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San Francisco A.L.L.
Team | New York
City A.L.L. Team |
Board of Directors | Board of Advisors
| Administrative Team | Landscape
Design Associates | Volunteers
| Website & Technology Team | Funders/Contributors
San Francisco A.L.L. Team
Bonnie Ora Sherk, Founder & Director, Chief Designer, Head
Teacher
The
Founder & Director of Life Frames, Inc.
& A Living Library is Bonnie
Ora Sherk who developed this systemic approach to environmental
transformation and education. A.L.L., for short,
integrates interdisciplinary, standards-based, hands-on
learning, community ecological planning and design, and
state-of-the-art communications technologies like Green-Powered
Digital Gateways.
Sherk,
who is trained as a landscape architect, planner, and educator,
is also a professional artist who exhibits her work in museums
and galleries all over the world. Her work has also been
internationally published in art books, journals, and magazines.
She has been creating and implementing systemic design processes
and Life Frame, Living Library, Think Park plans
for sites around the country for over 25 years. Everything
that she has done in her life has lead her to create A
Living Library. Her dream is to have Branch
Living Libraries all over the world, linked
through live interactive broadcast, showcased in Green-Powered
Digital Gateways.
An early
and successful Life Frame was
also one of the first Alternative Art Spaces in the country
funded by the National Endowment for the Arts. It was one
of five "Alternative Arts Education Programs" in California
funded by the California Arts Council, and also one of the
first "brownfield" projects of the Trust for Public Land
called Crossroads Community (the farm).
Located in San Francisco next to a major interchange, The
Farm inspired the transformation of seven acres of derelict
land into a new City Farm Park. Sherk was the Founding Director
and President beginning in 1974 to the end of 1980. Click
here to read Bonnie Ora Sherk's bio.
Michelle Smelser, Garden/Ecology/Multi-Arts/Literacy/Nutrition
Instructor
Every
job Michelle has enthusiastically undertaken has prepared
her for the next one, even though she has crossed industries
and job titles. Most human resource managers wouldn’t
know where to place her; she is orginal and inventive.
Her first job out of college was working in International
Artist Relations (A&R) for WORK GROUP Records - Epic/Sony
Music in Los Angeles. Coming from a small town in the Midwest
to the multicultural setting of LA, having a supervisor from
London, and a constant challenge of translating what her colleagues
overseas were trying to say, sent her to Guadalajara to start
her next career. Four years then ensued, teaching ESL in Mexico,
Taiwan, and Eastern Germany.
It was this time abroad that opened her eyes to the current
environmental crisis that the earth is in, and the impact
of the US standard of living on these developing areas of
the world. Reaching back to her farming roots in rural Indiana,
her summer days working in her dad’s garden, and to
the women educators of her family, she was awakened and evolved
into an A.L.L. Garden/Ecology/Multi-Arts/Literacy/Nutrition
Instructor. Michelle teaches children at the OMI/Excelsior
Living Library & Think Park and the Bernal Heights Living
Library & Think Park.
Michelle has a BA in Communications with a minor in Psychology
from Purdue University. She is certified as an ESL instructor
and also has Permaculture Certification.
Susan Meyer, Garden/Ecology/Multi-Arts/Literacy/Nutrition
Instructor
Susan
is a Doctor of Naturopathic Medicine with 25 years of experience
in private practice where she focused on Oncology, Women's
Health Care, Homeopathy and Genral Practice, Mental and Emotional
Illness, Chinese Internal Medicine and Pain Management. Susan
designed, coordinated and taught community education classes
on Women's Health Care. She was also responsible for initiating
and organizing the Institution of Naturopathic Services for
Outside Inn, a low income medical aid station.
Susan is drawn to teaching and creating gardens within the
context of the school system. She is interested in how experiential
learning offered through gardens can enrich and supplement
the academic program within schools. Susan has extensive experience
designing various edible, organic landscapes, with integrated
pest management, crop rotation, compost area, cover crop,
and irrigation. She was co-owner of Urban Organics, a business
in Los Angeles that designed and installed urban organic edible
landscapes. As part of this work, she also created curriculum
and taught a training program on all aspects of organic gardening.
She received her BS in Acupuncture from Samra Acupuncture
College, and holds a California Acupuncture License. She also
studied Chemistry, Plant and Soil Science/Agriculture at University
of Portland and University of Vermont.
