DEAR FRIENDS OF A LIVING LIBRARY & LIFE FRAMES, INC.

Welcome to the abundant world of A Living Library, or A.L.L., for short.  Since 1992 we have been operating on lots of Love and Inspiration, plus Grants from city, state and private foundations from the California Strategic Growth Council and Cal Fire to the San Francisco Department of Children, Youth and their Families (DCYF), Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation (RIOC), and San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC), to the Ford and Salesforce foundations.

CELEBRATING 24 YEARS

A Living Library & Life Frames, Inc. grew out of the Environmental Performance Sculpture of our Founder & Director, Bonnie Ora Sherk. These early Life Frames included Portable Parks I-III, Sitting Still Series, Crossroads Community (the farm), and other public works. Life Frames, Inc. (LFI) today works with communities, libraries, schools and other stakeholders to develop content-rich, healing, ecological gardens and learning landscapes that engage children, youth and adults in hands-on environmental transformation bringing multiple, interdisciplinary, standards-based, Common Core subjects to life: math, science, language arts, history, multi-arts, technology, nutrition, health, youth leadership, and others.

All ages work together to green their environments, improving and beautifying their community. Students and adults learn about natural systems, history, and the rich resources of their local communities. Students are also linked via technology to their peers in Branch Living Library & Think Parks in diverse communities, sharing multimedia documentation, live interaction and written communications. A.L.L. contributes greatly to each area by improving the public realm and aiding in community and economic development. A Goal of LFI is to develop place-based, Branch Living Library & Think Parks in diverse parts of the world linked together through Green-Powered Digital Gateways, so we can share commonalities and diversities of cultures and ecologies - near and far.

Please enjoy a short video - Evolution of Life Frames: past, present, future, and know that A Living Library is currently being exhibited in Seoul, Korea, at the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary, Korea, and will be featured in Spring 2017 in a premiere international art exhibition in Italy, and also next year at the Nevada Museum of Art,  in Reno, at its international Art & Environment Conference and Exhibition, along with two keynote presentations by A.L.L.'s Founder & Director.

OUR WORK TODAY
San Francisco and New York City

OMI/EXCELSIOR LIVING LIBRARY & THINK PARK with Leadership and Balboa High Schools, James Denman Middle School and San Miguel Early Education School. (PreK-12) through year-round learning that transforms the schools and neighborhood environments.

BERNAL HEIGHTS LIVING LIBRARY & THINK PARK with Junipero Serra Elementary School and Junipero Serra Early Education School (PreK - 5) through year-round learning by doing that transforms both schools and neighborhood environments.

BERNAL HEIGHTS LIVING LIBRARY & THINK PARK NATURE WALK links multiple schools, parks, public housing, streets and other open spaces leading to presently hidden Islais Creek at south side of St. Mary’s Park and Highway 280. Utilizing native, riparian and drought-tolerant species of trees and understory and featuring informative signage describing flora and fauna of the area, this Nature Walk is a prototype resilient landscape that will eventually connect all eleven communities of the Islais Creek Watershed.

ROOSEVELT ISLAND LIVING LIBRARY & THINK PARK works with diverse PS/IS 217 Beacon students after school and summers; Parents & Children's Garden & Literacy Program with the NYPL Roosevelt Island Branch, International RI communities, and other RI students, community residents and gardeners to further develop and maintain the RI Branch Living Library & Think Park Gardens behind 504 Main Street.

COMMUNITY PLANNING, SYSTEMIC ECOLOGICAL MASTER PLAN DESIGN & IMPLEMENTATION for place-based ecological transformation, watershed development and conservation, with integrated whole systems community and school education. 

LOOKING FORWARD WITH YOU

Although we have accomplished much, in order for us to Thrive and Grow,we need your support. In advance, we thank you for helping us achieve our goals.

Your donations, large or small, will help us fund A.L.L. Programs:

• A.L.L. Garden/Ecology/Literacy/Multi-Arts/Technology/Nutrition/Health Teachers, Assistant Lead Teacher, and Lead Teacher to work with over 2000 students, PreK-12, during the school day. Although our After School and Summer Programs are funded, our $100K City grant for School Day Programs was eliminated this year due to city budget cuts: Need: 100K

• A.L.L. GREEN FUTURES PAID INTERNSHIPS for Middle & High School Students & A.L.L. ECO- STEWARDS PAID INTERNSHIPS for High School - Age 24: Green Skills Job Training to work at our OMI/Excelsior Branch Living Library & Think Park, and help with planting and plant establishment in the Bernal Heights Living Library & Think Park Nature Walk based at St. Mary’s Park & Recreation Center: Need: 130K

• Plan, Design, Expand A.L.L. Islais Creek Watershed Nature Walk throughout eleven neighborhoods of Islais Creek Watershed, largest in SF, to develop CA native, narrative, resilient landscapes throughout Watershed, including two Freeway Interchanges (101/Chavez & 101/Alemany) to become Northern & Southern Gateway Islais Creek Watershed Community Parks. Our Systemic Ecological Design addresses: climate change, flood mitigation, safety & accessibility, smart land-use, community & school education, community & economic development, and is being developed in conjunction with multiple City & State Agencies, Community Groups, Neighbors. Need Phase 1: 150K

• To support School, Library and Community Learning Programs for the Roosevelt Island Living Library & Think Park Gardens on 504 Main Street and for Design & Outreach for new R.I. International Gardens & Orchard. Need: 100K 

• Further Technical Design for Green-Powered Digital Gateways, multi-functional, sculptural forms that do many things: showcase local resources through digital displays, allow live interaction between Branch Living Library locales, bring water forth from the earth as appropriate; create way-finding & community programs. Need: 50K