Let’s be honest, most of us probably love the taste of homegrown, fresh vegetables, but we don’t want to do the work required to start our own garden. Between weeding, planting and watering, the upkeep of a garden requires a lot of time that many of us simply don’t have.
All of that might change, however, with the invention of the Seedsheet, a seed-loaded sheet customized to your needs.
Seedsheet is the product of the new Vermont-based company Cloudform. A Kickstarter campaign to fund its production launched on Nov. 14.
Green thumbs can design their garden using the Seedsheet’s website, and according to CEO and founder Cameron MacKulger, it’s as simple as paint by numbers. Users plug in their garden dimensions on the website and and their zip code to learn which plant hardiness zone they live in. Next, users customize garden by dragging, dropping and arranging fruits, vegetables and herbs in their virtual garden.
Seedsheet will then create the sheet and all the customer has to do is prepare the soil, put the sheet in the soil and water. The sheet eliminates the need for seed selection, planting and weeding (thanks to the weed-barrier fabric in it).
Making gardening easier is not MacKugler’s ultimate goal, however.
“The primary aim of the Seedsheet, and our company, is to make healthy food accessible for everyone,” MacKugler tells Motherboard. “The Seedsheet is a value-add to people that already garden, as it is an innovation that will save time and improve upon the process that they already love. By incorporating a user-friendly software program, we make gardening approachable to millennials that would otherwise be intimidated by a 100-page seed catalog.”
Additionally, because Seedsheet warms the ground beneath it, it makes the soil and seeds more stable to fight erosion, plus, it requires less watering.
Sounds like a dream come true for green thumbs everywhere.
MORE: From Farm to Patient: How One Medical Facility is Rethinking Hospital Food
Category: Bridging the Opportunity Divide
5 of the Best Ways to Volunteer This Holiday Season
Undoubtedly, this time of year is when many people give back to their community. But before you show up at your local homeless shelter with a soup ladle in hand, keep in mind that many food banks, soup kitchens and other food-based charities have already filled their volunteer shifts for Thanksgiving and the weekends leading up to Christmas. But just because you can’t dish out a plateful of turkey and mashed potatoes doesn’t mean that there aren’t other deserving organizations in need of your help. Here are some groups that would appreciate an extra hand:
1. Clothing-Based Charities
As temperatures drop, everyone needs an extra layer to keep warm. One of the easiest ways to help those in need is to donate used coats to the Warm Coats Warm Hearts Drive sponsored by Burlington Coat Factory and “Good Morning America.” Donations go to local families, and you’ll get 10 percent off the purchase of a new coat to replace the one you no longer wear. The best part is that coats are distributed as they are collected instead of being held until the end of the drive. So the sooner you donate, the sooner you’ll help someone stay toasty.
If you don’t have a coat to donate, give pajamas instead. The Pajama Program is a national nonprofit that collects and distributes warm sleepwear to children in the foster system who are hoping to be adopted. Not only can you donate new PJs, but you can also do volunteer work for this organization, which provides plenty of opportunities— from hosting your own pajama and book drive to helping at reading centers. Check the website to get involved in your local chapter or learn how to start one in your area.
2. Educational Organizations
Schools might be getting ready to go on winter break, but that doesn’t mean their students don’t still require assistance. College-bound high school students are especially in need of support over the next few months. “This time of year is crunch time for our students — working on college applications and essays in addition to enjoying the holidays,” says Brian Dever, Mid-Atlantic regional director of Let’s Get Ready, an organization that helps low-income high school students with SAT prep, admissions counseling and more. You can get involved by joining in their “office hours” to help students with their applications and essays. If there isn’t a chapter in your area, contact your local school district or public library to see if they have similar mentoring programs.
If you’re looking to make a financial gift, browse projects on DonorsChoose.org, a site where teachers request funds or materials to help with specific classroom projects. Imagine how wonderful it will be for students to come back to school after winter break to learn that they will be going on a field trip or receiving a set of classroom iPads for more interactive learning.
