From tjs1 at cornell.edu Wed Jul 1 10:37:35 2009 From: tjs1 at cornell.edu (Thomas Shelley) Date: Wed, 01 Jul 2009 10:37:35 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] test of mutualaid server--please ignore Message-ID: <200907011440.n61EeHf9017050@authusersmtp.mail.cornell.edu> Is the server working? From nidus at pinax.com Wed Jul 1 10:47:57 2009 From: nidus at pinax.com (Bethany Schroeder) Date: Wed, 01 Jul 2009 10:47:57 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] test of mutualaid server--please ignore In-Reply-To: <200907011440.n61EeHf9017050@authusersmtp.mail.cornell.edu> References: <200907011440.n61EeHf9017050@authusersmtp.mail.cornell.edu> Message-ID: <4A4B771D.2040707@pinax.com> Yes! Thomas Shelley wrote: > Is the server working? _______________________________________________ > For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, > please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ > > RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: > SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org > http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins > Questions about the list? ask > sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org > free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org > . > From rainbowwarrior14874 at yahoo.com Wed Jul 1 12:07:11 2009 From: rainbowwarrior14874 at yahoo.com (Joshua Dolan) Date: Wed, 1 Jul 2009 09:07:11 -0700 (PDT) Subject: [SustainableTompkins] google map Message-ID: <923017.86259.qm@web65401.mail.ac4.yahoo.com> Hi, I'd like to share a Google Maps link with you. This is map of gardens in the area. Yellow pegs indicate school gardens, blue community gardens, green are farmer's markets and red are CSA farms. Flags indicate sites for possible future community gardens. Please email me with any feedback, more garden sites and any other ideas you may have about what should be on this map. Link: Josh Dolan community food gardening coordinator "Vast tasks, calling for all the courage, discipline, dedication, and ingenuity commonly associated with war, will have to be carried out if the majority of humankind are to survive and enjoy a tolerable future" ---Robert Hart From andrejs at ozolins.com Wed Jul 1 17:12:25 2009 From: andrejs at ozolins.com (Andrejs Ozolins) Date: Wed, 01 Jul 2009 17:12:25 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Business model In-Reply-To: <923017.86259.qm@web65401.mail.ac4.yahoo.com> References: <923017.86259.qm@web65401.mail.ac4.yahoo.com> Message-ID: <4A4BD139.6030301@ozolins.com> Moving company using bicycles: http://www.myette.net/home/ Andrejs From sjr37 at cornell.edu Fri Jul 3 09:56:36 2009 From: sjr37 at cornell.edu (Sandra Repp) Date: Fri, 03 Jul 2009 09:56:36 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] 7/7: Native Plants in the Home Landscape Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20090703095159.030297f8@cornell.edu> Native Plants in the Home Landscape Tuesday July 7, 6:30-8:30 pm Tompkins County Cooperative Extension Education Center, 615 Willow Avenue, Ithaca Master Gardeners and CCE Horticulture staff will discuss some favorite native plants and how they are adapted to our different habitats, and will make suggestions on how to use native plants in the home landscape. Fee: $5; pre-registration requested. Please call 272-2292 for more information or registration. From gjem5760 at yahoo.com Sun Jul 5 18:01:25 2009 From: gjem5760 at yahoo.com (George Frantz) Date: Sun, 5 Jul 2009 15:01:25 -0700 (PDT) Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Film recommendation Message-ID: <655608.78040.qm@web44907.mail.sp1.yahoo.com> If you have the time this coming Tusday, July 7th I recommend the movie "Dersu Uzala," showing at Willard Straight hall at 8:00 PM. Made on location in eastern Siberia, Dersu Uzala?(Dersu the Hunter) is based on the journals of?Russian army officer and explorer V. Arseniev and tells the story of his?friendship with?a Goldi native guide in the early years of the 20th Century.? It unfolds against director Akira Kurosawa's epic vision of a beckoning yet unforgiving nature?endless plains and thickly forested mountains.? It?is also a tale of the end of an era in eastern Siberia, as nomadic hunters and the culture and values are pushed aside by the?arrival of the Siberian railroad, Russian settlement of the region, and "progress.".? It's still a relevant tale particularly in light of the renewed onslaught on the Artic regions of both Asia and North America in search of energy and other resources, and the continues struggles of the indigenous peoples of the region to survive. ? Winner of Best Foreign Language Film Oscar in 1975.? 1975, color, 2 hours 17 minutes, Japan /Russia (English subtitles) ? Best regards. ? George Frantz From gaynicholson at gmail.com Thu Jul 9 13:29:22 2009 From: gaynicholson at gmail.com (Gay Nicholson) Date: Thu, 9 Jul 2009 13:29:22 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Join us on July 13 for insights on green consumption and living responsibly Message-ID: *Marketing Strategies for Your Green Business* * * The adage ?in crisis and change there are opportunities? aptly describes trends developing in the Green Economy. Whether for a new eco-friendly business, or an existing business that seeks to ?green? its operation, the possibilities for reaching a broader audience in the sustainability marketplace will be explored through a panel discussion presented by the Green Resource Hub from 6:00-8:00 pm on Monday, July 13 at La Tourelle Resort & Spa, 1150 Danby Road (Rt. 96B). The discussion will explore growing the green market base, understanding the role of values in buying behaviors, developing faith in consumers who have been challenged by questionable ethics and greenwashing, and how being responsible and socially conscious can contribute to being profitable. The four panelists, with local, regional, and national marketing experience, include: Patrick Govang, entrepreneur, materials researcher, and marketer, is president and co-founder of e2e Materials. This company produces petroleum-free, biodegradable building composite materials. The company has drawn national attention from television programs, print media, and wire services. Flisa Stevenson produces national, value-oriented marketing strategies for environmental educational programs. Her experience includes managing all phases of marketing for science education projects. Andy Parker is one of the founders of SustaMatix Media Group, which provides subscription-based sustainability information to help business owners and the general public make better-informed choices. Daniel Segal is the owner of the ecologically-oriented Plantsmen Nursery, which grows and sells a diverse selection of pesticide-free native plants. Segal has plant marketing experience in California, Virginia, New Jersey, and New York State. There will be refreshments, door prizes, and ample time to mingle with other sustainability-minded entrepreneurs. Door prizes include a one-night stay at La Tourelle, a programmable To register and for more information, go to http://www.greenresourcehub.org/. The Green Resource Hub is a non-profit organization and affiliate of Sustainable Tompkins that aims to expand the regional marketplace for sustainable living through business support services and consumer education on green building, energy efficiency, renewable energy and green purchasing. *THANKS for all the generous door prize donations for this and future SEN events!* ? One-night stay at La Tourelle Spa and Resort ? Native plants from The Plantsmen Nursery ? Educational DVD from the Lab of Ornithology ? Programmable thermostat from Bio-Upgradeable Construction ? Two-hour consultation in Press Releases, Public Relations, or Marketing from Finger Lakes Media Strategies ? Two-hour consultation for taxes, book keeping, accounting, or general finance from KMT Books Contact *bob at greenresourcehub.org* for more info. -- -- ---------------------------------------------------- Gay Nicholson, Ph.D. President Sustainable Tompkins www.sustainabletompkins.org 607-533-7312 (home office) 607-220-8991 (cell) 1 Maple Avenue Lansing, NY 14882 gaynicholson at gmail.com From dnr6 at cornell.edu Thu Jul 9 15:52:12 2009 From: dnr6 at cornell.edu (Daniel Roth) Date: Thu, 09 Jul 2009 15:52:12 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] EPA summer webinars on green purchasing Message-ID: <4A564A6C.5060506@cornell.edu> FYI... -------- Original Message -------- Subject: EPA summer webinars Date: Thu, 9 Jul 2009 14:13:15 -0500 From: Sarita Upadhyay Reply-To: Sarita Upadhyay To: hub-l at cornell.edu Hi everyone, Just wanted to let you all know that the EPA is hosting some webinars that are open to the public. They get people from government and private agencies to speak at them. Here is the schedule of topics: July 16 - Biodegradable Plastics: From Cradle to Cradle August 20 - Sustainable Product Outlook September 17 - Source Reduction ? A Vision for a Zero Waste America They look pretty interesting. If you want to check them out, this is the website: http://www.epa.gov/epawaste/rcc/web-academy/index.htm Happy Summer! Sarita -- Daniel Roth Sustainability Coordinator Office of Environmental Compliance and Sustainability Cornell University www.sustainablecampus.cornell.edu Youth Action Team Co-Chair US Partnership for Education for Sustainable Development www.uspartnership.org 607-254-8077 (office) 607-280-2312 (cell) 607-255-8461 (fax) 395 Pine Tree Road, Suite 230 Ithaca, NY 14850 From landofdawes at gmail.com Thu Jul 9 19:31:21 2009 From: landofdawes at gmail.com (Debaura Dahl) Date: Thu, 9 Jul 2009 19:31:21 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Earth Spiritual community forming of the grid in West Danby Message-ID: <4981f0770907091631l73a08ad0l9b3e3d6df6d29ea9@mail.gmail.com> The Land of Dawes Earth Spiritual Community Now Forming Beautiful land forest and fields on 38 acres off the grid with lots of potential for like minded people. Let us dream and create reality together. Sustainability is a way of life... Come co-create the experience. Ceremonies for peace and healing are held. Call for more info. I am living there now in a humble log cabin with solar energy, large barn and chickens and there is a yurt available for rent also. 512 Dawes Hill Rd. Newfield NY 14867 607-564-9406 landofdawes at gmail.com Debaura From ws at twcny.rr.com Fri Jul 10 07:10:36 2009 From: ws at twcny.rr.com (Wendy Skinner) Date: Fri, 10 Jul 2009 07:10:36 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] SewGreen News, 7-9-09: Updated Summer Class Schedule Message-ID: SewGreen News, July 9, 2009 www.sew-green.org SUMMER CLASSES SewGreen offers sewing classes for all ages. The teacher-student ratio is low, and success is guaranteed. Our classroom is located in the Women's Community Building, 100 W Seneca Street, in downtown Ithaca. Come sew with us! Pre-registration is required. Scholarships are available. All materials are supplied. To sign up for a class(es), contact Wendy, coord at sew-green.org ; 607-277-7611. - - - - - - - - - - FOR ADULTS & TEENS (13 and up) Our June and July basic classes have been well-attended. For those who have completed our beginning classes, or who already have a good foundation in machine sewing, the following classes will build your skills and provide some great projects to perfect. PLUS: We've added more beginning classes in August (see below). Beginning Sewing III: Beach Party! Prerequisite: Beginning Sewing II or equivalent. * * Part 1: 6 - 8:30 pm, Tuesday, July 14 -- Make a beach bag, with custom pockets to hold your sunscreen, water bottle, i-Pod etc. $15. Okay to take as a stand-alone class or combine with Part 2. * * Part 2: 6 - 8:30 pm, Tuesdays, July 21 28 -- Make pajama-style capri length beach pants, and a short kimono top made from summery fabrics. Two sessions. $30. Beginning Sewing III: Handbags! Prerequisite: Beginning Sewing II or equivalent. * * Part 1: 6 - 8:30 pm, Wednesday, July 15 -- Make a dressy evening bag with a lining and zipper. $15. Take as a stand-alone class or combine with Part 2. * * Part 2, 6 - 8:30 pm, Wednesdays, July 22, and 29 -- Make a gorgeous, roomy, shoulder bag with padded straps and a contrasting lining. It holds more than you can imagine and still looks stylish. Two sessions. $30. Beginning Sewing I: Open to all 6 to 8 pm, Wednesday, August 5 -- OR -- 6 to 8 pm, Tuesday, August 11, * This is our basic how-to class for beginners. You'll learn to use a sewing machine and make a simple tote bag. $15. Beginning Sewing II: Prerequisite: Beginning Sewing II or equivalent. 6 to 8:30 pm, Thursday, August 6 -- OR -- 6 to 8:30 pm, Wednesday, August 12 Learn the next steps in machine sewing and make a great all-purpose apron. $15. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - FOR KIDS (ages 8 to 12) Start-Up Level 1 classes are recommended for beginners or those who have done only a little machine sewing. Those who have learned machine sewing with us are probably ready for Level 2 classes. Kids may repeat classes if they like. As our teachers get to know your children, we will do our best to accommodate their particular interests and learning styles. Start-Up, Level 1: Open to all 9 am to noon; Tues, Weds, Thurs; July 21, 22, 23 Basic how-to in machine and hand sewing for beginners or those who want a review. Projects include a throw pillow and a small patchwork quilt. $60. Start-Up, Level 2: Prerequisite: Start-Up 1 or any SewGreen beginning class/lesson or equivalent. 9 am to noon; Tues, Weds, Thurs; July 28, 29, 30 Next steps in machine sewing. Projects include a simple top, pants, or skirt. $60. Start-Up Week, Level 1: Open to all 9 am to noon - OR - 1 to 4 pm; Mon - Fri; Aug 17 through 21 Basic how-to in machine and hand sewing for beginners or those who want a review. Projects progress from easy patchwork quilts to simple clothing. Choose the morning or afternoon series. $90. Start-Up Week, Level 2/3: Prerequisite: Start-Up 1 or any SewGreen beginning class or equivalent. 9 am to noon - OR - 1 to 4 pm; Mon - Fri; Aug 24 through 28 Next steps in machine sewing and needlecraft. Projects include simple clothing and refashioning. Choose the morning or afternoon series. $90. - - - - - - - - - - - - - Want to visit the classroom? Drop by any weekday this summer, from 1 to 5 pm. We are usually there, hosting a crew of summer teen workers and apprentices. It's a lively scene, but we'll have time to say hi and give you a brief tour. - - - - - - - - - - - - - SewGreen is a not-for-profit community program that encourages sustainability through reuse, responsible consumerism, and a rediscovery of sewing as a self-reliant skill. We serve a diverse population in the spirit of perpetual invitation and cross-cultural learning. SewGreen isn't ours; it's yours. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ To be added or subtracted from SewGreen's newsletter distribution list, contact Wendy Skinner, SewGreen Coordinator, coord at sew-green.org, 607-277-7611. From landofdawes at gmail.com Fri Jul 10 08:03:22 2009 From: landofdawes at gmail.com (Debaura Dahl) Date: Fri, 10 Jul 2009 08:03:22 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Earth Spiritual Community Now Forming Message-ID: <4981f0770907100503s4e32a733g4c9ed34833f44007@mail.gmail.com> The Land of Dawes Earth Spiritual Community Now Forming Beautiful land forest and fields on 38 acres off the grid with lots of potential for like minded people. Let us dream and create reality together. Sustainability is a way of life... Come co-create the experience. Ceremonies for peace and healing are held. Call for more info. I am living there now in a humble log cabin with solar energy, large barn and chickens and there is a yurt available for rent also. 512 Dawes Hill Rd. Newfield NY 14867 607-564-9406 landofdawes at gmail.com Debaura From landofdawes at gmail.com Fri Jul 10 08:27:38 2009 From: landofdawes at gmail.com (Debaura Dahl) Date: Fri, 10 Jul 2009 08:27:38 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Earth Spiritual Community Now Forming Message-ID: <4981f0770907100527u7d5ab5c2yde2d9a5b64709b01@mail.gmail.com> The Land of Dawes Earth Spiritual Community Now Forming Beautiful land forest and fields on 38 acres off the grid with lots of potential for like minded people. Let us dream and create reality together. Sustainability is a way of life... Come co-create the experience. Ceremonies for peace and healing are held. Call for more info. I am living there now in a humble log cabin with solar energy, large barn and chickens and there is a yurt available for rent also. 512 Dawes Hill Rd. Newfield NY 14867 607-564-9406 landofdawes at gmail.com Debaura From landofdawes at gmail.com Fri Jul 10 09:06:07 2009 From: landofdawes at gmail.com (Debaura Dahl) Date: Fri, 10 Jul 2009 09:06:07 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Earth Spiritual Community Message-ID: <4981f0770907100606r2a44327fh8db204c25b6ff75a@mail.gmail.com> The Land of Dawes Earth Spiritual Community Now Forming Beautiful land forest and fields on 38 acres off the grid with lots of potential for like minded people. Let us dream and create reality together. Sustainability is a way of life... Come co-create the experience. Ceremonies for peace and healing are held. Call for more info. I am living there now in a humble log cabin with solar energy, large barn and chickens and there is a yurt available for rent also. 512 Dawes Hill Rd. Newfield NY 14867 607-564-9406 Debaura From landofdawes at gmail.com Fri Jul 10 09:13:20 2009 From: landofdawes at gmail.com (Debaura Dahl) Date: Fri, 10 Jul 2009 09:13:20 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Earth Spiritual Community Message-ID: <4981f0770907100613j48834ba2p19782e06b4d4ac11@mail.gmail.com> The Land of Dawes Earth Spiritual Community Now Forming Beautiful land forest and fields on 38 acres off the grid with lots of potential for like minded people. Let us dream and create reality together. Sustainability is a way of life... Come co-create the experience. Ceremonies for peace and healing are held. Call for more info. I am living there now in a humble log cabin with solar energy, large barn and chickens and there is a yurt available for rent also. Debaura 512 Dawes Hill Rd. Newfield NY 14867 607-564-9406 From bonnieora at alivinglibrary.org Fri Jul 10 02:53:33 2009 From: bonnieora at alivinglibrary.org (bonnieora at alivinglibrary.org) Date: Thu, 09 Jul 2009 23:53:33 -0700 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] REMINDER: ART, ECOLOGY, GARDEN: THINK, TALK & DO, this Saturday, July 11th, 10-3pm Message-ID: <20090709235333.apuxwi9pssc8occc@webmail.alivinglibrary.org> YOU ARE INVITED to Art, Ecology, Garden: Think, Talk & Do event at the OMI/Excelsior Living Library & Think Park on Saturday, July 11th, 10am-3pm at San Miguel Child Development Center. Art, Ecology, Garden: Think, Talk & Do provides a unique opportunity to discuss sustainability, ecology, education, art, food and much more while digging, moving materials, gardening, getting dirty and having fun in a soon-to-be beautiful setting full of native trees, fruits, flowers, and vegetables. What is A Living Library? A Living Library is a holistic concept and place-based framework developed by Bonnie Ora Sherk in 1981 and now sponsored by Life Frames, Inc., the non-profit organization she founded in 1992. A Living Library, or A.L.L. for short, provides a vision and shows a way to create meaningful and healing ecological and sustainable environmental and educational transformation in communities - locally, nationally, globally. Incorporating systemic design, A.L.L transforms sunken meadows and brownfields, urban sprawl and desolation, public parks and plazas, concrete and asphalt schoolyards, civic centers or undeveloped wastelands into vibrant and relevant community learning environments and highly visible public magnets offering innovative and practical community and economic development, plus more. In San Francisco, there are 3 Branch Living Library & Think Parks underway: OMI/Excelsior Branch, Bernal Heights Branch, and Chinatown Branch. All sites will soon be linked through Green Powered Digital Gateways. To learn more, please visit: http://www.alivinglibrary.org Please RSVP and let us know if you will be able to join us and please spread the word to anyone who might be interested. WHEN: SATURDAY, JULY 11TH, 10-3 PM BRING POTLUCK LUNCH TO SHARE WHERE: OMI/EXCELSIOR LIVING LIBRARY & THINK PARK At San Miguel Child Development Center, which is between 333-241 Oneida off San Jose Avenue(Oneida is between Ocean and Geneva) 1 1/2 blocks from Balboa BART & near MUNI Thank you for your help and creative participation! RSVP: Jana Blankenship mirjana.blankenship at gmail.com Bonnie Ora Sherk Founder & Director Life Frames, Inc. & A Living Library bonnieora at alivinglibrary.org http://www.alivinglibrary.org 415.206.9710 212.242.1700 A Living Library with all sectors of community, incorporates local resources and transforms them to become vibrant, content-rich, ecological learning landscapes; each Branch linked to another. From elansla at ecovillage.ithaca.ny.us Fri Jul 10 10:46:25 2009 From: elansla at ecovillage.ithaca.ny.us (Elan Shapiro) Date: Fri, 10 Jul 2009 10:46:25 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Sustainability Tour Wed. July 15 12:30-6:00 Message-ID: What's so special about sustainability in the Ithaca area? See for yourself and/or suggest this afternoon tour, on Wednesday, July 15 to guests and visitors. Experience! Finger Lakes offers a 10 % discount on their new Sustainability Tour Between the Lakes to local residents who want to know more about what makes Ithaca one of the top 100 Green Places to live. Visit unique places that define Ithaca as one of the most progressive communities in the country dedicated to sustainable living. You've heard about Eco-Village at Ithaca. You've even driven by it on Route 79 West. Now you can get an inside view of this intentional community dedicated to living more sustainably and cooperatively. Have you seen the flowering plants growing on top of the Eco-Village bus stop there on Route 79? Learn why green roofs are popping up all over the country at Mother Plants. Tour this nursery in Enfield dedicated to growing plants for green roofs. Check out their bio-diesel pick-up truck, too. Enjoy a trip to a farm where even the electricity is homegrown. Warren Pond Farm is off-the-grid and produces its own power with solar panels, windmills and a waterwheel. Take a tour of this sustainable homestead and taste produce fresh from the fields. The Trumansburg Farmers Market is the last stop on the tour. Enjoy live music performed by Tiovo. Taste Samantha Izzo's fresh fare from Simply Red Bistro, shop for produce, meats, eggs, cheese, flowers, herbs, honey, wine, cider, arts and crafts. And be prepared for a special treat at the end. Elan Shapiro, tour guide, highlights other points of interest along the route and adds entertaining and educational commentary on the sustainabiity movement in our area and around the world. The tour departs from the Ithaca Children's Garden parking lot at the beginning of Cass Park at 12:30 pm and returns before 6 pm. This tour gives local residents and their guests a unique daytrip or stay-cation seeing the greener side of Ithaca. For further information contact: Laura Falk Experience! The Finger Lakes 607-233-4818 / laura at experiencefingerlakes.com -- Elan Shapiro Sustainable Living Associates Frog's Way B&B 211 Rachel Carson Way Ithaca, NY 14850 607-275-0249 607-592-8402 Cell "Be the change we want to see in the world" Mohandas Gandhi From northsheep at juno.com Fri Jul 10 14:41:24 2009 From: northsheep at juno.com (northsheep at juno.com) Date: Fri, 10 Jul 2009 14:41:24 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Upping the Ante Message-ID: <20090710.144220.1552.13.northsheep@juno.com> It is Oh so convenient to conflate personal and social change. We do it so much these days that I have been searching for a hard-hitting way to explain why this is dead wrong. This piece by Derrick Jensen does the job right. Karl North Northland Sheep Dairy, Freetown, New York USA www.geocities.com/northsheep/ "Pueblo que canta no morira" - Cuban saying "They only call it class warfare when we fight back" - Anon. Forget Shorter Showers Why personal change does not equal political change by Derrick Jensen Published in the July/August 2009 issue of Orion magazine WOULD ANY SANE PERSON think dumpster diving would have stopped Hitler, or that composting would have ended slavery or brought about the eight-hour workday, or that chopping wood and carrying water would have gotten people out of Tsarist prisons, or that dancing naked around a fire would have helped put in place the Voting Rights Act of 1957 or the Civil Rights Act of 1964? Then why now, with all the world at stake, do so many people retreat into these entirely personal ?solutions?? Part of the problem is that we?ve been victims of a campaign of systematic misdirection. Consumer culture and the capitalist mindset have taught us to substitute acts of personal consumption (or enlightenment) for organized political resistance. An Inconvenient Truth helped raise consciousness about global warming. But did you notice that all of the solutions presented had to do with personal consumption?changing light bulbs, inflating tires, driving half as much?and had nothing to do with shifting power away from corporations, or stopping the growth economy that is destroying the planet? Even if every person in the United States did everything the movie suggested, U.S. carbon emissions would fall by only 22 percent. Scientific consensus is that emissions must be reduced by at least 75 percent worldwide. Or let?s talk water. We so often hear that the world is running out of water. People are dying from lack of water. Rivers are dewatered from lack of water. Because of this we need to take shorter showers. See the disconnect? Because I take showers, I?m responsible for drawing down aquifers? Well, no. More than 90 percent of the water used by humans is used by agriculture and industry. The remaining 10 percent is split between municipalities and actual living breathing individual humans. Collectively, municipal golf courses use as much water as municipal human beings. People (both human people and fish people) aren?t dying because the world is running out of water. They?re dying because the water is being stolen. Or let?s talk energy. Kirkpatrick Sale summarized it well: ?For the past 15 years the story has been the same every year: individual consumption?residential, by private car, and so on?is never more than about a quarter of all consumption; the vast majority is commercial, industrial, corporate, by agribusiness and government [he forgot military]. So, even if we all took up cycling and wood stoves it would have a negligible impact on energy use, global warming and atmospheric pollution.? Or let?s talk waste. In 2005, per-capita municipal waste production (basically everything that?s put out at the curb) in the U.S. was about 1,660 pounds. Let?s say you?re a die-hard simple-living activist, and you reduce this to zero. You recycle everything. You bring cloth bags shopping. You fix your toaster. Your toes poke out of old tennis shoes. You?re not done yet, though. Since municipal waste includes not just residential waste, but