#volunteering — Public Fediverse posts

Northeast Iowa Food Bank invites community to take action during Hunger Action Month | Local https://www.diningandcooking.com/us/3750/ #food #FoodBank #FoodSecurity #FoodTruck #hunger #Iowa #IowaDining #IowaFood #IowaGroceryStores #IowaRestaurants #malnutrition #Nutrition #poverty #prevention #volunteering #waterloo

Northeast Iowa Food Bank invites community to take action during Hunger Action Month | Local https://www.diningandcooking.com/us/3750/ #food #FoodBank #FoodSecurity #FoodTruck #hunger #Iowa #IowaDining #IowaFood #IowaGroceryStores #IowaRestaurants #malnutrition #Nutrition #poverty #prevention #volunteering #waterloo

Northeast Iowa Food Bank invites community to take action during Hunger Action Month | Local https://www.diningandcooking.com/us/3750/ #food #FoodBank #FoodSecurity #FoodTruck #hunger #Iowa #IowaDining #IowaFood #IowaGroceryStores #IowaRestaurants #malnutrition #Nutrition #poverty #prevention #volunteering #waterloo

Northeast Iowa Food Bank invites community to take action during Hunger Action Month | Local https://www.diningandcooking.com/us/3750/ #food #FoodBank #FoodSecurity #FoodTruck #hunger #Iowa #IowaDining #IowaFood #IowaGroceryStores #IowaRestaurants #malnutrition #Nutrition #poverty #prevention #volunteering #waterloo

Pa. food bank highlights hunger relief during Hunger Action Month https://www.diningandcooking.com/us/2003/ #27CountyServiceArea #advocacy #CentralPennsylvania #CentralPennsylvaniaFoodBank #CentreCounty #ChildrenFoodInsecurity #ColumbiaCounty #donating #FoodBank #FoodInsecurity #FoodPantries #HungerActionMonth #HungerRelief #HungerReliefPartners #Lancaster #LebanonCounty #NourishingNeighborsTogether #pennsylvania #PennsylvaniaFood #volunteering #Williamsport #YorkCounty

Pa. food bank highlights hunger relief during Hunger Action Month https://www.diningandcooking.com/us/2003/ #27CountyServiceArea #advocacy #CentralPennsylvania #CentralPennsylvaniaFoodBank #CentreCounty #ChildrenFoodInsecurity #ColumbiaCounty #donating #FoodBank #FoodInsecurity #FoodPantries #HungerActionMonth #HungerRelief #HungerReliefPartners #Lancaster #LebanonCounty #NourishingNeighborsTogether #pennsylvania #PennsylvaniaFood #volunteering #Williamsport #YorkCounty

Pa. food bank highlights hunger relief during Hunger Action Month https://www.diningandcooking.com/us/2003/ #27CountyServiceArea #advocacy #CentralPennsylvania #CentralPennsylvaniaFoodBank #CentreCounty #ChildrenFoodInsecurity #ColumbiaCounty #donating #FoodBank #FoodInsecurity #FoodPantries #HungerActionMonth #HungerRelief #HungerReliefPartners #Lancaster #LebanonCounty #NourishingNeighborsTogether #pennsylvania #PennsylvaniaFood #volunteering #Williamsport #YorkCounty

Pa. food bank highlights hunger relief during Hunger Action Month https://www.diningandcooking.com/us/2003/ #27CountyServiceArea #advocacy #CentralPennsylvania #CentralPennsylvaniaFoodBank #CentreCounty #ChildrenFoodInsecurity #ColumbiaCounty #donating #FoodBank #FoodInsecurity #FoodPantries #HungerActionMonth #HungerRelief #HungerReliefPartners #Lancaster #LebanonCounty #NourishingNeighborsTogether #pennsylvania #PennsylvaniaFood #volunteering #Williamsport #YorkCounty

Country Women's Association celebrates 90 years in outback town
By Charles Geary

Founded when there were fewer than 50 women in Tennant Creek, the town's CWA branch is celebrating 90 years of service.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-09-12/cwa-tennant-creek-90th-anniversary/107136280

#RuralandRemoteCommunities #Women #Agriculture #Volunteering #CharlesGeary

Volunteers maintain historic cactus garden https://www.allforgardening.com/1938359/volunteers-maintain-historic-cactus-garden/ #arizona #ArizonaCactusGarden #beauty #cacti #california #Cancer #chemotherapy #ChristySmith #Colours #community #connection #design #enjoyment #garden #GardeningArizona #Hospital #JaneStanford #JohnPriola #LelandStanford #meaningful #NaomiMier #nature #plants #preservation #public #restoration #Stanford #style #succulents #survivor #victorian #Volunteering

New to #OpenStreetMap and want to contribute to impactful causes through open mapping? 🗺
We're here to help!

