HEALING SPACES
Environmental Justice and Sustainability
Hi!
My name is Teela Patterson
I am the founder and Executive Director of Healing Spaces. I was born South Carolina and spent part of my childhood in Georgia, which is where my innate love of nature originated. I am a proud resident of Cleveland as well as a graduate of its municipal high school and college. As a former pre-med student, my academic and career focus was health and human sciences, then during the pandemic I was presented with the opportunity to shift my passion for health and healing to writer/environmental justice advocate. Currently, I serve on the Advisory Council for Case Western Reserve University's food justice initiative, Nourishing Power Network. I bring an expertise in communications, community engagement, project management, marketing & branding, copywriting and more to bridge connections that result in successful projects and organizations. Overall, I am a community builder and health & wellness aficionado dedicated to individual and collective wellbeing.
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I have phenomenal son named Phoenix💙 and a Siamese cat named Hera.
Our Story
Get to Know Us
In Spring 2021, with the support of an amazing team of journalists, collaborators, and sponsors, Teela began a journey to address the issue of urban blight; that is abandoned, derelict land parcels that riddle low-income communities of color in Cleveland, Ohio. This initiative quickly evolved to include:
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filming a documentary
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documenters team survey to explore healing spaces across the city of Cleveland
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a timeline of environmental justice in Cleveland
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visual and creative art expressions, and ultimately
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the genesis of the largest, most impactful environmental justice movement to date!
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Our vision: Clean, healthy, and safe neighborhoods for all!