About Us

Reconnects old and new generations to rebuild holistic community

Belief in vision

The N.O.U.R.I.S.H. Initiative speaks to the heart of what I see as an excellent and innovative approach to connecting with people in communities of need.

I believe that the city, state, and government have invested their funds in policing, violence and oppression instead of funding the housing, programming, education, and nutrition that communities deserve. I believe that people need to restore relationships with each other and the natural environment and build networks of mutual aid and community support while simultaneously fighting to defund the police and invest the resources people deserve into the community.

I believe Reedy’s vision aligns with the vision of Thrive 9th Ward. Desire cannot truly become a Desirable place to live without address the food deficiencies

It aligns with the work NOYC is already doing.

I believe in the power of voices and the youth!

Our communities need organized, tangible structures for generating greater love, self-determination, and wellness. The N.O.U.R.I.S.H. Initiative vision encompasses all of this. I want to see these visions become reality.

Because this is well conceived, comprehensive, vital, and necessary work.

Our tax dollars need to be invested into positive growth, healing, and nourishment for the community. True safety and security will come from our community's human rights being honored and met unconditionally and from restoring right relationship with all our relations.

In order to claim to be "equity focused," New Orleans must invest in historically disinvested neighborhoods, beginning with those that have beared the brunt of environmental racism. Outdoor spaces for residents to congregate, grow fresh food, and restore their mental health are critical for surviving the ongoing public health and economic crisis we're facing. This city needs as many lighthouses as possible so we can build a collective healing process that is rooted in the unique culture and resilience of each neighborhood, led by indigenous New Orleanians.

This is the type of community care we need! BIPOC communities deserve healing and collective care.

As a resident of New Orleans, I am interested in any program that focuses on building stronger communities, opening doors for under served communities, and building a stronger, more loving foundation for interaction among all the varied communities of our great city. From the little bit of information provided here, this organization sounds like it is aimed in a viable direction for accomplishing such aims.

Imagine where we could be at right now in America if we had these practices in place

I support change

As the husband of Krystle Sims-Cameron, I fully stand behind the purpose and intentionality of the collective.

I support NOURISH because the strategy laid out will divest in the police and clearly invest in the communities of New Orleans in sensible, smart ways. We cannot wait any longer or depend on politicians to do the right thing. We must act, as leaders within our own communities, to influence positive change through the aims detailed herein.

We need to divest police and invest in the community and this initiative works toward that goal. Food insecurity is a major issue in our community.

I have been wanting something like this in my neighborhood!

At a time when other cities around the country are examining their public safety funding structure, it is long overdue that we reconsider what our city invests in. I am interested in living in a city that invests in the very people who make it what it is, instead of criminalizing and profiting from black, brown, and indigenous communities of color. I want to live in a city that invests in the wellness and visions of BIPOC people and a city where everyone has a place where they feel safe, cared for and have the support and space to heal and thrive. It is clear that when people can access a community of care and a range of opportunities, our whole community benefits. I respectfully request that my tax dollars shift from funding policing initiatives toward investing in my neighbors and community.

I support relationship based work- work and partnership that doesn't follow the same broken paradigms but prioritizes people!

We support NOURISH and want to see more BIPOC in leadership roles in the growing green sector.

Because I want sustainable initiatives done in my city that will raise all of our quality of life

NOURISH Initiative responds to issues that are aligned to my own. I am excited about this initiative and looking forward to learning more, be active, and support the work as well as developing and joining various communities of like-minded folks that collaborate to form a collective towards actions to tackle injustice, as well as healing measures that address traumas.

This is desperately needed in a very desperate time.

because the class disparity in this city is leading to a litany of other problems for the disenfranchised minorities

I strongly support all these proposals!

I am a social worker by trade and support community mental health options, defunding the police, abolishing prisons, and putting resources into community wellness.

I know and trust some of the founders/leaders of this coalition, am familiar with their core values and built reputation in the local community. Therefore I trust their plans, solutions, strategies, and suggestions.

Literally everything the city needs right now

NOURISH identifies and proposes solutions for a plethora of issues that are plaguing our community.

because we need to do something, and this is something that makes sense!

Defund police-support community organizations and resources-uplift the poor and marginalized. BLM. ACAB.

We are for equity and we believe in community development to be key for equitable living across what NOURISH is trying to accomplish.

I think it's good for the community

I have family members that suffer from mental illness and I'm grateful for the work you all are doing to create and promote community-centered solutions in New Orleans and beyond. Thank you all!

Supporting any initiatives for health in NOLA!

The N.O.U.R.I.S.H. Initiative provides so many essentials needed for the collective growth, sustained health and progression of our neighborhoods.

We need to invest in integrated community solutions, not military solutions.

I urge the city to invest in its young people and its residents. We live in one of the best cities in the world, but we aren't very good at taking care of it. We love this city for its culture, but we do embarrassingly little to show love for our people. I'm excited to see the organizers behind this model, and I'm here to support this reinvestment in the NOURISH model. Let's make New Orleans a healthier and more sustainable place to live.

"As the Garden Coordinator for Crown Community Garden, a NAMI trained mental health advocate, and a Licensed Masters Social Worker, I stand in full support of the Nourish Model. The goal of a productive community food system in our city is possible and a much needed resource in our area. This is especially true with the effects the COVID-19 pandemic has had on our community. We continue to pursue the goal of supporting our neighborhoods through community gardening. Food banks have been overwhelmed by the demand for food in the community. Gardening can lead to a healthier, more productive lifestyle. It also promotes a more vibrant community allowing kids to grow to be respectful of and responsible for their community and allows adults to directly take part in improving neighborhoods. This model would serve as an appropriate use of any funds diverted from the NOPD. "

I believe that societal change is the only way we can fix the underlying issues that are plaguing our communities. NOURISH has a focus that I can see making those changes to communities in need. Stricter and more prevalent policing has not provided that change that we seek, so we must look to alternatives.