Visit the #UNMaps Learning Hub today 👉 https://maps.un.org/learning/

🗺️ Master the basics, editors, and topographic concepts of #openmapping.
🌐 Join thousands of contributors worldwide.
📚 Flexible and multilingual courses, start anytime, anywhere.
🌟 Empower yourself and make a difference!

📸Cameroon CityMapper Externship 2026 /Engelbert Modo

#UNMappers #UNMapsLearningHub #foss4g #volunteering

New to #OpenStreetMap and want to contribute to impactful causes through open mapping? 🗺
We're here to help!

Visit the #UNMaps Learning Hub today 👉 https://maps.un.org/learning/

🗺️ Master the basics, editors, and topographic concepts of #openmapping.
🌐 Join thousands of contributors worldwide.
📚 Flexible and multilingual courses, start anytime, anywhere.
🌟 Empower yourself and make a difference!

📸Cameroon CityMapper Externship 2026 /Engelbert Modo

#UNMappers #UNMapsLearningHub #foss4g #volunteering

New to #OpenStreetMap and want to contribute to impactful causes through open mapping? 🗺
We're here to help!

Visit the #UNMaps Learning Hub today 👉 https://maps.un.org/learning/

🗺️ Master the basics, editors, and topographic concepts of #openmapping.
🌐 Join thousands of contributors worldwide.
📚 Flexible and multilingual courses, start anytime, anywhere.
🌟 Empower yourself and make a difference!

📸Cameroon CityMapper Externship 2026 /Engelbert Modo

#UNMappers #UNMapsLearningHub #foss4g #volunteering

New to #OpenStreetMap and want to contribute to impactful causes through open mapping? 🗺
We're here to help!

Visit the #UNMaps Learning Hub today 👉 https://maps.un.org/learning/

🗺️ Master the basics, editors, and topographic concepts of #openmapping.
🌐 Join thousands of contributors worldwide.
📚 Flexible and multilingual courses, start anytime, anywhere.
🌟 Empower yourself and make a difference!

📸Cameroon CityMapper Externship 2026 /Engelbert Modo

#UNMappers #UNMapsLearningHub #foss4g #volunteering

New to #OpenStreetMap and want to contribute to impactful causes through open mapping? 🗺
We're here to help!

Visit the #UNMaps Learning Hub today 👉 https://maps.un.org/learning/

🗺️ Master the basics, editors, and topographic concepts of #openmapping.
🌐 Join thousands of contributors worldwide.
📚 Flexible and multilingual courses, start anytime, anywhere.
🌟 Empower yourself and make a difference!

📸Cameroon CityMapper Externship 2026 /Engelbert Modo

#UNMappers #UNMapsLearningHub #foss4g #volunteering

NEW Translation: BURMESE

We are thrilled to share that the #OpenStreetMap courses on the UN Maps Learning Hub are now available in #Burmese 🇲🇲💙

Huge shoutout to the Myanmar OpenStreetMap (My OSM) community #myOSM who have translated the contents to ensure our learning resources more accessible 🙌

Start learning with #UNMaps today 👇
📍 https://maps.un.org/learning/

📸Photo credit: myOSM

#UNMappers #UNMapsLearningHub #OpenStreetMap #OnlineLearning #UNLearning #onlinevolunteering #volunteering #opendata

NEW Translation: BURMESE

We are thrilled to share that the #OpenStreetMap courses on the UN Maps Learning Hub are now available in #Burmese 🇲🇲💙

Huge shoutout to the Myanmar OpenStreetMap (My OSM) community #myOSM who have translated the contents to ensure our learning resources more accessible 🙌

Start learning with #UNMaps today 👇
📍 https://maps.un.org/learning/

📸Photo credit: myOSM

#UNMappers #UNMapsLearningHub #OpenStreetMap #OnlineLearning #UNLearning #onlinevolunteering #volunteering #opendata

NEW Translation: BURMESE

We are thrilled to share that the #OpenStreetMap courses on the UN Maps Learning Hub are now available in #Burmese 🇲🇲💙

Huge shoutout to the Myanmar OpenStreetMap (My OSM) community #myOSM who have translated the contents to ensure our learning resources more accessible 🙌

Start learning with #UNMaps today 👇
📍 https://maps.un.org/learning/

📸Photo credit: myOSM

#UNMappers #UNMapsLearningHub #OpenStreetMap #OnlineLearning #UNLearning #onlinevolunteering #volunteering #opendata

NEW Translation: BURMESE

We are thrilled to share that the #OpenStreetMap courses on the UN Maps Learning Hub are now available in #Burmese 🇲🇲💙

Huge shoutout to the Myanmar OpenStreetMap (My OSM) community #myOSM who have translated the contents to ensure our learning resources more accessible 🙌

