Illustration by Nicholas Massarelli Swarthmore students helped spark a national movement toward fossil fuel divestment. But their own school has yet to take action. by Steve Neumann When freshman Kate Aronoff arrived in 2010 on the small, idyllic campus of Swarthmore College, a “Little Ivy” tucked away in the suburbs of Philadelphia, she was already
Moreby Marilyn Anthony For inquisitive kids who can appreciate the magical aspects of science, it’s hard to imagine a more engrossing summer playground than the Franklin Institute. FI’s summer Discovery Camp boasts, “We have FUN down to a science” and the extensive, imaginative programming seems to support their claim. The Science Adventures program kicks off
Moreby Marilyn Anthony The hacktory’s staff believes that the best way to understand things is by “repurposing, decoupling, breaking and rearranging them from their intended use.” It’s fitting that the Hacktory Summer Camp is a “do-ocracy,” repurposing “democracy” just as the West Philadelphia nonprofit organization created its name by melding “hack” and “factory.” There’s more
Moreby Marilyn Anthony In the heat of summer, everyone wants to be near water, and City Wild offers plenty of it. Campers gather each day of the two-week sessions at the Fairmount Waterworks, then set off by van for points around the city, including Dilworth Park and the John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge. Afternoons at
MoreScience & Sustainability Academy Explorers CampThe Academy of Natural Sciences introduces two new educational camps this year for teens who love the great outdoors. In Invertebrate Camp, participants can meet live insects and learn about basic handling and care, get an up-close look at the animals from the academy’s invertebrate collection, venture into invertebrate-rich local
MoreIllustration by Max Gordon. Money Matters by Pamela J. Rich-Wheeler The barriers small businesses face are many, no matter where they are located, and one of the biggest is lack of access to capital. This is a particular problem for minorities and women who do not often have the luxury of wealth transfer as a
MorePhillyEarth permaculture students at the Village of Arts and Humanities stand with their teacher, Jon Hopkins (center) in the middle of their garden | photos by Jared Gruenwald By Marilyn Anthony The cob oven, hand-built from Warnock Street clay, was nearly finished when it suddenly collapsed. Jon Hopkins, Director of the PhillyEarth project thought, “Oh my
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Free Library of Philadelphia President Siobhan Reardon | photo by Jon Roemer By Marilyn Anthony In 2008, Siobhan Reardon, the first female president of the Free Library of Philadelphia, had some challenging ingredients to work with when she arrived: a 30 percent budget cut, a stalled capital campaign, pressure to close many neighborhood libraries and the astounding
MoreElementary students at the Schuylkill Center for Environmental Education get down in the mud during a hike | photo by Rebecca Dhondt by Justin Klugh As a child, environmental leader Mike Weilbacher can remember getting lost in the pine woods of Long Island. “That was our home,” he recalls. “We’d go off, two miles away from
MoreScott Blunk teaches Theresa Harter, a junior, how to work a loader at W.B. Saul High School in Roxborough. | Photos by Stephen Dyer
Compost expert and volunteer teacher makes educational programs possible for high school students
The compost pile at W.B. Saul High School in Roxborogh is about the size of a school bus—and that’s