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13 can’t-miss local holiday craft fairs
Traffic fatalities remain high, despite Vision Zero
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NOVEMBER 2019 / ISSUE 126 / GRIDPHILLY.COM
T O W A R D A S U S TA I N A B L E P H I L A D E L P H I A
QUEENS of COMPOST Women entrepreneurs enter the male-dominated world of waste management
Gwenn Nolan, founder of Mother Compost, offers composting services to the Main Line
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Monthly Maker Steve Pellegrino Philadelphia, PA pellegrinocutlery.com pellegrino_cutlery TELL US ABOUT YOURSELF I am a designer by training from the School of Visual Arts in New York. I got into blades after having moved to Portland, OR to apprentice as a bladesmith. I migrated to the culinary world and used those skills to start making chef’s knives with my own design sensibilities. WHAT DO YOU MAKE? Primarily I make custom cutlery and kitchen tools. Right now I am working on a more affordable line of chef’s knives that are partially machine made and hand finished to keep costs lower without sacrificing quality. I utilize the wood shop at NextFab for custom projects in addition to the water jet for cutting blade profiles on my new Economy Line. WHAT’S THE HARDEST PART? Being my own boss. Not because it’s hard to get out of bed in the morning, but because its difficult to live up to my own standards. There are never enough hours in a day to get through everything I want to.
*Note: In accordance with NextFab’s No Weapon Policy, all knives are sharpened off premises.
Discover more stories nextfab.com/grid #nextfabmade
NextFab is a network of collaborative makerspaces. North Philly
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EDI TOR ’S NOTES
by
alex mulcahy
No Time To Lose “The test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in mind at the same time and still retain the ability to function.” – f. s c o t t f i t z g e r a l d
managing editor Alexandra W. Jones associate editor Timothy Mulcahy copy editor David Jack Daniels art director Michael Wohlberg writers Bernard Brown Constance Garcia-Barrio Alexandra Jones Randy LoBasso Claire Marie Porter Lois Volta photographers Linette & Kyle Kielinski Albert Yee illustrators Sean Rynkewicz Lois Volta distribution Alex Yarde alex.yarde@redflagmedia.com 215.625.9850 ext. 107 published by Red Flag Media 1032 Arch Street, 3rd Floor Philadelphia, PA 19107 215.625.9850
I
believe in the eureka moment: the experience of discovering something about the world or yourself that changes everything. This magazine has sought out those stories since its inception, and this month is no different. All of the women featured in the cover story launched their composting businesses because they want to make a difference and do something positive. And composting is hard to beat when you are looking to do something good. What was seen as trash is reclassified as “organic waste.” In the landfill, discarded food emits methane, a potent gas which exacerbates climate change; in a compost pile, it turns into fertile soil. It is inspiring and heartening that these businesses are popping up—and it’s also encouraging to see women, who are not a significant part of the corporate waste industry, leading the charge. A shout-out should also be given to the customers. They are paying a fee to have a compost bucket when they could put their food waste in the garbage and have it taken away for free. The combination of entrepreneurs and a customer base willing to pay for this service is a byproduct of increasing awareness about climate change and the environment.
G R I D P H I L LY. C O M
Upend your life and take a chance. Go vegan, quit flying. Start a business, run for office. Hope is not a strategy, and we need to take action.” 2
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Twenty years ago, this business model would have been impossible to imagine. And yet, a recent interactive article in The New York Times, “The Most Detailed Map of Auto Emissions in America,” illustrates how, despite all of this environmental awareness, things keep getting worse. Auto emissions for U.S. cities, as well as individuals, are measured comparing this year with 1990, and the picture it paints is bleak. In Philadelphia, auto emissions are up 9 percent per person, and overall 22 percent. Some might find the first number somewhat comforting compared to a city like St. Louis, where per person auto emissions are up 50 percent. But, really, that number is practically meaningless. It won’t matter to people with asthma, and it won’t affect the bottom line with carbon emissions. Our collective action is what counts. The cognitive dissonance of these two realities—that optimism and pessimism are both warranted—is what brought the Fitzgerald quote to mind. I want to (and do) feel inspired by the growing environmental movement, but I also make myself look at the reality that is so disconcerting. Today, the environmental movement is winning battles but losing the war. I think recognizing this might initially knock the wind out of our sails, but it should also embolden us. Upend your life and take a chance. Go vegan, quit flying. Start a business, run for office. Hope is not a strategy, and we need to take action. And we have no time to lose.
ALEX MULCAHY Editor-in-Chief alex@gridphilly.com COV E R P HOTO BY L IN ETTE & KY L E KI ELI NSKI
P O R T R A I T BY J A M E S B O Y L E
publisher Alex Mulcahy
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by
lois volta
DEAR LOIS,
Is it possible to transcend the domestic workload of the holiday season and live out of the heart?
