ReBuildATL
The ReBuildATL Coalition includes more than 40 nonprofits, academic institutions, industry partners and local government agencies committed to empowering disadvantaged communities in the Westside of Atlanta. With initial support from an EPA job training grant, the ReBuildATL Coalition was originally formed to create and deliver a workforce training program called Breaking Barriers Through Deconstruction, which graduated its first cohort in 2023.
As we developed this program in partnership with community-based organizations in Westside / Southwest Atlanta, the Coalition recognized a need to expand its scope in response to other challenges experienced in these communities, including equity theft, higher energy burdens and lack of access to renewable energy systems. Collectively the Coalition provides a broad range of expertise and resources to address the area’s energy challenges and develop clean energy solutions through the expansion of construction material reuse, workforce development and affordable housing.
Coalition Members
COMMUNITY WE SERVE
The Rebuild ATL Coalition is led by community-based organizations that are long-time, trusted leaders from Westside communities, in partnership with academic institutions, industry partners, and local government. The Coalition supports the resurgence of these communities by creating a circular economy that is equitable, sustainable, decarbonized and resilient. We aim to inspire the next generation of residents to draw on their assets to rise above trauma and barriers that limit opportunity. Our lens is regenerative: we focus on removing barriers and replenishing communities to help them move from surviving to thriving.
COALITION values
"Atlanta’s historically marginalized communities have lacked resources required to make serious investments in their own neighborhoods for decades. This coalition seeks to develop and return that investment by supporting communities through engaging them in shaping their own lives, economies, and futures."
This quote comes from the values statement agreed upon by the Coalition in completing the Breaking Barriers Through Deconstruction workforce development initiative. As the Coalition shifts its focus towards addressing inequitable energy burdens and the lack of affordable housing, this values statement is being revised.
Breaking barriers through deconstruction
In 2023, LBC partnered with multiple community, nonprofit, and educational organizations to develop and implement Breaking Barriers Through Deconstruction, a workforce training program that is rooted in environmental sustainability and racial equity. Breaking Barriers offers paid vocational training to disadvantaged individuals seeking to overcome barriers to employment, opening the door for them to find long-term, living-wage jobs in industries needing workers with skills in deconstruction, commercial construction, residential remodeling, facility management, and more.
Individuals served by the program receive training in deconstruction, home repair and weatherization, energy efficiency, career advancement skills, financial literacy, OSHA 10 safety certification, and GPRO certification in high-performance construction standards. Beyond providing educational opportunities and new career pathways for underserved residents, Breaking Barriers creates broader community resilience by supporting the transition from a linear resource usage model to a circular, restorative use of our planet’s precious material resources.
Breaking barriers VIDEO
EPA ENVIRONMENTAL & CLIMATE JUSTICE COMMUNITY CHANGE GRANT PROGRAM
In 2024, Georgia Tech provided extensive guidance and support to Lifecycle Building Center and other members of the ReBuildATL Coalition in developing a community impact vision and proposal for EPA's Environmental & Climate Justice Community Change grant program. Over the three-year performance period, ReBuildATL proposes to:
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Train 620 individuals in deconstruction, construction, weatherization and green infrastructure
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Complete 250 weatherization & energy-efficiency retrofits for low-income residents
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Build 5 net-zero affordable housing prototypes
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Stand up 5 community resilience hubs by strengthening existing community assets
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Divert 525 additional tons of usable construction materials from disposal, beyond LBC’s yearly diversion rate of 700 tons
DOe Community Clean energy coalition prize
The goal of the Department of Energy's Community Clean Energy Coalition Prize was to help community coalitions—made up of nonprofits, city governments, school systems, and other community organizations—come together to address a local clean energy opportunity or inequity. Strategies included education, workforce trainings, or implementation of new technologies that align with the White House’s Justice40 goals.
The DOE Community Clean Energy Coalition (CCEC) Prize was directed and administered by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and funded by the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE). The ReBuildATL Coalition was one of ten coalitions selected through a nationwide competition for the Phase One, Phase Two and Phase Three CCEC Prize.
JUSTICE40 INITIATIVE
As part of the government’s approach to advancing equity, civil rights, racial justice and equal opportunity, DOE has identified eight policy priorities to guide its implementation of the Justice40 Initiative in disadvantaged communities. The ReBuildATL Coalition's efforts currently support DOE Justice40 goals 1, 3, 5, 6, and 8.
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Decrease energy burden in disadvantaged communities.
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Decrease environmental exposure and burdens for disadvantaged communities
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Increase parity in clean energy technology (e.g., solar, storage) access and adoption in disadvantaged communities.
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Increase access to low-cost capital in disadvantaged communities.
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Increase clean energy enterprise creation and contracting in disadvantaged communities.
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Increase clean energy jobs, job pipelines, and job training for individuals from disadvantaged communities.
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Increase energy resiliency in disadvantaged communities.
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Increase energy democracy (stakeholder engagement to facilitate decision-making) in disadvantaged communities.
REBUILDATL SUMMARY
PROGRAM IMPLEMENTATION
UN SUSTAINABLE development goals
The UN has outlined 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for countries and nonprofits to align themselves to sustainability. The ReBuildATL coalition has begun introducing these goals locally through their efforts.
The UN has outlined 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for countries and nonprofits to align themselves to sustainability. The ReBuildATL Coalition's efforts focus on the following goals:
Increasing access to affordable, renewable energy systems for disadvantaged communities
Developing a workforce around deconstruction and connecting individuals with the construction industry
Creating a circular economy in Atlanta, beginning with building material reuse
Improving housing affordability through material reuse and workforce development
Leveraging community-based assets to design and implement sustainable, equitable solutions