ESW Discussion Group: Tomorrow’s Table

 Communities, Definitions & Values, Science  Comments Off
Feb 212013
 

There will be no discussion group tonight because I (Alex) will be attending a seed starting event (gotta grow things!). In that vein, however, you should read Tomorrow’s Table, particularly the ‘tools’ chapters and the ‘who owns the’ chapters. For next week (Feb. 28th) come expecting to discuss some of the following questions:

1. What role do organic farming and/or genetic engineering have to play in our food future?

2. How should we change policies around either of these two technologies if we want to promote sustainability (see Box P.3 in the book)?

3. How do we talk about these subjects if people haven’t already read this or similar books?

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ESW Discussion Group: Climate Capitalism Week 1

 Campus, Communities, Projects  1 Response »
Jan 232013
 

(AKA Climate Capitalism)

 

So tomorrow (almost today) we’ll start our discussion of Climate Capitalism (aka The Way Out). If you haven’t gotten a copy of the book yet, you’re welcome to – there’s an eBook here – but it’s by no means required, though it provides a lot of case studies. I want to focus tomorrow’s discussion around a few specific chapters and toss out some overarching questions about the book to discuss in more detail next week.

 

Specific Chapters:

  • Green Buildings, Green Neighborhoods
  • Moving On (efficient vehicles)
  • World Without Oil (less oil, biofuels)

Overarching Themes:

  • Is efficiency sufficient? (For what goals?)
  • How industry-driven are changes in these areas? (built infrastructure/transport)
  • Are there solutions that are possible/good ideas but not profitable?
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ESW Discussion Group: Cities & Urban Infrastructure

 Articles, Communities  Comments Off
Dec 052012
 

For the final discussion group of the semester (and Chris and Seth’s last week at Pitt), we’re going to talk about cities. Why cities? Because they’re the nodes of the world – physical, social, economic, etc. We’ll talk about unique sustainability problems with cities, opportunities, placemaking, the super important aspect of scale, and urban infrastructure. Well, we’ll hit some of these things, and probably some others as well. And, of course, we’ll attempt to tie it into Pittsburgh, because that’s *our* city.

For why cities are important and some recent news, there’s nowhere better than the Atlantic Cities homepage – take your pick of articles (I recommend this one about Barcelona).

For the climate change aspect – why it’s important in terms of cities and how we might make carbon neutral cities, see Alex Steffan’s new book Carbon Zero (posted in its entirety at Grist).

For some ideas about placemaking, see the Project for Public Spaces (who helped redesign Market Square, incidentally).

And finally, some plans:

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SUSTAINS Education Partnership Initial Meeting

 Communities, Events, Science  Comments Off
Nov 292012
 

All:

It’s a bit of a time crunch, but if you’re an undergrad in the STEM fields, and want to help folks in k-12 learn about sustainability, you should come to the meeting this afternoon (Nov. 29th) in Sennott Sq. 5317 – free food and interesting information provided.

See attached flyer for more.

SUSTAINS Kickoff Announcement

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Election 2012: Registration and Positions

 Campus, Communities, Political  Comments Off
Oct 012012
 

It’s that time again: Even if you’re not much into politics, the start of the presidential debates on Wednesday means that we’re in the final approach to this years general election. A few people from Free the Planet, ESW, and the Sierra Student Coalition (and anyone else who wants to join in) are going to be putting together some voter education events – non-partisan introductions to issues and candidates, and so you’ll be seeing some posts on this site about both the events and the information.

To start, it’s the last week to register to vote in PA – so if you haven’t done that yet, go here and print out a form or walk around campus and talk to one of the many bright-eyed students who are happy to mail in the form for you. Why should you register to vote?

  • Because if you don’t, you can’t vote – regardless of whether you decide you want to in a month
  • Because voting is statistically disheartening but vitally important – and the statistics get better for local elections
  • Because there are lots of people on the ballot beyond the president (see below for details), many of whom have more direct effects on your life than the president.
  • Because if you don’t like either of the two major parties, the worst thing you can do about it is gripe and not vote. Please, register to vote and vote for a third party – it gives them a lot more legitimacy and stresses the status quo, and without some stress, the system won’t change. This should be emphasized several more times for people that normally just don’t vote – these people (particularly non-presidential candidates) do make decisions that affect you locally (funding for local projects, state policy, etc.), and you get a free vote for a three or four or N party system.

Who’s Running?

