When people wonder what is the value of a local daily newspaper, I must point to the story of Shaw High School Band, which was invited to China to perform but could not afford to do that. The Plain Dealer article "Bang a Drum, Proudly", by Connie Schulz, raised enough attention and funding to get them there, from where they just returned in triumph (nicely covered in the PD here, today)... a $500,000 whirlwind phenomenon all occurring in less than 6 months!

Now that my family has land that we may use for a while, we are growing our own food... and enough for many other families, it seems. One $1.07 packet of radish seeds planted in May is already many pounds of crisp, bright, beautiful, healthy fresh veggies... and eating my first fresh radish of my life taught me radishes are actually delicious. Same for Kale, and all the varieties of lettuce covering our farmland... really fresh pesto is to die for... can't wait for the carrots and shallots!

Two weeks ago, City Fresh's Maurice Small met with friends in East Cleveland to discuss City Fresh, urban farming, and how we may convert a typical urban convenient store, Brown's Market, into a pilot City Fresh local foods market. During our discussions, Maurice mentioned that a dedicated urban farmer may earn more than $30,000 per year from sales of food grown on one typical urban lot (say 1/10th an acre). That being the case, and considering our ever-growing need and realigning demand for locally grown food, and the fact food may be grown locally as cost effectively as elsewhere in the world, it occurred to me that the highest and best use for most of the land now cleared, abandoned, blighted and wasted in our urban neighborhoods is for urban farming. So that is a use we are now planning to be core to redevelopment of the Star Neighborhood. Intrigued? Discuss and plan for this reality with Maurice and friends this Tuesday, from 6-7 PM, at that house on Roxbury, in East Cleveland. Please RSVP if you plan to attend.

Monday, June 16, 2008 - Fine Particle "Soot" Pollution Urban traffic" />
 
Northeast Ohio - An Air Quality Advisory has been issued for Monday until such time as the front containing rain moves through the region.  This Advisory is for the counties of Ashtabula, Cuyahoga, Geauga, Lake, Lorain, Medina, Portage, and Summit.

Maurice Small is the most economically and ecologically sensible planner I know.

Joe Stanley, Sudhir Kade and I have been brainstorming with City Fresh's Maurice Small about "I GRO EC" - Independent Green Republic Of East Cleveland. City Fresh already operates a Fresh Stop at Huron Road Hospital - which Maurice reports is doing great - and is active in community farming in East Cleveland. Recently, we've been discussing City Fresh having an involvement converting Brown's Convenient store into a pilot City Fresh Market, which could offer a paradigm-shifting model for bringing local food, farming and their economies into very needy urban neighborhoods, in very innovative and important ways.

[ or is this really 'Part Of Your Life, Naturally'] 

 

Turfgrass Research - For Better Golf and a Better Environment

by Lloyd Alter, Toronto on 05.12.08

Food & Health (food)

Having recently attended the Greater Cleveland Lead Advisory Council (GCLAC) Annual Meeting, which focused on Challenges and Affordable Solutions in Lead Poisoning and Urban Redevelopment, I feel re-invigorated by the energy and culture of collaboration driven to rectify a debilitating lead toxicity problem that is particularly profound in underprivileged communities like East Cleveland.  Held in the welcoming confines of the Cleveland Museum of Natural History, a full breakfast was served while the various parties collaborating on this critical social justice, health justice, and environmental justice issue were recognized for their considerable efforts.  Following this introductory, Keynote Speaker David E. Jacobs (pictured) of the National Center for Healthy Housing delivered a stirring oratory which sharply illuminated a drastically underfunded and undersupported health concern and epidemic. 

East Cleveland does not have a historical society like Westlake or a popular annual home tour like Ohio City, but it should. So for now, I am founding the online East Cleveland Historical Society on Realneo. Please feel free to join. There is no membership fee. Membership only requires that you share your knowledge and research.

Awhile back, Roldo mentioned that the newspaper still has relevance. Today, this article proves it.
Strongsville senior reels in science fair award Tuesday, May 20, 2008

 

Join your neighborhood community ARTS center for costume-making, dance & music that will be presented for thousands at the Cleveland Museum of Art’s Parade the Circle Celebration! Special guest artist, Trinidad Carnaval artist, Michael Guy James, leads the group, and is joined by artists from around the world and around the corner--including the Passport Project Global Dance & Music Collective.

