Monthly Archives: February 2021

Houstons first-ever cohousing community is underway in the East End: Last spring, a group of like-minded livers selected a site at 115 Lennox Ave to construct Cohousing Houston, which puts connection and the environment ahead of just about everything else.

Cohousing communities are intentional collections of private homes clustered around a communal living space. At Cohousing Houston, residents from up to 33 member homes must (get this!) make decisions about their community via consensus and will (gasp!) interact with their neighbors through shared spaces, like kitchens, meals, and greenspaces.

Kathleen English, founder of English + Associates Architects, and her husband are one of 14 member households that are already onboard for the project thats slated to wrap up in fall 2022. She and her firm also happen to be designing the property and homes therewhich range from $330,000 to $780,000 for one to four bedroomswith the help of Caddis Collaborative out of Boulder, Colorado.

English spoke with Houstonia about cohabitating, coworking, and even co-gardening in the community.

I am the local architect and also am a member. That was an evolution that I wasn't necessarily expecting when we first got involved back in 2017. I really enjoy mission-driven projects in my architectural practice. For me, it means any project that is really about making a better environment, making Houston better, and not just being the next project.

My husband and I were exploring where to live, as well as how it will hopefully very positively impact Houston and the community that it gets built in. We had gone to Portland in May of 2017 and seen a couple of cohousing projects. We were intrigued and so we explored Houston and originally joined purely as members [a few months later].

My husband and I had come to the conclusion that we wanted to stay urban. We were ready to leave the wonderful house that we've lived in in West University Place for over 25 years and move into something smaller and different. And when we started looking for a place that was urban, walkable, had meaningful green space, a strong connection to neighbors, was not isolatingwe didn't find it. The cohousing group is giving us an opportunity to make that.

Some of the values that came out very early on and have played into the design is a strong desire by our group for shared greenspace. So it's a condo or townhome style, very dense housing model, but we're not wanting to leave out the green space.

In a lot of cohousing projects, parking is not required. We didn't think that would be a thing in Houstoneither from our local code or quite honestly the desire of our members. But we did not want to make it about the cars. What we did was push our parking onto a portion of the site that's off to the side. So we have front doors and small porches and a connection to the neighborhood in the community. And on the backside of the same unit we have back doors to a shared green space that is fairly large and will give us an opportunity to have community events, gardening, and a small pool.

At one edge of that shared common space is a four-story common house. The first two floors are really shared spaces for dining and activities. On the second floor theres more quiet activities for co-working, for crafts, and other activity rooms. And then the third and fourth floor are mainly connectors to the elevator.

Townhomes that are built in our urban environment put the two car garage on the ground floor, all living space above. There is no connection to your immediate neighbors or your neighbors down the block. You're pretty much driving into your garage and going up to your living floor from the interior, with little to no green space. So very, very few housing options in Houston really create a connected community and lots of housing options create significant isolation.

Budget will determine a lot of this, but right now the facility has geothermal air conditioning. We have underground detention on site. The building is being made solar-ready on all the roofs. The last element, which is really very fundamental to the design, is that we laid the site out using what's called low impact design principles, which is a way of managing stormwater to make it stay on site longer and also to help filter it and clean it as it does leave the site.

I think I'm looking forward to gardening and developing the landscaped areas. I have done a lot of that at my house. My house has been on a couple of garden tours based on some of the native gardening and rainwater gardening things that we've done. And Im looking forward to having a whole new playground.

See more here:

Meet the Architect Who's Designing (and Living in) Houston's First Cohousing Community - Houstonia Magazine

EDF celebrates Black History Month with a renewed sense of promise and purpose. We are taking purposeful action to help fulfill the promise of a world where racial and environmental equity are basic human rights. This goal must be integral to all of our work. To achieve it, we must acknowledge and learn from the past.

In 2020 the United States repeatedly witnessed gross inequities from the disproportionate number of COVID-19-related deaths suffered by communities of color to horrific police brutality and the questioning of presidential votes cast by millions of Black Americans.

These events represent only a minuscule portion of the systemic adversities and atrocities Black Americans have faced for centuries, including the current threats from white supremacists. And yet throughout all the years of pain and hardship, the Black community has made contributions of incalculable value to all areas of American life. During Black History Month, we celebrate these achievements, bear witness to the pain and recognize EDFs own past and future responsibilities.

While we can point to notable examples where we have sought to address the disproportionate environmental burden borne by communities of color, we have not been consistent or intentional in this work. EDFs focus on solving environmental issues at the global, national and regional levels has led us to overlook local environmental problems and neglect Black community concerns. As a result, our policy stances have sometimes been at odds with local communities needs and priorities.

