Speakers at Past Meetings
August 2022
Barbara Eiswerth,
Executive Director of
Iskashitaa Refugee Network
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She has worked as a research geologist specializing in GeoSpatial Information Technologies with the US Geological Survey, technology transfer in Latin America, as an environmental scientist working at the Office of Arid Lands, Arizona Remote Sensing Center. Her work included projects in East and West Africa. In 2003, after receiving her Ph.D. from the University of Arizona, Eiswerth founded a community based organization, which soon focused on UN refugees and called Iskashitaa Refugee Network. It means “working cooperatively together” in Somali. The programs have evolved from harvesting a few thousand pounds of fruit to an annual harvest of over 50 tons of fruit, nuts, and vegetables from backyards, local farms and orchards.
In addition, Iskashitaa has integrated projects including producing refugee culinary goods and sustainable crafts. We will have the opportunity of purchasing some of their homemade marmalade at the meeting. Barbara serves on the state Linking Edible Arizona Forests (LEAF) steering committee, heads the UALEAF project, and is an adjunct at the University of Arizona in the School of Natural Resources and the Environment. Read more about Iskashitaa at: http://www.iskashitaa.org.
You will find that their mission is simple. We Reduce Food Waste in So. AZ while Integrating Refugees into the Community. They are working hard to stop the rampant food waste. In the U.S. alone 80 billion pounds of food goes to waste each year. (http://www.iskashitaa.org)
July 2022
Kevin Dahl
Summer Solstice meeting at the park.
New Tucson Verde Rotary member and Ward 3 Councilman, Kevin Dahl, talking about exciting programs & projects in our communities at our June Solstice Social meeting. Club Members, Fonda and Jen, biking to the meeting on their beautiful cruisers. John leading a chant to the North, East, South, West, Sky, Earth and self.
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June 2022
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Details
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April 2022
Dr. Andrea Carter and
Ray Younghans from
Native Seed Search
Featured speakers Andrea and Ray from Native Seed Search. As the Outreach Agronomist at Native Seeds/SEARCH, Dr. Andrea Carter provides seed saving and agronomic consultation to collaborating farmers and community gardens. She received her PhD in Plant Science from the University of Arizona where she specialized in arid land agriculture and the physiology of drought tolerance in small grains. Coming from a multi-ethnic background that includes African American, Tunisian, and Native American ancestry as a member of the Powhatan Renape Nation, she believes elevating traditional agriculture and land use practices will be key to addressing agronomic challenges of the present and future.
Ray Younghans manages the Community Seed Grant program at Native Seeds, providing seeds and food-growing education to community-focused organizations in our region, such as food security projects, seed sovereignty, educational spaces, therapy/rehabilitation gardens, and other works of community wellbeing. Ray also is sorting through the archives of seeds donated to NSS over the decades, bringing some new varieties into the seed bank collection as well as channeling others into donation/rematriation throughout the region. https://www.nativeseeds.org/
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March 2022
Kenzie Jackson and Sydney Perry of UA's Compost Cats
Our March 1st club meeting was fantastic! Kenzie Jackson and Sydney Perry of UA's Compost Cats gave a presentation about composting. It was eye-opening to learn about how composting our food scraps can mitigate climate change.
Why compost?
- It diverts food waste from landfills.
- It can enhance gardens and local parks.
- It reduces environmental impact.
- It's easy, especially with the Compost Cats Bucket Program.
Compost Cats is a program through UA's Office of Sustainability. For more info, visit their website at compostcats.arizona.edu, or their Facebook page UArizona Compost Cats
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