Community Calendar

Shadle Park Library in Spokane from 9am to 5pm Saturday August 16.
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Shadle Park Library in Spokane from Noon to 4pm Sunday August 17.

The Spokane Permaculture Symposium brings together the Spokane permaculture community along with people interested in learning more about permaculture. It's about incorporating permaculture ethics, principles, objectives and techniques into our gardening, farming, restoration, planning and community work. The focus area is the City of Spokane, Spokane County, the Spokane River watershed and the Spokane regional foodshed.

This event is co-sponsored by: All Things Regenerative, Inland Northwest Permaculture Guild, Global Earth Repair Foundation, Growing Neighbors, Children of Earth Coalition and Soil Smart - Soil Wise.

Whitworth University welcomes renowned geneticist Francis S. Collins, M.D., Ph.D., former director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), as the featured speaker at the President’s Leadership Forum this fall.

Collins is one of the best-known scientists of the current era. He served as director of the NIH for 12 years under three presidents. He is known for his discoveries of disease genes, for leading the Human Genome Project, and for championing the harmony of science and faith.

Attend the third year of this staple regional event, which brings together the Spokane community to discuss important transportation topics. Join transportation professionals, government officials, members of the business community, and more to learn about how we can work together to continually improve our regional transportation system. Breakfast will be served while attendees listen to a keynote presentation, followed by a panel of local leaders. There is 30 minutes of additional networking time that will follow after the event.

This year will be especially exciting as we dive into the data of where our regional transportation system is projected to head. Get a preview of the content by reading the Horizon 2050 draft plan when it is released in September.

Sponsorship opportunities are still available. Learn about past iterations of the Summit at https://srtc.org/engage-with-us/annual-transportation-summit/.

Speaker: Joshua White, Forest Supervisor, Colville National Forest

Healthy forests deliver benefits that people need, but due to past management and a history of fire suppression, our forests are unhealthy and in need of restoration. To address the departure of our landscape and reduce the risk of uncharacteristically severe disturbances, we must restore the health and resilience of the Colville National Forest, minimize detrimental impacts of disturbance to important values, and provide relevant opportunities to our communities. Our Forest is departed from its healthy and resilient state. This departure means that the Forest cannot meet the needs of the people, especially in the face of increasing wildfire risk and climate change. In many cases, our landscapes have crossed a threshold and cannot restore themselves without meaningful collaborative management and active management, including use of wildfire, will be necessary. For the past 8 years, the Colville National Forest has been working to change the trajectory of our forested landscapes, and to do so at a meaningful pace and scale. This presentation will highlight successes and challenges the Forest Service has faced moving toward a meaningful restoration program, the opportunities moving into the future, and the challenges faced every day.

Shamyra Lavigne-Davey is a native of St. James, Louisiana and a third generation Human Rights activist. In 2020, Shamyra became the Executive Assistant to the Founder/Director of RISE St. James Louisiana, a faith-based grassroots nonprofit organization fighting for the eradication of petrochemical emissions in the river parishes also known as “Cancer Alley”. Shamyra is a 2023 Young, Gifted, And Green: 40 Under 40 Award recipient and a 2023 and 2024 Essence Festival featured panelist. Shamyra currently serves as an Advisor on the Conceptual Committee for the Frontline Resource Institute (FRI).

Shamyra explains the history and current state of environmental racism in Louisiana's "Cancer Alley". Shamyra is the Executive Assistant at RISE St. James Louisiana, is a faith-based, grassroots, nonprofit organization fighting for clean air and water as well as the eradication and expansion of petrochemical industries in St. James Parish and the surrounding river parishes. Register at https://www.gonzaga.edu/climate-institute