Small Business Owners & Non-Profits: Cause.it May Be The App You've Been Waiting For

Cause.it from Kurtis Beavers on Vimeo.

Normally, we aim to point you away from your smartphones, but this one (we must admit) is quite brilliant:

Essentially, Cause.it is an app designed to make it easier and financially beneficial for small businesses to help local charities and nonprofits. There are benefits for volunteers and the nonprofits themselves as well, but Cause.it began with the civic-minded small business owner in mind; those who wants to extend their reach beyond the occasional service, product or monetary donation.

To give you a simple example, it works like this: The owner of a cafe offers incentives like free coffee or discounts on meals that can be redeemed using a point a system. To get points you volunteer your time. For example, planting a tree with one nonprofit gets your 50 points, 7 of which can be redeemed at a local cafe for half off any coffee drink. 

Though Cause.it is still in its initial phases, the more it catches on, the wider the network of volunteers it has the capacity to create; and that's something we can align with. Currently, there are some obvious bugs to work out (the first bug we came across: waiting for over an hour for it download. Maybe too many users?) Either way, once the kinks are smoothed out, we're excited to start navigating the system. Promote a local food drive and get a discount at a small boutique? Why yes, we'll take it.

If you're a small business owner or run a nonprofit, register through Cause.it and begin reaping the benefits of some good old fashioned civic duty!

-- Perrin Drumm

Watch This Now // Parsons' DESIS Lab Amplifies Social Innovation in North Brooklyn

 

People in our neighborhood are always up to amazing things, so it's not surprising that last year the DESIS Lab at Parsons The New School for Design focused its lens on North Brooklyn to highlight local examples of sustainable living and innovation.

As part of its two-year Amplifying Creative Communities project, which looked at the Lower East Side in 2010, DESIS (short for Design for Social Innovation and Sustainability) explored different organizations and initiatives in Greenpoint and Williamsburg to learn how they work, help them improve through design service, and share information that will allow others to create their own alternatives to standard commercial and government services.

In addition to an exhibition and a series of workshops about local sustainable change, Amplify Brooklyn also produced some inspiring videos featuring examples of local food, sharing, biking and more, including interviews with the people behind the Greenpoint-Williamsburg CSA, the North Brooklyn Compost Project, Not An Alternative, Times Up!, the Pa-La Loma Bicycle Club and the Brooklyn Greenway Initiative.

Check out a few of those videos after the jump and head over to the Amplifying Creative Communities website for more insight and inspiration.

-- John Ruscher

GOOD CAUSE // DeKalb Market Contest Winner BBox Radio Takes to Kickstarter

 

It all started with five friends and a dream of winning a contest. BBox Radio cofounder Katrina Cass says that when she and her friends heard about DeKalb Market's Not Just a Container contest, they wanted to do something that would really reflect the community. Their idea: A radio station simultaneously serves as a performance space where all content would be locally generated and influenced. Turns out it was a good choice--they won.

Courtesy of BBox Radio

Cass says since then, the station has received an incredible amount of support. They had a broadcast student visiting from California who called ahead to volunteer in addition to a slew of local volunteers. The founding members each put in 15-30 hours a week with the station, "but we all still have our day jobs," Cass says.

Their programming is, well, very Brooklyn: underground hip-hop, modern African music, documentaries, and talk from the farmers, chefs, and artists who populate DeKalb Market. They welcome input on what people want to hear. But more than all that right now, they welcome funds. Running a radio station, it turns out, requires a lot of equipment. Online streaming takes more funds.They need $15,000 by October 19 to stay on air, so if you think it's a possibility that you can maybe even help a little, head on over to Kickstarter now.

--Layla Schlack

BEST OF // Our Top 5 Etsy How-Tuesdays

It's no secret that our friends at Etsy know good crafts and DIY projects when they see them. And now they're spreading the love. Every Tuesday, the Etsy blog posts How-Tuesday projects, so you can learn a new skill without ever leaving your computer, as it should be. We've formed something of an addiction to the feature and we thought we'd share 5 How-Tuesdays we think are tops (presented in no particular order of course).

Via Etsy1. Sew a Skirt in One Hour: For those of us who are not quite whizzes on the sewing machine, the title of Brett Bara's book is, in itself, awe-inspiring. The How to Sew In a Straight Line author stopped by Etsy studios to show us how to sew in enought straight lines to create a wearable garment--in five easy steps.

