Justicelist

5/10 2008 Peace & Global Citizenship Fair

WHAT:

BCTC's Peace & Justice Coalition presents

2008 Peace & Global Citizenship Fair

2008 Theme: Human Rights

(in recognition of the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights).

WHEN:

Noon - 8 p.m. Saturday

May 10

WHERE:

Bluegrass Community & Technical College - Cooper Campus

Directly North of Commonwealth Stadium

470 Cooper Drive

Lexington

This campus is directly north of Commonwealth Stadium. Bus routes #3, 33, 34, and 35 come by the campus or close to it.

PURPOSE:

To educate about cultures around the world and to energize/inform about sustainable living, in an atmosphere of fun and joy.

Register your organization today.  Click here for the booth registration form.

Registration and the fair are both free & open to all.

DETAILS:

The Bluegrass shares common challenges with communities around the United States, and the world. Many struggle with less than living wages, intolerance of the “other” is common, access to health care is problematic for many, traffic congestion and pollution are ubiquitous, sprawl is eating into our farmland, the Kentucky River is polluted with biological and other wastes, and so on. On the other hand, Lexington, Kentucky was recently rated as the 25th “greenest” city in the U.S. The City/County Council unanimously approved a resolution on global climate change, we have a new “yellow bike” program, we have nice parks in all parts of town, community gardens are springing up, a 2040 visioning process is underway, and many other initiatives are at various stages of implementation. Throughout the Bluegrass, momentum seems to be building for our communities to stop, consider, and create a future built on living in an ecologically, socially, and economically sustainable manner.

As one step in moving our communities toward a future that we choose, a future based upon community, sustainability, justice, and tolerance, the PJC is for the third year organizing the Peace and Global Citizenship Fair. Started in 2006, the annual fair aims to help teach members of the community – young and old alike – about living in an ecologically and socially sustainable manner. A second goal of the fair is to increase our collective knowledge and understanding of cultures around the world. This year the theme will be human rights, as 2008 marks the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The idea is to create an atmosphere of joy and fun, in which to learn and experience. The venue is a surprisingly pretty place – the grounds of Bluegrass Community and Technical College.

A snapshot of the 2008 fair:

• This year’s poster will incorporate one of the lovely community paintings facilitated by CitizensCreate!

• Music will be provided by the Big Maracas, Water, the Lexington Children’s Drum Choir, Lost Dog, Jen Rose and the Kentucky Bootleggers, Wes Houp and High Bridge, What Happened When, and Pangaea Drums.

• Food to be provided by Terrapin Hill Farm and Slow Food Bluegrass.

• Colorful Children for Peace banners will decorate the grounds.

• Activities in the areas of alternative transportation, food and gardening, environment and the Bluegrass bioregion, peace, spirituality, global cultures, health and well-being, youth, Mother’s Day, social justice, and art are planned.

• Surprises, of course!

You are invited to participate…

We would like for you / your group to have a booth at the fair. There is no charge for participation. The booths may be set up between 10:45 and 11:45 a.m. and taken down at 8:00 p.m.

We want people to come to the fair and find it so energizing, informative, and fun that they stay most (if not all) day. To engage people in such a way, we would like for all of the participants to plan one (or more) activity for the day. The activity doesn’t have to be anything fancy, just informative and enjoyable. Activities run the gamut from quizzing on eco-knowledge, working with medicinal plants, designing productive urban gardens, creating collages about peace, leading tree ID tours, training small groups about how to get involved in promoting social justice issues in Kentucky, … to teaching people how to knit or mix non-toxic cleaners to … selling farm products, native plants, or fair trade items, and lots in between.

For those who plan to sell something at the fair, we ask that it be some combination of local, organic / ecologically sound, handmade in a sustainable manner, fairly traded, and educational and that a portion of the proceeds be earmarked for local farmers or for a community non-profit that does good works. It would be nice to post the name of the beneficiary at your booth.

Due to severe budget constraints, we ask that you bring your own pop-up canopy and chairs, if at all possible. If you cannot, we can provide a covering, one table, and two chairs per group.

Announcing the 2008 Peace Art Contest

For the third year, Bluegrass Community and Technical College’s (BCTC) Peace and Justice Coalition is hosting the Children for Peace art contest. All K-8 classrooms and groups (scout, church, and activity) are eligible to participate.   Click here for details.   

SPONSORS:

Bluegrass Community and Technical College’s Peace and Justice Coalition.

Co-sponsors

Central Kentucky Council for Peace and Justice

Kentuckians for the Commonwealth

Sustainable Communities Network

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:

Rebecca Glasscock

(859) 246-6319

Volunteer Opportunities: Community Gardenes

WHAT:

The Sustainable Communities Network

volunteer opportunities

Community Gardens

WHEN:

Spring

WHERE:

Urban gardens all over Lexington

DETAILS:

The daffodils, crocuses, the forsythia, and dandelions are blooming .......so it must be SPRING TIME!!!...and if it is Spring time..then it is time to work and play in the Community Gardens!

Listed below are summaries of ten community gardens in Lexington.  In the next few days there are work opportunities at five of these gardens.  These include: Winburn Community Art Garden, Dunbar Memorial Garden, London Ferrill Community Garden, Southland Community Garden, and Nelson Avenue Art Garden.  If you have not joined a church home...or rather a Community garden home...then come join the fun ..get your hands dirty,...meet new friends...help create Gardens of Eating. 

We welcome better descriptions/contact info for future web posting. If you know of other community gardens please let us know location/contact persons so we can post on our website Sustainlex.org .   As you can see there is an urban gardening movement emerging in Lexington!!!

SPRING GARDEN PARTIES!

1) Winburn Community Art Garden

Location: Community Action Council at 1169 Winburn Drive.

The Winburn Garden begun fall 2007 is a collaborative effort between the Community Action Council, the Winburn Neighborhood Association, Russell Cave Elementary,  Sustainable Communities Network, Northeast Lexington Initiative, and other individuals and businesses in the community. Children and adults are working side-by-side to create a beautiful  and communal space. Our beautiful mural is the product of the UNESCO Art Miles Project coordinated locally by Jarah Jones and our native plants were furnished by Shooting Star Nursery . All art work and structures were completed using found objects as we stress the need to recycle and reuse to our youth (and ourselves!). We received pavers from kindred friends of the Dunbar Memorial Garden and placed these around trees to use as raised beds.  Last fall we planted bulbs and they are peeping their cute heads out of the ground! Peas and lettuce were planted the last few weeks.

Join us!  Several volunteers from UK, County Court and others will be present to help.  Bring tools...donations of trees...veggie plants..flowers....seeds. The work will continue each Saturday in April and May 1pm -3pm. 

For more information, contact: Catrena Lewis CLewis@commaction.org, Carloyn Benford, 221-9901,or jim embry  jgembr0@cs.com .  Click here to view pictures of Winburn Community Garden.      

2) Paul Laurence Dunbar High School Memorial Garden

Reason and purpose: In the Fall of 2006 our students mourned the loss of a fellow student and friend named Josh Shipman. Realizing that they needed to find a way to not only express their sorrow but to celebrate this young mans life, the Gay-Straight Alliance requested a location at the school in which to plant a garden. While still in the planning stages, one of the GSA's own members, Jesse Higginbotham, was involved in an auto accident on the way to school on April 18, 2007 that took his young life. Together with members of the school including several clubs and organizations as well as with the help of many members of the Lexington community, the garden design has been crafted and on June 25th received approval by the Fayette County School Board.

The aim of the garden is to provide a place of sanctuary and beauty to the students of Dunbar as well as to the many family members and friends of the young ones who are no longer among us. It will be an ongoing project that will grow and take shape in other directions-providing a place to not only honor these people but also affording a creative outlet and an educational experience. Students and adults will work together learning proper planting techniques and discovering the ecological benefits of using native plants.  Click here to see photos of the Dunbar Memorial Garden.

For more information, contact: Rebecca Woloch rwolochxxx@gmail.com.

3) London Ferrill Community Garden * 

Location: between the Fire Station and Cemetery on East Third St. Named for London Ferrill who is buried in the Cemetery.

At this time the plots will be tilled, participant application/contracts will be given out, and assign individual garden plots.   As of this Saturday, individuals can begin planting.  Click here to view photos of the London Ferrill Community Garden. 

For more information, contact: Sherry or Geoff Maddock: geoffandsherry@yahoo.com or 559.3837

*New in 08

4) Southland Community Garden *

Location: The garden sits in Hill N Dale Park (LFUCG) off of Southview and Fairview Drs. near Southland Dr.

Garden plots will be assigned, compost will be delivered and placed in raised beds, seeds exchanged, and fun!. This past Monday 10 raised beds were constructed with support from LFUCG City Council and Parks Dept., Neighborhood Association and community residents.  Click here to view photos of the Southland Community Garden.

For more information, contact: Mason Colby mason.colby@gmail.com .   

*New in 08

5) The Rock / La Roca (United Methodist Church) 

Location: 1015 N Limestone; In 2007 La Roca had gardens behind Arlington Elementary, on Price Ave and Todds Rd.

Members of the church and surrounding community planted their garden together in April 2007. Since the original work days dedicated to planting, the garden was tended by neighbors from the community and in the spare time of those who work at and attend La Roca. The garden contained a variety of vegetables: tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, and beans. Church leaders harvested vegetables and distributed them to neighbors. Community members were encouraged to harvest and use the vegetables themselves.  Rev. Aaron and his congregation invited other houses of worship to find God in the garden and to create Gardens of Eating.  You can see pictures of this garden in the at Community Garden Tour 2007.  Click here to take the tour.   

For more information, contact Rev. Aaron Mansfield; mansfieldclan@juno.com or (859) 255-0712. 

6) Nelson Avenue Art Garden 

Location: 318 Nelson Ave off of E Third St and Midland Ave.

The Nelson Avenue garden was begun in April as a project of the Youth GreenCorps (SCN,NELI) in collaboration with the Nelson Avenue community. In the spring of 07 the YGC worked together on the garden on Saturday mornings. Compost and mulch were donated by the Great Mulch Company on Midland Place and two pieces of art from recycled objects and bicycle parts were donated by local artists. Since the original planting and work days of the spring, the garden has been tended largely by youth of the community. Rakim Baker joyfully accepts the responsibility of cutting the grass every week. The garden contains a variety of different flowers, herbs, and vegetables in addition to various art projects and a horseshoe pit in the back. The Nelson Avenue Artgarden is connected in spirit to the Isaac Murphy Memorial Art Garden on Third St. and Midland, an idea that is still in the final design and capital funding stages but is intended to commemorate the contributions of Isaac Murphy and other African American jockeys to the history of Lexington and the horse racing industry, as well as be an active site for the community garden movement in Lexington.  Click here to see photos of the Youth GreenCorps working on this garden. 

For more information, contact Contact: BruceMundy BruceMundy46....@yahoo.com or (859) 494-4883. 

7) Booker T. Washington Academy

Location: 475 Price Rd.

Booker T. Washington Academy school garden began spring 2007 and is used as part of school science curriculum. The school children have planted greens, lettuces, radishes and more...have eaten the produce in school and have taken some home.  Last fall 07100's of flower bulbs purchased from a kind donation were planted and these flowers are also peeping their cute heads out of the ground! Spring planting will begin soon.

For more information, contact  Alva Clark alvamc@gmail.com

8) Ballard Griffith Towers

Location: 300 West Second Street; part of Lexington Housing Authority.

The garden at Ballard Griffith Towers was established around 1998 in conjunction with the building's most recent renovation. It consists of several raised beds and a very beautiful pond full of water lilies and other aquatic plants, as well as many large koi fish. The garden and pond are cared for by several of the Towers' residents, and the vegetables harvested from the beds are shared among the people who live there.  You can see pictures of this garden in the at Community Garden Tour 2007.  Click here to take the tour.     

For more information, Carolyn Smith, 859-281-5091 

9) West End Community Empowerment Project (WECEP) 

Location: Black and Williams Center 498 Georgetown St.

The Youth GreenCorps teamed up with the 70+ youth of WECEP's summer program the week of July 9th to re-establish a community garden and create art projects on the grounds of the Black and Williams Center. We planted flowers and tomatoes in existing beds and built raised beds for plants. Older students helped build a picnic table in the shape of a turtle using straw bale construction, and another group painted murals on pieces of plywood and a mailbox. The design of the turtle was selected in our desire to connect with the Native American tradition of referring to the North American continent as Turtle Island. You can see pictures of this garden in the at Community Garden Tour 2007.  Click here to take the tour.

For more information contact: Melvin Cowan wecepvista2@yahoo.com or Dora Hudson (859) 255-0926.

10) Lexington Senior Center

Location: (Nicholasville Road/Alumni Drive)

The garden at the Senior Center has been in place for about 6 to 8 years. It is tended by the senior citizens who come to the center area. The produce that is harvested from the garden is shared among them.  You can see pictures of this garden in the at Community Garden Tour 2007.  Click here to take the tour.

For more information contact: Chris Strecker chrisstrecker@hotmail.com or Bruce Burris (latitudearts@yahoo.com).

Community Garden Tour 2008

Last year 2007 Sustainable Commuities Network in collaboration with other community groups organized the Lexington Community Garden Tour that involved 5 garden sites and more than 200 people including friends who attended from Bowling Green. This year the projected date for the tour is Thursday August 7....with a local foods meal to follow the Tour.   Call Jim Embry if you want to participate or help organize for this event this year. 

SPONSOR:

Sustainable Communities Network

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:

Jim Embry

859-312-7024