OSE staff joined thousands of volunteers on May 18 in support of Mayor Harrell’s One Seattle Day of Service. Staff rolled up their sleeves and worked alongside community partners at several locations:
Sunny Ysa (Climate Justice Data & Finance Program Associate) volunteered with folks from REI Tacoma, United Way of King County, and neighbors from the Rainier Beach and Skyway neighborhoods with Braided Seeds to help package Discover Passes. Braided Seeds’ mission is to provide opportunities for rest, restoration and repair through connection with the land, with a focus on removing barriers for BIPOC to be outdoors. Braided Seeds is one of Seattle’s Environmental Justice Fund grantees,
Urban Forestry Advisor, Lauren Urgenson, joined the Rainier Beach Urban Farm and Wetlands for One Seattle Day or Service. Activities included tending to native plants, planting in the children’s garden, mulching, and building a bee friendly pathway.
Suzy Knutson (Fresh Bucks) led a team of volunteers at the Cesar Chavez Garden on Beacon Hill. This all-volunteer garden works as a demonstration garden and all harvests are donated to the food bank at El Centro de la Raza and the public free pantry on site
Director Jessyn Farrell participated at the City Year backpack event
On 5/18, members of the Climate Justice Team attended a Native Plants Celebration hosted by The Common Acre, an Environmental Justice Fund (EJ Fund) grantee. The Common Acre is an Urban Unangax led organization that seeks to connect Black, Indigenous, and People of Color to the land and culture. The Native Plants Celebration was part of a workshop series supported by the EJ Fund which centers cultural preservation and connection for Indigenous people. Participants were able to partake in transplanting camas bulbs, a chocolate lyli and salmon workshop, among other activities.