For the People

We're going to get inspired to try and keep more of Connecticut's young people out of the often defeating and damaging environment of incarceration as we meet the leader of CTJA - The Connecticut Justice Alliance - bringing a diverse set of voices together to lift up and protect kids facing challenges that can't be helped behind bars.

Then we'll hear about The East Coast Greenway - stretching 3,000 miles from Maine to Florida, and how far along Connecticut is in in completing its section of this project offering a safe place for bicyclists, walkers, runners, and more - of all ages and abilities - to commute, exercise, and visit new destinations.

And we'll close replaying an early January visit with New Reach, to learn more about this locally based nonprofit organization, and how its dedicated staff is committed to making homelessness in Connecticut rare, brief and non-recurring.

We're looking back on National Consumer Protection Week with Connecticut's Commissioner of Consumer Protection and bringing you some important reminders about how to best protect yourself and the ones you love from scammers and situations designed to rip you off or steal your identity.

Then we'll work up your appetite with our friends from Jersey Mike's Subs. We are smack in the middle of Jersey Mike's Month of Giving and working our way toward their March 29 Day of Giving, so we'll chat with a company representative about this effort, and then welcome Make-A-Wish Connecticut - this year's Month of Giving philanthropy recipient.

And we'll close by saying farewell to Eric Jacobsen - the soon-to-be departing director and conductor of the Greater Bridgeport Symphony. We'll reflect on his journey over the past nine years, hear about a couple of exciting upcoming performances, and what's in store for this talented musician in the months and years to come.

We'll open transporting you to the Glebe House Museum in historic Woodbury's village center, and invite you to learn about one of the earliest historic house museums in the nation offering authentic architecture, an outstanding regional furniture collection and Gertrude Jekyll Garden.

Next, we'll welcome the National Smart Solar Director for the American Farmland Trust. to help clue us all in on that agency's Smart Solar policies and continued investment in farmland protection - and invite you to be part of a March 8 webinar entitled: "Building a Resilient Future: Connecticut’s Smart Solar Opportunities." 

Then, we'll be introducing you to AgingCT — a statewide network of coordinated information, supports, and services to help Connecticut's older and vulnerable adults and everyone else navigate their aging journey based on their care setting, preferences, and needs.

We've got exciting news for farmers, gardeners and those who love our land resources - The Northeast Organic Farming Association of Connecticut (NOFA-CT) is with us previewing the 41st Winter Conference coming up in March and culminating with an in-person gathering and celebration at Wesleyan University.

Then, we'll tell you about CONNIE - the CT Health Exchange that's required to implement by May. There are more than a few serious concerns about it and a lot that consumers aren't aware of — so we'll call on the President of the CT Psychological Association to help unpack some of the key details you need to know.

And we'll close with more good environmental news - a 41-mile section of the Housatonic River just received federal Wild and Scenic designation, which should lead to better protections for the waterway. So we'll chat up a leader from the Housatonic Valley Association - one of the two organizations that helped Connecticut earn this high profile national designation to learn more.

We're checking in with the founder of UR Community Cares, one of the state's coolest and under promoted community building nonprofits. We'll let you in on where this service organization has been popping up lately connecting neighbors to neighbors and providing support to seniors and others who may need an occasional hand around the house.

Then we'll resume our series looking at the health and quality of life in the lower Naugatuck Valley using the Valley Community Foundation's latest Index as seen through the eyes of the regional Chamber of Commerce leader. How does the quality and health of Valley commerce affect the welfare of everyone living in the region? Stay tuned and find out!

And we'll close catching up with Abilis, which is continuing to expand its network of partnerships providing even more opportunities for alternately-abled residents of lower Fairfield County inclusive employment opportunities to help make everyone involved feel productive and welcome in their community.

We're opening where we left off last week - with the second of a two-part chat featuring the CEO of Connecticut Housing Partners, to hear about how this nonprofit has been working for over 30 years to end housing insecurity, address income inequality and prevent homelessness by creating and preserving safe, affordable housing, and resident services for people across the state. 

Then we'll check-in with the CEO of the Connecticut Community Foundation - to celebrate the organization's 100th Anniversary, and to help kick off the foundation's next century of supporting important and critical community efforts across their service area including the launch of its Second Century Fund.

And we'll close with AARP Connecticut - inviting local organizations and governments to apply for the 2023 AARP Community Challenge grant program. These grants fund quick-action projects that help communities become more livable in the long-term by improving public spaces, transportation, housing, civic engagement, diversity and inclusion, and more.

February is here and that means it's Choose Love Awareness Month - so we'll check in with Scarlett Lewis to discuss recent developments with her Choose Love Movement and the global expansion of important, effective programming in schools, businesses, communities and beyond that was inspired after losing her son in the 2012 Sandy Hook tragedy.

Then we'll hit the road with Bike Walk Connecticut to learn how this nonprofit is  changing the culture of transportation through advocacy and education to make bicycling and walking safe, feasible and attractive for a healthier, cleaner Connecticut.

And we'll close with the first of a two-part chat with the award-winning CEO of Connecticut Housing Partners. Hear how this nonprofit has been working for over 30 years to end housing insecurity, address income inequality and prevent homelessness by creating and preserving safe, affordable housing, and resident services.

We're starting and ending our program up in the air - opening with our top birding resource Audubon Connecticut celebrating this environmental nonprofit's 125th anniversary in 2023, as well as the acquisition of its latest open space parcel on Stratford Point, and a new series of workshops to help you understand and appreciate the importance of all our feathered friends.

Then we'll address the serious challenges facing more and more renters across the state. We're brining in two representatives from Cap The Rent CT, a grassroots cause working to create fair and equitable laws to help protect renters from predatory rent increases and evictions.

And we'll close back up in the air as we welcome the Salisbury Winter Sports Association inviting everyone to witness the thrill of ski jumping, and the insanity of human dog sled racing at next weekends 97th Annual Jumpfest right here in Litchfield County.

This week is the 2023 CT League of Conservation Voters annual summit. So, For the People is previewing what attendees have in store, and hopefully motivating you to participate while learning how to help protect our state's air and water quality, open spaces, and the sustainability of our environment for generations to come.

Then we'll sit down with Jane Doe No More, a state-based non-profit empowering survivors of sexual crimes to find their voice, advance their healing, and educate others. We'll catch up on what the organization has been doing, and highlight a brand new resource for men suffering in silence after experiencing sexual abuse.

And we'll wrap circling back one final time with the Marijuana Policy Project. The first full week of legal cannabis access in the state has passed registering more than $2 million in sales, so we'll review what's next for one of the groups that played a big role in getting us to where we are today.

While it's early January, the good work and efforts surrounding community agriculture never really stops at Green Village Initiative. So we're opening today's program where we left off last week with Part 2 of our chat with GVI's executive director about what's happening today at the farm, and what's in store as she and her team dig in for 2023.

Then, meet the CT Age Well Collaborative and learn how this organization and its team co-creates, educates, innovates, celebrates and evaluates best practices, projects and policies to shape more aging, dementia, and disability-inclusive communities while leading the state's livable communities initiative 

And we're introducing a true grassroots cause, Recovery for All Connecticut, a statewide coalition of labor, community, and faith organizations representing hundreds of thousands of people — black, brown, and white — standing united in a long-term mission to eliminate systemic inequalities and rebuild a better Connecticut.