 

If these are average Clevelanders, living in older urban neighborhoods like around University Circle their entire lives, they have been lead poisoned, perhaps severely. Thursday morning, May 22nd, join 100s of NEOs leaders concerned with our community's health, intelligence, safety and economy meeting at the Cleveland Natural History Museum for a free breakfast, keynote discussion and breakout sessions about lead poisoning and urban redevelopment. I guarantee you will leave this brief event with a completely realigned understanding of the core barriers to the success of our urban neighborhoods, leading to better planning for a healthy, effective region in the future.

Hopefully after this week I will be able to put my sweaters and other wool clothes away until next fall. I have a large pile of items ready to go to the dry cleaner but I know the perchloroethelene most dry cleaners use is bad for the environment and bad for my family. What are the alternatives? I have already reduced the number of dry clean only garments in my wardrobe, but many vintage items require dry cleaning.

This certainly has been a perfect spring for flowering trees, still exploding with color all over the near East Side. Here are some views at Lakeview Cemetery, where the plantings are exceptional any time of year, and especially about now. Check it out!

Join the nonprofit organization ClevelandBikes on its annual "Bike to Work" rides, everyday May 12-16, now bigger than ever by partnering with other riding organizations in the first Cleveland Bicycle Week.   Ride and you can be elgible for great prizes!  This year, you can also find partners on your own through a "Bike Buddy" system brought to you by NOACA. And remember, join us for our ride on Wednesday May 14th and wear yellow for Lance Armstrong Foundation's LIVESTRONG Day! 

* ClevelandBikes hosts commuting rides downtown to our host, the Greater Cleveland YMCA (2200 Prospect Avenue), every day during Cleveland Bicycle Week, May 12-16.  Join us for coffee, while the YMCA provides free, secure bike parking, showers and free passes for the day.  Join us and share your goals about riding in Northeast Ohio, while riders are eligible for fun prizes.

* ClevelandBikes is also pleased to assist with the Northeast Areawide Coordinating Agency (NOACA), which is offering to match solo riders through th Ohio Ride Share "Bike Buddy" program, matching riders with common starting points,ride times and common destinations (www.ohiorideshare.com).

* ClevelandBikes also supports a major health initiative, with a "Bike to Work"ride for the Lance Armstrong Foundation (www.livestrong.org) and "LIVESTRONG" day on Wednesday May 14.

* ClevelandBikes will host "Bike to Work" rides on the final Friday of every month and special rides for festivals and other activities.

Pick a starting location from the list below and ride along with a ClevelandBikes ride leader, or just meet us between 8:00 and 9:00 AM at our downtown host, the Greater Cleveland YMCA,  which is offering free showers, secure bike parking and free day passes for YMCA activities.

East Side Starting Points

7:45 AM  Arabica at 11300 Juniper in University Circle
7:15 AM  Dewey's Coffee on Shaker Square
7:30 AM  Starbucks at Cedar and Fairmount
7:00 AM  Bus Shelter at E. 222nd and Lakeshore
7:45 AM  McDonald's on E. 159th and Lakeshore

South Side Starting Point
7:15 AM  Arabica at 5615 Turney Rd.

West Side Starting Points
7:45 AM  Civilization Coffee Shop in Tremont at W. 11th and Kenilworth
7:50 AM  Talkies Film and Coffee Bar in Ohio City at 2521 Market Ave.
7:25 AM  Phoenix in Lakewood at 15108 Detroit near Warren Rd.
7:50 AM  Arabica in Lakewood at 11604 Detroit near W. 116th

National "Bike to Work" Week is sponsored by the League of American Bicyclists  (www.bikeleague.org), which offers bicycle advocacy and support programs for more than 125 years.

ClevelandBikes , a 501C3 nonprofit organization, is committed to advancing all forms of bicycling as economical and healthful recreation, sport and transportation.

For More Information, Contact:  Kevin Cronin
216.374.7578; kevin@clevelandbikes.org
On the Web: www.clevelandbikes.org
When ClevelandBikes. Cleveland Benefits!

What is a "Green Roof" and what does it look like?

At the house on Roxbury, the green roof is where the raccoons still live.

Passport Project is thrilled to announce that we have been selected to host a group of Women Leaders from Korea on Tuesday, May 6 th from 2:00 - 3:30pm . This project consists of six visitors (accompanied by two State Department Interpreters) who are invited to the U.S. under the auspices of the State Department's International Visitor Leadership Program (http://exchanges.state.gov/education/ivp/overview.htm) , and will spend three weeks traveling around to different U.S. cities, Cleveland being one of them.

Welcome to The Star Market and Cafe! What would make you walk, ride and drive out of your way and stop here? When? Why? Now is the time for Star Neighborhood Development to reinvent a blighted urban convenient store into a community asset. But how? That depends on you. What will you support here?