3. Online Volunteer Groups
The digital age makes it easier than ever to give back to those in need. The website Volunteer Match provides an extensive list of organizations that need virtual help. And not to worry if you don’t speak HTML — there are opportunities for everyone. For instance, some organizations need help writing newsletters or posting to social media accounts, while others need assistance with online research. Whatever your skill set, you’ll be able to find an opportunity that fits.
4. Your Friends and Neighbors
There are many volunteer opportunities in your own backyard. You probably don’t know all of your neighbors or which ones could use some assistance, but checking with your neighborhood association or local government can provide you with that information. Whether it’s a neighborhood clean-up project, or visiting elderly residents who live alone, local organizations can always use a helping hand.
If you prefer to donate money, try Hand Up, a website that allows donors to give financial assistance directly to the homeless. Think of it like DonorsChoose, but for individuals. Employees at a group of nonprofits help their members create donation pages on Hand Up’s site. Donors can then go on and donate directly to a specific person. The best part is, through updates on the site, you’ll be able to see how your donation affects that person’s life. Many of the requests are for help with transportation or education to help the member get back to work supporting their family.
5. Animal Assistance
Finally, don’t forget about your four-legged friends during the holiday season. Many animal shelters need help as well. First and foremost, shelters are always in need of extra food. (Yes, we know we said these volunteer opportunities would be non-food, but we’re giving puppy chow a pass.) You can also volunteer to spend time with furry friends by contacting a shelter in your area. If you don’t know where your local shelter is, check The Shelter Pet Project, which offers a comprehensive national list, along with information about how to find volunteer openings.
When you contact the shelter, ask if you need to complete a training course prior to volunteering. “Many people like to take advantage of time off over the holidays to come spend time with shelter pets,” says Julie Sonenberg, administrative manager of the Volunteer Program at the ASPCA Adoption Center in New York City. “Some shelters may also have a need for fill-in support due to staffing constraints during the holidays. Check with your local shelter to see what their needs are.”
These Schools Are Opening Their Doors to Struggling Communities
College campuses are expanding, and it’s not due to higher acceptance rates. Rather, it’s because, more and more universities are emphasizing service as a core mission and integrating with the communities around them through service.
Here are a few leading the way in neighborhood engagement.
Penn Alexander School, Philadelphia
In the early 2000s, the University of Pennsylvania started a series of programs targeting the rejuvenation of the nearby Spruce Hill neighborhood. Many of UPenn’s faculty and students live in the area, so the school decided to invest in its stabilization through lighting programs, safety patrols and homebuyer incentives.
Their biggest initiative, however, was the formation of the Penn Alexander elementary school, (previously called the Sadie Tanner Mosell Alexander University Penn Partnership School). What started as a simple public school in a struggling neighborhood is now so vibrant with families that school acceptance is determined by lottery.
Creating Community Connections, Boston
Sponsored by MIT, this program started back in 2000 and benefits the residents of Camfield Estates. MIT connects the area with technology through computer training, free laptops and high speed internet connection. Three-quarters of the residents chose to participate in the program when it was first announced. Called “C3,” it has recently been expanded to provide training and equipment to businesses and institutions in the area, as well as a new computer lab available for residents of the Estates and the neighborhood.
Center for Civic Leadership, Rice University, Houston
At Rice University, the administration has created a curriculum dedicated to service through the Center for Civic Leadership. Students and faculty alike participate in community service projects, research and programs benefiting Houston’s Fifth Ward. For students, service isn’t a one- time deal, but a four-year-long commitment. Freshmen start college with a first-year orientation to the surrounding community, and, if passionate, students can even earn an undergrad certificate in civic leadership. Recently, the Washington Center for Internships and Academic Seminars granted up to four $5,000 scholarships to Rice University to participate in the Center’s activities.
To learn more about universities participating in neighborhood engagement, click here.
