Our Mission
The Northeastern Pennsylvania Organizing Center is a resident-led organization dedicated to providing our community the means to develop long-term solutions to human rights issues. We combine organizing support, outreach/intake, and media programs through Campaigns in order to bring community voices to the forefront of policy discussion.
The NEPA Organizing Center is dedicated to ensuring that residents become the guiding force in the development of our communities by training and uniting resident leaders. As an all volunteer organization, we strive to reach our mission through the following programs:
- Community Service, Outreach and Support: Connecting as a Community
- Community Journalism: Telling Our Stories
- Development of Community Leadership: Building Together
Our History
The Beginning: In 2008, volunteers transformed a vacant storefront in downtown Wilkes-Barre into a flexible meeting space for community organizations whose activities are compatible with our mission.
Over the last three years we have been able to develop a range of programs and member involvement processes including outreach, media development, fund raising and events planning, and many others. We have also been able to connect with numerous local organizations as part of a support coalition that works in concert with our resident-led process. All of these developments have led to the capacity to carry out our 2012 Leadership Campaign as part of the beginning of the development of a wide ranging and engaged leadership development and representative structure.
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As an all-volunteer organization, we strive to reach our mission through the following programs:
Our Projects
Community Support, Outreach and Service
The NEPA region, like many across the United States, is being affected by economic changes. Issues such as housing loss, foreclosure, homelessness, lack of adequate health care, etc. are becoming commonplace while service agencies are struggling to meet needs in the face of extensive budget cuts.
It is clear that our community must organize to support each other through the many pressing issues that many of us are facing on a day-to-day basis.
We provide outreach training to organizations, churches and religious organizations, individuals and families.
Media Mobilizing Project: Community Journalism Program
The NEPA Organizing Center has been instrumental in developing the Media Mobilizing Project (MMP). With locations in NEPA and Philadelphia, the MMP uses electronic media (video, web, etc.) to train and equip community residents to use video and internet-based tools to document, analyze, and distribute stories of community change. We also develop and implement digital solutions for individuals, organizations, and businesses.
This project allows for the distribution of documentaries, news reports, organizational updates, and educational materials in an effective way. The right of free speech means little without the right to be heard.
NEPA Leadership Campaign: “Putting People First”
While short-term programs and services are sorely needed, we realize that our true issue is lack of resident representation in the development of our community. We must collectively address the root causes of poverty issues in a new way. Our goal is to create an organized and sustainable system that is truly responsive and accountable to all members of our community, especially those affected by emerging issues of poverty.
All of our programs are focused on connecting with local residents in an effort to understand our collective issues and work together to address them.
