I frequently get approached to support various crowd funding projects for bookstores. To be honest, I often feel a bit annoyed that business owners are asking for bailouts when so many people face their own financial struggles. However, in some instances a bookstore is such an important community resource, or such a valued local institution that I can in good conscience get on board with the project.
North Philadelphia’s Black and Nobel is an African American bookshop that has been an anchor in the community since 2009. It has recently launched a GoFundMe campaign seeking to raise $250,000 to keep the bookstore open and to expand their programs. The money will be earmarked for the purchase of a new store building and for a community outreach bus.
Black and Nobel already functions as a neighborhood center for the local literary and arts community. They also support prison reading programs and send books to incarcerated community members.
If you are interested, check out the GoFundMe campaign here.
It won’t be available for sale for two years, but I’m already psyched about Volkswagen’s modernized electric microbus van. After spending much of a summer living in a VW just like the red one pictured above, I’m a little nostalgic for the old microbus.
The new ID Buzz van is expected to have a range of around 300 miles (500 km) on a charge and the ability to recharge 80% in just 30 minutes. I hope that the seats are removable on the new models or a better yet, a camper version.
The U.S. budget airline JetBlue, along with publisher Random House and author Mary Pope Osborne have been bringing books to children in U.S. cities that are considered book deserts or communities with difficult access to children’s books. The Soar With Reading project has installed vending machines that allow kids to get free books during the summer months.
The program has installed vending machines in five cities, and this year they have set-up four in Fort Lauderdale, Florida to distribute 100,000 English, Spanish, and Bilingual children’s books. Check out the project website to see how you can participate.
During the last few years, I have had the opportunity to observe first hand the devastating impact that climate change is having on glaciers in Alaska and in Europe. It’s heartbreaking to see the rapid retreat of these spectacular natural features. French photographer and street artist Philippe Echaroux has responded to this ongoing environmental catastrophe by literally shining a light on the problem.
The Ice Scream project uses light art projected directly onto glaciers to raise awareness about global warming and the decline of European glaciers. Echaroux’s light art leaves no trace on the landscape but dramatically highlights the issue.
This week New York City’s beloved Strand Bookstore celebrated its 90th anniversary. Although book shops seem to be going out of business daily in NYC, the Strand—and its 90 year-old owner Fred Bass—are still going strong.
In the not too distant past, European travel transportation decisions were simple—just take the train. The most complicated choice involved the efficacy of train passes. These days the options are often confusing. Is it better to fly a budget carrier than take the train? Is a bus quicker and cheaper than flying or the train? At least these infographics from the British website Vouchercloud help to understand train ticket pricing.
Travel Between The Pages 