Interweaving for Deeper Impact

In this issue

Strategic Priority 1: Deepen the impact of UNP-supported partnerships through a stronger interweaving of west side neighborhoods, the University of Utah, and influential institutions around shared questions, priorities, and successful models.

Depth and Sustainability: Identify partnerships and strategies that are effective and have momentum. Focus on deepening that work and creating structures to support partnership sustainability.

Partnership Capacity: Support partners and partnerships in building their capacity to take on roles related to convening, goal setting, assessment, and evaluation.

Horizontal & Vertical Integration: Increase communication, resource sharing, and collaboration horizontally—across partnerships, sectors of the community, and stakeholders—and vertically, across levels of decision-making.

Knowledge Building: Deepen our shared knowledge base through community-engaged research focused on the work and priorities of partnerships.

Key Indicator: # of active, collaborative connections within and across partnerships

University Neighborhood Partners 20th Anniversary Celebration Event - The River Walk

A COMMUNITY COMING TOGETHER...As you walk into the Utah Cultural Celebration Center in West Valley City on Tuesday, November 21st, 2023 you begin going through the River Walk. Which are tables lined creating a path through the with displays of the different partnerships and organizations that make up the UNP Network. After enjoying the Happy Hour with a rooom filled with projects by the youth in Youth Voices, families in the Utah Community Advocate Network and a tabled discussion by WLI Startup Graduates that have continued on with their organizations. Hartland Community 4 Youth & Family, Breathe 4 Trees, and Communidad Maternaen Utah to name a few.

As more connecting and learning floats through the space the song Rivers of Babylon begins to play and dancers from the Taimaneomoanalelei Dance Group usher everyone to their tables in the main hall. The remainder of the evening is filled with moving performances by the youth in the We Are Telling Our Stories Residency, remarks by University Professor Susie Porter, and recognizing the UNP Community Ambassadors, Hartland Resident Committee, Westside Community United, Environmental Justice Resident Committee, and the Utah Community Advocates Network. As well as honoring our late UNP Founder, Irene Fisher and her legacy. Next, Jules Martinez, Clinical Director at Latino Behavioral Health Services, gave a compelling speach and the evening concluded with the Jordan River song by our very own Gilberto “Coach Juan” Rejon Magaña, Founder of Hartland Community 4 Youth & Families. Here’s to 20 more years of UNP!

Somali Community Self-Management Agency: Building Community and Food Security

By: Julianne Rabb, UNP Clinical Director, Abdirizak Ibrahim, SCSMA Executice Director, and Fadumo Abdulkadir

It is a cold December morning as Fadumo Abdulkadir begins sorting through several pallets of ffood in the parking lot of the UNP Hartland Partnership Center. She and 9 other volunteers are preparing boxes of food donations for up to 100 families, just delivered by the Utah Food Bank. Most of the families and neighbors are already onsite, waiting in cars and on foot, in anticipation of the twice weekly food drop. As the line begins to move, you see a group of compassionate, dedicated volunteers working together to increase food access and build the capacity of their community. Faduma, deputy director of the Somali Community Self-Management Agency (SCSMA,) has been volunteering with the agency since its creation in 2008, alongside Abdirizak Ibrahim, Executive Director. One of Fadumo’s many roles is to lead the partnership between SCSMA, University Neighborhood Partners, the Utah Food bank, and community residents to provide fresh food to over 900 families a month. Fadumo knows the difficulties of navigating and accessing resources in a new country. “When I came to the US as a refugee, I didn’t know where to go or how to get help. I want to help people nowthat I know.”

The food distribution days can be difficult. Both Faduma and Ibrahim speak to the need for diverse food options and availability for community members coming from all over the world. Of the three tables set up each day, two are halal food, permissible food according to Islamic dietary standards. Fadumo reports the Utah Food Bank has been a good partner in these efforts, and she hopes that they will continue to increase availability to culturally specific requests. Ibrahim and Fadumo both report the most common community requests are for basic supplies such as cooking oil, flour, and sugar. When asked about the partnership with SCSMA, the Utah Food Bank shares, “Their tireless efforts over the past year have helped us distribute over 2,500 meals to help our refugee population since the beginning of 2023. The commitment, despite the weather, to the many non-English speaking families who make Salt Lake home is admirable and we are proud to have (their) support.” Ibrahim reports that many of their current volunteers were once recipients of the SCSMA food donations. They now want to give back to the agency that helped so much. “We couldn’t do it without them, we love that they want to give back to the community.” They are addressing food access issues, increasing families’ capacity, and building community one food drop at a time. Fadumo encourages anyone interested in joining their volunteer team to reach out to SCSMA. Why it Matters: Trees are essential to life. They provide oxygen, shade, and habitats for wildlife and they stand as a reminder of nature’s resilience. By planting trees, we are not only giving back to the earth but also creating a legacy of care and stewardship.

