Community Voices Lead the Way at Commún

The voices of hundreds of Southwest Denver neighbors have driven the development of Commún, from its beginnings in a living room in 2019 to its current vision of a 39,000-square-foot Loretto Heights Community Center. 

Creating the space and the methods for these voices to be heard takes intention and planning. Camila Restrepo and Andrea Savage are among the staff leaders who make this possible. Camila oversees general community organizing with adults and youth, and Andrea manages the Climate Promotoras, a group that focuses on helping people adapt to climate change.

“Our organizers have conducted more than 330 one-on-one conversations about their needs and hopes for our community center,” Camila explains. “Their ideas have included creating catering and construction jobs as we build the center, having an equity-based grocery store, and building calming rooms for kids on the autism spectrum.”  

Youth Organizing team members are taking on responsibility in Commún’s weekly mental health groups and setting up a youth space at community meals. 

The Climate Promotoras are funded in part through the City and County of Denver’s Climate, Action, Sustainability, and Resiliency (CASR) office. The team is made up of one teen, one grandmother, and three adults, all of whom are Spanish-speaking. They learned that people in the community knew about climate change but didn’t know how to take action. 

“Now they’re conducting regular workshops, teaching people skills like how to use rain barrels, how to create an emergency kit, and how to manage extreme heat,” says Andrea. The Climate Promotoras are also taking the lead in “greening” Commún’s programs, from recycling to hiring a composter.

Learn more about Commún and how they are using community voice to drive their work.