Friendships are finally getting their due. Once relegated to a distant third position after life partners and children, a spate of new books are spotlighting the importance of friends. And research shows that people with close friends are healthier – both emotionally...
Purpose Prize
The Latest from CoGenerate
An Intergenerational Approach to Getting Families Housed in Santa Barbara
Lyiam Galo is the co-director of Generations United for Service, a program of the Northern Santa Barbara County United Way and one of 10 awardees of the CoGen Challenge to Advance Economic Opportunity. Watch for interviews with all 10 of these innovators bringing...
Utilizing Faith-Owned Land to Strengthen Intergenerational Community in Seattle
E.N. West is the co-founder and lead organizer of the Faith Land Initiative of the Church Council of Greater Seattle, one of 10 awardees of the CoGen Challenge to Advance Economic Opportunity. Watch for interviews with all 10 of these innovators bringing older and...
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Abby Mandel
(1933-2008)
Purpose Prize Fellow 2007
Creating Chicago’s first local and sustainable farmer’s market
For 30 years, Abby Mandel worked as a chef, cookbook author, and food columnist, all the while extolling the value of fresh, locally farmed foods – for individuals, the environment, and small farmers. In 1998, the lack of such fresh foods in Chicago spurred Mandel to create the Green City Market, the city’s only sustainable, certified organic farmers’ market. A nonprofit that operates from mid-May through December, the market features more than 40 sustainable and certified organic farmers, a membership base and volunteer network, plus thousands of regular shoppers. In addition, the market offers major educational programs in partnership with the City of Chicago and the Lincoln Park Zoo, as well as local chefs and “green” organizations. The project improves the quality of food on Chicago’s plates while supporting small, regional family farmers who practice sustainable farming techniques. That helps the environment, too, by ensuring that area streams are not filled with polluted run-off, soil is not eroded by large-scale monoculture crops, delicate ecosystems are not irreparably damaged, and the biodiversity of plant and animal species is maintained. Famed chef Alice Waters calls the Green City Market “the best sustainable market in the country.”