Do community groups meet with candidates?

You can get in to speak to most of these groups, but don't approach them as a candidate (outside of elections). If you do, it will often spook them - they assume you want to convince them to vote Green or ask for donations or something. Even if you propose to speak about something "political" it sets off their red flags and triggers their believe that "political stuff isn't allowed" (although this is rarely actually codified as such in their rules). The fact that you're Green Party just scares them a bit more, since they may assume you're more "out there" and not mainstream.

Instead, you should put together a little resume or short list of qualifications (why you are an interesting/knowledgeable speaker) and a proposed topic you think would be of interest to them. Don't hide that you're a Green candidate (especially if you've run before), but don't highlight it. In fact, if you've not run before, but are merely nominated for a future election, probably don't mention it at all. (Until the writ drops and you file your papers, you're not actually a candidate anyway. Until then, you're just a potential candidate.)

When I seek speaking engagements or am invited to speak, I do it based on my whole experience set - including having served on the board of (and sometimes chaired) our local environmental charity for many years. I'll offer to address a topic like peak oil, or reducing GHG emissions, or saving energy (and money), or advantages of local food, or building sustainable communities, or how reforming property tax rules could reverse sprawl. There are lots of Green topics - pick something you're passionate about and create a PowerPoint. My campaign manager once set up a whole day of high-school civics speaking engagements for us based on our inside knowledge of the political process - forming a party, registering a candidate, running a campaign, etc. - with the promise that we'd be non-partisan. Which we were - but the student Q&A section always focused on Green policy, which I was happy to answer (since they asked). In any non-partisan speaking engagement, aim to leave at least 1/3 of the time for Q&A. That way people can ask you political questions and you are free to answer them. You're not forcing your views on the uninterested.

I have spoken to two Kiwanis clubs (they invited me) and an Optimists club (I had a member invite me) outside of elections. I am scheduled to speak to our Chamber of Commerce next spring, but this is a member's privilege (our EDA is a Chamber member) - yours may not accept "outside" speakers (ours doesn't). I'm planning to speak on various forms of carbon pricing and their impact on business. I spoke to a Bible study group (an EDA exec's family are members) about life-based economics.

Any club that meets monthly will soon run out of speakers - especially those who charge no fee and aren't trying to sell something - so they get desperate. An interesting, non-partisan resume or proposal should get some interest. (Those which meet weekly are even more desperate for speakers).

One thing you should try first is to poll your EDA exec and key volunteers/supporters and find out all the clubs or groups that each of them (or their spouse or other family members) is a member of, then assign each of them to get you a speaking engagement with their group. You may have more success starting with smaller, less formal groups like book clubs or bible study groups or whatever because they won't have some big rulebook that says "nothing political allowed". They are also more likely to accept an invitation from a member, since they won't have a formal speaker-proposal procedure to follow. If you are well received by several of these small groups, it increases your chance to get invited to other groups as an "expert".

You could create something based around your career or hobby - a realtor could talk about how to save energy in the home, a car dealer (or mechanic) could talk about how to use less gasoline, a farmer (or gardener) could talk about growing organic food, a lawyer (or prison guard) could talk about restorative justice, etc.

The thing to keep in mind is the purpose of such speaking isn't to promote the Green Party or Green policy, but to get yourself known and recognized in the community as an intelligent, caring person that people can trust. You want them to see your name on a ballot or election sign and think "oh yeah, I met her when she said all those interesting things about growing a natural lawn". The people in the groups you speak to who are really interested in the Green Party will seek you out after the meeting or later on and the rest will just know you're not a flake. Ideally you want either the person who introduces you - or yourself - to mention at some point your Green Party involvement so those interested folks will know to approach you. It should just be a part of the list of what you do, or even an offhanded mention ("I've always avoided pesticides, which is part of why I'm a Green Party candidate. Now here's what you do if you have aphids on your cucumbers...")