🍂 5 ways to celebrate fall harvest season in Pittsburgh

The Carnegie Will Remove Human Remains

The controversial “Lions Attacking a Dromedary” diorama, which has been on display for 124 years, will be removed from the Carnegie Museum of Natural History because it contains a human skull. The Carnegie is joining museums worldwide in an ongoing reckoning of displays and exhibits containing looted artifacts and remains. [90.5 WESA]

• Learn more: City Cast's Megan Harris chatted with the Museum Director about the controversy and history. [🎧City Cast Pittsburgh]
• Go deeper: Since 1990, the Carnegie Museum of Natural History has been working to repatriate more than 700 human remains and funerary objects from Indigenous Peoples. City Cast’s Elizabeth Kauma explains why it takes the museum so long — and how they got them all in the first place. [🎧City Cast Pittsburgh]

Week 1 of Pittsburgh’s Deer Pilot

Bowhunters killed four deer in Frick and Riverview parks in the city’s controlled archery hunt pilot last weekend, and 160 pounds of meat has been donated to local food banks. The program will continue Monday through Saturday during the white-tailed deer archery season — now through Dec. 9 and Dec. 26 to Jan. 27. [90.5 WESA]

• ➡️ Read more on how invasive species and deer grazing threatens the diversity of Pittsburgh’s forests. [90.5 WESA]

Hazelwood Wants A Co-Op, Urban Farm

Developers haven’t responded to Hazelwood’s plea for food access, so residents are working to bring a community-owned and operated grocery store to a site at Hazelwood and Second avenues — which they hope to acquire from the city. Plans include ground-level parking, a grocery store, and a biotech farm on the roof to grow vegetables and raise fish. The project could cost between $21 and $24 million. [TribLIVE]

🍂 Fall Home Show | Friday-Sunday | 10 a.m. - 9 p.m.

Get inspiration for your home and garden at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center. [$11, Downtown]

📚 International Literary Festival | Friday-Oct. 15 | Various Times

Tune in to panel discussions, workshops, and author interviews at City of Asylum’s annual celebration of cross-cultural exchange. [free, North Side / virtual]

🍻 Traveling Beer Market | Friday | 5-9 p.m.

Cheers to the weekend under the Homestead Grays Bridge with local breweries and Let’s Taco Food Truck. [free, Homestead]

🎨 Unblurred Art Crawl | Friday | 5:30-10 p.m.

Check out new creative work from galleries, shops, and studios on Penn Avenue. [free, Bloomfield / Garfield]

📽️ Reel Q Film Festival | Friday-Oct. 15 | Various Times

Celebrate queer stories with shorts, features, and special events at venues like Row House Cinema, Andy Warhol Museum, and Trace Brewing. [$50-150 for passes / $10 for individual screenings, multiple locations]

🚲 Women & Non-Binary Bike Summit | Saturday | 9 a.m. - 6 p.m.

Participate in group rides, workshops, gear swaps, and an after-party. Childcare and foreign language and ASL interpretation is available. [$20-40, multiple locations]

👟 Pittsburgh StepTrek | Saturday | 10 a.m. - 2 p.m.

Step up to help maintain Pittsburgh’s beloved urban stairs. [Pay what you can, South Side]

• 🎧 Listen to this podcast while you climb to learn the history of Pittsburgh’s 800 sets of city steps.

🐕 DogtoberFEST | Saturday | 11 a.m. - 4 p.m.

Take part in furry festivities with local rescues and shelters. [free, Homestead]

🔥 Festival of Combustion | Saturday | 1-9 p.m.

Celebrate Pittsburgh’s industrial arts with workshops in scratch molding, raku ceramics, and metal ornaments; demos in glass blowing and iron casing; plus vendors, live music, flame performers, food trucks, and fireworks at the Carrie Blast Furnaces. [$20, Swissvale / Rankin]

🍻 Steel City Big Pour | Saturday | 5-8 p.m.

Enjoy samples from 45 craft breweries, 20 local restaurants, and five non-alcoholic beverage purveyors at Rockwell Park. [$35-75, Point Breeze]

🎃 Halloween Schenley SK8 | Saturday | Kids 5:30-7:30 & Adults 7:30-10 p.m.

Roll up in your best look for a festive skate at Schenley Park’s outdoor rink with food trucks, a DJ, and a costume contest. [$10, Oakland]

🛍️ Neighborhood Flea | Sunday | 10 a.m. - 3 p.m.

Find secondhand and vintage items, vendor goods, and food truck grub at 3 Crossings [free, Strip District]

🎉 WGF’s 21st Anniversary | Sunday | 12-3 p.m.

The Women and Girls Foundation is celebrating a fresh commitment to climate justice as a form of racial and social justice at Wigle Whiskey. [$21 donation or free, Strip District]

👻 Big Spookin’ Halloween Market | Sunday | 4-8 p.m.

Shop for festive and scary finds from local vendors at Trace Brewing. [free, Bloomfield]

Senate Dress Codes, Hellbender License Plates & Airport Auction Finds

Lawmakers in Washington have been up in arms — about the possibility of a shutdown, yes — but also the state of John Fetterman’s shorts; Pennsylvania’s favorite amphibian, the snot otter, is getting some official state love on local cars; and if you’ve ever wanted to buy 100 single air pods, the county airport auction is just for you.

We’re lucky to have socially conscious journalist and media consultant Natalie Bencivenga on mic as our newest City Cast contributor! You can hear her very own show every Saturday at 2 p.m. on KDKA-AM.