Wednesday, December 9, 2015

The Cowry Collective Film Series Continues This Month with Planeat!

Join us for our FREE monthly film series featuring films centering on food, farms and justice.

Bring a friend or a snack to share and earn cowries for attending!

December 13, 2015, 3-5 pm
Intersect Art Center
3630 Ohio Street
St. Louis, MO 63118

This month we feature: PlaneatThe story of three men's life-long search for a diet which is good for our health, the environment and the future of our planet - showcasing some of the best food you have ever seen. Planeat is a 2010 British documentary film by Or Shlomi and Shelley Lee Davies. The film discusses the possible nutritional and environmental benefits of adopting a whole foodsplant-based diet based on the research of T. Colin CampbellCaldwell Esselstyn and Gidon Eshel.   





Friday, October 30, 2015

The Corner of Health and Wealth

The Cowry Collective Comes to the Healthy Food Hub


When Black Oaks Center participated in the September 2015,  Arthur Morgan Institute for Community Solutions:  Climate Crisis Solutions: Tools for Transition Conference, alternative economics was at the top of the list of priorities to ensure quality of life come what may and a collective lowering of our carbon footprint.  Chinyere Oteh of theCowry Collective is leading the way to assist all of us in letting go of the power we all give to the "dead presidents" that we all feel forced to wrap our lives and priorities around.  Be sure to come to theOct. 31, 2015 Market Day when Chinyere will be sharing with members and guest about the St. Louis Mo. time bank she participates in and how we can start to generate alternative economics in our own community.
Save the Date!

Food: Access, Know-How, Comfort!


101s Bring An Alternative To Holiday Spending

Join us in November and December to learn how the sharing of your time and talents can enrich your life, bring you closer to what really matters, and relax into a stress-free holiday season focused on sharing, not spending!  Treat yourself to a private yoga session, guitar lessons or ethnic cooking know-how -- all possible through The Cowry Collective.


Monday, October 12, 2015

This Week With The Cowry Consortium!

OLD MONEY IS THE NEW MONEY: 
Alternative Economics, Timebanking and Sovereignty in the Black Community

Presenters:
Chinyere E. Oteh, The Cowry Collective
YaVette Holts, Cowrie Village

What does an empowered Black economy look like?  What are the unique characteristics that define a thriving, culture-based economy?  How do we get there?


In this workshop, YaVette Holts, founder of  Cowrie Village, a Bay Area engine for Black-business-focused alternative economics  and Chinyere E. Oteh, founder of  The Cowry Collective, a St. Louis based timebank , will share on the history of collective, collaborative and mutual aid societies in African American culture  and about the history of timebanking in the United States, its ties to earlier currency throughout the world and it’s every day applications to improving quality of contemporary life, particularly for communities of color.   
Learn about the works going on inside  Cowrie Village and The Cowry Collective
 separately and jointly and how YOU can get involved in (re)building  a strong, gainful, and sustainable empowered Black economy.

Monday, August 31, 2015

THIS Is How To Support Evolving And Emerging Economies!


I founded The Cowry Collective five years ago out of the strong desire to feel
limitlessly abundant even when I was feeling the pinch of living a full life
while being a new, working mother. I continue the work today -
spreading the message of capitalizing on our human currency so we can
ALL experience a high quality of life. This is my piece of seeking
(economic) justice. I believe in timebanking and I need YOUR support
to attend a priceless experience
- a Jam! Read below, spread the word
and support how you can!

With Gratitude,
Chinyere




I am excited to announce that I have been accepted to attend the
Evolving & Emerging Economies Jam and Bioneers National Conference
in the Bay Area October 13 - 18, 2015
. The Jam is a gathering for three
different levels of change: the internal (self), the interpersonal (relationships)
and the systemic (the whole). It is NOT a conference, seminar or typical
meeting....it is a place for participants to share and reflect on their journeys
...participants come together to share our cultures, our stories, our struggles,
to deepen in our understanding of each other and ourselves...we become
clearer about our vision and work in the world. The Bioneers Conference
is a gathering of over 500 leaders, activists, doers and movers-shakers in
the fields of ecology, economy, education, arts, and culture. I am truly
humbled and elated to have been chosen to be a part of this experience.

Between September 1 and October 1, 2015 I aim to raise $2500 to cover 

travel expenses and tuition to attend the EEE Jam. 

be used to strengthen the breadth and reach of The Cowry Collective. 
At the Jam I'll make priceless and timely connections while highlighting the great 
work we are doing here in St. Louis in a restorative setting. Alternatively, 
checks may be made out to The Cowry Collective and mailed to 
P.O. Box 18711 / St. Louis, MO 63118.  Please reference ‘EEE Jam.’ 
Thank you for your consideration and support! I will return to St. Louis 
re-energized to continue to build the infrastructure of a timebank I founded 
5 years ago!  Read more about the cooperative economic connections I am 
forging between St. Louis and the Bay Area! 



Monday, August 17, 2015

The Cowry Collective Works For The MAN!