M
y favorite part of Thanksgiving is ironing the tablecloths and napkins, setting the table, arranging flowers and falling into quiet, meditative actions. It’s the calm before the social whirlwind ahead—my chance to think about my family members and curiously anticipate their arrival. I want to create a safe, beautiful space for all of my guests, so this time is my opportunity to call upon the energy required, because lord knows I need some help there. I search for meaning in the trivial, remembering that gratitude and kindness bring levity to everything. I celebrate autumn, deciding to view the wave of holidays with determined optimism. Yet I’m always a little worried when I send the email expressing my desire to host Thanksgiving. Is there too much going on to add Thanksgiving dinner to the to-do list? It’s a lot of work. The coordination, the preparation and all the unnoticed details usher in feelings of apprehension that obscure the life-giving power of serving others. In our culture, traditions are becoming less and less important as corporate America hijacks each and every holiday, replacing natural beauty with kitschy, plastic, manufactured decorations. I have come to the conclusion that 4
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Thanksgiving is a celebration of autumn, a time of togetherness and a genuine attempt to exhibit gratitude. Being thankful is no easy feat: Life is hard and we live in a time in which we are seeing the light go out for so many. When others are suffering, there is a guilt that comes with celebration. Even the concept of gratitude has been co-opted by so-called spiritualists who sell the belief that we can cultivate “abundance” through
gratitude and that a $125 goopy facemask will deliver us to gratitude and self-worth. What happened to the age-old wisdom that caring for others is how we care for ourselves? This time of year, I wade through the cultural sludge, holding fast to the offerings of our beautiful Earth. I love the colors, flavors and cooking traditions of autumn and have a deep appreciation for the brisk weather and my wood-burning stove. I have respect for the tenderness of an embrace, the laughter of friends and family around the table. I dive deeply into craft, building my traditions with the work of my hands. Learning old recipes, researching new ones, peeling, chopping, cooking, waiting, tasting and smelling—there is a world of value in these small acts of kindness and service. Let’s not be too rosy; these days are indeed accompanied by work and stress, onions to chop, a house to clean, dishes to wash and the general pressure of personal differences. For many, spending extended time with family is overwhelming. Each holiday and family gathering gives us an opportunity to see and reflect on our
P O R T R A I T BY J A M E S B O Y L E
TH E VO LTA WAY
IL LUSTRATIO N BY LO I S VOLTA
own maturity. I know I’m not perfect, so I hope to be forgiven for my shortcomings while I learn to accept others for who they are. For me, this space and peace of mind comes from gratitude for the people in my life. I remember the humanity in all of us, and, when necessary, set boundaries to protect myself from negative energy. Most times, our kindness is a huge relief to others, no matter the situation. Act first; love trumps hate. It’s wonderful to reshape the commercial meaning of conventional holidays and give
I search for meaning in the trivial, remembering that gratitude and kindness bring levity to everything.” it new blood. When the heart becomes the center of our actions, the cultural baggage dissipates and our ideals work more symbiotically with the realities of life. The thoughtfulness we pour into our homes—opening our doors and showing up for others—will breathe new life into our spaces and spirits. If we want our world to heal, we must seek healing in our families and relationships. As part of this, we share food, stories, games and laughter. This is the knowledge that we teach our children through the way we live; a type of knowledge that will not let them down, regardless of how complicated the future may be, cultivating childlike wonder while preparing them to live in a culture predicated on dissatisfaction.
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lois volta is a home consultant, musician and the founder of Volta Naturals. loisvolta.com N OV E M B E R 20 19
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Thanksgiving Survivors Wild turkeys are good neighbors, unless they encounter by bernard brown a polished car
T
his month, a couple hundred thousand turkeys will make their final appearances at the center of dining room tables across Philadelphia. Although the skinned, trimmed and cooked bird carcass on a cutting board is how most Philadelphians will encounter Meleagris gallopavo, cousins of your unfortunate dinner guests will continue to proudly strut around our city, wild and free. The turkeys you eat descend from wild birds domesticated by indigenous peoples in what is now central Mexico about 2,000 years ago. The Spanish exported these domesticated turkeys back to Europe, where 8 GR ID P H I L LY.CO M NOVEM B E R 201 9
they eventually made it to England. There, though the exact reason is unclear, they picked up the name of Turkey, the country. English colonists then took them back across the Atlantic Ocean as livestock. All the while, the original turkeys still roamed their home continent, loved as game wherever they strutted. Too much love can be a bad thing, though, especially when that love comes at the end of a shotgun. By the 20th century, overhunting and widespread deforestation had reduced Pennsylvania’s wild turkey population to only a few thousand. But as Penn’s Woods regrew and the Pennsylvania Game Commission regulated hunting, the
wild turkeys began to reclaim the state. The Commission helped them along by relocating flocks (anywhere from six to 40 birds) to turkey-less territories. The goal, of course, was to populate turkeys where hunters would like to shoot them, but the turkey populations had a tendency to spread out. They reached Philadelphia in the mid-1990s with sightings in Southwest and Northeast. “I’ve always had reports of pockets here and there, but 10 years ago they started expanding,” says Philadelphia’s Game Warden Jerry Czech. Turkeys, which had been regularly seen at the John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge near the airport, began popping up along the Schuylkill River as far up as the Woodlands Cemetery, where program and operations coordinator Emma Max got a tom (male turkey) on video this March. I posted a call for turkey sightings to a West Philly Facebook group, and several users responded with their own urban turkey observations. Lena Buford reported seeing them along Baltimore Avenue near
P H OTO C O U R T E S Y O F B A R T R A M ’ S GA R D E N
urban naturalist
Cobbs Creek. Sonia Roberts commented, “In addition to Bartram’s and the Woodlands, I’ve seen them at Grays Ferry, both at the Pennovation Center there and nonchalantly walking down the street.” (She was not the only person to note wild turkey nonchalance.) “They tend to be pretty good neighbors,” says Tom Reber, director of landscape and facilities at Bartram’s Garden, where visitors often spot turkeys around the administration building. Reber said that they see them occasionally throughout the year, but that the turkeys start spending more time at Bartram’s Garden in the fall and stay through the winter. Wild turkeys eat from an extensive menu: they clip vegetation such as early shoots of plants in the spring and gobble up bugs as they scratch through leaf litter and strut through meadows. In the fall, they pig out on acorns and beechnuts, which wooded parks have in abundance. They are active by day, and at night they fly up into trees to roost. Aside from the scratching, turkeys sometimes raise human hackles by attacking cars. The toms mistake their reflections for rival birds, and a passing glance quickly escalates into a (one-sided) fight. Across from Heinz National Wildlife Refuge, a Cadillac owner experienced this firsthand. “He would wash it, polish it and the turkeys would peck the heck out of his car,” says Czech. Although the Cadillac owner wanted something to be done about the turkey, Czech recommended moving or covering up the car. “We try to give a little bit of education to people by talking to them and figuring out what the problem is, and sometimes there isn’t a problem,” he says. Reber notes the Bartram’s toms’ particular aggression toward police cars. “They chase cops out,” he says. “My theory is that those vehicles get washed more frequently.” Humans with unpolished cars have little to fear from wild turkeys, though that doesn’t stop complaints from people who don’t think large wild birds belong in a city and have other ideas of where they should be. “They sometimes stop traffic on Lindberg,” says Reber. “Sometimes people ask us ‘to come get our turkeys,’ but our response is that they’re wild. They own Southwest Philly as far as they’re concerned.”
