Bringing CAPACD to the South

8:00 AM - 9:00 AM- Registration & Breakfast (2nd Floor)

9:00 AM - 10:00 AM- Welcome/Opening Plenary: The State of CAPACD (Georgia Ballroom)

Join us for this warm, Southern welcome to National CAPACD’s 18th Annual Convention. This plenary will highlight updates since the last Convention from National CAPACD staff, board, and members. Be sure not to miss this session, which will include the unveiling of National CAPACD’s updated strategic plan.

10:30 AM - 11:45 AM- Breakout 1: Workshop Sessions

• Civic Engagement in the South: Building across race, language, and faith (Atlanta Ballroom B)
  Join this discussion on how AAPI, Arab, Middle Eastern, Muslim, South Asian, and immigrant community organizations in the South use civic engagement work to build power and solidarity within and between their communities. This session will be looking at case studies from three southern organizations - their strategies, tactics, best practices, and challenges. In the process, participants will unpack why civic engagement in the South is uniquely challenging and how organizers and their communities are building past these obstacles.

  Speakers:
  -Diana Bui, Center for Pan Asian Community Services
  -Esther Lim, Asian Americans Advancing Justice - Atlanta

• Passing the Baton: How to Survive an Executive Transition (Atlanta Ballroom A)
  Executive transitions undoubtedly have significant impact on the overall health and effectiveness of organizations and the communities they serve. And yet, despite the frequency with which they happen, and the importance of these transitions, limited resources and supports are available to organizations and their leadership to weather the changes. Now, more than ever, is a critical time for organizations to prioritize planning of ‘passing the baton’ to the next generation. Join this dynamic session to hear from leaders who have played integral roles in ensuring smooth executive transitions in the AAPI community – as they share wins and lessons learned that will be helpful to any organization as it charters the waters of leadership change.

  Speakers:
  -Michael Byun, Asian Services in Action
  -Terry Carnes, Goal Mind Solutions
  -Tavae Samuelu, Empowering Pacific Islander Communities
  -Bill Watanabe, formerly with Little Tokyo Service Center, National CAPACD founding member

• AAPIs & Wealth Inequalities: Why is it so complicated? (Buckhead)
  Hear from researchers from UCLA as they explore data policy issues, what implications income-based immigration have on data, and our understanding of/and narratives about AAPIs and wealth. This session will highlight the recent rollbacks of federal agency commitments to the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau and Housing and Urban Development to disaggregate AAPI data, as well as a critique of what the current research on wealth inequality and data systems are telling us. UCLA Center for Neighborhood Knowledge will also provide an overview of the Urban Dispacement Project that provides tools to fight gentrification and redlining. Participants of this session will engage in conversation about communications and narrative shifting actions that we can take on as a community. This session is part of the “Shifting Narratives” series with advocates, practitioners and researchers who are working with low-income AAPI communities and in solidarity with African American, Native American and Latino communities.

  Speakers:
  -Melany De La Cruz, Asian American Studies Center, UCLA
  -Jeremie Greer, Prosperity Now
  -Lisa Hasegawa, Asian American Studies Center, UCLA
  -Chhandara Pech, Center for Neighborhood Knowledge, UCLA

• Joint Ventures for Community Development (Peachtree)
  Across the country National CAPACD members are using innovative approaches to build facilities and public spaces to bring community together, provide services, build power, and celebrate our cultures. In high-cost markets where real estate costs are skyrocketing and competing investors are equipped with cash on hand, joint ventures are often an appealing (and sometimes necessary) solution. How can organizations enter into agreements and ensure that the value of “community” translates into an equitable partnership? Join a facilitated discussion on key components of successful partnerships to develop physical spaces that will benefit our communities.

  Speakers:
  -Joshua Simon, East Bay Asian Local Development Corporation
  -Grant Sunoo, Little Tokyo Service Center
  -Maiko Winkler Chin, Seattle Chinatown International District Preservation & Development Authority
  -Thomas Yu, Asian Americans for Equality

12:30 pM - 2:00 PM- Lunch/Plenary: The Civil Rights Movement & AAPIs- What we have learned, where we can lead (Georgia Ballroom)

As we kick off the Building CAPACD Convention in Atlanta, the cradle of the civil rights movement, this plenary offers an opportunity to reflect on how far we have come in the last five decades, current opportunities and threats to that progress, and our aspirations for a broader, more inclusive movement. Join us for this inspirational discussion with national figures leading the charge in multiple arenas to improve the lives of low-income communities of color.

