september 5 2023

….and we’re back! This year we are going to launch our work farther out into the world. As you know, we already use SoundCloud for our music, Amazon for our books, Vimeo for our films, and Instagram for our photography. But, we also have an Etsy Page for our arts & crafts that is sad and unused. I was thinking that maybe it’s time to fill that up with all the amazing work you make here! Let’s spend some time this month talking about what that will take.

We’re going to begin the year exploring your personal strengths. Humans too often focus on what’s “wrong with them”. There’s a negative voice we all have that gets in the way of being our best selves. By constantly reminding ourselves of our personal strengths, we can quiet that negative voice and make good things happen.

For our September menu, we will be choosing projects that help us celebrate our strengths and our abilities to overcome obstacles.

Each year I pick the social issues we discuss in The Tech Cafe. This year, I want you to help decide! What do you want to talk about this year in The Tech Cafe? Here’s a list of topics. Choose up to 3.

february 28 2022

This week we will continue to talk about animal testing for cosmetics. Let’s watch a couple of videos to learn more.

As you’ve seen from these videos, there are many reasons to buy products that are cruelty-free. So instead of just talking about cruelty-free cosmetics, today we’re making our own perfume and cologne without hurting a single animal 🙂

To create a great-smelling perfume or cologne, one thing you’ll need to learn about is aromatherapy. Aromatherapy is when you use scents (called “essential oils”) to help people feel good mentally and physically. Here’s a little guide:

Now we’re going to do a quick activity. Grab a piece of paper and create a simple set of 5 numbered boxes. We will be passing around 5 scents. For each of the 5 scents, put two words that describe them. For example:

1 Spicy Strawberries	2 Wet grass Nacho cheese	3 Wet Dog Cardboard Box
4	5

You can use this wheel to help you:

If you’re interested in creating more cosmetics, we’ll have an actual PERFUMER (a professional perfume and cologne maker) to help you along next week.

Aside from actually making cosmetics, what will you create to wake people up to the suffering behind their clothes, sneakers, and cosmetics?

february 14 2022

Last week, we didn’t have time to watch and discuss a bunch of the videos posted on Animal Testing. So, I’m not going to have a new journal entry for this week. BUT there’s something really important I’d like to announce. Three years ago The Tech Cafe launched an Etsy shop to sell projects created by my artists and crafters. Most pieces sold! The students donated the money to organizations fighting for the cause they care most about.

Well, we’re re-launching the site this month! Now YOU can create social action projects to sell. I put a few pieces up to sell and now it’s your turn to contribute!

Here are some examples of causes you can contribute to:

HELP AN ORGANIZATION THAT SUPPORTS PEOPLE EXPERIENCING DOMESTIC VIOLENCE

DONATE TO AN ORGANIZATION HELPING LGBTQ YOUTH

SUPPORT AN ORGANIZATION WORKING TO END CIGARETTES & VAPING

february 7 2022

Over the last couple of weeks, we discovered the horrors of what goes on inside the Meat and Dairy Industry. You learned that non-human animals like cows, chickens, and pigs are treated like objects instead of beings that feel pain and dream. You created amazing art including:

But creating food out of non-human animals is not the only way that they are tortured and murdered. We also abuse and kill non-human animals for the things we wear and the cosmetics we use.

Click HERE to see what it Animal Testing really looks like. *WARNING: SUPER DISTURBING*

Lynda hacks Clorox — changing it from CLOROX to KILLOX

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A post shared by Alba Paris (@albaparis)

Look for these symbols on packaging to tell you it’s CRUELTY-FREE:

january 31 2022

This week we will dive even deeper into the arguments for taking a stand against the meat and dairy industry. Remember, it’s a business. If a lot of the 42 million teens in the U.S. take a Meatless Monday, it could really start to cost these heartless businesses! Here are a few examples of a re-designed Meatless Monday logo and protest jewelry:

Speaking of Meatless Mondays, here are charts to show some of the foods we can eat instead of meat and cow’s milk. As you can see from this first chart, seeds, nuts, and beans have plenty of protein to keep building our muscles:

Next question. Does it ever strike you as weird that we eat some animals, but not others?