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street stories & curbside characters
The Elder Strut She’s protested segregation and fought for rent control, now she canvasses for Philly by constance garcia-barrio independents My great-grandmother used to examine a man’s hands for the truth of his life: Were they soft, hard, clean, scarred, manicured? In much the same way, streets and their curbside characters hold the unvarnished truth of a city. Do cobblestones bespeak the streets’ past? What cultural groups hold festivals on the streets and why? Do people rush to help when someone falls on the sidewalk? What do the cardboard signs of homeless persons say? What stories do plaques on public benches tell weary pedestrians of people dead and still beloved? Do curbside characters preach about sin or lift the hearts of passersby with a Bach creation for flute? From the volunteers who plant sidewalk trees to vendors who sell ethnic treats from trucks, the streets and their curbside characters make up the contradictory truths of the city. This column will look at some of them.
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urbside characters like Judi Bernstein-Baker may pop up at your door with passion, know-how, and inspiration. If you see Bernstein-Baker, 74, chewing mint gum and doing the hip-replacement strut—it takes a strutter to know one—don’t let it lull you into seeing her as another tame elder. Bernstein-Baker, social worker, lawyer and grandmother, is continuing her lifetime practice of taking her passion to the pavement. Bernstein-Baker’s latest push involved hitting the streets to ask some of her Mt. Airy neighbors to consider voting for independent candidates for City Council in the November election. “It’s important for the city to have a vibrant government, and that requires councilpeople who look at issues independently rather than through a partisan lens,” says Bernstein-Baker, who was canvassing in cooperation with Philadelphia Neighborhood Network, a racially and culturally diverse organization of neighborhood activists. “Many of the candidates are running for the first time [and] don’t have a lot of money [to pay for publicity]. That’s what makes them attractive to me. Sometimes, big donors feel they have a right to influence a winning candidate’s policies.” Bernstein-Baker, a native of Queens, New 12 GR ID P H I L LY.CO M NOVEM B E R 201 9
York, who’s lived in Philadelphia for 47 years, got an early start in public activism. “I got involved in the civil rights movement in the ’50s,” she says. “I wanted to go on freedom rides [in the segregated South], but my parents said it was too dangerous.” So Bernstein-Baker did the next best thing. “When I was 13 or 14, a group of us from various New York high schools would go down to the Woolworth’s [Department Store] on 34th Street and picket every weekend. It was a way to pressure Woolworth’s to end segregation at its lunch counters at stores in the South.” Not only school but her old neighborhood fed Bernstein-Baker’s stance. She and her parents and brother lived in Queensview West, then a housing development for working and middle-income families. “I come from modest circumstances—my mother was a garment worker in a factory and my father was self-employed as an editor, proofreader and translator—but Queensview was extremely diverse,” she says. “Some tenants were union organizers. We had social programs where we brought in speakers like Fannie Lou Hamer [a Mississippi voting rights activist] and Bayard Rustin [an advisor to Martin Luther King, Jr., and an organizer of the massive 1963 March on Washington.] It was a wonderful place to grow up.”
Bernstein-Baker skipped a grade, and thus started college at age 16. “I attended the SUNY [State University of New York] Binghamton,” she says, “and I got my degree in political science in 1967.” She came to Philly in 1972. “My husband, Karl Baker, was admitted to Rutgers Law School, and I didn’t want to live in Camden, so we rented apartments in West Philly.” Later, they moved to Germantown, says Bernstein-Baker, who has a daughter, 43, and a son, 39. With a deepening commitment to activism, Bernstein-Baker earned a master’s degree in social work from the University of Pennsylvania in 1975. “I did community organizing at Community Legal Services,” which provides free legal assistance to low-income Philadelphians. “For example, I organized tenants to fight for rent control.” Working in a legal milieu nudged Bernstein-Baker toward law school. “I thought it would allow me to advocate more thoughtfully—dare one say more fiercely?—for clients.” P HOTO G RAP HY BY AL BERT YEE
Volunteer Judi Bernstein-Baker knocks on doors to encourage voters to consider independent candidates for City Council
I got involved in the civil rights movement in the ’50s. I wanted to go on freedom rides [in the segregated South], but my parents said it was too dangerous.” — judi bernstein-baker In 1986, she graduated from Temple’s Beasley School of Law. In 1990, a position opened up at Penn Law School that involved creating a program for law students to perform public service as part of their degree requirement. “Through my work at Penn, I became aware of the need for pro bono help in immigration,” she said, “and there were few lawyers to take those cases.” In 1998, she became executive director of
HIAS, a nonprofit which “provides legal, resettlement, citizenship and supportive services to immigrants, refugees and asylum seekers from all backgrounds.” She retired from that position in 2016. “Now I take on cases of the most vulnerable people: unaccompanied youth, victims of crime and trafficking and asylum seekers,” Bernstein-Baker says. “For example, I just completed a case of a wonderful student
activist from Honduras who was detained in an isolated area of Louisiana. He had a strong asylum claim, but there were no attorneys available in that area of the Deep South.” Bernstein-Baker’s background may lead her to take difficult cases. “My mother was an immigrant from Poland,” she said. “My family would all be dead now if they hadn’t left the country before the Holocaust.” Many of Bernstein-Baker’s clients hail from Central America’s northern triangle: Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador. “They come here fleeing violence,” she said. “Their governments have no capacity to protect them. Honduras is a narco-state. Often, ex-military become employed by the drug cartels, so they have ties to the government.” When it comes to immigrants, the U.S. shoots itself in the foot, Bernstein-Baker believes. “We’re turning away people whose talents we need,” she says, “and we’re giving out a double message. On one hand, we’re telling people they should enter the country legally. On the other, we’re decreasing legal channels. It’s urgent for the U.S. to take a clear stand on immigration. We have to decide whether we’re going to be a leader in human rights or waste billions of dollars on detaining those fleeing, or on building a wall.” While immigration cases absorb much of Bernstein-Baker’s time, she manages to squeeze in other activities. “I have a secret garden,” she says, pointing to a spacious backyard, bejeweled with flowers and fragrant with herbs. “I grow thyme, rosemary, sage and other herbs that I use in cooking.” A bird feeder in her front yard and an illustrated bird chart in the living room attest to another pastime. “A friend and I took a birding trip to Cuba in 2018,” she says. Elderhood can bring leisure for travel and other fun, but Bernstein-Baker, who still takes part in street demonstrations, would rejoice at seeing a veritable conga line of older activists—canes, walkers and all— taking to the sidewalk with their beliefs. “If you’re an older person with free time, it’s never been more important to get civically engaged,” she says. “We seniors can make a difference. We have a responsibility to make the world better for the next generations.” N OV E M B E R 20 19 G R I DP HI LLY.COM 13