So I am just back from 14 days in Japan.  Interesting to be on the sidelines as 3,000 Japanese police protect the olympic toarch from what I thought would be a calm, reserved crowd.  Dont get me wrong, I was not in Nagano, I was in Shibuya / Tokyo.. but it got a lot of attention.  Pro and anti China student groups and observers literally throwing punches, 70 year old Japanese men going to jail for throwing tomatoes in the face of the police protecting the toarch... etc.  It was akin to what I saw in the USA when the toarch came thru California.

All species, all races, everywhere, we all must eat, frequently, so we humans may as well eat well. I prefer to eat at home, food I prepare,  of ingredients I know, in a kitchen I trust... there are few restaurants in the world that make me happier than homemade. But I certainly turn to experts for advice on food selection and preparation, and many of my favorite books - the ones I read over and over, and can't do without  - are cookbooks. I find all types interesting... international, ethnic, historical, regional... and consider many required reading. I'd be interesting for other foodie realneo members who share an interest in cooking to share their favorite cookbooks... some of mine are the header for today...

As we begin a new Spring - a new beginning - what are you doing to green your republic?

Join us for the biggest gathering of cycling interests and activities ever in Northeast Ohio as we celebrate, educate and collaborate for a stronger cycling community. Whether you bicycle for transportation, recreation, health or sport, did in the past, or want to again in the future, we have something for you. Come join us for week-long activities during the month of May, national Bike Safety Month, including:

I was surprised today to see on Channel 5 evening news and Nightline several advertisements for Penningtons' SMART SEED™ with MYCO Advantage™ . I don't recall ever seeing ads for grass seeds during the evening news (or evenings, at all), and, from the Pennington website, the ad promotes that the seed "produces a healthier, thicker lawn that grows a deeper, denser root system, requiring up to 30% LESS WATER and maximizes fertilizer performance. Pennington SMART SEED™ with MYCO Advantage™, is simply more "green"". Obviously, now is a good time for a discussion of smart, green landscaping practices...

I just received this message from New American Dream - follow that link for a nice webpage on spring cleaning. One of the great disasters of our consumer economy is the proliferation of dangerous household construction practices, lifestyles and cleaning processes, and harmful products in use in and around our homes on a daily basis. In renovating our historic house in East Cleveland, Evelyn and I have made all living spaces as toxin-free as possible, and we certainly intend to keep it that way in maintaining it. I think the following message offers some good advice - I don't endorse any of the products mentioned, as I don't know anything about them...the make-your-own approach mentioned here is more my style.

When: 6-7:30 p.m.
Where: Neighborhood High Schools--Collinwood HS, East HS, East Tech HS, Glenville HS, JFK HS, Lincoln-West HS, John Marshall HS, Rhodes HS, South HS  and specialty high schools Max Hayes HS, John Hay HS, Martin Luther King HS.

Carolyn Strauss of slowLab speaks at the Talalay lecture series.

Don't think "silver bullet" or "big" in the ways you have been. Ah... the shrapnel of social and natural capitalism... it's more like a mushroom colony... Here's one of my favorite projects - Min Tanaka Body Weather Farm (reminds me of Ted Shawn at Jacob's Pillow).

Here's a preview:

slowLab is an emerging organization based in New York City and with activities worldwide.

Winner of the 2006 TED [Technology, Entertainment Design] Prize, the motto of Sinclair’s group, Architecture for Humanity, "design like you give a damn" sums up his design vision. With projects ranging from designing mobile health clinics combating HIV/AIDS in Sub-Saharan Africa to establishing mine clearance programs and building playgrounds in the Balkans his mission is to create sustainable and innovative living standards for the masses.

What does tomorrow look like? For Fritz Haeg it is a place where rather than waste precious natural resources on vanity-scapes like the ubiquitous front lawn we learn to work with the earth and find both beauty and functionality in personal and social investments such as his  “Edible Estates”. It is a tomorrow that includes architecture as a way of relocating animals to their natural habitats. Haeg will discuss his work as an architect, designer, educator, curator, artist, in short---visionary, as well as his ideas about an alternate model to the artist as isolated creator.

fritzhaeg.com
NY Times
Metropolis
www.cia.edu/tomorrow

24)  Lead Outreach and Training
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency requests proposals for the
National Community-Based Lead Outreach and Training Grant Program.
This grant will support the partnership of national organizations

At the City Club recently, Cuyahoga County Commissioner Peter Lawson-Jones suggested that the first priority for the County goverment was "economic development", and that's why the Commissioners and Fred the Fixer Nance were working so hard to be able to pay a wealthy developer from out of state to build and operate a public-private pirate ship here in Cuyahoga.