered, and will be accessible on the website for those who attended the festival, to collect data on the event that will be used to entice more publishers and authors to participate next year.

“We want to get more national authors here, but at the same time give more Pittsburgh authors national exposure,” said Coehn. “Pittsburgh is now able to say, along with Los Angeles and Boston and Miami and Chicago, ‘We too have a book festival, here’s what happened at it and you should think about coming to it.’”

From the beginning stages of planning, which started pre-pandemic, Cohen said NSR was a tremendous help in knowing that he didn’t have to “worry about the administrative side of things.” Fiscal sponsorship through NSR allows leaders to focus on project design and implementation while NSR takes care of compliance, and reduces friction between the work required to manage funds and implement ideas.

Pete Spynda, co-founder and co-organizer of Pittonkatonk, has been fiscally sponsored for nearly a decade and said he has grown considerably with NSR’s guidance. Held in the Vietnam Veterans Pavilion, this was the ninth year of the festival. Filled with Balkan brass, cumbia, hip-hop, and big bands, “Pittonkatonk is music in public spaces that belong to everyone, with no stage, no doors, and no right way to express yourself,” according to the website.

“Ten years ago I didn’t know how to write a grant, and now I can connect with the foundation and think about building a sustainable festival mostly through their mentorship and I’m very thankful for that and the resources they provide,” Spynda said.

Since 2018, NSR has collaborated with Pittonkatonk to run The Activist Greenhouse during the event, which is a community resources tent that connects people with social and environmental justice organizations. This year’s performers included May Day Marching Band, Casa San Jose, Afro Yaqui Music Collective, 1Hood Media, Sto-Rox Marching Band, Lemon Bucket Orchestra, Hugo Cruz and Caminos.

Spynda said there were around 10,000 people at the event this year, based on the estimate from Pennsylvania Resources Council (PRC) after weighing the compost, recycling, and waste collected that day. Pittonkatonk and PCR have partnered since 2019 with the goal of making tonk a Zero Waste event. This year, Spynda said Pittonkatonk maintained an 83% diversion rate, meaning out of 827 pounds of trash, 274 pounds were composted and 370 pounds were recycled, and there were 40 pounds of reusable materials collected.

“The first couple years of the festival I had to rent a dumpster and hauling service to get rid of all the trash. It was a lot and hard to manage,” Spynda said. “Thanks to foundations like The Hillman Foundation, The Pittsburgh Foundation, The Heinz Endowments, and support of New Sun Rising we are able to pay for this resource and make the event even more sustainable.”

The Millvale Music Festival also went Zero Waste this year by partnering with PRC as well as NSR, Triboro Ecodistrict, and ZeroFossil. Melissa Mason, MMF organizer, said 90% of waste being diverted from the landfill is needed to consider an event Zero Waste.

“Last year we did pretty decent and it was our second year [going Zero Waste] so we had some numbers to compare it to,” Mason said. “In 2021 we were at 58% diverted and this year we were at 76% so that was a nice jump and the big difference was that we had compostable cups in all of our outdoor bars.”

The festival manages five bars and they also provided compostable cups to Grist House Craft Brewery. Mason said it was great to have NSR and the Triboro Ecodistrict stepping up to sponsor the Zero Waste initiative alongside PRC and ZeroFossil, because it showed the community’s support for going green.

This was MMF’s fifth year with 350 musical acts, over 40 visual artists, a mobile “stage” by Redfishbowl, and two new stages were added: The Purple Onion at the Millvale Food + Energy Hub, 112 E. Sherman St., and Distinctly U, 419 E. Ohio St.

“I was at both The Purple Onion and Sprezzatura stages [in the Hub] and it was awesome,” Mason said. “I love the swanky jazz club atmosphere at Sprezzatura, and The Purple Onion kind of had this kind of speakeasy vibe. I hope we can start having more music there regularly.”

Virtual retreat brings together leaders of community transformation, creative expression

Posted on June 2, 2022 by Alyse Horn

Above: “Short Break” by Wildstyle Paschall for All317HipHop. Paschall was a speaker during the first Positive Deviants Virtual Retreat in May.