MORE: How an Innovative Scholarship Encourages Low-Income Families to Save
What Food Banks Need Most This Holiday Season
With the holidays on the horizon, it’s quite possible that you’re putting together a basket full of food for a less-fortunate family. While classic donations (like canned tuna) are undoubtedly useful, there’s a plethora of other needs that go unfulfilled.
As reported by Foodlets’ Charity Curley Matthews, here are some ideas on what food banks actually need:
1. Canned meat (other than tuna). The need for this is universally reported.
2. Low sodium canned vegetables and fruit (packaged in juice). Organizations receive mostly green beans and pineapple, so other varieties are particularly desired.
3. Snacks for kids, such as granola bars and popcorn.
4. 100 percent fruit juices in single-serving boxes.
5. Canned food with pop-top lids, which the homeless can open without a can opener.
6. Baby food. Take Part mentions how impoverished parents have a serious fear of inconsistent food for infants.
7. Personal hygiene products. Take Part also reports that, when given food stamps, people often overlook the need for products like toilet paper.
8. Low-sugar breakfast foods like Cheerios and instant oatmeal.
9. Feminine products. Foodlets states that unscented pads are the most useful.
10. Holiday foods. This is an important one, with food shelters hoping to receive things such as canned turkey (some will even accept whole turkeys and hams), sweet potatoes and cranberry sauce.
Click here for other items that you should consider donating.
MORE: 50 Million Americans Suffer From Food Insecurity. Here Are 6 Simple Ways You Can Help
This Immigrant Turned Fast-Food Franchise Owner Has Been Serving Free Thanksgiving Dinner for 23 Years
On the Thursday before Thanksgiving, the line out of a McDonald’s in Denver extended out the door.
The people weren’t clamoring for Big Macs, however. They were there to partake in a complimentary Thanksgiving feast that the owners of the franchise, Geta and Janice Asfaw, have been serving to the poor of their neighborhood for 23 years.
Originally, the Asfaws cooked up a meal consisting of turkey, mashed potatoes and stuffing for the area’s senior citizens, but lately, they’ve become even more generous. The event now includes a presentation of scholarships to high school students and a bike giveaway for elementary schoolers.
Last year, the Asfaws distributed 250 bicycles to low-income children nominated by their teachers for academic achievement or persistence in the face of obstacles. (Through the years, the Asfaws have united with other Denver restaurant franchise owners and nonprofits to distribute 1,700 children’s bikes.) Last year, Geta told Austin Briggs of the Denver Post, “We want them to hear that it doesn’t matter where they are today, it’s where you are 20 years from now that matters.”
Geta knows a few things about how to bring about personal transformation through hard work. He left Ethiopa to attend college in America in 1972, and after a coup in 1974 made it impossible to return home, he stayed in the U.S., earned his college degree and eventually became a citizen. In 1991, he bought his first McDonald’s franchise and now owns eight of them.
Last week, Geta told the Denver Post, “We’ve always felt that as local businessmen we should give back to the community — not just take the money. That’s what we said at the start. If we’re going to (be here), we’re going to do that. Even when we didn’t have much, we always felt it was our responsibility.”
So if you ever find yourself in Denver with a hankering for French fries, we can’t think of nicer people to get your craving satisfied by.
MORE: There’s More Than Meets the Eye to This Picnic in the Park
The Normal Barbie Makes Its Debut
Eight months ago, a fashion doll boasting “realistic” proportions made headlines. Modeled after the average 19-year-old American woman, Lammily was dubbed the “Normal Barbie” for not having the mutant measurements of the iconic doll from our childhoods.
After a successful crowdsourcing campaign, Lammily is finally here, with optional acne and all (more on that later). But will kids actually like her?
Lammily creator Nickolay Lamm decided to present his new doll to a second grade classroom in Pennsylvania. And no surprise, the doll was a hit.
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“I like her!”
“She looks like my sister.”
“She looks like she’s a regular girl going to school.”
The students also noticed Lammily’s feet can bend and look more realistic, unlike Barbie’s perma-arched toosties that wouldn’t support the weight of her body.
