Incorporating the Natural Landscape in Greenspace Design Posted on October 19, 2018 by wpengine Incorporating the natural landscape into the design of a project is a key element for us here at Grounded Strategies. A popular trend in natural landscape design that has evolved over the past decade is to adapt the slope of an existing hill or embankment into a surface intended for a slide. Author Jeff Link outlines the benefits of integrating the natural environment into a landscape design in his article Hill and Embankment Slides Mark a Golden Age for Playground Slides.…Read More
Sweet Serenade Posted on September 11, 2018 by wpengine My time at Grounded strategies happened purely by chance and man was it a stroke of good luck. I heard of Grounded from a Facebook advertisement after I had recently expressed interest in wanting to work on community gardens. The event was called a “Land Lab”: in which they go to different neighborhoods they want to invest in and give neighbors and stakeholders details of all the programs/resources they have to offer. After an hour of questions, jokes and heartfelt…Read More
See You Later! Posted on August 29, 2018 by wpengine I’ve been putting off writing this blog post because I’m sort of in denial that my time here at Grounded has come to an end. I started here last year at the very beginning of my grad program in Social Work and Public Administration at Pitt (seriously, I started before orientation because I just couldn’t wait). I really was not sure what I was getting myself into, but thought it would be fun. A year later and it has turned…Read More
Katherine’s Internship Experience at Grounded Posted on August 17, 2018 by wpengine My name is Katherine and I am an incoming junior Environmental Engineering student at the University of Pittsburgh. This week concludes my six-week internship at Grounded Strategies. I have enjoyed spending the past six weeks contributing in various ways ranging from working on online research to designing and building a “Gnome Home”. This internship has provided me with a wide variety of learning and career development opportunities. As I performed research for Grounded’s Gnome Messaging Project, I had the opportunity…Read More
Grandma Bev’s Green Zone Party Posted on July 12, 2018 by wpengine Joining the Grounded network last September as a CommunityCare steward Beverly Howell, also known as Grandma Bev, showed her commitment to the Homewood neighborhood and to keeping it clean and green. Prior to joining the CommunityCare program, Bev has been a long-time active resident of Homewood, and even acquired the vacant lot next to her home through the City's Adopt-a-Lot lease program. Beverly envisioned this space next to her home to be a safe haven for the children of Homewood…Read More
VOLUNTEER FEATURE: U. S. STEEL Posted on July 11, 2018 by wpengine We Love Volunteers! Through the month of June, Grounded had the pleasure of hosting U. S. Steel volunteers in Braddock to support our work at Free Store 15104. Steelworkers from Edgar Thomson Works in North Braddock and employees from the U. S. Steel procurement office came out in full force for three full workdays. Our U. S. Steel volunteers blew us away with their commitment to the project, their creative problem-solving, and their ability to keep a smile on their…Read More
Sustainability Education Posted on June 28, 2018 by wpengine We recently came across a study published in The Journal of Environmental Education focused on the effectiveness of sustainability education in four different unique schools. The study lead to interesting results about which methods of sustainability messaging are most effective at encouraging youth to be environmentally conscious members of society. Schools must immerse students in sustainable practices and possess a culture of equality and sustainability in order to impact students. After interviewing students at each of the four schools, this…Read More
Grounded’s Guide to Getting Kids Outside this Summer! Posted on June 25, 2018 by wpengine July 6th: Summer Carnival + Bantam Night - Join us at our 2nd Annual Summer Carnival and Bantam Night at the Wiggle Whiskey Barrel House and Whiskey Garden. This event is for the whole family! Play carnival games, listen to live music, and enjoy food from Gaucho's food truck. Check out one of our many Green Playces! Green Playces are hives of education, innovation, creativity, science and, most importantly, play. Grounded has partnered with organizations and schools throughout Allegheny County…Read More
Ambassador Highlight – Natalie Thomas Posted on May 23, 2018 by wpengine Natalie Thomas joined the Grounded network as a ReClaim South Ambassador in the 2013-2014 year and was involved again in the ReClaim South 2.0 Sustaining Momentum program in 2015-2016. Through the Ambassador program, Ms. Natalie created a community garden on a vacant lot in Beltzhoover to share with the community and engage children living in Beltzhoover. Recently, the Grounded staff visited Natalie's site for a workday to spruce it up and get it ready for the summer. The entire staff,…Read More
Commodification of Kindness Posted on May 11, 2018 by wpengine We recently came across a BBC News video that shares the story of a UK-based concept of digital currency created in the city of Hull. The digital currency rewards people for doing good, or for doing volunteer work in their community. The rewards are non-monetary payments that allow volunteers to shop at participating stores and businesses for a discounted price. People who volunteer don’t usually get rewarded in this way. The creator of this digital currency in Hull calls this a commodification…Read More
Grounded & Propel Andrew Street High School: Bringing Green Playces to Life. Posted on May 10, 2018 by wpengine This Spring, Grounded Strategies had the chance to revisit one of our Green Playces: Student Ambassador projects at a vacant lot owned by Propel Andrew Street High School in Homestead. Last fall, the Green Playces: Student Ambassador project worked weekly with Propel students to learn environmental justice principles and apply them to the vacant lot project. On April 13, 3 Propel staff, 17 students, 6 alumni, and 2 Grounded staff picked up paint brushes, wheelbarrows and went to work. We…Read More
What IS a Green Playce? …Fast Facts on this exciting program Posted on March 30, 2018 by wpengine The Green Playces Initiative is Grounded Strategies' youth-based programming and placemaking program. Our origins The Green Playces Initiative was formed out of research we conducted in 2014 that examined the prevalence of environmental education opportunities for youth in neighborhoods with high levels of vacancy, which yielded the Youth in Green report. Why Green Playces matter There is a growing body of evidence that tells us how important it is for youth to connect with their outdoor environment. Improvements in behavior,…Read More