LWS Hosts Workshop for Largest Cohort of Resident Advisors Fall 2025

October 27, 2025

In late September, resident advisors (RAs) from the Public Health Institute of Western MA gathered at Regreen Springfield for a Peer-to-Peer Learning Workshop. RAs from the following 5 coalitions shared successes, challenges, and key learnings. A team of RAs representing each initiative led presentations that sparked dialogue, allowing everyone to learn from one another, ask questions, and deepen their understanding of community efforts.

Intergenerational Social Connections (ISC): Focuses on bringing youth and older adults together in Springfield to reduce loneliness, build relationships, and strengthen community across generations.

Live Well Springfield Climate Change & Health Equity (CCHE): Focuses on advancing community choice energy for Springfield, creating strategies to address extreme heat, and developing a new Climate Change Action Plan for the city.

Live Well Springfield Transforming Communities Initiative (TCI): Focuses on addressing Springfield’s housing needs by improving housing conditions, increasing affordability, and expanding opportunities for homeownership.

Healthy Air Network: Focuses on monitoring air quality, exploring transportation issues, developing an innovative app, and tackling climate change challenges.

The workshop also served as a warm welcome and orientation for new RAs joining the committees, especially our new Parent Advisors for the Youth Mental Health Coalition (YMHC), which is focused on youth mental health and problem gambling prevention. This was the largest cohort of resident advisors for the Public Health Institute and Live Well Springfield yet.

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Building Partnerships to Adapt to Flooding in the Connecticut River Watershed

By Samantha Hamilton • February 26, 2026

This month, Live Well Springfield (LWS) and the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission (PVPC) partnered with the City of Springfield to host a listening session on inland flooding. Inland flooding happens when rain overwhelms local drainage systems, for example, when basements flood or when streets and sidewalks turn into rivers and ponds during heavy rain. Participants heard directly from Chris Cignoli, Director of the Springfield Department of Public Works (DPW), about the city's history and infrastructure related to waterways, piping, and flood prevention. Residents gained a deeper understanding of how city systems respond to flooding, what the DPW is responsible for, and the budget constraints the department faces. Chris encouraged residents to contact the city using the local 311 line to report potential flood risks or flooding-related issues, which creates a formal service request that must be investigated. The workshop centered resident voices and explored how flooding from heavy rainfall and the Connecticut River is impacting daily life across Springfield. Residents shared firsthand accounts of flooded basements, eroding yards, blocked storm drains, and chronic street flooding, revealing how widespread and interconnected these challenges are across neighborhoods. Working in small groups, participants mapped the areas in their neighborhoods most affected by flooding, connecting personal experiences with broader patterns of risk across the city. The information shared by residents will help inform Springfield's upcoming 10-year infrastructure plan, as well as regional flood risk reports being developed by PVPC and FRCOG.