After a bunch of searching, I finally found a useful website for this! If you go to SmartVoter.org (run by the League of Women Voters), you can put in your address and it will give you your ballot! It turns out that judges and county/city-level elections are in odd years (next year Pgh’s Mayor is up, and that will be super important), but this year we’re electing state senators and representatives, national representatives, and one of our PA Senators, Bob Casey. Also up for election in PA are the Attorney General, Auditor General, and State Treasurer – contested and important races (anything statewide is probably more interesting than anything locally, which tends to run very Democratic). Also, the President is up for re-election, if that’s your thing.

We’ll be pulling together information on these candidates’ positions on several areas – energy, education, healthcare, and economy all come to mind. Look forward to more posts on the subject, and let us know if there’s something in particular you want to see (or help with!).

 

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Campus Conversation on Climate Change

 Campus, Communities, Events, Projects  Comments Off
Sep 272012
 

The event is designed to get student input on various practical action items and policy issues. We will be utilizing the principles and practices of deliberative democracy to ensure that we have informed, well structured conversations that are conducive not only in regard to an understanding of the topic but also in regard to an appreciation of a more deliberative approach to our democracy.

Participants are requested to read the 10 page Discussion Guide prior to the event.

The Guide provides a summary of the science of climate change and then looks at three areas to be addressed through the following questions:
What can we do for our campus?
What can we do for our community?
What can we do for ourselves?

Information about this event, including links to pre-registration, can be found on their website.

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Healthy Eating Happy Planet Festival

 Communities, Events  Comments Off
Sep 272012
 

The night will feature:

  • A screening of Forks Over Knives, a film that’s changing the way American eats. The film examines the profound claim that most, if not all, of the degenerative diseases that afflict us can be controlled, or even reversed, by rejecting animal-based and processed foods.
  • A vermicomposting display (worm farm!) and live chickens and bunnies!
  • Food sampling; opportunity for information and networking with the exhibitors. Find recipes, learn about farm sanctuaries.
  • Panel Discussion (with a physician, dietician, and health coach).

This event is sponsored by Animal Nature, supplier of superior nutrition for your pets. Located near the corner of Forbes & Braddock, Animal Nature supports community involvement, education, and animal welfare.

Food sampling is provided by Alma Pan-Latin Kitchen, Abay Ethiopian Cuisine, The Quiet Storm Cafe, The Double Wide Grill, Enchanted Garden Juice Bar, and Animal Nature.

More info.

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Visions of Gray and Green: Stormwater Solutions in Western PA

 Communities, Events  Comments Off
Sep 272012
 

NAEC will host a four person panel on stormwater issues and strategies to address them. ALCOSAN and municipalities it serves are required by EPA to reduce bacterial contamination of waterways due to Combined Sewer Overflows (CSOs). Panelists from ALCOSAN, the Three Rivers Wet Weather Project, the Clean Rivers Campaign and a local municipality will present the issues and discuss potential solutions including “gray infrastructure” (repairing and expanding the ALCOSAN infrastructure) and “green infrastructure” such as trees, rain gardens, and land conservation. Susan Hockenberry of the Local Government Academy will moderate the discussion.

See attachment for more info.

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FTP Reskilling Event: Knitting 101

 Campus, Communities, Events  Comments Off
Sep 272012
 

Inspired by the Transition Movement’s reskilling events, FTP is having their own reskilling… Knitting 101!

Knitting is a great way to relieve stress, pass time productively, connect with others in your community and in your past, learn about the local wool industry, create beautiful objects, and more!

Whether you’ve never picked up needles or you are a veteran, come over and knit with us. We have plenty of needles and yarn for those who don’t have supplies. We promise you will be hooked!

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Allegheny Green Innovation Festival and Hay Day!

 Communities, Events  Comments Off
Sep 272012
 

 

This zero-waste, solar-powered event will include earth-friendly food & product vendors, crafters, green living demonstrations, children’s activities & much more! Located in a 629 acre park about 30 minutes from Oakland.

There will be over 100 local vendors, an I Made It! Market, and a Sustainable Food Challenge by Chatham University.

Green the Day: bring these hard-to-recycle items for donation:
Bicycles, parts and tools; Non-perishable food items and new/gently-used tote bags; Hard plastic lids/caps; New or gently used medical items; Used vegetable oil.

There will also be tons of activities for kids including pony rides and a corn maze (and much much more).

AND IT’S ALL TOTALLY AND ABSOLUTELY FREE!!!!

More Green Festival info.
Hay Day Info.

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