Yarrow, pre-tea2. Urban Herbalist: Ok, it's no secret that 3rd Ward likes urban farming. But what we like even more than farming is learning what to do with those plants that grow wild all over (sometimes called weeds). Irina from Phoenix Botanicals gave us the scoop on plantain bandages, yarrow tea, mugwort pillows, and more. It's a great intro to her Foraging Herbal Medicine class at 3rd Ward.

Hit the jump now for three more amazing ideas.

3. Build Your Own Seltzer Maker: You know who doesn't like seltzer? Nobody, that's who. But no one likes piles of plastic bottles or the accompanying environmental effects. So your options are to buy a fancy seltzer-maker, or McGyver your own with a trip to the hardware store and a handy tutorial by painter Randy Stoltzfus.

4. Spread the Word for an Event: This feels like one of those things that you're just supposed to know. You think that if you tell friends, they'll tell friends, and bam, packed house. But there's method and skill to tailoring your invite to your event and getting people in the door who aren't already in your circle (if you're into that sort of thing). Danya Cheskis-Gold of Skillshare shows us the way.

5. Mustard: It turns out making your own mustard is easy enough that it might be worth doing even if you don't like the stuff (at the very least, just for bragging rights.) We also love projects like this where we can make a big batch and give everyone we know a homemade gift. And once you've learned how to pack your event, you could even have a mustard party (trust us, they happen.) Michelle Fuerst, formerly of Chez Panisse, gives us the recipe and walks us through it with a video.

Honestly, we could've made this list 300 ideas long, but then we may have broken the internet. So do yourself a favor and get How-Tuesdays bookmarked for your weekly project inspiration.

--Layla Schlack

OPENING SOON // The Bronx Documentary Center brings Film, Photo and Community Involvement to the Borough

The Bronx Documentary Center at Courtlandt Ave. and 151st St.

Next month, a fantastic new gallery and educational space will launch in the Bronx--though even before officially openings its doors, it's already been making an impact in the community.

Since early summer, the Bronx Documentary Center has been hosting screenings and lectures in its garden patio, presenting films like the Oscar-winning Born into Brothels and speakers such as war photographer João Silva. In October it will celebrate its grand opening with an exhibition featuring the work of the late Tim Hetherington, who co-directed the amazing 2010 documentary Restrepo and was killed this April while covering the front lines in Libya.

We spoke with award-winning New York Times photojournalist and Bronx Documentary Center's founder, Michael Kamber to find out more. Read on after the jump.

The Hetherington exhibition is a natural first step for the center, as the space was a vision that he and Kamber shared. "Tim was involved in the early planning for the BDC before he was killed," Kamber says. "His death really solidified our resolve to create a documentary studies center in his memory. Since his death, we will be the first venue in the world to devote a solo show to his photo, film and multimedia work.  We are particularly excited about getting his work out to young audiences."

"Tim was, in my opinion, the greatest documentarian of our generation," Kamber continues. "He was also my closest friend—we worked and lived together for many years. Tim gave workshops throughout Africa and the Middle East and was deeply committed to spreading documentary photography and film into areas such as the Bronx."

The idea for the center had been brewing for some time, Kamber tells us. "I'd been thinking for years about starting a gallery and educational organization in a neighborhood where one doesn't usually see this kind of space," he says. "I've always been frustrated that a lot of journalism and documentary work is created in underserved areas, then taken out for consumption elsewhere. We want to change this equation."

"There is not a single gallery devoted to photography and film in the Bronx, a borough of nearly 2 million people.  We are very much focused on working closely with our community, in becoming a place the community comes to for stimulation, culture and education."

Kamber envisions the center as an integral part of its surrounding community, a role its already begun to fill with this summer's events. "Many neighbors have told us that there is the need for a community center like the BDC, focused on the types of cultural and educational events we have planned," Kamber says.

Stay tuned to the Bronx Documentary Center's website and Facebook page for more updates and the exact date of its opening exhibition. If you're interested in helping out, you can donate or get in touch about becoming a volunteer or intern.

-- John Ruscher

FINE WINE // Part 1: Stefan Mailvaganam + Brooklyn's Custom American Wine Bar

Courtesy: Custom American Wine BarPour yourself a glass of Gewurtzraminer and raise it high towards your laptop, because today we kick off Fine Wine; an ongoing series devoted to all things local wine. We'll be talking with the proprietors of your finest local wine bars, vineyard owners, hosts of wine specialty shows on public radio and beyond--all in the name of wrapping our (and your) heads around the local wine phenomenon.

Hit the jump to get into Part 1, in which we profile co-owner of Brooklyn's Custom American Wine Bar, Stefan Mailvaganam.

The genesis of Custom is one of those bittersweet scenarios: What began as an impassioned and microcosmic effort to breathe some life into a listless American economy suddenly become an inspired gastronomic experience in the heart of one of the country’s most happening neighborhoods.

When the nation’s brutal debt crisis struck in 2008, Mailvaganam was the owner of Bar Carrera, an Iberian tapas restaurant in the East Village.  Mailvaganam wanted to know what he, “as an owner and entrepreneur, could do to provide stimulus to the economy.”  As one might expect, 90% of Bar Carrera’s product was imported from Spain.  

“It was a ‘Eureka’ moment for me when I realized if I bought exclusively domestic product under a brand that focused on U.S producers, I would be contributing to U.S. farmers, winemakers, brewers, distillers, cheese-makers, truck-drivers, and the entire domestic supply chain,” says Mailvaganam.  

“Ergo: my own mini-stimulus package!”  Charming and self-effacing, Mailvaganam says the idea “sounds corny now,” but it’s actually worked quite brilliantly.

Of course it's lovely to support American commerce and agriculture but Mailvaganam iterates that American wine is especially undervalued.  “It lacks the European cache and pedigree, and doesn’t provide the exotic flair of New Zealand, South Africa or Argentina,” he says.  When he realized there was a need for a platform to “extol the merits of American wine” he conceived of the answer: “a wine bar that promoted exclusively high-value, reasonably priced domestic wine and food.”

Stefan Mailvaganam is a breath of fresh air.  Miraculously all passion and no pretense.  At one point, he was working 14-hour days in Silicon Valley, though soon he realized he “could no longer just work for the sake of money, security or status.”  In 2000, he quit his high-paying internet start-up job and moved to New York to enroll in culinary school and start from scratch.

Eleven years later, that fervor is still burning strong.  When asked what he loves about Williamsburg, Mailvaganam replies, “Almost everything.”  He’s happy to be here and of course we're happy to have him.  When you visit Custom American Wine Bar, be sure to indulge in The Elvis -- peanut butter, bananas, and bacon on white bread -- named for the legend himself and his illustrious cravings.  “After all,” Mailvaganam says, “how can you have a bar dedicated to all things American and not pay homage to the King?”

-- Margaux Weisman

ESSENTIAL EVENT // City Harvest hosts The Brooklyn Local

Courtesy: Vinegar Hill HouseFoodie heads are bound to explode on September 17th when the Brooklyn Flea and Smorgasburg converge on DUMBO’s Tobacco Warehouse with Four and Twenty Blackbirds, Vinegar Hill House, Al di La, Roberta’s and Van Leeuwen Ice Cream, to name just a few. A total of 75 vendors and 15 restaurants (hosted by Franks Falcinelli and Casonovo of Frankie’s Spuntino) will come out for a good cause: to support City Harvest--and Brooklynites get to reap the delicious rewards.

City Harvest calls itself "the first food rescue organization." It collects food from restaurants, wholesalers and retailers to distribute to food shelters and pantries. It also has nutrition training and does grassroots advocacy work to stop hunger from happening.

The Brooklyn Local is the first event of its kind, chaired by such food luminaries as Dana Cowin of Food & Wine, Ted Allen from Chopped and Sue Chan of Momofoku. It goes from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on 9/17, with tickets costing $5 to the vendor area, $60 for the Tasting Tent if purchased in advance, and $75 at the door. We’re thinking of it as our own personal eating challenge. For a good cause, of course.

-- Layla Schlack

BIKE & DESIGN // John Watson of Prolly is Not Probably

For Bike Month, we’re bringing you a series of conversations at the intersection of cycling, art and design. Through a combination of fixed freestyle, track, and road cycling crossover appeal, beautiful photography, and prolific posting, John "Prolly" Watson has made his blog Prolly is not Probably the place for bike content. His influence has resulted in collaborations with a variety of brands, and he is a go-to news source for reports on cycling shops, products, and design.

3rd Ward: Why bike? Do you think cycling has changed you physically, psychologically, or philosophically?

