What We Offer

Talk Description: What does it mean to truly share power with young people – not just in rhetoric, but in research, funding, and strategy? Grounded in Hopelab’s work at the intersection of youth well-being, technology, and equity, this talk highlights concrete stories of co-creating with young people, and the messy, generative work of designing more hopeful futures. worksheet to continue their analysis beyond the workshop and facilitate strategic communications plans with their team.

Speaker Bio: Joshua Lavra (he/they) believes the best solutions emerge from good questions, and lives this through his work across technology, mental health, and social impact. At Hopelab, he’s curious about: What if we designed with young people, not for them? How can science, technology, and art align? What can we learn from queerness to benefit all? And, do you really need an app for that? Trained as a chemical engineer, they bring a unique analytical lens to creative problem solving – blending technical rigor with human-centered design to tackle complex challenges. Beyond their primary work, they founded faguette, an independent studio and shop championing artists and directing proceeds to support queer and trans nonprofits.

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 Talk Description: Every step of the data life cycle involves choices that can either advance equity or unintentionally reinforce harm. From deciding who shapes project design, to building in levers for translating findings to action, to presenting data in ways that resonate across cultures, each decision matters. Even questions like who receives credit in communications can reaffirm structural power differentials or affirm the value of lived experience.

This session provides an overview of Actionable Intelligence for Social Policy’s (AISP) Toolkit for Centering Racial Equity Throughout Data Integration (2025). This essential resource offers practical guidance for anyone working with data, operationalizing positive and problematic practices through each stage of the data life cycle. We’ll also walk through AISP’s Companion Workbook, designed to help you put equity principles into practice with partners.

Speaker Bio: Amy Hawn Nelson is Sr. Director of Training and Applied Research for Actionable Intelligence for Social Policy (AISP), an initiative of the University of Pennsylvania that helps state and local governments collaborate and responsibly use data to improve lives. Her primary role is to support field building for integrated data systems, which includes working with sites across the US to develop shared, purpose-driven data infrastructure that centers strong data governance.

She is a nationally recognized expert on data governance and has provided in-depth technical assistance in support of cross-sector data integration to 30+ sites across the US, including the development of 100+ data sharing agreements, and serving as an investigator on 25+ studies using integrated data to evaluate program and policy outcomes. She also serves as the inaugural Director of the Certificate for Applied Data Ethics, Law, and the Social Good within the School of Social Policy & Practice.

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In this workshop, we ask participants to conduct a “wellness audit” and set an intention for routines and priorities in the days ahead. The framework we share is for anyone with questions about what life will look like as pandemic restrictions are lifted, as well as for anyone going through a life transition more broadly.

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Join us for the 2021 Racial Equity & Philanthropy Panel, organized by the Nonprofit Leadership Master’s Program and CSIS. We hope this conversation leads to greater insights on the role of philanthropy in furthering racial justice.

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Listen back on CSIS’ and CCS’ final panel on the full, changing landscape of philanthropy.

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We partnered with Cafe Momentum to host a 90-minute workshop on how organizations might best respond to the competing needs of their communities, funders, and teams in this turbulent time.

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As a community, we took time to acknowledge and respond to our new reality, do a wellness audit, and set reasonable goals for the immediate future.