For these reasons, EDF is critically examining our role. We acknowledge the need to stop, listen and learn. Were meeting with leaders of Black community groups and the environmental justice movement to strengthen relationships; compare policy agendas to identify potential synergies and conflicts; broaden access to grant-makers; and commit EDF as an ally so that the communities most affected by pollution can secure clean air, clean water and freedom from exposure to toxic substances. We are also looking inward to examine how our structure, strategy and culture can better reflect these communities.

EDFs leaders have been constantly encouraged by younger colleagues, especially our younger colleagues of color, that now is the time to act. They are the bridge from EDFs past to our future, and I thank them for their courageous contributions as we work to identify the ways our organization needs to change.

We recognize that growing into a diverse, inclusive and equitable international environmental organization will require honest introspection and a significant shift in our practices and priorities. We must authentically engage the perspectives, skills and ideas of our international workforce, board and membership, as well as build lasting relationships with diverse constituencies.

We must also support leaders of color. For the first time in our nations history, the federal environmental agenda will be shaped by two Black Americans, EPA Administrator nominee Michael Regan and Council of Environmental Quality Chair nominee Brenda Mallory. I have had the privilege of working closely with both of these individuals and know how fortunate we allare to have them taking on these leadership roles.

The efforts underway at Environmental Defense Fund will take time, but we feel the urgency needed to meet the moment and drive the change required to make EDF and the environmental community more equitable and just. Everyone at EDF must join our colleagues in building a bridge to the future. I for one am all in.

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Originally posted here:

Celebrating Black History Month and reflecting on EDF's past and future - Environmental Defense Fund

UPDATE:MSF nurse shot in attack on ambulance in South-West region

On Thursday morning, February 4, armed men shot at a Doctors Without Borders/Mdecins Sans Frontires (MSF) ambulance that was responding to a call in Muyuka, in the South-West region of Cameroon. An MSF nurse was injured in the attack and is now receiving medical care. The vehicle was clearly identified as an MSF ambulance. MSF condemns this attack and reiterates that ambulances, health care facilities, health staff,and civilians are not targets.

A second ambulance was later dispatched to respond to the initial call for emergency medical aid in Muyuka. That patient is now in critical condition.

MSF medical teams have been responding to the severe and ongoing effects of the crisis in North-West and South-West Cameroon since 2018. Our teams provide neutral and impartial medical humanitarian assistance through our emergency ambulance referrals, secondary level care, and a decentralized model of community-based health care.

For four years, Cameroon'sNorth-West and South-West regions have been convulsed by armed violence between government forces and non-state armed groups, which has displaced more than 700,000 people. The humanitarian needs are enormous and displaced communities face difficulties accessing basic services, including health care.

The crisis has severely affected the public health system and many health centers have closed or are unable to function. Both medical workers and facilities are directly targeted by violence, and insecurity is disrupting the supply of drugs and medical equipment.

Traveling from remote villages to health facilities is a major challenge for many people, due to insecurity, bad road conditions, and lack of transport. MSF offers a free, 24-hour ambulance service that operates seven days a week, collects eligible patients at designated pick-up points and takes them to MSF-supported health centers and hospitals. If MSF cannot reach an area, we provide money for public transport so that patients can reach health structures or make their way to pick-up-points.

Our community volunteers are sometimes harassed by armed men, says Paulo Milanesio, MSF emergency coordinator for the South-West region.We are in constant dialogue with different stakeholders to guarantee their safety. We need everyone to understand that community volunteers and ambulances provide a much-needed lifeline for vulnerable communities who would otherwise be deprived of medical care.

Due to the high level of insecurity, humanitarian organizations, including MSF, face many obstacles in order to reach displaced communities who often hide in the bush for safety. To continue providing medical aid in these challenging conditions, MSF has adapted the way we work. The model of care is focused on delivering care directly to the community, by the community.

Around a dozen adults and children are waiting patiently for their check-ups on the veranda of a house in a village in the South-West region of Cameroon. Sitting behind a small table, Etienne Esua listens to patients, dresses wounds, and pricks fingers to perform rapid malaria tests.

When a test shows that a person has malaria but the symptoms are not severe, I treat the patients with drugs, says Esua, a community volunteer trained by MSF to provide primary health care to some of the region'smost vulnerable and hard-to-reach communities.

MSF relies on volunteers like Esua. Community health volunteers are the bridge between the health facilities that we support and the vulnerable communities that don'thave access to health centers, says Yilma Werkagegnehu, MSF field coordinator. Either because they are displaced, because health structures are closed, or because they can'tafford to pay for medical services.