Start learning with #UNMaps today 👇
📍 https://maps.un.org/learning/

📸Photo credit: myOSM

#UNMappers #UNMapsLearningHub #OpenStreetMap #OnlineLearning #UNLearning #onlinevolunteering #volunteering #opendata

NEW Translation: BURMESE

We are thrilled to share that the #OpenStreetMap courses on the UN Maps Learning Hub are now available in #Burmese 🇲🇲💙

Huge shoutout to the Myanmar OpenStreetMap (My OSM) community #myOSM who have translated the contents to ensure our learning resources more accessible 🙌

Start learning with #UNMaps today 👇
📍 https://maps.un.org/learning/

📸Photo credit: myOSM

#UNMappers #UNMapsLearningHub #OpenStreetMap #OnlineLearning #UNLearning #onlinevolunteering #volunteering #opendata

NEW UN Maps Learning Hub Course: QGIS Training

Jumpstart your GIS mapping skills using the free and open-source software #QGIS 💻

📚 Understand the basics of #GIS, QGIS and geospatial data
🗺️ Build your first map
📈 Perform data and map analysis
🌐 Explore real world examples

Start learning with #UNMaps today 👇
📍 https://maps.un.org/learning/

📸 Photo credit: Engelbert Modo

#UNMappers #MappingForPeace #Humanitarianmapping #UNMapsLearningHub #OpenStreetMap #OnlineLearning #volunteering #foss4g #foss

NEW UN Maps Learning Hub Course: QGIS Training

Jumpstart your GIS mapping skills using the free and open-source software #QGIS 💻

📚 Understand the basics of #GIS, QGIS and geospatial data
🗺️ Build your first map
📈 Perform data and map analysis
🌐 Explore real world examples

Start learning with #UNMaps today 👇
📍 https://maps.un.org/learning/

📸 Photo credit: Engelbert Modo

#UNMappers #MappingForPeace #Humanitarianmapping #UNMapsLearningHub #OpenStreetMap #OnlineLearning #volunteering #foss4g #foss

NEW UN Maps Learning Hub Course: QGIS Training

Jumpstart your GIS mapping skills using the free and open-source software #QGIS 💻

📚 Understand the basics of #GIS, QGIS and geospatial data
🗺️ Build your first map
📈 Perform data and map analysis
🌐 Explore real world examples

Start learning with #UNMaps today 👇
📍 https://maps.un.org/learning/

📸 Photo credit: Engelbert Modo

#UNMappers #MappingForPeace #Humanitarianmapping #UNMapsLearningHub #OpenStreetMap #OnlineLearning #volunteering #foss4g #foss

NEW UN Maps Learning Hub Course: QGIS Training

Jumpstart your GIS mapping skills using the free and open-source software #QGIS 💻

📚 Understand the basics of #GIS, QGIS and geospatial data
🗺️ Build your first map
📈 Perform data and map analysis
🌐 Explore real world examples

Start learning with #UNMaps today 👇
📍 https://maps.un.org/learning/

📸 Photo credit: Engelbert Modo

#UNMappers #MappingForPeace #Humanitarianmapping #UNMapsLearningHub #OpenStreetMap #OnlineLearning #volunteering #foss4g #foss

NEW UN Maps Learning Hub Course: QGIS Training

Jumpstart your GIS mapping skills using the free and open-source software #QGIS 💻

📚 Understand the basics of #GIS, QGIS and geospatial data
🗺️ Build your first map
📈 Perform data and map analysis
🌐 Explore real world examples

Start learning with #UNMaps today 👇
📍 https://maps.un.org/learning/

📸 Photo credit: Engelbert Modo

#UNMappers #MappingForPeace #Humanitarianmapping #UNMapsLearningHub #OpenStreetMap #OnlineLearning #volunteering #foss4g #foss

Our Journey Begins

On Wednesday morning, we will be on our way. First, we’ll take a couple days to travel to my favorite place, Pentwater, Michigan. There, we’ll spend two weeks with family. This is our time to be with our family, with our grown children and other family members all the way down to our great niece and nephew.

When we leave Michigan, for the first time ever, we won’t head home. Rather, we’ll take 15 days to journey to the Grand Canyon. There, we’ll volunteer as camp hosts for two and a half months. I feel like we’ve moved heaven and earth for this possibility.

A couple of years ago, we took a cruise to Alaska. This was a long held hope and dream of mine, and I could hardly believe we’d made it. I kept thinking something would prevent us from reaching this personal frontier. Once on the cruise ship, headed north, I had to pinch myself to know for sure, this was really happening.

I feel the same way about volunteering at the Grand Canyon. To be and live in this iconic National Park almost seems too great of a thing that could happen to me. Even now, I hope I’m not jinxing myself – as we are not there yet.

We applied for this volunteer position back in September. Amanda, the NPS Park ranger for the volunteers, contacted us expressing interest and wanting to set up an interview.

Then the government shutdown happened.

