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DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250506T160000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250506T180000
DTSTAMP:20260412T043749
CREATED:20250430T134343Z
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UID:10000888-1746547200-1746554400@community.ecodesigncollective.org
SUMMARY:Eclipta Herbal Sanctuary Tour: An Ecological Design Collective Grounding
DESCRIPTION:Come out to tour a lush healing sanctuary with Eclipta Herbal founder\, artist\, educator and clinical herbalist Alyssa Dennis! \n\n\n\nNestled on a 0.7-acre plot in Northeast Baltimore City\, the Eclipta Herbal Sanctuary is a vibrant\, living ecosystem home to over 100 species of medicinal plants—and growing. This space is dedicated to ecological education\, conservation\, and community healing. We honor both land and lineage by cultivating a space where people can gather\, learn\, and reconnect with the sentient living world.  \n\n\n\nRSVP below! Space is limited to 25 people. \n\n\n\nItinerary: \n\n\n\nWe will meet at 4 pm in the backyard of 6304 Old Harford Rd Baltimore\, MD 21214. Alyssa Dennis will give us a tour of the Eliptica Herbal Sanctuary\, answer questions\, and run some activities with us until 6 pm. \n\n\n\nAbout Eclipta Herbal: \n\n\n\nA Living Classroom \n\n\n\nOur sanctuary is more than a garden—it’s a biodiverse learning space where traditional knowledge meets urban & industrial resilience. We offer: \n\n\n\n\nLearning the medicine of the land & the land as medicine\n\n\n\nEarth skills workshops\n\n\n\nHerbal plant walks\n\n\n\nHabitat restoration\n\n\n\nCommunity gatherings and collaborations\n\n\n\n\nWe work with a blend of native\, naturalized\, and non-native medicinal species\, and pride ourselves on being one of the most biodiverse ecosystems in Baltimore. Our focus is on habitat restoration that addresses soil health\, climate change\, and the cultivation of flood- and drought-tolerant plants. \n\n\n\nPlants as Kin \n\n\n\nWe see plants not as resources\, but as kin—living relatives with whom we share lineage. Our cultivation efforts center on the opportunity to apprentice directly with the plants: to learn their language\, witness their growth cycles\, and to once again immerse our senses in their ecosystems. \n\n\n\nThis is especially important in urban environments\, where access to healthy green space and ancestral plant knowledge has been disrupted. We believe that conservation of medicinal plants is an essential part of healing damaged ecosystems\, and that the root causes of ecological collapse are deeply linked to our disconnection from land-based cycles & medicinal plant practices. \n\n\n\nEvent Series: \n\n\n\nThis event is a continuation of the EDC’s 2024-25 itinerary for “Reimagining Land\,” anchored in a monthly series of “Groundings” that explore Baltimore’s ecology\, history\, and contemporary place-making efforts through experiential events.
URL:https://community.ecodesigncollective.org/event/eclipta-herbal-sanctuary-tour-an-ecological-design-collective-grounding/
CATEGORIES:Land
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DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250518T120000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250518T140000
DTSTAMP:20260412T043749
CREATED:20250513T024741Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250516T190123Z
UID:10000891-1747569600-1747576800@community.ecodesigncollective.org
SUMMARY:End of Year Reception and Celebration
DESCRIPTION:Join the Ecological Design Collective for our End of Year Reception — a celebration of community\, imagination\, and collective care for the land. \n\n\n\nOver the past year\, we’ve gathered in parks\, gardens\, vacant lots\, and urban wilds to reimagine our relationship to land through a series of Grounding Events — community walks\, plant knowledge sessions\, dye-making workshops\, and more. We’ve also convened virtually on our online platform to explore the theme of land through presentations and conversations. These events have rooted us in local ecologies while opening up space for reflection\, connection\, and action. \n\n\n\nAt this special gathering\, we’ll commemorate a vibrant year of ecological dreaming and doing. We’ll honor the incredible event leaders who guided these moments of re-connection\, share highlights from our itinerary of gatherings\, and look ahead to what’s next. \n\n\n\nEnjoy the food and other refreshments\, reconnect with fellow participants\, and celebrate the seeds we’ve planted together. Take in our exhibition of milestones and photographs from this collective journey. Whether you joined us once or often\, you are warmly invited to come reflect\, honor\, and imagine with us. \n\n\n\nWe’ll gather on Sunday\, May 18\, from 12:00 to 2:00 PM at Blueprint Cafe\, 3120 St Paul St\, Baltimore\, MD 21218. Lunch will be provided.  \n\n\n\nEvent Series:This event marks the culmination of the EDC’s 2024–25 itinerary for “Reimagining Land” — a monthly series of Groundings that explored Baltimore’s ecology\, history\, and contemporary place-making through immersive\, experiential events.