MSF currently works with 106 community volunteers in several health districts near the towns of Mamfe and Kumba in the South-West region. MSF conducted similar activities in the North-West until they were put on hold in December 2020 following a decision from the authorities to suspend MSFs activities there until further notice.

Community health volunteers are recommended and selected by community leaders and trained by MSF to detect and treat simple diseases like uncomplicated cases of malaria, respiratory tract infections, malnutrition, and diarrhea. They also learn how to carry out health promotion activities aimed at preventing illness and advising people on how to recognize signs of sexual abuse and psychological distress. While they might not be medical professionals, community volunteers are trained to adhere to medical ethics and MSFs principlesto treat those in need, regardless of their background.

In 2020, community volunteers provided more than 150,000 free medical consultations in the South-West and North-West regions of Cameroon.

The community health volunteers are paid incentives for their work and receive backpacks filled with medicines. They meet regularly with MSF supervisors to discuss their work, get advice, and share medical data. Their medical aid backpacks are refilled before they return to visit remote communities, often walking for several hours a day.

For serious cases, community volunteers can refer patients to MSF-supported health facilities where they receive free treatment. Examples include children with severe malaria, women with complicated pregnancies, survivors of sexual violence, and patients with intentional injuries.

Seven-year-old Dorcas was referred to the MSF-supported Presbyterian General Hospital in Kumba, in the South-West region for extra care. Her left leg is in a cast.

[Dorcas] was injured in a traffic accident and was referred to the hospital by one of our community volunteers, says Dr. Guisilla Dedino. She was assessed in the emergency room and was diagnosed as having an open fracture of the left leg. A surgeon operated on her. She is making progress, with the fracture showing good signs of healing.

Originally posted here:

Cameroon: Community-based care is a lifeline for people affected by violence - Doctors Without Borders

Around a dozen adults and children are waiting patiently for their check-ups. Sitting behind a small table, Etienne Esua listens to the patients, dresses wounds and pricks fingers to perform rapidmalariatests.

When a test shows that a person has malaria, but the symptoms are not severe, I treat the patients with drugs, Mr Esua says.

The consultations are taking place on the veranda of an ordinary house in a village in the South-West region ofCameroon. Mr Esua is not a medical professional, but a community volunteer trained by Mdecins Sans Frontires (MSF) to provide basic healthcare to some of the regions most vulnerable and hard-to-reach communities.

Violence displaces people which hinders access to healthcare

For the past four years, Cameroons North-West and South-West regions have been rocked by armed violence between government forces and non-state armed groups, which has displaced more than 700,000 people. The humanitarian needs are huge.

Displaced communities face difficulties accessing basic services, including healthcare. The crisis has severely affected the public health system. Many health centres have closed or are not functional; medical workers and facilities are being directly targeted by violence; and insecurity is hindering the supply of drugs and medical equipment.

Given this high level of insecurity, humanitarian organisations like MSF face serious problems to reach displaced communities, who often hide in the bush for their safety.

Healthcare in the community, by the community

To provide medical aid in such challenging conditions, MSF has set up a decentralised model of care in the South-West and North-West regions, which is delivered directly in the community, by the community. It relies on volunteers like Mr Esua.

Community health volunteers are the bridge between the health facilities that we support and the vulnerable communities that dont have access to health centres, says Yilma Werkagegnehu, MSF field coordinator. Communities dont have access either because they are displaced, because health structures are closed or because they cant afford to pay for medical services.

MSF currently works with 106 community volunteers in several health districts near the towns of Mamfe and Kumba in the South-West region. Similar activities were conducted in the North-West until December 2020, but have been put on hold following a decision from the authorities to suspend MSF activities in the region until further notice.

People from communities trained to treat those in need

Community health volunteers have been recommended and selected by community leaders and are trained by MSF to detect and treat simple diseases like uncomplicated cases of malaria and respiratory tract infections, malnutrition and diarrhoea. They also learn how to carry out health promotion activities to prevent people from getting sick and how to look out for signs of sexual abuse and psychological distress. While they might not be medical professionals, these volunteers are still trained to adhere to medical ethics, and to treat those in need, regardless of background.

In 2020, community volunteers provided more than 150,000 free medical consultations in the South-West and North-West region.

The community health volunteers are paid incentives for their work and receive backpacks filled with medicines. They meet regularly with MSF supervisors to discuss their work, get advice and share medical data. Their backpacks are refilled before they return to visit remote communities, often walking for several hours a day.

Being able to refer patients to MSF facilities

If a treatment is beyond their capacity, community volunteers can refer patients to MSF-supported health facilities where they receive free treatment if they meet certain criteria, such as children with severe malaria, women with complicated pregnancies, victims of sexual violence or patients with intentional injuries.