Being that I was born in New Orleans, I was excited to return in my early 20s only to find that poverty and over policing still ran rampant through Nee Orleans. Nourishment is what is needed to not only survive but thrive. The people of New Orleans will benefit greatly from the knowledge and interdependence that the NOURISH model has developed. As individuals become independent, there is less need for assistance outside basic policing or health needs.

Need a positive action to affect change

Many families New Orleans struggle economically and New Orleans has struggled in areas of violence. The NOURISH model will provide a much needed establishment that has not been seen in New Orleans that would serve the needs of the community and provide the resources needed to help families who are struggling an appropriate pathway for recovery.

"The NOURISH model recognizes the need for policies and funding priorities which focus on supporting and investing in the community, the environment and public health. Compost NOW focuses on keeping local resources local, turning trash to treasure and empowering residents to take collective action. We see the NOURISH model as a positive way forward, especially for those communities in the East and the 9th Ward who have been under-served and under-resourced for too long. "

Can you imagine the day that New Orleans / Bulbancha becomes the first city on Earth to eradicate poverty & violence? Our hard-earned tax dollars must be invested in initiatives to build & nourish each and every member of our community, starting with the most vulnerable. We have the resources and the power TODAY to invest in guaranteeing human rights to all of our neighbors immediately. It's time we stop wasting the fruit of our collective labor purchasing weapons, armoring vehicles, and constructing jails when we must be liberating, healing, and reconnecting the vital fabric of our community. All our relations deserve to thrive. We can make that happen today. Let us begin by investing a significant portion of our NOPD budget into harm reduction Lighthouses in every neighborhood in our great city!

The NOURISH model is THE model for how and where communities should invest our money- in the needs of the people living in our communities, not to cops or prisons or billionaires. This initiative, brought to the city by black and brown leaders, is the way forward. NOURISH incorporates all the essential frameworks (harm reduction, transformational/restorative justice, trauma-informed healing, and self-sustaining economies) that must be seeded to replace the deeply rooted and destructive oppressive systems of racist policing, privatized health care, decentralized schooling, and centuries of exploited/enslaved labor. I want my taxes to be invested in a life worth living for the next generation. I want to see people flourish and thrive, which cannot happen unless we truly put our money where the healing and living happens. I believe all children should have access to safe neighborhoods, sustaining food, greens paces, health and wellness, and belonging. This mean we need to equitably invest in these grassroots initiatives in the black and brown neighborhoods that have been neglected and excluded, and give the communities themselves the agency and finances to meet their needs.

I myself have seen the harm that police presence brings to communities, families and children that live in poverty or low income housing. The NOURISH model brings a whole new face to what “protecting and serving” communities could look like. I, and my organization believes in the NOURISH model.

The city of New Orleans should invest in the NOURISH model because it is an investment in the people of New Orleans. It would demonstrate a genuine care for the New Orleans community.

I believe the city of New Orleans should invest in the NOURISH model because of it’s focus on restoring communities. Black and brown communities need the resources Coalition for Community Connection is proposing. This will hopefully lead to less crime in our cities and healthier individuals affected by systemic racism.

Doctors say the most effective healthcare is food and lifestyle (not drugs). These preventative measures allow the job to be done more effectively than attacking the symptoms. Investing in NOURISH will allow the job of the police to be done without them needing to get involved. This will be more effective, producing a higher return on investment for safer communities. Further, police only get involved after something bad happens. They cannot take back the hurt that occurs in these incidents. The NOURISH model will take the hurt of crime and law violation completely out of the picture in the ways they are able to impact communities. Also heavy police involvement in specific communities leads to enmity between them and the police as representations of the greater system of American power. This becomes a war that community will never be able to win, leading to misunderstanding and prejudice against them, and discouraging unity, preventing us from cooperating and moving forward as a city. Overall, the NOURISH model is an extremely wise investment at the cost of the police. It will do the intended job of the police much better.

"This multi-faceted, multi-generational approach to community support is For and By people it aspires to serve. Each aspect of the proposal has research to support its efficacy. Similar models (Sojourner Truth Neighborhood Center, for example) have been effective, but inequitable and inconsistent funding has limited the implementation of these models at scales that would deeply benefit our communities. Our children deserve this!"

As a Mother, Educator, community member, and resident of New Orleans, I am in full support of Coalition for Community Connection “N.O.U.R.I.S.H.” Plan Proposal. I believe the NOPD should reallocate funds in commitment to the safely and wellbeing of all residents. There is a deep need to reduce harm, ensure food security, address mental health needs, provide mediation, grief and crisis support, and endure adequate resources for the betterment of our communities. Moving forward as a city we cannot wait on addressing these issues and creating an action plan. Coalition for Community Connection provides this. Creating a more encompassing partnership with the community members and this organization will fulfill the role to serve and protect New Orleans residents.

food should be free

For a million reasons, one being that the NOURISH model understands what has been taken from communities, leaving them incomplete and focuses on what communities need to THRIVE, instead of punishment and oppression.

IT IS A COMMUNITY HEALTH & WELL BEING CENTERED MODEL THAT PROVIDES FOR THE COMMON GOOD OF THE PEOPLE, in every way. I saw the presentation & support 100%💜 ✊🏿✊🏾✊✊🏼💜

The city of New Orleans should invest in the NOURISH model because it is an investment in the people of New Orleans. It would demonstrate a genuine care for the New Orleans community.