Around the Corner

All Summer long, we organized events on Thursday to "keep the local youth off the streets". Or, in more positive terms: we invited youngsters to help us discover the "green treasures" in Rīga. 

During four different expeditions, we explored different neighbourhoods for eco shops, vegan restaurants, recycling points, parks and bike lanes. Furthermore, we organized workshops about gardening, upcycling, eco-cosmetics and outdoor activities.

The Five (or Four?) Senses

Our project threw us yet another challenge: organize a workshop during a camp for kids with various disabilities.

We decided to use our five senses to explore nature, even though some of the kids were blind, deaf, in a wheelchair, or mentally disabled. In the end, the kids were very enthusiastic and easy-going. 

We ended our little session by gathering leaves in the near-by forest, and making some impressionistic postcard designs with leaf stamps.

Russian Finger Puppets

We have to keep developing new workshop ideas - if only to keep ourselves interested (Tetrapak wallets are soooo 2013!). So Anna found some cool designs for finger puppets, and on a rainy Thursday afternoon I sewed one after another - I just couldn't stop!

We immediately implemented our new workshop during an event for Rīgas Svētki in the (mostly Russian-speaking) neighbourhood Imanta. Of course, the little kaķis (cat) was by far the most popular!

Krišjānis Barons and the Science Academy

Santa organized a little company outing for us to the Latvian Folklore Repository. After enjoying the stunning view from the top of Science Academy, our guide professor Māra told us all about the Latvian songs, stories, dances, poetry, and even gravestone inscriptions that they collect, and we were allowed to touch the original manuscripts of Krišjānis Barons - the Father of the Latvian Folk Song (Dainas).

Latviešu valoda

Today we had our last Latvian language class before the summer vacation, so it was Scrabble time!

Over the past four months, our sweet and patient teacher Anna L has been teaching us all about conjugations, declensions and palatalizations. Mēs jau runajam ļoti labi latvieša valodu!

Expedicija Pilsēta

All Summer long, we're collaborating with "ir" magazine to organize a series of children's day camps. Every couple of days, we're visited by a group of screaming, running, laughing children, who are coming to discover homo ecos: on the "city expedition". 

We teach them about responsible garbage disposal through the story of Wasteful Eddy, and then they can make little animal toys out of recycled toilet paper rolls and cardboard.

Herbal Tea Expedition

Two days in the countryside, drinking tea, picking tea, smelling tea, talking about tea. 

We learned all about ayurvedic use of herbs (our host even had 7 herb gardens, planted according to the 7 chakras), did some yoga, took a steam in the herbal sauna, and - most importantly - picked lots and lots of herbal tea to take home!

EcoEnglish

For the past three months I've been teaching English conversational skills to a small group of homo ecos: followers. Since most of my students actually speak English quite well, it's more of an excuse for them to practise their English, and for me to plug some green ideas.

Today was my last class of the season. I hope to start again with a fresh (new) group after summer!

Getting creative

I totally caught the upcycling bug!

I dumpster dived a mirror for my bedroom, and then rolled-and-glued a frame out of old interior design magazines! 

Total cost: 50 cents (glue sticks + hot glue)

Total effort: about 20 hours

Arabic Scents pt II

(c) Gundega Šķēla, Annas Lindes Fonds

We repeated our "smelly baggy" workshop, this time in a lovely youth center in Valmiera, during the Grande Finale of the "Other Side of the Mediterranean" Festival. We even found time to enjoy some Egyptian pantomime, Turkish dancing and of course some good Moroccan food!

Adapting to Climate Change

Santa asked me to go to a two-day conference for scientists and policy makers from the three Baltic States. The presentations themselves were extremely boring, but I did meet some very interesting people and learned a lot about climate change and the things that various countries and cities are doing to prepare for it.

Arabic Scents

So not all workshops are easy to organize. How do you organize an authentic "Arabic night" for the Anna Lindh Foundation when, according to the census, only a couple of thousand "southern Mediterranean" people live in your country? And even the people working in the baklava shop and kebab restaurants are Latvian? And your presenter skips out on you at the last minute?

Luckily, we have iron nerves and super improvisation skills here at homo ecos:! I tapped into my knowledge of Arabic cooking, while Anna used her DIY-experience to teach our guests to make fragrant sachets with natural herbs and spices. 

Eurovision

Eurovision: the summit of European integration, collaboration and cultural exchange! This year, I had the honour to watch the Grand Finale with representatives from Latvia, Portugal, Ukraine, Italy and Austria (douze points!).