One of the referred patients is a seven-year-old girl named Dorcas. She is sitting on a bench next to her mother outside the MSF-supported Presbyterian General Hospital in Kumba, South-West region. Her left leg is in a cast.

The girl was injured in a traffic accident and was referred to the hospital by one of our community volunteers, says Dr Guisilla Dedino. She was assessed in the emergency room and was diagnosed as having an open fracture of the left leg. An MSF surgeon operated on her; she is making progress, with the fracture showing good signs of healing.

Challenges of healthcare in a conflict context

Travelling from remote villages to health facilities is a major challenge for many people, due to insecurity, bad road conditions and lack of transport. MSF offers a free, 24-hour ambulance service that operates seven days a week, collects eligible patients at designated pick-up points and takes them to MSF-supported health centres and hospitals.

Where we cannot go, MSF provides money for public transport so that patients can reach health structures or pick-up-points. Managing a decentralised model of care and ambulance service is not easy in an insecure environment such as South-West Cameroon.

Our community volunteers are sometimes harassed by armed men, says Paulo Milanesio, MSF emergency coordinator for the South-West region. We are in constant dialogue with different stakeholders to guarantee their safety.

We need everyone to understand that community volunteers and ambulances provide a much-needed lifeline for vulnerable communities who would otherwise be deprived of medical care, Milanesio says.

Africanews provides content from APO Group as a service to its readers, but does not edit the articles it publishes.

Originally posted here:

Healthcare in the community, by the community in Cameroon - Africanews English

Editor's note: This story is part of KSL.com's "Black Voices" series where we share Black Utahns' stories about what life is like for them in the Beehive State.

SALT LAKE CITY James Jackson III feels comfortable meeting celebrities at the Sundance Film Festival and doesn't feel intimidated taking a photo with a Utah Jazz player.

Jackson, a second-generation Utahn, founded the Utah Black Chamber and works as the supplier diversity programs manager for Zions Bancorporation.

So what leaves Jackson feeling starstruck? Walking into a room filled with over a hundred high-level Black executives.

"To me, it was a little intimidating. We don't have that around here," he told KSL.com. "And I'm hoping that we can eventually change that."

When Jackson founded the chamber in 2009 in an effort to create a community of Black businesses and connect them to resources, he never expected to reach 100 members. Today, the chamber has about 250 active members and has expanded its footprint, with a northern Utah chapter recently launched and plans for a southern Utah chapter in the works.

The organization grew significantly in 2020, which is something Jackson said was in response to a nationwide conversation on racism. In May 2020, George Floyd, a Black man, died after being pinned down by a Minneapolis police officer. Derek Chauvin, the officer accused of killing Floyd, has since been arrested and charged with second-degree murder.

News of Floyd's death dominated headlines and inspired millions across the country to join the Black lives matter movement and engage with the Black community on how to do better.

"We saw a significant amount of support," Jackson said.

By the end of 2021, Jackson predicts membership will hit 500.

"I think this is an exciting time for people to get educated," Jackson said. "We have to get to a place where we listen to understand rather than listen to respond."

Over the summer, Jackson said he saw many people drop defenses in an attempt to keep an open perspective on learning more about Black communities and the issues they face living in Utah and the United States. He hopes the momentum will continue and that Black History Month, annually observed in February, will renew that passion and eagerness to learn what many over the summer had learned.

All individuals can take the time to learn about why Black History Month exists, he suggested. The month's designation began as a way to recognize the pivotal role African Americans played in the country's history. It became a nationally recognized month in the 1970s.

"Because people always wonder, 'Why is there a month for Black people?" Jackson said. "Well, quit complaining it's the shortest month of the year."

Black Americans aren't the only group with a dedicated month: March is National Women's History Month, May is Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month, September is National Hispanic Heritage Month and November is National American Indian Heritage Month, just to name a few.

"There's a month for all these different backgrounds and celebrations of cultures," he said.

Jackson's point? People shouldn't see the designated months aimed at education and celebration as exclusionary; they should view them as an opportunity to reach out.

"For Black History Month, I just encourage people to get familiar with your Black community. Period. Whether it's business, expand your influence with the people you work with and in your neighborhood," he said. "Just know about the Black community near you."

At least two to three times a month, the chamber gets the same email from a Black individual moving to Utah for work; they're worried they won't fit in with the culture. Oftentimes, Jackson said a lot of them intend to live here temporarily.

As Utah's economy continues to attract more businesses, Jackson said it's important these companies put in the work if they want to retain Black employees.

"It's important for companies that they engage with organizations like the Black chamber and other diverse chambers, and other professional organizations that serve the diverse community, because that's going to help build your retention for your diverse employees," he explained.