Speakers:
Welcoming Remarks: Joey Chang, JP Morgan Chase
-Seema Agnani, National CAPACD
-Stephanie Cho, Asian Americans Advancing Justice – Atlanta
-Glenn Harris, Race Forward
-Lisa Rice, National Fair Housing Alliance
Closing Remarks: Sue Van, Wallace H. Coulter Foundation

2:30 AM - 3:45 PM- Breakout 2: Workshop Sessions

• Bringing Empowerment Economics to Our Communities (Buckhead)
  For indigenous practitioners and practitioners of color in the asset building field, culturally relevant and multi-generational approaches are commonsense ways to reach low- and moderate-income clients, especially in communities that value close familial ties. Yet this approach, which is so foundational to our work, is under-recognized and under-valued. In 2017, National CAPACD, Hawaiian Community Assets, Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement, and Institute for Assets and Social Policy (Brandeis University) partnered to put forth research that would document the importance of this work – and rebranded the concept as Empowerment Economics. Come to this session to learn more about this model, its relevance to AAPI communities, and how we can collectively shift the narrative about the work in our communities to not only build wealth, but to empower our communities and ensure they thrive.

  Speakers:
  Welcoming Remarks: Mini Timmaraju, Comcast
  -Jeff Gilbreath, Hawaiian Community Assets
  -Meg Lovejoy, Brandeis University
  -Yujin Maeng, HANA Center
  -Lahela Williams, Hawaiian Community Assets

• Policy Platform Forum (Atlanta Ballroom A)
  Join us for a panel as we look into the 116th Congress and what the federal landscape will look like for AAPI community leaders and advocates. Capitol Hill and policy experts will discuss what issues will impact our communities for the next two years, as well as provide a forum for National CAPACD members to weigh in on our priorities.

  Speakers:
  Welcoming Remarks: Anthony Hutchinson, Freddie Mac 
  -Gregg Orton, National Council of Asian Pacific Americans
  -Rob Randhava, Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights
  -Agatha So, UnidosUS

• Youth Organizing & Decolonization (Atlanta Ballroom B)
  Youth of color are our future. Yet, our future is constrained by systems and structures that were in place before most of us were born. Is your organization interested in cultivating a Youth Movement of Resistance, Change, and Love? Are you open to learning and unlearning how to decolonize our interactions with each other? Join the Southeast Asian Coalition Young Activists, Student Organizers, and Squad Members in a panel discussion which will explore insights and strategies on how we cultivate a Youth-Led Movement in North Carolina! The intergenerational team will share examples of Youth Power within our Village! Come ready to share about your Village Practices too!

  Speakers:
  -Young Activists
  -Student Organizers
  -Squad Members

​5:00 PM - 6:00 PM- VIP Reception (invitation only; Sky Room)

6:00 PM - 7:30PM- General Reception (Sky Room)

*Reception sponsored by Bank of America

Learning from the South

​8:00 AM - 9:00 AM- Registration & Breakfast

9:15 AM - 9:45 AM- Morning Plenary with Bee Nguyen, Georgia House of Representatives (Georgia Ballroom)

Join us for welcoming remarks and a jolt of morning inspiration with Bee Nguyen, Georgia House of Representatives for House District 89 and the first Vietnamese-American to hold this position.

10:00 AM - 11:15 AM- Breakout 3: Member-led Workshop Sessions

• Fighting Displacement in #OurNeighborhoods (Atlanta Ballroom A)
  From stadiums to new transit investments to luxury apartments, the pressure of increased development in “hot markets” has led to displacement of low income AAPI and people of color residents from the neighborhoods and communities they have called home for decades. This panel discussion will feature community advocates and organizers who are engaged in local efforts to fight back.Speakers:
  -Debbie Liu, Committee for a Better Chinese American Community
  -Dia Parker, Los Vecinos de Buford Highway
  -Cesar Reyes, Asian Americans for Equality
  -Alvina Wong, Asian Pacific Environmental Network 
• Small Business Success Stories: Effective Strategies for Promoting AAPI Micro-Entrepreneurship (Buckhead)
  AAPI micro-entrepreneurs, many of whom are immigrants and refugees, often lack access to resources or capital that places them at a significant disadvantage compared to other small business owners. Community based organizations play a critical role in filling this need, whether they are in historic AAPI neighborhood business districts or rural communities. This workshop will highlight innovative and/or successful small business programs in the South and identify common issue areas, challenges, and opportunities for AAPI micro-entrepreneurs. Panelists will discuss takeaways from the South and implications for community-based organizations that already serve or hope to serve AAPI micro-entrepreneurs in their own communities. Finally, with a stronger understanding of what is happening on the ground, panelists will also discuss policy goals that help foster and grow AAPI micro-entrepreneurship at the national level.Speakers:
  Welcoming Remarks: Agnes Ubalde, BBVA Compass
  -Geri Aglipay, Small Business Majority
  -Ron Fong, API Small Business Program
  -Marian Liou, Executive Director, We Love BuHi
  -Jim Nguyen, Alliance for Multicultural Community Services 
• Resilience & Recovery from Natural & Manmade Disasters (Peachtree)
  With recent natural disasters (hurricanes, earthquakes and flooding) and man-made natural disasters (BP oil spill), there is a critical need to build and sustain influence through coalitions that can support effected communities. In this panel, diverse organizations who have been involved on the front lines of helping communities in the South to rebuild will share their experiences, lessons learned, and opportunities for continued advocacy and collaboration. Panelists will identify the impact of these disasters on economic wellbeing in low-income communities of color, and highlight best practices that address the life-cycle of disaster to recovery to growth.Speakers:
  -Ya-Sin Shabazz, Steps Coalition
  -Gregory Brown, Steps Coalition
  -Jane Nguyen, Boat People SOS
  -Tuan Nguyen, Mary Queen of Vietnam CDC

