CommunityWorks! was born in the fall of 2020, in the midst of multiple national crises—the pandemic, racial injustice, political polarization, and the climate crisis. It was born out of the belief that, individually and collectively, we harbor limitless possibilities amid the vast untapped potential in all life on this planet. Challenging times and setbacks are an opportunity for learning and growth where old paradigms crumble and new ones emerge. 

But we can’t do it alone. We hosted our first CommunityWorks! circle in March 2021. Without a specific agenda, each meeting fostered a sense of open-hearted curiosity as we listened deeply to one another sharing what we most cared about personally and globally. Through this emergent process our first event, Eco-Summit on the Ridge, was born.

By coming together with our shared dreams and embodying qualities of hope, determination, perseverance, equality, and commitment, we begin the shift—one dream, one community at time. 

Our current socio-economic, political, and climate crisis provides a catalyst for needed change. Building community and working together we can make a difference!

CommunityWorks! invites you to join our circles and events as we reimagine a resilient and vibrant future and together create positive change.

Barbara Young cares deeply about all life on this planet and founded CommunityWorks! in 2020 as an offering of hope and action. 

Barbara holds a Masters’ degree in Transformative Leadership and is a co-founder and active member of Drawdown Seattle. She has spent over 40 years as a physical therapist, and since 2000 as a Feldenkrais Practitioner in her own practice, Young Energy, where she offers her patients hope and guidance in discovering their own natural resilience to heal. She carries the conviction of unlimited possibilities, vast untapped potential, and our natural resilience to heal into all realms of life.

Cecile Andrews is a former community college administrator with her doctorate in education from Stanford University who leads groups today through the Phinney Neighborhood Association. She is the author of Circle of Simplicity, Slow is Beautiful, Less is More, and Living Room Revolution: A Handbook for Conversation, Community, and the Common Good.   

Alan Ness has been the principal of Ten Directions Design, Architects for over 30 years. He is committed to sustainable design for homes and buildings and now consults on residential remodels. He is also a longtime meditator who is interested in the relationship between meditation and materialism.

Kathy Dawson is committed to climate justice and has made it her top priority in retirement. She brings her experience as an engineer and organizational renewal practitioner to help the general public understand and care enough about climate change to act to reverse it. She is a founding member and current co-chair of the Climate Reality Project’s King County Chapter, and a co-founder and active member of Drawdown Seattle. 

Suzanna K Litwin is active member of St. Vincent de Paul, and the St. Francis of Assisi ministry at St. John the Evangelist church. She participates in several climate change groups including the Creation Care Network. She was trained as a Laudato Si Animator and Climate Reality leader. Passionate about the treatment of farm animals, she follows a plant-based diet. Suzanna lives on the ridge with her husband Paul and dog, Porter and is a Program Manager at NetApp, working on a variety of projects in their cloud division. 

Paul Litwin is climate activist and advocate for social justice living in the Phinney Ridge neighborhood of Seattle with his wife, Suzanna, and his dog, Porter. He is a Climate Reality Leader, Laudato Si Animator, and co-leader of the Seattle Climate Change Meetup. Paul also leads a climate change team at St John the Evangelist church and helps serve the needy in the community as part of Society of St Vincent de Paul, where he also serves as a board member. He follows a plant-based diet and regularly challenges himself running ultramarathons on trails. Paul works as a computer scientist at the University of Washington. 

Scott Henson has re-oriented his life and professional focus to address the social, environmental, and business challenges posed by the climate crisis. He believes we can tap into the unlimited potential of humans to address these huge challenges with a sense of possibility, creating a better world for every person and every life on our planet. Scott is the co-founder of Drawdown Seattle and the Seattle Climate Change Meetup. In these forums we focus on accelerating proven solutions to the climate crisis with a sense of purpose, urgency, and even fun.