When you think of Positive Deviants, what comes to mind?

“Disruptive. Creative. Persistent. Aren’t afraid of being on the outside, on the fringe.”

It is that question, and those answers, that kicked-off the inaugural Positive Deviants for Community Transformation event on Friday, May 6. The virtual half day retreat had attendees from across the country and world connecting with organizers, featured guests, and fellow participants to uncover new ways of thinking and doing and expand the practice of positive deviancy.

The idea for this pilot series came about when Positive Deviants in Dayton, Ohio, Indianapolis, Indiana, and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania joined together for a conversation around shared values and discovered a bond beyond geography and regional challenges; there was a kinship found through the innovative and transformative work that grassroots change agents were doing in their communities, often without recognition or sufficient resources.

Retreat host James Saleem addressed the importance of the Positive Deviants approach to community transformation, saying, “In this moment, we have an opportunity for us to grow, trust, and build bonds with one another across these three regions and larger. It’s important to have a network of people who have the ability to open up certain doors that we can’t open up ourselves.”

DeAmon Harges, ABCD Institute faculty at DePaul University, founder of The Learning Tree in Indianapolis, and keynote speaker for the event, said “the most Positive Deviant thing we can do is be friends, and deviating from the status quo includes friendship.”

Speakers also included: Amaha Sellassie, peace builder, healer, practitioner scholar and co-founder of Co-Op Dayton and Gem City Market, a community-owned grocery store in Dayton; Jmar Bey, founder of South Hilltop Men’s Group in Pittsburgh; Wildstyle Paschall, musician, producer, and historian activist at All317HipHop in Indianapolis; and Glenna Jennings, photographer, associate professor of Art & Design, and creator of the Art and Social Practice course at the University of Dayton in Dayton.

Host James Saleem closed the retreat with a call to action: “”Please take this opportunity to broaden our reach by sharing your connections with us. Think about your communities. Nominate the positive deviants you know: deviant social workers, community workers, and artists- anyone breaking the mold to better our communities.”

This pilot series includes a total of three national conversations at the intersection of community transformation and creative expression, led by the people who are actually doing the work. The next two retreats will be held on August 12 and November 4. Register for the August retreat on EventBrite at this link. The Positive Deviants co-creation team is now accepting nominations for storytellers and artists for upcoming retreats, workshops, and social media boosts.

This series was co-created by The Collaboratory, New Sun Rising, and The Learning Tree. Join the community, access resources, and spark a conversation in the forum at wearepositivedeviants.org.

Funding was generously provided by Grassroots Grantmakers, a national membership organization comprised of place-based funders, advocacy organizations and community organizers that values and leverages resident and civic engagement as a catalyst for creating and driving sustainable community improvement strategies.

Triboro Ecodistrict Workshop brings together regional leaders interested in learning sustainability strategies

Posted on June 1, 2022 by Alyse Horn

For well over a decade, Millvale, Etna, and Sharpsburg have been pursuing and implementing ecodistrict strategies, and on March 25-26 during the Triboro Ecodistrict Workshop, they were able to connect with regional and local leaders interested in pursuing ecodistricts in their own communities.

The two day workshop at the Millvale Food + Energy Hub included speakers from the Triboro Ecodistrict and partners that have been key to the success of obtaining Ecodistrict certification; conversations were facilitated around topics such as coalition building, accessing resources, lean canvas development, and ecodistrict mapping.

“It was interesting to learn about the activities, events and initiatives being spearheaded in these communities and how the ecodistricts work aligns directly with their work to create more partnerships, to work together with the municipalities, local nonprofits, and other individuals in the community,” said Andrew Johnson, director of community partnerships and sustainability at The Forbes Funds. “ It was very eye opening to see the good work being done.”

To help advance the Ecodistrict work being done by nonprofits and community members who attended the workshop, $1,000 mini-grant opportunities and technical support were made available through New Sun Rising and District PGH for five projects.

