As an active community member, it can be difficult to negotiate with nuisance property owners. At tomorrow’s 6th Annual Neighborhood Institute: Love Where You Live, Robin Jacobs of the Community Law Center will share some of the legal tools available to residents and provide information on legal resouces that can help you combat problem neighborhood properties.

Tell us about your background.
I serve as a Community Legal Services Staff Attorney for Community Law Center (CLC) and as an adjunct professor at University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law in the Community Justice Clinic. Prior to CLC, I worked as the Staff Attorney for CLC’s Pro Bono Program. Before joining the CLC, I served as a judicial law clerk in the Circuit Court for Baltimore City for Hon. Althea M. Handy. At University of Maryland School of Law, where I graduated in 2009, I received the Community Scholar Prize for my work in the Community Justice Clinic and served as co-president of the Maryland Public Interest Law Project, Inc. (MPILP). I currently serve on the Maryland State Bar Association’s Delivery of Legal Services Section Council and recently became co-chair of the ABCD/Baltimore Vacant Property Subcommittee.

What do you love most about living in Baltimore?
I love the sense of community in Baltimore and the strength and resilience of neighborhoods.

What do you hope people will take away from your workshop?
I believe that a well-organized community group composed of committed residents can make their neighborhood great, and I want to give them the legal tools to help make their dreams for their community a reality. I hope people will take away the knowledge and empowerment they need to address nuisances in their neighborhood.

Can the choices you make in daily life – how to get from place to place, where to shop, learn, relax and have fun, what to consume, when to reuse or recycle – make a difference? Absolutely. Join Janet Felsten, founder of Baltimore Green Map, for the workshop “Mapping Community Resources” at this year’s 6th Annual Neighborhood Institute, to learn how to map Baltimore’s ecological and cultural resources and our city’s progress toward becoming a healthy, sustainable urban environment.

Tell us about your background.
My life has always combined these threads – design, environment, education, art and activism – woven together in different ways. I trained as an architect and urban planner, worked in those professions, but always kept involved in education and community building. I’m entrepreneurial and collaborative by nature, so I tend to create my own projects by identifying needs and trying to fill them. I was fortunate that Open Society Institute came to town and offered Community Fellowships. Baltimore Green Map grew out of that opportunity.

What do you love most about living in Baltimore?
I like access to parks and green space, walkability, the creative ferment that enlivens so many neighborhoods, and the sense that so many people are invested in improving the city and collaborating across old boundaries.

Why do you hope that participants will gain from your workshop?
Green Mapping is a wonderful way to emphasize the positive aspects of the city and it’s inclusive of the many things that contribute to a livable community – nature, culture, activism, daily living resources that support a more healthy lifestyle. I want more people to utilize and interact with Green Map tools to share information and build a brighter picture of the city, capturing the many places and efforts that make Baltimore such an interesting place to live.

Erin George is a master volunteer recruiter and coordinator. That’s why she works as the Volunteer & Outreach Coordinator for GHCC’s Adult Learning Center (we are so lucky to have her). At this year’s Neighborhood Institute, Erin will lead the workshop “Engaging Volunteers for Long-Term Support.”

Tell us about your background.

I graduated from UC Berkeley with a B.A. in Philosophy, then moved to Portland, where I studied Russian. In 2010, I accepted an Americorps VISTA position with GHCC, where I collaborated with staff at the Adult Learning Center to create a workforce development program for participants. In 2011, I was hired by the Adult Learning Center as Volunteer & Outreach Coordinator. In this position, I am responsible for recruiting, screening, training, and supervising our volunteer tutors and classroom assistants. I also coordinate the Center’s learner recruitment and other outreach and PR initiatives, including the annual Scrabble Fundraiser for Literacy.

Why do you love where you live?

As a West Coast transplant, it took me a while to settle into Baltimore. Over the past 3 years that I’ve lived in Charles Village, I have come to love my neighborhood’s idiosyncratic architecture and tree-lined streets. I also appreciate the proximity of a variety of great local businesses, the Waverly Farmer’s Market, and cultural institutions like the BMA, the Peter Rawlings Conservatory, and Community Concerts at Second.

What do you hope people will learn from your workshop?

In order to accomplish our mission with limited financial resources, nonprofits rely heavily on committed volunteers. Because organizations do not pay volunteers wages, they frequently do not invest adequate time in providing them with the training and support they need to be effective. Careful planning of new volunteer programs and evaluation of existing programs requires an investment on the part of organizations, but pays off in improved volunteer retention and outcomes. It is my hope that participants in the Volunteer Management workshop will emerge with a better understanding of how to design and manage an effective volunteer program.