Black Researchers Collective

A collective of Black folx taking research to the streets.

What type of work does the Black Researchers Collective do?

Black Researchers Collective is a Chicago-based capacity-building collective taking research to the streets. Our work is designed to activate and mobilize communities to use research and data to create and sustain change across Chicago communities and beyond. We aim to advance racial equity by training and equipping communities with research tools to be more civically engaged and policy-informed. We do this through four key pillars of our collective:

Community Education & Action Research

Research, Evaluation, & Technical Assistance

Grassroots Strategies for Policy Engagement and Advocacy

Black Researchers Pipeline

Our Pillars

Our Community Action Research pillar focuses on empowering communities through research and engagement. We do this through our Community Coffee Chat Series and Community Workshop Intensive. The Community Coffee Chat Series offers virtual discussions where residents connect with community-based organizations and elected officials to learn about grassroots research and policy issues that matter to them. The Community Workshop Intensive provides hands-on training for a small cohort of community members, equipping them with research tools to drive long-term change. Participants learn how to turn policy ideas into actionable plans and may receive a six-month paid opportunity to lead a Community Action Research Project, which is designed to mobilize communities, build capacity among parents, organizers, and advocates, and accomplish a key goal collectively determined by community anchor organizations and participants.
Our Research, Evaluation, and Technical Assistance (RETA) pillar is a fee-for-service line designed to consult, train, and support both Chicago-based and national organizations, as well as community organizers and leaders interested in conducting participatory action research, evaluating their programs and initiatives, and enhancing their capacity to understand data in order to lead, conduct, or facilitate decolonizing research. All RETA projects share the common goal of improving Black lives and Black communities.
Our Grassroots Strategies for Policy Engagement and Advocacy pillar focuses on leveraging grassroots strategies to elevate and amplify the power of research and data in policy-relevant work. The primary activation of this pillar is through Research in the Streets, the official podcast of the Black Researchers Collective, which provides a platform to discuss how research and data can be used by everyday people in their daily lives. This podcast serves as an audio repository of valuable insights that communities can revisit, share, and integrate into their own work. A secondary activation includes model toolkits for nationwide distribution and implementation. Downloadable toolkits coming soon.
People often ask, "Where are the Black researchers?" We're all around, but we frequently lack opportunities to connect and use our skills to build collective power. Recognizing this, we set out to develop a centralized pipeline of Black researchers through a web-based application at BlackResearcher.com. This platform is specifically designed for Black researchers to find, support, and build community among one another. It connects workforce opportunities and local campaigns with Black researchers in Chicago and around the world. The beta rollout is scheduled for Saturday, December 7, 2024. Stay tuned!

Reflections from the Streets

Facts versus findings in South Shore

Decolonizing research in Woodlawn

Leveraging data in Bronzeville

Anecdotes from the Streets

“I took with me a lot from this session. I am so glad to be a part of the Black Researchers Collective. Thanks to my sister Dr. Glenance Green for allowing me to come and learn more about the community in which we live and abroad… I can apply what I learned to the work I am currently doing and reach out to other organizations in the community. It's all about building.”

2023 Community Workshop Intensive: Summer Series
“Thank you for organizing the Auburn Gresham Community Workshop Intensive. As an attendee, I found the workshop to be incredibly insightful and well-structured. The content was relevant and practical, and the opportunity to engage with other community members was invaluable. I particularly enjoyed the interactive discussions and the hands-on activities, which made the learning experience more engaging.”

2024 Auburn Gresham Community Workshop Intensive
“Can’t wait to dive into new datasets that were shared! I’m hoping to apply some of the analysis tools to inform our programs.”

2024 Austin Community Workshop Intensive
“Working as a data analyst, I don't get to hear directly from the community often. Today's discussion gave meaning to the work I do, it's not just numbers, it's the people behind those numbers. I also loved hearing more about the historical context about [East Garfield Park].”

2024 East Garfield Park Community Workshop Intensive
“This experience has fueled my curiosity about using data and I’m going to take this back to my other organization to begin to think about using data. Looking forward to the [Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative] program.”

2024 Englewood Community Workshop Intensive
“Taking more time to look at our findings and facts within data so we can develop better recommendations. It was truly [a] great session. I am overflowing with inspiration and appreciation. Thank you all for your work and time.”

2024 Community Data Intensives with Main Street America (facilitated by the BRC)
“I love your approach to sharing data in a way that allows us to have some ownership over what feels important and urgent to dig into and tie into our anecdotal understandings of neighborhood dynamics. This was helpful to me as a planner in an intermediary role, giving me some tools and ideas for my work. I will be taking some of those ideas into our economic inclusion planning work…”

2024 Community Data Intensives with Main Street America (facilitated by the BRC)