Applicants were asked questions around why climate action, resilience, and equity are important to their communities, and how the project will engage and educate residents around Ecodistrict quality of life areas (equity, food, energy, water, air, and/or mobility).

The communities awarded mini-grants include: Brackenridge, McKees Rocks, Meadville, Monaca, and Shaler.

Abbey Nilson, science teacher at Shaler Area High School, was able to attend the workshop on both days, and said the mini-grant will be used to explore making the school’s educational facilities more sustainable. For the Friday workshop, Nilson brought five students with her that helped brainstorm what they’d like to use the grant for.

“They really enjoyed the experience,” Nilson said. “A couple things they noted specifically was that they were treated like everyone else there and were able to converse about the topics at hand. It got them thinking about trying to take the model of an ecodistrict and applying it to our school.”

Nilson has been working with the Triboro Ecodistrict since she created the sustainability class in 2020 and said it has provided countless opportunities for her and her students to connect with community leaders on projects happening in the boroughs. Having the support of the Triboro Ecodistrict makes a bigger impact in the classroom by providing resources and an outlet for the students’ passion around equity and sustainability.

It’s that kind of grassroots level work that Johnson believes can create positive, transformational change throughout the region and beyond.

“The biggest thing I want to convey is that [the ecodistrict] model can change the world, and the work that is going on in the Pittsburgh region is attempting to change the world,” Johnson said.

On Friday during the workshop, Etna Community Organization received $100,000 in state funding from Rep. Sara Innamorato, which will be put towards work on the new Etna Center for Community.

Triboro Ecodistrict businesses, nonprofits can save by going solar

Posted on March 24, 2022 by Alyse Horn

Whether it’s cutting down on costs or lowering your environmental footprint, there are many reasons more and more organizations are choosing to go solar.

G.E.T. Solar Communities: Triboro, a local committee of residents and municipal leaders, from the Etna, Millvale and Sharpsburg neighborhoods that supports the economic and environmental benefits of going solar, is partnering with nonprofit Pennsylvania Solar Center to host a free informational meeting to businesses and nonprofits who want to learn more about going solar and how it can save them money. The meeting will take place at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, April 6 at the Millvale Food+Energy Hub (112 E Sherman St).

The meeting will offer creative ways businesses and nonprofits can reap the benefits of solar energy. Attendees can expect to learn more about tax credits, financing programs and grants, technical assistance and how to select a qualified developer.

The PA Solar Center will also be issuing RFPs on behalf of interested businesses and nonprofits to solicit bids for the projects from qualified solar developers. They will review the bids with the businesses/nonprofits and help them understand each step of the way.

The PA Solar Center will even offer a free assessment of your company’s solar potential to those who attend. Those interested in attending should be sure to register here.

Contact Leo Kowalski at leo@pasolarcenter.org for more information.

Trade programs available for Triboro Ecodistrict residents

Posted on January 28, 2022 by Alyse Horn

Are you a Millvale, Etna, or Sharpsburg resident and looking to start your career in the trades or expand your education?

Sharpsburg Neighborhood Organization is offer $100 per week stipends (for up to 10 weeks) to Triboro Ecodistrict residents attending the Trade Institute of Pittsburgh, Bidwell Training Center, CCAC, or other qualifying trade schools.

The goal is to help local folks find a good-paying, in-demand career that they enjoy. If you are interested in this opportunity and want to talk more about it, visit tinyurl.com/SbgTIP or call (412) 407-7661.

For the Trade Institute of Pittsburgh’s full-time masonry or carpentry programs, classes run from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, and no drivers license or G.E.D is required. Along with the fundamentals of masonry or carpentry, students will learn job readiness skills and computer literacy, along with receiving one-on-one financial counseling, life coaching, and job placement assistance with jobs starting at $15+/hour. The Trade Institute of Pittsburgh is located near the busway in Homewood in the 7800 Susquehanna Building.

