Friday, November 2nd
Between noon and 6:30 on Friday, participants are invited to tour Ann Arbor's two co-housing communities, tour the student co-ops, participate in a recycled materials sculpture project at a nearby co-op, and to see firsthand the impact of capitalism in Detroit and some of the solutions that have emerged there. Spaces on tours are limited and can be reserved through the online registration or by contacting NASCO staff.
12 pm-6:30 pm
Hope Takes Root: Growing Power and Justice in a City Abandoned by Capitalism
What stories and images do you associate with Detroit? Plant closings, the 1967 Rebellion, white flight, vacant lots and gutted buildings, neighborhoods aflame on Devils Night? These sensational moments are part of Detroit, but they are contrasted everyday by urban farms, hip-hop co-ops, and youth organizing that are slowly building a city of hope.
This bus and bike tour of Detroit will visit many of the places where this hope takes root and will explore how these community efforts are working day-to-day against the destructive impacts of capitalism. Conversations with residents, activists, and entrepreneurs will range from the visionary to the concrete nuts and bolts of how to patiently grow justice and sustainability.
Participants are encouraged to register for "172. Remembering Urban Revolution" so that we can continue conversations from the tour and share the Detroit experience with a larger audience.
12 pm-3 pm
Tour of Sunward and Great Oak Co-housing Communities
Sara Ross, Great Oak Co-housing
Michael McIntyre, Sunward Co-housing
Visit two of Ann Arbor's cohousing communities, exploring the physical design, organizational model and practical and operational details. Interactive indoor/outdoor guided tour. Please visit our websites in advance of tour: http://www.sunward.org/nasco/ [1] and http://www.gocoho.org/ [2] and send in suggested topics/questions to explore during the tour.
3:30-6:30 pm
ICC History and Tour
Lynn Eckert, Susan Caya, ICC-Ann Arbor
We will explore Ann Arbor and its student co-ops on foot. Get a first hand look at a vital student housing network.
3:30 - 5:00 pm
The Community Pantry: Sidestepping the Food Distribution Enterprise, Black Elk Co-op
Maggie Avener and Brad Osborn, Sherwood Cooperative
In this day and age, it is hard to avoid the corporate capitalist food distribution structure. One way to attack this problem is by setting up a network for sharing community grown, harvested, reclaimed, direct from farm, and bulk purchased food. Some co-opers in Seattle set up a bulk-ordering and dumpstering collective to do just that. In this workshop, the hosts of this community pantry will discuss their model for food sharing among multiple houses, and the benefits (and pitfalls) of housing it in their own home.