Today on Mushroom Hour it is our great privilege to be joined by Tess Burzynski - founder, head educator and cultivator at Fungi Freights Urban Lab and Environmental Studio. A Science degree graduate from Wayne State University, she works as an Environmental Scientist and continues doing research with mycoremediation in the city of Detroit. Tess is a member of the Michigan Mushroom Hunters Club and the North American Mycological Association. Throughout her studies she has learned the role mycelium plays in the environment and how beneficial, tenacious and magical it truly is. Through Fungi Freights, her goal is to educate Detroit and its surrounding neighbors about the benefits fungi have on health, food security and the environment. Fungi Freights offers an array of educational workshops and events revolved around mushrooms and their never-ending abilities. From identification, foraging and fungi biology, to DIY cultivation and mushroom art, their events never get dull. Their goal is to enlighten the community on the fascinating world of fungi!

TOPICS COVERED:

• Lebanese & Polish Wild Food Influences
• Finding Healing & Self-Love in Mushrooms
• Biochemical Processes in Fungi Decomposition
• Decomposers & Mycoremediation
• Illustrative Example of Mycoremediation Research
• Community Science Leading in Mycoremediation
• Unique Ecology of Detroit
• Founding of Fungi Freights
• Fungi Freights Projects and Community Involvement
• Importance of Reciprocity in Community Building
• Advice for Our Mushroom Projects
• Worldwide Modular, Shipping Container Mushroom Farms
• Bright Potential for Detroit
• Fastest Organism on Earth is a Fungus?!

EPISODE RESOURCES:

• Fungi Freights Website: https://www.fungifreights.net/
• Fungi Freights IG: https://www.instagram.com/fungifreights/
• Fungi Freights Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fungifreights/
• NAMA: https://namyco.org/
• Pilobolus crystallinus (Fungus): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pilobolus_crystallinus