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Albany Skill Share 2007
September 29th
10-5pm
8 Elm St.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Demystifying Bread - A Bread Baking Workshop, Facilitator: Betsy Mercogliano (1:30p - 3p; 4 Wilbur St. Lot)

Often, people say to me that making bread seems so challenging, where for me it is easy, fun, creative and meditative, honestly. So, let's make bread together and bake it in our outdoor, community oven. This will be yeasted, wheat-based bread, though alternatives will be discussed. We will eat bread together by the end of the afternoon!

Betsy Mercogliano, amateur bread enthusiast!

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Theatre of the Oppressed, Facilitator: Mike Guidice (1:30pm - 3; 8 Elm St. 1st Floor)

Theater of the oppressed is a process of dialogue. It is to know and transform both the position of the oppressed and the oppressor. Our lives and our relationships in the modren world have become mechanized, our bodies have become the vessels for rituals that perpetuate oppression and violence. Theater of the oppressed is a system of games and techniques that seeks to cast light on these rituals and undo this mechanization. From here we are then free to dialoque and explore our uniques relationships to oppression and our individual and collective paths
towards libaration.

Mike Guidice lives on grand street and has been part of the albany free school for 7 yrs. He is the father of a wonderful daughter and enjoys late night games of hearts. Recently He has been developing his role as a theater of the oppressed facilitator/joker working with several different communities and organizations. He hopes to continue to use theater of the oppressed as a tool to uncover our relationship to oppression and mutually find the road toward liberation.

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Urban Gardening, Facilitator: Leah Penniman (11a - 12:30p; 105 Grand St. 1st Floor)

It is possible and relatively simple to grow 50-100% of your vegetables and fruits, year round, in a small garden plot and on your kitchen counter. Join us for a tour of some of the urban gardens of this neighborhood. We will discuss special considerations for urban growing and taste some of the bounty.

Leah Penniman has been growing food on organic farms and in urban gardens for 11 seasons. She also teaches high school biology, mothers two children, and speaks up for social justice.

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Wilderness Skills: Tracking, Facilitator: Dan Yacobellis (3:30p - 5p; 98 Grand St. Rear)

Dan Yacobellis, wilderness skills educator and tracker will take you through the back yard and alley of 98 grand st. and show you what and how to look for signs
of recent animal activity. we'll also take a trip into the inner world of nature awareness to see how the animals communicate with each other to keep aware of any
possible dangers as they go about there daily business.

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Simple Solar, Facilitator: Jessica Baldwin (11a - 12:30p; Meet at 98 Grand St. Porch)

With a sun in the solar system, very little technical background, a phone number to order with and the same amount of money you would spend on a rent deposit, all your basic electrical needs can be supplied by photovoltaic panels by next week I will make diagrams on how to install panels and charge controller, talk about Amps and watts, make sure everyone can put on wire nuts, provide phone numbers to get catalogs and do a rough price breakdown.

Jessica Baldwin is a plumber, motherartist born and raised in upstate NY. Her goal is to not submit to modern standards until and unless she has discovered the fundamentals on an individual level which govern the way by which to function in a sustainable culture.

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Rain Barrels, Facilitator: Anthony Littlejohn (11a - 12:30p; 98 Grand St. Rear)

[Anthony will be rebuilding the rain barrel setup behind the Ironweed House at 98 Grand St.]

My name is Anthony Littlejohn, I live around the corner @ 7 Elm, and I like (crossed out) love it when things work the first time.

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Build A Bike Trailer, Facilitator: Troy Bike Rescue (1:30p - 3p; 15 Trinity Place)

TBR is a bicycle recycling collective founded in 2001. We collect, repair, recycle, and redistribute bikes in the capital region.We also build monster bikes, pedal powered machines, and other
bikely things. This workshop will be focused on building trailers, which have utilitarian and safety value on the road. Three welders of varying skill and experience will be on hand to assist attendees with their creations. Many of you have probably seen the TBR tallbike/freakbikes around town, and can look forward to having unique and useful machines to assist with lugging
free stuff, grocery shopping, attention grabbing, or anything else you can think of."

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How to Influence City Politics, Tom McPheeters (1:30p - 3p; 15 Trinity Place)

My topic is "influence city politics." What that means, to me, is understanding how power is held and used in the city, and also in the county and state governments, and understanding how to be in
relationship with power when appropriate and how to influence and impact power at other times. This is almost second nature to free school teachers and supporters because they have had to navigate the power relationships of city government and also the education and health bureaucracy for many years. We also relate to power in advocating for our neighborhood and the people who live in it, as well as our work on larger issues.

My understanding of political power was shaped by about 25 years as a newspaper reporter and editor, most if it in this area, and my understanding of community power was shaped by my training in community organizing through ARISE, which is a faith-based community organizing project that follows the principles laid out by Saul Alinsky fifty years ago. I am currently the executive director of Grand Street Community Arts and the neighborhood representative to the South End Action Committee. I also have served as a Democratic committeeman.

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Intro to Wild Edibles, Facilitator: Liz Wagner (1:30p - 3p, 98 Grand St.)

Every good relationship starts with an introduction. Emphasizing quality over quantity of plant meet-and-greets, we'll whet your appetite for your edible neighborhood dwellers. This class caters to beginners, but even if you've been into plants you may learn something about getting to know your old friends a bit better and you are very welcome to share what you know.

Liz Wagner is a life-long lover of woods and wild places, who got into wild edibles after a summer of mass-murdering "weeds" on a Vermont farm. She lives in Grafton, NY today, where her garden this year has been more weeds than vegetables.

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Rocket Stoves, Facilitator: Skotty Kellog (11a-12:30p; 4 Wilbur St. Lot )

Rocket stoves are portable, high efficiency insulated cook stoves built from recycled materials that can cook food using relatively small amounts of wood. In this workshop, we'll build one.

Scott Kellogg is a co-founder of the Rhizome Collective in Ausin, Tx, and resides part of the year in Albany. He is the facilitator of the RUST (Radical Urban Sustainability Training)and is a dad, teacher, and former circus bunny.

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Raw Foods: Sprouts, Facilitator: Jen Pursley (3:30p - 5p; 105 Grand St. 2nd Floor)

living foods are all about enzymes. before human beings started cooking with fire, their food was chock full of those wonderful little catalyzing proteins, which are destroyed at 116 degrees. breathing, sleeping, eating, digestion, nutrient absorption, thinking, moving, working, growing, blood coagulation, immunity, dreaming, sex, excitement, reproduction and sensory perception are all dependent on enzymes. learn how to incorporate live, enzyme-rich food into your diet and budget (with a special emphasis on sprouting) and experience a whole new level of health
and well-being.

jen pursley lives on grand street and has been conciously experimenting with and benefiting from living foods for the past 4 years. from working on a raw permaculture farm in costa rica to facilitating workshops and making dinner with friends, she still finds her raw cinnamon buns her greatest accomplishment.

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