“It takes a village to raise a child.”   -African Proverb

You have heard of this quote, right?  The truth that it takes a village to do anything! How we organize as communities starts locally and from there, has national and international impact.

Using the arts to create change in a neighborhood or town is not a new concept. In fact, the creative centers have always been the center of life for any community, through their markets, entertainment, cottage industries and shops. We see a pattern in urban development where artists go into a depressed neighborhood, taking risks as the first residents in high crime areas. Little pop up shops and studios draw others and soon the big names start moving in and chomping up real estate, destroying what made the neighborhood interesting or fun. There is a way to balance economic development with prosperity while keeping native communities intact. That comes through getting access to resources to that same community.

For the last several months, I have been working on ideas on how this can happen here in Paducah, Kentucky. There are already many wonderful things happening, but I see an opportunity for neighborhood development that focuses on income generation, sustainability, and cultural programs and I would like to do this in the UpperTown neighborhood, a traditionally African American neighborhood that is just South of our downtown. I have explored some of these ideas and resources in past posts, so do look back at these three (click to read them):

Green Roof Culture Hub

Flower Power Club

Paducah’s Eco Village

In this post, I want to explain a bit more about how the Green Roof Culture Hub might take shape. I am looking for my “tribe” here in Paducah and as others get involved, their talents and interests will help shape how this plays out, but for now, let me show you what’s in my head…

What’s in a name?

The name may change, but it has meaning to me.

• Green: sustainability. Focus on recycling, on decreasing pesticide use, of increasing access to organic food. Bee, butterfly and bird friendly!
• Roof: housing.  Creative approach to the structures we live in. Decorating through paint and public art. Accessing and networking with other programs that can help repair structures.
• Culture: diversity. Celebrate our differences while finding common ground! Use the arts to build bridges. Travel and bring guests. Hospitality.
• Hub: Serve as an umbrella for other local projects or micro-enterprise.

As a place, Green Roof Culture will have a visible presence that is event oriented: workshops, performances and projects that benefit the community and the city.  Some specific ideas for the neighborhood include attracting healthy food options, free internet access, solar energy, and encouraging micro-enterprise.

Creative Cities

Paducah has the distinction of being listed as one of UNESCO’s creative cities.

The UNESCO Creative Cities Network (UCCN)was created in 2004 to promote cooperation with and among cities that have identified creativity as a strategic factor for sustainable urban development. The 180 cities which currently make up this network work together towards a common objective: placing creativity and cultural industries at the heart of their development plans at the local level and cooperating actively at the international level.

This positions us internationally as a place where great creative things happen and can continue to happen. Unfortunately, little of what we do here targets minorities or the poor. While Green Roof welcomes all people, indeed NEEDS all people, its programming will focus on working with low income families, especially Black families living in UpperTown. In order to learn more about race issues here in Paducah, I started attending meetings at the Race Unity Group that meets weekly at Washington Street Baptist Church, located on the edge of UpperTown, where it meets DownTown.

We have a lot of work ahead of us! My belief is that the arts help bridge the barriers and open us to conversations and friendships that might not happen otherwise.  The arts also bring a lot of money to a community. Yet, artists, musicians, and others in the creative field remain underpaid and unappreciated in our society.  From the Visual Capitalist:

“According to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, the creative economy accounts for 4.2% of the GDP and is valued at $704 billion. It’s also a segment of the economy that’s still growing. For example, art director and graphic design jobs are growing across the country at rates of 9% and 13%, respectively.”  (2017)

Harmony, Minnesota

Small towns and neighborhoods have a real chance at shaping the quality of life for its residents and for attracting like minded people to the area.

Funding and Resources

Quite a few organizations and funders have recognized the value of the arts in shaping communities and improving their quality of life. At this time, I am not able to apply for grants as I don’t know enough about how the structure of the Green Roof Culture Hub will look like. At this time, I believe that the hub will evolve into a mixture of small businesses, collectives and non-profits. Click on the names below to visit some examples of funding.

NEA Our Town Grant: Place-Based Projects. Through arts engagement, cultural planning, design, and/or artist/creative industry support, these projects contribute to improved quality of life in local communities. These projects require a partnership between a nonprofit organization and a local government entity, with one of the partners being a cultural organization. Matching grants range from $25,000 to $200,000, with a minimum cost share/match equal to the grant amount.

Art Builds Communities:  I love what this group is doing!  They provide training and host regional conferences. Hopefully, someday I will be able to go!

ArtPlace:  They funded over $100 million in creative projects and are now evaluating how to go from here. Lots of resources.

ArtPlace – Southwest Roots

One of the funded projects, Southwest Roots, shares many of the same focuses I would like to see happen through Green Roof Culture. Learn more.

Creative Startups:  Started in Santa Fe, New Mexico, Creative Startups provides mentoring, technical assistance, and support to creative entrepreneurs.

There are many others, but like anything else, it takes time, relationship building and concrete goals to apply for funding or to have the time to benefit from the resources that are there.

Why Me?

Actually, knowing how much work this all going to be, I would rather just sell everything and go live somewhere where it’s already happening. Go knit …   But, I can’t. I am feeling called to this community and I have a set of specific skills and experiences that can be put to good use here. My whole life, before moving to Paducah, was embedded in multiculturalism. I spent the first 18 years of my life in Brazil and then 20 years in inner city Chicago. I know people all around the world and have worked with artists and fair trade groups since the mid 1980’s. I know how to make stuff that sells out of garbage. I love cultural architecture and have worked in rehabbing old houses. I get along well with people of all walks of life. I have tech skills.  None of my ideas are original. They are happening elsewhere and I believe they can happen here, too!

No time

I just feel like we are running out of time. The world is a mess. Every institution that provides a safety net for our poor, our elderly and our sick is being knocked over. The United States is creating chaos in the world. I can’t fix everything, but I can make a bit of difference and that bit will be creative, fun and hopefully, something that can be replicated elsewhere.

Help Make it Happen

See that red house at the top of this post?  I want to buy it. If it sells before I can, then there are many other boarded up and empty buildings in that neighborhood.  I need some start-up money and I am hoping that YOU, my village, will help me get there!

Give A Hand

Heidi Hunter – Runs with Scissors (One of our Give A Hand donors!)

How you can help:

Rachel Biel

Join in on the Give A Hand Fundraiser!  $100 buys you a spot in our first public art installation.  You will have a page on our new site with your story and get a public thank you on my Facebook pages.  Go here.

Donate any amount to my PayPal account:  Use rayela.art@gmail.com as the id.  You will get a thank you on the new site.

Join my tribe! Are you local to Paducah? Have ideas that would fit into the Green Roof Culture Hub? Let’s meet and brainstorm.

Spread the word! 

Questions and comments?  Leave them below and I’ll happily respond!  Make sure to sign up to get the blog posts by email as I will post more about products we will be making and updates on how it’s all going.  It’s in the sidebar ->  ->  ->

Fundraising Goal:  $30,000