From the category archives:

Events

Yoga for Haiti

Event info: Saturday 20 February 2010 – 12:30pm to 2:00pm

Yoga • Community • Disaster Relief • Humanitarian Aid
A donation-based yoga class. Our proceeds go to the UUSC/UUA Joint Haiti Earthquake Relief Fund.
Our love goes to the people of Haiti. $20 minimum donation for class
Everyone welcome, from newcomers to experienced yogis! Bring your mat or use one of ours
The Charity: UUSC’s disaster response in Haiti [...]

The Time Trade Circle: A local, recession-proof economy

Event info: Sunday 21 February 2010 – 4:00pm to 6:00pm

What’s a time bank?
A time bank is an organization where members have a bank account of time, and exchange time-based services with other members. It’s a pool of members, and operates like a circle, not a one-to-one swap or barter. In a time bank, for example, Lara makes a cake for Aldo, Keren gives skiing [...]

Tagged as: climate change, community, Potluck

DIRT! The Movie

Event info: Friday 12 March 2010 – 7:00pm to 9:00pm

It’s under our feet and under our fingernails, but what is it? And how did it get there? Inspired by William Bryant Logan’s acclaimed book Dirt: The Ecstatic Skin of the Earth, find out how industrial farming, mining and urban development have led us toward cataclysmic droughts, starvation, floods and climate change. Dirt is a [...]

Tagged as: agriculture, climate change, ecological systems, food, greening

Backyard Chicken Basics

Event info: Sunday 14 March 2010 – 3:00pm to 5:00pm

Raising polutry for eggs, meat and pets used to be a standard practice in America. As we have moved farther away from a local food system, many people are now reclaiming the right to raise chickens in their own backyards. But how can those of us urban dwellers do the same? In this birdkeeping 101 [...]

Tagged as: community, greening, urban sustainability

Meet Your Chocolate Farmer: The Story Behind Your Treats

Event info: Friday 19 March 2010 – 7:00pm to 9:00pm

Come taste some great organic fair trade chocolate from the Dominican Republic and hear the inspiring story of the struggle to form cacoa cooperatives to challenge the big growers.
Come meet a cacao farmer and a staff member of CONACADO cacao co-op in the Dominican Republic who will share their history. In 1988, the cacao industry [...]

Tagged as: agriculture, community, food, Latin America

Hidden JP History: “Worker Housing and the Legacy of Robert Treat Paine”

Event info: Sunday 21 March 2010 – 7:00pm to 9:00pm

Speaker: Prof. Ruediger Volk
Come learn the inspiring local history of Robert Treat Paine and his work to build affordable housing in the Hyde Square neighborhood. Paine was a prominent business leader and great grandson of a signer of the Declaration of Independence with the same name. Paine pushed to expand homeownership for working families, organizing [...]

Tagged as: affordable, democracy, history, housing, local

The Carnivore’s Dilemma: How to Eat Meat Responsibly

Event info: Wednesday 31 March 2010 – 7:00pm to 9:00pm

Speakers: Kim Denney, owner/operator of Chestnut Farm Meat CSA, cattle farmer Ridge Shinn, author and local food activist Jamey Lionette
All-natural. Organic. Free-range. Grass-fed. Are you a conscientious meat-eater trying to navigate this new terrain of labels and concerns? Are you wondering whether it’s safe and sustainable to eat meat at all? Bring your questions to [...]

Tagged as: food, greening, urban sustainability

Why we can’t get ahead: Challenges for the American worker

Event info: Thursday 8 April 2010 – 7:00pm to 9:00pm

Speaker: Steven Greenhouse, New York Times business and economics correspondent
Since the recession’s peak, the U.S. unemployment rate has been hovering around 10 percent. But the challenges to the American worker go beyond the current economic crisis. Steven Greenhouse will talk about how American companies have squeezed millions of workers by clamping down on wages, cutting [...]

Tagged as: big labor, bubble economy, economy, government, wages

Film: A Village Called Versailles

Event info: Friday 21 May 2010 – 7:00pm to 9:00pm

Welcome to Versailles, New Orleans-home to the densest ethnic Vietnamese population outside of Vietnam. For over 30 years, its residents lived a quiet existence on the edge of New Orleans. But then came Hurricane Katrina, the immense garbage piles and the shocking discovery of a toxic landfill planned in their neighborhood. Watch as they fight [...]