One Northside Mini-Grants close out 2021 with 20 funded projects

Posted on September 8, 2021 by Alyse Horn

Pittsburgh, PA — The 2021 One Northside Mini-Grant’s have come to a close with a total of 20 funded small-scale community projects that demonstrated support of their neighbors, helped strengthen connections, increased accessibility to resources, and activated significant places in their community.

Including these projects, the total number of those completed since 2018 is 161.

This funding year challenged mini-grantees to create projects that adhered to COVID-19 guidelines while still supporting and interacting with their communities.

One project, Community Breakfast, was led by Victoria Tyus and they served hot food to the homeless and anyone in need of a meal. During the pandemic, they have fed over 825 families monthly.

Tyus wrote, “Every first Tuesday, every fourth Wednesday, and every fourth Saturday, food [was] given out of the door of the church… We have been doin this for a long time but the only challenge is getting funds to keep purchasing food and supplies.”

Another project, Daniel’s Den Cancer Foundation, has been in operations for 13 years and supports cancer patients and families. Their goal is to continue to reach out to the cancer community that is searching for support, financial help, and informative medical literature.

Led by Roxanne Robinson, the foundation built on what they historically offer, and supplied cancer patients with stipends for $500 and gathered information to help patients with their diagnosis and proposed avenues to get additional help. They have a yearly luncheon coming up this October to help draw more support towards their cause.

Both Community Breakfast and Daniel’s Den Cancer Foundation were previously funded by a ONS Mini-Grant.

A new project during 2021 included Women’s Way: Stories of Motherhood in the Time of Covid, led by Sloane Davidson and Hello Neighbor. The project has partnered with other local nonprofits including City of Asylum, Sharing our Story, and Pittsburgh Hispanic Development Corporation to facilitate digital storytelling workshops for refugee and immigrant mothers and U.S. born mothers to share their experience of navigating motherhood in the time of COVID.

The event is scheduled to occur in 2022, and it is simultaneously being planned to be held virtually depending on the status of in-person events due to the pandemic.

The complete list of 2021 ONS Mini-Grant projects include:

Art From The Heart – Sheila D. Collins
Bee-Loved Bees – Mercedes Velasquez
Brighton Arts – Puppets and Poetry – Char Fields
Cedar Point – Char Fields
Community Breakfast – Victoria Tyus
Daniel’s Den Cancer Foundation -Roxanne L Robinson
Eat, Play, Love – A Family’s Journey to Wellness on the Northside – Gorman Gregory Searcy and Maria T. Searcy
Family Support Center – Stephen Weiss
Fierce & Fabulous Fashion Sewing Design Club – Ruby Helvy
Financial Literacy Workshop – Jamara White
Granny Tees and Things – Marlo Jones
Pittsburgh VegFest 2021 Northside – Leila Sleiman Head
Pjs Playhouse – Patricia Morgan
Spring Hill Community Garden – Melanie Sandoval
Spring Hill Gateway – Ruth Ann Dailey
Spring Hill Greenway Entrance – Karen Lucarelli Braden
Tabitha’s Daughters, LLC/A Day of Mindfulness & Kindfulness Too! – Maxine Garrett
The Garden Circle – Rose Thompson
Women’s Way: Stories of Motherhood in the Time of Covid – Sloane Davidson
Write Pittsburgh Online Journal – Vivian Lee Croft

For more information about ONS Mini-Grants, click here.

About New Sun Rising

New Sun Rising supports nonprofits and small businesses to build vibrant communities through culture, sustainability, and opportunity. NSR believes that people and communities hold the knowledge and power to make positive change. We envision a future where regenerative community development practices create the conditions for true social, environmental, and economic justice.

About One Northside

One Northside is a community-driven initiative to improve the quality of life in all 18 neighborhoods of the Northside. Since early 2014, hundreds of Northside residents have engaged with local leaders and stakeholders in community-wide conversations to create a shared agenda for the revitalization of this vital component of the greater Pittsburgh region.

