Join Us!
Join Alternatives for Community and Environment ACE and One Square World for a convening confronting environmental justice challenges in the realms of energy, technology, and finance. AI and data centers are driving an unprecedented surge in energy demand, attracting massive investment and subsidies, and reinforcing existing power relationships. We are bringing together a diverse group of stakeholders including community organizations and advocates, government, philanthropy, the private sector to build shared knowledge and understanding and imagine solutions grounded in a just transition framework.

A just transition means ensuring that financial flow and new energy and technology infrastructure does not replicate historical patterns of exploitation, displacement, and pollution, but instead actively advances environmental justice. A just transition centers the leadership of frontline communities, prioritizes equitable access to decision making and resources, and supports sustainable livelihoods and community well-being. This convening is a part of a series that seeks to move beyond critique toward collective action by nurturing a cross-sector network capable of shaping neighborhood centered policies, investments, and technological development.
Location
The Nonprofit Center
89 South Street, Boston, MA 02111, USA
Date & Time
May 19, 2026, 9:30 AM
Meet Our Panelists!
Hear from a community liaison, a national organizer, and senior policymakers working at the intersection of energy and economic development. This panel will ground us in the potential and real impacts of AI and data centers, and explore what opportunities and risks there are for frontline communities.
Tristan Thomas
Director of policy and law
Alternatives for Community and Environment, ACE
Jake Fortes
lowell community liaison
Lowell, MA
Joanna Troy
deputy commissioner
Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources (DOER)
Alli Finn
director of community partnerships
AI Now Institute
Sabrina Mansur
director
Massachusetts Artificial Intelligence (AI) Hub
Schedule
9:30 AM
Coffee and Conversation
Join us for a relaxed networking session designed to spark meaningful connections. Enjoy a cup of coffee while sharing ideas, exchanging experiences, and connecting with fellow attendees in an informal, welcoming space.
10:00 AM
Opening Remarks
LaQuinte Campbell, Consultant-Alternatives for Community and Environment, ACE
Stephanie Williams, Deputy Director-Alternatives forCommunity and Environment, ACE
10:15 AM
Opening Exercise
Tristan Thomas, Director of Policy and Law-Alternatives for Community and Environment, ACE
Vattic Kuumba, Executive Director-One Square World
11:00 AM
Level Setting: Technology, Investment, and the Grid
Hear from a community resident, a national organizer, and senior policymakers working at the intersection of energy and economic development. This panel will ground us in the potential and real impacts of AI and data centers, and explore what opportunities and risks there are for frontline communities.

Tristan Thomas, Director of Policy and Law-Alternatives for Community and Environment, ACE
Jake Fortes, Community Liaison-Lowell, MA
Joanna Troy, Deputy Commissioner-Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources (DOER)
Alli Finn, Director of Community Partnerships-AI Now Institute
Sabrina Mansur, Director, Massachusetts Artificial Intelligence (AI) Hub
12:00 AM
Culture Appreciation and Networking Lunch
Enjoy a powerful presentation of art, music, and culture brought to you by Sidy Maïga, and lunch catered by Roxbury’s only MARKET, CAFE, and gathering space that celebrates the African diaspora through food, Nubian Markets
1:00 PM -
3:00 PM
Join us for focused breakout sessions on solutions, tactics, and strategies addressing environmental justice in the fields of energy, tech, and finance.

Ace Interspatial Organizing Policy, Legal and Organizing
How do legal strategies, policy campaigns, and community organizing reinforce each other in the fight for a just transition?  Environmental justice issues don't respect city limits, state lines, or agency silos. This session will explore ACE’s strategic framework for building coordinated power across these artificial boundaries.

Tristan Thomas, Director of Policy and Law-Alternatives for Community and Environment, ACE
Denise January, Environmental Justice Assistance Network Coordinator-Alternatives for Community and Environment, ACE
AI Redlining, Data Center Site fights & Energy Regulation
This session examines how AI and data center siting and decisions can replicate redlining patterns, concentrate pollution and infrastructure burdens in low-income and communities of color, and what we can do differently.

Linda Saleh, Executive Director, BEA
MA Public Bank  
This session explores how public banking can offer a pathway to democratize capital and redirect financial flows away from fossil fuels and speculative investment toward community controlled energy and technology. This session will outline the current campaign for a Massachusetts Public Bank, how it could finance neighborhood centered energy infrastructure, and ways advocates, organizers, and residents can get involved.