Hayada Ismaamulka Bulshada Soomaaliyeed iyo Sugida Cuntada

Translation provided by Fadumo Abdulkadir and Faduma Aldi, UNP Hartland Partnership Center Coordinator

Maalin qabow oo ka mid ah December Fadumo waxay bilowdey iney kala soocdo waxyaabaha ay cuntada ku jirto taas oo taala baarkingk goobta UNP Hartalnd xarunta iskaashiga. Iyada iyo sagaal kale oo caawiyoyaal ah waxay bilaabaan iney diyaariyaan sanduuqyo raashin ah oo loogutala galey ilaa boqal qoys cuntada waxaa keena bangiga cuntada Utah.

Badi qoysaska iyo deriska halkaas ayay ku sugayaan cuntada baarkinka. Dadka waxay ukala baxaan labo qeybood qaar baabuurka ayey ku sugayaan qaarke kale sef ayey ugu jiraan.

Iyadoo lafilayo qeybinta cuntada isbuucii labo jeer. Marka u safka bilaabmo ilaa u dhaqaaqo waxad arkeysaa caawiyo yaal u diyaar ah diyaarinta cuntada illa uu safka ka dhamaado.

Waxaad arkeysaa ded aad u naxaris badan oo aad u dadaalaya silo kordhiyo helitaan cuntada taasoo si toos ah uga saameyn qaadan karta dhismaha dad weynaha guud.

Fadumo waa agaasimo kuxigeenka Somaliyed Wakaalada maamulka bulshada ayaa si iskawax u qabso ahaan ulashaqeynayay hayada tan iyo markii la aburay 2008dii garabna ka ah Abdirizak agaasimaha fulinta.

Fadumo Masuuliyad aad muhim u ah ayaa kesaaran hormarinta iskaash iga ka dhexeya wakalada ismaamul ka Soomaaliyeed wada howl galayaasha Jaamacade.

Bangiga cuntada ee Utah iyo dadka deegaanka si ay u helaan cunto nafaqa leh inka baden sagal boqol qoys bishii. Fadumo aad ayey u garaneysaa dhibaatada ay leedehay sida loo helo ama raadinta qeyraadka dalka lagu cusub tahey Marki aanka qaxootinimo ku imid Mareykanka. Maan garaney meel aan caawimaad kahelo hada waxaan garanayaa side dadka loo caawiyo waxaana garanaya wado aanka caawiyo.

Maalmaha cunta qeybinta mararka qaar waxay noqonayaan maalmo aad u adag. Abdirizak iyo Fadumo labaduba waxay ka hadlayaan baahida cuntada kala duwan loo qabo marka la eego iqtiyaarada ay heli karaan dadka. Kaladuwan ee meelo kala kayimid. Waxaa ladhigaa sedex miis labo kamid ah waxaa saran cunto xalaal ah taasoo wafeqsan cuntooyinka Islamka.

Abdirizak ayaa ka waramey inla shaqeynta bangiga cuntada ee Utah uu yahay mid wanagsan. Ayna rajeynayaan iney sii kordhiyan helitaankooda cuntada ku haboon dhaqan ahaan dadka kala duwan. Abdirizak iyo Fadumo waxayka warbixiyen codsiyada bulshada ee ugu badan waa aqabka aasaasiga ah sida salida daqiiqda (burka) iyo sokorta waxayna rajeynaayaan in ay kordiyaan saameynta cunto bixinta, si ay uga tageeraan dadka waayeelka ah. Kuwaas oo hortaagan lacag xadidan iyo baabuur la,aan.

Mar wax laga weydiiyey iskaashiga ayla leeyihiin bangiga cuntada ee Utah dadaal aan daalin ay sameeyeen sanadkii lasoo dhaafey ayaa naga caawiyey inaan qeybino inka badan 2500 oo cunta ah si aan u caawino dadkayaga qaxootiga ah. Tan iyo bilowgii 2023 balenqaadka inkastoo jirta jawi qabow iyo kuleyl leh qoysas badan aan ingirisks aqoonid Ayaan u dhignaa daaradooda cusbada guryaha lagu shubto.

Abdirizak wuxuu sheegey qaar kamid ah caawiyaashood ay ahaan jiren dad cunta soo doonta ayna go,aansa deen. In ay waqtigoda wax ku caawiyaan hayada sida weyn u cawisay. La,antoodana man samey karin waana ku faraxsan nahay iney rabaan iney bulshada dib ugu soo celiyaan.

Fadumo waxay ku dhirigelineysaa cid kasta oo danayneysa iney ku biirto kooxdeeda iskaa waxu qabso ah inay lasoo xidhiidhaan hayada ismaamulka bulshada Soomaaliyeed waadna mahadsantihiin.

