Help to “Save the Center” Magnolia Tree Earth Center
Donation protected
HISTORY
Founded in 1972, the Magnolia Tree Earth Center of Bedford-Stuyvesant, Inc. was founded by Hattie Carthan. A resident of Bedford-Stuyvesant, Mrs. Carthan was among the nation’s first African-American community-based ecology activists. Her pioneering efforts brought a variety of “green” programs to her neighborhood during the early emergence of the grassroots and environmental education movements.
Mrs. Carthan sought to build upon the longevity and vitality of the Magnolia grandiflora as a symbol to foster awareness of natural sciences and matters of ecological concern. Her activism and concern for young people led to the establishment of MTEC. Since then, MTEC has evolved into an epicenter for learning, environmental stewardship and community development, and we will be using technology and creativity to bring positive change to the community like never before.
OUR MISSION
The Center's goal is to be urban America's leader in creating community awareness of ecological, horticultural and environmental concerns and to introduce inner city children to careers in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) that foster urban beautification, earth stewardship, and community sustainability.
The Center needs to raise $350,000 to pay for urgently required repairs to the front facade of all three of the brownstones facing Lafayette Avenue. Currently, the deteriorating state of the center’s façade poses a risk to public safety. Without securing the funding soon, MTEC could risk losing the buildings. In a historically Black community facing upheaval from gentrification, cost of living increases, and other threats, MTEC represents a Black -founded, -owned, and -led institution whose mission is rooted in social justice, self-determination, and land ownership by and for the Bed-Stuy community.
Founded in 1972, the Magnolia Tree Earth Center of Bedford-Stuyvesant, Inc. was founded by Hattie Carthan. A resident of Bedford-Stuyvesant, Mrs. Carthan was among the nation’s first African-American community-based ecology activists. Her pioneering efforts brought a variety of “green” programs to her neighborhood during the early emergence of the grassroots and environmental education movements.
Mrs. Carthan sought to build upon the longevity and vitality of the Magnolia grandiflora as a symbol to foster awareness of natural sciences and matters of ecological concern. Her activism and concern for young people led to the establishment of MTEC. Since then, MTEC has evolved into an epicenter for learning, environmental stewardship and community development, and we will be using technology and creativity to bring positive change to the community like never before.
OUR MISSION
The Center's goal is to be urban America's leader in creating community awareness of ecological, horticultural and environmental concerns and to introduce inner city children to careers in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) that foster urban beautification, earth stewardship, and community sustainability.
The Center needs to raise $350,000 to pay for urgently required repairs to the front facade of all three of the brownstones facing Lafayette Avenue. Currently, the deteriorating state of the center’s façade poses a risk to public safety. Without securing the funding soon, MTEC could risk losing the buildings. In a historically Black community facing upheaval from gentrification, cost of living increases, and other threats, MTEC represents a Black -founded, -owned, and -led institution whose mission is rooted in social justice, self-determination, and land ownership by and for the Bed-Stuy community.
Organizer
Crystal Jeffrey-Brusche
Organizer
Brooklyn, NY