NSR awards over $2 million to grantees through Arts | Equity | Reimagined fund

Posted on July 29, 2021 by Alyse Horn

With the fourth and final round of Collective Action for Re-imagining (CAR) grants released, New Sun Rising has awarded a total of $2,090,190 to 23 collaborations between 97 arts organizations.

Under the Arts | Equity | Reimagined (AER) fund, the Collective Action for Re-imaging program was created to employ new, novel, and innovative ways of working together to address the dramatic shifts that have been instigated by the COVID-19 crisis, and that also addressed opportunities and solutions to reposition the arts sector for a more sustainable and equitable future.

Twenty-six review panelists participated in recommending funding for 45%, or 23 out of 51, proposals submitted to the program. Out of the funded proposals, 52% were led by BIPOC. The Covid-19 Arts Working Group (CAWG) ultimately approved the recommendations at the end of each grant cycle.

New Sun Rising believes that the AER-CAR grantees represent the largest investment focused on collective action and equity ever made into the Pittsburgh metro area’s arts ecosystem.

The locations of the funded projects include: City of Pittsburgh (14), Allegheny County (5), Beaver County (2), Westmoreland County (1), Cambria County (1).

The nonprofits that received funding in the final round include:

Lead Organization: The Legacy Arts Project
- Funded: $100,000
- Hotline Ring is a shared, virtual fundraiser presented on July 15 that brings together the aligned missions of seven arts and culture organizations led by and/or in community with Queer, Trans, and/or People of Color to create an opportunity for giving thsat has an enourmous impact in our region.
Lead Organization: Block Chronicles
- Funded: $100,000
- Block Chronicles and Casa San Jose are collaborating to develop the PGH Latinx Artist Residency (P-LAR), a 10-month opportunity for emerging Latinx artists in Allegheny County, who will receive support in career development and sustainability.
Lead Organization: Bloomfield/Garfield Corporation / BOOM Concepts
- Funded: $100,000
- BOOM Concepts and Black Unicorn Library & Archives Project will formalize their 7 year partnership by identifying ways to uplift, overlap, and assimilate best practice of both entities in efforts to present a stronger unified program and production portfolio.
Lead Organization: Touchstone Center for Crafts
- Funded: $100,000
- The Alliance for Creative Rural Economies (ACRE Project) will be a scalable model to bring creativity-driven, COVID-19 responsive, economic development to rural areas across western Pennsylvania and beyond; meeting creatives where they are in their artistic career journeys and offering multiple levels of support and resources to achieve business stability.
Lead Organization: Pittsburgh School for the Choral Arts (dba Pittsburgh Girls Choir)
- Funded: $75,000
- The establishment of a formal and permanent affiliation between Pittsburgh Girls Choir and the Pittsburgh Camerata for the purpose of sharing administrative leadership, staff and other resources in order to enhance community connections, programming and outreach.
Lead Organization: Neighborhood North Museum of Play
- Funded: $74,325
- Playful Learning Initiative will strengthen the community by connecting the arts and education ecosystems to benefit both artists and students. They will activate a group of Teaching Artists and install educational art to make learning through the arts accessible to all, especially in communities of color heavily impacted by COVID-19.

For more information about AER, click here.

2021 One Northside Mini-Grant Deadline June 13

Posted on May 17, 2021 by Alyse Horn

Pittsburgh, PA — The next One Northside (ONS) Mini-Grant application deadline is June 13, 2021 at 11:59 p.m. Project applications submitted to New Sun Rising (NSR) by this date will receive a decision in July 2021.

The mini-grant program awards Northsider’s up to $1,000 to support small-scale community projects that demonstrate pledged support of their neighbors, help strengthen connections, increase accessibility to resources, and/or activate significant places in their community.

Since 2018, there have been 141 completed ONS Mini-Grant projects. To view past projects, click here.

For mini-grant applicants, the preferred method for submitting your application is to use the online form, but printed applications are accepted by postal mail. You may also submit your applications as attachments to vibrancyfunds@newsunrising.org. Postal mail submissions should be addressed to New Sun Rising, Attn. One Northside Mini-Grant, P.O. Box 58005, Pittsburgh, PA 15209 and must be received by the grant deadline.

In regards to community support, please have three different Northside residents or business owners email vibrancyfunds@newsunrising.org with their name, the project they are supporting, their Northside address and their phone number; or have them call 412-407-9007 with the same information.

In pre-approved circumstances, project leaders may submit for additional mini-grants. Only one mini-grant per project leader may be active at one time. Please contact vibrancyfunds@newsunrising.org for additional information.

For more information about ONS Mini-Grants, click here.

About New Sun Rising

About One Northside

Celebrating Earth Day’s 50th solar return

Posted on April 22, 2020 by Alyse Horn

Above: Millvale neighbors work together in the community garden.

By Zaheen Hussain, Director of Sustainability

The first Earth Day was celebrated 50 years ago today. With COVID-19, I think we can all agree that this is perhaps one of the strangest Earth Weeks in the all the years we have observed this occasion.

Many of us with the privilege of being able to telework are settling into our routine after a month. Many of us who cannot work at home are counting our blessings and heading into our workplace in protective clothing, knowing we must fulfil our roles as essential workers with full courage on display. Then there are many of us who neither have the privilege of telework nor the status of essential worker, and with very limited aid, are struggling to make ends meet and are reliant on the goodwill of our neighbors to be able to put food in our bellies. Times are tough and Earth Day is the last thing on many of our minds.

While it feels like the fabric of our global society is being stretched to its furthest limits and the impact of this virus leaves a sense of walls closing in around us, fear not, for there are lessons to learn from the rock we call Earth, our home.

The biggest lesson the Earth can teach us in this moment is resilience. Okay, okay, I know, for those of us in the sustainability field, resilience carries an air of cliché. This next part gets a little dense, but bear with me.

*The solar panels on top of the Millvale Community Center.*

It is irrefutable that in the past ~200 years of our ~300,000 year existence, humans have created a shocking amount of environmental damage. We have left behind the Holocene, the epoch in which we developed as a species, and have entered a whole new epoch, the Anthropocene, characterized by both anthropogenic climate change as well as the geomorphological traces we will leave behind alongside our fossil record (roads, skyscrapers, mines, houses, you get the picture).

Despite this, scientists can say with confidence that human impact pales in comparison to the experiences our planet touts on its resumé. Earth has been a ball of fire. Earth has been a ball of ice. There have been extinction level volcanic explosions. There have been extinction level asteroids. Earth may have even been crashed into by another planet, the satellite remnants of which we can still see every day, lovingly calling it Moon.

All this to say, every time the earth has been knocked down, it has gotten back up, bold and beautiful, steadfast in its journey around the Sun and the Universe. It takes its punches, recalibrates and keeps moving, often in an existence that shares little resemblance to its prior state.

On this historic Golden Jubilee Earth Day, we can all learn from Earth’s lesson on resilience. When it feels like all the world’s weight is on our shoulders; when it feels like a cosmic body is smashing through our lives like a bull in a china shop, remember that we are all interconnected as a part of this world and we all share the spirit of resilience, baked into our existence.

Earth Day, after all, is more about us than it is about Earth. It’s about making sure that we respect and contribute to the balance of our ecosystems, not just because it’s “good for our planet,” but because if we don’t, we will work ourselves out of the environment in which we came to be, no longer able to survive as a species.

In that same spirit, let’s continue to be there for each other in our time of need, because our individual resilience is woven into the fabric of our societal resilience. When one of us falls, we all fall a little bit. When we lift up those around us, we all rise a little bit.

Donate to your local food pantry if you can. Volunteer from physical distance if you can. If you have a friend or neighbor in need, check in on them; see if there is something you can do to help them move through the storm. Make some masks if you can. Share some good news when you find it. Most importantly, take care of yourself. Go for a walk. Cook a delicious meal. Take a breath of fresh air (at least six feet away from a stranger though). Enjoy a hike in a nearby park. Go stargazing — with everyone driving less and there being less smog, the stars are brighter than ever! Ultimately, here’s to you, our resilient neighbor!

From the New Sun Ring team, we wish you all a great Earth Day today and every day!

New Sun Rising announces 2020 Vibrancy Awardees

Posted on April 21, 2020 by Alyse Horn

This year, New Sun Rising’s (NSR) Vibrancy Awards will honor Brown Mamas, Triboro Ecodistrict, and South Hilltop Men’s Group/Hilltop Rising LLC for cultivating Culture, Sustainability, and Opportunity in their communities.

Each will receive $5,000 in unrestricted funds to be used to support their continual work and create stability within their communities as they cope with the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Our administrators are brainstorming some ways to help Black mothers in the wake of COVID-19. Right now, we’d really like to focus on first responders and moms who’ve lost employment,” said Muffy Mendoza, Executive Director for Brown Mamas.

Honorees were selected from a list of nominees by a committee of NSR staff and board. Having begun in 2019, the awards support the exceptional work of organizations evaluated by the criteria of New Sun Rising’s Vibrant Communities strategies. This year’s awardees were also chosen based upon their history of meeting critical needs of vulnerable populations.

“The three awardees are nothing short of community heroes. They fearlessly take on risk and put in the work, time and ingenuity to inspire lives and places that have faced marginalization. By relating their own lived experience and talents to their respective causes, they are champions and leaders of their communities that will have a lasting impact,” said Katie Grimm, Board of Directors Vice Chair of New Sun Rising.

Last year, over 170 nonprofit and small business leaders benefited through the capacity building support of NSR’s Ignite workshops, Launch incubators, and Grow residency programs. NSR also made $1.9 million of critical, early stage funding more accessible through fiscal sponsorship, grant, loan, and award programs.

Recently, NSR provided up to $5,000 to 24 small businesses and nonprofits that demonstrated critical economic needs due to COVID-19 through the Crisis Mitigation Relief Fund, thanks to $100,000 in seed funding from the Hillman Foundation.

Due to social distancing precautions, NSR is evaluating options for the annual celebration and fundraiser, which was originally scheduled for the summer solstice on June 20 this year. The 2020 Vibrancy Awards are made possible through the support of our Impact Award Sponsors: UPMC Center for Engagement and Inclusion, BNY Mellon Foundation of Southwestern PA, and Jack Buncher Foundation.

About New Sun Rising

About Brown Mamas

Brown Mamas is a brand, a blog and a community that reaches over 5,000 women in the Pittsburgh region and more than 10,000 women nationally. It was created by Muffy Mendoza in 2012 to provide positive socialization opportunities to Black mothers and connect moms with resources and information that helps them raise happy, healthy adults.

About Triboro Ecodistrict

A partnership between New Sun Rising, Etna Economic Development Corporation, and Sharpsburg Neighborhood Organization, the Triboro Ecodistrict promotes coordinated sustainable community development throughout the Boroughs of Millvale, Etna and Sharpsburg. With over 10,000 residents combined, these Allegheny River Towns are building on a strong collaborative history to promote sustainable community development through the shared lenses of: Equity, Food, Water, Energy, Air Quality, and Mobility.

About South Hilltop Men’s Group/Hilltop Rising LLC

The South Hilltop Men’s Group is a non-profit project of New Sun Rising, directed by Beltzhoover native Jmar Bey. The organization was founded in 2015 by Jmar and Christian Nowlin. They provide job training, employment opportunities and promote environmental protection through community programs that teach sustainable practices. Since 2015, the South Hilltop Men’s Group has been working to support the responsible and inclusive revitalization of Pittsburgh. The organization’s mission statement is, “Creating hope and opportunity for those who have little.”

One Northside Mini-Grant adjustments amid COVID-19

Posted on March 27, 2020 by Alyse Horn

The upcoming One Northside (ONS) Mini-Grant application deadline will remain March 31, 2020. Project applications submitted to New Sun Rising (NSR) by March 31 will receive a decision in April 2020.

In lieu of the 15 required signatures for applications, grantees must have 3 references email or call NSR (412-407-9007) to give their full name, home or business address, and the name of the project they are supporting. References cannot be from the same Northside home or business address.

At this time, all grant deadlines have been extended to August 31, 2020.

The mini-grant program awards Northsider’s up to $1,000 to support small scale community projects that demonstrate pledged support of their neighbors, help strengthen connections, increase accessibility to resources, and/or activate significant places in their community.

NSR encourages prospective applicants to email vibrancyfunds@newsunrising.org with any questions or concerns about the mini-grant process in advance of preparing their application.

Contact

For mini-grant applicants, the preferred method for submitting your application is to use the online form accessible at: www.newsunrising.org/project/ignite-northside/

Printed applications are accepted by postal mail. You may also submit your applications as attachments to vibrancyfunds@newsunrising.org. Postal mail submissions should be addressed to New Sun Rising, Attn. One Northside Mini-Grant, P.O. Box 58005, Pittsburgh, PA 15209 and must be received by the grant deadline. All projects must be completed by August 31, 2020.

About New Sun Rising

About One Northside

ONS Mini-Grants ’empower’ community members, support projects

Posted on January 7, 2020 by Alyse Horn

Above: Marlo Jones helps women learn how to crochet at a senior citizens home on the Northside.

Northside neighbors with small-scale projects are able to utilize the One Northside Mini-Grant program to get their ideas off the ground, with the next application deadline being January 30, 2020.

The program awards Northsider’s $1,000 for their projects that demonstrate pledged support of their neighbors, help strengthen connections, increase accessibility to resources, and/or activate significant places in their community.

Cecelia Ware has been an advocate for the mini-grant program since she began applying for different projects several years ago, and believes that community members can feel “empowered” by engaging with their neighbors in this way.

“If you’ve got something that you want to share with the community, why not apply for a mini-grant and go ahead and do it?” Ware said.

The mini-grants were first supervised by The Sprout Fund, and when the nonprofit sunset, New Sun Rising took over the process in 2018. Ware applied for funding with both organizations, initially because she “needed to do work in [her] community” and wanted to help kids that may be navigating difficult experiences.

Ware has been awarded several mini-grants over the years, her first being the Saving Our Sons and Daughters after school program at Propel Northside that focuses on violence prevention and coping skills for high school students. Her current mini-grant project is an extension of the first, and is a Teen Drop in Center at 3577 McClure Ave. to ensure that students are supported beyond the school year. She said they are always looking volunteers, and those interested can email infinitelifestylesol@gmail.com.

“We still focus on violence prevention, but also social justice and African American history as well as leadership skills,” Ware said. “We provide the kids with a free meal, and we have a food bank and clothing bank so they can take those things home if needed.”

For Marlo Jones, this was the first year she applied for a mini-grant. As a talented crocheter, Jones wanted to share her craft through The Crochet Group, where she visits senior citizens each week and teaches them the basics of crocheting to create a beginner scarf or hat.

Jones said the mini-grant has helped her cover the costs of supplies, so each participate can choose and take with them several different yarn colors and their own pair of needles. She also uses a projector to present the different crochet techniques in an easy to digest fashion. She said the experience has been great for those involved.

“This is a safe environment, and people can talk and share what’s been going on in their lives” Jones said. “ It’s therapeutic… to start from nothing and create something beautiful with your hands.”

Project applications submitted to New Sun Rising by January 30, 2020 will receive a decision in February 2020. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis until the mini-grant funding pool is depleted, and the next mini-grant deadline is March 31, 2020.

The preferred method of submitting applications it to use the online form accessible at: www.newsunrising.org/project/ignite-northside/. Printing applications are accepted by postal mail, or via email attachment sent to vibrancyfunds@newsunrising.org. Postal mail submissions should be addressed to New Sun Rising, Attn. One Northside Mini-Grant, P.O. Box 58005, Pittsburgh, PA 15209 and must be received by the grant deadline. All projects must be completed by August 1, 2020.