Plus, diversity doesn't just help one group it can lead to the growth of an entire state, he said, noting that "when you have everybody that is aligned with the same thoughts, ideas and ideologies, you're going to stagnate your growth."

Plenty of diverse talent passes up the state altogether because they feel unable to connect in a place with too much uniformity, Jackson said. "Diversity is not going to grow on its own, just simply because we have a hot economy," he explained, while adding that it takes a concerted and intentional effort.

Utah's outdoor scene is one of the most common appeals used when pitching the state to bring people here. But what about someone from Atlanta or Houston? An active outdoorsy life might not be as appealing to someone in more of a city lifestyle.

"You have to know who you're talking to and try to find some common ground of where it is, because we have a lot more to offer than just the outdoors," Jackson said.

As a Black man born and raised in a predominantly white state, Jackson knows firsthand institutionalized racial barriers exist; it's part of the chamber's mission to help break down those walls and build bridges between communities. But that doesn't mean all states lacking diversity are inherently racist, he said.

"It just means we're an ignorant state, or we just don't have the level of awareness of education of having a community of diverse people," he said.

Jackson's experienced cases of "tokenism" or "unconscious bias" that led to interactions where he didn't really feel comfortable. But, he said, for the most part, it was never intentional racism thrown in his face.

"It was just those, just the ignorance where the biases and tokenism existed just because of the lack of awareness and education," he said.

Finding common ground and making an effort to walk in someone else's shoes are a good place for Utahns to start if they want to actively weed out this ignorance, he said.

"We can't always be on the defensive side. We have to bring that fence down to be able to have a civil dialogue so we can actually understand where each other are coming from," he said.

Taking the time to engage in Black History Month is a good place to start and continue these conversations surrounding racial inequity to find common goals of bettering the state.

"Basically, learn about the Black community around you locally; don't focus so much what's going on nationally, just learn about what's going on in your neck of the woods, and that will help you just grow from there," Jackson said.

Read more:

Black Voices: How to make Utah more inviting to diverse groups - KSL.com

As the daughter of a medical technician, Hanna Hyland was raised to put her faith in science. But Hyland, 18, also was raised as a person of color in a country with a health care system marred by historic instances of racism.

When it comes to deciding whether to get vaccinated against COVID-19 or not, the latter is winning out for now.

As an Asian American, I know the United States has had no issue with lucrative testing in marginalized groups, said Hyland, a freshman at Mesa Community College. I have never had an issue with getting any sort of vaccination. In fact, I think getting fully vaccinated is important to personal safety and to protect those around you, but I am skeptical about this vaccine for many reasons.

Those reasons vary, but center on examples of medical experimentation on people of color starting with nonconsensual surgeries performed on slaves in the U.S., the Tuskegee syphilis studies in which Black men went untreated for decades so researchers could observe the diseases progression, and the covert biological warfare research the Japanese army conducted on Chinese civilians in the 1940s.

Hyland isnt alone in her worries. As the nation undertakes an enormous vaccination effort to combat a disease that has cost the lives of some 450,000 Americans, medical experts are working to overcome skepticism and misinformation prompting some to think twice about getting the shots from false claims the vaccines can cause infertility to concerns that they were approved too quickly to be safe.

Hyland said she considers these first vaccinations a test trial, one that can be used to later develop the vaccine.

There are many COVID strains and mutations that have not been accounted for, so as progression of the virus continues, I am sure a more accurate vaccine will come out, she said.

In a survey released Jan. 27 by the Census Bureau, 51% of adults who had not yet gotten a COVID-19 vaccination said they planned to. Those numbers varied by age, race and ethnicity, however.

Although Black, Native American and Latino people all are more likely than white people to contract the virus, just 47% of Hispanics and 30% of Blacks in the survey said they would get vaccinated, compared with 55% of whites.

A Kaiser Family Foundation analysis of the most recent available data finds that vaccinations of people of color appear to be lagging behind those of whites. As of Jan. 19, 17 states were publicly reporting vaccination data by race or ethnicity. Among Black people, the share of vaccinations was smaller than their share of cases in 16 states and smaller than their share of deaths in 15 states.

Similarly, Hispanics accounted for a smaller share of vaccinations compared with their share of cases and deaths in most states reporting data. In contrast, vaccinations among white people were higher than their share of the total population in most states.

The Arizona Department of Health Services doesnt report vaccination data by race and ethnicity. When asked why, or whether the department plans to in the future, a spokesperson declined to comment.

As of Feb. 2, an estimated 700,000 vaccine doses have been administered across the state, and about 100,000 people or just more than 1% of the states population have received both shots, according to the Department of Health Services.

