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GTECHer in Germany: Day 5

This week, our Director of Operations and Programming is in Germany! Follow Evaine on a wonderful learning opportunity and journey this week. Screen Shot of Nexthamburg's website Demographics and Inclusion Our final day of programming was really about debriefing what we’ve learned and how we are going to apply it to our work at home. At 6 pm we had one final presentation and discussion with Julian Petrin from Nexthamburg. It was a conversation about demographics, inclusive and participatory planning,…

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GTECHer in Germany: Day 4

 This week, our Director of Operations and Programming is in Germany! Follow Evaine on a wonderful learning opportunity and journey this week.   Tackling the G word We arrive at Hafen City University -- a public university focused solely on the built environment and urban development -- to have a panel discussion with a few exciting guests. The panel included: Andreas Kaufmann, an urban planner from Leipzig, Germany who started his own company, Büro Kaufmann; Mei Ling Liem, a strategic advisor from…

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GTECHer in Germany: Day 3

This week, our Director of Operations and Programming is in Germany! Follow Evaine on a wonderful learning opportunity and journey this week.  Day 3: Hamburg's Youth The journey continues! Today we talked with some of the most passionate people I have every met. We spent the morning with the Director of the Land Youth Office from the Ministry of Labor, Family and Integration as well as a consultant who is working with them. They reviewed the policies and directives which guide the…

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Get to Know…Crystal Tackett

Crystal Tackett served as a ReClaim Northside Ambassador in 2014. She used her time to build a community food garden in partnership with the Salvation Army. She is also trying to give away more veggies in her neighborhood.  GTECH: Hi Crystal, so you aren't a native Pittsburgh, where are you from originally? Crystal Tackett: Saxonburg, Pa. G: What Northside neighborhood are you currently in? CT: I just bought my house in Fineview last year. Before that I lived in the…

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GTECHer in Germany: Day 2

This week, our Director of Operations and Programming is in Germany! Follow Evaine on a wonderful learning opportunity and journey this week.    DAY 2: 4 Modes of Transportation   9:00A:  Hamburg's Director of the Department of Land Use Planning, Susanne Metz, and Head of Housing, Matthias Kock, spent an engaging two hours giving us some context on the population and planning work that is being done in the city. We are learning about the Green Net plan which looks at…

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GTECH’er in Germany: Day 1

This week, our Director of Operations and Programming is in Germany! Follow Evaine on a wonderful learning opportunity and journey this week.  This week, I have the privilege of joining a Case Study Trip to Hamburg, Germany; a Cities in Transition (CIT) initiative organized by the Urban and Regional Policy Program of the German Marshall Fund of the United States and financially supported by the Kresge Foundation. The goal of this trip is to foster exchange and networking among policymakers and…

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Welcome Ambassadors

This week, GTECH welcomes 37 new ambassadors into our family through the ReClaim McKeesport, ReClaim Northside and ReEnergize Pittsburgh programs. ReClaim McKeesport ReClaim Mckeesport is GTECH's first-ever vacant land Ambassador program held outside of the city. These 11 residents are excited and ready to start reclaiming vacant lots in their neighborhoods. ReClaim Northside This is our third year working in the Northside neighborhoods. The ReClaim Northside Ambassadors are eager to learn how to transform some of the Northside's 5400 vacant lots into…

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Thank You for Attending Wet Hoptober Fest!

Cheers and thanks to all who came out and supported GTECH at the 2nd annual (sold out!) Wet Hoptober Fest. Together we raised nearly $4500 that will go towards reclaiming some of the 27,000 vacant lots in the City of Pittsburgh. PHOTOS FROM WET HOPTOBER In case you missed the event, here are a few of our favorite pictures and a few words from attendees. All photos are courtesy of East End Studios. If you'd like a full-resolution copy, please email Sara.  …

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10 Reasons Why Pittsburgh Beer Lovers Should Go To Wet Hoptober

Here are 10 good reasons to attend Wet Hoptober Fest as told through memes.  This original post appeared on beer-centric blog, Penny, Pints, Pittsburgh and is reposted with permission.    1. The hops were grown on a vacant lot in Garfield that GTECH turned into a hop oasis… Photo Credits- http://drafthouse.com/movies/the_sound_of_music_mothers_day_brunch_feast/austin  2. The wet hops were lovingly picked by real Pittsburghers’ hands… Photo Credits- www.eastendbrewing.com  3. East End Brewing Co. is supplying the beer…enough said there Photo Credits- http://frabz.com/2psi  4. Scott Smith and…

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5 Reasons We Are Working in McKeesport

ReClaiming Vacant Lots in McKeesport: 5 Reasons Why We are There. This fall, 10 McKeesport residents have the opportunity to clean and green vacant lots in their neighborhood. This is GTECH Strategies’ first vacant land Ambassador program outside of the City of Pittsburgh. In honor of that, James Snow, the project manager for ReClaim McKeesport, gives you his top five reasons why we chose to work with the City of Mckeesport to create new community green spaces.   1. The…

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Community Lens: Being an Ambassador

What it is like being a ReEnergize Ambassador Community Lens is a blog series that invites past GTECH partners to share their own experience work with us. This week former ReEnergize Ambassador, Ellie Gordon, shares with you what it was like being an Ambassador.   I was at the Kingsley Center attending a community meeting about environmental and community initiatives when I heard a presentation about ReEnergize Pittsburgh by Zaheen, the awesome Program Coordinator at GTECH Strategies. As an ardent environmentalist…

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Two Wheels Lots of Greens – A Success!

Thank You, You Keep Us Rolling Thank  you to everyone who rode their bikes or attended our pop-up community party in Larimer for Two Wheels Lots of Green.  Help us make the event even better next year and take our survey.   The Results With your help we raised over $3600 for our vacant land projects. We couldn't have done it without you! The Photos Check out all of these good looking bike riders and event attendees. Photos by East…

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