Rotterdam meets Kiyv

Anna and I hosted a semi-compulsory intercultural event for our colleagues: complete with Dutch speculaas, zoute drop, stroopwafels, boterhammen met hagelslag, and Ukrainian varenyki. We quizzed our colleagues on their knowledge of Dutch and Ukrainian politicians, artists and inventions, and we made them try the Dutch game spijkerpoepen and sing the Ukrainian folk song Shchendryk.

Literature meets Environmentalism

I invited an old study mate of mine, Kate, to come to homo ecos: to give a lecture on Ecocriticism; a field of study within Literary Criticism that looks at the way we humans relate to nature and our environment. I was really happy that I was able to bring a little bit of my own expertise - Literature - into my new job/life at homo ecos:!

After the lecture, I showed Kate that Riga is really hip and happening! There are some really cool and tasty eco-restaurants, for instance!

Upcycling @ School Spring Festival

Chao! 

So here comes the time to share with you another passion of mine: UPCYCLING 

I've always loved art, especially applied one. And at some point of my life I thought: 

"Hey! I can use wasted materials to create something nice. Daahh!" 

At that precise moment I discovered upcycling for myself :) 

These days I'm trying to popularise ideas of upcycling 

and homo ecos: is great place to do this.  

Last Friday we participated at Spring festival in one school in Riga offering kids to reinvent the "trash"!

The Cleanest City in Latvia

This week, we took the bus all the way to Ventspils, to organize a workshop about the Green Toolbox for a youth exchange group. It was a great experience; getting young people from Spain, Italy, Romania, Bulgaria, Turkey and Latvia to think of ways to "green" their own event. 

On our way to the lovely and clean beach, we even encountered a familiar poster!

Celebrating Earth Day 2014 @homo ecos:

This year Earth Day is devoted to the Green City campaign, 

and we at homo ecos: decided to make Riga a bit greeener :) 

I'm garden geek and I LOVE everything related to urban gardening, so no wonder I suggested to make a small vertical garden in the HE yard 

(by the way, great solution for those like us who don't have spare patch of earth nearby). 

steady...

so, planters are ready...

GO! Go planting gooo!!

 We'll follow our garden and soon will share some yummy herbs and veggies :) 

and for now for those who want to make own mini garden - take nice care of plants and soon...

Lazma - garden charmer  

Eko Velo Orienteering

I've never seen so many bikes in one place! (outside The Netherlands...) The EkoTurbulence youth group organized a 'treasure hunt by bike' through Riga, helping us discover recycling points, second-hand shops and some cool eco restaurants.

Our New Apartment

Anna and I finally settled down! We found two big rooms in an even bigger apartment in the Silent Center of Riga. We're sharing the place with our landlord and -lady, and their hysterical Dachshund Lotte.

Green Toolbox

Quickly reading up on our Green Toolbox before presenting it to a group of 40 Estonian non-formal educators at the Faculty of Geography today! *Gulp!*

On-Arrival Training

(Photo: Luis Santos)

Every EVS Volunteer has to go through it. Some call it the best part of their entire EVS. Our On-Arrival Training consisted of 5 days in the lovely Puduri Guest House near Ķegums, where we met some amazing people (volunteers, mentors and trainers), learned a lot about Latvia, our projects, EVS and ourselves, enjoyed amazing quantities of food, killed werewolves, painted eggs, sang Bosnian and Spanish songs, blindfolded our mentors and jumped over a bonfire (ok.. a candle). 

Thanks for the amazing time, guys!

Super Stencil Extravaganza!

Spring is in the air, so the EcoTurbulence youth group organized a workshop to help us bring some colour into our wardrobes! Using stencils cut from old cereal boxes and special sponge-and-toothbrush techniques, we brightened up some of our old T-shirts, tops and even trousers!

Going Green with Little People

I'm not a superstar with little children, especially ones that don't speak my language. So entertaining some 30 random kids at the Kalnciema Kvartāls farmer's market was quite a challenge for me! Luckily, we had a small army of (local) volunteers helping us out. This is Anna, planting some veggies in egg boxes with a cute little girl.

World Water Day

It's World Water Day! Together with Pasaules Dabas Fonds, we cherish Latvia's most important body of water: the Baltic Sea. After a lecture by PDF's water expert, we educate the audience about the quality of tap water and show them how to substitute chemical soaps with home-made natural cleaning products.

A Flowery Birthday

It's my birthday today, and apparently in Latvia that means you MUST get some flowers! Thankfully, I have some really nice new colleagues! Thanks girls!

Also, I've learned that your name day is even more important than your actual birthday. I'm slightly respelling my official passport name to "Johanna", and I'm expecting lots and lots of hugs, flowers, presents and kisses on 15 December!