Uploaded July 2023 | Updated September 2026, 4 days ago
This panel was one of several discussions and presentations hosted during Redesigning Our Communities for Life After Fossil Fuels on Saturday, March 25, 2023 with Cleveland community leaders. This event was the fourth in a series of six events hosted virtually and in-person in communities throughout the U.S. and Canada - bio4climate.org/roc.
The purpose of the series is to educate residents in each community on our predicament of declining fossil fuels, the power of ecosystem restoration to cool our communities and the planet, the urgent need to grow more food locally, and the strategies local leaders are using to redesign our communities for life after fossil fuels.
It’s time to scale way back, redesign how we’re living and roll up our sleeves to restore our ecosystems, soil, biodiversity and connections with our neighbors. As we learn and take action on how to live within the Earth’s limits, it’s vital that we co-invent and redesign our new lifestyles together with all members of our communities, especially our under-resourced community members, who are often the most seriously impacted by the climate and other crises. Let’s include everyone in the conversations, the plans, and the funding. We must move forward by coming together, learning from one another, and supporting each other as we strengthen our resilience and face the challenges ahead.
Stay tuned to register for our next event this fall 2023 with community leaders in Corvallis, Oregon and the surrounding region. This will be followed by our final event in the spring of 2024 with community leaders in Toronto, Ontario, Canada and the surrounding area.
More Details on this Panel Discussion:
Four panelists from the Greater Cleveland area introduce their work and discuss:
What problems exist in our food infrastructure? How do we take back power as communities? How do we make space for our communities to truly thrive?
What efforts exist to go beyond growing corn and soy in the region, to connect folks to more diverse palates of food, especially ancestral foods?
Could you tell us about your work with young people? Are the youth gravitating towards your programs?
Moderator:
Jess Alvarez-Parfrey, Executive Director, Transition U.S., Justice, Equity, Decolonization, and Imagination (JEDI) Consultant
Panelists:
Ismail Samad, Co-Founder, Loiter, Chef, Social Entrepreneur, Closed Loop Food Systems Expert
Mikki Smith, CEO, MLSJ Consulting LLC, Executive Director, Little Africa Food Collaborative, Education Associate, Food Strong
Jessica Vallejo, Secretary, The Committee of 500 Years of Dignity and Resistance, Board Member, Lake Erie Native American Council (LENAC)
Marc White, Founding Partner, Rid-All Farm Operations Manager, Rid-All Green Partnership, Fashion Designer, Regenerative Specialist and Farmer
National Hosts:
Biodiversity for a Livable Climate - bio4climate.org
Post Carbon Institute - postcarbon.org and resilience.org
Cleveland Hosts:
Glenn Gall - Local event coordinator
Food Strong - foodstrong.org
Little Africa Food Collaborative - facebook.com/littleafricafco
Sponsors:
Transition U.S. - transitionus.org
Cedar Lane Ecosystem Studies Group - cedarlane.org/ecosystemsstudygroup
Cottingham Farm - cottinghamfarm.com
MiniForest LA - miniforestla.com
Neighborhood Villaging - villaging.us
Partners:
Blue Rock Station - bluerockstation.com
EcoRestoration Alliance - ecorestorationalliance.org
Food Not Lawns Cleveland - facebook.com/people/Food-Not-Lawns-Cleveland/100069705847401/?paipv=0&eav=AfZwBQxcDDByyMMxGPSq-KIZxHLTmusbN-gvT2m8O-0en7nmPPgnNyA_BHdRBav4lMA&_rdr
Kelly's Working Well Farm - morethanafarm.org
Little Africa Food Co-operative - littleafricafco.com
Loiter - loiter.us
Mongol Tribe - mongoltribe.org
Red Beet Row - redbeetrow.com
Reeds and Roots - reedsandroots.org
Rid-All Green Partnership - ridall.org
Uncle Mud - unclemud.com
Village Family Farms - facebook.com/villagefamilyfarms
Past events:
Montgomery County, Maryland - September 10, 2022
bio4climate.org/redesigning-our-communities-for-life-after-fossil-fuels-september-10
Kansas City, Missouri/Kansas - November 12, 2022
bio4climate.org/redesigning-our-communities-for-life-after-fossil-fuels-november-12
Los Angeles, California - January 21, 2023
bio4climate.org/redesigning-our-communities-for-life-after-fossil-fuels-january-21-2023
Cleveland, Ohio - March 25, 2023
bio4climate.org/redesigning-our-communities-for-life-after-fossil-fuels-march-25-2023
To receive updates on these and other events and a free download on 10 Ways You Can Restore the Planet, sign up bio4climate.org/10-ways-you-can-restore-the-planet/.
Connect with us on Social Media:
Facebook: facebook.com/bio4climate
Instagram: instagram.com/bio4climate
This event was recorded on March 25, 2023.