also waste from government offices and businesses, you march to those offices, waste reduction pamphlets in hand, and convince them to cut down on their waste enough to eliminate your share of it. Uh, I?ve got some bad news. Municipal waste accounts for only 3 percent of total waste production in the United States. I want to be clear. I?m not saying we shouldn?t live simply. I live reasonably simply myself, but I don?t pretend that not buying much (or not driving much, or not having kids) is a powerful political act, or that it?s deeply revolutionary. It?s not. Personal change doesn?t equal social change. So how, then, and especially with all the world at stake, have we come to accept these utterly insufficient responses? I think part of it is that we?re in a double bind. A double bind is where you?re given multiple options, but no matter what option you choose, you lose, and withdrawal is not an option. At this point, it should be pretty easy to recognize that every action involving the industrial economy is destructive (and we shouldn?t pretend that solar photovoltaics, for example, exempt us from this: they still require mining and transportation infrastructures at every point in the production processes; the same can be said for every other so-called green technology). So if we choose option one?if we avidly participate in the industrial economy?we may in the short term think we win because we may accumulate wealth, the marker of ?success? in this culture. But we lose, because in doing so we give up our empathy, our animal humanity. And we really lose because industrial civilization is killing the planet, which means everyone loses. If we choose the ?alternative? option of living more simply, thus causing less harm, but still not stopping the industrial economy from killing the planet, we may in the short term think we win because we get to feel pure, and we didn?t even have to give up all of our empathy (just enough to justify not stopping the horrors), but once again we really lose because industrial civilization is still killing the planet, which means everyone still loses. The third option, acting decisively to stop the industrial economy, is very scary for a number of reasons, including but not restricted to the fact that we?d lose some of the luxuries (like electricity) to which we?ve grown accustomed, and the fact that those in power might try to kill us if we seriously impede their ability to exploit the world?none of which alters the fact that it?s a better option than a dead planet. Any option is a better option than a dead planet. Besides being ineffective at causing the sorts of changes necessary to stop this culture from killing the planet, there are at least four other problems with perceiving simple living as a political act (as opposed to living simply because that?s what you want to do). The first is that it?s predicated on the flawed notion that humans inevitably harm their landbase. Simple living as a political act consists solely of harm reduction, ignoring the fact that humans can help the Earth as well as harm it. We can rehabilitate streams, we can get rid of noxious invasives, we can remove dams, we can disrupt a political system tilted toward the rich as well as an extractive economic system, we can destroy the industrial economy that is destroying the real, physical world. The second problem?and this is another big one?is that it incorrectly assigns blame to the individual (and most especially to individuals who are particularly powerless) instead of to those who actually wield power in this system and to the system itself. Kirkpatrick Sale again: ?The whole individualist what-you-can-do-to-save-the-earth guilt trip is a myth. We, as individuals, are not creating the crises, and we can?t solve them.? The third problem is that it accepts capitalism?s redefinition of us from citizens to consumers. By accepting this redefinition, we reduce our potential forms of resistance to consuming and not consuming. Citizens have a much wider range of available resistance tactics, including voting, not voting, running for office, pamphleting, boycotting, organizing, lobbying, protesting, and, when a government becomes destructive of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, we have the right to alter or abolish it. The fourth problem is that the endpoint of the logic behind simple living as a political act is suicide. If every act within an industrial economy is destructive, and if we want to stop this destruction, and if we are unwilling (or unable) to question (much less destroy) the intellectual, moral, economic, and physical infrastructures that cause every act within an industrial economy to be destructive, then we can easily come to believe that we will cause the least destruction possible if we are dead. The good news is that there are other options. We can follow the examples of brave activists who lived through the difficult times I mentioned?Nazi Germany, Tsarist Russia, antebellum United States?who did far more than manifest a form of moral purity; they actively opposed the injustices that surrounded them. We can follow the example of those who remembered that the role of an activist is not to navigate systems of oppressive power with as much integrity as possible, but rather to confront and take down those systems. ____________________________________________________________ You have a right to seek justice! Click here to find experienced lawyers across the USA. http://thirdpartyoffers.juno.com/TGL2141/fc/BLSrjpTOhjWdXMmAB8RbhefQeKVj3wmxAPPkeUnr4LCBXyKQHCsgEANxKrm/ From steve at fingerlakespermaculture.org Fri Jul 10 15:47:19 2009 From: steve at fingerlakespermaculture.org (Steve Gabriel) Date: Fri, 10 Jul 2009 15:47:19 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Fwd: [flpci] Help Raise Rafters on Reciprocal Roof, 7/11/09 In-Reply-To: References: <5D9762AE-0391-4D87-89F1-B317217034E4@fingerlakespermaculture.org> Message-ID: <24121f890907101247r7c71718fpb43ada7bfecab0e9@mail.gmail.com> ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: burns Date: Fri, Jul 10, 2009 at 10:10 AM Subject: [flpci] Help Raise Rafters on Reciprocal Roof, 7/11/09 To: Finger Lakes Permaculture Cc: FLPCI Alumni Tomorrow (Saturday 7/11), this summer's apprentices will be hoisting up the large black locust beams for the Finger Lakes Permaculture Institute's new classroom at CayutaSun. If you are interested in timber frame construction, octagons, or reciprocal roof construction you might find this project interesting. All alumni, friends, family and supporters who can lend a hand are warmly welcome. We will continue to finish this project throughout the following week. Our crew will be working on other projects as well and your help, company, and encouragement is sought. Give a call and let us know if you are coming. Directions to the site can be found at http://www.cayuta.org Michael Burns 607-227-0316 Steve Gabriel 303-815-3535 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Support Microloans through "Team Permaculture" @ Kiva.org http://www.kiva.org/team/team_permaculture Reinvesting our surpluses in eco-social regeneration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . _______________________________________________ Finger Lakes Permaculture Institute Alumni discussion and announcements FLPCI at lists.interactivist.net http://lists.interactivist.net/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/flpci http://www.fingerlakespermaculture.org -- Work With Nature *ecological design solutions* 303.815.3535 steve at WorkWithNature.net www.WorkWithNature.net Finger Lakes Permaculture Institute *design certification, apprenticeships, workshops* www.FingerLakesPermaculture.org From hilary_lambert at yahoo.com Fri Jul 10 15:49:56 2009 From: hilary_lambert at yahoo.com (Hilary Lambert) Date: Fri, 10 Jul 2009 15:49:56 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Cayuga Lake Watershed Network: Open House, Saturday July 11 from 5 - 8 pm on the Wells College campus, Aurora NY Message-ID: <458794.50099.qm@smtp109.prem.mail.ac4.yahoo.com> Cayuga Lake Watershed Network Summer Open House Saturday July 11, 5:00 to 8:00 pm At our Network office in Zabriskie Hall on the Wells College campus in Aurora NY. Take 34, 34B and 90 north along the east shore of Cayuga Lake to beautiful Aurora. Look for our signs! Our summer open house is a time when the public is invited to take a tour of our offices. You can view and comment on our project displays and talk one-on-one with our staff and members of our board about environmental issues that concern you. There are interactive displays for the kids and informative conversation for the grownups! This year we are combining the fun by holding our event on the evening of Aurorafest (http://www.auroranewyork.us/AuroraFest.html ). We encourage all ages to attend! Free to all; refreshments served. More about the Cayuga Lake Watershed Network at: http://www.cayugalake.org From gaynicholson at aol.com Sun Jul 12 22:41:23 2009 From: gaynicholson at aol.com (Gay Nicholson) Date: Sun, 12 Jul 2009 22:41:23 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Reminder - Green Marketing Panel at La Tourelle on Monday night! Message-ID: Hello Sustainability Friends, Did you know... The Hartman Group released a study on marketing sustainable brands in a downturn economy. They found that 75% of consumers are buying the same amount or more of green products than last year. The study results led to 5 tips on how to connect with these consumers -- such as telling the story behind your product, and using your customers' own words to describe sustainability. These are critical times to leverage such marketing knowledge for your green business or sustainability nonprofit. This is why the Hub has gathered a panel to speak on their green marketing experiences and share their expert advice. We hope you can join us Monday night at La Tourelle. We will be hearing from four panelists with local, regional, and national marketing experience. You can find their bios on our website (http://greenresourcehub. org) along with other details and directions. If you have friends that are interested in this topic, please direct them to our website to register. Thank you! Green Resource Hub -- ---------------------------------------------------- Gay Nicholson, Ph.D. President Sustainable Tompkins www.sustainabletompkins.org 607-533-7312 (home office) 607-220-8991 (cell) 1 Maple Avenue Lansing, NY 14882 gaynicholson at gmail.com From michael at fingerlakespermaculture.org Mon Jul 13 23:21:41 2009 From: michael at fingerlakespermaculture.org (burns) Date: Mon, 13 Jul 2009 23:21:41 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Solar Panel Wiring Workshop, Saturday July 18, 2009 Message-ID: Demystify Solar Electricity: Learn about the basic components of an off-grid solar electric system and how to wire and connect new panels. Joe Armstrong will demonstrate and work through the basic steps to connect solar panels to a battery bank for an off-grid home. Participants will help make the connections and will have the chance to see a wind and solar powered home. Saturday, July 18, 2009 9 am until ? (pack a lunch) Directions found at: http://www.cayuta.org Admission is free and donations support the work of the Finger Lakes Permaculture Institute. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Finger Lakes Permaculture Institute online: http://www.fingerlakespermaculture.org/ http://www.flxpermaculture.net/page/Finger+Lakes+Permaculture+Institute http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=123098150122 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- From shiragolding at gmail.com Tue Jul 14 11:50:36 2009 From: shiragolding at gmail.com (Shira Golding) Date: Tue, 14 Jul 2009 11:50:36 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Community Swap Meet Monday, July 20th! Message-ID: <2E328D2C-24DC-491B-A998-3F5284342498@gmail.com> SHARE TOMPKINS COMMUNITY SWAP MEET #3 Need any furniture? Wanna make a button? Like sharing? Have skills? Bring goods and services you'd like to share, and you'll be able to barter, give away or sell your offerings to other community members. The more we can provide for one another locally, the closer we are to sustainability! Monday, July 20th, 7-9pm Jamie and Kenzie's Place: 412 E. Tompkins St. Apt 1 (the bottom apt, between N. Aurora and Linn St.), Ithaca, NY Google Map: http://tinyurl.com/ljkqg3 Our third swap meet will be hosted by Jamie and Kenzie who live in Fall Creek and have a yard with outdoor seating where we can congregate. They've got a bunch of furniture and some lumber to part with. If it's raining we might reschedule so check the Facebook event page for updates (see below). Feel free to also bring potluck dishes and refreshments that can be shared during the swap meet! Shira and Ari will be bringing their button-maker! You'll be able to make your own hand-drawn buttons to promote your business, organization, activist group or just to express yourself. Trades appreciated. PARKING: Please park on the street or at the Fall Creek elementary school or laundromat (both a block away). You can post haves/wants on Facebook or to the Share Tompkins email list (see below). What to bring: - Food and Produce: veggies, teas, baked goods, jams, tofu, etc. - Body Care: tinctures, soaps, creams, etc. - Handmade Crafts: ceramics, candles, art, etc. - Stuff: electronics, housewares, tools, books, etc. - Services: massage, bike repair, web design, accounting, etc. - Labor: shoveling, hauling, planting, etc. - Bags, boxes and carts to take stuff home in Guidelines: - Our goal is sustainability - please bring stuff that is locally- grown or made from local materials if possible. - Please limit what you bring to what you can fit in a lap-sized box - you can always arrange for pick-up after the meeting. - Be prepared to take back home with you whatever you don't end up bartering or giving away. - Please bring stuff that is in good condition or can be easily- repaired - no junk! To rsvp or for more information, contact Shira Golding, sharetompkins at riseup.net , 607-821-0654 RSVP on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=210395035580 Join the Share Tompkins Facebook group: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=83941209554 Check out the NEW Share Tompkins website: http://sharetompkins.wordpress.com Join the Share Tompkins email list: https://lists.aktivix.org/mailman/listinfo/sharetompkins Photos from the first two Swap Meets and of sharing in Tompkins County: http://www.flickr.com/groups/sharetompkins/pool/ If you can't make this swap meet, stay tuned for the next one! Brought to you by Share Tompkins, created to help folks share and trade goods, services and labor in Ithaca and Tompkins County. From earthdayithaca at yahoo.com Tue Jul 14 12:07:23 2009 From: earthdayithaca at yahoo.com (Joey Gates) Date: Tue, 14 Jul 2009 09:07:23 -0700 (PDT) Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Solar Food Dryer - last call before cherry season! Message-ID: <830525.25780.qm@web56404.mail.re3.yahoo.com> Hi Valerie, I was wondering if Otto is going to make more dryers this summer. Thanks, Joey --- On Mon, 6/8/09, Valorie Rockney wrote: > From: Valorie Rockney > Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Solar Food Dryer - last call before cherry season! > To: "Sustainable Tompkins County listserv" , "Steve Gabriel" , village-plus-tree at ecovillage.ithaca.ny.us, "diane fine" , "tim drake" , "jed jordan" , ithaca_freeskool at riseup.net, "jason hamilton" , "Katie Quinn-Jacobs" , "Yvonne LaMontagne" , tammyqvu at gmail.com, "denise mooney" , "burns" , "Sabrina Johnston" , "Harold Mills" , "Alison Fromme" > Cc: SunWorks at SolarFoodDryer.com, "Graham O" > Date: Monday, June 8, 2009, 12:15 PM > Want to preserve the bounty of your > harvest, without using fossil fuel for either preservation > or storage? To maximize the vitamin content of your stored > food? Then solar food dehydration is for you. > > Here's a chance to buy a solar food dryer, made by Otto > Ottoson, a local carpenter. The dryer is similar to Eben > Fodor's? Sun Works design in his book The Solar Food > Dryer: How to Make and Use Your Own Low-Cost, High > Performance, Sun-Powered Food Dehydrator. We thank Eben for > his permission to use his design, and we highly recommend > his book and his websites http://www.solarfooddryer.com/? and http://www.fodorandassociates.com/index.html. > > On sunny days the dehydrator runs entirely on passive solar > energy. If the day turns cloudy or rainy, there's an > electric backup.? The dryers are screened to keep out > insects, and adjustable venting allows you to control the > temperature. It's quiet because there is no fan; air > circulates by natural convection (hot air rises and cool air > flows in from below). > > Because these dryers are American-made, they are more > expensive than the imported products we may be used to. The > cost is $375, our best estimate of the cost of labor and > materials.If it turns out to cost less, we'll charge less. > The cabinet will be made from pine rather than plywood as in > the original design, to address concerns we heard about > possible off-gassing of formaldehyde from plywood. In > addition, these dryers will use a small ceramic heating unit > for backup, which should be even more energy efficient than > the light bulb in the original design. > > I tried Otto's prototype with tomatoes, green peppers, even > onions. The green peppers did look like dried spiders, but I > thought they tasted good. Best of all were the cherries, > which I doled out like candy all winter long. I liked the > solar food dryer much better than a conventional electric > dehydrator, which I found noisy and hot. > > If you would like to order a solar food dryer, please send > or bring a down payment of $100 to arrive by the end of the > week to Otto Ottoson, 207 Rachel Carson Way, Ithaca, NY > 14850. You can also call him at 277-0589. The rest of the > money will be due when the dryers are ready. This is > anticipated to be an ongoing project, with dehydrators built > from time to time when there are enough orders to warrant > making more. However if you want to dry this year's > cherries, better place your order now! > > If you need to contact me, I'm at vrockney at ecovillage.ithaca.ny.us, > or 272-4921 before 9 pm. You're welcome to forward this to > others who might be interested. > > Yours for off-grid food storage, > > Valorie > > > > _______________________________________________ > For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins > County area, please visit:? http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ > > RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information > for: > SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org > http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins > Questions about the list? ask sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org > free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org > From mbrown at ithaca.edu Tue Jul 14 11:57:49 2009 From: mbrown at ithaca.edu (Marian Brown) Date: Tue, 14 Jul 2009 11:57:49 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Cornell Ctr for a Sustainable Future to offer discussion of the role of education in addressing sustainability challenges Message-ID: <4A5CAAFD.1040302@ithaca.edu> > Wednesday, July 15: Francis J. DiSalvo at Statler Auditorium, 7:30 p.m. > Cornell Professor Frank DiSalvo, who directs the Cornell Center for a > Sustainable Future, will outline some of the challenges the world > faces in the areas of energy, environment, and economic and human > development, and the role of academic institutions in addressing these > issues. http://www.sce.cornell.edu/ss/about/events/index.php?action=event&id=108 From gaynicholson at aol.com Tue Jul 14 21:18:14 2009 From: gaynicholson at aol.com (Gay Nicholson) Date: Tue, 14 Jul 2009 21:18:14 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] How Confucianism could curb global warming Message-ID: Now here's something to think about -- China is exploring the role of Eastern philosophies in sustainability. Confucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism all have deep messages around connection and harmonious balance. Will these be more powerful than those buried in the Judeo-Christian or secular humanist philosophies? What do you think is driving sustainability behaviors in our community? http://www.csmonitor.com/2009/0626/p09s01-coop.html -- ---------------------------------------------------- Gay Nicholson, Ph.D. President Sustainable Tompkins www.sustainabletompkins.org 607-533-7312 (home office) 607-220-8991 (cell) 1 Maple Avenue Lansing, NY 14882 gaynicholson at gmail.com From bonnieora at alivinglibrary.org Wed Jul 15 02:58:48 2009 From: bonnieora at alivinglibrary.org (Bonnie Sherk) Date: Tue, 14 Jul 2009 23:58:48 -0700 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] How Confucianism could curb global warming In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <7baf356f403158045275a2d8429a599c@alivinglibrary.org> YES !!! On Jul 14, 2009, at 6:18 PM, Gay Nicholson wrote: > Now here's something to think about -- China is exploring the role of > Eastern philosophies in sustainability. Confucianism, Buddhism, and > Taoism > all have deep messages around connection and harmonious balance. Will > these > be more powerful than those buried in the Judeo-Christian or secular > humanist philosophies? What do you think is driving sustainability > behaviors in our community? > > http://www.csmonitor.com/2009/0626/p09s01-coop.html > > -- > ---------------------------------------------------- > Gay Nicholson, Ph.D. > President > Sustainable Tompkins > > www.sustainabletompkins.org > > 607-533-7312 (home office) > 607-220-8991 (cell) > > 1 Maple Avenue > Lansing, NY 14882 > gaynicholson at gmail.com > _______________________________________________ > For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, > please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ > > RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: > SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org > http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins > Questions about the list? ask > sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org > free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org > > Bonnie Ora Sherk Founder & Director Life Frames, Inc. & A Living Library? bonnieora at alivinglibrary.org http://www.alivinglibrary.org 415.206.9710 212.242.1700 A Living Library with all sectors of community, incorporates local resources??and?transforms them to become vibrant, content-rich, ecological learning landscapes;??each Branch linked to another. From nidus at pinax.com Wed Jul 15 07:27:48 2009 From: nidus at pinax.com (Bethany Schroeder) Date: Wed, 15 Jul 2009 07:27:48 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] How Confucianism could curb global warming In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <4A5DBD34.7040201@pinax.com> The ancient philosophies of China may have a beneficial influence on the sustainability movement, especially if the tenets of those philosophies finally help people in the West understand that building sustainable communities is not about maintaining things as they are but rather about living within our long-range means--and I include everyone everywhere, not just those of us who have the time and wherewithal to do so. Up to now and with respect to widely getting the word out, philosophies and theories and the pundits who wield them have failed miserably. And from what I've read elsewhere about the so-called sustainability work being carried on in China, failures are plentiful just as they are in the West. Living with the knowledge that we share one world may be a good place to start reckoning our limitations, our challenges, and our opportunities. But you asked what's driving sustainability behaviors in our community, Gay. I wonder whether we can point to conscience or courage or, to paraphrase the article, that we are the children of our parents and the parents of our children in a network of relationships spanning centuries. That'd make my day. Bethany Gay Nicholson wrote: > Now here's something to think about -- China is exploring the role of > Eastern philosophies in sustainability. Confucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism > all have deep messages around connection and harmonious balance. Will these > be more powerful than those buried in the Judeo-Christian or secular > humanist philosophies? What do you think is driving sustainability > behaviors in our community? > > http://www.csmonitor.com/2009/0626/p09s01-coop.html > > From Wericclay at aol.com Wed Jul 15 08:29:03 2009 From: Wericclay at aol.com (Wericclay at aol.com) Date: Wed, 15 Jul 2009 08:29:03 EDT Subject: [SustainableTompkins] How Confucianism could curb global warming Message-ID: Gay has raised good questions. Compassion saves us from the pitfalls of perfectionism. This is the overarching sense of balance at the heart of any mature, reflective religious movement, Western or Eastern. And such balance comes from people who have faced their own paradoxes, contradictions, and hypocrisies and committed themselves to do a bit better at what promotes wholeness and change that might be sustainable. (Fundamentalism in any religious or secular practice never develops this level of self-awareness.) What I see of the sustainability movement from a little distance is that it is still in the "smart" phase of enlightened self interest that seeks the welfare of the whole as much as the individual. This is not a bad place to be, but it does not deal with the problems of how individual needs may run at odds with groups and how groups may too easily become collusive, group-think exercises that undermine innovations that challenge popular assumptions within the larger sustainability movement. While there are many individual and group exceptions, the movement as a whole remains mostly a secular, enlightenment/modernity concern. It has only begun to embrace the deep roots of the religious commitments that define the peoples of the world. One reasonably credible breakdown of religious affiliations, worldwide, is as follows: Just over half of the inhabitants of Earth identify with one of the Western, Abrahamic faiths: 0.2% Jewish, 32% Chrisitian, 20% Muslim. The Eastern traditions account for one-half of inhabitants: 12.5% Hindu, 6% Buddhist, 6.5% Tao and Confucian. The non-religious and atheist account for 12.5% and 2.5%, respectively. The remaining 10% pick up hundreds of different traditions. Sustainability will need to work within the mature practices of each of these approaches (not the simplistic or fundamental ones), if we are to see much of a deepening of sustainability worldwide. Eric Eric Clay, M.Div., Ph.D. Community Coach Shared Journeys, Inc. 832 North Aurora Street Ithaca, NY 14850 607-592-6874 _wericclay at aol.com_ (mailto:wericclay at aol.com) SHARED JOURNEYS That all may thrive and none be excluded **************Can love help you live longer? Find out now. (http://personals.aol.com/articles/2009/02/18/longer-lives-through-relationships/?ncid=emlweu slove00000001) From deerfarm6 at frontiernet.net Wed Jul 15 09:40:37 2009 From: deerfarm6 at frontiernet.net (goodsell) Date: Wed, 15 Jul 2009 09:40:37 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] How