I knew we wouldn’t hear anything for a while. However, we did receive an email from Amanda saying she would contact us after the shutdown ended. That shutdown now seems like a distant memory, doesn’t it?

Long story short, we eventually interviewed and were selected. This was a surprise because I thought we’d be eliminated since the date range for the position was five months, and because of our Michigan tradition, we were only available for the second half. We’re not giving up Pentwater, even for the Grand Canyon.

But this didn’t knock us out. Instead, out of 70 applicants, we were some of the ones chosen. We got the lucky ticket in this lottery.

We had more paperwork to do, including some online forms and creating a resume for both Dan and I. Then, they requested for Dan to get fingerprinted. Not digital fingerprints, like we did for LBJ National Historical Park. Rather, real ink fingerprints with an authorized agency. We found an agency 30 minutes away from where we were in Big Cypress. Then we had to take a picture of the prints and various forms and email that in through a protected server. Once all was approved, we then had to FedEx everything to … somewhere. I don’t even remember where anymore. The FedEx was another 30 minutes away from where we were in Big Cypress.

It puzzled us that they only asked Dan to do this. I should have asked about why they didn’t ask me.

However, they did ask me. Except I didn’t know as it was sent to an incorrect email. So, back to the ink fingerprint joint, email extravaganza, and finally to the busy FedEx office on Marco Island. This process from being accepted to getting this all done took about four months, keeping in mind that each 30 minute trip was a week or more given our volunteer work schedule in the Preserve. Factor in communication time, and it’s just about four months.

Finally, we were all set up and approved!

Then we found out Dan has prostate cancer.

A scheduled biopsy turns into two unscheduled stints in the hospital. Once through that debacle, a consultation. Then a decision to “wait and watch”, but a later PSA test turns up the heat, and he decides for surgery. Another consultation, all the while waiting, wondering, will we still get to go?

The surgeon, based on the results of Dan’s genetic testing of the cancer cells, confirms, it is just fine for us to wait until November, after our Grand Canyon expedition. So, then we ask, can we wait until March or April? You know, Dan really doesn’t like cold weather. The surgeon says…”Well, you could…”, but then wavers a bit, throwing cold water on the idea. So we count our blessings and stick with the November schedule.

This is good with us. We had been in the process of setting up a gig with an Arizona State Park, but once we learned of the cancer diagnosis, we bowed out. We wanted to give the coordinator plenty of time to find other volunteers.

But here we are. Ready to go. Fingers crossed and God willing.

I can’t help but think when I look out over that canyon for the first time and try to take in its immense beauty and splendor, I’ll stand there with a lump in my throat and tears in my eyes. It will be a moment when I thank God for getting us there, giving us this opportunity, and amazing us with the glory of His creation. It will all be worth it. Don’t you think? Of this, I have no doubt.

Sometimes people tell us to "get a job" as if it's that simple.

There are multitudinous good reasons why we:
1. Consider our work for Vulpine Labs and the local community more important than any run of the mill "job".
2. Cannot seriously be expected to attain traditional employment.
3. Shun traditional models of pay in favour of Mutual Aid.

And we won't let capitalism grind us down.

Today, Atha:
Reset the mouse traps in the bus
Cleared snow off the bus and car (altitude does not care for your "seasons", mere mortals)
Got a new phone from a good friend
Set up an LELink LeafSpy OBD2 device to help diagnose and fix the car
Did some reading at the library to get back in the mood for learning Python

And Inara:
Did trans HRT injections
Did some cleaning and tidying
Took the car to do a slow charge session
Did some phone setup
Will likely cook food for us and a homeless friend, and do some VR.

If you want to fling us some currency to keep the mardy old system at bay and fill up the bus's thirsty diesel tank, feel free to send to
https://ko-fi.com/athakitsune or
https://PayPal.me/athamanatha or
Cashapp $athamanatha
Wise and some limited bank transfer options also available on request.

#buslife #poor #mutualaid #pleasedonate #helpfolkslive2026 #helpthehomeless #share4reach #boost4reach #queermutualaid #homeless #queer #homelessmutualaid #trans #transmutualaid #hrt #lgbtq #lgbtqia #lgbtqia2plus #electriccar #diagnostics #EV #nissanleaf #snow #library #books #python #programming #syntax #code #androidphone #unemployable #unemployed #underemployed #volunteering #community #fuelprices #communesandconvoys

Target: $4000 this week!

The #Vulpibus folks are looking to raise a more significant quantity of currency this next week, to catch up with needs that are piling up fast.

Things from hardware and tools, to paying off loans and bureaucracy, to fuel to keep the Vulpibus moving!

It's expensive being poor in a capitalist society.

Let's put everyone in a better position to survive and thrive! Every donation to the Vulpibus increases the ability for it to be used for:

Living
Developing awesome gene editing tech
Rescuing and helping out fellow homeless, trans, LGBTQ+ and Otherkin and Therian folks in this horrible time
Sharing skills in hackerspace-style workshops and projects.

