The Coco Canary Newsletter
May 2025
Summary:
Exciting updates about our Community-Based Participatory Research & Evaluation Projects, a new workshop exploring our roles in movement building, calls to action, an EP Release in June, and more!
A Social Justice Grounding & Calls to Action
News
- Five years after George Floyd, hopes for racial justice fade (MN Spokesman Recorder)
- At this rate, we won’t survive Trump’s next 100 days (MN Spokesman Recorder)
- Trump’s DOJ to halt police reform deals in Louisville, Minneapolis (Axios)
All Eyes On
- Palestine/Israel: The continued displacement of Palestinian families in the occupied West Bank continues to rise (B’TSelem, OCHA). The ceasefire ended in March 2025, and the Israeli aid blockade of Gaza escalated and resulted in signs of famine (WHO, The Times of Israel). This week, limited humanitarian aid was allowed in, but it is believed to be insufficient (UN News).
- Ukraine: Russia mocks Ukraine during direct talks, raising suspicion of bad faith. Russia confirmed it still seeks to annex four regions of Ukraine, plus Crimea, and force Ukraine to be a buffer state. (Al Jazeera)
- Congo: Ceasefire draft agreements have been signed between M23 and DR Congo, but M23 continues to disrespect the agreement by taking villages in South Kivu (BBC).
- Sudan: Warring groups are impacting aid distribution and civilian infrastructure, and the situation in North Darfur is “catastrophic.” (UN News)
Calls to Action
- Sign This Petition: Tell Your Lawmakers to Protect Medicaid
- Sign This Petition: Tell your Members of Congress to call for the immediate release of Mahmoud Khalil
- Sign This Petition: Pardon Jason Sole, a Twin Cities-based community organizer, by Juneteenth!
- Attend the Rise & Remember Festival: This weekend is an annual event to remember George Floyd and those lost to the pervasive impacts of systemic racism. The Street Festival is on Saturday, May 24th, starting at 10 AM, and there will be concerts, self-care clinics, a candlelight vigil, and more from Thursday through Sunday.
- Attend From the Robinsons to Floyd: The Long History That Got Us Here (May 29th): “In this special storytelling event, we travel 100 years back to trace the long and under-explored history that brought us to that moment in 2020 when George Floyd’s death at the hands of police sparked a global racial reckoning.”
- Check out the Anti-Authoritarian Playbook: They post weekly, and I find their articles grounding.
- Applications are now open for the FINNOVATION Fellowship. Apply by June 1st! This is a great opportunity for anyone who has been dreaming of a business idea and wants financial support and mentorship through the process.
Business Updates
1. Photovoice and Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) with the Hazardous Waste Management Program in King County (Seattle, WA)
Sully Moreno from Culture Shift Consulting and I are almost a year into our two-year audience research project with HAZ Waste. Phase 1 (Photovoice) is almost complete, and we’ll be starting Phase 2 (Community Task Force) in July. In our last newsletter (you can read it here), I shared how we drafted an evaluation report with the assistance of our community research team and that we were preparing for our project presentation with the HAZ Waste staff. Well, the report is finished, and the HAZ Waste project team is very happy with it (yay!). The plan is to have members of the community research team co-present with Sully and me, which will also include a panel discussion. We are meeting with them next week to prepare for the presentation that is scheduled for early June!
2. Coordination & Co-Facilitation of an Urban Tree Benefits & Hazards Participatory Study with the University of Minnesota (UMN) – Forest Resources Department
As I shared in my previous newsletter, I started a participatory research project with the UMN this January! This project explores the perceived benefits and hazards of planting trees to mitigate extreme weather scenarios and co-design innovative mitigation solutions with local urban tree, forest, and water managers. In March, I co-facilitated a workshop with UMN scientists and natural resource managers. We had an enlightening conversation about how counties, cities, and NGOs utilize various land management techniques to mitigate extreme weather events. We also explored gaps and challenges, and what types of information managers use to assist in decision-making.
Regarding next steps, Phase 2 should begin this summer, during which we will bring together a subset of focus group participants to co-produce mitigation solutions. Since NSF funds our project, there is a chance that it will be cut short (we got an ominous email from the feds in April, but we haven’t officially received the stop order yet).
Other Business Updates
SAVE THE DATE: Our Roles in Community Workshop is scheduled for July 12th, 2025
In February, my friends and I piloted a workshop titled, Our Roles in Community: Past, Present, & Future. Now we are opening it up to the public! Tickets are $50. Join us for this 3-hour workshop where we will:
(1) Reflect on the roles you’ve been playing in your community
(2) Discuss learnings, challenges, and why these roles may or may not serve you and/or your community anymore
(3) Dream and decide how you want to engage in community organizing moving forward
A participant shared, “Drawing a timeline of my activist journey was really healing, and the changemaker roles was super helpful in seeing where I fit in the greater scheme of things.”
A registration link will be live soon. Keep an eye out for an email from us in the coming weeks!
Presented on How to Use Arts-Based Methods in Evaluation & Research at the CREA 2025 Conference
I was in Chicago in April to present at the Culturally Responsive Evaluation & Assessment Conference. Like Sully and I’s webinar in February, we shared examples of how to implement arts-based methods in research and evaluation, and then offered time for discussion and questions. It was my first CREA Conference, and I loved it. Unfortunately, Sully Moreno wasn’t able to join me at CREA.
EP Release Party: Listen to New Music from Tree & Co!
Join Ilse Griffin & Molly O’Connor (Tree & Co) to celebrate their EP release! Tickets at $10 and doors open at 5:30 PM on Friday, June 13th.
From 6pm – 7pm: expect chill, experimental, and ambient indie-folk vibes from Tree & Co.
From 7pm – 8pm: Brothers Lloyd will finish the night with old-time blues classics and some blues-rock originals. Expect soulful vibes.
Hosted by Arts on Lafond at Zion Community Commons: 1697 Lafond Avenue St. Paul, MN 55104
Light refreshments and vegan snacks will be provided. Masks are optional. Unfortunately, there is no wheelchair accessibility. If you have questions, you can contact us at ilsehogangriffin@gmail.com
We also released a new song, Collector of Dreams. You can check it out on our Bandcamp or stream it on most platforms!
Personal Update
Spring Joy With Friends, Family, & Community!
Above are images of my Spring 2025, and below are image descriptions from top left to bottom right:
Image 1: Community members weaving around a Maypole during a Beltaine event at Anam Cara in Minneapolis, MN.
Image 2: Four people play instruments at a West Side Soul community jam in St. Paul, MN. My friend, Nina (orange shirt), has hosted this event for over 10 years.
Image 3: A photo of the United States Capitol building’s central rotunda in Washington, DC. My partner, Michael, and I were in DC celebrating my 35th birthday with my twin sister. During one of her work days, we snagged a Capitol tour through our senator’s office!
Image 4: My mom and I posing for a photo during a glass mosaic class. In my hand is a piece of glass that I will put into my mosaic. She teaches occasional art classes at a local community art center. I always try to attend her classes! <3
Image 5: Molly posing in the Observation Car of the Empire Builder Amtrak train. Michael and I took the train to Chicago in April (for the CREA Conference).
Let’s Stay Connected!
To keep up to date with my business news, connect or follow me on Linkedin. Don’t forget to follow our newsletter below! And, of course, if you know of anyone who may benefit from our Creative Evaluation services, send them our way. Referrals are what make the world go round.
In Community,
Molly O’Connor (she/her/hers)
Founder, Principal Consultant, and Creative Evaluator
direct: (612) 868-0364
email: moconnor@cococanary.com
website: cococanary.com
