The Strathcona BIA wants to create community gardens throughout Strathcona to promote local food production, beautify the area, reduce crime, create green jobs for inner city youth and people facing multiple barriers to employment, and instill pride in the community.

We've applied for an Aviva Community Fund grant to create a Micro-Gardening program in Strathcona. The grants are given to the winners of an online voting contest, so if you are interested in the idea, please give us your vote!

Here's what the Micro-Gardening program is all about:

We propose to create 20 to 30 community micro-gardens throughout Strathcona. The gardens would be installed on private properties adjacent to public spaces in highly visible, underutilized areas.Depending on the nature and size of each location, the gardeners and the property owners would decide whether the plot should be a community garden, single-owner garden, or a living wall. Vegetation would consist of native perennials and edible plants.

The gardens would be installed by qualified landscapers of Mission Possible Enterprises, a local non-profit (and BIA member) that provides employment opportunities for individuals with job readiness barriers and assists in breaking the cycles of poverty, homelessness, and addiction. Local youth would also be employed as partners with the landscapers to learn valuable food production and community development skills.

Please help us make it happen by voting today: http://www.avivacommunityfund.org/ideas/acf5454

THE KARO KAUS – Karo will donate $100,000 of creative services, to be split equally
between two not-for-profit groups, one in Calgary and one in Vancouver.
Karo staff will donate $50,000 of their creative time on behalf of each
group.

My idea for change is for a non-profit dis-Abled cycling organization.Where the disabled  can access hand cycles;use,build,repair,& organize outings &competitions.Open to all cycling enthusiast.Fight the isolation of the dis-Abled & encourage activity & action

I want people to know that their options for meaningful work are greater than they might realize. I think one of the greatest barriers to a healthy community is the conflict people feel between the lives they want to live and the way they earn their living.

Giving is not about yourself. It is useful to provide access to information to others so that they can make a learned decision about what it is that we hope to accomplish. If we share the information, one voice can help be the catalyst for change. Every journey starts with the first step, enough said. Take a look at this interesting site www.givemeaning.com, I thought it was a great idea.