"GROWING WITHOUT DIRT: URBAN GREENSCAPING AND HYDROPONICS"

Naomi Donabedian at Cantaloupe Alone (http://cantaloupealone.blogspot.com) writes

Bob Hyland is an urban greenscaping professional with almost forty years of experience since his days running a leading interior plantscaping company in Los Angeles. He was a national industry organization speaker, writer and educator during those years. http://www.insideurbangreen.org

Gwen Hill is an urban farmer, garden educator and local food lover based in Brooklyn, NY.  She is a team member at Prospect Farm, and leads a gardening program at the Harbor School, a public high school on Governors Island.  She worked as the director of education and greenhouse manager at the Science Barge, a sustainable hydroponic urban farm and environmental education center in Yonkers for two years.  She holds a bachelor's degree in Environmental Studies and is completing her MA in Geography at Hunter College, for which she is studying the diversity of NYC's urban agriculture movement. http://prospectfarm.org

Meera Bhat is part of the team at Prospect Farm, a neighborhood growing initiative in Windsor Terrace that is working together to grow food in a formerly vacant lot. She lives in Prospect Park South and works as a project manager at the Center for Infection and Immunity at Columbia University.

Downstairs @ Sycamore Bar and Flowershop

1118 Cortelyou Road, between E. 11th Street and Argyle Road

(Q train to Cortelyou)

phone: (347) 240-5850
e-mail: sycamorebrooklyn @ gmail.com
website: www.sycamorebrooklyn.com

OCCUPY WALL STREET LEADS TO MORE GRASS ROOTS ORGANIZING

From Naomi Donabedian, creator of the event:

Brooklyn Dirt Talk Three:

Post-Occupy Wall Street Grass Roots Organizing

 Tuesday, April 17th, 8:00 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.

with

Sustainable Flatbush (Anne Pope and Kady Ferguson)

and

Compost for Brooklyn (Louise Bruce and Rachel Schragis)

Advice from experienced Brooklyn leaders on

founding, motivating, and evaluating for grass roots organizations

Hosted by Meera Bhat

Downstairs @ Sycamore Bar and Flowershop
1118 Cortelyou Road, between E. 11th Street and Argyle Road

(Q train to Cortelyou)

phone: (347) 240-5850
e-mail: sycamorebrooklyn @ gmail.com
website: www.sycamorebrooklyn.com 

Brooklyn Dirt Talk is free.

Only ages twenty-one or older because of the venue.

Facebook page for the event:

http://www.facebook.com/events/427790057246401

About

Sustainable Flatbush brings neighbors together to mobilize, educate, and advocate for sustainable living in their Brooklyn neighborhood and beyond and was founded by Anne Pope.


Kady Ferguson is a Community Ninja/Rotten Food Enthusiast/Volunteer Engager/Sustainable Communities/Sustainable Business of Sustainable Flatbush.

Compost for Brooklyn: In March 2010, the corner lot on Newkirk Avenue and East 8th Street was vacant, unused, and full of trash. With no funding and a single shovel, neighbors and friends came together to tackle the project of transforming the space into a community composting project. In 2011, Compost for Brooklyn composted 50,000 pounds of food scraps and yard waste from about 200 households, welcomed 4,500 visitors, and formed lasting partnerships with numerous organizations from the local level to the international.

Louis Bruce began Compost for Brooklyn while a member of New York City’s Department of Parks and Recreation’s Green Apple Corps, where she became certified as a master composter. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree in China and Asia Pacific Studies with a focus on environmental issues from Cornell University and is currently pursuing a Master of Urban Planning at NYU’s Robert F. Wagner School of Public Service. 

Rachel Schragis is an artist, educator, and native New Yorker. Best known within OWS for her flow-chart visualization of the movement's declaration, she works primarily with the the Arts & Culture working group and Anti-Racism Allies working group. As a compost educator with Compost for Brooklyn, Rachel represents C4B in schools. She is also a teaching artist with Wingspan Arts.

Meera Bhat is part of the team at Prospect Farm, a neighborhood growing initiative in Windsor Terrace that is working together to grow food in a formerly vacant lot. She lives in Prospect Park South and works as a project manager at the Center for Infection and Immunity at Columbia University. She also leads a girl scout troop, if you're looking for cookies.

Cantaloupe Alone is the creator of this event and a food blog for people with garlic breath by Kensington, Brooklyn-based Naomi Donabedian. 

GEOLOGY AND SOILS OF NYC

"Geological discoveries in the fields of hard rock and glacial geology have been made during the past four decades of research, the result of continuous mapping and laboratory research on collected samples from New York City.

Indeed, access to surface and subsurface exposures has produced a treasure trove of geological information that alters our view of the Paleozoic tectonic development of this portion of the Appalachian mountain chain as well as the Pleistocene glacial history of New York City and vicinity. Holocene (post-glacial) alteration of the in-situ and transported glacial regolith has produced our modern soils.

Come see and hear the details of Dr. Merguerian's investigations and documentation of his new discoveries in the form of digital images, maps, and integrated video."

--Naomi Donabedian, Cantaloupe Alone

Tuesday, February 21st

Sycamore Bar

1118 Cortelyou Road

between E. 11th Street and Westminster Road

(347) 240-5850

www.sycamorebrooklyn.com

sycamorebrooklyn @ gmail.com

URBAN AGRICULTURE: A TALK WITH JOHN AMEROSO

Brooklyn Dirt Talk: Monthly Talks on Urban Farming and Gardening

Dirt Talk One: Urban Agriculture with John Ameroso 

Wednesday, January 18th, 7:00 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.

Downstairs at Sycamore Bar + Flowershop, 1118 Cortelyou Road, between E. 11th Street and Argyle Road. For ages 21 and up. (Q train to Cortelyou)
Hosted by Meera Bhat

From the event announcement:

In 1976 John Ameroso piloted the Urban Gardening Program with Cornell University Cooperative Extension, and through his efforts successfully set the ground for Extension education in urban horticulture and food production for New York City. Mr. Ameroso served as President of the New York State Association of County Agricultural Agents (1997) and serves on the Boards of Directors for four organizations - one concerned with environmental “greening” issues (Neighborhood Open Space Coalition); one involved with local food security issues (Just Food); another with youth development utilizing agriculture and food accessibility programs (Added Value); the other promoting and supporting farmers’ markets throughout New York State (Farmers’ Market Federation of New York). Two of his programs have received National recognition: Rikers Island Prison Farm Project and The Gericke Organic Farm Education Project at Clay Pit Pond State Park in Staten Island.

Meera Bhat is part of the team at Prospect Farm (http://prospectfarm.org/), a neighborhood growing initiative in Windsor Terrace that is working together to grow food in a formerly vacant lot. She lives in Prospect Park South and works as a project manager at the Center for Infection and Immunity at Columbia University.

Cantaloupe Alone is the creator of this event and a food blog run by Kensington, Brooklyn based Naomi Donabedian. http://www.cantaloupealone.com.