Environmental Justice Coalition and Committee

By: Matt Fry U of U Professor, Sophia Nicholas, SLC Corporation Deputy Director and Jay Rock, EJ Resident

University Neighborhood Partners (UNP) functions as a convener bringing together residents of the west side of Salt Lake County, the University of Utah faculty and students, and other organizations and institutions. Residents have long voiced their concern about environmental justice work and the negative realities they face due to these injustices. UNP is working, in partnership with Salt Lake City, to add Environmental Justice work to our Health and Wellbeing Partnership Area. Salt Lake City received a grant through the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that will go towards a full-time UNP staff member as the Environmental Justice Partnership Manager and investing in the newly established UNP Environmental Justice (EJ) Resident Committee. 9 resident leaders have joined to create a safe space for open discussion about the challenges that arise within their communities and connect with institutional partners to develop solutions. This process has also added the addition of another group, the UNP Environmental Institution Network, which is a group of individuals from various local organizations and University of Utah departments that are committed to the work of environmental justice. This group has facilitated better communication from institutions to residents about available resources, and insight to conduct sustainable change. The impact of this work is best described by the participants themselves through the following quotes:

“The EJ working group has become an important component of my professional and personal development over the last year. Professionally, the group has helped me to establish contacts and to learn about diverse community-based environmental justice perspectives, organizations, projects, and funding opportunities happening in the SLC region. Personally, I really appreciate the positivity and hopefulness that emanate from the group, UNP personnel, and community members during each of our meetings.”

- Matt Fry, Associate Professor, University of Utah Geography Department

“I have been part of a lot of environmental networks, and the one UNP has convened for nearly a year with the Environmental Institution Group is special. It’s opened dialogue, offered connection, helped us ground ourselves while also thinking big, and given me the opportunity to learn from colleagues, new and old. I appreciate the unique work UNP does in bringing people together— and I’m so thrilled they are taking this skillset into the environmental space in Salt Lake. We have so much important work to do together!”

- Sophia Nicholas, Sustainability Deputy Director, Salt Lake City

“My favorite thing is coming to that space and seeing the other EJ residents but mostly seeing Afa Aikona, west side resident (Westside Community Garden & Carry the Water: indigenous planting to the land and covers healing over the land). Being on the same mission with her to help mother earth gives me courage to speak while still scared, and to always stand up for the losing dog.”

- Jay Rock, EJ Resident Committee Member

UNP Community Partnership Course Participation Reflection

By: Yusuf Maung, Salt Lake City, Social Media Manager, and Kimberly Schmit, UNP Director of Community Praxis

Where do I begin? At the beginning of 2023, I only had a very limited understanding of what University Neighborhood Partners was from previous work experience at the City Library and the International Rescue Committee. And now I start 2024 with the utmost respect and admiration for such a great organization staffed by warm and dedicated individuals striving to break down the barriers encountered by our west side neighbors.

Initially, I was hesitant to accept the email offering the opportunity to take the Community Partnerships Course as I was still new to working for Salt Lake City and was feeling completely overwhelmed by imposter syndrome. I decided to face those feelings head on and agreed to take part because it certainly couldn’t be any worse, right? And then I found myself sitting in a room with representatives of so many well-known organizations across the City doing incredibly important work like the Utah Transit Authority and the Natural History Museum of Utah and I was once again questioning if I belonged. As the class progressed, we started to discuss class materials through the lens of the work we all were doing within our organizations and those were the moments that I really came out of my shell. To hear the stories of people struggling with upper management being resistant to innovation, residents losing trust and feeling unheard, and frustration with processes that seem to go on forever with no real impact made me feel less alone. In a way, I had found a group of people that I was proud to call my people every two weeks for a few hours. I carry the lessons I learned close to my heart and of all the relationships I made in the class, there are quite a few that I continue to foster to this day. Whether it’s seeing a familiar face at an outreach event in the community or finding ourselves on the same workgroup discussing environmental justice, I have never felt happier that I answered an email. I found growth in my discomfort, and I am forever grateful. Feeling less like an imposter.- Yusuf Maung

When asked “What did you find most useful about this course?”, one participant responded, “I appreciated learning ways to use community partnerships as an asset in advancing strategic goals, mission statements and core values. I learned about how to keep these ideas in the forefront of agendas and power structures. I also learned about ways to work around institutional barriers where I work in order to support partnerships and communities.” The development of this course was funded in 2020 by the prestigious C. Peter Magrath Community Engagement Scholarship Award.

In this issue

University Neighborhood Partners 20th Anniversary Celebration Event - The River Walk

Somali Community Self-Management Agency: Building Community and Food Security

Hayada Ismaamulka Bulshada Soomaaliyeed iyo Sugida Cuntada

Instutional Network: