Nexus Community Partners

Leadership: The Leadership work stream includes two programs: Reclaiming Our Own Time (ROOT), and the Boards and Commissions Leadership Institute (BCLI). Reclaiming Our Own Time (ROOT) is a program to help BIPOC people embrace rest and restoration as fundamental to social justice work. ROOT's offerings include two sabbatical programs, regular in-person and virtual events, and a monthly curated newsletter containing resources and opportunities. In 2024, we received 1,100+ applications for 10 sabbaticals for BIPOC movement leaders. Each sabbatical fellow received $30,000 to replace income for their three-month rest period, $5,000 for additional healing and wellness services, participation in three gatherings of sabbatical fellows, and ongoing individual coaching. We reached an additional 400+ individuals through related events including sacred spaces, the Reimagining Rest series, and three pop-up events all designed to help people explore the various ways we can experience rest and restoration and to recognize rest as a birthright for all people. The Nexus Boards and Commissions Leadership Institute (BCLI) is a seven-month leadership program that equips BIPOC and other shut-out community members to serve on city, county, metro and state boards and commissions. The 2023-2024 Cohort included 12 fellows who completed 80 hours of training and individual assignments and received stipends of $500 each for their participation. BCLI staff will now help graduates obtain appointments on state and local boards or commissions with the goal of half of graduates receiving appointments within the next 12 months.

Ownership: The Ownership work stream includes two programs: The Shared Ownership Center @ Nexus (SOC@N) and North Star Black Cooperative Fellowship (North Star). SOC@N is a bold effort to change the face of ownership by promoting shared-ownership business models, including worker cooperatives and real estate investment cooperatives. Through this work, SOC@N supports locally anchored businesses and more equitable working environments that help grow the region's economy. It advances worker ownership by seizing opportunities presented by the wave of retiring business owners in Minnesota and supports community ownership of resources by placing real estate in the hands of those that live and work there with a particular focus on BIPOC ownership. In March 2024, SOC@N launched the St. Paul LOCAL Fund in partnership with the City of St. Paul. Over the next three years, they will redistribute ARP funds to real estate and worker-owned cooperatives in areas of St. Paul hardest-hit by COVID-19. North Star is a seven-month fellowship focused on Black American cooperative economics and the history of Black cooperative economic thought and practice. In our curriculum, we center the wisdom and experience of those who share the ancestry of enslaved Africans in the United States and place value on the legacy of Black collective care. North Star's 2023-2024 cohort included 23 fellows representing 9 innovative cooperatives and collectives. Cohort members received $500 stipends for participation and the opportunity to apply to the North Star Alumni Fund for technical assistance grants for their cooperatives.

The broader mission of Nexus includes a number of other programs and initiatives. The Nexus Community Engagement Institute (NCEI) works to build more permanently organized communities by creating a healthy ecosystem where all communities are readily engaged and resourced. The Neighborhood Leadership Program (NLP) is a cohort-based program where people explore tenets of self-awareness, working across differences, and taking value-based action as they build power together. It is a seven-month program that offers space for people who are committed to personal and collective transformation to slow down- getting grounded in themselves and their own stories. through deeply knowing ourselves and how we relate to others, we cultivate sustainable relationships and explore ways we can live in the world we know is necessary, possible, and in many small ways, already present. The Nexus Boards and Commissions Leadership Institute (BCLI) is a 7-month leadership program that works to build more engaged and powerful communities in our region by equipping BIPOC and other shut-out community members to serve on city, county, metro and state boards and commissions. The Reclaiming Our Own Time (ROOT) ecosystem is for BIPOC people to embrace rest and restoration as fundamental pieces of all work toward justice. Whether you have been organizing for decades, are newer to movement work, or are somewhere in between, ROOT's goal is to help you to prioritize building, cultivating, and embracing your rest and rest practices. ROOT's offerings include two sabbatical programs, regular in-person and virtual events, and a monthly curated newsletter containing resources and opportunities