Kacy O’Brien (Director of Programming) joined Gathering Ground in 2013 and in that time has led cross-sector teams in Newark, Paterson, Camden, Asbury Park, Trenton, Highlands, Elizabeth, Atlantic City, the Skylands region (tri-county), and Hammonton, through Gathering Ground’s engagement process, including planning and facilitating large-scale public engagement events for each community, and for four statewide engagement events focused on regional collaboration. She helps communities to leverage their own creativity and innovation through coaching and network building beyond public engagement events. As a facilitator for retreats, panels and conferences, she has conducted workshops on creative decision-making, community engagement, leadership, and time management for groups such as the Environmental Leadership Program, Geraldine R. Dodge Emerging Leaders, Citizens Campaign, and creative placemaking initiatives.
Prior to Gathering Ground, Kacy spent a decade producing socially relevant, deeply rooted community-centric shows at Passage Theatre (Trenton, NJ), where she also co-conceived, managed and produced unprecedented theatrical collaborations with NJ environmental organizations to raise awareness on environmental-justice issues.
In addition, she is Victoria Emerging Leaders Program (VELP) ’18 Fellow, Lead NJ ’15 Fellow.
