Helen Harrison Email & Phone Number

I’m a climate change and community resilience planner with a strong background in community-led planning, project coordination, consensus-based governance, meeting facilitation, grant writing, and communications.I've always loved working with groups and communities to make positive changes that people can use, enjoy, and have ownership of in their daily lives. When people work together to solve a problem or create something new, they deepen connections to each other and to a sense a purpose and place. They build trust, networks, and the ability to plan, imagine, and work through issues. This kind of capacity building is essential to climate resilience, allowing us to work toward new futures and quickly adapt to changing circumstances. In May, I completed a master’s degree in regional planning with a focus on climate change at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. My thesis investigated regenerative agriculture as a nature-based solution for municipalities. Collaboration on an IRA-funded regional priority climate action plan and studies in green infrastructure, urban forestry, Massachusetts clean energy policy, climate change planning, and sustainable food systems have familiarized me with current strategies and issues involved in climate resilience and equity, and I'm continually updating my knowledge. Prior to entering the master’s program, I worked at MassMutual and The Food Bank of Western Massachusetts. As wellness communications lead at MassMutual, I worked with colleagues to create clear, compelling communications about complex topics in a fast-paced environment, including intranet articles, resource guides, webinars, and videos to educate, motivate, and promote engagement. At The Food Bank, I worked for several years on fundraising communications, events, and grant writing, then coordinated a food justice planning process in a low-income rural community and supported the planning process in an urban community. I established partnerships with community-based organizations and worked to ensure that food-insecure residents’ concerns and ideas were centered.On my own time, I co-founded Flywheel, an all-volunteer, collectively run arts and community space where I co-created its participatory governance structure and produced and promoted numerous multimedia events.My undergraduate degree is in social justice studies and I have been active in social change efforts all my life. I'm interested in community land trusts for permanent affordable housing and community-led development, and passionate about protecting biodiversity and ecosystems.