Learning from Nature
For more than 34 years, Harry Boyajian has directed and managed site remediation of polluted lands all over the United States. His work has taken him from North Dakota to Arizona, and all up and down California where he’s based. Closer to home, Harry has worked extensively on sites adjacent to the LA River, post-industrial…
Read MoreGrowing through Judo
Johnny Hoong’s passion for martial arts began reluctantly at the insistence of his cousin Tay. Johnny and his family moved to the U.S. when he was just three years old, settling in Claremont. Growing up, during summer breaks from school, Johnny would often visit Tay and his family, who at the time lived in Cypress…
Read MoreWhere The Grass Isn’t Always Greener
One of Joe Linton’s earliest formative memories involved a river and a bike. “I used to bike along the Santa Ana River to get to the beach. It took an hour, and it was one of the most freeing things as a young preteen since I didn’t have to beg my mom to take me.…
Read MoreThe Rule Breaker
Charly Hinojosa is an active community member in Northeast LA, where he has served on the Cypress Park Neighborhood Council, led kayak tours for BIPOC individuals on the LA River, and coached gymnastics and parkour for at-risk youth in the community. Spending his youth immersed in countercultures like skating, punk rock, and graffiti helped set…
Read MoreThe City as Teacher
Charly Hinojosa is an active community member in Northeast LA, where he has served on the Cypress Park Neighborhood Council, led kayak tours for BIPOC individuals on the LA River, and coached at-risk youth in the community. However, Charly spent his “active, outdoor childhood” immersed in youth countercultures. A punk rocker, he was against playing…
Read MoreSilent Killer
Dayana Molina is no stranger to gentrification. As a longtime resident of and advocate for Northeast LA, she has seen her community change drastically. It is part of the double-edged sword that comes with fighting to improve one’s neighborhood. Dayana has engaged with community activism since her youth. As a teenager playing in Anahuak Youth…
Read MoreA Tree Grows in Elysian Valley Pt. 2
After Ruben Molina and his family moved into Elysian Valley in 1958, Ruben, aged 5, soon found himself in what he calls “paradise.” At the time, the ongoing construction of the 5 Freeway left behind sandlots in Elysian Valley — the remnants of the homes that were destroyed to make way for this huge infrastructure…
Read MoreA Tree Grows in Elysian Valley Pt. 1
Ruben Molina and his family moved to Elysian Valley in 1958. Having arrived in Los Angeles from El Paso, Texas five years prior, his family had moved around between a hotel, duplexes and small homes in Cypress Park and Lincoln Heights before settling into the home on Glover Place. Ruben, now a dedicated community music…
Read MoreLA River Fishing
It’s a common practice for fishers or anglers to keep their best fishing spots a secret, as part of the appeal of recreational fishing is researching and discovering your own spot and keeping that good spot hidden. For newcomers, this practice might be daunting, but when Karen Barnett was first learning to fish, she didn’t…
Read MoreProposition 12
In 2000, California residents voted overwhelmingly in favor of the Safe Neighborhood Parks, Clean Water, Clean Air, and Coastal Protection Bond Act, known as Proposition 12, which allocated $2.1 billion to California State Parks to address hundreds of critical State Park System needs across California, particularly for high-density, park-poor areas. As the former Los Angeles…
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