Confucianism could curb global warming References: Message-ID: <00ca01ca0551$d61b6590$6501a8c0@Martha> The desire for sustainability has more to do with values than with individual virtues, experience or maturity of enlightenment (although one could pursue the case of early adaptors in a non-secular argument). Eastern religions focus on collectivism where Western religions emphasize individualism (and therefore, indirectly promote capitalism). As a result, Eastern religions have a value system entirely different from Western religions. The other issue that must be addressed is morality, which has been for the most part, lost in Western culture. Up until 100 years ago, morality constrained capitalism. Now we are dealing with unbridled capitalism, a very ugly monster indeed. It's not so much that we need a change of religion to bring about a collective push toward sustainability, it's that we need to restore morality and change the fundamental values of the populous. This could be done either through a religious or cultural shift. Only when we (as a social, religious or cultural group) no longer hold money as our highest value, can other values become priorities thus bringing about the change to a more sustainable way of life. --Martha Martha Goodsell Fallow Hollow Deer Farm, LLC 125 Williams Road Candor, NY 13743 607-659-4635 email: deerfarm6 at frontiernet.net ----- Original Message ----- From: To: Sent: Wednesday, July 15, 2009 8:29 AM Subject: Re: [SustainableTompkins] How Confucianism could curb global warming > Gay has raised good questions. > > Compassion saves us from the pitfalls of perfectionism. This is the > overarching sense of balance at the heart of any mature, reflective > religious > movement, Western or Eastern. And such balance comes from people who > have > faced their own paradoxes, contradictions, and hypocrisies and committed > themselves to do a bit better at what promotes wholeness and change that > might > be sustainable. (Fundamentalism in any religious or secular practice > never > develops this level of self-awareness.) > > What I see of the sustainability movement from a little distance is that > it is still in the "smart" phase of enlightened self interest that seeks > the > welfare of the whole as much as the individual. This is not a bad place > to be, but it does not deal with the problems of how individual needs may > run at odds with groups and how groups may too easily become collusive, > group-think exercises that undermine innovations that challenge popular > assumptions within the larger sustainability movement. > > While there are many individual and group exceptions, the movement as a > whole remains mostly a secular, enlightenment/modernity concern. It has > only > begun to embrace the deep roots of the religious commitments that define > the peoples of the world. > > One reasonably credible breakdown of religious affiliations, worldwide, is > as follows: Just over half of the inhabitants of Earth identify with one > of the Western, Abrahamic faiths: 0.2% Jewish, 32% Chrisitian, 20% > Muslim. > The Eastern traditions account for one-half of inhabitants: 12.5% > Hindu, > 6% Buddhist, 6.5% Tao and Confucian. The non-religious and atheist > account for 12.5% and 2.5%, respectively. The remaining 10% pick up > hundreds of > different traditions. > > Sustainability will need to work within the mature practices of each of > these approaches (not the simplistic or fundamental ones), if we are to > see > much of a deepening of sustainability worldwide. > > Eric > > Eric Clay, M.Div., Ph.D. > Community Coach > Shared Journeys, Inc. > 832 North Aurora Street > Ithaca, NY 14850 > 607-592-6874 > _wericclay at aol.com_ (mailto:wericclay at aol.com) > > SHARED JOURNEYS > That all may thrive and none be excluded > > > > **************Can love help you live longer? Find out now. > (http://personals.aol.com/articles/2009/02/18/longer-lives-through-relationships/?ncid=emlweu > slove00000001) > _______________________________________________ > For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, > please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ > > RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: > SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org > http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins > Questions about the list? ask > sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org > free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org > From Joel.and.Sarah.Gagnon at lightlink.com Wed Jul 15 10:46:54 2009 From: Joel.and.Sarah.Gagnon at lightlink.com (Joel and Sarah Gagnon) Date: Wed, 15 Jul 2009 10:46:54 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] How Confucianism could curb global warming In-Reply-To: <00ca01ca0551$d61b6590$6501a8c0@Martha> References: Message-ID: <5.2.1.1.2.20090715102754.021169e0@pop.lightlink.com> I can't say that I agree with Martha about the inherent difference between western and eastern religions. Christianity is inherently communal. Its core teaching is "being for others", sacrificing oneself for the sake of reconciliation and furtherance of God's plan for creation. That this core focus has been so distorted as to support an individualist philosophy says more about human nature and rationalization than it does about the teachings of Jesus Christ. Our values are shaped by our ethics, and our ethics are often -- in fact usually -- religiously grounded. The search for a common set of ethics based on shared and essentially innate beliefs, is a compelling need supported by the common elements of most religions. Where do we get this set of shared beliefs? An interesting question, to be sure, and the case can be made that the notion that they are "self-evident" as the US Declaration of Independence suggests, rests "solidly" on assertion and a shared desire that they be true. That we have managed the beginnings of a consensus that there are universal human rights is hopeful for dealing with the crisis of the moment, but it needs to be buttressed by action and extended in scope to encompass the imperative to act collectively to address climate change and the rape of the environment. Joel At 09:40 AM 7/15/09 -0400, you wrote: >The desire for sustainability has more to do with values than with >individual virtues, experience or maturity of enlightenment (although one >could pursue the case of early adaptors in a non-secular argument). >Eastern religions focus on collectivism where Western religions emphasize >individualism (and therefore, indirectly promote capitalism). As a result, >Eastern religions have a value system entirely different from Western >religions. The other issue that must be addressed is morality, which has >been for the most part, lost in Western culture. Up until 100 years ago, >morality constrained capitalism. Now we are dealing with unbridled >capitalism, a very ugly monster indeed. It's not so much that we need a >change of religion to bring about a collective push toward sustainability, >it's that we need to restore morality and change the fundamental values of >the populous. This could be done either through a religious or cultural >shift. Only when we (as a social, religious or cultural group) no longer >hold money as our highest value, can other values become priorities thus >bringing about the change to a more sustainable way of life. > >--Martha > >Martha Goodsell >Fallow Hollow Deer Farm, LLC >125 Williams Road >Candor, NY 13743 >607-659-4635 >email: deerfarm6 at frontiernet.net > > > >----- Original Message ----- From: >To: >Sent: Wednesday, July 15, 2009 8:29 AM >Subject: Re: [SustainableTompkins] How Confucianism could curb global warming > > >>Gay has raised good questions. >> >>Compassion saves us from the pitfalls of perfectionism. This is the >>overarching sense of balance at the heart of any mature, reflective religious >>movement, Western or Eastern. And such balance comes from people who have >>faced their own paradoxes, contradictions, and hypocrisies and committed >>themselves to do a bit better at what promotes wholeness and change that >>might >>be sustainable. (Fundamentalism in any religious or secular practice never >>develops this level of self-awareness.) >> >>What I see of the sustainability movement from a little distance is that >>it is still in the "smart" phase of enlightened self interest that seeks the >>welfare of the whole as much as the individual. This is not a bad place >>to be, but it does not deal with the problems of how individual needs may >>run at odds with groups and how groups may too easily become collusive, >>group-think exercises that undermine innovations that challenge popular >>assumptions within the larger sustainability movement. >> >>While there are many individual and group exceptions, the movement as a >>whole remains mostly a secular, enlightenment/modernity concern. It has >>only >>begun to embrace the deep roots of the religious commitments that define >>the peoples of the world. >> >>One reasonably credible breakdown of religious affiliations, worldwide, is >>as follows: Just over half of the inhabitants of Earth identify with one >>of the Western, Abrahamic faiths: 0.2% Jewish, 32% Chrisitian, 20% Muslim. >>The Eastern traditions account for one-half of inhabitants: 12.5% Hindu, >>6% Buddhist, 6.5% Tao and Confucian. The non-religious and atheist >>account for 12.5% and 2.5%, respectively. The remaining 10% pick up >>hundreds of >>different traditions. >> >>Sustainability will need to work within the mature practices of each of >>these approaches (not the simplistic or fundamental ones), if we are to see >>much of a deepening of sustainability worldwide. >> >>Eric >> >>Eric Clay, M.Div., Ph.D. >>Community Coach >>Shared Journeys, Inc. >>832 North Aurora Street >>Ithaca, NY 14850 >>607-592-6874 >>_wericclay at aol.com_ (mailto:wericclay at aol.com) >> >>SHARED JOURNEYS >>That all may thrive and none be excluded >> >> >> >>**************Can love help you live longer? Find out now. >>(http://personals.aol.com/articles/2009/02/18/longer-lives-through-relationships/?ncid=emlweu >> > slove00000001) >>_______________________________________________ >>For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, >>please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ >> >>RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: >>SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org >>http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins >>Questions about the list? ask sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org >>free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org > >_______________________________________________ >For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, >please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ > >RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: >SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org >http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins >Questions about the list? ask sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org >free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org From gaynicholson at gmail.com Wed Jul 15 22:21:47 2009 From: gaynicholson at gmail.com (Gay Nicholson) Date: Wed, 15 Jul 2009 22:21:47 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Pollution outruns Adirondacks Message-ID: http://www.timesunion.com/AspStories/story.asp?storyID=819966&TextPage=2 Pollution outruns Adirondacks Forest proves no match for all the greenhouse gas emissions in park By *BRIAN NEARING* < http://www.timesunion.com/TUNews/author/AuthorPage.aspx?AuthorNum=163>, Staff writer First published in print: Wednesday, July 15, 2009 TUPPER LAKE -- Every day, Adirondack forests soak up and store about 1,600 tons of carbon to help slow global warming. But even tens of millions of trees can't keep up with greenhouse gas emissions from a much smaller number of cars, homes and businesses. That was the finding of a first-ever energy and greenhouse gas audit for the park, which at 6 million acres is the largest intact forest in the northeast. As trees grow, they absorb carbon dioxide, a known greenhouse gas released by the burning of fossil fuels that an international scientific consensus blames for global warming. The Adirondacks, however, can't handle the CO2 emissions from the region's relatively paltry 130,000 full-time residents, along with businesses and cars driven by visitors. Each year, the forests absorb about 600,000 tons of carbon, which is less than a third of what's emitted by human activity in the Adirondack Park, according to the audit. While 600,000 tons may sound like a lot, keep in mind that New York state emits more than 200 million tons of CO2. The report shows that steps must be taken to reduce fossil fuel use by Adirondack residents and visitors, said Kate Fish, project director of ADKCAP, a consortium of government, academic, civic and not-for-profit groups that formed after the conference to create the report. Increasingly, environmentalists are turning to the concept of "ecosystem services," which depicts green spaces as more than simply scenic lanscapes; they are also natural mechanisms -- leafy factories -- for the processing of CO2. The audit, which grew out of a November climate change conference at The Wild Center in Tupper Lake, was done by the Lancaster, Erie County-based environmental consulting firm of Ecology and Environment, with guidance from the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry. "We wanted to know where were the biggest emissions that the park was responsible for," she said. Given the severity of Adirondack winters, it's not surprising that home heating was a major source of energy consumption, particularly given that many homes are older and tend to be energy-inefficient. "We need to figure out ways to financially support people to do this work," Fish said. "There is also a need for trained energy auditors to examine homes, and for contractors trained in energy efficiency." The report also found that the park's large size requires many residents to drive long distances, which boosts gasoline use. All that adds up to an annual energy bill for the region of about $1.5 billion, which includes all gasoline purchases. Despite these factors, the average Adirondacker emits about 16 tons of CO2 annually -- much less than the U.S. average of almost 25 tons, but more than the German average of 12 tons or the English average of 11 tons. One reason that Adirondack emissions are so low is something that local government leaders often lament: a lack of major industries. We're interested in getting our hands on these numbers because we want to see how we could use the projected major changes in national and state energy policies to help build our regional economy," said Ross Whaley, an ADKCAP member and former president of the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry. "One quickly realizes that we need to find an approach to keep some of those energy dollars here," said Brian Towers, of the Adirondack Association of Towns and Villages. "Community leaders from around the region need to investigate every avenue from small hydropower, Any way that we can cut public energy costs have a correlating effect on property taxes." Fish said Lake Placid cut back the village's electrical consumption by more than 10 percent, simply by funding programs for 20,000 energy-efficient light bulbs sold as benefit by local Boy Scouts and refrigerator replacement. "We want to be able to bring the region's net CO2 emissions to zero," she said. "And we want to do it in a way where we are not bringing in so much fuel from outside the country, but in a way that localizes our economy, so that homeowners can use high-efficiency wood furnaces and buy their wood pellets fro a local producer, for example." Brian Nearing can be reached at 454-5094 or by email at bnearing at timesunion.com. A copy of the Adirondack energy and greenhouse gas audit is available online at http://blog.timesunion.com/green -- ---------------------------------------------------- Gay Nicholson, Ph.D. President Sustainable Tompkins www.sustainabletompkins.org 607-533-7312 (home office) 607-220-8991 (cell) 1 Maple Avenue Lansing, NY 14882 gaynicholson at gmail.com From steve at workwithnature.net Thu Jul 16 07:49:21 2009 From: steve at workwithnature.net (Steve Gabriel) Date: Thu, 16 Jul 2009 07:49:21 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] looking for a few volunteers Message-ID: <24121f890907160449x7149992av725008501b44be25@mail.gmail.com> Greetings: The Finger Lakes Permaculture Institute is gearing up for its 7th Permaculture Design Certification course, and we need your help! We are seeking a few hands to come see what the class is all about in exchange for helping out our cooks on site. Each shift you complete (helping with lunch/dinner prep) earns you a spot in one class sesson. Please email steve at fingerlakespermaculture.org if you are interested in this opportunity to sit in on part of this exciting event. -- Work With Nature *ecological design solutions* 303.815.3535 steve at WorkWithNature.net www.WorkWithNature.net Finger Lakes Permaculture Institute *design certification, apprenticeships, workshops* www.FingerLakesPermaculture.org From gjem5760 at yahoo.com Thu Jul 16 09:21:33 2009 From: gjem5760 at yahoo.com (George Frantz) Date: Thu, 16 Jul 2009 06:21:33 -0700 (PDT) Subject: [SustainableTompkins] How Confucianism could curb global warming In-Reply-To: <5.2.1.1.2.20090715102754.021169e0@pop.lightlink.com> Message-ID: <862428.84534.qm@web44908.mail.sp1.yahoo.com> I agree with Joel.? ? The vast majority of "Christian" westerners lack a fundamental understanding of Christianity.? ? It's not really their fault, as, with Karl Marx, they've confused the teachings of of an official church hierarchy with the teachings of Jesus Christ, and hence never really understood his message. ? Placing community above the self is?integral to Christian religious philosophy, just as it is in Confucian philosophy.??Recognition of this is one of the aspects of Amish, Mennonite and Hutterite?anabaptist?community life that sets them?apart from mainstream Christian churches. ? Of course a true embracing of Christianity?would spell the end of capitalism, which is why Christianity really isn't even taught by the mainstream "Christian" churches in this country. ? George Frantz? --- On Wed, 7/15/09, Joel and Sarah Gagnon wrote: From: Joel and Sarah Gagnon Subject: Re: [SustainableTompkins] How Confucianism could curb global warming To: "Sustainable Tompkins County listserv" Date: Wednesday, July 15, 2009, 2:46 PM I can't say that I agree with Martha about the inherent difference between western and eastern religions. Christianity is inherently communal. Its core teaching is "being for others", sacrificing oneself for the sake of reconciliation and furtherance of God's plan for creation. That this core focus has been so distorted as to support an individualist philosophy says more about human nature and rationalization than it does about the teachings of Jesus Christ. Our values are shaped by our ethics, and our ethics are often -- in fact usually --? religiously grounded. The search for a common set of ethics based on shared and essentially innate beliefs, is a compelling need supported by the common elements of most religions. Where do we get this set of shared beliefs? An interesting question, to be sure, and the case can be made that the notion that they are "self-evident" as the US Declaration of Independence suggests, rests "solidly" on assertion and a shared desire that they be true. That we have managed the beginnings of a consensus that there are universal human rights is hopeful for dealing with the crisis of the moment, but it needs to be buttressed by action and extended in scope to encompass the imperative to act collectively to address climate change and the rape of the environment. Joel At 09:40 AM 7/15/09 -0400, you wrote: >The desire for sustainability has more to do with values than with >individual virtues, experience or maturity of enlightenment (although one >could pursue the case of early adaptors in a non-secular argument). >Eastern religions focus on collectivism where Western religions emphasize >individualism (and therefore, indirectly promote capitalism). As a result, >Eastern religions have a value system entirely different from Western >religions. The other issue that must be addressed is morality, which has >been for the most part, lost in Western culture. Up until 100 years ago, >morality constrained capitalism. Now we are dealing with unbridled >capitalism, a very ugly monster indeed. It's not so much that we need a >change of religion to bring about a collective push toward sustainability, >it's that we need to restore morality and change the fundamental values of >the populous. This could be done either through a religious or cultural >shift. Only when we (as a social, religious or cultural group) no longer >hold money as our highest value, can other values become priorities thus >bringing about the change to a more sustainable way of life. > >--Martha > >Martha Goodsell >Fallow Hollow Deer Farm, LLC >125 Williams Road >Candor, NY 13743 >607-659-4635 >email: deerfarm6 at frontiernet.net > > > >----- Original Message ----- From: >To: >Sent: Wednesday, July 15, 2009 8:29 AM >Subject: Re: [SustainableTompkins] How Confucianism could curb global warming > > >>Gay has raised good questions. >> >>Compassion saves us from the pitfalls of perfectionism.? This is the >>overarching sense of balance at the heart of any mature, reflective religious >>movement, Western or Eastern.? And such balance comes from people who have >>faced their own paradoxes, contradictions, and hypocrisies and committed >>themselves to do a bit better at what promotes wholeness and change that >>might >>be sustainable.? (Fundamentalism in any religious or secular practice never >>develops this level of self-awareness.) >> >>What I see of the sustainability movement from a little distance is? that >>it is still in the "smart" phase of enlightened self interest that seeks the >>welfare of the whole as much as the individual.? This is not a bad? place >>to be, but it does not deal with the problems of how individual needs may >>run at odds with groups and how groups may too easily become collusive, >>group-think exercises that undermine innovations that challenge popular >>assumptions within the larger sustainability movement. >> >>While there are many individual and group exceptions, the movement as? a >>whole remains mostly a secular, enlightenment/modernity concern.???It has >>only >>begun to embrace the deep roots of the religious commitments? that define >>the peoples of the world. >> >>One reasonably credible breakdown of religious affiliations, worldwide, is >>as follows:? Just over half of the inhabitants of Earth identify with one >>of the Western, Abrahamic faiths: 0.2% Jewish, 32% Chrisitian,? 20% Muslim. >>The Eastern traditions account for one-half? of? inhabitants:? 12.5% Hindu, >>6% Buddhist, 6.5% Tao and Confucian.? The? non-religious and atheist >>account for 12.5% and 2.5%, respectively.? The? remaining 10% pick up >>hundreds of >>different traditions. >> >>Sustainability will need to work within the mature practices of each of >>these approaches (not the simplistic or fundamental ones), if we are to see >>much? of a deepening of sustainability worldwide. >> >>Eric >> >>Eric Clay,? M.Div., Ph.D. >>Community Coach >>Shared Journeys, Inc. >>832 North Aurora? Street >>Ithaca, NY 14850 >>607-592-6874 >>_wericclay at aol.com_ (mailto:wericclay at aol.com) >> >>SHARED JOURNEYS >>That all may? thrive and none be excluded >> >> >> >>**************Can love help you live longer? Find out now. >>(http://personals.aol.com/articles/2009/02/18/longer-lives-through-relationships/?ncid=emlweu >> > slove00000001) >>_______________________________________________ >>For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, >>please visit:? http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ >> >>RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: >>SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org >>http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins >>Questions about the list? ask sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org >>free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org > >_______________________________________________ >For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, >please visit:? http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ > >RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: >SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org >http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins >Questions about the list? ask sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org >free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org _______________________________________________ For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit:? http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins Questions about the list? ask sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org From Wericclay at aol.com Thu Jul 16 11:57:18 2009 From: Wericclay at aol.com (Wericclay at aol.com) Date: Thu, 16 Jul 2009 11:57:18 EDT Subject: [SustainableTompkins] How Confucianism could curb global warming Message-ID: This all seems a bit one-sided in the last few postings. Christian community and the filial piety of Confucianism are both strong anti-dotes to individualism. That's good, so far as it goes. But anyone who has lived in such settings knows that they can be as oppressive and wasteful of resources and human life as individualistic, market and money driven societies. Community and individualism are both to be valued and not taken to excess. The issue of sustainability would seem to be better served by learning the spiritual skills within each tradition that try to limit excesses of individualism and groupthink, while expanding room for individual and collective action. While Joel would like to see some universal values brought to the fore, I think that sort of search is often a distraction from taking immediate sensible actions that are spiritually well-grounded. People rarely know the spiritual disciplines of one tradition well or deeply, let alone know the disciplines of many religions. So just living more deeply within the possibilities and paradoxes of what one knows may be a sufficient first step. If we are people of good faith, we will then listen to and learn from others, from the paradoxes and possibilities of other people and traditions. But the process unfolds slowly. Eric Eric Clay, M.Div., Ph.D. Community Coach Shared Journeys, Inc. 832 North Aurora Street Ithaca, NY 14850 607-592-6874 _wericclay at aol.com_ (mailto:wericclay at aol.com) SHARED JOURNEYS That all may thrive and none be excluded In a message dated 7/16/2009 8:29:01 A.M. Eastern Standard Time, gjem5760 at yahoo.com writes: I agree with Joel. The vast majority of "Christian" westerners lack a fundamental understanding of Christianity. It's not really their fault, as, with Karl Marx, they've confused the teachings of of an official church hierarchy with the teachings of Jesus Christ, and hence never really understood his message. Placing community above the self is integral to Christian religious philosophy, just as it