Set for Success
We believe that a sustainable community means everyone has the tools to engage in their community. We are the only organization in the CID that gives workshops in the places where our residents live and in the languages our residents speak. Without these programs the disparities that plague our community will continue to negatively impact those who live and work in the CID. With our partners we provide:
Health Literacy
Workshops for residents to learn more about the diseases that affect them; diabetes, asthma, cancer and women’s health. The goal of the program is not only to give our clients knowledge, but to have them find their own solutions to improve their health. Approximately 500 duplicated individuals have attended one or more workshop.
ESL
For refugee and immigrants English is the largest barrier. Without English proficiency it is so difficult to find a job and parents cannot understand letters or phone calls from school. With English can parents to take an advocacy role in their children’s education and our community can begin to thrive, not just survive. We have provided approximately 470 duplicated individuals with ESL classes.
Wellbeing and Nutrition
From Tai Chi to hands-on meal preparation, residents design and organize activities that enhance their well-being and build strong relationships with their neighbors. Approximately 450 duplicated individuals have come out of isolation and attended one or more activity.
Financial Literacy
Many of our residents are unfamiliar with basic money management consequently, they are vulnerable to fraud and predatory lenders which traditionally target non-English-speaking immigrant and refugee communities. 200 unduplicated individuals have attended classes on budgeting, credit, savings, recognizing fraud, and more.
Past Projects
Healthy Communities Program
Interim CDA’s Healthy Communities Program is working to bring our community closer to its vision of a healthier, safer, and more livable Chinatown-ID (CID). We know that people living and working in the CID are less healthy than those in other neighborhoods in Seattle and King County.
- Local public health data show that the average lifespan for people living in the CID is seven years shorter than the most well-off communities.
- The data shows that the CID ranks at the bottom for mental distress, diabetes, preventable hospitalizations, and poor housing conditions.
- Rates of violence, including homicides, in the CID are among the worst in King County
At the same time, the CID contributes greatly to Seattle’s vibrancy and diversity. Thousands and thousands of people visit the CID to eat here, support the small, independent businesses, and to enjoy the representation of AAPI culture. The CID has historically been the first home for immigrants and refugees arriving in Seattle, and often times is today. This neighborhood is the home, workplace and community for immigrants, seniors, and young children.
Green Street Project
Maynard Avenue South, between South Main and South Jackson Streets: In 2010, InterIm CDA completed construction of the Chinatown-International District’s first green street, a sidewalk on Maynard Ave. S. lined with trees, plants, benches, public art, and a self sustaining watering system that captures rain from a nearby building to water the trees, shrubs and grasses.
The Maynard Green Street demonstration project is part of our commitment to and vision for a more pedestrian-friendly and sustainable neighborhood in the Nihonmachi, or ‘Japantown’ section of the International District. Projects like this not only enhance the quality of life for residents, but also create a better environment for small businesses.
This project serves as a model of city, nonprofit, and private collaboration to make Seattle more ‘green’ and livable for all its citizens.
InterIm CDA has a long history in advocating for social justice and equity. We have worked to ensure resources are available for the benefit of the Chinatown/International District’s people and also for the Puget Sound’s Asian Pacific Islander population in general. Since 1969, we have worked on projects to improve our community’s food systems, social and economic services, public art, parks, and streetscape projects.
Through our neighborhood partnerships, Interim CDA continues to work on city and regional policy issues such as affordable housing, living wages, public safety, transportation, and social services. In addition, InterIm CDA is a leading partner in a national group called the National Coalition for Asian Pacific Community Development, which works on social justice and community development issues.
Voter Engagement and Education
We thank King County Elections and the Seattle Foundation for their generous support through a grant to reach out to API voters and conduct multi-lingual (Cantonese, Mandarin and Vietnamese) voter education.
Register to Vote, Update Address
Vote! Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2022.
Fair Housing Initiative
InterIm CDA is part of the National Fair Housing Media Campaign, working in partnership with the National Association for Latino Community Asset Builders (NALCAB), the National Coalition for Asian Pacific American Community Development (National CAPACD) and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), to engage and educate people about their rights as homeowners and tenants. We are working to talk to Asian Americans, Pacific Islanders, and other communities about discriminatory housing practices, their rights under the federal Fair Housing Act, and HUD resources.
Our organizers are tabling at community events, working with coalition partners to reach people in our API community, and providing more information and interpretation to let people know that housing discrimination is illegal and to help them file a complaint by contacting Northwest Justice Project at 206-464-1519 (voice), or Seattle Office for Civil Rights at 206-684-4500 (voice) or by contacting HUD’s Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity at (800) 669-9777(voice) or (800) 927-9275 (TTY). Housing discrimination complaints may also be filed at http://www.hud.gov/fairhousing.
Issues We’re Working On
Advocacy comes in many forms and is needed at all levels of government to ensure that a community’s voice is heard. For new immigrants, communities of color, and low-income families, this voice is too easily marginalized or dismissed. At InterIm CDA, we believe advocacy goes beyond merely lobbying; it is a process by which we educate elected and other officials about our community and inform community members and neighbors about the power they have to shape public policy decisions that affect them.
We work on issues at local, state, and federal levels to bring affordable housing and community development resources to the communities and neighborhoods most in need.
NATIONAL COALITION FOR ASIAN PACIFIC AMERICAN COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
The National Coalition for Asian Pacific American Community Development (CAPACD) is the first national advocacy organization dedicated to addressing the housing, community, and economic development needs of Asian and Pacific Islander communities.
InterIm CDA is working with National CAPACD on policy issues that will increase access to affordable housing for low-income families, shed light on economic injustices among segments of the Asian and Pacific Islander community, and increase tools to preserve and revitalize historically Asian enclaves and business districts across the country.