Partner Feature - Marina LaGrave highlights the importance of language and cultural competence in community building
/Marina LaGrave, whom Trestle has been partnering with on many projects over the last several years, explains in a Daily Camera portrait why language access and cultural competence are critical aspects when working to build inclusive communities.
As explained in the article, Marina wears different hats: she is an interventionist at Columbine Elementary School in Boulder - where Danica met her when her kids were students there; she is an interpreter and translator for the City of Boulder; and she is the founder of CLACE - the Latin American Center for Arts, Science and Education. As such, we have had the pleasure of collaborating with Marina on many projects, including:
The Ponderosa Community Stabilization project: over the past 5 years, Marina has been instrumental in engaging the Latinx community of the Ponderosa Mobile Home park. She continues to serve as a cultural liaison between the City, the project team, and the Spanish-speaking residents, thanks to the fact that she has been able to gain all parties’ trust by patiently listening to and answering any and all questions.
The Cultural Responsiveness and Inclusion Strategic Plan (CRISP) for the Boulder County Parks and Open Space (POS) department: over the last year, we have been working with Marina and her colleague Bob Russel on the CRISP for the BoCo POS department. Marina has been working relentlessly to connect the POS department with Latinx leaders in the region, and think creatively about how to co-create active and lasting partnerships between the Latinx community and the POS department.
The COVID-19 Pandemic Impact Study: for this 2-month, fast-track project, we are partnering with Marina to recruit Latinx community leaders and activists to co-create a process to interview members of the Latinx community and gather stories on how the COVID-19 pandemic is impacting them. Thanks to Marina’s extensive network and community connections, we were able to hear from 115 community members and help identify barriers in accessing County services and gaps in those services.
From left to right: Marine, Marina, and Danica at a Ponderosa Community Block Party in June 2019
As we practice adaptive leadership in all those projects, we keep learning from Marina on such important topics as co-creation, cultural competence, and inclusivity. We are grateful for the opportunity to partner with her and are looking forward to many more opportunities to do so.