Please gather monies and donate to:
https://ko-fi.com/athakitsune
https://paypal.me/athamanatha
Cashapp $Athamanatha
Wise (please ask)
Bank transfer in the UK or ACH in the USA or via IBAN (please ask)
Other payment methods may need some arranging due to our current situation.

If you wish to stipulate a specific use for the money and see that use play out, let us know.

#Trans
#Transrights
#Transcrowdfund
#Crowdfund
#Mutualaid
#Mutualaidrequest
#LGBTQ
#LGBTQIA
#Transmutualaid
#fundraiser
#Solarpunk
#helpfolkslive2026
#Helpfolkssurive2026
#Queer
#Queermutualaid
#Moneyhelp
#Fedihelp
#help
#fucktrump
#Fuckmusk
#fuckcapitalism
#fuckproject2025
#hackerspace
#Makerspace
#homeless
#homelessness
#volunteering
#volunteers
#science
#guerillascience
#systemsdesign
#geneediting
#currencyhelp
#repairs
#learning
#skills
#sharing
#donate
#donateandshare
#share
#boost
#boostok
#boost4reach

#SacoME #EarthDay #Cleanup

Come Celebrate Earth Day in Saco!

April 24 @ 9:00 am - 1:00 pm

"Registration is NOW OPEN!

Each year, the Saco Parks & Recreation Department offers an opportunity to bring the community together to clean up and prepare the local green spaces and parks for spring and summer! It is now more important than ever to focus on our green space, clean energy, eliminating waste, and becoming an eco-friendly community.

"#ecomaine is proud to be part of this year’s celebration! Stop by our table at the #SacoCommunityCenter at the start of the day to pick up #recycling resources, meet our education team, and learn about the sustainable waste programs available to Saco residents. At the end of the cleanup, we’ll be weighing the trash collected from parks, trails, and open spaces across the city so volunteers can see the real impact their community made together.

"Looking to get involved? Join your neighbors to volunteer in Saco and help clean up and prepare local parks for spring and summer. Duties include #TrashPickUp, #weeding, #mulching, raking, and more. This event is (light) rain or shine!


Schedule of Events:

When: Friday, April 24th, 2026
Where: Our very own Saco parks, schools, trails, and open spaces!
Time: 9:00am-1:00pm
Please meet at the Saco Community Center at 9:00am to check-in. Everyone who registers by the T-shirt deadline will pick up their shirts.
We will also have coffee and refreshments for everyone so that we can fuel up before we go!
Volunteers will disperse to your locations after we take a group photo!
Fee: FREE but must pre-register!
Ages: Volunteers under the age of 14 must be accompanied by an adult.


Earth Day Location Options:

Please only sign up for one location.

Options this year include:

Diamond Riverside Park: On Irving St. overlooking the Saco River.

Pepperell Park: Located around the Saco Dog Park and Fairfield School on Beach St./School St. - nice and quiet (and shaded!).

Front Street Park and River Walk Trail: On Front St. near the river and boat launch and includes the new walkway.

Cascade Falls Trail: Located on Cascade Rd. off of Route 1.

Haley Park: Located on King St. near the Saco Community Garden.

Saco Community Center: 75 Franklin St.

Saco Middle School: 40 Buxton Rd.

Memorial Park at CK Burns School: 135 Middle Street

Jubilee Park: Covered bridge park on Water Street.

Rendezvous Point & Outlook Cemeteries

If your preferred location has reached capacity, please register for another site. There are plenty of opportunities to help us prepare Saco's parks for the spring and summer!"

To sign up:
https://sacome.myrec.com/info/activities/program_details.aspx?ProgramID=28247

#SolarPunkSunday #MaineEvents #EarthDay2026 #ParkCleanups #CommunitySpaces #CemeteryCleanups #BuildingCommunity #Volunteering

Abolishing Money, Nations, and Families (Marriage)

Listen, Think & Move 🧠

https://youtu.be/OEIYc0TRrkg

#Freeeconomy #resourcebasedeconomy #rbe #ubi #gifteconomy #openaccesseconomy #freeworld #eattherich #tradelesssociety #moneylesssociety
#anarchism #anarchocommunism #communism #socialism #libertarianism
#antiwork #Donatetimenotmoney #volunteering
#humanity #simpleliving
#solarpunk

New #voluntaryjob Chair of Trustees at National Holocaust Museum #EastMidlands Full details here: gem.org.uk/jobs/chair-o... Apply by 14 September 2025 #GEMJobs #Volunteering #Trustees #MuseumTrustee

Chair of the Board of Trustees...

🌻Pun Pun Ecovillage/Community 🍀

📍Thailand

• Started by Jon Jandai an advocate of sustainable living.

