Lynchburg Rising

Beyond Survival to Environmental Justice

Trisha Porter, Resilient Virginia

June 30, 2023

In Lynchburg, Virginia, flood occurrences, water contamination, and extreme temperature have been identified as current hazards which, due to climate change, will likely be exacerbated. In 2022 and 2023, the Lynchburg Rising project, funded by the US Environmental Protection Agency Office of Environmental Justice , engaged historically disinvested neighborhoods in the City, which are disproportionately impacted by these hazards, to better understand their risks and to develop community capacity to address them.

The project was led by Resilient Virginia and was supported by two Lynchburg-based consulting groups – Leslie King Consulting and Sobis, Inc. Bill Bohn, an engineer and GIS analyst with Sobis, assembled and integrated data on demographics and flood hazards to identify the neighborhoods that were involved with the project. Leslie King , an experienced equity and engagement consultant, led the neighborhood meetings and organized an April conference on Race, Equity, and Social Justice, in conjunction with the local organization, Many Voices One Community .

The project also coordinated activities with Randolph College and University of Lynchburg ‘s staff and students, who are working with neighborhoods located in areas of the city that experience excessive heat issues during summer months. Additional partners - Jubilee Center , City of Lynchburg , and Central Virginia Planning District Commission - contributed to the project by hosting community meetings and providing flood and climate educational information.

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Neighborhood Ambassadors

The Lynchburg Rising team had no relationship with any of the communities going into the project. Because of this, Neighborhood Ambassadors played an important part in trust-building with community members in the four neighborhoods. Individuals who already lived and worked in the communities were chosen as the face of the project. The trust between them and the community members had already been established. They contacted residents directly and encouraged them to come to the neighborhood meeting. They passed out flyers and were a point of contact for the meeting location. They also attended the neighborhood meeting to help facilitate and be a trusted face in the room.

Neighborhood Meetings

Neighborhood Meeting Slides and Video Presentation

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Outreach and Education

In addition to hosting neighborhood meetings, the Lynchburg Rising project reached out the larger community as a whole at multiple events between November 2022 and March 2023, including:

Lynchburg Community Market
Your Voice Matters: A Conversation on Environmental Justice for Youth in Lynchburg
Youth Summit: Taking the Lead 2023 - "I Am Enough... My Time to Shine"
League of Women Voters Meeting
And various church events.

At these events, we focused on conversation around flooding, heat, and other climate impacts; and provided resources on preparedness for flooding and extreme heat; climate equity; Lynchburg's climate risks; and other relevant topics.

Resources

With this project, we curated a list of existing resources for both community leaders and community members as well as created a few of our own. Please feel free to look through this list to find resources that can be used in your community.

City of Lynchburg Resources

Other Lynchburg Resources

Disaster and Emergency Resources