The Cowry Collective will travel with other Solidarity Economy St. Louis comrades to Madison Wisconsin this week to take part in the MAN Up Summit and solidify plans for our pilot site launch in St. Louis.  This article was posted originally at Shareable where you can read more from Stephanie Rearick.
*********************************************************************************
The move to a new economy is underway, whether we like it or not. The many cracks widening in latter-day capitalism are creating new pressures and opportunities for people to do things differently. The real question is whether we patch over those cracks with more of the same, or nurture the seedlings for a more beautiful world that are sprouting up and breaking through.
The amount of work we need to do to solve our social problems, take care of everyone who needs it (all of us), redesign our systems for sustainability, and restore built and natural environments, is vast. But we often have little to no ability to make a living doing this essential work.
Now we're launching a way to change that! Mutual Aid Networks are a new type of cooperative, designed to connect us in a network of mutual support that creates means for us to do exactly what we want to do with our lives, from solving hard problems to taking care of loved ones and neighbors to making art. To launch this effort we will host a MAN Up Summit in Madison Wisconsin August 20-28.
First, we have MAN pilot sites lined up in 16 locations, mostly around the US (including Detroit and St. Louis) but also in UK, Sweden, and France. With interest in Zambia and other farther-flung locations. We are connected to timebanks, transition towns, permaculture practitioners, restorative justice activists, health and wellness projects, and solidarity economy activists. I’m personally most excited by our collaborations with activists against police brutality and the prison industrial complex.
And many of these folks are coming to Madison! This summit will provide opportunities for in-depth exploration, learning, working, and getting to know each other, a rare and valuable treat.
If you can't be here in person you can join some of the activities online, and you're more than welcome to join the Main MAN – the umbrella Mutual Aid Network that connects all of the pilot sites and supporters of the new economy. And you'll see the fruits of the summit as all the pilot sites come online and start sharing their work and learning.

We need all the help we can get raising funds to put on this amazing event! Please contribute and share our crowdfunding site: https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/mutual-aid-network
Funds go to pay for travel for our out-of-town trainers and co-creators, plus space and food for gatherings.

Friday, July 24, 2015

Learn How To Begin Using Your Human Currency!

We are excited to now be offering two monthly Timebanking 101 Classes.  

Check out the dates in the flyer below and plan to join us one Wednesday evening or Saturday morning.  

These classes give you a quick introduction to timebanking and hands-on experience with Time and Talents, 
the free software we use to track our exchanges through hOurworld.  Timebanking is a way to meet others, 
get help in the home, learn a new skill or trade and participate in local economy, all the while honoring your
own talents and using your human currency.  

This is a great refresher for members who have joined in the last year and half, too!


Monday, July 6, 2015

Summer Social July 19th!

Join us for our Annual Summer Social!

We meet Sunday July 19, 2015 at Tower Grove Park in the Humboldt South Pavilion.  We enjoyed great food, a music circle, games and children's activities last summer.  Come out and help us make new memories this year!
Earn cowries for attending, bringing a potluck dish to share, games, instruments or a friend!  Active members pick up your new Cowry Collective button!

  



Timebanking 101 With The Cowry Collective At Our New Northside Hub!


























We will be meeting in the computer lab in Room 209.  Meet others, gain hands-on experience with hOurworld software, set up    your account  and be on your way to money - free exchanging with 130+ other members this summer!  

Tuesday, May 26, 2015

Build-A-Bed Skillshare This Saturday! 5/30

Join us this Saturday as we continue our Farm and Garden Skillshares!

Come and learn a new skill + find out how you can trade time for food 
with Ann at The Veggie Patch!


Build a Raised Wicking Bed Skillshare
@ The Veggie Patch
1515 Benton (at N. Florissant) St. Louis MO 63106

Saturday, May 30 4:30 - 6:30 pm













Cowry Collective member Emanuel Taranu will lead a class 
on how to build a raised wicking bed! 

Raised wicking beds are perfect for gardeners who can't be 
on-hand to water every day.  Using capillary action, water 
is pulled from a reservoir underneath the soil up to the roots 
of the plants.  Beds can go weeks without watering.

Wicking beds can be built many different ways - we will build 
ours with lumber, pond liner, and good old St Louis brick shards

FREE and Family Friendly!

Tuesday, April 28, 2015

Evening Timebanking 101 @ Intersect Arts on 4/30/15

We've got a second timebanking 101 class lined up this month at Intersect Arts led by member Tara Schneider.  Class will be held in a computer lab so all attendees will gain hands-on experience to learn how to set up their accounts on hOurworld.  Big thanks to Tara!



Thursday, March 26, 2015

Timebanking 101 in April and May at Thomas Dunn Learning Center

Join us at TDLC in April and May for a fun and quick intro to timebanking.  Bonus:  we will meet in their computer lab and every attendee will have a chance to create their account in hOurworld on site!


Eat and Grow! Saturday 3/28


Thursday, January 29, 2015

Edible City Film Screening



Saturday February 7, 3-5 pm

Blank Space  
2847 Cherokee / 63118

Get inspired with Edible City's grass-roots solutions based on growing local food systems and economies.
Stay for a conversation with local growers, garden and farm founders!  
Sign-up for Spring workdays and earn Cowries! 

Thursday, January 8, 2015

New Year, New Goals? Timebanking 101 this Saturday, January 10, 2015

Do you have a few goals that you'd like to accomplish to kick-off the year?  

Timebanking provides the perfect solution: learn to play a new instrument, get assistance with organizing your home or office, or pick up a new language or self-care practice.  

With over 130 members, there are many services to pick from!  

Timebanking 101 @ Schlafly Library
Saturday, January 10, 2015
225 N. Euclid Avenue / 63108
11 am - 1 pm

Timebanking 101 offers you the opportunity to learn more about timebanking, meet others, and become familiar with Time and Talents software that we use to set-up our exchanges.  

Signed up  in the last year and need a refresher, or haven't made it out to our orientations yet?  This is the perfect opportunity to get started with money-free exchanges! 

Next 101:  Saturday February 14th @ Julia Davis Library 11 am - 1 pm.