Gov. Doug Ducey last week issued an advisory aiming to speed up the pace, as experts believe at least 80% of people in the United States need to get vaccinated to reach herd immunity against the coronavirus that causes COVID-19.

More and more organizations across the country have begun answering the call to promote vaccination.

On Jan. 22, the Mayo Clinic hosted a free virtual town hall to build trust around vaccines and debunk the myths and misconceptions around COVID-19 in minority communities. Experts on the panel said the best way to minimize fear is for medical professionals to listen to peoples concerns and connect them with correct and accessible information.

We have to be transparent with people, we have to talk about stuff, but we always have to start by listening, understanding and trying to correct the distortions that people may be having, said Dr. Francisco Moreno, professor of psychiatry at the University of Arizonas College of Medicine.

Dr. Juan Gea-Banacloche, an infectious disease expert at the Mayo Clinic who served on a federal advisory committee that reviewed the Pfizer vaccine, said during the town hall that although vaccine data is limited, the efficacy and the benefits clearly outweigh any risks.

You may feel very tired, you may have a headache, you may be unable to function at work for one day, but those are effects that usually last for 24 hours and they typically resolve within three days, Gea-Banacloche said, adding that those side effects of the vaccine are nothing compared with even a mild case of COVID.

The vaccine is just as effective in people of color, he said, noting that the process around authorization has been extremely transparent and that clinical trials included people from different racial and ethnic backgrounds. Pfizer reports 26% of participants in its vaccine trials identified as Hispanic or Latino and 10% as Black.

Its very important to be aware that nothing has been under the table in the authorization of these vaccines, Gea-Banacloche said.

In an interview with Arizona Horizon, Gea-Banacloche added there has been a big effort on the part of the federal government to make vaccine information available to those who dont speak English; the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has fact sheets in more than 20 languages.

Charlene Tarver, head of the Black Arizona COVID-19 Task Force, said racist incidents of the past have dramatically decreased the willingness of people of color to participate in the vaccine process and that without more comprehensive outreach, they wont be signing up.

Given historical disparities and distrust there needs to be a much more intentional strategy around how to educate communities of color about COVID-19, about what the public health aspect of this looks like and how the vaccination would roll out, and I think we missed the mark on that, she said.

I think that there needs to be a much more intentional public health campaign across the state that speaks to the concerns and challenges of those communities.

That can start at home, Ivan Porter, a nephrology specialist at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Florida, said in the town hall, noting that everyone has an individual responsibility to protect those they care about through education and partnership.

We have to concentrate on the data that we have, Porter said. It is OK to be afraid about what we dont know, but that doesnt mean we can ignore the data thats in front of us. That is what we know.

Read more:

Overcoming vaccine doubts, fears will require outreach and education, experts say - Prescott eNews

2020 was a difficult year for many. But it was a particularly challenging one for Chef Barkha Limbu Daily and Jesse Daily, owners of the cheel, who found themselves watching helplessly as the restaurant theyd poured seven years into building burned to the ground before their very eyes.

The loss was profound, not only because it represented seven years of hard work, but because the restaurant even amidst the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic had just reached the point at which the business was profitable. Not only could they provide sustaining jobs for employees, but they were in a position where they could truly give back to the community which supported them. Listen to the Dailys talk about their experience first-hand on the FoodCrush podcast.

Fortunately, thanks to encouragement and support from the community, the Dailys have made headway on plans to rebuild. And fans of the restaurant which made a name for itself with itsmenu of inventive Nepalese dishes, cocktails and regular live music have much to which they can look forward.

After the fire, we really had to look at what was possible, says co-owner and chef Barkha Limbu Daily, From the money that our insurance would cover to really thinking about what we wanted and needed to recreate the cheel experience. Ultimately, we brought together a plan that incorporated the best of our dream ideas in a plan that we felt was realistic.

X

With guidance from Anna Burns of The Brookwater Group, whod helped design and build the baaree (among other things), they were also able to design their plans quickly, in a manner that took into consideration the specifications and rules valued by the Thiensville Historical Preservation committee, making it easier to glean Village approval.

Daily says they are currently entertaining bids for the project with the hope that they can begin construction as soon as March.

In the meantime, guests can look forward to the reopening of the baaree (the cheels outdoor beer garden) this spring. The venue will operate as usual during construction, offering a menu of simple dishes and a variety of beverages, along with live music in picturesque environs.The baareeX

As for the cheel, it will return at triple the size, expanding from an historicaltwo-story 3,000 square foot building to a modern 10,000 square foot structure housing three distinct components: a ground floor restaurant, a second floor entertainment venue and event space called the Phoenix Room, and (in phase two of the build-out) a basement commercial kitchen space.

