In the letter to myself from Week 1 of the program, I wrote about wanting to learn more about the history of Detroit and forming my own opinions about the city from my own experiences, and I can say that I for sure did learn a lot about the history of the city and developed …
I feel like the events and group meetings we had were a great way for us to learn about Detroit in different ways, and also to bond as a group. The historical walking tours we went on were really eye-opening and taught me a lot about the history in the streets we were walking on. …
There’s honestly a lot I could write about for this post. I’ve really enjoyed all the program events we’ve done outside of our placements. I’ve learned so much more about Detroit and its history from the walking tours we’ve gone on, the facilitated event at the Detroit Historical Society, from the film screening we went …
This past Sunday, VEJ had their monthly Community Dinner Discussion event. This is a time where community members are invited to come to Hope House and share a free catered meal together, while listening to a speaker(s) talk about environmental justice topics. This month, we had a panel of interfaith leaders speak and it was …
https://www.metrotimes.com/detroit/two-years-in-detroits-qline-falls-far-short-of-expectations/Content?oid=21552552 Before coming to Detroit, I had heard a lot about the shortcomings of public transportation in the city. After reading How to Kill a City and the development of the QLine it was interesting to see the results with my own eyes when I got to Detroit. I’ve ridden the QLine a couple times, and I …
The culture at VEJ is very welcoming and the site itself is a very open space that invites people into the garden. My supervisor and the executive director of VEJ are both parents and bring their children to Hope House. Several kids from down the street always come down to the garden to help out …
I’ve been working with VEJ for 2.5 weeks now, and I’ve gotten to know their programs and structure a lot better during my time here. Because VEJ is so small, I’ve been given a lot of responsibilities off the bat that I’m not entirely sure I am qualified for, like making a youth ecology curriculum. …
I am working with Voices for Earth Justice this summer, and they’re located in Brightmoor, a neighborhood on the northwest border of Detroit. Their mission is to reach those in the community, regardless of faith or race, and bring people together over environmental justice issues. VEJ only has one actual staff employee, who is part-time. …
Dear Lydia, I am hoping to learn a lot from this program; from the history of Detroit, to working in a non-profit organization, to forming my own opinions about the city that aren’t influenced from outside voices. I want to take advantage of living in the city and be able to learn as much from …