• Suburban Poverty: Truths, Trials, and Triumphs in Vulnerable Communities (Atlanta Ballroom B)
  The number of high poverty suburban neighborhoods has more than doubled in Southern metros since 2000, which presents unique challenges for vulnerable communities with limited access to supportive infrastructure and social safety nets. This is especially true for people living at the margins of society including people with disabilities, immigrants and refugees, people of color, and members of the LGBTQ community. This panel seeks to explore the challenges associated with vulnerability and access to resources, while identifying how organizations are bridging the gap by finding unique ways of navigating those challenges in the Suburban South.Speakers:
  -Tamara Carrera, Community Assistance Center
  -Victoria Huynh, Center for Pan Asian Community Services
  -Norma Mendoza, Cherokee Family Violence Center
  -Dwayne Patterson, Partnership for Southern Equity
  -Feroza Syed, Atlanta Fine Homes Sotheby's International Realty

​12:00 PM - 1:30 PM- Lunch/Plenary: Legislative & Systemic Strategies for Counteracting Displacement in Atlanta (Georgia Ballroom)

In today’s hot real estate markets, rising rents threaten low-income residents and small businesses with economic displacement. This is not exclusively a problem of the coastal elite cities, but also is increasingly a problem in the South – e.g., recent research by National CAPACD identifies 49 neighborhoods in the greater Atlanta metro area where low-income residents are at high risk of economic displacement. This plenary panel will include a cross-section of people from the Atlanta metro area who are involved with this issue – from local activists to service providers to policy experts. Panelists will give an overview of what is happening in Atlanta and what lessons can be learned from Atlanta that can be applied elsewhere – both in places where displacement is a long term affliction and in places where it may happen next.

Speakers:
-Aparna Battacharyya, Raksha
-Victoria Huynh, Center for Pan Asian Community Services
-Alison Johnson, Housing Justice League
-Karen Leone De Nie, Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta
-Odetta MacLeish-White, TransFormation Alliance

