Meet Your Neighbor Day 2023

Recognizing the power of grassroots, locally-based connections, Meet Your Neighbor Day 2023 will take place on Sunday, September 10* -- and with events taking place between Sept. 9th and Sept. 17th. It is an invitation for you to plan something that can bring together your neighbors — in a way that works for you! Convened by the Cambridge Peace Commission and cosponsored by the Citizens Committee on Civic Unity, Meet Your Neighbor Day is a Cambridge-specific approach to building connections and community in our amazing city – built on two national initiatives – and adapted to fit the needs of our city!
*This year the official date has being moved up a week to avoid conflicting with Rosh Hashanah, but most years it takes place on the third Sunday.

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You can download a listing of all events submitted as of Sept. 13 here: Meet Your Neighbor Day 2023 Events Listing.
The map below shows all the events that have been planned so far this year.

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What Can You Do?

• If you'd like to let the Peace Commission know about and post your event, fill out the Meet Your Neighbor Event Submission form (a Google Doc)
  
• You can download the Meet Your Neighbor Day fact sheet and frequently asked questions!
• You can email any questions to peace@cambridgema.gov

In addition to attending events, you can organize your own. An open house, neighborhood party, potluck, service project, neighborhood clean-up, or something else – whatever is fun and easy for you and your neighbors to plan and carry out. You can decide what works best in your own "neighborhood!"

What Did People Do Last Year for Meet Your Neighbor Day?

Looking for inspiration or ideas? Click here to view a PDF with a listing of all of the 2022 events submitted by different people and groups in the community, and the listing includes date and time, location, the type of event, and any other details.

Resources That Can Help You Plan!

• Welcoming Week Toolkit (PDF from Welcoming America): Kick off your event planning with sample activities, check lists, a sample press release, and more.
• Step-by-Step Planning Guide (from National Neighborhood Day)
• Organizing Tools and Templates (from National Neighborhood Day)

There's also a long list of ideas and options on our Meet Your Neighbor Day fact sheet! 

How Is a “Neighborhood” Defined?
However you choose to define it! it can be:

• Your street, your block, or surrounding blocks
• Your apartment or condominium
• Your floor at your apartment building
• The area surrounding a nearby school or place of worship
• Houses along your part of the street
• Your local park
• Your local square or business district

Why Is There a "Meet Your Neighbor Day?"

Inspired by the growing need to connect with each other, we have borrowed from two national initiatives, and adapted them to fit the needs of our city. Meet Your Neighbor Day is built on the foundation of two nationwide efforts — Welcoming America’s “Welcoming Week” and the “National Neighborhood Day” initiative — and organized in collaboration with another City of Cambridge partner — the Citizens’ Committee on Civic Unity.

• National Neighborhood Day inspires, builds, and sustains the neighborhood relationships that provide the foundation for civic action and the building of stronger, more caring and effective communities.
• Welcoming Week brings communities together long-time residents, newcomers, and everyone in between in a spirit of unity to raise awareness of the benefits of welcoming everyone – including new Americans.