The first Not For Us, Without Us meetings have officially kicked off, and the response from the North Richmond community has been powerful. Over the past few weeks, residents have come together to share lived experiences, voice concerns, and imagine a future rooted in care, access, and community leadership. These early gatherings laid the foundation for a community-driven decision-making process that centers the people most impacted by environmental and infrastructure challenges in North Richmond.
The first two meetings were held at the Corrine Sain Senior & Family Community Center, bringing together longtime residents of North Richmond from the Black and Latino community. Participants shared memories of “old North Richmond” and reflected on what made the neighborhood feel safe, vibrant, and connected. Elders spoke about a time when streets were clean, neighbors looked out for one another, and community life extended beyond individual homes. From those reflections emerged clear priorities, including safer and more accessible sidewalks, better street lighting, reduced dumping and trash, and infrastructure that supports aging residents. One elder, George, who has lived in North Richmond since the 1940s, shared stories of bustling nightlife, unlocked doors, and a deep sense of collective responsibility. These memories inspired a shared desire to reclaim that level of care and connection.
The first meeting at Verde Elementary School expanded these conversations, welcoming a strong turnout of lifelong residents, including elders and younger residents from across the North Richmond community. Parents and caregivers echoed many of the same concerns raised by seniors, including air pollution, street safety, and limited access to healthy activities for young people. Transportation and accessibility emerged as especially urgent themes. Residents spoke about the need for better local transit options, safer routes, and access to essential services like grocery stores without having to leave the neighborhood. Community members also raised questions about expanding programs like Richmond Moves to better serve North Richmond’s unincorporated areas.
Rather than a traditional presentation, these meetings are intentionally interactive. Facilitators introduced key concepts, including Just Transition, environmental justice, environmental racism, and climate change, and then created space for residents to put those ideas into practice through discussion, breakout groups, and collective analysis. By centering conversation and participation, the meetings help residents build confidence using their voices and prepare them to critically engage with the more than 110 proposed projects up for consideration in upcoming sessions.
At its core, Not For Us, Without Us is an effort to change a pattern that has long excluded North Richmond residents from decisions about funding tied directly to their health, environment, and lived experience. When public funding becomes available for communities on the fenceline of polluting industries, it too often fails to reach the people it is meant to serve. Instead, resources are frequently claimed by outside organizations, consultants, or political actors with greater access to grant writing capacity, institutional support, and decision-making spaces.
This spring alone, more than $40 million in grant funding has been made available to address decades of pollution and harm in Richmond, particularly in refinery fenceline communities like North Richmond. Through the Not For Us, Without Us series of six community meetings, residents are reclaiming their role in that process by identifying priorities, shaping proposals, and deciding what investments their community truly needs. Hosted by Urban Tilth in partnership with Contra Costa County Supervisor John Gioia’s office, the Contra Costa Sustainability Office, CHDC, The Watershed Project, and Richmond Land, the meetings are designed to be accessible and community-centered, with interpretation, translated materials, stipends, and efforts to provide childcare.
With more meetings ahead, including another in-person gathering at Verde Elementary School and upcoming online sessions, the process continues to build toward a community vote and celebration later this spring. Each meeting strengthens the shared vision that decisions about North Richmond should be shaped by the people who call it home, because nothing about the community should be decided without the community.
Make your voice count, sign up now to join the last in-person and online Not For Us, Without Us meetings and help shape North Richmond’s future!