is in Confucian philosophy. Recognition of this is one of the aspects of Amish, Mennonite and Hutterite anabaptist community life that sets them apart from mainstream Christian churches. Of course a true embracing of Christianity would spell the end of capitalism, which is why Christianity really isn't even taught by the mainstream "Christian" churches in this country. George Frantz --- On Wed, 7/15/09, Joel and Sarah Gagnon wrote: From: Joel and Sarah Gagnon Subject: Re: [SustainableTompkins] How Confucianism could curb global warming To: "Sustainable Tompkins County listserv" Date: Wednesday, July 15, 2009, 2:46 PM I can't say that I agree with Martha about the inherent difference between western and eastern religions. Christianity is inherently communal. Its core teaching is "being for others", sacrificing oneself for the sake of reconciliation and furtherance of God's plan for creation. That this core focus has been so distorted as to support an individualist philosophy says more about human nature and rationalization than it does about the teachings of Jesus Christ. Our values are shaped by our ethics, and our ethics are often -- in fact usually -- religiously grounded. The search for a common set of ethics based on shared and essentially innate beliefs, is a compelling need supported by the common elements of most religions. Where do we get this set of shared beliefs? An interesting question, to be sure, and the case can be made that the notion that they are "self-evident" as the US Declaration of Independence suggests, rests "solidly" on assertion and a shared desire that they be true. That we have managed the beginnings of a consensus that there are universal human rights is hopeful for dealing with the crisis of the moment, but it needs to be buttressed by action and extended in scope to encompass the imperative to act collectively to address climate change and the rape of the environment. Joel At 09:40 AM 7/15/09 -0400, you wrote: >The desire for sustainability has more to do with values than with >individual virtues, experience or maturity of enlightenment (although one >could pursue the case of early adaptors in a non-secular argument). >Eastern religions focus on collectivism where Western religions emphasize >individualism (and therefore, indirectly promote capitalism). As a result, >Eastern religions have a value system entirely different from Western >religions. The other issue that must be addressed is morality, which has >been for the most part, lost in Western culture. Up until 100 years ago, >morality constrained capitalism. Now we are dealing with unbridled >capitalism, a very ugly monster indeed. It's not so much that we need a >change of religion to bring about a collective push toward sustainability, >it's that we need to restore morality and change the fundamental values of >the populous. This could be done either through a religious or cultural >shift. Only when we (as a social, religious or cultural group) no longer >hold money as our highest value, can other values become priorities thus >bringing about the change to a more sustainable way of life. > >--Martha > >Martha Goodsell >Fallow Hollow Deer Farm, LLC >125 Williams Road >Candor, NY 13743 >607-659-4635 >email: deerfarm6 at frontiernet.net > > > >----- Original Message ----- From: >To: >Sent: Wednesday, July 15, 2009 8:29 AM >Subject: Re: [SustainableTompkins] How Confucianism could curb global warming > > >>Gay has raised good questions. >> >>Compassion saves us from the pitfalls of perfectionism. This is the >>overarching sense of balance at the heart of any mature, reflective religious >>movement, Western or Eastern. And such balance comes from people who have >>faced their own paradoxes, contradictions, and hypocrisies and committed >>themselves to do a bit better at what promotes wholeness and change that >>might >>be sustainable. (Fundamentalism in any religious or secular practice never >>develops this level of self-awareness.) >> >>What I see of the sustainability movement from a little distance is that >>it is still in the "smart" phase of enlightened self interest that seeks the >>welfare of the whole as much as the individual. This is not a bad place >>to be, but it does not deal with the problems of how individual needs may >>run at odds with groups and how groups may too easily become collusive, >>group-think exercises that undermine innovations that challenge popular >>assumptions within the larger sustainability movement. >> >>While there are many individual and group exceptions, the movement as a >>whole remains mostly a secular, enlightenment/modernity concern. It has >>only >>begun to embrace the deep roots of the religious commitments that define >>the peoples of the world. >> >>One reasonably credible breakdown of religious affiliations, worldwide, is >>as follows: Just over half of the inhabitants of Earth identify with one >>of the Western, Abrahamic faiths: 0.2% Jewish, 32% Chrisitian, 20% Muslim. >>The Eastern traditions account for one-half of inhabitants: 12.5% Hindu, >>6% Buddhist, 6.5% Tao and Confucian. The non-religious and atheist >>account for 12.5% and 2.5%, respectively. The remaining 10% pick up >>hundreds of >>different traditions. >> >>Sustainability will need to work within the mature practices of each of >>these approaches (not the simplistic or fundamental ones), if we are to see >>much of a deepening of sustainability worldwide. >> >>Eric >> >>Eric Clay, M.Div., Ph.D. >>Community Coach >>Shared Journeys, Inc. >>832 North Aurora Street >>Ithaca, NY 14850 >>607-592-6874 >>_wericclay at aol.com_ (mailto:wericclay at aol.com) >> >>SHARED JOURNEYS >>That all may thrive and none be excluded >> >> >> >>**************Can love help you live longer? Find out now. >>(http://personals.aol.com/articles/2009/02/18/longer-lives-through-relatio nships/?ncid=emlweu >> > slove00000001) >>_______________________________________________ >>For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, >>please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ >> >>RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: >>SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org >>http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins >>Questions about the list? ask sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org >>free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org > >_______________________________________________ >For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, >please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ > >RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: >SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org >http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins >Questions about the list? ask sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org >free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org _______________________________________________ For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins Questions about the list? ask sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org _______________________________________________ For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins Questions about the list? ask sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org **************Can love help you live longer? Find out now. (http://personals.aol.com/articles/2009/02/18/longer-lives-through-relationships/?ncid=emlweu slove00000001) From deerfarm6 at frontiernet.net Thu Jul 16 12:34:48 2009 From: deerfarm6 at frontiernet.net (goodsell) Date: Thu, 16 Jul 2009 12:34:48 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] How Confucianism could curb global warming References: <862428.84534.qm@web44908.mail.sp1.yahoo.com> Message-ID: <009301ca0633$5622f230$6501a8c0@Martha> Yes, most Christians don't understand Christianity, nor Church history. It was the Catholic Church around 330 AD that was trying to secure resources and found that it could appeal to single women for their inheritances. Pope Gregory in 597 AD issued nine papal resolutions that limited marriages, adoptions, and unions in an effort to create more single individuals in order to gain their inheritances - as the Church had discovered that collecting inheritances was an extremely effective way to increase their wealth. These resolutions did more than garner resources for the church, they changed family patterns and values. With the spreading of Christianity, the Eastern communal religions were broken apart. Those communities who controlled individual behavior through culture and communal shame, were now controlled by the church who set out to control individuals through the use of guilt. So the Church left the teachings of Christ behind to gain wealth and power. In order to appeal to Westerners both the Christian and Catholic churches preach both socialism and individualism. They cater to those of both political parties. Sit there and listen to the sermons, in both services and masses. You'll be amazed at the hypocrisies that are spewed. I was a guest with someone last week when I heard a priest say, "God helps those who helps themselves". That is individualism and that was never said by Christ, but by Benjamin Franklin. It was Mohanda Gandhi who said, "I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ." Oh how true! ----- Original Message ----- From: "George Frantz" To: "Sustainable Tompkins County listserv" Sent: Thursday, July 16, 2009 9:21 AM Subject: Re: [SustainableTompkins] How Confucianism could curb global warming I agree with Joel. The vast majority of "Christian" westerners lack a fundamental understanding of Christianity. It's not really their fault, as, with Karl Marx, they've confused the teachings of of an official church hierarchy with the teachings of Jesus Christ, and hence never really understood his message. Placing community above the self is integral to Christian religious philosophy, just as it is in Confucian philosophy. Recognition of this is one of the aspects of Amish, Mennonite and Hutterite anabaptist community life that sets them apart from mainstream Christian churches. Of course a true embracing of Christianity would spell the end of capitalism, which is why Christianity really isn't even taught by the mainstream "Christian" churches in this country. George Frantz --- On Wed, 7/15/09, Joel and Sarah Gagnon wrote: From: Joel and Sarah Gagnon Subject: Re: [SustainableTompkins] How Confucianism could curb global warming To: "Sustainable Tompkins County listserv" Date: Wednesday, July 15, 2009, 2:46 PM I can't say that I agree with Martha about the inherent difference between western and eastern religions. Christianity is inherently communal. Its core teaching is "being for others", sacrificing oneself for the sake of reconciliation and furtherance of God's plan for creation. That this core focus has been so distorted as to support an individualist philosophy says more about human nature and rationalization than it does about the teachings of Jesus Christ. Our values are shaped by our ethics, and our ethics are often -- in fact usually -- religiously grounded. The search for a common set of ethics based on shared and essentially innate beliefs, is a compelling need supported by the common elements of most religions. Where do we get this set of shared beliefs? An interesting question, to be sure, and the case can be made that the notion that they are "self-evident" as the US Declaration of Independence suggests, rests "solidly" on assertion and a shared desire that they be true. That we have managed the beginnings of a consensus that there are universal human rights is hopeful for dealing with the crisis of the moment, but it needs to be buttressed by action and extended in scope to encompass the imperative to act collectively to address climate change and the rape of the environment. Joel At 09:40 AM 7/15/09 -0400, you wrote: >The desire for sustainability has more to do with values than with >individual virtues, experience or maturity of enlightenment (although one >could pursue the case of early adaptors in a non-secular argument). >Eastern religions focus on collectivism where Western religions emphasize >individualism (and therefore, indirectly promote capitalism). As a result, >Eastern religions have a value system entirely different from Western >religions. The other issue that must be addressed is morality, which has >been for the most part, lost in Western culture. Up until 100 years ago, >morality constrained capitalism. Now we are dealing with unbridled >capitalism, a very ugly monster indeed. It's not so much that we need a >change of religion to bring about a collective push toward sustainability, >it's that we need to restore morality and change the fundamental values of >the populous. This could be done either through a religious or cultural >shift. Only when we (as a social, religious or cultural group) no longer >hold money as our highest value, can other values become priorities thus >bringing about the change to a more sustainable way of life. > >--Martha > >Martha Goodsell >Fallow Hollow Deer Farm, LLC >125 Williams Road >Candor, NY 13743 >607-659-4635 >email: deerfarm6 at frontiernet.net > > > >----- Original Message ----- From: >To: >Sent: Wednesday, July 15, 2009 8:29 AM >Subject: Re: [SustainableTompkins] How Confucianism could curb global >warming > > >>Gay has raised good questions. >> >>Compassion saves us from the pitfalls of perfectionism. This is the >>overarching sense of balance at the heart of any mature, reflective >>religious >>movement, Western or Eastern. And such balance comes from people who have >>faced their own paradoxes, contradictions, and hypocrisies and committed >>themselves to do a bit better at what promotes wholeness and change that >>might >>be sustainable. (Fundamentalism in any religious or secular practice never >>develops this level of self-awareness.) >> >>What I see of the sustainability movement from a little distance is that >>it is still in the "smart" phase of enlightened self interest that seeks >>the >>welfare of the whole as much as the individual. This is not a bad place >>to be, but it does not deal with the problems of how individual needs may >>run at odds with groups and how groups may too easily become collusive, >>group-think exercises that undermine innovations that challenge popular >>assumptions within the larger sustainability movement. >> >>While there are many individual and group exceptions, the movement as a >>whole remains mostly a secular, enlightenment/modernity concern. It has >>only >>begun to embrace the deep roots of the religious commitments that define >>the peoples of the world. >> >>One reasonably credible breakdown of religious affiliations, worldwide, is >>as follows: Just over half of the inhabitants of Earth identify with one >>of the Western, Abrahamic faiths: 0.2% Jewish, 32% Chrisitian, 20% Muslim. >>The Eastern traditions account for one-half of inhabitants: 12.5% Hindu, >>6% Buddhist, 6.5% Tao and Confucian. The non-religious and atheist >>account for 12.5% and 2.5%, respectively. The remaining 10% pick up >>hundreds of >>different traditions. >> >>Sustainability will need to work within the mature practices of each of >>these approaches (not the simplistic or fundamental ones), if we are to >>see >>much of a deepening of sustainability worldwide. >> >>Eric >> >>Eric Clay, M.Div., Ph.D. >>Community Coach >>Shared Journeys, Inc. >>832 North Aurora Street >>Ithaca, NY 14850 >>607-592-6874 >>_wericclay at aol.com_ (mailto:wericclay at aol.com) >> >>SHARED JOURNEYS >>That all may thrive and none be excluded >> >> >> >>**************Can love help you live longer? Find out now. >>(http://personals.aol.com/articles/2009/02/18/longer-lives-through-relationships/?ncid=emlweu >> > slove00000001) >>_______________________________________________ >>For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, >>please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ >> >>RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: >>SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org >>http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins >>Questions about the list? ask >>sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org >>free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org > >_______________________________________________ >For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, >please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ > >RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: >SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org >http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins >Questions about the list? ask sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org >free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org _______________________________________________ For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins Questions about the list? ask sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org _______________________________________________ For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins Questions about the list? ask sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org From sjr37 at cornell.edu Thu Jul 16 13:31:50 2009 From: sjr37 at cornell.edu (Sandra Repp) Date: Thu, 16 Jul 2009 13:31:50 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] 8/1-8/2: Farm Trail Open House Weekend Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20090716121723.030fb0f0@cornell.edu> Farm Trail Open House Weekend Saturday & Sunday, August 1 & 2, 12:00-5:00 pm Gather up friends and family and hit the Farm Trail! Visit with local farmers, enjoy the scenery, taste the harvest and support local organic and sustainable farms. Bring a cooler and buy farm fresh products along the way. Farms to choose from feature organic veggies, apples, u-pick crops, pastured poultry, dairy, horses, alpacas, and even a camel! Your Farm Trail Tour Button ($2/person or $5/4 buttons) is your entry to the farms for one or both days. Buttons and maps are available at Tompkins County Cornell Cooperative Extension, Greenstar Cooperative, or at the farms on the day of the tour. For a tour brochure and more information, call 607-272-2292! Saturday, August 1st: Littletree Orchards in Newfield White Dog Apiary, Newfield Settlement Horse Stables, Spencer Heaven Llama Farm (with llamas, alpaca, ducks, and a camel), Spencer Locust Woods Blueberry Farm, Spencer Plantasia Nursery, Spencer Sunday, August 2nd: Cayuga Pure Organics Beanery, Brooktondale Gardens of Earthly Mirth, Brooktondale Three Sisters CSA Vegetable Farm, Ithaca Quinn's Irish Hill Farm (pastured poultry), Freeville Lew-Lin Dairy Farm, Dryden Farmers' Choice Blueberries, Dryden From sjr37 at cornell.edu Thu Jul 16 14:08:11 2009 From: sjr37 at cornell.edu (Sandra Repp) Date: Thu, 16 Jul 2009 14:08:11 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] 8/8: NY Nut Growers Meeting in Big Flats Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20090716140610.02fe5348@cornell.edu> Do you have agricultural acreage and an interest in planting nut trees? Then come to the summer meeting of the New York Nut Growers Association at the Plant Materials Center, Natural Resources Conservation Service (USDA), in Big Flats, NY, on Saturday, August 8, from 9 ? 3:30, to hear Ernie Grimo, a well-known nut tree nurserymaan talk on this topic. Other speakers will discuss oak trees of the Northeast and the use of hazelnuts in a permaculture designed farm. Martin Van der Grinten and staff will present the history and current programs of the Center, with a focus on the Copper Chinquapin Oak, followed by a hay ride tour of the plantings. Registration is $10.00, and includes a light breakfast and lunch (choose from roast beef, ham and Swiss, tuna salad, turkey, or veggie-humus). Check should be made out to : NYNGA and mailed to Rick Monheim, NYNGA Treas., 1023 County Road 6, Phelps, NY 14532. For more information, see our Web site at www.nynga.org, or contact John Wertis, NYNGA Pres., bwwfarmtoday at aol.com. From arf1945 at hotmail.com Fri Jul 17 20:25:25 2009 From: arf1945 at hotmail.com (Anne Rhodes) Date: Sat, 18 Jul 2009 00:25:25 +0000 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Demonstration to Strengthen Energy Bill! In-Reply-To: <6.2.5.6.2.20090716121723.030fb0f0@cornell.edu> References: <6.2.5.6.2.20090716121723.030fb0f0@cornell.edu> Message-ID: Hello folks who care about the environment! There will be a demonstration on Thursday July 23rd at DeWitt Park at 5pm in support of a STRONG and CLEAN energy bill. The local MoveOn council has planned this demonstration primarily to encourage Senator Gillibrand to keep the Clean Air Act intact in the Senate version of the bill. Please help spread the word. Senator Gillibrand is a member of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, which puts her in a powerful position to influence the bill. The Energy bill (ACES) is being considered in the Senate now, and there are forces working to reduce its reach and effectiveness. The version of the energy bill passed recently by the House exempts coal-burning plants from the Clean Air Act?s regulation of carbon emissions. But there is still time to influence the Senate version. We urge you to join us at DeWitt Park on Thursday 23rd to raise our voices in support of the Clean Air Act and clean, renewable energy, bringing green jobs to our community. We will be wearing black with white dust masks on our faces to symbolize our strong opposition to the weakening of the energy bill. We encourage you to wear green to symbolize the thousands of new green jobs that renewable energy will bring. Please come send a powerful message to Senator Gillibrand that we support her efforts to strengthen the energy bill and keep it clean! Bring signs, hard hats, drums, whatever will call attention to the need for our senators to craft a good energy bill. There will be petitions to sign, sample letters, contact information, and concerned citizens. Thank you, Your local MoveOn Council Find us on Facebook Direct link to group: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=109856511134 Sign the petition online http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/thanks-sen-gillibrand _________________________________________________________________ Insert movie times and more without leaving Hotmail?. http://windowslive.com/Tutorial/Hotmail/QuickAdd?ocid=TXT_TAGLM_WL_HM_Tutorial_QuickAdd_062009 From Joel.and.Sarah.Gagnon at lightlink.com Sat Jul 18 11:34:07 2009 From: Joel.and.Sarah.Gagnon at lightlink.com (Joel and Sarah Gagnon) Date: Sat, 18 Jul 2009 11:34:07 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] How Confucianism could curb global warming In-Reply-To: Message-ID: <5.2.1.1.2.20090718105544.02aea2c0@pop.lightlink.com> I found Eric's comments both helpful and thought-provoking. Below are his comments; my additional comments are interspersed. At 11:57 AM 7/16/09 -0400, Eric wrote: >This all seems a bit one-sided in the last few postings. > >Christian community and the filial piety of Confucianism are both strong >anti-dotes to individualism. That's good, so far as it goes. But anyone >who has lived in such settings knows that they can be as oppressive and >wasteful of resources and human life as individualistic, market and >money driven >societies. Community and individualism are both to be valued and not >taken to excess. > >The issue of sustainability would seem to be better served by learning the >spiritual skills within each tradition that try to limit excesses of >individualism and groupthink, while expanding room for individual and >collective >action. Well, if both community and individuals can be and often are oppressive and wasteful of resources -- and I agree that that is often the case -- then what is the basis for getting them to "do the right thing"? In making the case for resource conservation and wise management of our environmental assets, what argument can we bring to bear? Lately I have been reading that some are opposing both a carbon tax and cap and trade because they would place the US at a competitive disadvantage in the global marketplace, costing us jobs. Michael Arcuri is arguing that way. In effect he is saying that jobs in his district are more important than long-term climate impacts. Others are arguing for developing coal and tar sands because we will need all sources to deal with declining oil production from traditional sources. Implicit is a belief that maintaining the energy status quo is more important than curbing CO2 production. In each of these cases there is a very real possibility that a majority in Congress will vote in support of this kind of short-term thinking. What is our argument that it is wrong? I am basically a consequentialist when it comes to ethics. I look at the impacts of the choices available to me and try to minimize the bad and maximize the good. My judgement of what is bad and good, though, rest squarely on my Christian faith. I look to Christ as my moral compass. That works for me, but it is not a platform from which to argue for collective action outside of those who share my beliefs. That is why some sort of universal ethical framework is important. Maybe it really is "self-evident", but I doubt it. > >While Joel would like to see some universal values brought to the fore, I >think that sort of search is often a distraction from taking immediate >sensible actions that are spiritually well-grounded. > >People rarely know the spiritual disciplines of one tradition well or >deeply, let alone know the disciplines of many religions. So just living >more >deeply within the possibilities and paradoxes of what one knows may be a >sufficient first step. A very good first step, and a very worthwhile perspective to offer to the debate about what we all should be doing individually and collectively. In a pluralistic world, though, it may not suffice as a justification for joint action. > >If we are people of good faith, we will then listen to and learn from >others, from the paradoxes and possibilities of other people >and traditions. >But the process unfolds slowly. An attitude of humility is a strong asset here, but it is unfortunately all to uncommon. Recognizing that our tradition and beliefs do not fully encompass all that is good and true should open us to learning the possibilities of other ways of viewing reality. We all like to think that our way is the only right way. The end result of that kind of thinking is a power struggle with winners and losers. In the end, we all lose. > >Eric > > >Eric Clay, M.Div., Ph.D. >Community Coach >Shared Journeys, Inc. >832 North Aurora Street >Ithaca, NY 14850 >607-592-6874 >_wericclay at aol.com_ (mailto:wericclay at aol.com) > >SHARED JOURNEYS >That all may thrive and none be excluded > > >In a message dated 7/16/2009 8:29:01 A.M. Eastern Standard Time, >gjem5760 at yahoo.com writes: > >I agree with Joel. > >The vast majority of "Christian" westerners lack a fundamental >understanding of Christianity. > >It's not really their fault, as, with Karl Marx, they've confused the >teachings of of an official church hierarchy with the teachings of Jesus >Christ, and hence never really understood his message. > >Placing community above the self is integral to Christian religious >philosophy, just as it is in Confucian philosophy. Recognition of this >is one of >the aspects of Amish, Mennonite and Hutterite anabaptist