Babak Jacinto Tondre, Adult Environmental Skills/Green Job
Training Teacher & Coordinator
Tondre
has extensive experience in green building and permaculture
methodologies. He is a founding member of the Berkeley Ecohouse
with Linda Maier and Karl Linn. His green building projects
include: design and construction of Children's Amphitheater
at Anthony Chabot Elementary School, full commercial remodel
of Wide Hive Records/ Recording Café, design and construction
of Garden & Compost Training Education Center at Alameda
County of Waste Management, Ecohouse transformations, and
design, construction and maintenance of an edible school garden
in Oakland.
Through his green building at a number of schools, Tondre
has engaged students in the building processes and taught
solar and ecological education.
Tondre has both a Permaculture Designer’s Certificate
(P.I.N.C) as well as a Permaculture Teacher’s Certificate.
He has studied Ecological Design at San Francisco Institute
of Architecture, and composting through the Marin County Master
Composter Program. He received his B.A. from the College of
Environmental Design, U.C. Berkeley.
Catherine Ai-Ying Chanse, New Media/Video Arts/Garden Teacher
Catherine is Life Frames' New Media/Video Arts/Garden
Teacher and works with students at A.L.L. Branch
Living Library sites in San Francisco. Catherine is interested
in exploring and understanding the ways in which technology
can be used to further learning, promote discussion, dialogue,
and action within and between communities, and provide opportunities
for expression and creativity.
Her vision for the A.L.L. program is to teach children
and youth how to document their peers and their activities
and work in the gardens, interview each other, and record
their words, poetry and actions through audio recording and
still and video cameras. Ultimately, these "life
frames" will culminate in the A.L.L. Multimedia
Archives of each Branch Living Library.
Prior to her work with A Living Library, Catherine
worked as Coordinator of the Educational Technology Program
at Phipps Community Development Corporation where she was
responsible for the overall operation of the community technology
center, and focused on ways to integrate technology to support
academic instruction, further basic computer literacy skills,
and build new media skills. She has many years of experience
working within the nonprofit sector with a focus on education
and access to technology issues. This fall, she will continue
her studies through the Multimedia Graduate Program at California
State University East Bay. She has a BA in Sociology from
Brown University.
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A.L.L. Youth Leaders
Our student youth leaders come from diverse communities and
work with us in developing and maintaining the gardens and
native landscapes. They also mentor the younger children in
garden, ecology, and arts experiences and processes. They
receive a monetary stipend for their work and dedication.
High school and middle school students come from all over
San Francisco to work with us as A.L.L. Youth Leaders
at our Branch Living Library sites. College students
also join us as interns and volunteers. In fact, 10 students
from Grinnell College in Iowa spent their ten-day spring break
with us in San Francisco planting almost 200 new California
Native trees on the San Miguel Child Development Center Campus
in March 2006.
   
Grinell College students
plant 200 new California Native trees on the San Miguel Child
Development Center Campus in March 2006.
Calvin Price,
Summer Intern, 11th grade, John
O'Connell Alternative High School
This summer, Troop 12, Boy Scouts of America continued transformation
of asphalt and concrete into the OMI / Excelsior Living Library
& Think Park. View photographs
of them in action!
New York City A.L.L. Team
Matthew
Katz,
Past President, Roosevelt Island Residents' Association
Margie Smith, Vice President, Roosevelt
Island Residents' Association
Lydia Tang, PTA, PS/IS 217
Judy
Berdy, President, Roosevelt Island Historical Society
Erin Feeley-Nahem, PTA, PS/IS 217
Virginia Granato, President, Roosevelt
Island Disabled Association
Dolores Greene, President of Roosevelt
Island Seniors Assoication
Arline Jacoby, Roosevelt Island Visual
Artists Association
Marilyn
Peoples,
Horticultural Therapist, Collard-Goldwater Hospitals
Swee
Lian Yi, Horticultural Therapist, Collard-Goldwater
Hospitals
Life Frames, Inc. Board of Directors:
Cornelia
Connors, President & Treasurer
President, Connors Communications
Jay
Begler, Esq., Secretary
Partner, Nixon Peabody LLP
Caryl Hodges, Ed.
Associate Dean, School of Education
University of San Francisco
Sherrill Kazan Alvarez de Toledo
President, World Council of Peoples for the United Nations
Project Directors: OMI/Excelsior Living Library & Think
Park / Bernal Heights Living Library & Think Park
(San Francisco, CA)
Marianne
Bertuccelli
Neighborhood Services Manager, S.F. Recreation & Park
Department
Rosemary
Cambra, Chairwoman
Muwekma Ohlone Indian Tribe
Carol Husbands
Site Manager, San Miguel Child Development Center
John Ignacio, EdD
Vice Principal, Luther Burbank Middle School
Kathy
Truett,
Former Site Manager, Junipero Serra Child Development Center
Jill Wynns,
Commissioner, San Francisco Board of Education
Project Directors: Roosevelt Island Living Library &
Think Park (Roosevelt Island, New York)
Ron Becker
Director
of Therapeutic Recreation, Coler-Goldwater Hospitals
Mandana Beckman
Principal,
PS/IS 217
Robert Croonquist
Founder
& Director, YouthArts (NY, NY)
Katia
Genes
Green
Architect; Teacher, The Child School (NY, NY)
Wayne
Jacoby
President,
Global Education Motivators (Philadelphia, PA)
Carl Anthony, Former Deputy Director,
Community Assets (NY, NY)
Jared
Blumenfeld, Director
of SF Department of Environment (SF, CA)
Michael
Telson, Former
Chief Financial Officer of US Department of Energy (Washington
DC)
Isabel
Wade, Executive
Director, Neighborhood Parks Council (SF,
CA)
Shamina de Gonzaga, Special Advisor, President,
UN General Assembly, Special Advisor for NGOs (NY, NY)
Kent Barwick, President Municipal Arts
Society; Metropolitan Waterfront Alliance (NY, NY)
Noel
Brown, Former Director of UN Environmental Program
(NY, NY)
Thomas Hartnett, Esq. (NY,NY; Washington
DC)
Kris Giroh, Financial Advisor, Merrill
Lynch, Global-Private Client Group (NY, NY)
Daniel
Roth, Co-Chair, US Partnership for a Decade of
Education for Sustainable Development (NY, NY)
Dean Koyanagi, Sustainability Coordinator,
Cornell University (Ithaca, NY)
Maraleen Manos-Jones, Board Member, Michoacan
Fund (Washington DC)
Wendy
Brawer, Founder & Director, Green Maps (NY,
NY)
Susanne
Anker, Chair, Fine Arts, School of Visual Arts
(NY, NY)
Kathy
Brew, Coordinator of Margaret Mead Film Video Festival,
Museum of Natural History (NY, NY)
Bonnie
Marranca, Publisher, PAJ: A Journal of Performance
& Art (NY, NY)
Randall Ann Homan, Gestalt Graphics (SF,
CA)
Administrative Team
Bonnie
Ora Sherk
Founder & Director / Chief Designer
Stacy
Boots & Catherine Chanse
Outreach, Administrative Assistance, & Digital Technologies
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Ken Sun
Bookkeeping & Accounting |
 |
Lauren
Wyse
Strategic Planning Associate
Aris Silzars
Communications Technologies
Mark
LeBow, Government Relations
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Landscape Design Associates:
Erin
Bullock; Jeanette Hill; Doug Wildman
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Volunteers:
Parents,
Teachers, Students, Friends, & Community Members
A Living Library Website Team (over
time):
Bonnie
Ora Sherk, Philip Malkin, Sean Scullion, Clare Z Puskarczyk,
Avram Klein, Mike Suner, Brandon Wong, George Chan, Arleda
Martinez; Joanne Brohmer; Michelle Smelser, Catherine Chanse
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Life Frames, Inc. & A Living Library
are supported by grants and inkind contributions:
- California
Department of Forestry & Fire Protection
- Floorcraft
Nursery
- Flow
Fund
- Ford
Foundation
- Friends
of the Urban Forest
- Hands
On Bay Area
- Home
Depot
- Mary
Crocker Trust
- Nature Issues Inc.
- New
York City Parks Department -- Operation Green Thumb
- Norcal
- Nurseryman's
Exchange
- Office
Depot
- Office
of SF Supervisor Gerardo Sandoval
- Potrero
Nuevo Fund of the Tides Foundation
- Presidio
Plant Nursery
- Rex
Foundation
- San
Francisco Art Commission
- Scheuer Foundation
- SF
Board of Education
- SF
Department of the Environment
- SF
Department of Public Works
- SF
Mayor's Office of Children, Youth, & Their Families
- SF
Mayor's Office of Neighborhood Beautification
- SF
Mayor's Office of Community Development
- SF
Public Utilities Commission
- SF
Recreation & Park Department
- Strybing
Arboretum Nursery
- San
Francisco Foundation
- Volunteer
Center
… and
the many volunteer teachers, parents, students & neighbors
who help bring the Branch Living Libraries to life!
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