Daily Archives: February 24, 2020

Twilight Garden Party 2020 – Caring for our City Trees

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The Garden Club of the Back Bay’s annual fundraiser, the Twilight Garden Party – Caring for our City Trees, will be held this year on Tuesday May 19th, 6pm-8:30pm at the St. Botolph Club, 199 Commonwealth Avenue.

Urban trees, particularly street trees, are under stress now like never before. A primary mission of our Club is to care for the trees of our city, particularly in the Back Bay. Your generous support will go toward sustaining and increasing the green canopy that cleans our air, filters our water, cools our temperatures and restores our souls. In addition, your gift will support our mission to promote civic beauty and educate the public.

This year, through the support of friends like you, we have:

  • Evaluated the health of hundreds of trees
  • Pruned over 100 street trees, which is vital for tree health and limits storm damage
  • Fertilized 40 of the newly planted street trees, giving them vital nutrients 
  • Coordinated the purchase and installation of 13 new tree fences
  • Had member volunteers water new trees on the Commonwealth Avenue Mall this past summer 
  • Inventoried every front garden tree (in addition to alley trees) in the Back Bay and have made that information available free to the public at backbaytrees.org.
  • With the support of a grant given to us by the children of the Learning Project Elementary School, we are coordinating with the city to have a new tree planted this spring, and are installing a fence, plantings and a plaque near the school.
  • Revitalizing an old side garden at the First Lutheran Church at the corner of Marlborough and Beacon Streets

This and so much more cannot be done without your continued financial support.

When the Founder of our Club, Laura Dwight, pulled together friends, neighbors, businesses, college students and landlords to help revitalize a declining Back Bay in the 1960’s by organizing and planting most of the Magnolia and Dogwood trees that you see on Commonwealth Avenue today, our mission was clear: honor and care for the trees and greenspaces of Back Bay.

Won’t you please help us support that mission by becoming a sponsor to the Twilight Garden Party?

To learn about sponsorship categories, click here:
http://www.gardenclubbackbay.org/twilight-garden-party/ where you can pay on line.  
Or you can pay by check (made out to the Garden Club of the Back Bay) and send to:
Susan Leathers
283 Commonwealth Avenue, Apt 4
Boston, MA 02115 
NO LATER THAN March 9th, 2020. 
Be sure to include your name as you would like it to appear on the invitation.

Thank you for supporting the Garden Club of The Back Bay. Your generosity is greatly appreciated. Photo below courtesy of BostonZest.com


Tuesday, March 3, 6:30 pm – 8:00 pm – Dr. Vandana Shiva

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Please join The Harvard Graduate School of Design on March 3 at 6:30 pm in Gund Hall in Cambridge for the 2020 International Womxn’s Day Lecture delivered by Dr. Vandana Shiva. The lecture is free and open to the public.

Dr. Vandana Shiva is trained as a Physicist and did her Ph.D. on the subject “Hidden Variables and Non-locality in Quantum Theory” from the University of Western Ontario in Canada. She later shifted to inter-disciplinary research in science, technology and environmental policy, which she carried out at the Indian Institute of Science and the Indian Institute of Management in Bangalore. In 1982, she founded an independent institute, the Research Foundation for Science, Technology and Ecology in Dehra Dun dedicated to high quality and independent research to address the most significant ecological and social issues of our times, in close partnership with local communities and social movements. In 1991, she founded Navdanya, a national movement to protect the diversity and integrity of living resources, especially native seed, the promotion of organic farming and fair trade. In 2004 she started Bija Vidyapeeth, an international college for sustainable living in Doon Valley in collaboration with Schumacher College, U.K.Dr. Shiva combines the sharp intellectual enquiry with courageous activism. Time Magazine identified Dr. Shiva as an environmental “hero” in 2003 and Asia Week has called her one of the five most powerful communicators of Asia. Forbes magazine in November 2010 has identified Dr. Vandana Shiva as one of the top Seven most Powerful Women on the Globe. Dr. Shiva has received honorary Doctorates from University of Paris, University of Western Ontario, University of Oslo and Connecticut College, University of Guelph.Among her many awards are the Alternative Nobel Prize (Right Livelihood Award, 1993), Order of the Golden Ark, Global 500 Award of UN and Earth Day International Award. Lennon ONO grant for peace award by Yoko Ono in 2009, Sydney Peace Prize in 2010, Doshi Bridgebuilder Award, Calgary Peace Prize and Thomas Merton Award in the year 2011,the Fukuoka Award and The Prism of Reason Award in 2012, the Grifone d’Argento prize 2016 and The MIDORI Prize for Biodiversity 2016, Veerangana Award 2018, The Sanctuary Wildlife Award 2018 and International Environment Summit & Award 2018.

This event is co-sponsored by Womxn in Design and is organized as part of the 2020 International Womxn’s Day activities taking place from March 2 – 6, 2020 at the GSD.

Anyone requiring accessibility accommodations should contact the events office at (617) 496-2414 or events@gsd.harvard.edu.