Q&A with Center for Transforming Communities

For the Center for Transforming Communities, climate change and health equity are not abstract concepts. They show up in the soil, in the quality of drinking water, in neighborhood walkability and in access to food. The organization works closely with residents and institutions to minimize negative impacts of community development and address important issues like health, youth opportunity, land access and food justice.

Through participation in The Kresge Foundation’s Climate Change, Health & Equity (CCHE) initiative, the organization is deepening its work at the intersection of environmental justice, public health and resident power in Memphis, one of four Focus Cities where Kresge does long-term, place-based work.

Connie Binkowitz, Kathy Temple, JoElle Thompson and Justice Prewitt discuss their work at Center for Transforming Communities and how their connector model helps residents identify community priorities, build leadership and create practical solutions that also address larger systems and policy conditions.

Q: Tell us about the Center for Transforming Communities.

Connie Binkowitz : The Center for Transforming Communities is a community organizing organization. We organize residents to identify and address the needs and concerns that matter most to them. Our connectors are embedded in what we call “hubs”, and they are present in those communities, listening to residents and helping people come together around shared priorities.  

The work is practical, but it is also connected to systems and policy. When residents name an issue, our role is to help organize around it in ways that can lead to real change, whether that means building relationships, supporting neighborhood-level action or thinking through the systems that need to shift. 

Q: What does your connector model look like in practice? 

JoElle Thompson: I’m the South Memphis connector, and my work sits at the intersection of food and environmental justice. I bring my public health background together with storytelling and artistry, working with artists in my neighborhood to center stories about food access, food sovereignty and the lived experience of food insecurity in South Memphis across generations.  

One project under our Soil 2 Souls work is developing a community cookbook and feature-length documentary that explore our understanding of food insecurity and how we navigate it, but also honoring generations of people who have grown food, created solutions and sustained community knowledge. 

Q: How are residents involved in this work?

JoElle Thompson: The power of the Center for Transforming Communities is that the connectors are people who live, work and play in the communities where they organize. For us, the work is not separate from our daily lives. We are working inside our own neighborhoods, with people we already have relationships with and people who trust us because we are part of the community.  

That matters for public health work. It can be difficult for outside researchers or institutions to build trust. But when the work is led by people from the community, it helps close the gap between research and practice. We are connecting people to people, people to resources and organizations to each other.  

Residents are not just participating in someone else’s project. They have a stake in the work. They show up because it is about community. That is part of how we think about transformation: transforming ourselves and then bringing that transformation into our communities. 

Q: How is participation in CCHE strengthening your work and vision for Memphis? 

Kathy Temple: As a connector in North Memphis, I see many of the same environmental challenges that exist in South Memphis. That’s why our food justice, food sovereignty and environmental work are so closely connected. Healthy communities depend on healthy soil, clean water and a healthy environment. CCHE helped us strengthen those connections and expand our thinking about how environmental conditions affect community health. 

The initiative has also connected us with regional partners who are tackling similar challenges. A recent visit to New Orleans introduced us to Louisiana Green Corps, a program that prepares young people for careers in environmental and green workforce fields. Seeing that model in action sparked conversations about how Memphis could create similar pathways for youth while addressing local needs such as flooding, green infrastructure and environmental stewardship. 

Those relationships have also helped us engage with city planning efforts and local decision-makers around the future of Memphis. We’re exploring how investments in green jobs, agriculture and environmental initiatives can support both community well-being and economic opportunity.  

Justice Prewitt: CCHE has become a lens that carries into other work. For example, when we think about healthy built environments, pedestrian safety, urban heat and walkability, those issues can all connect back to climate change and health equity.  

The framework helps us ask broader questions: What neighborhood systems are shaping people’s lives? What city and county systems are acting on these issues? What community assets and histories should guide the work? Whether we are talking about climate migration, flooding, urban heat or food sovereignty, CCHE helps us see the connections and build a stronger story around resident leadership and ownership. 

Want more stories about our partners in Memphis? For season 2 of Kresge’s PathBreakers podcast, we took the show to Memphis to explore how leaders in the city are creating the conditions for family stability. Listen or watch on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.