East Jerusalem Climate Resilience Center
Oseola McCarty Youth Development Center, Mississippi Rising Coalition
Hattiesburg, Mississippi
2024
Aerial view of the future OMYDC Climate Resilience Center campus
Partners
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Through the Equitable Resilience Program with EPA, SMM is working with 15 communities across the south and southwest. The East Jerusalem Climate Resilience Center (EJCRC) project aims to create a vibrant, self-reliant community in Hattiesburg, Mississippi that is secure in the face of increasingly frequent and severe climate threats, particularly extreme heat and tornadoes, while reducing pollution, building climate resilience, and mitigating current and future risks.
The project is a collaboration between Oseola McCarty Youth Development Center (OMYDC) and Mississippi Rising Coalition (MRC).
OMYDC’s focus is on equipping young people with the skills to make meaningful contributions and ensure they become integral members of their community. They engage in initiatives aimed at reducing local pollution and promoting public health, recognizing the interconnectedness between environmental sustainability and community well-being.
MRC's mission is to mobilize resources, organize communities and support the capacity of social movements to advance the well-being, safety and self-determination of historically and deliberately marginalized people in Mississippi.
Janet Baldwin, Executive Director, Oseola McCarty Youth Development Center
Photo Credit:
Giancarlo D'Agostaro
"We are in Mississippi, which is the heart of the southeast, and we have temperatures regularly now that exceed a hundred degrees during the summer and you add on top of that the humidity. It's a real threat for our communities, particularly communities that are low income and have a high energy burden, meaning they spend a larger percentage of their net income on utility costs to cool their home."
Lea Campbell, Founder and President, Mississippi Rising Coalition
OMYDC serves as a vital community resource and resilience hub for youth and low-income families.
Photo Credit:
Giancarlo D'Agostaro
Lea Campbell, Founder and President, Mississippi Rising Coallition
Credit:
Giancarlo D'Agostaro
The EJCRC will provide long-term health and safety benefits to residents, including serving as a hub for clean drinking water during water crises, a cooling and power center during extreme heat and power outages, a food source for households experiencing food insecurity and a resource for mental health assessment and treatment services.
The project aims to create a cross-sectoral model for other community partners to become self-determined and self-sustaining resilience hubs through the use of solar power, water filtration, a community teaching garden and food security initiatives. The community and youth educational programs will serve as a model for community empowerment, prioritizing education and training around impacts of climate change (including mental health impacts), environmental health and community-led climate disaster preparation and response.