bike talk
Blurry Vision Two years after the launch of an action plan, Philadelphia’s by randy lobasso traffic deaths are still high
C
ould you imagine if there were absolutely no traffic deaths in Philadelphia each year? That’s the idea behind the city’s Vision Zero action plan—a series of policies meant to bring traffic deaths down to zero by 2030 using engineering, education and enforcement. It was created by Mayor Jim Kenney after he, and all other mayoral candidates in 2015, pledged to create safer city streets using the Vision Zero plan, if elected. Philadelphia was in a good position to move toward Vision Zero, specifically because many other cities had already committed, and found out what works and what doesn’t. This October marked the second year of Philadelphia’s commitment to Vision Zero. As such, the city released its annual update on the program, noting the numerous ways the city has attempted to change existing street infrastructure and educate citizens in an attempt to make Philadelphia’s streets safer and more pedestrian friendly. In some ways, the city has made progress. Philadelphia’s mayoral administration has supported a protected bike lane network; shorter pedestrian crossings; bus and other transit improvements; and targeted enforcement, including the signing of a speed camera bill for Roosevelt Boulevard, Philadelphia’s most dangerous thoroughfare, according to PennDOT. But it’s hard to ignore the fact that between 2017 and 2018, traffic deaths increased, despite the city’s Vision Zero efforts. The Bicycle Coalition and Vision Zero Alliance began tracking Philadelphia’s total traffic fatalities in 2016. Since then, the number of total vehicular deaths of all road users, on local roads, state roads and inter14 GRID P H IL LY.CO M NOVEM BE R 20 1 9
states through Philadelphia, has hovered stubbornly at around 100 people per year. In 2018, 42 out of 103 traffic deaths were pedestrians—more than any other subgroup, including drivers—and four were bicyclists. Additionally, as has been reported by NBC10, there are around 40 hit-and-runs each day in Philadelphia, the vast majority of which are never solved. This shows that there is more work to be done to curb driver negligence and bring total traffic deaths down.
The section of the report that really jumps out is the city’s work on Roosevelt Boulevard. Roosevelt Boulevard saw 21 fatal crashes in 2018. The Bicycle Coalition and the entire Vision Zero Alliance worked throughout last year at the state level to push for the installment of speed-enforcement cameras, which have been proven to reduce traffic deaths, on the thoroughfare. The road is also being re-engineered. After passing the legislation in the Pennsylvania House and Senate, the bill was
signed into law by Governor Tom Wolf. Philadelphia City Council took up enabling legislation, where it was championed by councilperson Cherelle Parker and passed easily. However, the cameras have yet to be installed. While I have been told they will be by the end of the year, each day their installation is delayed puts additional lives at risk. The city also notes that it secured more than $13 million in grants to support nine projects along the high-injury corridors. It began construction of semi-upgraded bike lanes on Spruce and Pine streets and pushed for the passage of numerous ordinances for Complete Streets projects, including protected bike lanes, along numerous streets throughout the city; unfortunately, only a small subset will be completed by the end of the year. As a society, we normalize this slow progress. There has never been a national conversation about the destruction motor vehicles cause to streets, our air, our bodies and our communities. The point of Vision Zero is that we should not tolerate this. While there are a lot of good projects included in the City’s Vision Zero program, many of those projects have not yet come to fruition or have taken longer to complete for a variety of reasons, which is frustrating considering how important they are. Vision Zero is not just a safety issue. Making alternative means of transportation safe will not just make people safer on the streets, it will also get more people out of their cars and into buses, onto bicycles and other micro-mobility devices. Such is good for the city’s economy and, more importantly, it’s good for the environment and the overall health of our citizens. When people and safety advocates say more needs to be done, it’s not just because we want Philadelphia to live up to its potential as a great biking city, it’s also because we want the city to be a safe, healthy, sustainable city for everyone, no matter their means of transportation. IL LUSTRATIO N BY S EAN RY NKEWI CZ
MEDICALBILLSBIKEDAMAGELOSTWAGESFORYOURINJURIES
PAMotor VehicleCode§3331(e)
Interference with pedalcycles. No turn by a driver of a motor vehicle shall interfere with a pedalcycle proceeding straight while operating in accordance with Chapter 35 (relating to special vehicles and pedestrians).
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Michele Bloovman, co-founder of Circle Compost, stands atop a pile of organic waste.
Turning A
PROFIT story by claire marie porter — photography by linette + kyle kielinski
These women saw a need, and filled it like a bucket.
B
eware, composting is a kind of gateway drug, says Michele Bloovman, co-founder of Circle Compost. Once you start, it changes your mindset, she says: “You’re gonna be thinking about everything you throw away. You’re going to be changing your purchase habits.” Bloovman, a food scientist by trade, is one of several female entrepreneurs in the Philadelphia area who have left the corporate world to make a difference in how our waste is managed, taking the matter into their own hands, and buckets. While we live in a society that’s growing increasingly aware of where our food comes from and how it’s prepared, many still don’t put much thought into where food waste goes. For instance, imagine you pick the two best locally grown pesticide-free zucchini at your local farmer’s market, a perfectly formed eggplant, yellow squash, bell peppers and onions. You’re making ratatouille, so you carefully and thinly slice each vegetable, layering them in bright and charming spirals atop fresh tomatoes, seasoning the dish with herbs de Provence. Then, you sweep the remains into the garbage can, like most Americans. The scraps are dumped in your local landfill, where they join the 167 million tons of garbage created each year. And there it sits, unable to decompose properly for lack of oxygen, leaking methane gas into the atmosphere.
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hen bloovman and her husband, Dave, a sales and marketing director for a textile firm, began thinking about starting a compost company, they were overwhelmingly instructed to “market to the women,” suggesting that composting appeals more to them, or that women feel more responsibility in the home for their waste production. As progressive as we think we are, the majority of women are still managing the households, says Bloovman. She started Circle Compost in 2016 and she says the majority of her 700 customers are indeed women, though more men have signed up recently. She points out that at the other end of composting businesses, the majority of higher-ups and management in urban farming and urban agriculture are also women. “They’re running the show,” says Bloovman. Bloovman was first exposed to waste management and bio-composting while working for a manufacturing company. She loved her job as a food scientist but was constantly aware of the declining state of the environment and how imperfect a role waste management played in that condition. Landfills aren’t designed to break down garbage; they’re meant to be holding containers for it. The tightly packed, sealed environment of a landfill allows little room for oxygen, so the organic materials that would normally decompose quickly can’t biodegrade. Instead, they slowly break down anaerobically over time, releasing carbon dioxide and methane, a greenhouse gas 30 times more potent than carbon. Composting is the decomposition of organic materials, such as food scraps, grass cuttings, leaves and animal manures, by aerobic bacteria, fungi and other organisms. The matter is eaten by microorganisms that turn the raw material into compost, a rich soil conditioner that smells earthy and suppresses plant diseases and pests. When a compostable material is put in a trash bag and dumped in a landfill, it’s unable to properly decompose. Bloovman grew up in an avid gardening, composting family, and it was strange to her to throw food away. Waste conscientiousness was ingrained in her. “You get pretty angry at the state of landfills and the state of our Earth,” she says. 18
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“This is my ‘Uber moment.’ This is needed. I should start a company.” —gwenn nolan, founder of Mother Compost
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ne million tons of landfill waste emits about 432,000 cubic feet of landfill gas per day, according to the Environmental and Energy Study Institute. Yet, according to the Institute for Local Self-Reliance, more than 50 percent of regular, municipal garbage set out on the curb for pickup is compostable. The average American throws away 1,600 pounds of garbage per year. With only 3,500 active landfills, there’s nowhere for it all to go. According to an article by National Geographic published in 2017, when a landfill is full, much of the excess ends up “sloughing off in the natural environment as litter … meaning much of it ends up in the ocean.” By comparison, composting is cyclical.
The waste goes back into the earth to create those same zucchini and heirloom tomatoes used to make that ratatouille.
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hen michele and Dave started having children, they began evaluating the next stages of their lives. “Having a family definitely changes your priorities a bit,” she says. “Working for a corporate entity, that wants to make more and more, wasn’t aligning with our ethics.” “Let’s do something on the right side of good,” the couple decided together. Circle Compost became the first composting business in Philadelphia to exclusively do biking routes in Center City. They now run compost collections six days a week, with four still bike routes (out of their 10 total routes). “The city is definitely improving with the rain barrel workshops, and being conscious of what’s going down the drain,” says Bloovman. “The extension of that is where our waste is going.” She teaches educational workshops on composting at schools throughout the city. The children understand and get excited about it immediately, she says. They just get the connection really easily.
Opposite page: Gwenn Nolan empties a bucket into her pickup truck. Above: Mother Compost serves the Main Line suburbs and takes collected compost to Linvilla Orchards for processing.
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Bloovman co-founded Circle Compost in 2016 and currently serves about 700 customers in Philadelphia.
“It’s inherent,” she says, “It’s in our nature to do it.” Yet composting is still viewed as an optin service for most Americans. Unlike recycling, which has become more prevalent and mainstream, composting is seen as burdensome, smelly and impossible for a lot of people. But if you know the benefits, as well as the consequences, it’s easier to hold yourself accountable. According to the Institute of Self-Reliance, a nonprofit functioning to redirect waste, provide education and strengthen local economies, composting not only protects soil and helps to prevent climate change, it creates jobs. “On a per-ton basis, making compost alone employs two times more workers than landfills and four times more than incinerators,” says the website. It also enhances soil and protects watersheds, functioning as both a filter and a sponge. “When added to soil, compost can filter out urban stormwater pollutants by 60-95 percent,” the website reads.
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ike bloovman, having kids made Colleen Falicki realize that she wanted to do something to make a difference in their future. Falicki started Back to Earth Com-
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“You’re gonna be thinking about everything you throw away. You’re going to be changing your purchase habits.” —michele bl oovman, co-founder of Circle Compost
post two years ago, after selling real estate for 12 years. “Before compost, I was someone who was always passionate about being sustainable, but never really did anything as a job,” she says. Falicki didn’t have experience in the sustainability field, but she knew that composting was something she could do. She’d been doing it in her yard and realized it was a way she could help others who didn’t have the time or space. She knew curbside pickup was a thing in Philadelphia, but it didn’t reach into her suburb. So she started serving her immediate neighborhood, Plymouth Meeting. “I just kind of did what I was driven to do,” she says. Falicki takes all her materials to Walter B.
Saul High School, on Henry Avenue in Roxborough, an agricultural magnet school with an onsite farm. She has 100 clients in Bucks and Montgomery counties. She also offers her services at one-time events like weddings, races and recurring events like farmer’s markets. “It brings me joy to know that there are people out there who want this service,” she says. But it’s education that’s her passion. Not only supporting those who want to compost, but also teaching them how. “I do a lot of outreach, unpaid,” she says. “Just me, being available to talk to a Girl Scout group or organization, or farmers market, on how to compost in your yard.” She wants people to know that composting really can be for everyone. “You don’t even need a vessel,” she says. Just a pile will do. She recommends a 3-to-1 ratio of leaves and paper scraps to food scraps, and keeping that wet and damp. It’s simple, though an improperly maintained pile will draw many a pest, so it’s important to do a little research before starting an open pile. “I’m not looking for the business, it’s more about not needing me,” she says. “It’s this ripple effect.”
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tarting a compost business had been on Heather Guidice’s to-do list for 10 years. Finally, this year she started Kona Compost Company, named after her pup, an Australian shepherd-Catahoula mix, who joins her on her pickup runs in Bucks County. She’d been the director of a photo studio for an e-commerce company and decided this year was a good time. “I didn’t want to have a regret later on in life,” she says.