URL:https://community.ecodesigncollective.org/event/end-of-year-reception-ecological-design-collective/
CATEGORIES:Land
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250522T160000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250522T180000
DTSTAMP:20260412T043749
CREATED:20250517T172128Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250520T141531Z
UID:10000892-1747929600-1747936800@community.ecodesigncollective.org
SUMMARY:A Year of Reimagining Land: A Roundtable Retrospective
DESCRIPTION:Join us on May 22nd\, from 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM at Blueprint Cafe\, 3120 St Paul St\, Baltimore\, MD 21218\, for a special roundtable gathering to reflect on a transformative year of in-person and virtual events exploring the theme REIMAGINING LAND. Over the past year\, the Ecological Design Collective has hosted a series of community “Groundings” across Baltimore—immersive events that invited participants to consider land as more than territory or property\, but as a living\, breathing network of relationships between humans\, nonhumans\, histories\, and futures. \n\n\n\nThis culminating roundtable\, taking place at Blueprint Cafe on May 22nd from 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM\, features a dynamic group of thinkers\, artists\, and organizers who have shaped and inspired this year’s programming: Robin Gunkel\, Kristine Roome\, Nicole Labruto\, Anand Pandian\, Bill Harvey\, and Kenya Miles. Together\, they will reflect on how land—particularly urban land in Baltimore—can be reimagined not as a commodity but as a commons\, a site of repair\, kinship\, and ecological design. \n\n\n\nHow do land-based practices of storytelling\, artmaking\, healing\, and history help us imagine more just and reciprocal relationships with place? This conversation is both a reflection and a call forward—a chance to share what has been learned\, unearthed\, and seeded\, and to consider what may yet emerge. \n\n\n\nRoundtable Participants: \n\n\n\nRobin Gunkel: Dr. Gunkel is an artist\, educator\, and community organizer exploring the intersections of ecology\, creativity\, and collective transformation. She is the founder of Mushroom City Art Festival\, a vibrant\, all-ages event in Baltimore that blends mycology\, environmental education\, and the arts. From mushroom forays and sustainable building workshops to immersive sound installations and storytelling\, the festival invites playful\, community-rooted learning. With a background in creative writing and a doctorate in Sustainability Education\, Robin brings together poetry\, science\, and activism. Her work centers on building thriving creative ecosystems\, where each person contributes unique gifts—like nodes in a living mycelial web. Through teaching\, organizing\, and experimenting\, Robin fosters deeper connections with nature and each other\, always guided by the belief that “all flourishing is mutual.” \n\n\n\nBill Harvey: Longtime Baltimore resident and public historian. Harvey is the author of The People Is Grass : A History Of Hampden-Woodberry\, 1802-1945. (1988). \n\n\n\nNicole Labruto: Dr. Labruto is an assistant research professor in the Department of Anthropology. She received her BA in Anthropology and Philosophy from Mount Holyoke College\, her MA in Cultural Anthropology from the New School for Social Research\, and her PhD in History\, Anthropology\, and Science\, Technology\, and Society from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology\, during which she was a Mellon/ACLS Dissertation Completion Fellow. She is also the recipient of fellowships from the Social Science Research Council and the Fulbright Foundation. She was a Postdoctoral Fellow at Johns Hopkins University and an Anthropologist-in-Residence at the Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA). She is a member of the Curatorial Circle of the Ecological Design Collective. \n\n\n\nDavid Landolfi and Adam Malfa: Landolfi and Malfa are joining from Cambium. Cambium actively seeks out trees with natural ‘flaws’ and works with local artisans to transform them into beautiful\, functional products. Their approach includes educating consumers about the sustainability benefits of using this wood\, as it often comes from local sources and reduces waste. Cambium also collaborates with designers and architects to incorporate this wood into their projects\, showcasing its aesthetic and functional value. \n\n\n\nKenya Miles: Miles is an artist\, educator\, and natural dyer based in Baltimore City who has been growing natural dye plants and reconnecting her community with this historically and culturally significant practice. Kenya works for The Blue Light Junction\, which aims to re-establish craft traditions through the lens of natural dyes. \n\n\n\nAnand Pandian: Dr. Pandian is Krieger-Eisenhower Professor of Anthropology at Johns Hopkins University\, with a joint appointment in Earth & Planetary Sciences. His books include A Possible Anthropology: Methods for Uneasy Times\, and Something Between Us: The Everyday Walls of American Life and How to Take Them Down\, now available from Stanford University Press. A former department chair of anthropology\, he serves now as President of the Society for Cultural Anthropology. He also serves as a curator of the Ecological Design Collective\, a community for radical ecological imagination and collaboration. He lives with his family in Baltimore\, where he is currently working on a new book project on