Episode 5 - Land, Power, and Self-Determination with Naomi Davis and Anton Seals Jr.

“The land loss that Black Chicago has experienced in the last decade—it stops here,” says Naomi Davis, founder of Blacks in Green.

Today on PNBI, we’re talking about Self-Determination and the challenges around how communities and individuals are able to shape their economic, cultural, and social futures. To dig into this important topic, we’re joined by Naomi Davis, founder of the Blacks in Green (BIG™), and TPL’s newest National Board member Anton Seals Jr., founder of Grow Greater Englewood. 

Blacks in Green is a national network for environmental justice and economic development that focuses on the “Sustainable Square Mile,” an economically self-sustaining walkable village designed to build Black wealth and power. TPL is supporting BIG’s efforts to create a series of 16 gardens across Chicago that honor luminaries of the Great Migration. The first of these is the Mamie Till-Mobley Forgiveness Garden, a converted vacant lot that offers a place for healing and respite.

Grow Greater Englewood is a social enterprise organization that works with residents and developers to create sustainable local food economies, green businesses, and land sovereignty to empower residents to create wellness and wealth. 

In this wide-ranging conversation, Naomi, Anton and Ronda discuss how their organizations connect Black residents and communities to the outdoors, food, sustainability, energy, and climate resilience, while creating pathways for economic enterprise. 

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