This panel was one of several discussions and presentations hosted during Redesigning Our Communities for Life After Fossil Fuels on Saturday, March 25, 2023 with Cleveland community leaders. This event was the fourth in a series of six events hosted virtually and in-person in communities throughout the U.S. and Canada - bio4climate.org/roc.
The purpose of the series is to educate residents in each community on our predicament of declining fossil fuels, the power of ecosystem restoration to cool our communities and the planet, the urgent need to grow more food locally, and the strategies local leaders are using to redesign our communities for life after fossil fuels.
It’s time to scale way back, redesign how we’re living and roll up our sleeves to restore our ecosystems, soil, biodiversity and connections with our neighbors. As we learn and take action on how to live within the Earth’s limits, it’s vital that we co-invent and redesign our new lifestyles together with all members of our communities, especially our under-resourced community members, who are often the most seriously impacted by the climate and other crises. Let’s include everyone in the conversations, the plans, and the funding. We must move forward by coming together, learning from one another, and supporting each other as we strengthen our resilience and face the challenges ahead.
Stay tuned to register for our next event this fall 2023 with community leaders in Corvallis, Oregon and the surrounding region. This will be followed by our final event in the spring of 2024 with community leaders in Toronto, Ontario, Canada and the surrounding area.
More Details on this Panel Discussion:
Four panelists from the Greater Cleveland area introduce their work and discuss:
What problems exist in our food infrastructure? How do we take back power as communities? How do we make space for our communities to truly thrive?
What efforts exist to go beyond growing corn and soy in the region, to connect folks to more diverse palates of food, especially ancestral foods?
Could you tell us about your work with young people? Are the youth gravitating towards your programs?
Moderator:
Jess Alvarez-Parfrey, Executive Director, Transition U.S., Justice, Equity, Decolonization, and Imagination (JEDI) Consultant
Panelists:
Ismail Samad, Co-Founder, Loiter, Chef, Social Entrepreneur, Closed Loop Food Systems Expert
Mikki Smith, CEO, MLSJ Consulting LLC, Executive Director, Little Africa Food Collaborative, Education Associate, Food Strong
Jessica Vallejo, Secretary, The Committee of 500 Years of Dignity and Resistance, Board Member, Lake Erie Native American Council (LENAC)
Marc White, Founding Partner, Rid-All Farm Operations Manager, Rid-All Green Partnership, Fashion Designer, Regenerative Specialist and Farmer
National Hosts:
Biodiversity for a Livable Climate - bio4climate.org
Post Carbon Institute - postcarbon.org and resilience.org
Cleveland Hosts:
Glenn Gall - Local event coordinator
Food Strong - foodstrong.org
Little Africa Food Collaborative - facebook.com/littleafricafco
Sponsors:
Transition U.S. - transitionus.org
Cedar Lane Ecosystem Studies Group - cedarlane.org/ecosystemsstudygroup
Cottingham Farm - cottinghamfarm.com
MiniForest LA - miniforestla.com
Neighborhood Villaging - villaging.us
Partners:
Blue Rock Station - bluerockstation.com
EcoRestoration Alliance - ecorestorationalliance.org
Food Not Lawns Cleveland - facebook.com/people/Food-Not-Lawns-Cleveland/100069705847401/?paipv=0&eav=AfZwBQxcDDByyMMxGPSq-KIZxHLTmusbN-gvT2m8O-0en7nmPPgnNyA_BHdRBav4lMA&_rdr
Kelly's Working Well Farm - morethanafarm.org
Little Africa Food Co-operative - littleafricafco.com
Loiter - loiter.us
Mongol Tribe - mongoltribe.org
Red Beet Row - redbeetrow.com
Reeds and Roots - reedsandroots.org
Rid-All Green Partnership - ridall.org
Uncle Mud - unclemud.com
Village Family Farms - facebook.com/villagefamilyfarms
Past events:
Montgomery County, Maryland - September 10, 2022
bio4climate.org/redesigning-our-communities-for-life-after-fossil-fuels-september-10
Kansas City, Missouri/Kansas - November 12, 2022
bio4climate.org/redesigning-our-communities-for-life-after-fossil-fuels-november-12
Los Angeles, California - January 21, 2023
bio4climate.org/redesigning-our-communities-for-life-after-fossil-fuels-january-21-2023
Cleveland, Ohio - March 25, 2023
bio4climate.org/redesigning-our-communities-for-life-after-fossil-fuels-march-25-2023
To receive updates on these and other events and a free download on 10 Ways You Can Restore the Planet, sign up bio4climate.org/10-ways-you-can-restore-the-planet/.
Connect with us on Social Media:
Facebook: facebook.com/bio4climate
Instagram: instagram.com/bio4climate
This event was recorded on March 25, 2023.