community life >that sets them apart from mainstream Christian churches. > >Of course a true embracing of Christianity would spell the end of >capitalism, which is why Christianity really isn't even taught by the >mainstream >"Christian" churches in this country. > >George Frantz > >--- On Wed, 7/15/09, Joel and Sarah Gagnon > wrote: > > >From: Joel and Sarah Gagnon >Subject: Re: [SustainableTompkins] How Confucianism could curb global >warming >To: "Sustainable Tompkins County listserv" > >Date: Wednesday, July 15, 2009, 2:46 PM > > >I can't say that I agree with Martha about the inherent difference between >western and eastern religions. Christianity is inherently communal. Its >core teaching is "being for others", sacrificing oneself for the sake of >reconciliation and furtherance of God's plan for creation. That this core >focus has been so distorted as to support an individualist philosophy says >more about human nature and rationalization than it does about the >teachings of Jesus Christ. > >Our values are shaped by our ethics, and our ethics are often -- in fact >usually -- religiously grounded. The search for a common set of ethics >based on shared and essentially innate beliefs, is a compelling need >supported by the common elements of most religions. Where do we get this >set of shared beliefs? An interesting question, to be sure, and the case >can be made that the notion that they are "self-evident" as the US >Declaration of Independence suggests, rests "solidly" on assertion and a >shared desire that they be true. That we have managed the beginnings of a >consensus that there are universal human rights is hopeful for dealing >with >the crisis of the moment, but it needs to be buttressed by action and >extended in scope to encompass the imperative to act collectively to >address climate change and the rape of the environment. > >Joel > >At 09:40 AM 7/15/09 -0400, you wrote: > >The desire for sustainability has more to do with values than with > >individual virtues, experience or maturity of enlightenment (although one > >could pursue the case of early adaptors in a non-secular argument). > >Eastern religions focus on collectivism where Western religions emphasize > >individualism (and therefore, indirectly promote capitalism). As a >result, > >Eastern religions have a value system entirely different from Western > >religions. The other issue that must be addressed is morality, which has > >been for the most part, lost in Western culture. Up until 100 years ago, > >morality constrained capitalism. Now we are dealing with unbridled > >capitalism, a very ugly monster indeed. It's not so much that we need a > >change of religion to bring about a collective push toward >sustainability, > >it's that we need to restore morality and change the fundamental values >of > >the populous. This could be done either through a religious or cultural > >shift. Only when we (as a social, religious or cultural group) no longer > >hold money as our highest value, can other values become priorities thus > >bringing about the change to a more sustainable way of life. > > > >--Martha > > > >Martha Goodsell > >Fallow Hollow Deer Farm, LLC > >125 Williams Road > >Candor, NY 13743 > >607-659-4635 > >email: deerfarm6 at frontiernet.net > > > > > > > >----- Original Message ----- From: > >To: > >Sent: Wednesday, July 15, 2009 8:29 AM > >Subject: Re: [SustainableTompkins] How Confucianism could curb global >warming > > > > > >>Gay has raised good questions. > >> > >>Compassion saves us from the pitfalls of perfectionism. This is the > >>overarching sense of balance at the heart of any mature, reflective >religious > >>movement, Western or Eastern. And such balance comes from people who >have > >>faced their own paradoxes, contradictions, and hypocrisies and committed > >>themselves to do a bit better at what promotes wholeness and change that > >>might > >>be sustainable. (Fundamentalism in any religious or secular practice >never > >>develops this level of self-awareness.) > >> > >>What I see of the sustainability movement from a little distance is that > >>it is still in the "smart" phase of enlightened self interest that seeks > the > >>welfare of the whole as much as the individual. This is not a bad place > >>to be, but it does not deal with the problems of how individual needs may > >>run at odds with groups and how groups may too easily become collusive, > >>group-think exercises that undermine innovations that challenge popular > >>assumptions within the larger sustainability movement. > >> > >>While there are many individual and group exceptions, the movement as a > >>whole remains mostly a secular, enlightenment/modernity concern. It >has > >>only > >>begun to embrace the deep roots of the religious commitments that define > >>the peoples of the world. > >> > >>One reasonably credible breakdown of religious affiliations, worldwide, >is > >>as follows: Just over half of the inhabitants of Earth identify with one > >>of the Western, Abrahamic faiths: 0.2% Jewish, 32% Chrisitian, 20% >Muslim. > >>The Eastern traditions account for one-half of inhabitants: 12.5% >Hindu, > >>6% Buddhist, 6.5% Tao and Confucian. The non-religious and atheist > >>account for 12.5% and 2.5%, respectively. The remaining 10% pick up > >>hundreds of > >>different traditions. > >> > >>Sustainability will need to work within the mature practices of each of > >>these approaches (not the simplistic or fundamental ones), if we are to >see > >>much of a deepening of sustainability worldwide. > >> > >>Eric > >> > >>Eric Clay, M.Div., Ph.D. > >>Community Coach > >>Shared Journeys, Inc. > >>832 North Aurora Street > >>Ithaca, NY 14850 > >>607-592-6874 > >>_wericclay at aol.com_ (mailto:wericclay at aol.com) > >> > >>SHARED JOURNEYS > >>That all may thrive and none be excluded > >> > >> > >> > >>**************Can love help you live longer? Find out now. > >>(http://personals.aol.com/articles/2009/02/18/longer-lives-through-relatio >nships/?ncid=emlweu > >> > slove00000001) > >>_______________________________________________ > >>For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, > >>please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ > >> > >>RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: > >>SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org > >>http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins > >>Questions about the list? ask >sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org > >>free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org > > > >_______________________________________________ > >For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, > >please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ > > > >RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: > >SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org > >http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins > >Questions about the list? ask >sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org > >free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org >_______________________________________________ >For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, >please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ > >RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: >SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org >http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins >Questions about the list? ask sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org >free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org > > > > >_______________________________________________ >For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, >please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ > >RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: >SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org >http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins >Questions about the list? ask sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org >free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org > > >**************Can love help you live longer? Find out now. >(http://personals.aol.com/articles/2009/02/18/longer-lives-through-relationships/?ncid=emlweu >slove00000001) >_______________________________________________ >For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, >please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ > >RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: >SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org >http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins >Questions about the list? ask sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org >free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org From mmccasla at twcny.rr.com Sat Jul 18 12:25:19 2009 From: mmccasla at twcny.rr.com (Margaret McCasland) Date: Sat, 18 Jul 2009 12:25:19 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] How Confucianism could curb global warming In-Reply-To: <5.2.1.1.2.20090718105544.02aea2c0@pop.lightlink.com> References: <5.2.1.1.2.20090718105544.02aea2c0@pop.lightlink.com> Message-ID: Thank you, Joel and Eric, for this thoughtful and inspiring discussion and thanks to Gay for starting it. On Jul 18, 2009, at 11:34 AM, Joel and Sarah Gagnon wrote: > I found Eric's comments both helpful and thought-provoking. Below > are his comments; my additional comments are interspersed. > > At 11:57 AM 7/16/09 -0400, Eric wrote: >> This all seems a bit one-sided in the last few postings. >> >> Christian community and the filial piety of Confucianism are both >> strong >> anti-dotes to individualism. That's good, so far as it goes. But >> anyone >> who has lived in such settings knows that they can be as >> oppressive and >> wasteful of resources and human life as individualistic, market and >> money driven >> societies. Community and individualism are both to be valued and >> not >> taken to excess. >> >> The issue of sustainability would seem to be better served by >> learning the >> spiritual skills within each tradition that try to limit excesses of >> individualism and groupthink, while expanding room for individual >> and collective >> action. > > Well, if both community and individuals can be and often are > oppressive and wasteful of resources -- and I agree that that is > often the case -- then what is the basis for getting them to "do the > right thing"? In making the case for resource conservation and wise > management of our environmental assets, what argument can we bring > to bear? Lately I have been reading that some are opposing both a > carbon tax and cap and trade because they would place the US at a > competitive disadvantage in the global marketplace, costing us jobs. > Michael Arcuri is arguing that way. In effect he is saying that jobs > in his district are more important than long-term climate impacts. > Others are arguing for developing coal and tar sands because we will > need all sources to deal with declining oil production from > traditional sources. Implicit is a belief that maintaining the > energy status quo is more important than curbing CO2 production. In > each of these cases there is a very real possibility that a majority > in Congress will vote in support of this kind of short-term > thinking. What is our argument that it is wrong? > > I am basically a consequentialist when it comes to ethics. I look at > the impacts of the choices available to me and try to minimize the > bad and maximize the good. My judgement of what is bad and good, > though, rest squarely on my Christian faith. I look to Christ as my > moral compass. That works for me, but it is not a platform from > which to argue for collective action outside of those who share my > beliefs. That is why some sort of universal ethical framework is > important. Maybe it really is "self-evident", but I doubt it. > >> >> While Joel would like to see some universal values brought to the >> fore, I >> think that sort of search is often a distraction from taking >> immediate >> sensible actions that are spiritually well-grounded. >> >> People rarely know the spiritual disciplines of one tradition well or >> deeply, let alone know the disciplines of many religions. So just >> living more >> deeply within the possibilities and paradoxes of what one knows >> may be a >> sufficient first step. > > A very good first step, and a very worthwhile perspective to offer > to the debate about what we all should be doing individually and > collectively. In a pluralistic world, though, it may not suffice as > a justification for joint action. > >> >> If we are people of good faith, we will then listen to and learn >> from >> others, from the paradoxes and possibilities of other people and >> traditions. >> But the process unfolds slowly. > > An attitude of humility is a strong asset here, but it is > unfortunately all to uncommon. Recognizing that our tradition and > beliefs do not fully encompass all that is good and true should open > us to learning the possibilities of other ways of viewing reality. > We all like to think that our way is the only right way. The end > result of that kind of thinking is a power struggle with winners and > losers. In the end, we all lose. > >> EARLIER POSTS DELETED by MM From shiragolding at gmail.com Sat Jul 18 14:56:36 2009 From: shiragolding at gmail.com (Shira Golding) Date: Sat, 18 Jul 2009 14:56:36 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Community Swap Meet This Monday Night! Message-ID: SHARE TOMPKINS COMMUNITY SWAP MEET #3 Need any furniture? Wanna make a button? Like sharing? Have skills? Bring goods and services you'd like to share, and you'll be able to barter, give away or sell your offerings to other community members. The more we can provide for one another locally, the closer we are to sustainability! Monday, July 20th, 7-9pm Jamie and Kenzie's Place: 412 E. Tompkins St. Apt 1 (the bottom apt, between N. Aurora and Linn St.), Ithaca, NY Google Map: http://tinyurl.com/ljkqg3 Our third swap meet will be hosted by Jamie and Kenzie who live in Fall Creek and have a yard with outdoor seating where we can congregate. They've got a bunch of furniture and some lumber to part with. If it's raining we might reschedule so check the Facebook event page for updates (see below). Feel free to also bring potluck dishes and refreshments that can be shared during the swap meet! Shira and Ari will be bringing their button-maker! You'll be able to make your own hand-drawn buttons to promote your business, organization, activist group or just to express yourself. Trades appreciated. PARKING: Please park on the street or at the Fall Creek elementary school or laundromat (both a block away). You can post haves/wants on Facebook or to the Share Tompkins email list (see below). What to bring: - Food and Produce: veggies, teas, baked goods, jams, tofu, etc. - Body Care: tinctures, soaps, creams, etc. - Handmade Crafts: ceramics, candles, art, etc. - Stuff: electronics, housewares, tools, books, etc. - Services: massage, bike repair, web design, accounting, etc. - Labor: shoveling, hauling, planting, etc. - Bags, boxes and carts to take stuff home in Guidelines: - Our goal is sustainability - please bring stuff that is locally- grown or made from local materials if possible. - Please limit what you bring to what you can fit in a lap-sized box - you can always arrange for pick-up after the meeting. - Be prepared to take back home with you whatever you don't end up bartering or giving away. - Please bring stuff that is in good condition or can be easily- repaired - no junk! To rsvp or for more information, contact Shira Golding, sharetompkins at riseup.net , 607-821-0654 RSVP on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=210395035580 Join the Share Tompkins Facebook group: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=83941209554 Check out the NEW Share Tompkins website: http://sharetompkins.wordpress.com Join the Share Tompkins email list: https://lists.aktivix.org/mailman/listinfo/sharetompkins Photos from the first two Swap Meets and of sharing in Tompkins County: http://www.flickr.com/groups/sharetompkins/pool/ If you can't make this swap meet, stay tuned for the next one! Brought to you by Share Tompkins, created to help folks share and trade goods, services and labor in Ithaca and Tompkins County. From deerfarm6 at frontiernet.net Sat Jul 18 15:29:44 2009 From: deerfarm6 at frontiernet.net (goodsell) Date: Sat, 18 Jul 2009 15:29:44 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] How Confucianism could curb global warming References: <5.2.1.1.2.20090718105544.02aea2c0@pop.lightlink.com> Message-ID: <004101ca07de$1b34cde0$6501a8c0@Martha> I appreciate Joel's and Eric's comments as well, but I think both of them missed the point of the article, which focused on the difference between Confucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism to that of Western thinking. The article focused on the role of Eastern philosophies in helping Communist China achieve a vision of a harmonious society through ecologically sustainable economic development. These religions promote long term thinking and communal interdependency (as opposed to short term gains and strong individualism in Western cultures). The Eastern philosophies are there today because of either religion, culture or both. The Western philosophy on the other hand tends to focus on individualism, social status (as defined by wealth) and is short sighted (because there is no generational thinking). As religion and culture continues to erode in the West, the more individualism mentality and activity are enforced and the less likely sustainability is to be achieved. I'm not sure there is an opportunity to teach the "spiritual skills" within the various "traditions" to the masses to encourage the curbing of excesses. While Joel looks to his faith as a moral compass, there are many Americans without faith or some other type of ethical guidance. The Enlightened, though individualistic, were not without morality. The laws of nature were their philosophical compass, guiding much of their thinking and thus their personal activity. Behavior can be controlled in two ways: legally or socially. When community is strong (and individualism weak), peer pressure and cultural traditions can guide individual behavior. When community is weak (and individualism strong) laws must guide individual behavior. The stronger individualism becomes, the greater the number of rules or laws required to guide behavior within an "acceptable" boundary. But the question then becomes what is an acceptable boundary, and who makes that decision? Is that boundary acceptable because an individual says so, or because a community says so. Is the decision good for the individual or good for the community? This is where the difference between the two political camps (the Democrats and the Republicans) is most pronounced today. The foundation of the U.S. was set out as a Republic, based on the rule of law, the Constitution, and guided by morals. Overtime we became a representative democracy, a government based on the rule of men, who could change at their will, the law. At the same time America experienced religious and cultural erosion. This evolution has lead us to where we are in America today. This brings us back to the point Karl North has made time and time again on this list. In order to bring about any sort of sustainable change, it must be done from the collective "we" pushing for a political or economic change (or in the case of this article a collective philosophy which guides collective decision making). But is there really a "we" in America? I think that's what the article was trying to get at. --Martha From deerfarm6 at frontiernet.net Sun Jul 19 09:19:11 2009 From: deerfarm6 at frontiernet.net (goodsell) Date: Sun, 19 Jul 2009 09:19:11 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Fw: How Confucianism could curb global warming Message-ID: <003901ca0873$81706b10$6501a8c0@Martha> I sincerely appreciate this discussion on this list. This topic has been of interest to me for some time and to have others with whom this can be discussed is most welcomed. I recorded some thoughts on Thursday after Eric's post, and feel they are now ripe for further discussion. I don't want to just drop the discussion, feeling that we might be on the cusp of some important collective discovery about how a more massive awakening might be brought about - spiritually, philosophically, ethically, morally, culturally, or politically. I'm tired of talking about how to bring about change. And if we take Karl's approach "Mother nature trumps all", we're going to be too late. It's hard work just thinking about it all, but it's none-the-less imperative. > Eric wrote: "The issue of sustainability would seem to be better served > by learning the spiritual skills within each tradition that try to limit > excesses of individualism and groupthink, while expanding room for > individual and collective action. " > Why bother teaching or learning the spiritual skills if you could apply an early adapter approach to this? What if enough people started walking the walk, instead of just talking the talk, would others follow? Can the change to a more sustainable way of life be incentivized in an effort to bring it about more quickly? How can sustainability be made more culturally acceptable? How can moderation be approached with such divided political camps? Would replacing "environmentalist" with "conservationist" or "steward" help to break down barriers? Can cultural behaviors, not just religion or spirituality, be utilized to promote and initiate a more sustainable lifestyle? How can any of this be done when money is still held as such high value? How can the basic needs and rights of man (and all men) be guaranteed in a sustainable system? What then becomes of individual values? --Martha From sjr37 at cornell.edu Wed Jul 22 09:10:33 2009 From: sjr37 at cornell.edu (Sandra Repp) Date: Wed, 22 Jul 2009 09:10:33 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] 8/7-9, NOFA Conference in Amherst, MA Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20090722085046.03016838@cornell.edu> Listers may wish to be aware of the upcoming NOFA Summer Conference to be held August 7-9 on the campus of the University of Mass.-Amherst. The program includes "Over 224 workshops on organic farming, gardening and land care, homesteading, sustainability, nutrition, spirituality, food politics, activism, and much, much more..." There are concurrent workshops for teens and children so the whole family can attend. Keynote speakers will be mushroom expert Paul Stamets, and Will Allen, community activist and founder of Growing Power. See the full conference schedule and program (which includes ads for many useful regional suppliers of organically grown seeds, and other items) at: http://www.nofasummerconference.org/index.html . The site also includes information about ways to attend for less by working at the conference. From tjs1 at cornell.edu Wed Jul 22 09:26:43 2009 From: tjs1 at cornell.edu (Thomas Shelley) Date: Wed, 22 Jul 2009 09:26:43 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Advert: Sustainable Chicken Project Message-ID: <200907221327.n6MDR4J6021525@authusersmtp.mail.cornell.edu> Dear Friends. Some of you have heard by now of the Steep Hollow Farm Sustainable Chicken Project. We are looking for 40 subscribers living in downtown Ithaca* to provide food scraps for our compost system. Many downtown residents may not have the inclination, time, permission from their landlords, or the space to compost. We'd like to collect your food scraps, compost them at our farm, and allow our 95 laying hens (and a few roosters) to forage on the insects and other decomposing organisms living in the active compost. The compost critters will become a significant component of the protein requirement of our flock, reducing our reliance on traditional grains as a protein source. Instead of going to the landfill, as is currently the case, the composted food scraps from urban residents would become part of our chicken's nutrient base and the urban participants would have access to high quality, sustainable and locally raised eggs, establishing an urban-rural nutrient cycle. We hope this will become a demonstration project to illustrate one way in which local agriculture can become less dependent upon fossil fuels, reduce its greenhouse gas output and become more sustainable overall. We are asking for a $35 per year subscription fee from each participating household to cover our associated costs. This fee could be less per unit for multiple units in one building. (The average participating household could easily see more than a $35 per year drop in the cost of City of Ithaca trash tags.) Ideally, we need 40 subscribers to optimize our production. *We are a small scale project and we are now only taking memberships from the downtown Ithaca area as it is unsustainable for us to collect food scraps from outlying areas at this time. If you are interested or would like more information, please contact me by e-mail or at 342-0864. Tom Shelley and Christianne White from Steep Hollow Farm. ****************************************************************************************** Steep Hollow Farm, Ithaca, New York Sustainable Chicken Project Do you eat eggs? Do you cook at home? Do you wish you could turn your food scraps into productive compost but don?t have the space, permission, or inclination to make a compost pile in your urban neighborhood? Do you live in Ithaca, on ?the flats?? Southside, Northside, Fall Creek, Downtown areas? Your food scraps could turn into eggs . How does this happen? Steep Hollow Farm is raising ?sustainable? chickens for egg production. We are doing this by trying to reduce fossil fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions to the extent possible. Reduction in the use of commercial grain crops is one way to accomplish these goals. One technique that has been proven to work as a way to reduce traditional grain inputs is to generate compost from household food scraps and use the ?critters? in the active compost?insects, worms and other decomposing organisms?as chicken feed. How can you participate? * Donate your table scraps. We will provide you with a five-gallon container with a lid for storage of your food scraps and provide instructions for preparing your food scraps. * We?ll pick up your container and supply you with a clean container. * As the hens start laying in July and August you?ll get some eggs back as a thank-you, and be able to purchase additional eggs, at a reasonable price, which could be delivered when we pick up your compost. We need a name for our project! All of those persons or households who contribute food scraps to our compost system are eligible to provide an entry to name the ?sustainable chicken project.? The winner will receive a dozen eggs. For more information contact Tom Shelley at tjs1 at cornell.edu or 342-0864. From tjs1 at cornell.edu Wed Jul 22 09:30:45 2009 From: tjs1 at cornell.edu (Thomas Shelley) Date: Wed, 22 Jul 2009 09:30:45 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Sustainable Chicken Project web site Message-ID: <200907221331.n6MDV6G1024262@authusersmtp.mail.cornell.edu> Hello, again. For additional information on the Sustainable Chicken Project see http://steephollowfarm.wordpress.com/. Have a wonderful day. Tom ****************************************** Tom Shelley 118 E. Court St. Ithaca, NY 14850 607 342-0864 tjs1 at cornell.edu http://www.myspace.com/99319958 (Last updated 6/13/09.) http://www.facebook.com/129295929#/home.php (Last updated 6/13/09.) Compost Educator and Sustainability Scion* What Does Zero Waste Mean? "If it can't be reduced, reused, repaired, rebuilt, refurbished, refinished, resold, recycled, or composted, then it should be restricted, redesigned, or removed from production." Berkeley Zero Waste Resolution See http://www.cityofberkeley.info/council8/newsletter.pdf *noun: a shoot or bud of a plant, esp. one for planting or grafting From sjr37 at cornell.edu Wed Jul 22 09:35:07 2009 From: sjr37 at cornell.edu (Sandra Repp) Date: Wed, 22 Jul 2009 09:35:07 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] 10/3-4: Green Buildings Open House Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20090713121446.01e02ba8@cornell.edu> Mark your calendars now for the: 2009 ITHACA NY GREEN BUILDINGS OPEN HOUSE Sat-Sun, October 3-4, 2009, 10:00 am-4:00 pm At least 25 homes that use renewable energy or eco-friendly building practices will be open to the public for self-guided tours during this FREE 2-day event. Homeowners and/or builders will be on hand to discuss their work and answer questions about solar energy, wind power, straw bale construction, timber framing, non-toxic finishes, recycled materials, and more. Half of the sites will be open each day. Visit ccetompkins.org in September for details on specific sites, green building speakers (new this year!) and van or walking tours. Call (607) 272-2292 or email gm52 at cornell.edu for more information. Presented by the Ithaca Green Building Alliance and Tompkins County Cooperative Extension. From abp at parkfoundation.org Wed Jul 22 10:30:21 2009 From: abp at parkfoundation.org (Amy Panek) Date: Wed, 22 Jul 2009 10:30:21 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Advert: Sustainable Chicken Project In-Reply-To: <200907221327.n6MDR4J6021525@authusersmtp.mail.cornell.edu> References: <200907221327.n6MDR4J6021525@authusersmtp.mail.cornell.edu> Message-ID: <4A66E89C.ADAD.0014.0@parkfoundation.org> Hi Tom, I would be very interested in joining your project. Most of the trash I throw away is food waste and would be happy to provide it to you. But I do live by myself and it will take me awhile to fill a 5 gallon container - I will probably need some suggestions for managing fruit flies. I live downtown at the corner of S. Albany and W. Clinton Streets. Sincerely, Amy Panek >>> Thomas Shelley 7/22/2009 9:26 AM >>> Dear Friends. Some of you have heard by now of the Steep Hollow Farm Sustainable Chicken Project. We are looking for 40 subscribers living in downtown Ithaca* to provide food scraps for our compost system. Many downtown residents may not have the inclination, time, permission from their landlords, or the space to compost. We'd like to collect your food scraps, compost them at our farm, and allow our 95 laying hens (and a few roosters) to forage on the insects and other decomposing organisms living in the active compost. The compost critters will become a significant component of the protein requirement of our flock, reducing our reliance on traditional grains as a protein source. Instead of going to the landfill, as is currently the case, the composted food scraps from urban residents would become part of our chicken's nutrient base and the urban participants would have access to high quality, sustainable and locally raised eggs, establishing an urban-rural nutrient cycle. We hope this will become a demonstration project to illustrate one way in which local agriculture can become less dependent upon fossil fuels, reduce its greenhouse gas output and become more sustainable overall. We are asking for a $35 per year subscription fee from each participating household to cover our associated costs. This fee could be less per unit for multiple units in one building. (The average participating household could easily see more than a $35 per year drop in the cost of City of Ithaca trash tags.) Ideally, we need 40 subscribers to optimize our production. *We are a small scale project and we are now only taking memberships from the downtown Ithaca area as it is unsustainable for us to collect food scraps from outlying areas at this time. If you are interested or would like more information, please contact me by e-mail or at 342-0864. Tom Shelley and Christianne White from Steep Hollow Farm. ****************************************************************************************** Steep Hollow Farm, Ithaca, New York Sustainable Chicken Project Do you eat eggs? Do you cook at home? Do you wish you could turn your food scraps into productive compost but don?t have the space, permission, or inclination to make a compost pile in your urban neighborhood? Do you live in Ithaca, on ?the flats?? Southside, Northside, Fall Creek, Downtown areas? Your food scraps could turn into eggs?. How does this happen? Steep Hollow Farm is raising ?sustainable? chickens for egg production. We are doing this by trying to reduce fossil fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions to the extent possible. Reduction in the use of commercial grain crops is one way to accomplish these goals. One technique that has been proven to work as a way to reduce traditional grain inputs is to generate compost from household food scraps and use the ?critters? in the active compost-insects, worms and other decomposing organisms-as chicken feed. How can you participate? * Donate your table scraps. We will provide you with a five-gallon container with a lid for storage of your food scraps and provide instructions for preparing your food scraps. * We?ll pick up your container and supply you with a clean container. * As the hens start laying in July and August you?ll get some eggs back as a thank-you, and be able to purchase additional eggs, at a reasonable price, which could be delivered when we pick up your compost. We need a name for our project! All of those persons or households who contribute food scraps to our compost system are eligible to provide an entry to name the ?sustainable chicken project.? The winner will receive a dozen eggs. For more information contact Tom Shelley at tjs1 at cornell.edu or 342-0864. _______________________________________________ For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins Questions about the list? ask sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org From deerfarm6 at frontiernet.net Wed Jul 22 14:47:29 2009 From: deerfarm6 at frontiernet.net (goodsell) Date: Wed, 22 Jul 2009 14:47:29 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Advert: Sustainable Chicken Project References: <200907221327.n6MDR4J6021525@authusersmtp.mail.cornell.edu> <4A66E89C.ADAD.0014.0@parkfoundation.org> Message-ID: <004b01ca0afc$ddb42ed0$6501a8c0@Martha> I would think with all the building contractors in the Ithaca area, including those at IC and Cornell, it would be possible to get USG pails with lids donated to help manage the fruit fly and odor problems. ----- Original Message ----- From: "Amy Panek" To: Sent: Wednesday, July 22, 2009 10:30 AM Subject: Re: [SustainableTompkins] Advert: Sustainable Chicken Project > Hi Tom, > I would be very interested in joining your project. Most of the trash > I throw away is food waste and would be happy to provide it to you. But > I do live by myself and it will take me awhile to fill a 5 gallon > container - I will probably need some suggestions for managing fruit > flies. > > I live downtown at the corner of S. Albany and W. Clinton Streets. > > Sincerely, > Amy Panek > > > >>>> Thomas Shelley 7/22/2009 9:26 AM >>> > Dear Friends. Some of you have heard by now of > the Steep Hollow Farm Sustainable Chicken > Project. We are looking for 40 subscribers > living in downtown Ithaca* to provide food scraps > for our compost system. Many downtown residents > may not have the inclination, time, permission > from their landlords, or the space to > compost. We'd like to collect your food scraps, > compost them at our farm, and allow our 95 laying > hens (and a few roosters) to forage on the > insects and other decomposing organisms living in > the active compost. The compost critters will > become a significant component of the protein > requirement of our flock, reducing our reliance > on traditional grains as a protein > source. Instead of going to the landfill, as is > currently the case, the composted food scraps > from urban residents would become part of our > chicken's nutrient base and the urban > participants would have access to high quality, > sustainable and locally raised eggs, establishing > an urban-rural nutrient cycle. We hope this > will become a demonstration project to illustrate > one way in which local agriculture can become > less dependent upon fossil fuels, reduce its > greenhouse gas output and become more sustainable overall. > > We are asking for a $35 per year subscription fee > from each participating household to cover our > associated costs. This fee could be less per > unit for multiple units in one building. (The > average participating household could easily see > more than a $35 per year drop in the cost of City > of Ithaca trash tags.) Ideally, we need 40 > subscribers to optimize our production. *We are > a small scale project and we are now only taking > memberships from the downtown Ithaca area as it > is unsustainable for us to collect food scraps > from outlying areas at this time. If you are > interested or would like more information, please > contact me by e-mail or at 342-0864. Tom Shelley > and Christianne White from Steep Hollow Farm. > > ****************************************************************************************** > Steep Hollow Farm, Ithaca, New York > > Sustainable Chicken Project > > Do you eat eggs? > > Do you cook at home? > > Do you wish you could turn your food scraps into > productive compost but don?t have the space, > permission, or inclination to make a compost pile in your urban > neighborhood? > > Do you live in Ithaca, on ?the flats?? Southside, > Northside, Fall Creek, Downtown areas? > > Your food scraps could turn into eggs?. > > How does this happen? > > Steep Hollow Farm is raising ?sustainable? > chickens for egg production. We are doing this by > trying to reduce fossil fuel consumption and > greenhouse gas emissions to the extent possible. > Reduction in the use of commercial grain crops is > one way to accomplish these goals. One technique > that has been proven to work as a way to reduce > traditional grain inputs is to generate compost > from household food scraps and use the ?critters? > in the active compost-insects, worms and other > decomposing organisms-as chicken feed. > > How can you participate? > * Donate your table scraps. We will provide > you with a five-gallon container with a lid for > storage of your food scraps and provide > instructions for preparing your food scraps. > * We?ll pick up your container and supply you with a clean > container. > * As the hens start laying in July and August > you?ll get some eggs back as a thank-you, and be > able to purchase additional eggs, at a reasonable > price, which could be delivered when we pick up your compost. > We need a name for our project! > > All of those persons or households who contribute > food scraps to our compost system are eligible to > provide an entry to name the ?sustainable chicken > project.? The winner will receive a dozen eggs. > > For more information contact Tom Shelley at > tjs1 at cornell.edu > or 342-0864. > _______________________________________________ > For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, > please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ > > RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: > SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org > http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins > Questions about the list? ask > sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org > free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org > _______________________________________________ > For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, > please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ > > RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: > SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org > http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins > Questions about the list? ask > sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org > free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org > From Senecajean at aol.com Wed Jul 22 21:18:52 2009 From: Senecajean at aol.com (Senecajean at aol.com) Date: Wed, 22 Jul 2009 21:18:52 EDT Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Breakthrough article on carbon tax Sylvester Johnson Message-ID: An article Sylvester submitted several months ago has finally been published on the online magazine Earthzine Jeanne >From Sylvester Breakthrough article on carbon tax The effort that has been made by the City and Town of Ithaca and the County of Tompkins to support the enactment of federal tax on fossil fuel usage is getting national recognition. The article "Politically Possible Tax for Reduction of Fossil Fuel Usage in the U.S. and Worldwide" has been published in Earthzine.org, on the OpEd page at _http://www.earthzine.org/2009/07/20/politically-possible-tax-for-reduction-of-fossil-fuel-usage-in-the-us-and-wo rldwide/_ (http://www.earthzine.org/2009/07/20/politically-possible-tax-for-reduction-of-fossil-fuel-usage-in-the-us-and-worldwide/) . This publication of IEEE, "the world's leading professional association for the advancement of technology", is widely read among leaders in the environmental field. Because the article speaks common sense truth to political power, the article will probably prove controversial. In order that the publishers are encouraged to maintain it online, please check it out. If you find points that you agree with, please enter a comment below the article.= **************What's for dinner tonight? Find quick and easy dinner ideas for any occasion. (http://food.aol.com/dinner-tonight?ncid=emlcntusfood00000009) From tjs1 at cornell.edu Thu Jul 23 01:35:27 2009 From: tjs1 at cornell.edu (Thomas Shelley) Date: Thu, 23 Jul 2009 01:35:27 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Advert: Sustainable Chicken Project In-Reply-To: <4A66E89C.ADAD.0014.0@parkfoundation.org> References: <200907221327.n6MDR4J6021525@authusersmtp.mail.cornell.edu> <4A66E89C.ADAD.0014.0@parkfoundation.org> Message-ID: <200907230536.n6N5a3dq005715@authusersmtp.mail.cornell.edu> At 10:30 AM 7/22/2009, you wrote: >Hi Tom, I would be very interested in joining your project. Most of >the trash I throw away is food waste and would be happy to provide >it to you. But I do live by myself and it will take me awhile to >fill a 5 gallon container - I will probably need some suggestions >for managing fruit flies. I live downtown at the corner of S. Albany >and W. Clinton Streets. Sincerely, Amy Panek Dear Amy--Thanks for your note. (I saw the note Christianne sent you as well.) Yes, we would be happy to sign you up as a subscriber. We can pick up your bucket before it gets full, so you don't need to be concerned about filling the container. We can also give you a smaller bucket instead of a five-gallon one. We also can supply a fruit fly trap for you to use. Please contact me at your convenience and we can make an appointment to set you up with a subscription and a bucket. Thanks for your interest in our project. Tom ****************************************** Tom Shelley 118 E. Court St. Ithaca, NY 14850 607 342-0864 tjs1 at cornell.edu http://www.myspace.com/99319958 (Last updated 6/13/09.) http://www.facebook.com/129295929#/home.php (Last updated 6/13/09.) Compost Educator and Sustainability Scion* What Does Zero Waste Mean? "If it can't be reduced, reused, repaired, rebuilt, refurbished, refinished, resold, recycled, or composted, then it should be restricted, redesigned, or removed from production." Berkeley Zero Waste Resolution See http://www.cityofberkeley.info/council8/newsletter.pdf *noun: a shoot or bud of a plant, esp. one for planting or grafting From crf11 at cornell.edu Thu Jul 23 14:36:25 2009 From: crf11 at cornell.edu (Carole Fisher) Date: Thu, 23 Jul 2009 14:36:25 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Learn to Can Vegetables and Meats in a Pressure Canner Message-ID: <6.2.1.2.2.20090723143240.02a9fd10@postoffice9.mail.cornell.edu> Last call to register for Canning Vegetables and Meats Using a Pressure Canner being held tomorrow, Friday, 7/24 from 12:30-3:00 pm at CCE-Tompkins. There are still a few spots available. Cost is $15 per person. To register, call CCE at (607) 272-2292. Receptionist will take registration and payment. Carole Fisher Community Educator Cornell Cooperative Extension of Tompkins County 615 Willow Ave. Ithaca, NY 14850 (607) 272-2292 Visit our website: From Joel.and.Sarah.Gagnon at lightlink.com Fri Jul 24 10:19:38 2009 From: Joel.and.Sarah.Gagnon at lightlink.com (Joel and Sarah Gagnon) Date: Fri, 24 Jul 2009 10:19:38 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Breakthrough article on carbon tax Sylvester Johnson In-Reply-To: Message-ID: <5.2.1.1.2.20090724094944.02111cc0@pop.lightlink.com> A very interesting article. I was already convinced that a carbon tax has compelling advantages, and this article effectively compares this option to the cap-and-trade alternative being considered. The one issue that seems to me to be the sticking point for any effective action to curb carbon emissions is the argument that taking action here without others doing so puts us at a competitive disadvantage that will cost us jobs and eventually lead to our economic demise. The need to deal with others gaining market share and subverting the efforts of participating nations to reduce emissions seems crucial to me. The article suggests doing that with border tax adjustments, essentially tariffs imposed to compensate for the environmental subsidy of non-participating nations. There are potential obstacles in trade law. It should be obvious that these should be dealt with in any international treaties committing us and others to a carbon tax or other scheme to reduce emissions so that participating countries are explicitly given the authority to impose import duties on non-participating countries. I would suggest that calculating item-specific duties that would take into account the magnitude of the subsidy would be administratively burdensome. Instead, a simple duty could be levied based on the maximum subsidy likely to be present in goods and services from the non-participating countries. The fact that taxing at that level would result in overtaxing many products would serve as additional incentive for the non-participants to join the family of participating nations. Some will no doubt argue that a tariff or duty to help assure participation in a global carbon tax will inhibit trade. Compared to no carbon tax and no duty, that is no doubt true, but if we are ever to take effective collective action to address climate change, we need to put in place a system that rewards the virtuous and penalizes the miscreants. We can't afford to allow the environment to subsidize the industrialization of the emerging nations. While it is tempting to argue that we did it and it is now their turn, the globe will not withstand that scenario. We shouldn't have done it but did and got away with it; a repetition would be disastrous for all of us. Joel At 09:18 PM 7/22/09 -0400, you wrote: > > >An article Sylvester submitted several months ago has finally been >published on the online magazine Earthzine >Jeanne > >From Sylvester >Breakthrough article on carbon tax >The effort that has been made by the City and Town of Ithaca and the >County of Tompkins to support the enactment of federal tax on fossil fuel >usage >is getting national recognition. The article "Politically Possible Tax for >Reduction of Fossil Fuel Usage in the U.S. and Worldwide" has been >published in Earthzine.org, on the OpEd page at >_http://www.earthzine.org/2009/07/20/politically-possible-tax-for-reduction-of-fossil-fuel-usage-in-the-us-and-wo >rldwide/_ >(http://www.earthzine.org/2009/07/20/politically-possible-tax-for-reduction-of-fossil-fuel-usage-in-the-us-and-worldwide/) >. This publication >of IEEE, "the world's leading professional association for the advancement >of technology", is widely read among leaders in the environmental field. >Because the article speaks common sense truth to political power, the >article will probably prove controversial. In order that the publishers are >encouraged to maintain it online, please check it out. If you find points >that >you agree with, please enter a comment below the article.= > > > > > > > > > >**************What's for dinner tonight? Find quick and easy dinner ideas >for any occasion. >(http://food.aol.com/dinner-tonight?ncid=emlcntusfood00000009) >_______________________________________________ >For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, >please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ > >RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: >SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org >http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins >Questions about the list? ask sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org >free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org From clean.katiekelly at gmail.com Fri Jul 24 10:34:03 2009 From: clean.katiekelly at gmail.com (Katie Kelly) Date: Fri, 24 Jul 2009 10:34:03 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] 7/29 10am Healthy Home Party at the CRC Message-ID: <9d0ab25b0907240734t4e668438g286cdd7914d2ae55@mail.gmail.com> Apologies for cross postings. Please consider attending. POLLUTION IN PEOPLE: LIVING WITH THE ENEMY Our nation's laws on dangerous, toxic chemicals have failed to keep them out of our everyday products. Someday, we'll walk into a store and every product on the shelf will be safe for our families and the environment. But until then, the Cancer Resource Center of the Finger Lakes and Clean New York, a non-profit environmental health and justice organization, are working together make that happen and to help you stay educated about the products you use at home. As with our ?Toxic Toys? event in December 2008, we are now hosting a Healthy Home Party! Join us to learn what you can do to protect your health and environment and get involved in the cause. The main topics covered will include personal care and children?s products. *What: "Healthy Home" House Party* *When: July 29th, 10am-12pm* *Where: Cancer Resource Center, 612 W State St, Ithaca* *Who: Friends, family, and community. This issue affects all of us!* Bring one of your body care products and we?ll show you how to look it up on the EWG Cosmetic Database. There will also be a demonstration of how to make your own products along with recipes and samples to take home. AND! You can also bring a toy and we'll test it for lead and other harmful chemicals. Refreshments will be provided. Free childcare available upon request. *Please RSVP to Sharon Kaplan 277-0960 OR sharon at crcfl.net by Monday, July 27th.* -- Katie Kelly Child-Safe Products Campaign Coordinator Clean New York, a project of Women?s Voices for the Earth 734-646-2119 www.clean-ny.org From senecajean at aol.com Fri Jul 24 11:14:42 2009 From: senecajean at aol.com (senecajean at aol.com) Date: Fri, 24 Jul 2009 11:14:42 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Breakthrough article on carbon tax Sylvester Johnson In-Reply-To: <5.2.1.1.2.20090724094944.02111cc0@pop.lightlink.com> References: <5.2.1.1.2.20090724094944.02111cc0@pop.lightlink.com> Message-ID: <8CBDA889B0DB237-113C-1B98@webmail-mf15.sysops.aol.com> Joel This is a very interesting response. Would you consider posting it as a comment to the actual site?; the more responses an article gets the more the zine editors take note. I hope others on the list will respond, too. Here again is the link. Thanks! Jeanne http://www.earthzine.org/2009/07/20/politically-possible-tax-for-reduction-of-fossil-fuel-usage-in-the-us-and-worldwide/ -----Original Message----- From: Joel and Sarah Gagnon To: Sustainable Tompkins County listserv Sent: Fri, Jul 24, 2009 10:19 am Subject: Re: [SustainableTompkins] Breakthrough article on carbon tax Sylvester Johnson A very interesting article. I was already convinced that a carbon tax has compelling advantages, and this article effectively compares this option to the cap-and-trade alternative being considered. The one issue that seems to me to be the sticking point for any effective action to curb carbon emissions is the argument that taking action here without others doing so puts us at a competitive disadvantage that will cost us jobs and eventually lead to our economic demise. The need to deal with others gaining market share and subverting the efforts of participating nations to reduce emissions seems crucial to me. The article suggests doing that with border tax adjustments, essentially tariffs imposed to compensate for the environmental subsidy of non-participating nations. There are potential obstacles in trade law. It should be obvious that these should be dealt with in any international treaties committing us and others to a carbon tax or other scheme to reduce emissions so that participating countries are explicitly given the authority to impose import duties on non-participating countries. I would suggest that calculating item-specific duties that would take into account the magnitude of the subsidy would be administratively burdensome. Instead, a simple duty could be levied based on the maximum subsidy likely to be present in goods and services from the non-participating countries. The fact that taxing at that level would result in overtaxing many products would serve as additional incentive for the non-participants to join the family of participating nations. Some will no doubt argue that a tariff or duty to help assure participation in a global carbon tax will inhibit trade. Compared to no carbon tax and no duty, that is no doubt true, but if we are ever to take effective collective action to address climate change, we need to put in place a system that rewards the virtuous and penalizes the miscreants. We can't afford to allow the environment to subsidize the industrialization of the emerging nations. While it is tempting to argue that we did it and it is now their turn, the globe will not withstand that scenario. We shouldn't have done it but did and got away with it; a repetition would be disastrous for all of us. Joel At 09:18 PM 7/22/09 -0400, you wrote: > > >An article Sylvester submitted several months ago has finally been >published on the online magazine Earthzine >Jeanne > >From Sylvester >Breakthrough article on carbon tax >The effort that has been made by the City and Town of Ithaca and the >County of Tompkins to support the enactment of federal tax on fossil fuel >usage >is getting national recognition. The article "Politically Possible Tax for >Reduction of Fossil Fuel Usage in the U.S. and Worldwide" has been >published in Earthzine.org, on the OpEd page at >_http://www.earthzine.org/2009/07/20/politically-possible-tax-for-reduct ion-of-fossil-fuel-usage-in-the-us-and-wo >rldwide/_ >(http://www.earthzine.org/2009/07/20/politically-possible-tax-for-reduct ion-of-fossil-fuel-usage-in-the-us-and-worldwide/) >. This publication >of IEEE, "the world's leading professional association for the advancement >of technology", is widely read among leaders in the environmental field. >Because the article speaks common sense truth to political power, the >article will probably prove controversial. In order that the publishers are >encouraged to maintain it online, please check it out. If you find points >that >you agree with, please enter a comment below the article.