And it will be built with longevity in mind.

We wanted to design a building that will last for another hundred years, says Daily of the plans for the new two-story restaurant, which will sport an eye-catching exterior of red brick and cream colored stucco. When someone passes, we want to make them curious enough that they cant resist stopping in, she says.X

But Daily says that, despite it being new construction which incorporates modern elements, they also wanted the building to reflectarchitectural elements of theformer buildings Queen Anne style (note details like the square tower, use of asymetry, etc) as well elements that offer a nod to herhome country of Nepal.Exterior elements, design conceptsX

In Nepal, most buildings are made of brick, says Daily, noting that distinctive hand-thrownred bricks are a ubiquitous in Kathmandu, where she was born and raised.

And the bricks used to rebuild the cheelwill embody even more significance, since the Dailys plan to offer members of the community the opportunity to support the project by purchasing individual bricks, which will be engraved with their names and incorporated as part of the final building.

We built our business thanks to community, says Daily. So as we recover from the ashes, we want to include them in rebuilding what was lost.

The first floor restaurant will assume about the same footprint as the former restaurant; but it will be designed in a way that optimizes the space used for dining.the cheel - restaurant floorplanX

The kitchen will be expanded significantly (its designed to take up nearly 40% of the floorplan) to better accommodate the scratch-made fare thats become a hallmark at the restaurant.

As for the decor, Daily says she wants to bring as much of Nepal to the dining experience as she can.

It will be a combination of eclectic and traditional, says Daily. For me, its about creating a true experience that gives people a real taste of Nepal through the look and feel of the space, and not just through the food.Mood board for interior accentsX

For example, guestswill enter the space through a lounge-like waiting area in which Daily says shell incorporate a water feature that emulates a dhunge dhara (stone tap), a traditional stone drinking fountain which provided a water source for communities in Nepal.

Youll find dhunge dhara all over Nepal, she says. Before indoor plumbing, they were used as a main water source for drinking and washing laundry and as a source for water for cooking.

Historically, the taps themselves were decorative with most featuring the mythical makara, a guardian creature which possessed the snout of a crocodile, the trunk of an elephant, the tusks of a wild boar and the tail of a peacock.

Guests will also see a dining area filled with myriad colors and textures, from rounded windows separating the main dining area from a smaller private dining room to Nepalese style locks on the doors, decorative lighting, woven fabrics and a variety of metalwork.

The dining room will be flanked by a four-seasons dining area, which will be heated in the winter, but which will feature garage-style doors that allow for open-air dining in the summer.Rendering of the cheel with four seasons patioX

The second floor, aptly named the Phoenix room, will be equipped with a bar, a stage, a second kitchen and a balcony patio.

Seating around the stage will accommodate live music performances and events, while the kitchen can be used to cater special events as well as accommodating special offerings like cooking classes.

We are building the room with acoustics in mind, says Daily. We really want to be able to continue to showcase all sorts of local musical talent, and do it in a very intentional way."

Cement flooring will contribute to sound-proofing measures that will keep the activity and music confined to the second story, allowing the dining area to be free from distractions for dining customers.

In a second phase of the build-out, Daily says she also hopes to establish a commercial kitchen on the basement level of the building.Commercial Kitchen plansX

The ample kitchen space would be built to function as a rental space for local food businesses as well as a kitchen where the cheel could produce items for retail sale, including jars of her flavorful achar.

I really want to be able to support other small businesses and immigrant chefs, she says. I want to make it affordable and accessible If you have a love and passion for food, I would love to be a stepping stone that helps you to move forward with your dream.

Daily says that, for as much as shell never truly get over the loss of her first restaurant, shes happy to be able to rebuild it in a way that supports the vision shes always had for what the cheel could be.

Im really excited, she says. We cant wait to bring the food and music back, that sense of community and experience. And I also cant wait to really support others in their journey to do what weve been able to do.

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A peek at the plans: the cheel will return, bigger & better than ever - OnMilwaukee.com

In unprecedented times, Black identity student organizations have found ways to continue engaging with their communities through remote events and programming, along with collaboration between groups.

With first-years unable to organically find out about different Black student organizations on campus given the narrower virtual avenues for community building, leaders have had to find new ways to reach out to underclassmen.

The leaders of Black student organizations directed their focus on reaching out to first-years through social media platforms like GroupMe and Instagram, according to Black Student Union Co-President Daneva Moncrieffe 21.

We want to make sure they know that we are here, and we want them to be a part of the organization, Moncrieffe said.