“I wanted to show that reality is cool,” Lamm tells TIME. “And a lot of toys make kids go into fantasy, but why don’t they show real life is cool? It’s not perfect, but it’s really all we have. And that’s awesome.”
MORE: These Women Invented a Toy That Truly Includes Every Child
Instead of high heels, a tiny hairbrush, or a pink convertible, this doll comes with much more interesting accessories. Plus, you can buy a reusable sticker pack to give Lammily some cellulite, scrapes, stitches, scars, freckles, acne and many other real-life distinctions. Lamm emphasizes to TIME that he wasn’t trying to promote an image of violence, “Look, we all get boo boos and scratches. Life isn’t perfect, we all sometimes fall down but we get back up.”
Barbie’s impossible looks, size and even her career choices have been analyzed (and criticized) for decades, but it does seem lately that the 55-year-old doll has lost her edge. Barbie sales plunged 21 percent compared to the same time last year, according to the Washington Post, as young girls are gravitating towards Mattel’s Monster High dolls, Disney’s “Frozen” line, as well as games on tablets and smartphones. None of these toys look realistic either, so girls don’t necessarily prefer toys that look more like them, but they do go for what’s popular and what their friends are playing with.
That’s why there should always be space on the shelf for toys like Lammily, so we can teach more children that average is beautiful and flaws are perfectly normal.
Lammily is available for purchase on this website.
DON’T MISS: Finally, a Doll Collection to Truly Inspire Young Girls
When He Couldn’t Find A School for His Daughter, This Father Established His Own
Patrick Donohue’s life changed when his daughter Sarah Jane was born on June 5, 2005.
Five days later, his life changed again when he noticed Sarah Jane was noticeably lethargic and he decided to take her back to the pediatrician. A number of tests were run and a few weeks later, they discovered that she had lost 60 percent of the rear cortex of her brain — the result of being violently shaken by her baby nurse.
“I’ll never forget, the first day we took her back to the hospital and they were trying to stick an IV in her,” says Donohue, who lead a successful career as a political consultant. “Tears were rolling down her face. Her mouth was wide open but because of the brain injury she couldn’t cry. From that moment on I knew I needed to be the voice of Sarah Jane.”
Ever since, Donahue has been advocating for children with brain injuries. In 2013, he founded the International Academy of Hope, which is the only school in New York City that specializes in kids with brain-based disorders. Currently, the school has 24 students and 50 full-time staff members, causing a year’s tuition to run $135,000. The cost is reimbursed by the New York City Department of Education, but only after parents sue, claiming that there is no public school to serve their child’s needs.
This is Why Libraries Matter: Ferguson
If you’re looking to help out in Ferguson, Mo., here’s a simple but important thing you can do: donate to their local library.
As a safety precaution for students, schools in the surrounding area of the St. Louis suburb closed after the grand jury reached a decision to not indict police officer Darren Wilson in the fatal shooting of 18-year-old Michael Brown. However, as tensions flare, the Ferguson Municipal Library has decided to keep their doors open.
Along with providing space for teachers to teach, it’s also offering water, computer access and lunch to visitors. The library also acts as welcome relief for parents who needed a safe place to bring their kids while they are at work. (A coalition of 11 churches in north St. Louis County are also open for the community, the St. Louis Post Dispatch reports.) As we previously reported, the Ferguson library first stepped up in August after protests over the slain teen forced local schools to shutter their doors.
The cost of closing schools is far greater than students missing out on a few lessons. Quartz’s ideas editor S. Mitra Kalita writes that cancelling school is akin to “[closing] the door on the future.” A high school senior tells the Chicago Tribune that the August cancellations negatively impacted her college applications: “It’s been hard to keep up with band, tennis and National Honor Society meeting, when they were all getting scraped.” Even worse: With the poverty rate in Ferguson almost double Missouri’s average and more than 60 percent of students on free or reduced lunch plans, with the school grounds closed, many kids won’t get proper nutrition if they are not in school.