= > > > > > > > > > >**************What's for dinner tonight? Find quick and easy dinner ideas >for any occasion. >(http://food.aol.com/dinner-tonight?ncid=emlcntusfood00000009) >_______________________________________________ >For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, >please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ > >RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: >SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org >http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins >Questions about the list? ask sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org >free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org _______________________________________________ For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins Questions about the list? ask sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org From landofdawes at gmail.com Sat Jul 25 17:10:34 2009 From: landofdawes at gmail.com (Debaura Dahl) Date: Sat, 25 Jul 2009 14:10:34 -0700 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] looking for a few volunteers In-Reply-To: <24121f890907160449x7149992av725008501b44be25@mail.gmail.com> References: <24121f890907160449x7149992av725008501b44be25@mail.gmail.com> Message-ID: <4981f0770907251410h55ecbe64r247b6e4470a83153@mail.gmail.com> Please call me with dates about the event 607 564 9406 debaura On Thu, Jul 16, 2009 at 4:49 AM, Steve Gabriel wrote: > Greetings: > > The Finger Lakes Permaculture Institute is gearing up for its 7th > Permaculture Design Certification course, and we need your help! We are > seeking a few hands to come see what the class is all about in exchange for > helping out our cooks on site. Each shift you complete (helping with > lunch/dinner prep) earns you a spot in one class sesson. > > Please email steve at fingerlakespermaculture.org if you are interested in this > opportunity to sit in on part of this exciting event. > > > -- > Work With Nature > *ecological design solutions* > 303.815.3535 > steve at WorkWithNature.net > www.WorkWithNature.net > > Finger Lakes Permaculture Institute > *design certification, apprenticeships, workshops* > www.FingerLakesPermaculture.org > _______________________________________________ > For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit: ?http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ > > RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: > SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org > http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins > Questions about the list? ask sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org > free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org > From tonydelplato at gmail.com Mon Jul 27 09:45:40 2009 From: tonydelplato at gmail.com (Tony Del Plato) Date: Mon, 27 Jul 2009 09:45:40 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Garbage Patch of the Pacific In-Reply-To: <4c016e0f0907251220l293d543ajd00794da35fe7e11@mail.gmail.com> References: <4c016e0f0907251220l293d543ajd00794da35fe7e11@mail.gmail.com> Message-ID: Though Tompkins is far from the Pacific, this is worth sharing if only to consider the amount of plastic is building & flying loose in our region. This is a shocker Tony Del Plato http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/news/center/articles/2007/garbage-patch-12-2007.html ----------------------------------------- This e-mail has been sent by Tony Del Plato -- "When you come to a fork in the road, take it." Yogi Berra -- It is harder to crack a prejudice than an atom. - Albert Einstein From sjr37 at cornell.edu Mon Jul 27 14:55:59 2009 From: sjr37 at cornell.edu (Sandra Repp) Date: Mon, 27 Jul 2009 14:55:59 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] 8/1-8/2: Farm Trail Open House Weekend Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20090727145236.0306f760@cornell.edu> Farm Trail Open House Weekend Saturday & Sunday, August 1 & 2, 12:00-5:00 pm Ever wonder what goes on at the farms you drive by? Gather up friends and family and hit the Farm Trail! Visit with local farmers, enjoy the scenery, taste the harvest and support local organic and sustainable farms. Bring a cooler and buy farm fresh products along the way. 11 farms to choose from featuring organic veggies, apples, u-pick crops, pastured poultry, dairy, horses, alpacas, and even a camel! Your Farm Trail Tour Button ($2/person or $5 for 4 buttons) is your entry to the farms for one or both days. Buttons and maps are available at Cooperative Extension, Greenstar Cooperative, or at the farms on the day of the tour. For a tour brochure, visit: http://ccetompkins.org/localfood/FarmTrail/2009_farm_tour.pdf For more information, call 607-272-2292 or email evk4 at cornell.edu. Saturday, August 1st: Littletree Orchards in Newfield White Dog Apiary, Newfield Settlement Horse Stables, Spencer Heaven Llama Farm (with llamas, alpaca, ducks, and a camel), Spencer Locust Woods Blueberry Farm, Spencer Plantasia Nursery, Spencer Sunday, August 2nd: Cayuga Pure Organics Beanery, Brooktondale Gardens of Earthly Mirth, Brooktondale Three Sisters CSA Vegetable Farm, Ithaca Quinn's Irish Hill Farm (pastured poultry), Freeville Lew-Lin Dairy Farm, Dryden Farmers' Choice Blueberries, Dryden From mbrown at ithaca.edu Tue Jul 28 09:10:58 2009 From: mbrown at ithaca.edu (Marian Brown) Date: Tue, 28 Jul 2009 09:10:58 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Possible cash awards to K-12 classroom teachers to develop innovative curricula to teach about energy and global climate change Message-ID: <4A6EF8E2.5060600@ithaca.edu> Attention K-12 teachers: Climate Change and Energy Efficiency Challenge has been announced by NYSERDA. This program offers awards of up to $500 per classroom to spur creative approaches to encouraging energy-efficient behavior in school, at home, and in the community. The Energy Smart Students program will fund up to 30 innovative projects that increase students' energy and global climate change awareness, while providing student leadership opportunities and outreach to the community. Funds can be used to purchase supplies or equipment for use in hands-on activities related to energy efficiency or for community education events. Winners will be chosen based on their creativity in delivering the climate changer message and the extent to which students take a leadership role in school and community efforts. Applications must be received by September 30. To download the application and program guidelines: http://www.getenergysmart.org/Files/Schools/09GrantApplication.pdf From mam233 at cornell.edu Tue Jul 28 17:45:37 2009 From: mam233 at cornell.edu (Melissa Madden) Date: Tue, 28 Jul 2009 17:45:37 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Cornell's Organic Farm Vegetable Field Days this August... Message-ID: <6.2.1.2.2.20090728174414.037debf0@postoffice9.mail.cornell.edu> Please join us for these field days- they promise to be packed with good sustainable agriculture information! Come one, come all... Cornell University's Organic Vegetable Cropping Field Days August 17 and 24, at the Homer C. Thompson Vegetable Research Farm, Freeville, N.Y. Both events are FREE and open to the public Organic Vegetable Research Farm Day August 17 (Monday), 4-7PM Learn about organic seed varieties, season extension techniques, reduced tillage strategies and compost quality at the certified organic portion of Cornell University's Freeville Farm. Researchers at the farm create specialized equipment for weed control and reduced tillage intensity, raise the bar in organic breeding for quality and disease resistance, investigate nutrient management through cover cropping, and explore early production of warm-season crops in high tunnel production. The field day will begin with a brief overview of the farm projects will begin in the Thompson lab followed by in-field sessions with individual researchers designed for hands-on learning. Diverse Fertility Management: Cover Crops and Other Nutrient Sources August 24 (Monday), 4-7PM Learn about diverse fertility management by using and evaluating different cover crops for nutrient management at this Organic Cropping Systems field day. Researchers will empower attendees to measure cover crop density and predict the resulting nutrient content. The Organic Cropping Systems project demonstrates the use of various warm- and cool-season cover crops and the cumulative effect of different management styles in vegetable production. Join us for hands-on learning and grower networking! Questions? Contact Melissa Madden, (607) 351 3313 or mam233 at cornell.edu. Directions: The 30 acre Freeville Organic Research Farm is part of the Homer C. Thompson Vegetable Research Farm in Freeville, NY, located about 10 miles northeast of Cornell's Ithaca campus. (From the CU campus, follow Rt. 366 to Freeville and go straight through the 4-way stop to the farm about 1 mile beyond Freeville. Turn left at Ed Hill Road and park in the Thompson lab lot. The address is 133 Fall Creek Rd., Freeville 13068) Check us out at http://www.cuaes.cornell.edu/cals/cuaes/ag-operations/freeville-farm/ Melissa Madden Organic farm coordinator Cornell University Agricultural Experiment Station (CUAES) 147D Plant Science Building Ithaca, NY 14853 t. (607) 351 3313 email. mam233 at cornell.edu From mmccasla at twcny.rr.com Tue Jul 28 20:45:19 2009 From: mmccasla at twcny.rr.com (Margaret McCasland) Date: Tue, 28 Jul 2009 20:45:19 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Advert: Sustainable Chicken Project In-Reply-To: <200907230536.n6N5a3dq005715@authusersmtp.mail.cornell.edu> References: <200907221327.n6MDR4J6021525@authusersmtp.mail.cornell.edu> <4A66E89C.ADAD.0014.0@parkfoundation.org> <200907230536.n6N5a3dq005715@authusersmtp.mail.cornell.edu> Message-ID: <3556A6BB-AC40-4809-B7F4-3050F24AEFDC@twcny.rr.com> Hi Tom, Eggs sound great. I will be doing errands tomorrow afternoon. Might you be interested in a cooler for leaving eggs on your porch? I may have one in the depths of my storage bay--where it is doing no one any good. What are you charging? Thanks, Margaret From tjs1 at cornell.edu Tue Jul 28 23:49:58 2009 From: tjs1 at cornell.edu (Thomas Shelley) Date: Tue, 28 Jul 2009 23:49:58 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Advert: Sustainable Chicken Project In-Reply-To: <3556A6BB-AC40-4809-B7F4-3050F24AEFDC@twcny.rr.com> References: <200907221327.n6MDR4J6021525@authusersmtp.mail.cornell.edu> <4A66E89C.ADAD.0014.0@parkfoundation.org> <200907230536.n6N5a3dq005715@authusersmtp.mail.cornell.edu> <3556A6BB-AC40-4809-B7F4-3050F24AEFDC@twcny.rr.com> Message-ID: <200907290352.n6T3q5lg013146@authusersmtp.mail.cornell.edu> At 08:45 PM 7/28/2009, you wrote: >Hi Tom, > >Eggs sound great. I will be doing errands tomorrow afternoon. Might >you be interested in a cooler for leaving eggs on your porch? I may >have one in the depths of my storage bay--where it is doing no one any >good. Hi, Margaret. I have a cooler I can use. This is a good idea. I will leave the eggs in the cooler on my porch. >What are you charging? This batch of 5 eggs is free. One is normal sized and the other 4 are smaller, pullet eggs. Enjoy! Other eggs will be available, once the hens are laying full-sized eggs, at $3.50/dozen. More later. Tom From tjs1 at cornell.edu Tue Jul 28 23:53:19 2009 From: tjs1 at cornell.edu (Thomas Shelley) Date: Tue, 28 Jul 2009 23:53:19 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Fwd: chickens for sale Message-ID: <200907290355.n6T3tQJT013490@authusersmtp.mail.cornell.edu> Dear Friends--I am forwarding this note on behalf of a friend and fellow Master Composter. Please contact Sarah directly. Thanks. Tom >Date: Mon, 27 Jul 2009 13:12:45 -0400 >Subject: chickens for sale >From: Sarah Steinkamp >To: tjs1 at cornell.edu > >Hi Tom... I have been following along the blog of the sustainable >chicken project with great interest. It looks like you are doing >really well with it. > I am e-mailing you because I thought that you might know someone > who is in the market for hens. I have decided to move from > Interlaken to Ithaca and therefore need to sell off my hens (sad as > it makes me). It just does not make sense for me at the moment to > live in the middle of the boondocks. Anyhow if you know anyone who > is looking, if you could pass on my info, that would be greatly > appreciated. I am sure I will see you around at various composting > events and whatnot. >Be Well, >Sarah Steinkamp > > >Happy healthy flock being sold off . All the hens are free ranging >and healthy, they have been free ranging out side on pasture, with >non GMO feed. >E-mail or call if you have further questions or to confirm an order. >Apx 100-18 week Isa Brown -$12 ea. >Apx 30 -18 week Aracana-$20 ea ( blue and green egg layer) >Apx 8 -1 year Rhode Island Red -$10 ea >Apx 17 -1 year Black Star- $10 ea >Apx 7 -1 year mixed breeds -$7 ea >I have been giving a 15% discount for buying 12 or more if you are >interested in a larger number. >I can also deliver to Ithaca if that is easier for you. >sarah (607)220-3914 >steinkamp at riseup.net From sjr37 at cornell.edu Wed Jul 29 08:43:47 2009 From: sjr37 at cornell.edu (Sandra Repp) Date: Wed, 29 Jul 2009 08:43:47 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] 8/17 & 8/24: Cornell University's Organic Vegetable Cropping Field Days Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20090729084145.0307de90@cornell.edu> Cornell University's Organic Vegetable Cropping Field Days August 17 and 24, at the Homer C. Thompson Vegetable Research Farm, Freeville, N.Y. Both events are FREE and open to the public Organic Vegetable Research Farm Day August 17 (Monday), 4-7PM Learn about organic seed varieties, season extension techniques, reduced tillage strategies and compost quality at the certified organic portion of Cornell University's Freeville Farm. Researchers at the farm create specialized equipment for weed control and reduced tillage intensity, raise the bar in organic breeding for quality and disease resistance, investigate nutrient management through cover cropping, and explore early production of warm-season crops in high tunnel production. The field day will begin with a brief overview of the farm projects will begin in the Thompson lab followed by in-field sessions with individual researchers designed for hands-on learning. Diverse Fertility Management: Cover Crops and Other Nutrient Sources August 24 (Monday), 4-7PM Learn about diverse fertility management by using and evaluating different cover crops for nutrient management at this Organic Cropping Systems field day. Researchers will empower attendees to measure cover crop density and predict the resulting nutrient content. The Organic Cropping Systems project demonstrates the use of various warm- and cool-season cover crops and the cumulative effect of different management styles in vegetable production. Join us for hands-on learning and grower networking! Questions? Contact Melissa Madden, (607) 351 3313 or mam233 at cornell.edu. Directions: The 30 acre Freeville Organic Research Farm is part of the Homer C. Thompson Vegetable Research Farm in Freeville, NY, located about 10 miles northeast of Cornell's Ithaca campus. (From the CU campus, follow Rt. 366 to Freeville and go straight through the 4-way stop to the farm about 1 mile beyond Freeville. Turn left at Ed Hill Road and park in the Thompson lab lot. The address is 133 Fall Creek Rd., Freeville 13068) Check us out at http://www.cuaes.cornell.edu/cals/cuaes/ag-operations/freeville-farm/ Melissa Madden Organic farm coordinator Cornell University Agricultural Experiment Station (CUAES) 147D Plant Science Building Ithaca, NY 14853 t. (607) 351 3313 email. mam233 at cornell.edu From bosak at ibiblio.org Wed Jul 29 09:19:08 2009 From: bosak at ibiblio.org (Jon Bosak) Date: Wed, 29 Jul 2009 09:19:08 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Latest TCLocal article: Visioning County Food Production - Part One Message-ID: <4A704C4C.2000606@ibiblio.org> Continuing the theme of local food production that's been the subject of the last two tclocal.org articles, this month's offering begins a projected three-part series by local organic farmer Karl North. Karl brings more than 35 years of real-world experience to his discussion of sustainable agriculture and local food systems. He has practiced low-input farming in a variety of sites around the world and established Northland Sheep Dairy in Marathon, New York in 1980 to produce organic foods for local markets and serve as an educational resource for the public. In "Visioning County Food Production - Part One," Karl introduces some basic premises and theoretical points of departure to explain the fundamental changes in perspective he sees as necessary to envision how and where we produce food in the future. The article can be found at http://tclocal.org/2009/07/visioning_county_food_producti.html People who want to comment on this article or engage Karl in discussion should note that the TCLocal web site is specifically designed to get feedback on these ideas as they are developed. Please use the comment form at the bottom of the article so that we can keep all the input in one place. ABOUT TCLOCAL Every month (approximately) TCLocal brings you another in our series of articles addressing various aspects of energy descent in Tompkins County. Contributors to TCLocal are members of the community committed to helping prepare for a future with less available energy. Articles that have appeared so far in this series can be found at tclocal.org. They include: Can New York State Feed Itself? by Jon Bosak (June 2009) http://tclocal.org/2009/06/can_new_york_state_feed_itself.html Examining the potential local foodshed of Tompkins County by Christian Peters (March 2009) http://tclocal.org/2009/03/examining_the_potential_local.html Food Processing in Tompkins County by Persephone Doliner (February 2009) http://tclocal.org/2009/02/food_processing_in_tompkins_co.html Wasting in the Energy Descent: An Outline for the Future by Tom Shelley (January 2009) http://tclocal.org/2009/01/wasting_in_the_energy_descent.html Local and Urban Small Livestock and Poultry by Angelika St. Laurent (December 2008) http://tclocal.org/2008/12/local_and_urban_small_livestoc.html Health Care in an Energy-Constrained Environment (Part 1) by Bethany Schroeder (October 2008) http://tclocal.org/2008/10/health_care_in_an_energyconstr.html Preparedness Basics (Part 1) by Katie Quinn-Jacobs (September 2008) http://tclocal.org/2008/09/preparedness_basics.html Post-Peak Land Use Part 1: Ecocities and Post-Peak Land Use Part 2: The Country by Josh Dolan (July 2008) http://tclocal.org/2008/07/postpeak_land_use_part_1_ecoci.html http://tclocal.org/2008/07/postpeak_land_use_part_2_the_c.html Water Treatment, Water Power by Jon Bosak (May 2008) http://tclocal.org/2008/05/water_treatment_water_power.html Roads and Bridges in a Post-peak Tompkins County by Simon St. Laurent (March 2008) http://tclocal.org/2008/03/roads_and_bridges_in_a_postpea.html Fruits in a Post-Peak Tompkins County by Angelika St. Laurent (January 2008) http://tclocal.org/2008/01/fruits_in_a_postpeak_tompkins_1.html Other articles scheduled for publication in 2009 include: Visioning County Food Production, Parts 1-3 (Karl North) Health care resources, Part 2 (Bethany Schroeder) Biomass options (Krys Cail) Local wood heat (Tony Nekut) Local biofuel production (Tycho Dan) Articles appearing at tclocal.org are published under the Creative Commons license and are owned and managed by the contributors as a group. People interested in becoming TCLocal contributors should first check the Terms of Reference at http://ibiblio.org/tcrp/process/terms.htm and then contact the TCLocal editor at the address below to sign up. Jon Bosak Editor, TCLocal bosak at pinax.com From sjr37 at cornell.edu Wed Jul 29 11:40:12 2009 From: sjr37 at cornell.edu (Sandra Repp) Date: Wed, 29 Jul 2009 11:40:12 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] 10/24: Cornell Sheep & Goat Symposium Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20090729113855.0309e660@cornell.edu> Those who are interested in keeping small ruminants may wish to know about the 2009 Cornell Sheep & Goat Symposium, to be held on Saturday 24 October 2009 in Morrison Hall on the Cornell University campus in Ithaca. Please see http://www.sheep.cornell.edu/calendar/sgsymposium/ for program details and registration. The event includes beginner, experienced and IPM tracks. For additional information, call 607-592-2541 or 607-255-7712. From siki at frontiernet.net Wed Jul 29 15:26:17 2009 From: siki at frontiernet.net (Kristie) Date: Wed, 29 Jul 2009 15:26:17 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] BPA in home canning lids References: Message-ID: <60B0176781A6433D85E6539256D2C7B0@Main> Hi to any fellow canners out there, I've been doing some research on what food containers do and do not contain BPA, and was pretty annoyed to find it's in Ball canning lids. Please send an email to the parent company, Jarden (which seems to make all canning lids on the market, Ball, Kerr, etc -- as far as I can tell, there are no BPA-free alternatives), at http://www.freshpreserving.com/pages/contact_us/10.php asking them to come up with a BPA-free version! Wishing we didn't live in a world so infiltrated with toxins that you have to worry about your own, home-canned food... -Kristie PS Please pass along to other canners! Maybe they will come up with an alternative if they hear from enough of us. From gjem5760 at yahoo.com Wed Jul 29 16:50:24 2009 From: gjem5760 at yahoo.com (George Frantz) Date: Wed, 29 Jul 2009 13:50:24 -0700 (PDT) Subject: [SustainableTompkins] BPA in home canning lids In-Reply-To: <60B0176781A6433D85E6539256D2C7B0@Main> Message-ID: <355568.41385.qm@web44905.mail.sp1.yahoo.com> Do they still manufacture the glass top jars with rubber rings?? ? The rubber probably has a lot of toxins in it as well, but there is at least a rim of glass between the rubber and the contents. ? George ? --- On Wed, 7/29/09, Kristie wrote: From: Kristie Subject: [SustainableTompkins] BPA in home canning lids To: sustainabletompkins at lists.mutualaid.org Date: Wednesday, July 29, 2009, 7:26 PM Hi to any fellow canners out there, I've been doing some research on what food containers do and do not contain BPA, and was pretty annoyed to find it's in Ball canning lids. Please send an email to the parent company, Jarden (which seems to make all canning lids on the market, Ball, Kerr, etc -- as far as I can tell, there are no BPA-free alternatives), at http://www.freshpreserving.com/pages/contact_us/10.php asking them to come up with a BPA-free version! Wishing we didn't live in a world so infiltrated with toxins that you have to worry about your own, home-canned food... -Kristie PS Please pass along to other canners! Maybe they will come up with an alternative if they hear from enough of us. _______________________________________________ For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit:? http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins Questions about the list? ask sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org From mmccasla at twcny.rr.com Wed Jul 29 21:37:54 2009 From: mmccasla at twcny.rr.com (Margaret McCasland) Date: Wed, 29 Jul 2009 21:37:54 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] BPA in home canning lids& other things? In-Reply-To: <60B0176781A6433D85E6539256D2C7B0@Main> References: <60B0176781A6433D85E6539256D2C7B0@Main> Message-ID: <0A65ADD2-FE26-4730-B3B0-2BCCB8CF3454@twcny.rr.com> Interestingly enough, Ball/Jarden also makes lining for "tin " cans without BPA, but only for some of its customers (Eden). So they know how to function with and without BPA. I fear that the widespread allergies to latex--some synthetic, some from natural rubber--probably means the lawyers will nix going back to old canning rings, which at some point were rubber. And its not just canning lids: inside caps on soda an beer bottles, all kinds of food containers have soft plastic which I suspect has BPA. We should start insisting that food retailer let their suppliers know that customers want BPA and phthalate AND ANY OTHER TOXIC MATERIAL out of our food containers. I recently wrote Wegman's to find out if the GOlden Harvest (owned by Ball/Jarden) sun tea jars have BPS in their soft spigots. I was told they do not, but this post makes me a little nervous. The jars are glass; the lids are #5 polypropelene, both of which are GRAS, but the spigot has soft something inside it . . . they didn't say what it was, just that the jar does not have BPA or phthalates in it. Maybe they think the spigot doesn't count? Many, many products at Greenstar seem likely to have BPA or phthalates in them, including those little product labels on fruits and veggies, many of which seem to be vinyl. I recently found one on some "organic" compost I bought. Margaret On Jul 29, 2009, at 3:26 PM, Kristie wrote: > Hi to any fellow canners out there, > I've been doing some research on what food containers do and do not > contain BPA, and was pretty annoyed to find it's in Ball canning > lids. Please send an email to the parent company, Jarden (which > seems to make all canning lids on the market, Ball, Kerr, etc -- as > far as I can tell, there are no BPA-free alternatives), at http://www.freshpreserving.com/pages/contact_us/10.php > asking them to come up with a BPA-free version! > Wishing we didn't live in a world so infiltrated with toxins that > you have to worry about your own, home-canned food... > -Kristie > PS Please pass along to other canners! Maybe they will come up with > an alternative if they hear from enough of us. > _______________________________________________ > For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County > area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ > > RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: > SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org > http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins > Questions about the list? ask sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org > free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org From ws at twcny.rr.com Wed Jul 29 10:58:10 2009 From: ws at twcny.rr.com (Wendy Skinner) Date: Wed, 29 Jul 2009 10:58:10 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] SewGreen News 7-29-09: Classes, Youth Showcase, Sale Message-ID: <6135E79AB4E140EC807A9F7B849BF7FC@wendyvaio> SewGreen News, July 28, 2009 www.sew-green.org SewGreen is a not-for-profit community organization. CONTENTS ~~ August Classes ~~ Summer Youth Showcase ~~ Sidewalk Days Fabric Sale ~~ Classroom Clean-up Day ~~ Coordinator's Note AUGUST CLASSES Classes are held at the SewGreen classroom, Women's Community Building, 100 W Seneca