John Prolly: Every one I know who rides has a story about how cycling has single-handedly changed their lives. I was recently about 60 miles out on a solo ride, when I came up on a guy struggling on a climb. He said before cycling, he was a strict political conservative (I'm in Texas now by the way) who was against any "green agenda". Then he picked up a bike to get in shape and slowly but surely, he got hooked. Since he'd started riding, he said he's been less aggressive and, in his words, "ignorantly assholish." His wife and kids enjoy his company and his co-workers like having him around. Now, it's hard to say that I've had a similar experience, but cycling gives you attainable training goals. And endorphins are one hell of a rush.

3W: What is your advice for someone who wants to start cycling in a major city? In New York in particular?

JP: Be safe about it. Wear a helmet, get lights and if you're on a track bike, get a brake. I have been riding a bike in NYC for six years and it's no easy task. You never know what's going to pop out from behind a car or roll into your path. Be alert and don't think that bike lanes are some magical safety net. I've always felt like riding with traffic is safer than on the side of traffic. Don't ride on the god damned sidewalk or against traffic. Those are my two biggest pet peeves!

3W: What are the elements of your ideal ride in NYC?

JP: It's gotta be the spring time. Everyone's out, shedding clothes and enjoying the city. I love riding River Road to Nyack and Piermont and any ride to Ft. Tilden is always a blast. I've ridden all over the world. Holland, Japan and all over the US. I've been to a lot of cycling-friendly cities and unfortunately NYC is not yet one of those.

3W: What's a favorite cycling story?

JP: I had a great time I had on my bike was with Isaac, Harry (of NY Bike Jumble) and Scott. We decided to ride from Brooklyn to Philly for the Philly Bike Expo. We took 70% off-road trails, along the Delaware Canal and made great time. We spent the trip talking shit, getting stoned and avoiding falling into the freezing water of the canal. Once we got to Philly, the weekend was spent documenting amazing hand-built bikes, drinking and having a blast with friends. Riding in Tokyo exclusively on my fixed freestyle was awesome, too. Zipping through the crowded streets with a bunch of strangers. It was a great way to make friends.

3W: What are the surprising or unique aspects of the communities built around cycling that you've been a part of?

JP: There are polo guys, roadies, track bike guys, track racers, messengers, fixed freestyle, BMXers but over the recent months, these barriers have been broken and you're seeing the cycling scene in NYC really pull together and form a community. Scenes come and go, but communities build for the future.

3W: What lead you go beyond riding and start blogging, etc.?

JP: When I got laid off from my Architecture job back in March of 2010, no one was hiring and rather than driving myself mad, I just put that energy into my blog. I have become Prolly and there's really nothing that can take that away. The bottom line is, I didn't start the blog to "get stuff." A lot of the new bloggers in the scene see my formula and emulate it. I get tons of emails from kids asking how to get what I've got and it's not that simple. But people try, they mimic my voice, my positive attitude and my content. I'll post something that I found on my own and 30+ blogs will post it minutes later, hardly ever crediting me as the source. It's frustrating, but that's the internet. I never really expected for the site to blow up and here I am, traveling all over, doing a range of bike journalism, working on products, and shooting photos almost as much as I'm riding.

3W: What bike you've owned has been most important to you and why?

JP: Gah, I don't know. I really really love my road bike. It's an Eddy Merckx MX-Leader made from Columbus MXL tubing. It was developed by Merckx for his big-dogs. For a 225-pound guy, it rides like a rocket. I'm getting my first custom bike this year from the guys at Geekhouse. It'll be on display at the NAHBS here in Austin and I'm confident that will become my all-around bike once I get my grubby hands on it! (3W: design process here). I really also love my Eddy Merckx track bike. It's my exact size and the colors on that thing are so 80's it hurts! Later this year, I'm hoping to get a custom Icarus track bike, although after seeing Ian's recent work, I might wanna get a custom road bike! I've thinned my collection down to a few select bikes that get their job done with a bit of stylistic flairs on the side.

MAGAZINE LAUNCH // Outpost Journal: Profiling Creative Scenes In Small Cities

In New York City—and at 3rd Ward in particular—we have virtually everything we need right at our fingertips. In many smaller cities, though, creative scenes are thriving without such plentiful resources. That's where the new biannual non-profit publication, Outpost Journal, comes in. Each issue of Outpost will profile a different urban locale, investigating its creative hotspots, movers and shakers and more.