Rei Fielder- Ujima
Athul Krishnadas- Ujima
Facilitator: Brandy Brooks
3:00 PM
Keynote Speaker
Dwaign Tyndal, Executive Director-Alternatives for Community and Environment, ACE
3:30 PM
Closing Remarks
LaQuinte Campbell, Consultant-Alternatives for Community and Environment
Tristan Thomas, Director of Policy and Law-Alternatives for Community and Environment
All Event Photography Provided By, Annielly Camargo
Location
The Nonprofit Center
89 South Street, Boston, MA 02111, USA
Owned and operated by TSNE, the NonProfit Center is home to more than 50 nonprofits, and welcomes visitors from hundreds of organizations every year. The building is a hub of activity where people come to convene, connect, network, and learn together.

Members of the NonProfit Center in Boston believe that more can be achieved when individuals and organizations work together to benefit themselves, their communities, and beyond. The NonProfit Center fosters a physical and cultural environment that supports the needs of nonprofits with this mission.
Directions and Parking
The Nonprofit Center is one block from South Station, a major public transportation hub and close to the intersection of interstate highways I-90 and I-93. The center is accessible through the main lobby to people who have restricted physical abilities.
If traveling by Subway:
From the Red Line or the Airport/Waterfront section of the Silver Line:
1. Exit the train at South Station.
2. Follow signs for “commuter rail and bus terminal.”
3. When in the main concourse, continue to the far doors (past the food court) and the train platforms.
4. When you reach the start of the platforms, take a right. Exit down the stairs to Atlantic Ave.
5. Cross at the light onto Essex St., and walk one block. The One Financial tower will be on your right.
6. The NonProfit Center is on the corner of Essex and South Streets. The entrance is on South Street through the revolving glass doors.

If traveling by MBTA, Commuter Rail, or Amtrak:
Exit from the platform onto Atlantic Ave., and follow the directions as via the Red Line above. (Step 4)
From the South Station Bus Terminal: Exit the building, following signs for Commuter Rail/Red Line. Once on the train platform, exit to the left onto Atlantic Ave. and follow directions as via Red Line above. (Step 4)

If traveling by Car:
From Points South: Take Interstate 93 North to Exit 20. Bear right onto off-ramp at Exit 20 to Frontage Road (Frontage Road Northbound, New Frontage Road North). Follow signs for South Station, exiting onto Atlantic Avenue. At your second light, turn left onto Essex Street. Turn left onto South Street. The NonProfit Center is at 89 South Street, on your right.

From Points North: Take I-93 South toward Boston. Take the Purchase Street, Exit #23 toward South Station. Continue on Purchase Street. Continue on Surface Road. Take a left onto Essex Street. Take a right onto South Street. The NonProfit Center is at 89 South Street.

From Points West: Take I-90 (Mass Pike) east towards Boston to the Mass Pike Extension. Bear left onto off-ramp at Exit 24 A-B-C, and take Exit 24A to South Station. Drive off the ramp onto Atlantic Avenue. At the second light, turn left onto Essex Street. Take your first left onto South Street. The NonProfit Center is at 89 South Street, on your right.

Parking:
Parking downtown can be both challenging and expensive, and we recommend taking public transit whenever possible. However, there are several parking lots within walking distance of the NonProfit Center:

Two Financial Center, 236 Essex Street (1-minute walk)
617.426.1620
Indoor Garage, self-park
Half a block from the Center
Oversize vehicle surcharge

LAZ Parking, 180 South Street (between Kneeland & Beach Streets) (2-minute walk)
617.426.0604
Indoor garage, self-park, and valet
Oversize vehicle surcharge may apply

Central Parking – South Station Bus Terminal, 792 Atlantic Avenue (Between JFK Expy & Summer Street) (4-minute walk)
Enter via Lincoln Street & South Station Connector
Rooftop parking, self-park
Oversize vehicle surcharge may apply
THANK YOU ANNIELLY!
All Event Photography Provided By, Annielly Camargo
SHARED RESOURCES
Be sure to attend the Ujima Cafe Event that will serve as a space for fun, community and political discussion! Happening May 28th at Nubian Markets!
YOUR FEEDBACK IS APPRECIATED! 
Thank you for your continued support. Please complete the feedback form so that we can continue growing and getting better together!
Join us on May 19
We look forward to learning and growing with you!

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