• Pun Pun Website - http://www.punpunthailand.org/index027d.html?page_id=34

• Find more such communities to join, here ⬇️ https://tradelessearth.wordpress.com/communities/

#Freeeconomy #resourcebasedeconomy #rbe #ubi #gifteconomy #openaccesseconomy #freeworld #eattherich #tradelesssociety #moneylesssociety #selfsufficientcommunities #selfsufficiency #diylife #selfreliance #offgrid #ecovillages #ecovillage #anarchism #anarchocommunism #communism #socialism #libertarianism #leftism #intentionalcommunity
#climatechange #intentionalcommunities
#antiAuthoritarianism #antiauthoritarian #antiwork #Donatetimenotmoney #volunteering
#humanity #simpleliving #sustainableliving
#solarpunk

🏞️ Self-sufficient Ecovillage - FREE AND REAL 🌿

• Volunteer (with food and accommodation provided as read on website)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1bqjt-xrlqk
(Recommend using invidious)

Website - https://freeandreal.org/

#greece #Freeeconomy #resourcebasedeconomy #rbe #ubi #gifteconomy #openaccesseconomy #freeworld #eattherich #tradelesssociety #moneylesssociety #selfsufficientcommunities #selfsufficiency #diylife #selfreliance #offgrid #ecovillages #ecovillage #anarchism #anarchocommunism #communism #socialism #libertarianism #leftism #intentionalcommunity
#climatechange #intentionalcommunities
#antiAuthoritarianism #antiauthoritarian #antiwork #Donatetimenotmoney #volunteering
#humanity #simpleliving #sustainableliving
#solarpunk

Build community!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g39bpqtBcE0

#Freeeconomy #resourcebasedeconomy #rbe #ubi #gifteconomy #openaccesseconomy #freeworld #eattherich #tradelesssociety #moneylesssociety #selfsufficientcommunities #selfsufficiency #diylife #selfreliance #offgrid #ecovillages #ecovillage #anarchism #anarchocommunism #communism #socialism #libertarianism #leftism #intentionalcommunity
#climatechange #intentionalcommunities
#antiAuthoritarianism #antiauthoritarian #antiwork #Donatetimenotmoney #volunteering
#humanity #simpleliving #sustainableliving
#solarpunk

Join our Simplex group for discussions and networking for Anti-war , Climate change , Equality , Mutual aid, Sharing ways to progress in fight against fascism.

:anarchismred: :antifa_100: :xr:

Click this link or scan the QR.

https://smp8.simplex.im/g#-gSD7Bx-QhrDKp05yV8eggEt4DQdQpOGqx_CghC6qKg

#Freeeconomy #resourcebasedeconomy #rbe #ubi #gifteconomy #openaccesseconomy #freeworld #eattherich #tradelesssociety #moneylesssociety #selfsufficientcommunities #selfsufficiency #diylife #selfreliance #offgrid #ecovillages #ecovillage #anarchism #anarchocommunism #communism #socialism #libertarianism #leftism #intentionalcommunity
#climatechange #intentionalcommunities
#antiAuthoritarianism #antiauthoritarian #antiwork #Donatetimenotmoney #volunteering
#humanity #simpleliving #sustainableliving
#solarpunk

I signed up for 3 days of trail work which turned into 2 days of work and a hike. First, the trail work:
https://valhikes.blogspot.com/2025/05/humboldt-trail.html

#California #TrinityCounty #ShastaTrinityNationalForest #YollaBollyMiddleEelWilderness

#hiking #BigfootTrail #volunteering #YollaBolly #TrinityNF #nature #landscape #trailwork #travel #landscape

My friend, Lyrica & her personal stamp relief printed tote bag. She rode her bicycle to orchard to meet us for this morning's fun arts & crafts workshop in the orchard.

#Crafts #CommunityWorkshop #ArtInThePark #WeekendFun #Volunteering #ViewRoyal #Saanich #LekwungenTerritory #YYJ #VictoriaBC #VancouverIsland #DIYart #VanIsle #PacificNorthwest #PNW #freehand #LinocutPrints #ReliefPrinting

Linocut stamped bag I made at printmaking workshop in the morning. It was lots of fun creating usable art in the orchard.
I stayed for the volunteers work party after. River, #WellandCommunityOrchard coordinator, gave me a lift home.

Will update more, after I get some food & can rest a little.

#Crafts #CommunityWorkshop #ArtInThePark #WeekendFun #Volunteering #ViewRoyal #Saanich #LekwungenTerritory #YYJ #VictoriaBC #VancouverIsland #DIYart #VanIsle #PacificNorthwest #PNW #freehand #LinocutPrints #ReliefPrinting

A few weeks ago, we had our second experience of the wonderful community that is the Electromagnetic Field festival.

