(Photo by Sandy Carson.)

Meet our most recent #CMugshot, Kate Abel! Kate is a reference librarian at the Austin Central Library, where she loves being involved with the Zine Collection, Seed Library and apl unbound: sin fronteras book bike. She spends her free time biking, gardening, and swimming.

What’s one thing you’ve been inspired by lately?

Something I’ve been inspired by recently is our partnership with the Central Texas Seed Library and the circulating seed collection that we opened in January on the 6th floor of the Central Library. People can check out up to four seed packets at a time and if they’re successful at growing plants from the seeds, they can bring us new seeds to add to the next generation for people to check out. With this program, we promote sustainability and self-reliance and create a sense of community around gardening in Austin.

What’s one way you feel weird and how does that inspire you?

I’m a little bit weird in that I bike everywhere I go. It’s inspiring because it’s good for human health and for the planet. We hear every day on the news about climate change and declining human health and it’s easy to feel like we can’t possibly overcome these problems as individuals. Biking is a great small step for me to do to personally contribute, be visible and encourage others as well. For anyone who wants to get started with biking, there are a lot of group rides you can join in Austin so that you have fun and feel comfortable traveling on two wheels.

Where do you go to get inspired?

I feel really inspired in my own garden. I love planting seeds and watching the daily growth and all of the changes. It’s wonderful to be able to harvest your own salad or ingredients for a smoothie, and it’s as fresh and local as can be. It just feels so good to nurture the garden and let the garden nurture you.