Week One!

Dear Nissa,

Your first week is coming to a close and it’s been quite an adventure so far! Hopefully, you remember all this. It is astounding to me to think about how much I (we?) have learned in just this first week. From franchise agreements to ballot initiatives to municipalization, I am expecting this summer will be an incredible learning experience. Not only on these topics but on how nonprofits operate in general, especially at the grassroots level, and how citizens can band together effectively to create, as Jackson said, “transformative change.” I am also expecting to learn a lot more about Michigan legislation in grave detail and I am excited to meet more great people working with and engaging with Soulardarity. What I hope to gain is, of course, a more holistic view of Detroit that builds upon my prior knowledge of it and its hardships/achievements. I also hope to gain more research skills and experience and to gain more confidence when networking and working closely with others.

I hope I can contribute to my organization, Soulardarity, a strong sense that I am a committed member of the team that is willing and wanting to learn more about the potential for energy democracy in Highland Park. It makes me a little nervous that I do not have a ton of experience working in energy and municipal policy research and consequently am having to learn a lot of new contextual information now. But this summer, I’m sure I can apply my own research skills/experience in a plethora of ways that will ultimately be helpful in forming the policy recommendations we are set to create. I think that any new perspective on our project is helpful as well, and with all the new people I’ll be meeting and intimate research I will be doing, it will help the organization as a whole determine which direction to go regarding potential policies and pursuing energy democracy.

As for my own perception of Detroit right now, I can say it’s already been transformed a little since touring downtown Detroit this past Tuesday. It was exciting to see the new developments in the downtown areas, but really disappointing to see how a lot of it was obviously the product of gentrification. I hope I see more inclusive development this summer, but so far, I’d say my perception of Detroit is that there is some tension surrounding the future of Detroit, but I also feel like I need to simply explore more of the city and learn more about developments (not just gentrification driven) that are going on in the city.

I think that about sums up my first week. I hope we have a good next eight weeks my friend.

-Nissa 🙂