Academically, the term “sense of community” means: “a feeling members have of belonging, a feeling that members matter to one another and the group, and a shared faith that member’s needs will be met through their commitment to be together”.

When you have an emotional investment in the city or community which you live you are more likely to care about, and in turn invest your time and efforts in improving. This reduces crime, pollution and ethnic disparities because its members know and care about each other.

More on community engagement

Creative Tampa Bay’s Buzz readers can receive a 20% discount on tickets to Ignite Tampa Bay!

Ignite is a networking event where residents of Tampa get to hear what some of their community members are passionate about. Maybe a presentation sparks change, and gets people talking. Maybe there is a great idea out there that needs to be heard – that will change Tampa. Maybe you meet some like-minded people, or just have a great time! Either way it’s a community event and a great way to get out there, meet some interesting people and have a better sense of community!

Thursday, January 19
6 – 9:30 pm

To receive the discount, use the code: cr8tb0119 (good until Monday, January 16 at noon).

More information about Ignite Tampa Bay

Purchase tickets

Know an innovator working to solve a major global challenge?

Now’s your chance to help speed up his or her progress by submitting a nomination for the 2011 PopTech Social Innovation Fellows program. Check out the call for nominations as well as the2008, 2009 and 2010 classes to see if the fit looks right, and then fill out a nomination.

More information

Author Jonathan Bloom offers fresh thinking on how to reduce food waste.

Just as Jonathan Bloom and I settle in to talk, a piece of freshly baked chocolate cookie falls out of my hand and onto the floor.

We’re sitting on the outside deck at Foster’s Market, an upscale down-home deli and retail shop in Durham, North Carolina, where Bloom lives.

“I’m eating that!” I declare, bending to scoop it up within seconds of its landing.

“That is what always happens to me,” says Bloom, author of the recently released treatise on food waste, American Wasteland, published by Da Capo. “People feel guilty around me. They always feel the need to explain or apologize.”

I have to convince Bloom that his presence has no bearing on my retrieval of dropped food—especially anything chocolate. But it isn’t hard to see how I might feel the need to stay on guard. The book’s subtitle, after all, is How America Throws Away Nearly Half of Its Food (and What We Can Do About It).

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Most consumers have heard by now how important it is to shop at our local, small businesses. Entrepreneurship is believed to spark new technologies and innovations, provide new jobs, create healthy competition, and ultimately, improve the end products consumers are craving…all critical aspects needed for economic recovery.

Many women not only understand this concept and WANT to “buy local,” they also get satisfaction when supporting other women business owners. If only they had a little bit of help identifying who these amazing, eclectic and dynamic entreprenesses are, what services they offer, and how to find them. Enter CRAVE Tampa Bay. Creating this resource is exactly what the CRAVE Tampa Bay project intends to do.

The centerpiece of the CRAVE project is the CRAVE Tampa Bay Guide, due out Spring 2011! Touted as the “The Urban Girl’s Manifesto,” the CRAVE Tampa Bay Guide is a classy, 4-color, coffee table-quality book on Tampa Bay living and shopping. The Guide will feature more than 100 of the most creative, interesting and gutsy female proprietors throughout the Bay Area, organized by a host of different categories (including home/interior design; jewelry and fashion; children and Mom-related products and services; spa, salon, beauty and fitness; pet-related services; food, drink and caterers; networking, media, technology, and event services; business- to-business professionals and more) and by geography (South Tampa, Carrollwood, New Tampa, St. Pete, Clearwater, Dunedin, Sarasota, etc.).

In addition to 7,500+ Guides circulating throughout the area, there will also be networking events, workshops, soirees, and a very active social media campaign, all designed to let the entire Bay Area know about the interesting, varied, and savvy business women that bring depth and dollars to our community.

We could all use a getaway, and at CRAVE, we believe that you don’t need to be a jet-setter to have a little adventure—there’s so much to explore right here in Tampa Bay! We encourage you to break your routine, to venture from your regular haunts, to visit new neighborhoods, and get to know the CRAVE Tampa Bay entrepreneurs. Whether it’s to hunt for a birthday gift, indulge in a spa treatment, order a bouquet of flowers, or sip happy hour cocktails with the girls after work, let CRAVE be your inspiration to turn to for one-of-a-kind, hometown journeys and experiences.

To nominate a local, woman-owned business (or to participate yourself), please contact the CRAVE Tampa Bay City Leaders, Nancy Vaughn or Christy Schutz today! You may reach Nancy Vaughn via phone at 813-994-9807 or via email at nancy@craveparty.com. You may reach Christy Schutz via phone at 813-969-3130 or via email at Christy@craveparty.com. You can also learn more about The CRAVE Company by visiting their website at
www.thecravecompany.com/TampaBay.

For the latest on the CRAVE Tampa Bay Guide project, information on CRAVE events and more, follow us on Twitter @CRAVEtampabay or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/CRAVEtampabay

First Place Prize $100 – Bob Dickey for his Orchid and Hummingbird Sculpture.  Bob created his Orchid and Hummingbird Sculpture from shovels and a tree limb from his garden.

Second Place Prize $75 – Myrtle Cail for her Backyard Bling.  Myrtle created her Backyard Bling with old vases, bowls, saucers, a paint bucket, and metal rods.

Third Place Prize $50 – Stephen Taylor for his Ubilam – The Night Watchman. Stephen created the Night Watchman from used auto parts and scrap shipyard metal.

People’s Choice Award Prize $100.00 – Stephen Taylor for Ubilam – The Night Watchman.

Elementary School First Place Prize $100 – Ethan Fernandez for his Snowman.

Middle School First Place Prize $100 – Dowdell Middle School for their School of Recycled Bottle Fish.

High School First Place Prize $100 – Tiffany Goller for her Recycled Wishing Well/Water System for Indoor Plants.

View all photos of the winning entries here. For more information on the 2010 Recycled Yard Art Contest and other programs held by the County’s Extension Office call (813) 744-5519.

The 2010 Recycled Yard Art Contest is a yearly contest sponsored by Hillsborough County Extension, the County’s Solid Waste Management Division, and by the Hillsborough County Fair.

Executive Management
Directors of Finance, Grant and Contract Management
Outside Independent Auditors

Start Time: 01:00:00
Date: 2010-10-12
End Time: 02:00:00