Monday, February 22, 2016

Altadena Public Library Presents “The Joy of Designing with Nature” with Lisa Novick

Please join Altadena Public Library for a lively look at how Lisa Novick turned her suburban yard into a vibrant native plant habitat, on Saturday, March 5th from 1-3 p.m in the Barbara J. Pearson Community Room of the Main Library. She will discuss the ins and outs of designing with native plants, and how to combine them with orchard trees or other edibles. She will share strategies and resources that will minimize the overwhelm of tackling your yard conversion. Come with your questions. Leave with possibilities.

After receiving a B.A. in philosophy from UCLA, Lisa Novick traveled a complex path that ultimately led her to working on behalf of the environment at the Theodore Payne Foundation for Wild Flowers & Native Plants, where she is Director of Outreach and, formerly, K-12 Education. Lisa’s interest has always been in trying to bridge the gap between what is and what ought to be, particularly in issues of deep ecology. Over the years, she gained experience in fundraising, all kinds of writing, and environmental activism, and in between she married an eccentric physicist and raised two daughters.

Some of Novick’s short stories were published in obscure literary magazines, through which she discovered environmental nonfiction, which led to more writing and earning a Professional Clear Multiple-Subject Teaching Credential. At the Theodore Payne Foundation, she designed and implemented its innovative K-12 program, which teaches students about California’s natural heritage, water issues and how to support biodiversity through California native plants. She also designed and implemented the Foundation’s Landscaping for Resilience program, a community-based program that received a 2015 Green Leadership Award from the L.A. County Board of Supervisors. She blogs for the Huffington Post and is at work on a book of creative non-fiction about revitalizing urban landscapes.

The Altadena Library is located at 600 East Mariposa Street, Altadena. For more information please call (626) 798-0833. For a schedule of events, visit the library on the web at www.altadenalibrary.org.