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The East Palo Alto Climate Change Community Team, which meets every month to discuss local environmental issues, will host its first ever Resilience Fair on Sept. 28 at Bloomhouse in an effort to celebrate the community while discussing easy ways to approach climate action.
Attendees can participate in educational workshops in Spanish or English, win free prizes and play games of Lotería and listen to live music from local bands Sonido 3, Cupcake and Palm Grease.
From 10:30 a.m. to 2:40 p.m., the team will run five free workshops on home gardening, non-toxic cleaners and tips on reducing energy among other topics.
“I think the main objective with these workshops is for them to feel empowered to make small changes at home,” said Najiha Al Asmar, resilient education program manager with Climate Resilient Communities, a nonprofit that assists with local environmental issues.
Whether it be proper waste management or using baking soda and white vinegar instead of bleach, attendees can learn to make cleaner, more affordable choices, she said.
Attendees who participate in the most workshops will have a chance to win prizes like air purifiers or solar generators, in order to combat local climate issues like higher asthma rates or potential flooding damage to electricity and property.
Asthma-related emergency visits are almost double in East Palo Alto compared to the rest of the county, and about 30% higher for all ages, which may be caused by overcrowded or “substandard living conditions,” among other environmental factors, according to a city of East Palo Alto health and equity report.
“A lack of tree coverage, plus the extreme amounts of cars and pollution also add up, causing high asthma rates in the community,” Al Asmar said.
Nuestra Casa, which partnered with the community team to host the event, will also be distributing air purifiers to attendees they think need them most.
Aside from the bigger-ticket prizes, the event will host a game of climate change trivia for a chance to win things like a hikers adventure kit with a backpack and binoculars.
Local organizations like Canopy, which sets out to help create urban forests, and Fresh Approach, which aims to support local farmers, will also be tabling throughout the event.
While the fair is the first of its kind, Al Asmar hopes that the team can continue to host similar events and raise funds for more air purifiers in the future. Attendees can sign up for a free ticket on Eventbrite.
