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Bruce Beasley is a world-renowned sculptor and a steadfast supporter of West Oakland. He moved to West Oakland in 1962 at 23 years old, and immediately gained international success for his work. At the same time, Mr. Beasley started working to improve the conditions in West Oakland, and change it from an industrial zone with homes into a truly residential neighborhood. He led campaigns to get streetlights and curbs, helped change zoning laws, and founded the oldest neighborhood association in West Oakland. Nominators call him “the most important artist in Oakland,” “a part of everything that happens in the community,” and “an inspiration to all of the creative people in Oakland.”
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Launched as a grass-roots Oakland news website called Novometro, OAKBOOK now includes both the website and (free!) glossy magazine. The founders of OAKBOOK are motivated by “the stories, passion, energy, and creativity” of the people of Oakland. Both the website and the mag have been consistently praised for showing the true Oakland in all of its dimensions. According to one nominator, OAKBOOK covers “our city in a way that the traditional media has not. Their stories inspire pride, curiosity, and civic participation in our great city.”
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Ruby’s Garden Kidwear & Flower Shop is a neighborhood boutique offering fresh flowers as well as fun and funky children’s clothing. Ruby’s primarily carries clothing lines from local independent designers and the flowers come from the family-owned Northern California farms. Ruby’s hosts activities for families as well as openings for local artists. According to a nominator, “Ruby’s Garden is one of those places that makes Oakland the incredibly vibrant world-class city it is!”
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Tip Top Bike Shop opened its doors in Temescal in the spring of 2007. Focused on helping “everyday riders,” Tip Top gently and helpfully encourages people to start and keep biking as a mode of transportation and recreation. In addition to being extremely environmentally conscientious in every aspect of their business (from building renovation to daily operations), they regularly donate to local organizations as well as shop locally and encourage their customers to do so. A Berkeley resident writes, “Because of them, I spend more time and more money in Oakland, and am more likely to recommend it as a destination when I have visitors from out of town.”
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Pandora – Innovator Award
Pandora is more than the world’s largest radio station; it’s a personalized online radio service that allows people to quickly and easily create radio stations that match their musical preferences. Because Pandora has based their radio station algorithm on their 8-year-long Music Genome Project, listeners get to hear new musicians that are not merely of the same genre as their favorite songs, but actually have the same beats! Because 70% of the artists in their 500,000 song catalog are not signed to a major record label, Pandora is able to introduce listeners to an amazingly huge body of music while helping artists get discovered. Pandora employs 50 local musicians and helps fundraise for music-related causes, while a group of Pandora employees teaches a monthly course at Lockwood elementary school.
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Universal Waste Management is Oakland’s first and only certified electronic waste recycler. They also recycle potentially toxic materials such as batteries and fluorescent tubes. E-waste dropoff is available daily and is free to the public. They recycle 100% of their materials, process all waste locally (instead of shipping overseas), and diverted over 200 tons of waste in 2007. UnWaste partners with local charities to sponsor e-waste events as fundraisers.
Preservation Park & Fruitvale • www.unwaste.com |
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K-Dub Williams is a visual artist and arts educator. Well known for his colorful murals, K-Dub Williams has also dedicated 14 years to educating youth in the arts. In addition to teaching at Mocha (Museum of Children’s Art) and Oakland High School, K-Dub co-founded Hood Games, a skateboarding event for Oakland’s inner-city youth. After two successful years of creative, inspiring, non-violent Hood Games events, K-Dub decided to help Oakland Youth get their own skate park. He worked with the City of Oakland and local groups to secure deFremery Park in West Oakland as the location, and will work with professional skaters to design the park as well as solicit local youth to create art for the park. Upon opening, the park will also be the location for youth art programs and skate camps.
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La Verbena Juice Bar & Cafe – Neighborhood Dynamo
La Verbena is a Juice Bar and Café in the new Fruitvale Public Market. Owner Rosalva Diaz has overcome two big challenges in life and is using her new shop to help her neighbors tackle these challenges as well. A survivor of diabetes, and aware of the prevalence of childhood obesity, she seeks to educate the community about healthier eating choices and provides the neighborhood with fresh-made, healthy juices and shakes. Also a survivor of domestic violence, Diaz is implementing an employment training program for women seeking to escape domestic violence by building skills, confidence, and community.
Fruitvale Public Market • 510/437 9073 |
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