The Evolved Network NFP

The Evolved Network NFP 501(c)3 Nonprofit organization to serve impoverished, at-risk youth in Chicago area via holistic therapeutic power of farm to table experience.

Our next farmers market takes place at William H. Ray Elementary School, bringing farmers, chefs, and students back into...
05/07/2026

Our next farmers market takes place at William H. Ray Elementary School, bringing farmers, chefs, and students back into shared space through food, participation, and community.

Students will once again work alongside The Evolved Network helping organize, prepare, and serve food while engaging directly with the people growing and cooking it.

Grateful to the chefs, farms, educators, and partners continuing to help build this with us.




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Today at National Teacher’s Academy, we’re bringing a farmers market into the school day.Not as a one-off event, but as ...
04/30/2026

Today at National Teacher’s Academy, we’re bringing a farmers market into the school day.

Not as a one-off event, but as a living extension of how young people come to understand food—where it comes from, who grows it, and what it means to engage with it directly. Farmers, chefs, students, and families sharing the same space, in real time.

It’s a simple shift, but an important one. Moving food from something abstract to something experienced—touched, tasted, asked about, and understood.

Grateful to the farmers, partners, and educators who make this possible, and to the students who continue to show us what curiosity looks like when given the space to grow.

How did you celebrate Earth Day? At TEN, we made bird feeders with our third graders.At Ray Elementary, we used cardboar...
04/23/2026

How did you celebrate Earth Day? At TEN, we made bird feeders with our third graders.

At Ray Elementary, we used cardboard, peanut butter or coconut oil, and bird seed. The kids enjoyed mixing the food and building the feeders by hand before hanging them throughout the garden.

There isn’t always enough food for birds to find, even in green spaces. So we made some.

On this day, we honor Sebastian’s aunt, Gwen Barjon. We lost her on Earth Day, and her way of caring for the world lives on through moments like this.

Grateful to Veronica Beard for opening their space, and to Heidrick & Struggles for bringing this together.Join us at...
04/20/2026

Grateful to Veronica Beard for opening their space, and to Heidrick & Struggles for bringing this together.

Join us at Veronica Beard (11 E Walton) on April 22, 5–7PM.
Shop the Spring collection—15% of proceeds support The Evolved Network and the young people we walk alongside across Chicago.

Can’t attend? Call (312) 809-2778 to place a phone order and be part of it.

RSVP: [email protected]

Join us for the first gathering in the reimagined Eat & Evolve series.Set inside the BSH Experience & Design Center at T...
04/17/2026

Join us for the first gathering in the reimagined Eat & Evolve series.

Set inside the BSH Experience & Design Center at The MART, this intimate evening brings five chefs together, each presenting a course with wine pairings throughout the night.

Each chef brings more than skill. They bring perspective, intention, and a way of engaging with food that reaches beyond the plate.

Featuring:
✨Sarah Stegner — Prairie Grass Cafe | 2× James Beard Award Winner
✨Javauneeka Steen — Frontera | Banchet Awards Rising Star ‘26
✨Carrie Nahabedian — Brindille | James Beard Award Winner
✨Maya-Camille Broussard — Justice of the Pies | James Beard Award Finalist
✨Sebastian White — Evolved Kitchen & Garden | named one of the 6 Best Private Chefs in Chicago (Modern Luxury, Chicago Magazine); InsideHook “Chefs to Watch 2024” .kitchen

📅 May 28 | 6–8:30PM

Your presence supports The Evolved Network’s work with young people across Chicago.

Tickets: theevolvednetwork.org/vault_dinner

3rd grade at Ray Elementary with our lead horticultural instructor Vale Espinoza Mushroom compost going into the beds—br...
04/15/2026

3rd grade at Ray Elementary with our lead horticultural instructor Vale Espinoza

Mushroom compost going into the beds—breaking it down, mixing it in, getting the soil ready—part of tending and beginning to understand what it means to care for something over time.

Inside, time with pitcher plants and Venus fly traps—something they’ve been learning about, now right in front of them.

I can’t begin this without giving a huge shout out to Joe Weber and for sponsoring this iteration of Project T.E.N. coo...
03/14/2026

I can’t begin this without giving a huge shout out to Joe Weber and for sponsoring this iteration of Project T.E.N. cooking kits with their beautiful Lion’s Mane mushrooms.

This week we delivered kits to students from our partner school Chicago Jesuit Academy with everything needed to prepare Roasted Lion’s Mane Mushrooms with Quick Grits and Sumac Chimichurri alongside Chef Sebastian at home.

Project T.E.N. invites students and their families to cook together, explore new flavors, and create moments of connection around the table.

The recipe video is now available on YouTube.

If you’re interested in sponsoring or having a bonding activity with your company or amongst friends to help us pack our next iteration please feel free to reach out!


theevolvednetwork.org/project_ten

Dear TEN Community,The world feels loud right now — fast, fractured, and often overwhelming. In the midst of all that, w...
03/06/2026

Dear TEN Community,

The world feels loud right now — fast, fractured, and often overwhelming. In the midst of all that, we are asked to be thoughtful about what we give our energy and attention to. What we protect. What we continue to return to.

For us, the focus remains clear: the kids.

In 2025, 722 Chicago youth engaged in TEN programming across our partner schools. Most returned for multiple sessions, allowing trust to build over time and relationships to deepen in meaningful ways. This work is not defined by single moments, but by steady presence and sustained commitment.

Our 2025 Impact Report shares what that work looked like in practice: the growth of our programs, the strengthening of our partnerships, and the continued evolution of The Evolved Network Way.

Thank you for continuing to stand with young people and with us. We invite you to read the full report and see how this work continues to unfold across our communities.

Available on our website, link in bio.

02/13/2026

“When I hear culturally relevant food, I hear what can you make at home that grandma made.”

Episode 9 features a conversation between Sebastian White and Janelle St. John of Growing Home about memory, identity, and the tension between honoring where we come from and resisting the boxes that can define us too tightly. They reflect on what culturally relevant food really means and what it risks, and how food can both hold who we’ve been and invite us toward who we’re becoming.

This one feels especially personal. We’re grateful to Janelle for her honesty and openness, and excited to share this conversation with you.

The Flavor of Familiarity and the Risk of Openness is live. Link in bio.

Food doesn’t begin on the plate. It begins in relationship with the land.We’re expanding our programming to honor that t...
02/13/2026

Food doesn’t begin on the plate. It begins in relationship with the land.

We’re expanding our programming to honor that truth and to deepen how we cultivate connection from the very beginning of the process. An announcement is coming soon. 🌱

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