There weren’t any compost pickup services in her area, and she found that problematic. So she assessed the interest of her community, which was high. So far she has 30 subscribers, mostly found by word of mouth. So far, the only employees are her and Kona. On pickup days, Kona jumps into her car. They provide five-gallon buckets to customers and do weekly and bi-weekly pickups. “We go to their house[s], drop a clean one, rinse and repeat,” she says. “I really do enjoy it,” she says. “I’m able to make a small difference, and for me that’s gratifying.” A longtime composter herself, Guidice knows what the end product is like. She knows how valuable compost is to a gardener, and to the Earth. “I find it wild that everybody doesn’t do it,” she says. Guidice is part of the Community Composter Coalition, which is made up of members from all over the U.S. and Canada. The community is incredibly welcoming, she says. “It’s very comfortable for a woman,” she says. And in Philly, women are definitely running the show, she’s noticed. “We are kind of the compost queens,” she says.
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wenn nolan of Mother Compost, in Wynnewood, didn’t have any composting experience at all. “I’m a terrible gardener,” she says. She was the operations director at Creative Financial Group and didn’t know anything about compost. But she wanted to be able to redirect her family’s organic waste, so she looked for a service on the Main Line. There wasn’t one. So she started composting at home when she was pregnant with her third child. She got a large black bin and followed the instructions, but found it to be a pain, turning the pile while pregnant. So, she thought, “This is my ‘Uber moment.’ This is needed. I should start a company.” She believed that, first and foremost, she needed to make it easy, and not gross, for people to compost, so she could have a greater effect.
She found herself asking questions like, “How do we solve this problem? How do we even step to it?” After her third child was born and it was safe for Nolan to start lifting heavy things again, she contacted Tim Bennett of Bennett Compost to discuss her business plans. “It’s a little paralyzing to be honest,” she says. “But there’s something about living with little people that believe in magic, and no limitations,” says Nolan—it makes you feel like you can do anything. “Am I crazy?” She asked him. “You are,” he said, “but not totally.” Now she’s a mother of three, all under the age of seven, and one year into running her solo business. “It’s been amazing,” she says. “It’s exhausting, but I feel great.” Mother Compost currently has 127 subscribers on the Main Line, and the collected compost is deposited at Linvilla Orchards, where they process it on-site. “Everyone’s been so supportive,” she says. Ninety percent of Mother Compost’s subscribers are women, says Nolan, adding that her marketing is female-focused. “Women are more involved traditionally in what goes on in the kitchen,” she says, “grocery shopping, etc.” She thinks there are many factors in women being drawn to composting. “It’s expected a little more for us [women] to be in tune. Maybe that’s why we’re leading a charge,” she says.
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en masterlez, now a co-owner of Bennett Compost, moved to Philly to study architecture and began working in an architectural firm when she was 19 years old. (Editor’s note: Grid’s publisher, Alex Mulcahy, is a partial owner of Bennett Compost). “I burnt out really quickly,” she says. “I couldn’t see myself doing that forever.” Masterlez grew up on a farm, and was the first in her family to go to college. But her rural upbringing never left her. “There was something inside of me,” she says, “It crept through.” Composting is an ancient farming practice, she points out. If you’re deeply connected to your food, you’re more likely to be connected to its waste. “That connection is lost because we don’t grow our own food anymore,” says Masterlez.
She grew passionate about urban agriculture and began growing food on her concrete slab yard in Fishtown. During the recession in 2007, she started looking for a job in urban agriculture but couldn’t find one. A new homeowner, she was looking for something that met both her desire to be involved in agriculture and also supported her financially. But in 2010 she met Lee Meinicke, the owner of Philly Compost. Philly Compost and Bennett Compost had started at the same time—Bennett was more residential, while Philly Compost was more commercial. The compost community was, and still is, a tight knit community. Masterlez started driving a pickup for Philly Compost, and then a trash truck. “I loved it, I knew it was right,” she says. “The physical work, knowing that what I was doing was good. I never got that before.” She then branched out on her own and started The Compost Coop, where neighbors paid $25 per year to drop off and make their own compost. In an effort to better support herself financially, she started a “pedal collection,” or picking up compost via bicycle, called City Sprouts. She got a good following within her Fishtown neighborhood for the pedal pickups, so she decided to branch out to get some business customers. “I got an old mountain bike and used trailer and did my first [business] pickup on New Year’s Day in 2014.” Johnny Brenda’s was her first customer in the neighborhood. After Masterlez became pregnant, she decided that she didn’t want to work alone. So in 2016 she began working with Bennett Compost as a subcontractor, and by the end of 2017 Bennett Compost offered to buy her company. A year later, Masterlez bought into the company as an owner. Masterlez is a mother of a 4-year-old and pregnant with her second. She sees herself working in compost for a long time. A vast majority of Bennett’s 3,100 residential subscribers are women. She believes it’s because women are generally more involved in household management, and see waste on a more intimate basis. “I’m really good at managing a ton of things,” she says. “As a mom, you have to do all that.” “Women make really good business owners. We are smart,” she says. “We are gonna take over.” N OV E M B E R 20 19
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holiday craft fairs
Handmade and Heartfelt Craft fairs for holiday shopping that by alexandra jones feature local vendors
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hopping for the holidays can be hectic, and it’s easy to be tempted by cheap, shiny manufactured goods and plain old expediency. However, it never goes out of style to buy handmade items from local vendors. It helps our economy, our ecology and our souls.
shop with their wares in the toasty-warm greenhouse. greensgrow.org November 30 and December 1, 7 and 8, Free admission. Greensgrow Farms, 2501 E. Cumberland St
Winter Holiday Fair and Market Get a taste of Latvian culture—and pierogies and gingerbread cookies—at the Latvian Society’s annual party. Drop off the kids in the children’s craft area, then shop for unique gifts from local crafters, enter the raffle to win a Latvian gift basket, take in some live music and enjoy a Baltic beer or two and some northern European fare. latviansociety.com December 7, 12 to 6 p.m ; The Latvian Society, 531 N. 7th St., Philadelphia.
Community Craft and Art Fair
Philly Waldorf Holiday Fair and Craft Bazaar It’s the perfect opportunity to shop for the kids without the kids. Turn holiday shopping into date night with the adults-only Friday evening preview, featuring cocktails and bites, live music and 70 vendors selling everything from handmade chocolates to housewares. Bring the whole family on Saturday, which features not only the craft bazaar, but fun for children like face painting, a puppet show, kid-friendly crafts and candle dipping. November 22, 6 p.m. to 10 p.m., and November 23, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The Waldorf School of Philadelphia. 6000 Wayne Ave., Philadelphia.
Holiday Art Star Craft Bazaar This all-ages craft fair in Northern Liberties comes with more than 80 local vendors selling handmade goods, plus bites, a full bar and the chance to make your own crafts to take home. You don’t have to enter the casino to attend, although you might want to stop by on your way in to try boosting your holiday budget. artstarcraftbazaar.com
Christmas Village The German Christkindlmarkt tradition lives on in Philly, with more than 80 vendors guaranteed to have something for that special someone (it’s okay if that special someone is you). Don’t miss the beer garden, which debuted last year, and be sure to stop by the Bake Cheese Haus for a helping of melted raclette cheese on a crusty baguette to fuel your shopping spree. philachristmas.com November 28-December 24, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Friday and Saturday; 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sunday to Thursday; 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Thanksgiving Day; 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Christmas Eve. Love Park at JFK Plaza, 1500 Arch St., Philadelphia; Free admission.
Greensgrow Holiday Bazaar The holidays are hectic enough—why not pick up your Christmas tree and gifts for your favorite people all at once? The urban farm’s nursery will be selling trees, wreaths and other holiday greenery, while neighborhood crafters and artisans set up
Support local artists of color selling handmade goods like ceramics, clothing, jewelry and original artworks at Asian Arts Initiative’s annual craft fair. Don’t miss family-friendly live performances and an exhibition of pieces made by students in the after-school program. asianartsinitiative.org December 7, 12 to 4 p.m.; Asian Arts Initiative; 1219 Vine St., Philadelphia; Free admission.
South Philly Handmade Brigade It’s not often that you can buy an artist’s work and see where it’s made—but South Philly Handmade Brigade’s 14th annual holiday market gives you the chance to do just that. Shop glass, ceramics, wearable art, housewares and more, then pop into studio tours to see artists at work. Don’t miss the ceramic sculpture show from local artist Pam Lethbridge in Artspace 1241 on the first floor. facebook.com/SouthPhillyHandmadeBrigade
December 7, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.; 1241 Carpenter Studios; 1241 Carpenter St., Philadelphia; Free admission.
November 23 and 24, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.; The Event Center at Sugarhouse Casino (on the second floor of the north entrance); 1001 N. Delaware Ave., Philadelphia; Free admission.
Made in Philadelphia Holiday Market at Dilworth Produced in conjunction with the nearby Christmas Village, this outdoor bazaar in front of City Hall highlights local makers who produce everything from glass art to cozy scarves to candles to snackable French toast bites right here in Philly. madeinphila.com
November 23 to January 1, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Friday and Saturday; 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sunday to Thursday; 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Thanksgiving Day; 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Christmas Eve; closed Christmas Day; Dilworth Park, 1 S. 15th St., Philadelphia; Free admission. 22
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Philly Waldorf Holiday Fair and Craft Bazaar is a welcoming and fun family affair.
P HOTO G RAP H BY L IN ETTE KI ELI NSKI
West Craft Fest Looking for a place to source one-of-a-kind jewelry, clothing, ceramics, stationery, artworks, housewares and herbal body products? Everything sold at West Craft Fest has to be handmade, so you’re guaranteed to find a unique gift for everyone on your list. There will be different vendors on each day of the fest, so plan accordingly to get the full selection. westcraftfest.com December 7 and 8, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; The Rotunda; 4014 Walnut St., Philadelphia; Free admission.
Crafty Balboa Holiday Makers Market With more than 80 artists, crafters and makers, you’re bound to find the perfect gift for that special someone at Crafty Balboa. Want to get your shopping out of the way early? Be one of the first 100 attendees and you’ll not only beat the crowds—you’ll take home a free Occasionette tote bag filled with stocking stuffers from market vendors. craftybalboa.com December 8, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Bok Building; 1901 S. 9th St., Philadelphia.
Holiday Art Market This community arts hub recently moved into a shiny new space to hold artist lectures, artist salons and festivals—as well as its 11th annual holiday market, featuring works from local fine artists as well as handicrafts. The fun features live music, food, drinks and more. Mtairyartgarage.org
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December 14, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. and December 15, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Mt. Airy Art Garage; 7054 Germantown Ave., Philadelphia.
Clover Market’s 2019 Holiday Market The roving suburban pop-up market heads indoors this holiday, with 70 carefully selected vendors selling everything from local honey and upcycled artisan soaps to designer clothing and handbags. It’s also a chance to shop in a gorgeous historic setting: The expansive Frank Furness-designed Residence, formerly the historic Bryn Mawr Hotel, dates back to 1890. theclovermarket.com December 14 and 15, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Residence at the Baldwin School; 701 Montgomery Ave., Bryn Mawr.
Punk Rock Flea Market Shopping for the aging, current or aspiring punk rocker on your list? The city’s semi-annual source for “old punk junk” is back for the holidays with finds from local garages, attics and basements— like clothes and vinyl records—along with artists, crafters and other small businesses selling their wares. phillyprfm.com December 21 and 22, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; 23rd Street Armory; 22 S. 23rd St., Philadelphia; $5 admission, free for kids 12 and under. N OV E M B E R 20 19
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Interested in finding out if you are eligible for one of our HIV prevention research studies?
Who We Need
The Univeristy of Pennsylvania is seeking: • Healthy people • HIV negative • 18 and older • People with an interest in joining a research study to help find ways to prevent HIV infection.
