By Megan Burks
Weekend Bazaar and Bus Tour to Celebrate Refugee Entrepreneurs
The International Rescue Committee in San Diego is scheduled to host its international holiday bazaar 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday at the City Heights Farmers Market. The event will feature local refugee entrepreneurs selling handicrafts from all over the world. Free gift-wrapping will be offered.
The IRC is also planning a micro-finance bus tour at 10:30 a.m. that will take riders to two refugee-owned restaurants for tastings and presentations. Riders will visit Sammoon Restaurant and Bakery, which offers traditional Iraqi bread and other Middle Eastern dishes. They’ll also travel to Fatuma’s Restaurant, which sells East African cuisine.
Entrance to the bazaar is free. Remaining spots on the bus tour are limited. Purchase a $20 ticket here. All proceeds will benefit local refugees.
Follow The San Diego Micro-Finance Alliance @SDMicrofinance.
Aqua Farm Harvests Tilapia for Local Restaurant
The IRC celebrated another entrepreneurial success this week. Its aqua farm on Fairmount Avenue completed its first tilapia harvest.
The farm raises tilapia in elevated pools on an asphalt lot. It also uses hydroponics to grow vegetables. We featured the farm this summer with a video by Media Arts Center San Diego.
The farmers sold the tilapia to Sea Rocket Bistro in North Park. The farm will continue to supply fish for the restaurant’s Friday night menu for the foreseeable future, said the IRC on Twitter.
Follow the IRC in San Diego @ircsandiego.
Chula Vista Corner Stores Get Makeovers
Programs like the IRC’s aqua farm have contributed significantly to improving diets in City Heights, but gaps still exist.
One issue many in the community have commented on is the proliferation of liquor stores and corner markets that fail to provide fresh, healthy options. Because many in City Heights don’t drive, corner markets often fill in between grocery trips.
A new program in Chula Vista could become a model for City Heights nonprofits hoping to work with convenience store owners to improve diets. Cilantro to Stores remodels corner stores, moving candy and junk food aisles to make room for fresh produce grown by local farmers. The effort, funded with federal dollars awarded by the county, will also direct redevelopment money to the storeowners for façade improvements.
The San Diego Nutrition Network told me today on Twitter its umbrella organization, Network for a Healthy California, hopes to replicate the program throughout San Diego.
Follow the San Diego Nutrition Network @SDNutritionNet.
Hoover Alum to Accept Presidential Award
We also learned this week Hoover High School alumnus Anai Novoa is scheduled to attend a White House ceremony Monday to accept the Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics, and Engineering Mentoring.
The current UC Santa Barbara student will accept the award on behalf of the Ocean Discovery Institute, which teaches City Heights youth about the ocean and how neighborhood canyons contribute to its health.
Follow the Ocean Discovery Institute @OceanDiscInst.