EJ in Newark and globally: panel discussion January 11

NJ home to strongest EJ laws

On Tuesday, 11 January 2022 from 7:00-9:00pm a panel discussion will be held via Zoom as a joint initiative of The Wei LLC’s EJ Chat Series, Diversity United and Ahavas Sholom Jewish Congregation on ways that residents of Newark, New Jersey and communities around the globe are being impacted by environmental justice issues which affect their health, lifestyles and economic well-being. Attendees will have the opportunity to participate in a live question and answer session following the panel, which will be led by Kimi Wei. read more

New Jersey is offering free mini-courses to upgrade work skills

Skillup NJ

The New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development has launched SkillUp New Jersey to help recently laid-off residents prepare to get back to work. SkillUp New Jersey can help workers planning to return to a former employer and also people looking to change jobs. The program offers free and unlimited access to more than 5,000 high-quality online training courses valued by many Fortune 500 companies. View a 1-minute video overview of the SkillUp New Jersey program.

The SkillUp New Jersey Program can help you acquire new skills, enhance existing skills, explore new career paths, or prepare for certification training through a web-based learning management system. The free platform offers thousands of courses covering a variety of business skills, career topics, and helps to prepare you for industry certifications. read more

Rent assistance fund opens today July 28! ¡Asistencia para pagar su renta!

https://www.consumerfinance.gov/coronavirus/mortgage-and-housing-assistance/renter-protections/find-help-with-rent-and-utilities/

Are you a renter having trouble paying your housing costs — or a landlord trying to help tenants who arebehind in their rent? Billions of dollars in federal aid from the American Rescue Plan are finally available. On July 28 (today), local programs will begin to deliver assistance to help renters keep their homes.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has a Rental Assistance Finder to identify rental assistance in your area. At this page, you can apply for help and learn about other options that might be available. If you can’t find a program in your area, call 2-1-1 or your local housing authority for assistance. read more

Want lobster but don’t want it to suffer?

lobster by Sassy Bella Melange via Flickr

Author David Foster Wallace reads “Consider the Lobster” in a review of the 2003 Maine Lobster Festival – on the ethics of boiling a creature alive in order to enjoy its taste.Author David Foster Wallace reads “Consider the Lobster” in a review of the 2003 Maine Lobster Festival – on the ethics of boiling a creature alive in order to enjoy its taste. h/t to Laurie Kahn on the find.

If you want to eat lobster at home but don’t want to make it suffer, here’s a how to humanely kill a lobster at home guide. Tip: get plenty of ice! read more

Solicite hoy el préstamo PPP para su negocio pequeño

SBA PPP loan icons

Hasta las 17.00hs el martes 09 marzo 2021 se están ofreciendo a los negocios pequeños la oportunidad exclusiva para solicitar préstamos PPP (Payroll Protection Program). Estos son préstamos respaldados por el gobierno federal estadounidense para brindar alguna amortiguación económica contra los impactos del COVID-19. Para muchas compañías los préstamos terminan siendo completamente perdonables. Cuando se vence éste plazo exclusivo la oportunidad se abrirá a los demás negocios de cualquier tamaño. read more

SNAP now for NJ College Students

Family shopping for veggies

New Jersey students ages 18 to 49 enrolled at least half-time in a college, university, community college, business, technical, trade, or vocational school may be eligible for food assistance through New Jersey’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). 

Get more information or apply for SNAP

This provision will be in effect now for the duration of the Federal Public Health Emergency. 

Post your COVID-fallen on Poor People’s Campaign remembrance wall

Poor People's Campaign remembrance wall app

If you have lost a person you care about to COVID-19 or poverty, add their name and picture to the Poor People’s Campaign memorial wall so they can be collectively honored and remembered. Share the submission page so others can see how many precious lives have been lost not only because of a virus, but because of the realities of systemic racism and poverty that feed the virus and cause certain communities to be hit much harder than mainstream America.

Contact lhamilton@breachrepairers.org with comments, suggestions, or questions about this project. read more

There are more COVID deaths in Environmental Justice communities

air & ground pollution in EJ communities

According to the NRDC:

“Blacks, and other people of color, have been contracting and dying from the respiratory disease at disproportionate rates—a consequence epidemiologists have traced to health inequities, including exposure to air pollution, and the structural racism undergirding housing and job patterns. Workers of color are overrepresented in service industries that have been deemed essential—industries without options for social distancing or remote work. According to the Center for Economic and Policy Research, Black employees represented 12 percent of the total U.S. workforce in April but comprised 17 percent of frontline workers.” read more

Peek in at farm show’s live Beehive Cam

PA Farm Show live bee cam

The Pennsylvania Farm Show has a live Beehive Cam this week. From 8am-8pm you can enjoy watching bees move around, eat, clean and do all the fun things that bees do inside their hive. For some reason, it’s fascinating to watch them.

When you’re watching, keep in mind that almost all the bees in a hive are female.

Climate change is the likeliest reason that China embraced wheat flour

woman carries sheaf of wheat

In ancient China, millet was the common grain crop grown for flour. But dry farming technology discovered in the Sui Dynasty (A.D. 581-618) made wheat a viable crop and by the Tang Dynasty (A.D. 618-907), wheat had replaced millet as China’s largest crop. There was enough time in the growing cycle to harvest wheat if millet crops failed and experimentation with wheat flour when it became available, proved it to be an almost endlessly versatile cooking ingredient. It is used in China to make noodles, breads, desserts and dumplings, which became foundational staples of the Chinese diet. read more