February 11, 2011

Last week MPAC held two "I Am Change" trainings: one was at the Islamic Center of Redlands in California and the second was at the West Side Islamic Center in Wichita, Kansas.

The “I Am Change” trainings focused on empowering participants to effectively engage the different elements of government. This included an Islamic foundation of different models and examples of civic engagement, a breakdown of the different branches of government, a training on how to talk about issues in a way that will help others care about them, as well, and how to build coalitions with civic and interfaith communities.

There was a particular emphasis on how to engage local government especially because of the challenges mosques are facing across the country when they try to get expansion plans approved by the planning commissions and city councils. Civic Outreach Coordinator Saadia Khan emphasized the significant role of interfaith advocacy in helping get mosque expansion plans approved in Temecula, CA, despite staunch opposition.

Twenty participants took part in the Redlands training, which was led by MPAC Policy and Programming Director, Edina Lekovic, and Khan. While the Director of Southern California Government Relations, Aziza Hasan lead the workshop in Wichita for 30 people.