In my previous two columns, I discussed a number of ways that the City could launch composting drop-off programs, either on its own or in partnership with private composting companies. A third way forward would be an expansion of Philadelphia Parks & Recreation’s Farm Philly Community Compost Network. Based on a program in Washington, D.C.,
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portrait by Mark Likosky “Bricks and mortar alone do not build healthy and sustainable communities… the shared vision and engagement of residents into the development of the physical and quality of life planning is the key ingredient to stewardship of the community’s future.” — NR You can’t build a neighborhood or a community without building
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portrait by Mark Likosky “It’s all about finding those ways to connect with each other, and for us, that always happens around the dining room table.” — TG & HJ Some neighbors will lend you a hammer, but the really good ones will work with you to build up your community. It helps when you live
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portrait by Mark Likosky “I was privileged as a youngster to live on a North Philadelphia block with neighborhood families who celebrated and thrived on the simple aspects of life: family, clean streets, safe places for children to play, learn and love. Today, I’m sure that my work and service to the community is inspired
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portrait by Mark Likosky “Energy efficiency is such a win-win. It truly is the cleanest, cheapest, safest and fastest energy resource, and it creates the most local jobs. In a city like Philadelphia, it’s also transformative. Harnessing our energy efficiency resource will transform our energy economy and enable our wonderful old buildings to last another
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portrait by Mark Likosky “When I found myself back in my childhood neighborhood, ravaged by time, I set a course that—through guerilla gardening with children on crime-ridden parcels—has methodically proven that by reclaiming land and respecting human life, no matter how depressed, a community can recreate itself, catalyzing individual and community health.” — SW It’s time
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portrait by Mark Likosky “Amazing things happen in communities when its most resilient members—youth—are empowered to visibly take the lead in designing, building and problem-solving for its future.” — AG Any designer can draft plans. This one is drafting an army of doers, makers and earth-shakers. Alex Gilliam is the indomitable force behind the design consultancy
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portrait by Mark Likosky “The central question of whether we are going to invest in a public system that educates all of our children with equity and justice—in a city where race and poverty play so heavily into their life experiences—is not just a question about our city’s future, but our standing as a moral
MoreIllustration by Narrator Essay by Christopher Putvinski Anyone who thinks they can change the world on their own is both wrong and dangerous.” It was in early 2013 when I first heard these words from distinguished anthropologist Wade Davis. I mistakenly took it as defeatist: Was he implying that a single person wasn’t capable of
MoreWorkshop School student leader and rising sophomore Quwontay Hunter works on acarpenter project By Alex Jones Quwontay Hunter has changed a lot over the past few years. Since enrolling at the Workshop School, his teachers, mentors and mom agree: the 16-year-old rising sophomore from West Philadelphia hasn’t just grown—he’s flourished. When the friendly, soft-spoken teen
MoreKids taking a hike with the Urban Blazers program learn which berries are edible | photo by Urban Blazers by Hannah Waters The woods of Fairmount Park are haunted. There, in a dilapidated hut, lives the Green Lady, according to local legend. She roams the park with a single purpose: to steal kids who venture too
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