Tagged as: community, DIY, elderly, immigration, New Orleans, race in America, social movements

REDUCE: Abundance in a time of dwindling resources

Event info: Friday 23 April 2010 – 7:00pm to 9:00pm

We all know that we need to use fewer resources, but how? Let local waste-reduction expert Marcia Peters show you how to reduce your use of non-renewable resources. From fuel-fficient driving tips, to clever ways to collect rainwater and re-use old junk mail, this program will have useful and fun tips us right away. And, [...]

Tagged as: community, environment, local, urban sustainability

Reportback from Copenhagen: Next Steps on Climate Change, with reflections from JP-area neighbors

Many people hoped that the December’s United Nation’s Climate Change Conference held in Copenhagen would generate a decisive global stance to curb the planet’s warming. With world leaders joining journalists, policy makers, activists, business people, and grassroots stakeholders, the talks were varied and heated. While some walked away claiming victory, others saw the conference as a failure to make critical changes in global climate policy.

A month after Copenhagen’s conclusion, we gather at the Jamaica Plain Forum to talk with two JP residents who attended the conference. Doyle Canning and Kalila Barnett will share their stories, reflections, and photos from both inside the Bella Center, and outside on the streets. For those of us that weren’t at Copenhagen, this JP Forum will be a wonderful way to learn about what happened and what the next step is to challenge climate change.

Tagged as: climate change, copenhagen, grassroots

Creating your own Compost, Wormbin & Rainbarrel

Event info: Friday 7 May 2010 – 7:00pm to 9:00pm

Do you ever wish that you could stop throwing away your kitchen scraps, and instead use them for something useful? Or, that you could water your garden with all of the valuable rainwater that runs off your roof? Join us at this Sustainability Series workshop where we will surprise you with how easy it is [...]

Tagged as: community, greening, urban sustainability

Help Keep the Conversation Going – Donate now!

Event info: Saturday 30 January 2010

At this time last year, we came to you with “10 Reasons to Support the Jamaica Plain Forum.” The list ranged from silly (“Best Cheap Date in JP”) to sincere (“In economically stressful times, we need to come together”). One year later, both still hold true.
This year, we humbly request your support for one reason:The [...]

Reportback from Copenhagen: Next Steps on Climate Change, with reflections from JP-area neighbors

Event info: Thursday 28 January 2010 – 7:00pm to 9:00pm

Many people hoped that the December’s United Nation’s Climate Change Conference held in Copenhagen would generate a decisive global stance to curb the planet’s warming. With world leaders joining journalists, policy makers, activists, business people, and grassroots stakeholders, the talks were varied and heated. While some walked away claiming victory, others saw the conference as a failure to make critical changes in global climate policy.

A month after Copenhagen’s conclusion, we gather at the Jamaica Plain Forum to talk with two JP residents who attended the conference. Doyle Canning and Kalila Barnett will share their stories, reflections, and photos from both inside the Bella Center, and outside on the streets. For those of us that weren’t at Copenhagen, this JP Forum will be a wonderful way to learn about what happened and what the next step is to challenge climate change.

Tagged as: climate change, copenhagen, grassroots

Help Keep the Conversation Going – Donate now!

At this time last year, we came to you with “10 Reasons to Support the Jamaica Plain Forum.” The list ranged from silly (“Best Cheap Date in JP”) to sincere (“In economically stressful times, we need to come together”). One year later, both still hold true.
This year, we humbly request your support for one reason:The [...]

Thanks for a great season!

The 2009 season of the Jamaica Plain Forum has ended. Thanks for your support and we look forward to seeing you next year!

Special Guest: Ralph Nader

America’s stalwart fighter against corporate abuse, best selling author and presidential candidate will talk about new strategies to build economic equality and his new book, Only the Super-Rich Can Save Us.
In his first work of fiction, Nader tells the story of what would happen if the country’s richest and most powerful decided to act for [...]

Yes, We Can! Preserving the Bounty of the Harvest

Event info: Friday 11 September 2009 – 7:00pm to 9:00pm

With anticipation of New England’s short growing season drawing to a close, those who have been bitten by the localvore-bug are in a panic: what will they eat over the winter?! Well, have no fear – the Fresh Girl is coming to town to teach us how to pack the summer’s bounty into those neat [...]

Tagged as: canning, DIY, environment, food preservation

Our Military Budget: Does More Make Us Safe?

