WECA hosts ‘Creative Visioning’ to address climate change

Special to the Regional Review

The public is invited to a creative and engaging student-led presentation that will provide valuable insights and practical strategies for navigating the challenges of climate change. This interactive event will take place Friday, May 1, from 1 to 3 p.m. at the HUB Causeway Meeting Room (50 Causeway St).

‘Creative Visioning/ stems from a collaboration between the West End Civic Association (WECA), UMass (Amherst) Department of Landscape Architecture and Regional Planning, and the Eliot School to address the immediate need to plan for and adapt to climate change and promote public awareness and action. The collaboration focuses on the involvement of the “next generation:” UMass and 6th grade students from the Eliot School, whose “creative visions” addressing resiliency issues will be featured at the May 1 event. 

UMass identified local neighborhood areas with significant unmet climate resiliency needs that underscore the immediate and urgent need for resilience planning. Concerns include heat mitigation, pollution reduction, stormwater management, open-space planning and greenspace expansion. While focusing primarily on the West End, the project also explores connections to adjacent neighborhoods and public spaces, including the North End, Charlestown, Beacon Hill, Downtown, and Charlesbank and the Esplanade.   UMass has also connected with the City of Boston to align planning with community priorities.

To engage the Eliot School students, members of WECA’s Greenspace Committee collaborated with UMass to inform and engage sixth graders on matters of climate resilience and public engagement, including a walking tour of parts of the West End and North End. Additional informal learning sessions were held, and students and parents were also invited to attend WECA public meetings. Eliot School students committed to produce their “creative visions” to address local resiliency concerns. 

WECA is proud of the opportunity to collaborate with UMass and the Eliot School on climate matters that affect quality of life in the West End to promote meaningful public engagement.