Nationally recognized days of awareness remind us of important civil and human rights movements led by Black and African-American communities and social justice advocates. February puts leadership, education, access, justice, policy, and governance under the spotlight. Through a PACEs science lens, this month is an opportunity to consider trauma-informed transformation through a PACEs science lens as the way forward.

As we’ve recently announced, the CRC Accelerator is taking an indefinite hiatus, but this moment of growth is anything but goodbye. Two years into this unique program, we are aware of the incredible impact access can have on PACEs initiatives and we now have a CRC Fellowship that grows with each CRC graduate.

A resilient community fosters a network of people and resources that can adapt, learn, and thrive in the face of challenges. Building such a community requires intention and effort. One example of such an effort is the Self-Healing Communities (SHC) project in Lompoc, a collaborative partnership between local government, nonprofits, and community members who share the responsibility and long-term commitment to its success.