"Without over-romanticizing a 'small is beautiful' concept, we do firmly believe that smaller cities (as well as smaller neighborhoods in larger cities) can be fertile ground for testing new ideas in art, activism and lifestyle," Outpost founder Manya K. Rubinstein tells us. "But living in an 'Outpost' has a cost to it as well...how can artists and activists living 'out there' capitalize on the organic networks that already exist in order to make productive connections with artists and activists elsewhere? In addition, how do they get the notice they deserve for their work (and the possible economic opportunities/access to larger markets that can come with notice) not just in their own region, but also back in the main centers of art and commerce?"

Outpost's mission, she says, is "to create an experimental solution that bridges some of these gaps."

The journal's inaugural issue, due out this coming fall, will delve into the riches of Pittsburgh. "It is an incredible city, especially in regards to its arts ecology," Rubinstein says. "It is home to major cultural institutions like the Warhol Museum and the Mattress Factory (among others), full of beautiful and relatively cheap housing stock, a thriving DIY, crafting, printmaking, literary, filmmaking, performance and artistic community, a great art school and an incredible array of arts-based non-profits."

Interested? Help launch Outpost Journal by contributing to its Kickstarter campaign.

Curious about what you'll be able to find in the journal? Click "more info" for Rubinstein's descriptions of some features from the first issue. 

• "Secretly Famous," a profile of the most famous artist in Pittsburgh you never heard of, as told by his collaborators and acquaintances.
• Artist profiles of some of Pittsburgh's finest.
• A peek into some of the city's entrepreneurially focused arts-based youth programming and a story on the Waffle Shop, an experimental reality TV show cum Waffle House.
• Stories about punk houses, an artist collective practicing "deconstruction" in Braddock, PA, and a piece on adaptive reuse projects in Churches all across the city.
• A piece on a cardigan sweater we commissioned a local crafter to make for an 11-ft statue of local hero Mr. Rogers on Pittsburgh's North Shore.
• Native son Girl Talk's picks for his favorite spots in town.

--John Ruscher

DRINK UP // Caroline Mak's Brooklyn-Made Soda

Caroline Mak wants to get you carbonated. Mak, a former 3rd Ward teacher, and her partner Antonio Ramos, have gone and launched their very own homemade soda company, Brooklyn Soda Works. Intimidatingly donning a bachelor’s from Stanford in Biological Sciences and an M.F.A. from the University of Chicago in Sculpture and Installation, Mak's sort of a force to be reckoned with.  In addition to her newfound company, Mak's visual work is about to be displayed at two upcoming shows (more on that below),

Brooklyn Soda Works started last year, when Mak and Ramos “wanted to make the perfect ginger beer for our dark ‘n’ stormies." Mak tells us, "We didn’t have a particular passion for sodas, but just wanted to make a fizzy drink that we'd enjoy drinking and mixing with for cocktails.” So far, they've got cucumber, lime & sea salt, apple & ginger, and grapefruit, jalapeno & honey.  All are made with fresh juices (ain't no syrups here!) -- and all make us want to whip up a cocktail first thing this morning (don't judge.)

After a successful Kickstarter campaign got BSW off the ground, the two applied for a spot at the Brooklyn Flea and--unsurprisingly--got in. Now, in addition to being sold at the Flea on weekends, Brooklyn Soda Works is available on tap at Beer Table in Park Slope, 61 Local in Carroll Gardens and Untitled at the Whitney Museum. With a few limited bottles being sold at Palo Santo in Park Slope, Porsena in the East Village, and Blue Hill Manhattan.

Not a bad start, BSW.

Of her time at 3rd Ward, Mak says, “I liked the flexibility that 3rd Ward gave me in creating a syllabus. I have a diverse academic background so it was nice to know that 3rd Ward were supportive in the lecturers that they hire.” Adding, “The classes are as wide-ranging as the artists in Brooklyn are!”

And about those gallery shows of hers: both are coming up this September. Starting September 17^th and running for a month, she’ll have a solo show at Gallery Aferro in Newark. Mak says, “I’ve been fascinated with the idea and process behind biological repair for a while… scabbing, bone healing, etc, and have been applying that concept to found objects.” And starting September 23^rd, she’ll be transforming the hallway of the Brooklyn Arts Council into a continuous wall installation as part of the DUMBO Arts Festival.

In the meantime, put down the Four Loko and get your hands on some of that delicious-soundin' Brooklyn Soda Works bubbly.

-- Anastasia Friscia