If you live, work, worship or attend school in Chicago’s Austin and West Side communities, you’re invited to a special, free Food & Film Showcase this Friday evening, Oct. 7, at By The Hand Club for Kids, 415 N. Laramie, in Chicago. A fascinating panel discussion will feature community activists including Fred Hampton Jr., son of Black Panthers Chairman Fred Hampton. And even if you’re not local, good food fans everywhere are welcome to watch the films and live discussion virtually.
The American Indian Center in Chicago was established in 1953 as the first urban Indian Center in the country to help Native families cope with the transition from reservation to urban life. In partnership the Forest Preserves of Cook County, the AIC will celebrate Native American culture with its 69th annual Powwow.
The Powwow includes native food, dance competitions, art vendors, and more. It will take place rain or shine in Schiller Woods-East, W. Irving Park Rd, west of N. Cumberland Ave, Chicago (view web map) during these hours: Friday, Oct. 7, 5-8:30 p.m.; Saturday, Oct. 8, 10 a.m.-8:30 p.m.; and Sunday, Oct. 9, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. All are welcome!
All around the U.S., communities are taking the lead on fighting climate change and building community resilience. Climate change is here, and it’s just a matter of time before some version of a Hurricane Ian or the Big Ranch Fire impacts any given community: intense storms, flash flooding, prolonged drought, extreme heat and other weather emergencies are intensifying each year.
This summer the Oak Park Village Board approved Climate Ready Oak Park, a comprehensive, long-range plan that provides a vision, goals and actions to make Oak Park more sustainable and resilient.
Bike riding is a summer pleasure—good for the body and soul. . . as well as the planet. If you live in Chicagoland, you must try The Magic of Music Ride Series, accompanied by a DJ spinning a custom music list of tunes. I tried it for the first time on July 22nd and had a ball! All kinds of people came out—daters, families, young and old.
In July and August, the Austin Grown youth sustainability leadership cohort spent 6 weeks planting fruits & veggies and caring for them and for 9 chickens! We also learned about the environment and all of its intersections—most especially racial and social justice—through speakers, chefs and field trips. In lieu of live planting at BUILD Chicago’s Iris Farm (which was under construction), we planted at Michelle Clark Academy High School’s gardens. We discussed the health of our Earth and our bodies and our communities. We cooked and ate healthy plant-based food. We also created a recipe book, which is a collection of recipes our visiting chefs cooked with us; we can continue cooking these delicious meals and teach them to others.
Composting is the natural process of recycling organic matter, such as leaves and food scraps, into fertilizer. When you collect your food scraps for composting, you cut down on the amount of trash that goes into landfill. If that organic waste instead ends up in landfill, it breaks down and is emitted into the atmosphere as methane—an extremely potent greenhouse gas. But as nutrient-rich compost—sometimes referred to as black gold—it can be used in gardens, where it enriches the soil, thus reducing the need for fertilizers and pesticides. This is reuse/recycling/circularity at its natural best!