Electromagnetic Field [background here] is also known as EMF or #emfcamp – a festival initiated by Jonty Wareing and Russ Garrett over a decade ago. It is entirely, and wonderfully, volunteer-run and community-oriented.

We first went to EMF two years ago, and that time, took a car filled up with a lot of camping gear, and as many gadgets as I could cram in alongside. For some reason, the only place I wrote much about that trip was in my newsletter… which I have been neglecting a lot, much like this blog. On that trip, we camped near to the Guild of Makers, had no particular expectations, and just had a fantastic time exploring and learning. I built an RC2014 Micro in one of the workshops, and went to some great talks.

A Plan

This year, with our Forge & Craft studio becoming more established, we wanted to do something more. I submitted two talks, one of which was accepted; we applied to be a part of the Null Sector Night Market; and, with all of the maker stuff we wanted to take along, we decided to hire a camper van and set up an area for drop-in workshops around our craft (pen plotting, vinyl cutting, heat pressing, sublimation et al… I didn’t take a 3D printer as well, but did seriously consider it!).

We even made a sign. Previous tenants of our studio had left a giant empty frame in the storage area, which we repurposed with some plywood and paint (a future upgrade will probably include some LEDs, but I didn’t have the time before the event to make those happen this time around).

About ten days before we were due to set off, the owner of the camper we’d booked let us know that the boiler was leaking and that we’d have no hot water, but on balance, that was a compromise we were OK with… The van (named Louna, and hired through Quirky Campers) was lovely, beautifully kitted out, straightforward to drive, and it worked really well for us, even when we had some mud-related challenges getting parked up at the top north east corner of the EMF site, and getting back off that spot on the morning that we left (our wonderful neighbours were good enough to give us a quick push off to get us on our way).

The Experience

There are a number of other write-ups of how folks experienced EMF 2024, and pretty much all of them have different content and highlight different things, many of which are miscellany that I missed around the site. That is to say – EMF has a lot of diverse and interesting stuff to discover.

This time I felt like an experienced hand, even as someone that had only been along once before. It turned out that several of my friends were going to be there for the first time, and had already sought advice and made connection with me about travel, planned location etc. We ended up parked at the far top corner of the site, opposite Null Sector, but also close to the Guild of Makers village that we were again loosely affiliated with (also, we’re thrilled about the MBE awarded to our brilliant GoM friend Dr Lucy Rogers!). It turns out that having a surrounding sheet of steel to sleep inside was reasonably sound-insulating compared to a tent, so we did mostly manage to get some sleep, despite the proximity to the loud late-night music generation zone!

There are far Too Many Things to write about in detail, here is but a small flavour.

Talks

I went to a handful of talks; there were too many on my planned schedule across the 4 days, but realised I would never see everything, so I sniped at some key ones and resolved to catch up on recordings of others when possible.

• I finally saw Ellie Huxtable talk about shell history with Atuin (I missed this talk at FOSDEM although did get to meet Ellie there, and she was unable to join State of Open Con, so I’m glad to have seen this!). I’m now gradually installing and learning Atuin on each device and system I regularly use.
• Love love loved Shan Sun‘s talk about becoming a maker! So interesting, and a reminder that folks from all kinds of backgrounds can find joy in creating things. Shan’s lighthouses installation in Null Sector was also really cool.
• The talk about Tiny Toolkits was really good, and has caused me to add an array of small and handy tools to my “wanted” lists…!
• There was a fun talk about connecting Arduino boards to the web, which had some great demos inside it.
• Lucy gave an inspiring talk about looking Up, and the science above our heads. Looking forward to her book on this subject.
• After my experience (and illegal treatment) by the company that used to be Twitter UK as directed by the new owner, I found the discussion about Why Tech Needs Unions very interesting. A topic about which I now, in middle age, have a lot of Thoughts, which I may share at some point.
• Martin Hamilton‘s fabulous rewind to the 1990s session about the origins of web search and how AI and capitalism have largely ruined things, was great. After briefly flirting with some other options, I’m now mostly using SearXNG for my search needs where I can. Be More Goat! 🐐

For my own time on stage, it was exciting to be able to deliver a new version of a talk I’d previously given as a 45 minute closing keynote, in a more focused 20 minute slot. I talked about the history of computer art and pen plotters – computer-driven drawing machines – and how I’ve now built several of them. There was, however, an A/V bump in the road, so I definitely lost a bit of momentum and content along the way when I had to reboot halfway though 😬 video to follow, on this one. You can find the related links and notes here.

Sights

As with the talks, so very many things I could mention here, and still more we didn’t even get to encounter. Let’s summarise a few.

• the on-site (wired) phone system was, once more, a delight – it made me a bit sad that I didn’t bring anything to plug into it, again.
  
• a man played a Theremin to drive the output of a Tesla coil.
  
• there was a series of murder mystery games involving the death of our beloved Clippy. I did not play these, but loved the idea and execution and heard that a lot of people did get really engaged in solving the crime!
  
• A physical version of Flappy Bird! Just brilliantly executed, I loved it.
  
  This was in the main bar; the whole of the Arcade (a separate space) was also fantastic, although I did not have a lot of time to explore. I was excited to see some games there built using Downpour, which I recently talked about on our weekly podcast.
• The most engaging and intriguing installation for me was Shadowplay (inside Null Sector), from Joseph Lindley, Roger Whitham, and Jesse Benjamin. An absolutely fascinating live demonstration of image diffusion [aka generative AI] effects applied to video capture. No particular reason, except that it was cool. I could have played in there for ages!

Hacks

On to the physical “making” I got involved with…

• in 2022 I missed a workshop I was interested in on Building a Tiny Satellite Ground Station; this time, I successfully made it in. I enjoyed the experience of building a small 1⁄4-wave ground plane antenna and hooking it up to TinyGS running on a LilyGo LoRA board.
  • When I got home, I excitedly started to poke around in the TinyGS project, but it seems a bit tricky to get involved with – only parts of it are open source / source-available, and the community discussion is largely on Telegram. I’m finding myself more frustrated than I’d like – I definitely would love to contribute to documentation and so forth, but have not really found a way to do so. It is fun to set up, but (my impression is that it is) not so easy to take it further. Back burner, and I may give up on it if I can’t figure out how to help and get helped.
• The Tildagon badge is great! I really enjoyed following it from announcement, through pre-event discussion, to collecting mine at the event and continuing to figure out what is possible afterwards.
  • Before EMF I tentatively created up a few 3D printed addon Hexpansions, and some folks were able to confirm that they should fit, so I made a set of simple spirit level pieces, which other attendees seemed to enjoy. I’ll be making more, and you can find the designs on Printables as well. I like the concept that a hexpansion can be anything from a piece of card, through to a fully-functional electronic peripheral which contributes software to the main badge, and that we can continue to iterate on this design in the future.
    
  • I ported my previous 2022 badge Duck Facts app as an app on the Tildagon, for all your vital Duck Facts – @emfducks, you’re welcome, QUACK! 🦆

The Magic

On Friday, we had a spot in the Night Market. We loved the experience of being there, talking to people about pen plotters and our art (and also, encouraging folks to come to see us at the pop-up by our camper, or to my talk), and making some sales. This was our first time selling as Forge & Craft outside of our own open studios, and a very different audience.

The response was really wonderful, and it felt like a great place to be.

The only tiny piece of feedback I had was that the Night Market space itself was relatively small for the amount of footfall and traffic that came through – we could easily have used a full table, and having a bit more space for visitors may have made it feel a little less crammed in – nonetheless, Thank You so much to the organisers for having us, it was an absolutely great experience and we barely noticed the time rush by up until the 1am (!) close!

One more magical thing, was that this was an event at which Mastodon and the Fediverse came into their own!

• Ahead of the event, I put together a Fediwall to track associated hashtags and accounts across a range of popular and related Mastodon servers. As EMF approached, the chatter became more noticeable, and I began to follow a lot of interesting folks I had not previously been aware of.
  (also, you can follow hashtags on Mastodon, which can help to build a network around your areas of interest, particularly if you are on a larger server).
• My old friend James Smith proposed a Fediverse Friends meetup – which unfortunately overlapped with our Night Market time, but there were two of us to man our stall, so I was able to pop out and put some faces to Fediverse handles. I even brought Mastodon stickers and (for the fortunate few who got one) some magnets as well. Even if you were not at the meetup, hopefully you may have found a cheeky Mastodon logo sticker waiting to be collected somewhere else on the site 🦣 😉
  
• A key element was that every organising team at the event was on the Fediverse (specifically, GoToSocial, which is what their server uses, but easily followable on Mastodon, thank you ActivityPub), and attendees could use that to keep up with announcements and news. And, in the end, the wonderful @DrLucyRogers joined in the fun! I also managed to persuade the TinyGS project to set up their account.
• There were installations that connected to the Fediverse! Fabulous! This really felt like the early days of Web 2.0 platforms again, to some extent – it could easily have been 2010 all over again, with a dot matrix printer that sat in the main bar printing out Mastodon posts with the specific hashtag (thank you Matt Gray!), and a fax machine in the Null Sector bar that took in physically doodled images and posted them on Mastodon.

The Feeling

This.

I came back feeling energised and enriched, having reconnected with my communities. We had a great time.

Roll on 2026. Thank you to everyone involved.

Postscript: I did some babbling about EMF on the podcast a couple of weeks ago, as well, just at the start. Why not take a listen?

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https://andypiper.co.uk/2024/06/20/energized-mood-flux/

#art #camping #community #emf2024 #emfcamp #forgeAndCraft #making #penplotter #publicSpeaking #Technology #volunteering