Announcing CRAFT’s Inaugural Community Fellowship 2024!
Who is CRAFT - we are an Indigenous-led, community-driven organization working to protect the earth from the harm, pollution, and extraction that accompanies nuclear energy. We are based in Southeast Michigan, the Traditional homelands of the Anishinaabek Three Fires Confederacy, and do our best to be respectful visitors on this land. We work both here and in alliance with Indigenous activists across Turtle Island because we know that the damage from nuclear energy spreads far and wide, and most intensely impacts communities that have the least resources to fight back: Indigenous communities, brown and black communities, and poor/working-class communities.
Why we do what we do - We know that the earth is in a state of emergency and that the nuclear industry is among the greatest threats to our future. Because there is so much white-washing, green-washing, and intentional misinformation about the mining, production, transportation, and waste involved in nuclear energy - it is often perceived as a “safe” energy solution for our future - it is not. But there are safe solutions and that’s why we also ally with local and national activists and organizations who are building these solutions in their communities. We believe that moving toward a safe and just energy future for all requires that we both - block and dismantle harmful energy systems that always put profit above people and the earth - and actively invest in building solutions.
About our Community Fellowship - 2024 marks the offering of our first Community Fellowship. We believe that investing in our community and protecting the earth for future generations go hand in hand. We also know that it takes time, energy, and commitment to become educated about the issues that affect our homes, ecosystems, economies, and communities - we want to support the people who care about our future in becoming strong activists. We also want to explore possibilities together! For decades, CRAFT has prioritized building tools, strategies, a clear vision, and a strong team to confront the nuclear industry - and the place we stand in history requires that we all go beyond what we know.
Our expectation for the Fellowship is that yes, we will teach what we have to offer, make connections with fellow activists across the land, and… we will all learn and explore solutions for our future together. Our work has come at the hands of our collective membership and our hope with the fellowship is to share tools and understanding with all concerned citizens.
Breakdown of the Commitment and Reciprocal Exchange
A Climate of Mutual Respect - Historically, marginalized people have been excluded from the important work, spaces, and tools of environmental activism - we are committed to improving access and lifting up the voices of real people. This means that we will gather with people of various races, genders, ages, and cultural identities. It is very important to us to maintain a safe and respectful space - we ask that we treat each other how we would like to be treated.
Calendar and Time Commitment - Because we know that we are collaborating with regular people who have busy lives and many commitments, there are details of the calendar we will wait to finalize until we have our team decided. Here, we are sharing the basic structure of the calendar:
The CRAFT Community Fellowship is a four-month commitment - Beginning in June 2024
Application Deadline - Tuesday, May 21st
Announcement of Fellows - Friday, May 31st
Community Fellows - Meet and Greet - Welcome to CRAFT Zoom - Meeting Thursday, June 6, 5:30 - 6:30 PM
The first two meetings will be 4-hour deeper dive trainings in person at NAIA (Native American Indian Association) in Redford - These meetings are essential to the fellowship - they will help us get acquainted with each other and lay a strong educational foundation for our work together. We will continue to work with the materials we are introduced to here. A meal will be provided. We’ll finalize the exact dates and times for these two intensives once we’ve heard from all fellows regarding availability.
Twice-monthly 1-hour Zoom CRAFT Meetings - 1st and 3rd Thursdays at 5:30 PM - these meetings will allow fellows to see, and support CRAFT business.
Bi-weekly Group Fellow - 2nd and 4th weeks - Group Fellow Meetings will allow for check-ins, and exploration of designated materials. We will poll for optimal times once the fellows are decided.
Monthly - Individual Mentorship and Check-in Meetings with Jesse - an opportunity to get real-time one-on-one support for the projects you are working on.
Event and/or Action Planning and Attendance - as this will be a hands-on experiential training we will learn in part by doing - part of what we’ll expect is that we make time to: attend, plan, and do events/actions together as part of the fellowship.
Stipend and Community Care Considerations - As CRAFT is a value-centered and community-oriented organization, we will stay true to these values when considering compensation for fellows. We recognize that people arrive at our fellowship with varying degrees of access to funds/resources and that unequal access is by design. While we have set aside a total of 8000.00 for the fellowship - 2000.00 per person as a stipend - we would like to encourage people to take collective responsibility for community care with us. If someone should join us who has greater access to funds, we ask that you consider foregoing some or all of your stipend to be shared among fellows who have less access and greater need.