Sustainable (and Resilient) Warwick - 2020-2022
At Sustainable Warwick, we share heartfelt concerns with so many others in the community for everyone who is sick, for those who may die, and for the extended families of all victims of the pandemic. We are also grateful and inspired by the brave and selfless work of medical personnel and other essential service providers. At the same time, we are troubled by the challenges facing the unemployed, the underemployed and everyone else who has already been financially pinched during the pandemic -- especially because of the uncertainty of when things will turn around.
While some of us are overwhelmed addressing immediate pressing needs from the pandemic, others have more mundane challenges from social distancing and requirements that we all stay in quasi-isolation.
When we look at sustainability, it is essentially about far-sighted and long-term planning for preventing problems (like environmental, social and economic challenges) while also cultivating resilient solutions (like clean water and air, vibrant farms, forests, and gardens, and plentiful clean energy).
Because of the pressing needs of dealing with the pandemic, we first have to encourage everyone to contribute as generously as they can to local, national and international relief efforts. But beyond that, as laws require us to hunker down at home, we are looking for answers to questions like:
How can we take advantage of this challenging era to emerge more resilient than before?
As individuals, what skills and knowledge can we acquire?
As Sustainable Warwick, what can we do to help people around Warwick?
While we are still open to new answers to these questions, here are the actions we are focusing on right now:
Local Growers Guide
SW has compiled lists and created an interactive map of places where Warwick residents can purchase food and other products from local farmers. The project is dynamic and will be updated when we hear about more opportunities to support our local farms. Check out the map and the list! We are still active and growing on the Sustainable Warwick site. If you are a grower who wants to be included in our listing, please drop us a line!
Zoom Garden Plot
Sustainable Warwick and Grow Local Greenwood Lake are collaborating on a project to help beginning gardeners get started and for more experienced gardeners to share their knowledge and experience. And we hope that in the process, we will strengthen our community. We meet on Zoom, join us on the 2nd and 4th Monday evenings at 7:30. Videos of past meetings are available on our Zoom Garden Plot page. After 2 years, we are still going strong and meeting for most of the year. Check us out!
Albert Wisner Public Library Virtual Events
To celebrate the 50th Earth Day, Sustainable Warwick teamed up with Albert Wisner Public Library to host: a presentation about The Story of Stuff; a discussion of Disruption, a documentary about climate change and the People’s Climate March; a town hall meeting with State Senator Jen Metzger on what New York is doing about climate change; and a webinar on going solar. Please check out the Library’s virtual events page for more upcoming events.
Fundraiser to benefit WAMC*
* The Warwick Area Migrant Committee has been helping farmworkers & their families since 1959.
The Warwick Area Migrant Committee provides summer enrichment programs for children of migrant workers and continues to distribute 500 meals each week to migrant farm workers and their families. We had asked folks to post local harvest photographs on either the Sustainable Warwick or Grow Local Greenwood Lake Facebook pages and we donated $20 per photo to WAMC.
Resilient Warwick Food Pantry Donation Fund
One way we have decided to help our fellow Warwickians is by working with Community2gether to sponsor the Resilient Warwick Food Pantry Donation Fund. If you are able to make a monetary donation at this time, please consider giving to the Resilient Warwick Food Pantry Support Fund. Your tax deductible donation will be distributed to food pantries around Warwick.