decay\, waste\, and the crafting of ecological futures. \n\n\n\nKristine Roome: Dr. Roome is a cultural anthropologist with expertise in arts and culture\, science and education. She has a Ph.D. in applied anthropology from Columbia University and has held senior executive positions and faculty roles at Teachers College\, Columbia University\, The New School University\, Maryland Institute College of Art\, Howard County Community College and the University of the Witswatersrand in Johannesburg\, South Africa. Among her many public speaking engagements\, she has given talks at the Shanghai Museum of Art\, Reykjavik University and the United Nations Headquarters on the role of the arts in society. As the Director of Wright Gallery in New York City she curated exhibitions of African art\, and later served as a consultant on contemporary and art historical exhibitions with cultural institutions such as the Johannesburg Bienale\, the Museum for African Art\, Meridien International\, and Columbia University. She currently hosts the EcoArts forum on the Ecological Design Collective based in Baltimore: with an international following\, the platform brings attention to art and artists engaged in environmental sustainability. In addition\, she is an archivist at the Smithsonian Institute/National Anthropology Archives in Washington D.C. and author of the forthcoming book\, The Human Feather: Conversations Beyond Art & Science (Routledge 2025). Dr. Roome currently serves in the Moore/Miller administration as a Trustee on the Board of the State of Maryland Historical Trust and as a voting member of the Preservation awards\, Investment\, and Monument Relocation subcommittees. \n\n\n\nBruce Willen: Willen is a multidisciplinary designer\, artist\, musician\, and the founder of Public Mechanics — a design studio working in public and cultural spaces. Bruce collaborates with civic\, arts\, and design innovators on projects that jaywalk through the intersection of experiential design\, public art\, placemaking\, performance\, and civic design.
URL:https://community.ecodesigncollective.org/event/a-year-of-reimagining-land-a-roundtable-retrospective/
CATEGORIES:Land
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DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250529T170000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250529T190000
DTSTAMP:20260412T043749
CREATED:20250519T032356Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250519T132027Z
UID:10000893-1748538000-1748545200@community.ecodesigncollective.org
SUMMARY:Roots and Futures: A Transatlantic Perspective on Black Land and Food Sovereignty
DESCRIPTION:Blueprint Cafe\, 3120 St Paul St\, Baltimore\, MD 21218 \n\n\n\nJoin us for the culminating event of the Reimagining Land theme\, as we gather to reflect\, connect\, and celebrate with a public conversation between Rashid Awari (CEHDA-GHANA and WIACT) and Eric Jackson (Black Yield Institute)\, moderated by Anand Pandian (Johns Hopkins University) and Nicole Labruto (Johns Hopkins University). This special event brings together voices from Ghana and Baltimore in dialogue for a transatlantic perspective on Black land and food sovereignty.  \n\n\n\nRashid will be visiting from Spain to share insights from his work with CEHDA-GHANA and World Institute of Africa Culture and Traditions (WIACT). CEHDA-GHANA works to improve opportunities for migrant communities in Catalonia\, support grassroots initiatives for community resilience in the Sawla District of Ghana’s Savannah Region\, and promote traditional agricultural practices and cultural heritage rooted in Ghanaian knowledge systems. WIACT hosts a diverse array of activities and projects that aim to recover\, preserve\, share\, and revitalize the traditional cultures\, languages\, and indigenous knowledge of Ghana’s Savannah Region\, and across the African continent. \n\n\n\nIn conversation with Rashid is Eric Jackson\, Servant-Director of Black Yield Institute\, a Black-created\, Black-led institution rooted in South Baltimore. Grounded in Pan-African thought and practice\, Black Yield Institute organizes through land and food as central sites of resistance\, healing\, and transformation. The Institute envisions a self-determined\, cooperative\, and thriving community—one in which Black people govern the politics\, economics\, health\, land\, and food systems that shape their lives\, from seed to waste. \n\n\n\nThe themes guiding this conversation arise from shared questions and lived experiences: How are African and African American communities reclaiming identity in the face of historical misrepresentation and racial prejudice? What roles do language\, ancestral knowledge\, and oral history play in the healing of personal and collective wounds? How might traditions—from the Gonja lifeways in Ghana to the foodways of Black Baltimore—offer pathways toward environmental and social repair? \n\n\n\nThe event will conclude with a Ghanaian meal at Blueprint. Everyone is welcome to join and eat together! \n\n\n\nAs the final gathering in our yearlong exploration of Reimagining Land\, this event is both a reflection and a celebration—an opportunity to look back\, share across place and perspective\, and plant new seeds for what comes next. \n\n\n\nPlease RSVP for no more than two people per RSVP.
URL:https://community.ecodesigncollective.org/event/roots-and-futures-a-conversation-across-ghana-and-baltimore-3/
CATEGORIES:Land
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