Participation Includes: • Free and confidential HIV counseling and testing • Physical exams • Compensation for your time and travel • The vaccine CANNOT cause HIV infection, but it may not protect you from infection
1-866-HIV-PENN (1-866-448-7366) www.phillyvax.org/outreach facebook.com/phillyvax • @phillyvax
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Catch the Last Gasp of Fall Weekend Tours
Holiday Garden Railway Open Daily November 29 through December 31
Holiday Garden Railway Nights
Fridays & Saturdays in December Advance Tickets Required Visit: morrisarb.org/holiday
morrisarboretum.org 100 E. Northwestern Avenue ∙ Philadelphia 19118 ∙ (215)247-5777 N OV E M B E R 20 19
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EV EN TS
november 2019
N ovember 7
N ovember 9
N ovember 10
The Wharton Initiative for Global Environmental Leadership 12th Annual Conference
Love Your Park Fall Service Day
Seed Saving and Storage Demo
This event will focus on how the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) play a critical role in the transformation to an equitable economy, and how economic growth will flourish under corporate sustainable action plans. igel.wharton.upenn.edu
This biannual event cleans, greens and celebrates Philly’s parks. A collaborative partnership among Fairmount Park Conservancy, Philadelphia Parks & Recreation and the Park Friends Network, Love Your Park engages citizens to revitalize public green spaces and create safe and welcoming places for recreation. loveyourpark.org
Farmer Ricky will demonstrate how to save and store vegetable seeds until you’re ready to grow next season. We’ll discuss the benefits of saving seeds and how pollination affects different varieties. Participants will have the opportunity to share experiences and ask questions. greensgrow.org
WHEN: 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. COST: Free WHERE: Jon M. Huntsman Hall, University of Pennsylvania
WHEN: Various times COST: Free WHERE: Various locations
N ovember 7
N ovember 9
People and Urban Wildlife: A Meigs Award Evening
The Woodlands Gobble Wobble 5K
A diverse collection of wild animals inhabit our cities. How can people better exist alongside their wild neighbors? Leah Stallings (Aark Wildlife Center), Rebecca Michelin and Bernard Brown (Urban Naturalist) will answer questions about navigating the complex relationship. schuylkillcenter.org
This 5K takes you through the historic grounds of William Hamilton’s 18th century estate, 19th century cemetery and modern-day urban oasis. Outrun the West Philly Turkey and support the neighborhood’s best running destination. The first 100 people who sign up will receive a limited edition Gobble Wobble pint glass. woodlandsphila.org
WHEN: 7 to 8 p.m. COST: Free WHERE: 8480 Hagy’s Mill Rd.
WHEN: 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. COST: $20 for members, $40 for non-members WHERE: 4000 Woodland Ave.
N ovember 8
N ovember 10
Flowering Tree Identification for Home Gardeners
Learn About Lichens with Dennis Waters
Flowering trees add long-lasting beauty to residential landscapes. At this workshop, learn how to identify these trees using winter and seasonal characteristics and discuss the attributes of available cultivars to help improve your outdoor space. exs33@psu.edu
Are they plants? Are they fungi? They’re both! Lichens are everywhere you look, and they are as fascinating as they are ubiquitous. Join lichenologist Dennis Waters to learn about these remarkable botanical partnerships. bhwp.org
WHEN: 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. COST: $60 WHERE: 2080 Tulpehocken Rd., Reading
WHEN: 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. COST: $15 for members, $20 for non-members WHERE: 1635 River Road, New Hope
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WHEN: 12 to 1 p.m. COST: $5 suggested donation WHERE: 2501 E. Cumberland St.
N ovember 18-20 Sustainable Brands: New Metrics 2019 The conference presents ideas and practices to help companies measure social and environmental innovation. This year focuses on improving assessments of risk and impact, adopting science-based goals, setting targets for circularity and net positivity, as well as upgrading disclosure practices toward integrated reporting and quantifying social impact. sustainablebrands.com/events WHEN: 8:15 a.m. (11/18) to 12:45 p.m. (11/20) COST: $895+ WHERE: 1200 Market St.
N ovember 29 Holiday Garden Railway Seasonal Opening The Holiday Garden Railway displays buildings and trains meticulously decorated for the holidays with lights that twinkle along the tracks. The railway will be open daily through December 31. morrisarboretum.org WHEN: 10 a.m. COST: Included with garden admission WHERE: 100 E. Northwestern Ave.
Farm-to-Table Fresh Organic and Local 1 Boathouse Row • 215-978-0900 Open 7 Days a Week • 8 AM to 8 PM
cosmicfoods.com
Clean Laundry Clean Planet Clean Slates
TOP OF MIND local businesses ready to serve
crafts
fitness
food
Sweet Mabel Store and Studio
954 Dance Movement Collective
Kimberton Whole Foods
The store offers art & craft from local and national artists, First Friday art openings and free gift wrap. The studio hosts parties, workshops, camp and open studio using repurposed goods.
Our mission is to get you dancing! The 954 Dance Movement Collective studio is also available for rehearsals, readings, classes, events, recitals, workshops, photography, video and performances.
A family-owned and operated natural grocery store with six locations in Southeastern PA, selling local, organic and sustainably-grown food for over thirty years.
sweetmabel.com
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kimbertonwholefoods.com
Sustainable Laundry and Linen Solutions for Philly’s Laundry and Linen Residents and Solutions for Businesses
Small Businesses
Save 10% off your first order. Code: GRID10 WashCycleLaundry.com N OV E M B E R 20 19
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Putting two and two together A dual master’s degree helped one Penn alumna make global connections VIRTUAL CAFÉ Join the MES program director from 12-1 p.m. on the first Tuesday of every month for an
For Akudo Ejelonu (Master of Environmental Studies ‘18/Master of Public Health ’17), a dual degree option at Penn opened a pathway to creating meaningful connections. While her public health research was motivated by her interest in populations displaced by environmental disasters, she says, “the Master of Environmental Studies really challenged me to think critically about the intersectionality of health, gender, sexuality, and environmental factors.”
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As a dual degree student, Akudo was able to take courses across Penn and examine health and environmental challenges within different cultural, economic, and ecological contexts around the world. “Being from Nigeria and raised in Boston, I had the opportunity to connect my dual identities as an immigrant and US resident,” she says, “and also to learn how to do sustainable work that can be implemented whether I’m in Mississippi or Guatemala.” “See yourself as a student of the whole University,” Akudo adds. “That’s where a lot of resources and opportunities open up, and that’s how I’ve been able to grow.” To learn more about how the dual degree program provided Akudo with opportunities to make local and global connections, visit:
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