Unable to hold usual in-person events like the annual Black convocation for incoming first-years and transfer students at Manning Hall, a welcome back barbecue or a Black History Month concert, the BSU has shifted some of their activities, like their Black convocation, online. The organization has also pivoted programming to a speaker series and an expanded mentorship program in the fall.

Informed by the nations reckoning with racial justice last summer and the impact of those events on Black students on campus, the BSUs leadership wanted to focus on community, love and care when selecting speakers for the fall, Moncrieffe said.

While charting a course for the fall, we knew people were feeling an array of emotions and were just overwhelmed, Moncrieffe said. We wanted to make sure that any program that we were doing would only help to alleviate and create space to just decompress and not add to that stress.

Members from an abolitionist coalition at the University known as Grasping at the Root, haircare YouTuber Will On A Whim and writer-activist Adrienne Maree Brown spoke at events hosted by the BSU, Moncrieffe said.

The BSU will continue its speaker series into the spring, she added.

During the fall, the BSU collaborated with the African Students Association, also known as AfriSA, and The League of United Black Womxn to expand BSU Unite, a mentorship program that connects Black underclassmen with Black upperclassmen, according to BSU Secretary Ruqiya Egal 23.

Mentors and mentees were paired based on responses to a Google form that fielded common interests like intended concentrations. From there, mentors connected with their mentees over email, text and Zoom.

19 mentors and 34 mentees, which Egal said is a larger number of underclassmen than usual, signed up for the program.

The Black community at Brown is very good at bringing in first-years and making sure that they feel welcome and also letting them know about the things that we do, Egal said.

Mentors provide their mentees information on other Black student organizations at the University, guidance on course selection and advice on navigating life on campus, Egal added.

Building connections virtually can be challenging for Unites mentors and mentees, Egal said. She herself was a mentee when she came to Brown as a first-year in 2019 and would regularly have coffee with her mentor. Its different when you get to meet someone one-on-one versus just texting and emailing.

A lot of the freshmen really benefited from Unite, said AfriSA President Atabong Khumbah 23, who was assigned a first-year mentee last fall.

In conjunction with working with the BSU on their Unite program, Khumbah and AfriSA have also been migrating their programming to a virtual platform.

During the fall, AfriSA worked with the Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs to host an event on African popular musics role in creating awareness of the spread of COVID-19, Khumbah said. AfriSA, together with the Watson Institute, will coordinate an event this semester focusing on leadership and governance in Africa, Khumbah added.

This spring, Khumbah said, AfriSA plans to start social media campaigns to raise awareness of different geopolitical issues in the continent, including those in Cameroon, Ethiopia, Cte dIvoire and The Democratic Republic of Congo.

Along with larger presentations, Black student groups on campus have also focused on fostering community through more frequent casual meetings and events.

Groups like The League of United Black Womxn have focused on facilitating conversations about navigating the academic, social and dating spheres of campus life during meetings throughout the fall, said Cyprene Caines 23, the Leagues president. Its just about creating an intentional space that feels safe and where everyone can come and feel seen, she added.

The Nigerian Students Association, which formed over the last summer, has also been focusing on casual conversations through their Chop Life & Chat Instagram Live series, the Associations vice president Teniola Ayeni 23 said. Chop Life & Chat has covered a range of topics including Nigerian identity and gender and age hierarchies in Nigerian communities.

While the groups original ideas for programming for their first fall had to be shelved given the course of the pandemic, the remote nature of the semester motivated the groups leaders to think about ways to still bring the same energy (of in-person events) to a virtual setting, the Associations Founder and President Maryclare Chinedo 22 said.

Chinedo and Ayeni say they hope to expand the Nigerian Students Associations work to engage with the Nigerian community in Rhode Island through outreach with Nigerian youth and political and social justice efforts.

In order to adapt to the difficulties of maintaining connections virtually, Black student organizations have built on collaboration and coordination efforts between groups to find ways to connect first-years with the larger Black community at the University, according to Students of Caribbean Ancestry Co-President Kameron Medine 21.

The Black community at Brown is small, so its really not that hard to get word around, Caines said.

While the number of avenues for community building has dwindled, the pandemic has allowed leaders like Khumbah to collaborate with other Black student organizations more than (he) ever would have before.

During the fall, SoCA and AfriSA hosted joint events to discuss the African diaspora and the first generation immigrant experience, according to Medine and his co-president Dashaun Simon 21.

It felt like a lot more of a community was built there in bringing students from the two groups together, Medine added.

The combined power and influence of two clubs (can) get more engagement and also reduce overall Zoom time, Khumbah agreed.

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Black identity student organizations adapt to a virtual world - The Brown Daily Herald