Want to learn more? Here’s some more videos to dive deeper into the issue:

WARNING: DISTURBING!

Here are a few more project ideas:

RECORD A SONG. I know it’s a big ask, but how about writing a song defending the lives of farm animals or arguing against eating them.

CREATE ARTWORK. Your artwork can speak of the pain and suffering these animals go through to fill the pockets of the greedy meat and dairy industry.

MAKE CLAY PIECES. Create pieces that show the animals we eat and the pain they go through. Cut them open and have the blood spill!

Get inspired to reverse roles by this film:

january 17 2022

Want to see what it really looks like?  Click HERE (Warning: Disturbing).  Click HERE for a full documentary. (Warning: EXTREMELY disturbing).

Last semester we spoke about the evil Cigarette companies. Their job is to get kids addicted to nicotine so they buy vapes and regular cigarettes. They use fun flavors and put advertisements near schools. Who cares if nicotine poisons your brain and causes depression and mood swings, right? As long as they get their MONEY.

Like Big Tobacco, the Meat and Dairy Industry care about only one thing: MONEY. They destroy the environment, treat animals like objects, and abuse their workers.

So what can we do about it? It’s true, one person can make a difference in changing the meat and dairy industry. However, if all 42 million teens skipped eating meat once a week, it could make a huge difference! The question is: how can we get them to do it?

I gotta say– the Meatless Monday logo needs an UPGRADE. Can one of our Island School artists do it?

How about creating interviewing friends and family about whether they’ve considered being vegetarian? You could also film an experiment about what happens when you take a break from meat once a week. What does your family say at the dinner table (or wherever you eat)? Here are some films to inspire you:

What if you had to kill what you ate?

What if you ate what are usually pets? What if your pets were what we usually eat?

What about creating jewelry to speak up for chicken, cows, and pigs.

What about an amazing song from the perspective of a cow in a factory farm or promoting veggies and plant-based meat.

**WARNING: THIS HAS EXPLICIT LANGUAGE

Click HERE for the full version

Here’s how to get started making your own song:

Here’s how to add words:

Here’s how I made a complete song about COVID:

Create a painting or clay sculpture called "My immigration story". Show the people, places, sights, sounds, and smells you witnessed on your journey to New York.

Crea una pintura o escultura de arcilla llamada "Mi historia de inmigración". Muestre las personas, los lugares, las vistas, los sonidos y los olores que presenció en su viaje a Nueva York.

Нарисуйте картину или скульптуру из глины под названием «Моя иммиграционная история». Покажите людей, места, достопримечательности, звуки и запахи, свидетелями которых вы были во время своего путешествия в Нью-Йорк.

FEBRUARY 13 2023

Last Tuesday 18-year-old Salvador Ramos opened fire inside Robb Elementary School in Uvalde Texas. The gunman killed at least 19 children and two teachers and injured 17 others.

This is not the first school shooting in the United States. Here’s a list since 2000:

PHOTO: Deadly Mass School Shootings Since Columbine

Let’s take a moment to learn about the victims of this tragedy:

Mass shootings like this happen because there are too many guns in the United States. They are easy to get– no need to have a license. Even though most American want less guns, lawmakers are scared to pass laws to make them harder to get. This is because they get money from The National Rifle Association (NRA) and because they don’t want to lose the votes from the small– but noisy– voters who want no limits on guns. The NRA’s response is that to combat bad guys with guns, we need more good guys with guns. So let’s arm teachers 🙄!

So what can we do? Well, first of all, it’s important to recognize warning signs that someone you know is at-risk of becoming a school shooter:

Next, remember how I said that the voters who want to keep guns easy to get are noisy? We, the people who believe that guns should be harder to get, have to be louder! We did it 4 years ago: