Project Summary

This project will create a permanent mechanism for the people of New Orleans to have a formal, accountable voice in city government policies and decisions. It will be a major asset to the city's recovery and ensure that citizens are forever empowered to determine their own quality of life.

About me

I am a writer and child of the (late) sixties who still believes in the power of the people. I now run a small nonprofit organization called the Committee for a Better New Orleans that is itself a coalition: our multi-racial, multi-generational Board of Directors includes people from the business community, education, the faith community, other nonprofits, neighborhood leaders, and citizen activists. Our core mission is to make sure that all people in New Orleans have a voice at the table and a say in the quality of their lives, and the concept of a formal, permanent mechanism for citizen participation has been a top priority for us since before Katrina. We are building on the unprecedent levels of citizen engagement post-Katrina to bring people together to design the structure for this, working with neighborhood leaders who emerged in the post-storm neighborhood planning process as well as like-minded groups representing the full spectrum of race, class and geography in the city. Our plan is that the coalition of community groups will be the resource base for the project, while a city-wide steering committee led by citizens themselves will guide the process. These players are already coming together and displaying their eagerness and passion for making sure that the empowering of citizens that has occurred in the wake of Katrina is something that will continue forever in New Orleans.