Thank you to all who participated in 2025 community assemblies!
This year TCAT was involved in organizing five community assemblies. Three were funded by a grant from the Commerce Department and two were funded by the City of Tumwater. People came together to share their concerns and ideas about Climate Change. Thank you to all who attended. Your voices were heard and the data from all assemblies was shared with local jurisdictions.
Thanks to a grant funded through Washington’s Climate Commitment Act (CCA) TCAT is working to Amplify Community Voices during the comprehensive planning process. Historically, people most affected by the climate crisis have no say in the solutions. TCAT is working to change that.
Paris McClusky, TCAT’s Community Organizer, helped bring new voices to the table during comprehensive planning and beyond. While we are specifically working to address the climate crisis, these same skills can be used to bring broader views to the table on all public policy issues.
A comprehensive plan is a long-term community plan for the vision and goals for the future, in this case, the next 20 years. Thurston County, Tumwater, Lacey, and Olympia are currently working on their own comprehensive plans which include chapters on: housing; environment; transportation; land use; public services, economy and climate.
Paris worked with:
- Under-represented and overburdened communities to listen to their concerns, explore possible solutions, and involve them in the comprehensive planning process, particularly chapters involving climate change.
- Thurston County and the cities of Olympia, Lacey, and Tumwater to break down barriers to public participation and identify public engagement opportunities.
- A broad coalition of Thurston County residents to help them understand the comprehensive planning process, the climate crisis, and how they can have a say in their future.
If you feel you or your community group would like to be part of this project, please contact Janet at .
How to sign up for updates and participation opportunities for the comprehensive plans at Lacey, Tumwater, Olympia and Thurston County:
The Community Based Organization Public Participation Grant is supported with funding from Washington’s Climate Commitment Act. The CCA supports Washington’s climate action efforts by putting cap-and-invest dollars to work reducing climate pollution, creating jobs, and improving public health. Information about the CCA is available at www.climate.wa.gov.