This is why libraries matter. They aren’t just places where you can occasionally check out a book. For Ferguson, it provides a safe haven for a community in turmoil.
MORE: 7 Ways to Help the Residents of Ferguson
Amazingly, library director Scott Bonner tells Talking Points Memo that a steady stream of donations have been coming in since the Aug. 9 shooting — spiking following the grand jury’s announcement. About 1,200 people reached into their wallets, bringing total donations in the “five-digits.”
“I am flabbergasted and in disbelief as to whether or not it’s real,” he says.
Bonner also tells the publication that Good Samaritans are asking to help in other ways: “We’ve had a whole lot of volunteer teachers come in here with this drive to help people, bring that kind of optimism in.”
So how can you help? Donate to the Ferguson Municipal Library via their website here or send a check to the library at 35 N Florissant Ave, Ferguson, MO 63135. You can also directly donate to Ferguson teachers on this DonorsChoose.org page.
Many other orgs closing. But we will stay open to serve people of #Ferguson as long as safe for patrons & staff, up to 8p. Love each other.
— Ferguson Library (@fergusonlibrary) November 24, 2014
#LoveLibraries “@marthavalenta: “Stay Strong & Love Each Other” —@fergusonlibrary For The Win #ferguson #Love #peace pic.twitter.com/6FwqIXUTNR”
— girlguidejones (@girlguidejones) November 25, 2014
So proud of the @fergusonlibrary staff. Truly the heart of the community, serving everyone. #whatlibrariesdo
— Amer. Library Assn. (@ALALibrary) November 25, 2014
DON’T MISS: What Looks Like a Birdhouse and Promotes Literacy
How Farmers Are Implementing a Sharing Economy
From a young age, we’re taught to share. And now as adults, it seems like we’re really putting that lesson into practice — from ride shares to community gardens and even shared farm equipment.
That’s right, in Maine, local farmers are sharing efficient and costly equipment that most could never afford on their own — all thanks to the Shared-Use Farm Equipment Pool (SUFE).
Organized through the partnership of the Maine Farmland Trust (MTF) and the Maine Organic Farms and Gardens Association (MOFGA), the Pool was started after MTF staff member Mike Gold saw a discrepancy between the needs of farmers and the equipment available to them.
So, how does the program work? According to Modern Farmer, for an annual fee of $100, farmers have access these six tools: seedbed cultivator, two-shank sub-soiler, plastic mulch layer, strip tiller, ridge tiller and tine weeder. All of the equipment improves farming efficiency, but is so expensive that it’s unattainable for the average local farmer. For instance, the 1,200 pound plastic mulch layer retails for about $2,000.
“The equipment we choose is relatively simple, fairly easy to understand and operate,” Gold tells Modern Farmer. “They see the opportunity to use that one piece of equipment that they may only use one year or once every few years.”
After joining the Pool, farmers participate in a springtime orientation where they learn how to use all of the machinery. Following that, sharing and coordination is managed via a Google Calendar, which members check for availability.
Equipment can be rented for up to three days, and SUFE does charge members for anything that’s returned late or dirty. According to Gold, there have been very few problems, as most respect the system.
Right now, most of the members are newer vegetable farmers, but the Pool’s number of senior farmers is growing as well. And, with increasing membership, Gold hopes to add more equipment to the inventory also.
For now, though, these farmers are just taking advantage of a great opportunity and learning the value of sharing along the way.
MORE: ‘Uber for Seniors’ Helps the Elderly Get Around Town
The Dos and Don’ts of Helping the Hungry
America has a hunger problem.
That’s a fact that often goes unnoticed, but at least one in seven Americans depend on meal services or food pantries to feed themselves or their families, according to a recent report from Feeding America, a hunger relief organization. While it’s natural to think about helping the hungry around the holidays, here are some ways to assist those struggling to meet their basic needs not just now, but throughout the entire year.
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