Greenspaces Foster Resilience and Combat Climate Change Posted on November 2, 2018 by wpengine Grounded Strategies is committed to the sustainable development of greenspaces in Pittsburgh neighborhoods. With the input and help of community partners and members, we work hard to ensure that our projects are community-led and foster neighborhood coalition. We believe that greenspaces foster community resilience by facilitating the strengthening of social connections, reducing stress, restoring cognition, and being physically active. Not only do greenspaces benefit individuals and the community, they also benefit the environment and, according to writer Jared Green, act…Read More
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
Pitt 1st Years are Grounded in Homewood Posted on September 17, 2018 by Masoud Sayles As part of their orientation process at the start of the fall semester, first years at Pitt joined Grounded in Homewood for a day of service. We worked together on a litter cleanup, while engaging in thought provoking discussions about the ties between refuse, home abandonment, poverty, and access to green space. Our litter cleanup also served as a walking tour of the neighborhood, to show areas where Grounded has already built a presence, as well as areas…Read More
Grounded in Clairton Posted on August 8, 2018 by Masoud Sayles Grounded Strategies continues to support the Clairton Community as part of our ReClaim Ambassador program. Recently, we’ve been working with our Ambassadors Toni and Felix on sprucing up their sites. After a winter with lots of temperature fluctuations, Felix’s doorways at Communications Park had shifted, so we gave them a little love, squaring up their sashes and priming the ground for his sunflower walls. Just down the street at Clairton CommUnity Garden, Toni has been hustling and bustling getting the…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
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 in Milwaukee Posted on June 20, 2018 by Grounded Strategies In May, members of the Grounded team headed to Milwaukee to attend the Reclaiming Vacant Properties (RVP) conference. This year’s theme was Groundswell: Rising to the Challenge. The conference brought together grassroots leaders, community development professionals, program coordinators, and policymakers to exchange ideas on revitalizing distressed communities. Speakers and attendees shared insights on ways their communities are eliminating blight as we scribbled away furiously taking notes and we shared our own stories on how Pittsburgh is stabilizing and reclaiming vacant property. Grounded…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
Birthday Giving Posted on April 30, 2018 by shequaya Bailey Grounded staffer, Shequaya, had the opportunity to correspond with Sarah Roberson who recently decided to dedicate her birthday to us on Facebook and that campaign raised a whopping $540. People like Sarah who are willing to donate time and/or money truly help to sustain the work we do. How did you first come to contact with Grounded Strategies? I found Grounded back in 2015 when I was looking for local Pittsburgh nonprofit groups to organize volunteer groups for my employer. How…Read More
Jump start your Spring with Land Lab! Posted on March 23, 2018 by Masoud Sayles Following up on our work in Larimer during the previous year, Land Lab was back just in time for the 2018 growing season. Reinforcing our commitment to reinvigorating vacant lots throughout the city, Grounded hosted “Blight Doctors” for 1-on-1 discussions on vacant land issues, in addition to offering participant selected content geared toward educating attendees on a variety of solutions to vacant land issues. Our list of modules included: Sustainable Planning 101: Designing Within a Realistic Scope - Content focused…Read More