Community Building & Organizing

ACDC's community building work is a key part of ACDC's holistic approach of investing in people, places, and power. By offering structured opportunities for residents to engage with ACDC and in the broader community, our aim is to strengthen resident leadership and community power.

Our Programs

We get to know residents through activities, events, and play programming that foster a sense of belonging. From there, we invite residents to join leadership and placekeeping cohorts, through which they can build the skills, knowledge, and confidence to become active designers, planners, and advocates in their neighborhoods.

Resident Leadership Academy

Residence Leadership Academy is a collaboration between Asian Community Development Corporation (ACDC), Mel King Institute, Chinatown residents, and local creatives to shape Chinatown’s cultural identity & influence through popular education. Chinatown is changing rapidly, often at the expense of Chinatown's working-class and immigrant residents. Through Residence Leadership Academy, residents reflect on community struggles then and now, ways to steward advocacy & organizing in their neighborhood, and design solutions that build community power.⁠

Advocacy

We train and mobilize our diverse resident base to engage in and lead community interventions through public meetings, convenings with their local elected officials, placekeeping projects, and a dedicated training academy to strengthen their organizing skills. Through APIs CAN! and participation in other coalitions, ACDC works with youth and adult residents and partners to drive policy advocacy on issues impacting housing, immigrant communities,and low-income families.

MorePLAY

MorePLAY is a series of resident events, hosted to bring together Chinatown residents together and help build community resilience.

Past Projects