With the holidays coming up I wanted to mention ways in which people can give back. Here is a nice list: http://money.usnews.com/money/blogs/my-money/2014/12/07/10-ways-to-give-back-as-a-family-this-holiday-season

There are also hundreds of organizations that could use contributions and this time of the year is the perfect time to do that. Here are sites to help you find the right place to donate to:
http://www.guidestar.org/
http://www.charitynavigator.org/
http://greatnonprofits.org/campaigns/
https://www.justgive.org/

I read this article in the New York Times the other day about milk and how it might not have the impact on our lives that we all thought that it did. The article states, "More and more evidence is surfacing, however, that milk consumption may not only be unhelpful, it might also be detrimental. This is in spite of the fact that the United States Department of Agriculture and other organizations advocate that even adults should drink at least three cups a day."

Read why here: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/18/upshot/got-milk-might-not-be-doing-you-much-good.html?_r=0&abt=0002&abg=1

This week I wanted to bring up Sweet Generation for Arts Education. "Sweet Generation is a custom bakery that improves access to Arts education by partnering with, and donating to, Arts organizations and schools. We bake to remove barriers between children and art" (http://www.sweetgeneration.org/pages/doing-good).
Their website also states "Sweet Generation not only funds Arts education for youth, but engages young people in the business itself. A portion of Sweet Generation's sales are donated to Arts organizations, and we support their fundraising efforts through in-kind donations of our baked goods. We also started an internship program that teaches baking, work readiness, and entrepreneurship to teens and young adults from low-income communities."

Link: http://www.sweetgeneration.org/

This weeks post is a cute one - a dog that was rescued during Hurricane Katrina now snuggles weekly with kittens at an animal shelter! Sometimes cute things just help everyone mood.
Link: http://www.today.com/pets/dog-who-survived-hurricane-katrina-now-calms-shelter-kittens-1D80265968

I have a habit of putting words I am passionate about into Google News search and seeing the newest articles about them. The other day I put in "vegetables" and this article came up. I think it is very important - especially for parents and caregivers. I would like to think that this was obvious but apparently it isn't since so many young children do not eat enough vegetables. The article states that children who eat vegetables are healthier.
Here is the link: http://www.utexas.edu/news/2014/10/27/vegetables-child-health/

This week my resource contribution is about ASU students who are working towards an all vegan dining hall.

Link: http://www.statepress.com/2014/10/23/asu-students-drive-campaign-for-establishment-of-all-vegan-dining-hall/

"More than 800 ASU students have signed a petition calling for the establishment of an all-vegan dining hall on campus.
After ASU received a "C" on peta2's annual vegan report card, which assesses dining hall menus based on public information records and student feedback, students decided to petition for an all-vegan dining hall on campus."

To go along with my Global Warming theme of the week I picked a link to the Meat Eater's Guide to help reduce every single person's footprint!

Here is info on reducing your footprint: http://www.ewg.org/meateatersguide/a-meat-eaters-guide-to-climate-change-health-what-you-eat-matters/reducing-your-footprint/

To take the Meatless Monday Challenge: http://action.ewg.org/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=1929&tag=2011MeatEater%27sReportPledge

This week I decided to mention "Pro Bono" day in NYC.

From their site:

"After a successful inaugural year, Pro Bono Day NYC is back with an expanded program including free panels, workshops, and a breakfast reception to bring together the pro bono community. Organized by Taproot Foundation and supported by the Citi Foundation, Pro Bono Day NYC: Connecting Passion with Purposetakes place on Thursday, October 23, 2014 from 9:00 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. at locations across the city."

http://www.csrwire.com/press_releases/37407-Pro-Bono-Day-NYC-2014-to-Connect-Hundreds-of-Nonprofits-Corporations-and-Volunteers

It is a great day that brings together so many people and communities that would not normally get the chance to be together!

This past week I read an article on NY City Lens about Lara Land, a yoga teacher who opened a studio in Harlem where there are certainly less yoga studios than the rest of the city.

She shared:
"You have these little moments all the time," Land says. She leans on one arm, then on the other, causing the bun of curls sitting on top of her head to move along with her. "As a teacher, when you guide a student through something they didn't before, that feels really good. They come to you all the time telling you their lives are better, they sleep better. We had a student that had irregular heartbeat that's doing better now." Her eyes widen. "Little things all the time," she said, looking up towards the ceiling of the studio. "Little sparks that add up to something big."

Website for yoga studio: www.landyoga.com

Her bio: "Since opening Land, Lara has continued her mission to give to her community. The studio offers classes for all levels, ages, and abilities, and provides many programs for new and expectant moms and children. Lara founded Harlem Earth Day through Harlem's leading business association, Harlem Park to Park. She gives free and donation based yoga all over her community including Morningside Park, Columbia University, The Ralph Lauren Cancer Center, the Food Bank and at The Children's Storefront and many other local schools. She has also continued her work with high risk youth, teaching programs for Girl's Talk, Friends of the Children, and the Incarnation Children's Center in Washington Heights. Recently Lara conducted a Bollywood style fundraiser at Harlem's Red Rooster restaurant which raised $10,000 for Odanadi to rescue children from Human Trafficking." (http://landyoga.com/lara)
Link to article: http://nycitylens.com/2014/09/harlems-aspiring-yogi-proves-yoga-isnt-for-the-weak-minded/

Thank you for sharing this! I was at the march and it was so amazing to be part of such a powerful movement!

For my third resource contribution I decided to share the link to Hospice since I wrote about it in my refection this week as well. Their concept is:
"Hospice is a concept of caring derived from medieval times, symbolizing a place where travelers, pilgrims and the sick, wounded or dying could find rest and comfort. The contemporary hospice offers a comprehensive program of care to patients and families facing a life threatening illness. Hospice is primarily a concept of care, not a specific place of care."
Hospice was there for my grandmother my family when we needed them and made the end of my grandmother's life tremendously better. Their website actually has a lot of information about caring for loved ones that are sick or my be at the end of their life.

Website: https://www.hospicenet.org/html/services.html
Make a donation: https://hospicenet.org/html/donations.html
Caregiver suggestions: https://www.hospicenet.org/html/supportive_how.html

For my second resource contribution I wanted to share Yoga Gangsters.

"Yoga Gangsters is a Miami-based 501(c)(3) non-profit organization whose mission is to empower youth by addressing the symptoms of trauma and poverty such as limited education, addiction, violence, incarceration, teen pregnancy, HIV, physical/mental disabilities and more using the practice of yoga."

This organization stood out to me because I am a yoga instructor and have seen the lives of so many people change by bringing yoga into their lives. Physical change can help dramatically with emotional change and this non-profit is the perfect example of that.

Website: http://yogagangsters.org/
More about their program: http://yogagangsters.org/about/

For my first resource contribution of the semester I picked is Harlem Grown. It is a non-profit in Harlem, NY that brings farming to the city and the young people who live there. I chose this organization because I grew up in the country on a small farm and learned so much by getting my hands dirty. I love that in a big city like New York that is posibble.

Their mission statement:

"Founded in 2011, Harlem Grown is an independent, non-profit organization whose mission is to create a network of neighborhood farms and spread its produce and social benefits through Harlem. We operate local urban farms; increase access and knowledge of healthy food for Harlem residents; and provide garden-based youth development programs to Harlem youth.
We believe that healthy habits start young so our educational programs are focused on elementary-aged students in Harlem. Food justice in our neighborhood is more than just providing and distributing food, therefore our model delves deep within the community using mentorship, job training, and partnerships as tools to create a sustainable community."


Website: http://harlemgrown.com/about-us/

Video: http://vimeo.com/76179636