2:00 PM - 5:00 PM- Atlanta Mobile Tours

• Buford Highway Tour (Atlanta Ballroom A)
  Known as an international corridor, the Buford Highway is made up of ethnic mom and pop restaurants, wholesale stores, farmers markets, and ethnic businesses. National CAPACD member, Center for Pan Asian Community Services, has played an integral role in organizing the Bu-Hi small business coalition and supporting local AAPI entrepreneurs to sustain, grow and thrive. Conceptualized during an urban planning study for Buford Highway, the BuHi Walk is an innovative public art project that will create a safe and engaging pedestrian infrastructure within the sprawling shopping plazas and parking lots of this major transportation corridor. The BuHi Walk will connect the interior walkways and informal pedestrian routes within Buford Highway’s lots and parcels through an array of murals, sculptures, installations, and other concepts. The tour will be hosted by Living Walls, an Atlanta-based non-profit organization that creates intentional, thought-provoking public art to inspire social change and activate public spaces.
• Visit to the Civil and Human Rights Center (Buckhead)
  The Center for Civil and Human Rights is a groundbreaking 42,000-square-foot facility located adjacent to the World of Coca-Cola and the Georgia Aquarium in downtown Atlanta. Established in 2007, it is a museum dedicated to the achievements of the American Civil Rights movement and the broader worldwide human rights movement. Join us for a guided tour of the Center for Civil and Human Rights to discover stories of courage and inspiration in award-winning interactive exhibitions at The Center, including the American Civil Rights Movement, the Global Human Rights Movement, and the AIDS Memorial Quilt exhibits.
• Visit to the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change (Peachtree)
  The Martin Luther King, Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change (or “The King Center”) is a National Historic Site dedicated to honoring Dr. King’s legacy by educating the world about his life and teachings. The Center is meant to be a living memorial committed to the causes for which he lived and died. Join us for a guided tour of the King Center to view more than 10,000 documents from Dr. King’s personal collection and the Civil Rights movement; to see Dr. & Mrs. King’s Crypt; and to explore Dr. King’s birth home and the Historic Ebenezer Baptist Church where Dr. King served as co-pastor until his assassination.
• The Beltline Anti-Displacement Walking Tour with Housing Justice League (Atlanta Ballroom B)
  The Atlanta BeltLine is a planned loop of 22 miles of streetcar, trails, and parks, which will ultimately connect the city to transit and sustainable green space. As the largest economic or transit development undertaken by the City of Atlanta in recent years, it comes after decades of disinvestment in neighborhoods, that have been shaped by a community of majority African American residents, who call the city their home. The BeltLine has encouraged development that has already led to displacement of long term low income residents of color from Atlanta. Join the Housing Justice League, a local organization fighting to keep community members in their homes and for affordable housing development, for a conversation on the impact of the BeltLine on local residents, and a discussion on best practices for resident engagement in transit oriented development projects.

Moving Forward Together

8:00 AM - 9:00 AM- Registration & Breakfast (2nd Floor)

9:45 AM - 10:45 AM- Cohort Meetings

• Assessing Your Organization's Readiness to Build Capacity (by invite only; location shared through invitation))
  This focus group meeting will engage existing and emerging leaders within our membership in a discussion regarding their organization’s needs and opportunities for organizational growth and development. The goal of this focus group is to identify where National CAPACD can play a role in supporting and strengthening member organizations to build their capacity toward continuing to serve and strengthen their effectiveness within their communities.
• Getting Them Through the Door: Strategies for Recruiting & Retaining Financial Capability Clients (Atlanta Ballroom B)
  Many clients struggle to see the relevance of financial capability to their lives in the short term. They are focused on immediate needs such as housing, jobs, or immigration and do not see how building credit or opening a bank account will help them towards those goals. Learn from colleagues from around the country who have had success in client recruitment and retention through integrating financial capability into other programs. This session is open to all organizations implementing financial capability programs that seek to improve recruitment and retention strategies for serving clients.
• Housing Counseling Cohort Meeting (by invite only; Peachtree)
  This meeting is for members of the HUD housing counseling network only. Today’s session will focus on HUD Counselor certification and building staff and organizational readiness for the soon-to-be implemented professional development expectations from HUD.
• #OurNeighborhoods: Anti-Displacement Strategy Session (by invite only; Atlanta Ballroom A)
  After two days of learning from best practices across the country and the South, now is the time to build a broader place based movement to resist gentrification and displacement together! Join National CAPACD and members of the #OurNeighborhoods working group in developing a long term strategy for our campaign to resist displacement in AAPI neighborhoods. This is a session for local community-based organizations actively working to address displacement and gentrification in low-income AAPI neighborhoods. For more information about the #OurNeighborhoods campaign, contact anj@nationalcapacd.org.
• Small Business Cohort Meeting (by invite only; Buckhead)
  This invite-only session will focus on National CAPACD's soon-to-be-released report on AAPI micro-entrepreneurship. Organizations participating in the research are encouraged to meet with the research team to discuss findings and recommendations.

​11:00 AM - 12:30 PM- Closing Plenary: Intersectional Movements; Interconnected Liberation

As we close our 2018 Building CAPACD Convention, we must reflect on how we can apply the lessons learned together to our work back home. Our closing panel will feature local and national leaders who have served and advocated for their communities by embracing the intersectionality of their identities and issues, thereby engaging in approaches and strategies that create social change across communities of color, race, ethnicity, immigration status, class, and gender. The panelists will discuss how we must support one another; how we must center our work on populations who have too often been silenced, even in social justice spaces; and how we must move forward together in order to build a broader, deeper, and more connected movement.

Speakers:
-Sung Yeon Choimorrow, National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum
-Taffy Johnson, UTOPIA Seattle
-Dr. Krystal Redman, SPARK Reproductive Justice NOW, Inc.
-Azadeh Shahshahani, Project South
-Lakshmi Sridaran, South Asian Americans Leading Together