MULTICULTURAL BRIDGE

www.multiculturalbridge.org

Earth Day Community Celebration _ Lunch Discussion

Funded By EJ Fund of the Attorney General Office

April 22, 2026 | 12:30 PM - 2:00 PM

PROGRAM FLOW

12:30 - 2:00 pm Panel & Focus Group over lunch

A facilitated Environmental Justice focus group to elevate community voice and inform the ongoing EJ initiative

Stipends for community participation (co-sponsored by EJ Fund of the AGO)

Panel Includes:

Moderator: Gwendolyn VanSant, BRIDGE, with Dr. Lina Maria Polo Caijao

• Liz Hartsgrove, Town Manager, Town of Great Barrington (Welcoming Remarks)
• Betsy Harper, Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office – Chief of Environmental Protection Division
• Turner Smith, Deputy Chief of the Environmental and Energy Bureau
• Elizabeth Cardona, Community Engagement Manager, Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP)
• Charles Redd, DEI Officer, Berkshire Health Systems

6:00 - 7:30 pm Earth Day Community Conversation & Dinner: “Foods of the Earth”

A shared meal inspired by ingredients grown at the BRIDGE farm and foods that symbolize a connection with the earth. Stipends for community participation

Storytelling with Women to Women and BRIDGE Staff in Cooking Demo

Earth Day Dance Blessing, Planting Tours Conversation & Celebration with Earth Day Cupcakes by Lourdes

2:15 - 3:00 pm Traditional African Dance Earth Blessing (Nkoula Badila, Angel Lau, Brandon Guillermo and Noel Staples-Freeman ) & Earth Day Cupcake Celebration with Lourdes

3:00 - 5:00 pm Garden Activities

A hands-on, accessible activity in which participants repurpose plastic bottles to create small hanging gardens. 

Willow planting at Solidarity Commons and Meeting House Gardens

Shared Stories with Cooking

Lunch will be prepared by our ServSafe-certified team, featuring healthy, gluten-free wraps made with fresh ingredients and a red pepper sauce prepared in the Solidarity House kitchen.