Event info: Friday 25 September 2009 – 7:00pm to 9:00pm

Twenty years ago, a miracle happened when the Cold War ended peacefully. We were handed the chance to walk away from the nuclear nightmare and redirect billions of Cold War dollars to neglected needs at home.
Now we are spending more money on the military than we ever did during that War. But we also have the best [...]

Tagged as: economics, militarism, military spending, peace, social movements

Saving the Appalachian Mountains

Event info: Sunday 4 October 2009 – 7:00pm to 9:00pm

If your house is on the electric grid, chances are at least some of your power comes from coal companies that use mountaintop removal in their mining practices. Mountaintop removal is destroying the landscape and threatening communities in Appalachia.
Activist and author Mike Roselle, co-founder of Earth First, Rainforest Action Network and Ruckus Society has spent [...]

Tagged as: climate, coal, direct action, environment, mountain top removal, peace, social movements

Franklin Park in History

Event info: Thursday 8 October 2009 – 7:00pm to 9:00pm

Come learn the fascinating history of the 527-acre jewel of the Emerald Necklace from Julie Arrison, author of “Images of America: Franklin Park.” Co-sponsored with the Jamaica Plain Historical Society.
Stay tuned for more information!

Tagged as: Forest Hills, history, Jamaica Plain

Film: Copyright Criminals: How do law and art sound together?

Event info: Friday 23 October 2009 – 7:00pm to 9:00pm

Copyright Criminals: This Is a Sampling Sport examines the creative and commercial value of musical sampling, including the related debates over artistic expression, copyright law, and (of course) money.
This documentary traces the rise of hip-hop from the urban streets of New York to its current status as a multibillion-dollar industry. For more than thirty years, [...]

Tagged as: art, copyright, Hip Hop, law, sampling

Winterizing Workshop: Making a more efficient home

Event info: Friday 6 November 2009 – 7:00pm to 9:00pm

With November fast approaching, homeowners and renters alike begin to anticipate the frozen pipes and leaky windows of winter, as well as the financial strain of keeping the winter’s cold at bay.
As part of our continuing Urban Sustainability Series, the JP Forum joins with the Massachusetts Municipal Association to present a 1-hour workshop on home [...]

Tagged as: climate, DIY, energy efficient, environment, greening, preparation

Songfest! Songs of Thanks

Event info: Sunday 15 November 2009 – 7:00pm to 9:00pm

This year we’re kicking off the holiday season with a songfest! Join us for a potluck, followed by songs of gratitude and thanks.
More information to come!

Tagged as: community, Ken Ward, Potluck, Singing

Film: Young @ Heart

Event info: Sunday 20 December 2009 – 7:00pm to 9:00pm

Get ready to rock with the most entertaining golden oldies you will ever meet in the senior citizen’s choir Young@Heart. With a show only weeks away, they must learn a slate of new songs ranging from James Brown to Coldplay. The chorus’ director leads them through tough rehearsals, proving that rock and roll can be [...]

Tagged as: community, elderly, Singing

Planning Local Vacations

Event info: Friday 3 April 2009 – 7:00pm to 9:00pm

Two JP-based travel experts visit to share tips on regional gems, great local getaways for children, and the rediscovering New England. With an eye towards slimming our ecological footprints, this is a perfect way plan your summer vacation. Come and share your favorite local vacations, trips, jaunts, and getaways.

Residents of Boston, Michael Blanding [...]

Tagged as: food, kids, local, New England

Earth Day Community Songfest

Event info: Sunday 19 April 2009 – 5:00pm to 7:00pm

Singing together helps to bring us into community, learn history, and share a folk-language that can pass through the ages. They give us a way to build and express community, calm the heart, and share emotions that defy ordinary conversation. This special Earth Day program will focus on songs about our big blue planet!
Lead [...]

Tagged as: community, environment, kids, Singing

Singer-Songwriters of the Seventies: Community Songfest

Event info: Sunday 22 March 2009 – 5:00pm to 8:00pm

Singing together helps to bring us into community, learn history, and share a folk-language that can pass through the ages. They give us a way to build and express community, calm the heart, and share emotions that defy ordinary conversation.
Local musicians Ken Ward and Peter Thornton will bring down the house with their rousing style [...]

Tagged as: community, kids, Singing

The Buzz About Bees: Urban Apiary for Beginners

Event info: Friday 20 March 2009 – 7:00pm to 9:00pm

With warming weather and sunnier skies, springtime will soon be heralded in by our familiar friend, the honey bee. But with staggering statistics about the rapid loss of bees, it may be time to consider small-scale and urban beekeeping as a remedy. Begin your beekeeping experience by learning the basics from a master bee tender, [...]

Tagged as: agriculture, food, greening, local, urban sustainability

Mike Lux: Lessons from History for the Obama Years

Event info: Friday 13 March 2009 – 7:00pm to 9:00pm

Barack Obama, a liberal-leaning centrist Democrat was elected with the energetic support of progressive activists. Post-election enthusiasm remains high amongst progressives who believe that President Obama may be in a position to redefine the political center in just the way that Franklin Roosevelt did.
Mike Lux, author of the new book “The Progressive Revolution” offers a [...]

Tagged as: book for sale, economics, Obama, political campaigns

“Traces of the Trade: A Story From the Deep North” Documentary Screening and Filmmaker Discussion

Event info: Sunday 8 March 2009 – 7:00pm to 9:00pm

Join us for a special screening of the acclaimed documentary “Traces of the Trade,” with filmmaker and JP-resident Katrina Browne. Featured on PBS and at the Sundance Film Festival, this film recounts Browne’s inquiry into the DeWolf family, her forefathers and the largest slave-trading family in U.S. history.
“Traces of the Trade” follows ten DeWolf descendants [...]

Tagged as: Africa, local, reparations, slavery, wealth

“Arusi-Persian Wedding” Documentary Screening

Event info: Friday 27 February 2009 – 7:00pm to 9:00pm

Iranian American filmmaker Marjan Tehrani chronicles her brother’s return to Iran during the start of the U.S. invasion of Iraq, as he travels with his American wife to have a traditional Persian wedding and explore his lost heritage. But, when Alex’s Iranian-born parents and Heather’s conservative American father meet for the first time, cultures clash [...]

Tagged as: Iran, marriage, Middle East

Kim Fellner – Wrestling with Starbucks: The Politics of Coffee

Event info: Tuesday 17 February 2009 – 7:00pm to 9:00pm

As a longtime labor and community organizer, Kim Fellner has spent her life fighting corporate abuse. But when fellow demonstrators at the 1999 “Battle of Seattle” smashed in the window of a Starbucks store, she couldn’t escape the feeling that something was wrong with the picture. How had a coffee company with a liberal reputation [...]

Tagged as: book for sale, coffee, food, Latin America, social movements

Kim Bobo: Wage Theft in America

Event info: Thursday 29 January 2009 – 7:00pm to 9:00pm

Why Millions of Working Americans Are Not Getting Paid-And What We Can Do About It

Kim Bobo, the co-founder of Interfaith Worker Justice discusses her new book (“Wage Theft in America”) about how billions of dollars worth of wages are stolen from millions of workers.
Each year, billions of dollars’ worth of wages are stolen from millions [...]

Tagged as: capitalism, community, economics, workers' rights

Closing the Racial Wealth Divide

Event info: Friday 23 January 2009 – 7:00pm to 9:00pm

with Meizhu Lui, Dedrick Muhammad and Amaad Rivera
Three national experts join us to both celebrate the election of Barack Obama and discuss the persistent disparities of wealth that still exist along racial lines. The forum corresponds with the release of “State of the Dream 2009,” a timely study examining racial wealth disparities.
Over the past few [...]

Tagged as: community, economics, race in America, social movements, wealth

“The Dhamma Brothers” Film and Discussion

Event info: Thursday 11 December 2008 – 7:00pm to 9:00pm

THE DHAMMA BROTHERS tells a dramatic tale of human potential and transformation as it closely follows and documents the stories of the prison inmates at Donaldson Correction Facility who enter into this arduous and intensive program. This film, with the power to dismantle stereotypes about men behind prison bars also gives you hope for the [...]

Tagged as: meditation, peace, prisons, race in America, reparations

Readings and Reflections from Accomplished Local Authors

Event info: Friday 5 December 2008 – 7:00pm to 9:00pm

Did you know that Jamaica Plain is home to many of Bostonâ€™s distinguished and celebrated authors? For our first bi-anual â€œLocal Authorsâ€ night, Brendan Halpin, Catherine Sasanov and Ron Maclean will join us for an evening of reading, discussion and celebration of our local literati, storytellers, and writers.

Brendan Halpin is the author of two memoirs [...]

Tagged as: art, community, local

JP Family Songfest & Singalong

Event info: Sunday 16 November 2008 – 1:00pm to 3:00pm

Singing together helps to bring us into community, learn history, and share a folk-language that can pass through the ages. They give us a way to build and express community, calm the heart, and share emotions that defy ordinary conversation.
As we head into the winter darkness, letâ€™s join together and light up from the [...]

Tagged as: community, Ken Ward, kids, local, Singing

JP Family Songfest & Singalong

Singing together helps to bring us into community, learn history, and share a folk-language that can pass through the ages. They give us a way to build and express community, calm the heart, and share emotions that defy ordinary conversation.
As we head into the winter darkness, letâ€™s join together and light up from the [...]

All I Want for Christmas: Unplugging Consumption During the Holidays

Event info: Friday 14 November 2008 – 7:00pm to 9:00pm

As the holiday shopping season looms ahead, is the “Shop-ocalypse” inevitable? Â Join us for an inspiring film and discussion about deescalating the consumption frenzy. We will show the hilarious film, “What Would Jesus Buy?” featuring performance-artist, the Reverend Billy and his Church of Stop Shopping Choir. Â Through retail interventions, corporate exorcisms, and some good [...]

Tagged as: art, community, consumption, economics, recession, Singing

“Ask Dr. Dollar: The Market Meltdown and the Post-Election Economy” with Arthur MacEwan, Professor of Economics, UMass

Event info: Friday 7 November 2008 – 7:00pm to 9:00pm

Whatâ€™s the real story behind the housing mortgage meltdown? Are you worried about the economy? Wondering how the new President will manage our financial affairs? Have you been mystified by the so-called experts who use obscure jargon to paint a rosy picture of â€œfree trade,â€ corporate bail-outs, and wage stagnation?
Let Dr. Dollar â€“answer your questions [...]

Tagged as: bubble economy, capitalism, community, economy, recession

“Pete Seeger and The Power of Song” Film and Singing

Event info: Sunday 19 October 2008 – 5:00pm to 7:30pm

Communities are created and strengthened through singing together: no one knew this better than one of Americaâ€™s most beloved folk singers, Pete Seeger. Come watch parts of the inspirational film, â€œThe Power of Songâ€ and observe Seegerâ€™s ability to bring great social issues into popular discussion through song. and sing a few tunes about [...]

Tagged as: art, community, elderly, kids, Singing, social movements

“Lioness” Film and Discussion

Event info: Friday 10 October 2008 – 7:00pm to 9:00pm

They went to Iraq as cooks, clerks, and mechanics and returned a year later as part of America’s first generation of female combat veterans. Despite an official government policy that states that women are not supposed to partake in direct ground combat, the five women featured here most certainly did. LIONESS, tells the story of [...]

Tagged as: gender, Middle East, military, peace, trauma, war

“Sustainable City Living” Talk with Scott from the Rhizome Collective

Event info: Friday 3 October 2008 – 7:00pm to 9:00pm

With a warming globe and diminishing oil, it is critical that we begin to live with a dramatically different way. Bike-power, rain water collection, permaculture and relocalization of our communites are just the beginning. We will discuss the creative methods that â€œurban environmental stewardsâ€ have been testing out to live within the earthâ€™s limits and [...]

Tagged as: climate, community, DIY, environment, greening, preparation, social movements

!Salud! Film and Discussion with Dr. Marty Schotz and Nancy Kohn

Event info: Friday 24 October 2008 – 7:00pm to 9:00pm

Find out what puts Cuba on the map in the quest for global health â€¦

Cuba has trained more than 30,000 medical doctors from over 68 countries, including 100 from the United States, for free. Now they are working with the poorest of the poor all across the globe. Learn about their battle for global [...]

Tagged as: Cuba, health care

“There Are No Illegal People” with photojournalist David Bacon

Event info: Tuesday 9 September 2008 – 7:00pm to 9:00pm

Illegal People: How Globalization Creates Migration and Criminalizes Immigrants, with David Bacon
â€œDavid Bacon is the conscience of American journalism; an extraordinary social documentarist in the rugged humanist tradition of Dorothea Lange, Carey McWilliams, and Ernesto Galarza.â€
â€”Mike Davis, author of No One Is Illegal

Jamaica Plain has a rich history as a “landing pad” for [...]

Tagged as: art, capitalism, community, economics, immigration, politics, race in America, social movements

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