Be the Change Community Update April 8, 2022 |
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What's In This Issue:
Simply Living news and events:
> Street Seder Tues April 19 at Noon at Chase Bank (largest fossil fuel investor) Register
> Join Simply Living's EcoChallenge Team, earn points by crunching your eco footprint
> Learn about Urban Food and Farming May 10 with Mike Hogan (OSU) Register
> Future movie events: nature of consciousness and saving old growth rainforests
> April Happiness Calendar from the Greater Good Science Center
Sustainability news and events:
> Carolyn Harding of Grassroot Ohio Radio talks with Senate candidate Morgan Harper
> Second Saturday Salon Celebrates Earth Day, WGRN's 6th Birthday, 2022 Volunteer of the year award to Eugene Beer!
> Worthington Farmers Market is now Outside!
> Earth Day Volunteer Events
> FLOW tree planting in Northland
> Litter Pickup + Tree Planting in Clintonville
> Citizens Climate Lobby Cleanup in Grandview
> Grounding the Green New Deal SUMMIT
> Westerville Art Hop
> Ukraine Humanitarian Aid Concert
> Free Press Salon Celebrates WGRN Earth Day Birthday and lots more!
> Steve Stanley and Daniel Hager at Java Central
> Social Ventures sponsors Philanthropitch for local nonprofits
> Book Club is reading The Day the World Stops Shopping
> Plastic Waste Soaks Up CO2 (new research)
> Kiss the Ground Team offers Earth Month Programs
> ESGX.com Podcasts on regenerative themes
> New legislation helps beginning farmers in Ohio
> Full Moon Fire Circle Next Weekend!
> Community Calendars, Quotes, and lots more on the Simply Living Calendar here
Thanks for subscribing and please share and invite friends to sign up for this free service here. Your support makes this work possible. If you are not already a member, please consider joining Simply Living here or donating here. Be sure to click on our business member graphics to visit their websites. If you do not wish to receive this newsletter, simply scroll down to the bottom and click Unsubscribe. |
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Join the Simply Living
Earth Month EcoChallenge
April 1 - 30, 2022
Through this monthlong event, Simply Living team members will participate in a nationwide challenge to put the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals into action. The SDGs are a commitment to achieving sustainable development across three dimensions — environmental, social and economic — in an inclusive and integrated way.
This year's Earth Month EcoChallenge transforms the 17 SDGs into 5 categories of daily and one-time actions an individual can make. Categories include:
- Basic needs and security
- Health and equity
- Education and livelihood
- Economy and communities
- Climate and ecosystems
Under each category you can sign up to do any of a dozen actions, or you can come up with your own action commitment. Each action has real and measurable impacts on sustainability and equity. The more actions our team members do, the more points we earn in a friendly competition with other teams around the country.
Register to join the Simply Living Earth Month EcoChallenge team here. We will send you an invitation to sign up on the EcoChallenge website, join our team, and start committing to action with a real impact on sustainability and equity.
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Street Seder: Calling on Big Banks to Stop Funding Fossil Fuels! Passover Action
Tue Apr 19 @ 12 - 1 pm
Chase Bank Tower, 100 E Broad St, Columbus, OH 43215, USA map
This event is co-sponsored with Dayenu, a dynamic, multi-generational movement of American Jews courageously confronting the climate crisis. Register here
Passover is a celebration of freedom. The holiday carries many lessons today as we face the climate crisis, working to free ourselves from the destruction of the fossil fuel economy and create a world where everyone can thrive.
During the weeks around Passover, Jews and allies will gather outside the branches and offices of the banks and asset managers that exacerbate the climate crisis by investing their money in Fossil Fuel Pharaohs: oil, gas, and coal companies. We will join this effort as we gather peacefully in an interfaith and intergenerational group, inspired by Words and Songs from The Freedom and Justice Seder.
We will publicly proclaim today’s fossil-fueled plagues, and lift up matzah as a symbol of urgency, calling on these financial institutions to move their dough. Representatives of our group will deliver a letter to the CEO of Chase through employees of the bank on site.
We will also publicly call attention to the war in Ukraine and the loss of life, and we recognize how fossil fuels are funding the invasion of Ukraine (and how renewable energy can make us all safer). We will call on banks and asset managers to stop their investments not just in Russian oil and gas but in all fossil fuels.
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Earth Month Events +
Simply Living volunteers will be exhibiting at the Green Bexley Fair and the Green Columbus Earth Day celebrations on Saturday, April 23. We will be at the White Castle Earth Day Fair on Wednesday, April 27 at their new headquarters. And we'll be at the Green on the Green event in Worthington on Saturday, May 7. These events will be lots of fun and a chance to see you in person! Volunteers are welcome! Drop us an email to hello@simplyliving.org. |
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We're excited to host Mike Hogan and learn about urban farming and the developing food systems in central Ohio. Mike will share a slide presentation and entertain our questions.
Mike contributes to Edible Columbus and the Columbus Dispatch. He is part of OSU Extension in the City and shares his knowledge of Food and Agriculture throughout Ohio.
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Simply Living is reviewing new films for screening in local theaters. Dates TBD
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What is the science behind consciousness? Six brilliant researchers from around the world—a brain scientist, a plant behaviorist, a healer, a philosophy professor, a psychedelics scientist, and a Buddhist monk—take you on a mind-blowing quest to investigate this seemingly unsolvable mystery. More info here. |
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This documentary offers an immersive experience of North America's Coastal Temperate Rainforest where trees can live to be thousands of years old. Last of the Ancient Rainforest tells the story of this forest and how some people are compelled by their emotional connection with these trees to put themselves on the line to protect them from industrial logging.
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One of the most beautiful trees native to Ohio is the Flowering Dogwood. Its lovely flowers with large white petals are a welcome harbinger of spring, even if the petals aren’t really petals.
Flowering Dogwood (Dogwood) is easy to recognize throughout the year. Dogwood is the D in MADBuck — Maple, Ash, Dogwood, and Buckeye, which have oppositely-arranged leaves and branches. Because the ashes and buckeyes have large compound leaves, i.e., they have multiple leaflets on the same stem, they have stout twigs, something like the diameter of a pencil. Dogwood and most of the maples have smaller, simple leaves, and therefore slender twigs, more like the diameter of a pencil lead. Dogwood leaves are elliptical, and have tiny teeth, scarcely visible without magnification. But in spite of the leaves’ plain outline, they are easily recognized by veins running parallel to the outer edges.
Read the full blog on the Simply Living website here. Mort always shares information about the medicinal properties of trees, as well as folklore stories. See excerpts below.
Brandeis University’s website lists the following medicinal applications for Dogwood:
● “Bark — Root-bark tea or tincture widely used for malaria and diarrhea throughout South
during the Civil War. Also used as a poultice for external sores and ulcers.
● Fruits — Berries soaked in brandy for heart burn and upset stomach.
● Twigs — Twigs chewed for cleaning teeth.”
“The Cherokee believed that a tiny people lived amidst the Dogwoods and that
this divine little race was sent to teach people to live in harmony with the woods. The ‘Dogwood People,’ as they were called, were very kind; they protected babies and took care of the old and infirm. It is said that when the Cherokee learned to speak English – they began to call the Dogwood people ‘brownies.’”
More info on our April Tree of the Month here.
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We are planning now to assign interns to new and ongoing projects.
> Simply Living has received a grant from the Columbus Foundation to support an intern to work on a Directory of Local and Sustainable Businesses
> Our Sustainable Living and Garden Tour will benefit from Interns (date coming soon)
> We will be working with Sustainable Columbus on a new Solarize campaign
> Meetups will benefit from Interns organizing film screenings, field trips to urban farms, nature hikes, potlucks in the park, and more.
> Research and assistance with our Community Calendar, sustainability resources, and outreach to our members and businesses.
Look for a Meet and Greet event with our new Interns this summer!
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Emotion, Sensitivity, and Extraordinary Experience
Fri Apr 8 @ 2 - 3:15pm
From regular folks to national leaders to the foremost skeptics, people have reported spontaneous, extraordinary experiences just about everywhere and in every age. Could the flow of feeling that literally moves us account for our strangest, most baffling experiences? One clue: highly sensitive people – both physically and emotionally – seem more prone to anomalous perception. If you consider yourself highly sensitive, or live with someone who is – or if you’re just fascinated by what we can’t yet explain – you’ll find this presentation compelling.
Details and more information about the speaker when you register. Save Your Seat!
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GrassRoot Ohio Radio Conversation with Morgan Harper
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Every Friday 5 pm on 94.1 FM and streaming @ WGRN.org, Repeats on Sundays at 2 pm on 92.7/98.3 FM and streams @ WCRSFM.org.
Conversations with everyday people, working on important issues here in Columbus and all around Ohio. Hear from activists working on the front lines of environmental and social justice,
Details on Facebook and more background info on the speakers here.
Listen to Podcast archives here.
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Carolyn Harding with Morgan Harper, candidate running to represent Ohio in the United States Senate. Morgan served as a Senior Advisor at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) under the Obama Administration protecting consumers against predatory corporations. Most recently, Morgan was Director of Policy & Advocacy at the American Economic Liberties Project and also co-founded Columbus Stand Up! a grassroots community organization that mobilized volunteers across Central Ohio in response to the pandemic and 2020 election.
Learn more about Morgan here
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Worthington Farmers Market Now Outside
Sat Apr 9th 8am - 12pm
High St. and SR 161 in Worthington map
After operating as an indoor market for a portion of this winter, the popular marketplace announced that it would return to outdoor location, on High Street in downtown Worthington, on April 2. The market, which operates every Saturday, will now be held outside for the rest of the year. The market is a year-round tradition held in the heart of Worthington.
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Woodward Park Tree Planting
Sat Apr 9 @ 9am- 12pm
5350 Roche Drive in Northland 43229
Organized by FLOW - Friends of the Lower Olentangy Watershed.
We will be planting 100s of trees along the Woodward Park access area. All supplies will be provided.
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Pick Up Litter
& Plant a Tree
Saturday April 9 @ 9 - 11 am
Clintonville - Locations below
April is Earth Day month! We will be picking up litter and will have FREE native tree seedlings for planting in your yards. FREE TREES will be at the Rain Garden at OverBrook and High Street and in front of the Ocali Center, 470 Glenmont Ave. (Glenmont School Building). Cleanup supplies will be at Overbrook and High, Overbrook and Canyon Dr., Overbrook and Yaronia.
Why plant a tree? It's one of the easiest things each of us can do to help benefit the health of our planet! Trees contribute to their environment by providing oxygen, improving air quality, climate amelioration, conserving water, preserving soil, and supporting wildlife. During the process of photosynthesis, trees take in carbon dioxide and produce the oxygen we breathe. Both above and below ground, trees are essential to the eco-systems in which they reside. Most of us react to the presence of trees with a pleasant, relaxed, comfortable feeling. The abundance of trees makes our community very special, but they do grow old, are attacked by diseases, felled by storms, making new plantings a necessity to sustain our historic ravine neighborhood for more generations to enjoy. PLANT A TREE with your family and watch it grow.
Judy Robinson, Adena Brook Lead Team Member
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Grounding the Green New Deal: A Summit on Design, Policy, and Advocacy
April 9 @ 12-5pm
Sponsored by the Landscape Architecture Foundation and held at the National Building Museum in Washington, DC. Not able to join in person? The live summit will be broadcast in real time, accessible from any device with an internet connection. Register to gain access to the livestream for free. Or if you are in a position to support the event and broadcast financially, consider registering with the "pay-what-you-will" donation option.
DON'T MISS THIS DEFINING CONVERSATION!
There is an essential role for the built environment disciplines to play in addressing the climate crisis and translating the goals of decarbonization, jobs, and justice into on-the-ground practices and built works. Through panel discussions with leading changemakers, this summit examines the intersection of policy, design, and advocacy to identify ways to accelerate individual and collective actions to effect change.
The summit builds from the Green New Deal Superstudio, a year-long open call which attracted the participation of more than 3,000 students and practitioners in the built environment disciplines. Some 670 design and planning projects were submitted to give form to the goals of the movement-led vision, and a select set will be on display during the event.
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Westerville Art Hop
Saturday April 9 @ 1 - 5pm
Organized by Uptown Westerville Inc. and the Arts Council of Westerville
Click here for info and map
The Westerville Art Hop will involve 30+ stores, businesses and galleries in and around the uptown area. The stops will host artists who exhibit, sell and create art on location, as well as interact with visitors. Host locations will provide refreshments and special attractions. Visitors will receive a free map of all stops on the tour and the artist featured at each stop. The Art Hop will feature a new Interactive Map online to highlight each artist and location Admission is free to the public. Attendance last year was estimated at 1,500+.
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Coming Together for Ukraine
Humanitarian Aid Concert
Saturday, April 9 @ 7 pm
Dublin Community Church, 81 Bridge St, Dublin OH 43017
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Join us ONLINE for the
Free Press Second Saturday Cyber-Salon
Celebrate Earth Month and
WGRN 94.1FM community radio's
6th year Earth Day birthday
Saturday, April 9 from 7:00-8:00PM
Join Zoom Meeting
Featuring:
Local WGRN producers and local environmental activists
+ 2022 Volunteer of the Year award to Eugene Beer
Q & A included.
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Earth Day Cleanup
Sun Apr 10 @ 9:30-11:30 am
Grandview - Location below
Join Citizens' Climate Lobby Columbus Chapter for an Earth Day Clean Up
We're excited to get out and clean up a beautiful part of town.
Location: Scioto Bike Trail entrance near Grandview Ave.
Sign up at this link to join the team for a great experience.
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Experience a one-of-a-kind event with
Tuesday, April 12 @ 6pm
Riffe Center Theatres
Located on 3rd floor of the Vern Riffe Center, 77 S. High St. Downtown
After weeks of 1:1 coaching and education, nonprofit finalists will take the stage in a fast-pitch competition for funding. Grab tickets today for $35.
Sponsored by Social Ventures, Resource for 120+ social enterprises in central Ohio.
Your ticket cost is a direct donation to the finalist of your choice. Get tickets here!
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The Great Resignation
Tues April 12
12 - 1 pm on Zoom
Presented by WOSU Public Media and the John Glenn College of Public Affairs
Two years after the pandemic largely shut down the economy and threw millions out of work, many have yet to return to their previous jobs or find new ones. An estimated 3.5 million Americans have dropped out of the labor force, leaving employers short-staffed and their customers with long waits for goods and services. This Dialogue discussion will probe the reasons for this “great resignation” and what it will take to erase the labor shortage. Featuring:
Bill Lafayette, Economist and Founder of Regionomics
Lisa Patt-McDaniel, CEO, Workforce Development Board of Central Ohio
Sangeeta Lakhani, Co-founder of Service!, a Central Ohio Relief Program for Hospitality Workers
Moderated by: Mike Thompson, WOSU News Chief Content Director
Dialogue is a series of provocative discussions about the most challenging issues facing our community and country. We are proud to continue these important discussions virtually and will work to maintain the open dialogue format that encourages audience participation. Please consider supporting this program with a donation.
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Recycle Right at Home
Wed Apr 13 @ 12-1 pm
While it’s important for you to recycle, it’s also important to Recycle Right. By taking just a few minutes to recycle the right way, you help reduce pollution, contribute to cleaner water, conserve limited natural resources, support our economy and reduce central Ohio’s reliance on landfills. SWACO is here to help you recycle right, answer common recycling questions, and provide the necessary tools and resources you need to make recycling right convenient for your household. Sign up here.
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Living simply can help us challenge society’s inequities, live in alignment with nature, and build community. ~ Megan Sweas |
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The Day the World Stops Shopping
Book Club
Thursday April 14 @ 8 pm
YOU ARE INVITED to the first session discussion on topics raised in the book The Day the World Stops Shopping by J.B. MacKinnon.
Voluntary simplicity vs. overconsumption is not a new subject or personal challenge, but it has new urgency—and it raises the question, “Are we ‘haves’ willing to leave the ‘water’ of unexamined consumerism to swim toward a lifestyle of relinquishment to save livelihood on this planet? And, thereby, to discover new bounty?”
We’ll begin with “The Prologue; We must stop shopping but we can’t stop shopping,” and the five chapters of “Part I: First Days.” We ask each participant to bring their beginning thoughts on the subject, some phrases and surprises from the reading that are worth noting and sharing, and what challenges this subject raises for you. Many libraries have the book.
Bring a journal if you’d like to use this opportunity to answer the questions, “What does the 1.5°C temperature rise deadline of 2030 ask of me and mine?” and “What can we do to build a movement of UUs to save natural life as we know it?” Our first meeting will be facilitated by Rev. Lucy Hitchcock. We will decide then how and when to continue.
FYI: 2001 Statement of Conscience: Responsible Consumption Is Our Moral Imperative To register for the book discussion:
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Sustainability News and Resources |
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Researchers Find Way for
Plastic Waste to Soak Up CO2
Scientists have found a way to fight the climate crisis with plastic waste. A Rice University research team discovered that heating plastic waste in the presence of a certain chemical created particles that had the ability to absorb carbon dioxide.
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There's naught as nice as th' smell o' good clean earth, except th' smell o' fresh growin' things when th' rain falls on 'em.
~ Frances Hodgson Burnett
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Spread the Message from
the Kiss the Ground Team
This Earth Month, you can stand up for soil by sharing our messages of hope and support for soil health and regenerative agriculture. Head to our social media toolkit and download and share the images below. Together, we can do this! TAKE ME TO THE TOOLKIT
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ESGX is the community for information and education that inspires collaboration and action to help build a better, more resilient and more inclusive society. See below for recent programs available on YouTube.
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March Green Jobs Report + Net Zero Cities
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The Future of EVs and Power Storage
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The Path to Climate Action
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Common Greens: Inside the Market April 9
You still have 2 Saturdays to join us indoors at the Ohio History Center! and support local producers! That means two more opportunities to support our local producers and take advantage of the free museum admission! Here's what you'll fresh find this week:
Veggies: arugula, chives, kale, lettuces, microgreens, Lion's Mane and Shiitake mushrooms, Russet potatoes, salad mix, spinach, stinging nettle
Proteins: eggs, beef, pork, chicken, tilapia, salami
All-season: sourdough breads, cheese, pasta, hot sauce, jams, granola, cookies, cupcakes, cinnamon rolls, tamales, tea loves, nut mixes, goat milk soaps
Drinks: coffees, herbal teas, artisan beverages
Looking for garden starts? Here's a list of local folks you can preorder vegetable, herb, native and perennial plants from:
In Other News...
SEE the full Common Greens newsletter and producer lineup here
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Ohio Legislature Passes HB 95 to Ease Beginning Farmer Challenges
House Bill 95 passed the Ohio legislature April 6, clearing the way for the next generation of farmers and a more resilient food system.
The Family Farm ReGeneration Act encourages those with farmland, livestock, buildings, or equipment to sell to beginning farmers with the promise of income tax credits. Beginning farmers who attend a financial management program are also eligible for tax credits.
Ohio is home to more than 33,000 beginning farmers, the sixth-largest number of any state in the country. Read the full announcement here
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The Paris Agreement is completely silent on animal agriculture, but a third of methane emissions come from animal agriculture.
We can all make a difference.
Fight climate change simply with diet change.
~ Moby, American musician and animal rights activist
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Webinar Replay: Changing the Narrative: A pandemic retrospective and vision for a new humanity
Watch the webinar recording here
This is a long webinar but there is much useful introductory text on the website. The recording allows you to skip to sections of interest.
Core Themes + Highlights
Introduction and grounding meditation (0:00)
Zach Bush MD offers a pandemic data analysis and retrospective (4:51)
Aberdeen Violet shares her life and insights with Dissociative Identity Disorder (32:58)
Jade Lee reflects on her learnings within and outside the Navajo nation (56:12)
Paul Walsh shares his experience in healing and creating new realities (1:36:43)
10 tools to heal and a path forward for humanity (1:53:55)
Reconnecting to ourselves, nature, and our perfect journey (2:12:47)
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Does Your Bank
Invest in Fossil Fuels?
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Are you unintentionally supporting the financing of climate change through your banking activities? Learn about a new alliance of "Fossil Free Certified" banks and credit unions that don't finance fossil fuel companies or projects. more...
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Don't Preserve Formaldehyde in Your Home
None of us want this preservative in our homes but it’s in so many products that it's hard to avoid. Learn where you may have it, how to get rid of it, and what to buy instead. more...
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Go Wild! How To Certify Your Backyard as Wildlife Habitat
Would you like to help wildlife find a safe space where they can find nourishment, raise their young, and rest? It's easy to certify a small, safe habitat in your own backyard. more...
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Recycling Mystery: Headphones, Earbuds, and Chargers |
These electronic accessories may be small, but they still add up to a lot of e-waste that's harmful to the environment. Let's look at the best options for disposing of them safely when we no longer want them.
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Did you learn something new today?
Please support Earth911 database updates
so we can help others recycle
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CCAD Spring Arts Fair, Fun Things to Eat, Easter Eggs and More for the Weekend
The weekend is here and we can't wait. Photo by Jean-Daniel Francoeur for Pexels.
Fun Things To Do
Destination Donuts reopened this weekend.
Hoof Hearted in IV turns six with a ski party.
Enjoy Exploring Art
Shop of Horrors continues at Short North Stage.
You Have Earned Bonus Stars opens at MadLab.
What else can you do this weekend?
Ohio Village is now open on the weekends. Do a cleanup to prep for Earth Day.
Thanks for reading and enjoy your weekend!
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The greatness of a community is most accurately measured by the compassionate actions of its members. ~ Coretta Scott King |
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Connie Hammond's Newsletter
Peace and Social Justice Events
Friday, April 8, 2022, 5:30 - 6:30 PM. Understanding the Large-Scale Movement of Refugees: Ambassador Dina Kawar. This conversation with Ambassador Dina Kawar will explore the movement of refugees and migrants across the world and the United Nations' role in serving the global refugee community. In light of current events in Ukraine and Afghanistan, international attention is once again focused on the movement of refugees, underscoring popular misperceptions about patterns of displacement and the response among stakeholders. Register here.
Sunday, April 10, 2022, 5:30 - 10:00 PM. My Project USA Presents: Celebration of Our Village. 8th Annual Ramadan Interfaith Iftar Dinner 2022. It takes a village to raise a child. Glory be to God, MY Project USA Family is that village for hundreds of children in Columbus. Our Village is comprised of a beautiful diverse community of Muslims and non-Muslims who have joined forces to protect and empower youths and their families over the years. This Ramadan, we will continue celebrating our village and the youth and their families that we have fostered together over the years. We will also be raising money to support our initiatives that have helped us in protecting and empowering our youth. Please join us in person to celebrate our diversity, humanity, faiths and values that have built this amazing village of ours, by breaking the bread together and listening to phenomenal, inspiring speakers. Tickets: Adults, $35; Student, $10. Location: Dublin Recreation Center, 5600 Post Road, Dublin, Ohio 43017. More information and registration here.
Monday, April 11, 2022, 5:00 PM. Demonstration for Affordable Housing Set-asides in Columbus. This is the third of three actions coordinated by the B.R.E.A.D. organization to raise awareness of the shortage of affordable housing for people with low income. The current required set-asides for housing developers do not serve people with income at or below 80% of the Area Median Income. People with lower income are just left out of the equation, and most often can't afford rent without assistance. Location: Washington Gladden Social Justice Park, 404 E. Broad St., Columbus, 43215.
Monday, April 11, 2022, 7:00 PM. Screening: President John F Kennedy's "Peace Speech.” In 1963 President John F. Kennedy made a dramatic turn toward peace and began an attempt to lead the American people out of the Cold War and toward peaceful co-existence with the Soviet Union. One of the highlights of his efforts was his speech at American University on June 10, 1963, a speech addressed to the American people about peace and what we as a people needed to do to begin moving in that direction. In that speech the President said, "What kind of peace do I mean and what kind of peace do we seek? Not a Pax Americana enforced on the world by American weapons of war. Not the peace of the grave or the security of the slave. I am talking about genuine peace -- the kind of peace that makes life on earth worth living -- the kind of peace that enables... [people] and nations to grow and to hope and to build a better life for their children -- not merely peace for Americans but peace for all men and women -- not merely peace in our time but peace in all time." Not a Pax Americana enforced on the world by American weapons of war -- The forces that killed President Kennedy were pursuing a Pax Americana that he had rejected, and with his death they were able to continue pursuing that Pax American. The current world crisis centered in Ukraine demonstrates the danger and folly of the US pursuit of world domination. One thing we must learn from President Kennedy's death is that it is not enough to have a leader who genuinely pursues peace. We must be organized as a people to demand our nation genuinely pursue peace. And in order to do this we, ordinary citizens, have to understand what genuine peace is and how to pursue it. One place to begin is by returning to the President's historic speech, studying it, and extracting from it principles of peace that we can apply today. Register here.
Monday, April 11, 2022, 12:00 - 1:00 PM. Seed Money: Monsanto's Past and Our Food Future. Join the OSU College of Arts and Sciences as Bart Elmore takes us on an authoritative and eye-opening journey into how the company Monsanto came to have outsized influence over our food system. Monsanto, a St. Louis chemical firm that became the world’s largest maker of genetically engineered seeds, merged with German pharma-biotech giant Bayer in 2018―but its Roundup Ready seeds, introduced twenty-five years ago, are still reshaping the farms that feed us. Elmore will examine Monsanto’s astounding evolution from a scrappy chemical startup to a global agribusiness powerhouse. Monsanto used seed money derived from toxic products―including PCBs and Agent Orange―to build an agricultural empire, promising endless bounty through its genetically engineered technology. More information and registration here.
Tuesday, April 12, 2022, 5:00 PM. The U.S. Green New Deal: Promises, Policies, and Prospects. Three experts will look at what the Biden administration has done, hasn’t done, and still could do to implement transformative climate action towards a Green New Deal in the United States. They will assess the state of play in Congress. And they will look at where the rubber hits the road in terms of federal funds for renewable energy, job retraining, and green infrastructure reaching states and localities around the country. More information and registration here.
April 12, 2022, 7:00 - 8:30 PM. Screening: The Wanted 19. Join Jewish Voice for Peace Central Ohio in person or online for a screening of The Wanted 18. Through a clever mix of animation and interviews, The Wanted 18 recreates an astonishing true story: the Israeli army’s pursuit of 18 cows, whose independent milk production on a Palestinian collective farm was declared “a threat to the national security of Israel.” Consequently, the dairy is forced to go underground with the Israeli army in relentless pursuit. This documentary is an enchanting, inspirational tribute to the ingenuity and power of grassroots activism and self-determination. 75 minutes. Location: Northwood High building room 100, 2231 N. High St., Columbus 43201. Free parking in “R” spaces. Register for zoom meeting here. Facebook Event.
Wednesday, April 13, 2022, 8:00 PM. Demilitarize, Decolonize, Decarbonize, a WIRN webinar. The so-called United States of America was built on the genocidal colonization of Indigenous people and the slavery of Africans. Founded on a belief in white supremacy, this violence was used to steal land, lives, resources, and labor. This legacy continues to this day. The same war industry corporations that drive our imperialism around the world are also behind the continuing exploitation of people and earth within and on our own borders. Here, as abroad, the military-industrial complex is tightly connected to the ravages of the fossil fuel industry, the uranium extraction & waste cycle, and the for-profit management of military bases. Wall Street, with its rapacious quest for profits, is the engine of it all, as it poisons our waters and threatens life on earth. This is what modern-day colonization looks like: corporate theft of resources, at the devastating expense of Indigenous peoples and Mother Earth. We say No More! Demilitarize, Decolonize Now! This webinar features three activists who themselves and their communities have first-hand experience resisting the colonial forces of the military-industrial-fossil fuel-banking complex. Our panelists are: Tara Houska is a citizen of Couchiching First Nation, a tribal attorney, land defender, environmental and Indigenous rights advocate, and founder of the Giniw Collective, an Indigenous women, two-spirit-led frontline resistance to defend the sacred and live in balance. Ms. Houska was active in resisting the Line 3 oil pipeline, the Dakota Access pipeline, and is heavily involved in the movement to defund fossil fuels. Leona Morgan (Diné, she/her) is an activist and community organizer who has been fighting nuclear colonialism since 2007. She collaborates locally, regionally, and nationally on radioactive waste issues across the nuclear fuel chain. Leona is a graduate student at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque. Mikey Inouye – Mikey Inouye is an independent filmmaker and organizer with the O’ahu Water Protectors, an organization in Hawai’i working to shut down the US Navy’s leaking Red Hill fuel tanks which continue to present an existential threat to all life on the island of O’ahu. Massachusetts Peace Action. Register here.
Thursday, April 14, 2022, 1:00 - 2:00 PM. The Perceived vs. Actual Risk of Firearm Ownership. Perceptions relating to the risks and benefits of bringing a firearm into the home may play an important role in a person’s decision to own guns, how those firearms are stored, and who else in the home is thought to have ready access to those guns. This webinar will discuss new research that examines different aspects of firearm-related risk perceptions and access to household firearms. Specifically, researchers will discuss how adults living in firearm-owning households perceive the relative likelihood of firearm-related harm (accidental or otherwise); and how adults living in firearm-owning households perceive the likelihood that kids in those homes have access to loaded firearms, and how those perceptions track with children’s actual ability to access these guns. More information and registration here.
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