Street, downtown Ithaca. Everything is supplied. Some scholarships are available. Pre-registration is required. Email coord at sew-green.org or call 607-277-7611. ~ ~ Beginning Sewing I, for teens and adults. Learn to use a sewing machine and make a reusable tote bag. $15. Offered twice: 6 to 8 pm, Wednesday, August 5; and 6 to 8 pm, Tuesday, August 11. ~ ~ Beginning Sewing II, for teens and adults. Review machine use and make a fabulous apron. $15. Offered twice: 6 to 8:30 pm, Thursday, August 6; and 6 to 8:30 pm, Wednesday, August 12. ~ ~ Start-up Level 1, for children ages 8 to 12. Kids learn basic machine and hand sewing techniques as they make projects they can use and wear. $90. Five sessions: 9 am to noon, Monday through Friday, August 17 - 21. ~ ~ Start-up Level 2/3, for children ages 8 to 12. Next steps in machine and hand sewing. $90. Five sessions: 9 am to noon, Monday through Friday, August 24 - 28. SEWGREEN OPEN HOUSE & SUMMER YOUTH SHOWCASE Come see the accomplishments of the teens in SewGreen's eight-week summer work and training program. This diverse and talented group will present a showcase of their work on Friday, August 14, at the Women's Community Building. Exhibits and demonstrations will be ongoing from 3 to 6 pm, and the SewGreen classroom will be open for tours. The teens are employed through the Ithaca Youth Bureau's YES program and other youth employment programs, or are unpaid apprentices. The summer program includes intensive skill-building in sewing, as well as learning workplace responsibilities and leadership in an inclusionary, creative environment. The program also seeks to build on the teens' existing strengths and help them meet personal goals. Their showcase projects will reflect their best efforts, which are pretty darn amazing. All are invited! SIDEWALK SALE INCLUDES SEWGREEN FABRIC Don't miss the Sidewalk Sale at Tuff Soul this Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, 11 am to 7 pm. In addition to Tuff Soul's fabulous vintage and sustainable apparel, bargains will include items "Rescued for Reuse" by SewGreen: yarn, sewing notions, and fabrics. Included are quilting cottons, dress lengths of rayon and silk blends, decorator upholstery remnants, and vintage fabrics. Most pieces have never been used, just stashed away until now. Fresh stock will be added daily. Tuff Soul is located at 516 West State Street, in Ithaca's way-cool West End, walkable from the Ithaca Commons. Proceeds from SewGreen sales support our programs. CLASSROOM CLEAN-UP DAY - VOLUNTEERS WELCOME The SewGreen classroom had seen some hard use this summer! We'll be cleaning, painting with earth-friendly paint, and just generally tidying up from 11 am to 4 pm, Saturday, August 8. Please let us know if you plan to come, so we can coordinate the teamwork! COORDINATOR'S NOTE Once in a while, I stop to take a breath and notice what SewGreen has become. From a start of literally nothing but commitment and a good idea, the program lives and grows mainly due to your gifts. Some gifts are material, such as the steady stream of donations of fine old sewing machines and what is sometimes a lifetime collection of fabrics. Some gifts are monetary, such as a grant from the Park Foundation, help from the Tompkins County Solid Waste Management Division, the Service League Shop, the Social Service League, and others, including Tree Cook's astounding fund-raising sale. The greatest gifts are the time, talent, and diversity of the teachers, students, and volunteers at SewGreen. The 10-year-old who gets excited about reuse and spends her whole weekend teaching her family to make projects from old t-shirts, the at-risk teenager whose confidence blossoms, the teachers who spend hours preparing projects to share -- these are the people who are turning a good idea into a great outcome. SewGreen is providing unique opportunities not widely available from other community programs, the public schools, local colleges, adult education, or even busy families. We're still operating on a very skinny shoestring, but thanks to your gifts -- which have allowed us to equip and supply the classroom with donated materials, pay the rent, and offer classes -- we have built an inclusive community resource that can be shared with you or your program. Come visit, talk, brainstorm. -- Wendy Skinner, SewGreen Coordinator, coord at sew-green.org, 607-277-7611. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ To be added or subtracted from SewGreen's newsletter distribution list, contact Wendy Skinner, SewGreen Coordinator, coord at sew-green.org, 607-277-7611. From kqj at quinn-jacobs.org Thu Jul 30 09:08:19 2009 From: kqj at quinn-jacobs.org (Katie Quinn-Jacobs) Date: Thu, 30 Jul 2009 09:08:19 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] BPA in home canning lids In-Reply-To: <60B0176781A6433D85E6539256D2C7B0@Main> References: <60B0176781A6433D85E6539256D2C7B0@Main> Message-ID: <4A719B43.3030107@quinn-jacobs.org> This topic would be a great discussion thread on IthaCan , a social network for local food preservers. If you're a home food preserver you can sign up here . Unless...you are the same Kristie that signed up yesterday? Best, Katie Q-J Kristie wrote: > Hi to any fellow canners out there, > I've been doing some research on what food containers do and do not > contain BPA, and was pretty annoyed to find it's in Ball canning lids. > Please send an email to the parent company, Jarden (which seems to > make all canning lids on the market, Ball, Kerr, etc -- as far as I > can tell, there are no BPA-free alternatives), at > http://www.freshpreserving.com/pages/contact_us/10.php asking them to > come up with a BPA-free version! > Wishing we didn't live in a world so infiltrated with toxins that you > have to worry about your own, home-canned food... > -Kristie > PS Please pass along to other canners! Maybe they will come up with an > alternative if they hear from enough of us. > _______________________________________________ > For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, > please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ > > RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: > SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org > http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins > Questions about the list? ask > sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org > free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org > -- From Joel.and.Sarah.Gagnon at lightlink.com Thu Jul 30 10:22:27 2009 From: Joel.and.Sarah.Gagnon at lightlink.com (Joel and Sarah Gagnon) Date: Thu, 30 Jul 2009 10:22:27 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] BPA in home canning lids In-Reply-To: <355568.41385.qm@web44905.mail.sp1.yahoo.com> References: <60B0176781A6433D85E6539256D2C7B0@Main> Message-ID: <5.2.1.1.2.20090730101012.02121920@pop.lightlink.com> There are a lot of old bale jars out there, but the jar rubbers are an increasingly scarce commodity. I standardized on regular mason jars years ago, as have most home canners. A little perspective is wanted here. The lid is a pretty small part of the surface area of the enclosure, and normally it is not in constant contact with the contents. I certainly wonder what bpa is doing in there, but I doubt it is a serious concern. I'd be much more concerned (and am) about commercial food cans where the entire lining is bpa-containing and in contact with the food. Joel At 01:50 PM 7/29/09 -0700, you wrote: >Do they still manufacture the glass top jars with rubber rings? > >The rubber probably has a lot of toxins in it as well, but there is at >least a rim of glass between the rubber and the contents. > >George > > >--- On Wed, 7/29/09, Kristie wrote: > > >From: Kristie >Subject: [SustainableTompkins] BPA in home canning lids >To: sustainabletompkins at lists.mutualaid.org >Date: Wednesday, July 29, 2009, 7:26 PM > > >Hi to any fellow canners out there, >I've been doing some research on what food containers do and do not >contain BPA, and was pretty annoyed to find it's in Ball canning lids. >Please send an email to the parent company, Jarden (which seems to make >all canning lids on the market, Ball, Kerr, etc -- as far as I can tell, >there are no BPA-free alternatives), at >http://www.freshpreserving.com/pages/contact_us/10.php asking them to come >up with a BPA-free version! >Wishing we didn't live in a world so infiltrated with toxins that you have >to worry about your own, home-canned food... >-Kristie >PS Please pass along to other canners! Maybe they will come up with an >alternative if they hear from enough of us. >_______________________________________________ >For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, >please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ > >RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: >SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org >http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins >Questions about the list? ask sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org >free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org > > > > >_______________________________________________ >For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, >please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ > >RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: >SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org >http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins >Questions about the list? ask sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org >free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org From admin at oldbird.org Thu Jul 30 13:12:31 2009 From: admin at oldbird.org (Old Bird) Date: Thu, 30 Jul 2009 13:12:31 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Plastic with #1 recycling designation Message-ID: Greetings, I am new to this list so the possibility of endocrine disruption from #1 plastic such as is discussed in the following study may have been thoroughly discussed: http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/es900885t In any case, the ramifications of this study are worth following. The study method is also elegantly simple and sounds like something one could try at home to verify the results. The study report suggests plastic drinking bottles with polyethylene terephthalate (PET, #1 recycling designation) contain some currently unidentified mechanism of endocrine disruption (at least for snails). I believe this includes most single-portion plastic soda, drinking water, and many juice containers, which were once thought to be relatively "safe" and approved so by the FDA. The researchers simply raised a type of water snail in such PET plastic bottles along side glass bottles and compared reproductive rates. The PET plastic bottle reproductive rate was significant higher. Considering the huge quantity of these plastic bottles in our environment the past decade, not to mention the polar fleece and carpets made from recycling them, I hope this is not the reason I have so many slugs in my garden this year. Bill Evans Danby From sjr37 at cornell.edu Thu Jul 30 15:06:00 2009 From: sjr37 at cornell.edu (Sandra Repp) Date: Thu, 30 Jul 2009 15:06:00 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Sept 18, 19 & 20: PA Renewable Energy Festival Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20090730142210.030332a0@cornell.edu> Pennsylvania Renewable Energy & Sustainable Living Festival September 18, 19 & 20 in Kempton, PA http://www.paenergyfest.com/index.shtml The festival is about "renewable energy, natural building construction, sustainable agriculture, land-use planning, forestry and healthy living practices in general" and features national speakers and exhibitors, workshops, entertainment, and more. Offerings include 66 lectures on sustainability topics; displays of electric, hydrogen and veggie oil run vehicles; transportation and green building lectures; free demos of timber framing, installing a wind turbine, farming w/ horses, SPIN gardening; Workshops (for an additional fee) on using American clay, converting your car to run on electric or diesel, and a 2-day intensive on "Alcohol Fuel Production & Use" with permaculture and BioFuels expert and author David Blume. Admission to the Festival is $12/adult, $6/age 13-21, free for kids under 12, and $15 if you camp. Keynote speakers on Fri & Sat are: Steven Kretzmann - Executive Director, Oil Change International, on "Climate Justice and The True Price of Oil" Scot Horst - "Federal Level Green Vision" Thomas H. Greco, Jr. - "The End of Money: The Soft Path Toward a Sustainable, Regenerative Economy" Brian Tokar - "Renewing Energy and Renewing Society" Brendan I. Koerner - "Transforming the Grid, Transforming America" Lectures, Workshops and Displays are listed at: http://www.paenergyfest.com/workshops.shtml#twork or day-by-day at http://www.paenergyfest.com/09schedule-friday.html http://www.paenergyfest.com/09schedule-saturday.html http://www.paenergyfest.com/09schedule-sunday.html From rachel at ecobooks.com Thu Jul 30 17:34:50 2009 From: rachel at ecobooks.com (Rachel Treichler) Date: Thu, 30 Jul 2009 17:34:50 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] NY Green Fest Next Weekend, Aug. 7-9, Alfred Message-ID: <4A7211FA.1020806@ecobooks.com> NY Green Fest is coming up next weekend! We have lots of excellent speakers, artists and musicians--many of them from the Ithaca area. Hope you will be able to join us. Reservations for meal and lodging on campus must be made by August 1. NY Green Fest, Aug. 7-9, 2009, Alfred, NY *http://nygreenfest.org* NY Green Fest 2009 will be held the weekend of Aug. 7-9 on the campus of Alfred University in Alfred. Green Fest, which was held in the Ithaca area in 2003 and 2007, offers a wide range of activities with workshops and forums, music and poetry, hiking, swimming, yoga, lakeside camping, dancing, star-watching and drumming. What distinguishes NY Green Fest from other Green festivals are the many workshops and forums on political, economic and environmental issues. Five plenary sessions and 50 breakout workshops will be offered. 75 presenters will participate. Although Green Fest will not be held in Ithaca this year, several of the keynote speakers and many of the presenters and exhibitors are from the Ithaca area. Art Weaver will be a keynote speaker at Saturday's morning plenary session. Art will speak on "Renewable Energy, the Audacity of Hope, the Reality of Change." Art is President of Renovus Energy, a renewable energy systems design and installation company in Ithaca. Prior to founding Renovus Energy, Art was a staff scientist at the Cornell High Energy Synchrotron, conducting research in x-ray biophysics and proteomics. Art spoke at the first Green Fest in Freeville in 2003 and at the second Green Fest in 2007 in Ithaca. Peter Jemison and Lyn Gerry will be keynote speakers Sunday morning, speaking on sovereignty and sustainability. Peter will also offer a workshop on the Treaty of Canandaigua and Lyn will participate in a Green media panel. Peter is the manager of Ganondagan State Historic Site, a recreation of a 17th-century Seneca village, located in Victor, New York. He is the editor of Treaty of Canandaigua 1794: 200 Years of Treaty Relations between the Iroquois Confederacy and the United States (2002), and the director of the film, " Hanondagonyes 'Town Destroyer,'" in which Seneca tribe members re-enact events of the 18th-century colonial wars. Peter represents the Seneca Nation on repatriation issues. He is an artist whose work is been widely shown. Lyn is the host and producer of the Unwelcome Guests radio program about wealth, power, and peoples' resistance to the corporate world order. Unwelcome Guests is broadcast on 20 radio stations across the US, including WEOS Geneva, WXXE-FM Syracuse and Ithaca Community Radio. A musical performance by Crow Weaver will open the Saturday evening plenary before the talks by Joel Kovel and Tony Gronowicz on revitalizing the relationship between humans and nature. Crow is the founder of Native Earthling Band in Ithaca. All the outdoor performances at Green Fest will take place on Crow's solar-powered stage. Other presenters from the Ithaca area include the following: Joey Gates from the Center for Environmental Sustainability in Ithaca will offer a workshop on approaches to landscape for food production and will join a panel on spiritual aspects of sustainability. Steve Nicholson from Caroline will do a workshop on living off the grid, Steve Calkins and Bob Nape from Ithaca will lead a drumming circle. Lee Riddell from Positive News will speak about Green media. Five workshops will address issues related to gas drilling in the Marcellus Shale. Andrew Byers and Dirk Trachy from Newfield will offer several workshops on gas drilling issues, Chris Burger from Whitney Point will give a Marcellus Shale overview, Mary Jo Long, Mike Bernhard and Rachel Treichler from Afton and Hammondsport will speak about local sovereignty and gas drilling, Meg Krywe and Burton Stein from Arkport will speak about what gas drilling activists can learn from the Allegany County anti-nuclear campaign. Beth Harris from Ithaca will speak about Palestinian Homes and Communities, Dr. Ismail Mehr from Hornell will speak about Gaza's Dilemma, Dianne Roe from Corning will present on organizing for peace. Darin Robbins from Corning will speak about the importance of political theory, John Doscher from Lockwood will speak about Economics as a Cultural System and Out of Time: Global Warming, Extinctions, and Energy. Lee Welles from Corning will read from her Gaia Girls books. Jennifer Bertron from the Southern Tier Food Bank in Elmira will speak about local food availability. Steve Lewandowski from Rushville, Program Director of the Lake Ontario Coastal Initiative, on watershed protection. Green Fest's Green Fair opens at noon on Friday. Over 45 artists, craftspeople, farmers, authors, publishers, alternative energy consultants, alternative fuel vehicles, activist organizations and live alpacas will exhibit and sell on the Alfred campus green. Twelve workshops will be offered Friday afternoon on topics ranging from how to grow nut trees in New York to nuclear is not green. Friday evening's plenary session features Virginia Rasmussen speaking about the politics of sustainability and Cyril Mychelako speaking about rights for nature. Deborah Magone's music will introduce the evening. Twenty eight workshops will be offered on Saturday in four sessions throughout the day beginning at 8:30 am. There will be two plenary sessions: Saturday morning's plenary with Art Weaver and Dan Miner on the reality of renewable energy, and Saturday evening with Joel Kovel and Tony Gronowicz on revitalizing the relationship between humans and nature. Musical offerings by the Lucky Pluckers and Crow Weaver will introduce the plenaries. Ten workshops and two plenary sessions on Sunday round out the event. Sunday morning Bill Kauffman will speak on why localism matters , Peter Jemison and and Lyn Gerry will speak on sovereignty and sustainability, and Mike Czarnecki will read his poems. Green Fest's concluding session begins at 1:45 on Sunday with a concert of political songs by Leonard Lehrman and Helene Williams and talks on visioning a Green future by Steve Welzer and Jason Nabewaniec. Jason, from Rochester, is co-chair of the Green Party US. *Getting to Green Fest* Green Fest 2009 will be held on the campus of Alfred University. Activities will be centered in the Powell Campus Center, 1 Saxon Drive, Alfred, NY. *Where to Stay and What to Eat* Meals and lodging on the Alfred University campus and Foster Lake campground must be reserved before August 1st. Participants may register and reserve camping spaces, dorm rooms and meals online at http://nygreenfest.org/registration.html. Registration in advance is $85 for the weekend. An additional $20 fee will be charged for walk-in registrations. One day passes are also available. Camping is $11 per adult per night, dorm rooms are $25 per adult per night, apartment suites are $35 per adult per night and rooms at the Saxon Inn are $89+ per night.. Meals prepared from locally-grown food are available in the Alfred University dining hall. Three meal options are available: six meals $75, four meals $50 or Saturday dinner only $20. Lodging and meals for children are less. Meals and lodging at Alfred must be reserved by August 1! For more information or to register online, visit http://nygreenfest.org/ or call 607-569-2114. *Green Fest Schedule* Friday, August 7, 2009 10:00 am, Registration opens 12:00 noon, Exhibits open 1:45 pm, Workshops and Panels, Session 1 3:00 pm, Workshops and Panels, Session 2 4:15 pm, Swimming, hiking, yoga, drumming 5:30-6:30 pm, Dinner in Dining Hall 7:00 pm, Forum on the Politics of Sustainability Saturday, August 8, 2009 7:30-8:30 am, Breakfast in Dining Hall 8:30 am, Workshops and Panels, Session 3 9:45 am, Forum on Sustainable Energy 11:15 am , Workshops and Panels, Session 4 12:30-1:30 pm, Lunch in Dining Hall 1:45 pm, Workshops and Panels, Session 5 3:00 pm, Workshops and Panels, Session 6 4:15 pm, Swimming, hiking, yoga, drumming 5:30-6:30 pm, Dinner in Dining Hall 7:00 pm , Forum on Politics and Nature 9:30 pm, Music and Dancing Sunday, August 9, 2009 7:30-8:30 am, Breakfast in Dining Hall 8:30 am, Workshops and Panels, Session 7 9:45 am, Forum on Regionalism and Sustainability 11:30 am , Workshops and Panels, Session 8 12:30-1:30 pm, Lunch in Dining Hall 1:45 pm, Concert, Forum on Visioning a Green Future 3:30 pm, Adjourn Workshops, Panels and Forums Allegany Anti-Nuclear Campaign Approaches to Landscape for Food Battle for Progressive Media Build Your Own Wind Turbine Building Pollywogg Holler Celebrating Elie Siegmeister Communities and Hydro Fracturing Drawing Political Cartoons Drumming Circle Economics as a Cultural System Empire to Earth Community Feltmaking Workshop Gaia Girls Readings Gas Drilling and Local Sovereignty Gaza's Dilemma Green Campaign Lessons Green Media Panels Hatha Yoga Importance of Political Theory Intro to 9/11 Issues Liberation Ecology Workshop Living off the Grid Local Food Supply Systems Low Cost Solar Collector 9/11 Truth Workshop Marcellus Shale Overview Natural Gas 101 Nature Walks Nonviolent Communication Nut Tree Growing Workshop Organizing for Peace Out of Time: Global Warming Post Carbon Economies Poetry from Place Workshop Political Organizing on Campus Politics of Sustainability Rainwater Catchment Systems Reality of Renewable Energy Rights for Nature Small Wind Consumer Education Sovereignty and Sustainability Spiritual Basis for Green Living Sustainability in School Dining Sustainable Cities Panel Swimming Third Party Ballot Access Third Parties in U.S. Experience Tickletown Sustainability Projects Tofumaking Workshop Treaty of Canandaigua Visioning a Green Future Watershed Protection What is Sustainability Why Localism Matters Zero Waste Workshop /Green Fest is a benefit for the Green Party of New York and other state Green parties in our region./ *NY Green Fest* http://nygreenfest.org PO Box 363 Hammondsport, NY 14840 607-569-2114 From mmccasla at twcny.rr.com Thu Jul 30 21:24:14 2009 From: mmccasla at twcny.rr.com (Margaret McCasland) Date: Thu, 30 Jul 2009 21:24:14 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] BPA in home canning lids In-Reply-To: <5.2.1.1.2.20090730101012.02121920@pop.lightlink.com> References: <60B0176781A6433D85E6539256D2C7B0@Main> <5.2.1.1.2.20090730101012.02121920@pop.lightlink.com> Message-ID: <1FF44012-BD2C-42F8-B763-AE4010A6B06D@twcny.rr.com> Joel's context is important. Hhowever I do worry that new non-rubber gaskets under heat may have more BPA migrate than once all is cool and static. I have totally stopped eating from BPS-lined cans: now I need to write the companies and tell them so (I'm allergic to beans or I would be buying Eden beans in BPA-free cans). Let's see how my resolve is come February (time to freeze some summer magic). Margaret On Jul 30, 2009, at 10:22 AM, Joel and Sarah Gagnon wrote: > There are a lot of old bale jars out there, but the jar rubbers are > an increasingly scarce commodity. I standardized on regular mason > jars years ago, as have most home canners. > > A little perspective is wanted here. The lid is a pretty small part > of the surface area of the enclosure, and normally it is not in > constant contact with the contents. I certainly wonder what bpa is > doing in there, but I doubt it is a serious concern. I'd be much > more concerned (and am) about commercial food cans where the entire > lining is bpa-containing and in contact with the food. > > Joel > > At 01:50 PM 7/29/09 -0700, you wrote: >> Do they still manufacture the glass top jars with rubber rings? >> >> The rubber probably has a lot of toxins in it as well, but there is >> at least a rim of glass between the rubber and the contents. >> >> George >> >> >> --- On Wed, 7/29/09, Kristie wrote: >> >> >> From: Kristie >> Subject: [SustainableTompkins] BPA in home canning lids >> To: sustainabletompkins at lists.mutualaid.org >> Date: Wednesday, July 29, 2009, 7:26 PM >> >> >> Hi to any fellow canners out there, >> I've been doing some research on what food containers do and do not >> contain BPA, and was pretty annoyed to find it's in Ball canning >> lids. Please send an email to the parent company, Jarden (which >> seems to make all canning lids on the market, Ball, Kerr, etc -- as >> far as I can tell, there are no BPA-free alternatives), at http://www.freshpreserving.com/pages/contact_us/10.php >> asking them to come up with a BPA-free version! >> Wishing we didn't live in a world so infiltrated with toxins that >> you have to worry about your own, home-canned food... >> -Kristie >> PS Please pass along to other canners! Maybe they will come up with >> an alternative if they hear from enough of us. >> _______________________________________________ >> For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County >> area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ >> >> RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: >> SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org >> http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins >> Questions about the list? ask sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org >> free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org >> >> >> >> >> _______________________________________________ >> For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County >> area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ >> >> RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: >> SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org >> http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins >> Questions about the list? ask sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org >> free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org > _______________________________________________ > For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County > area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ > > RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: > SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org > http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins > Questions about the list? ask sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org > free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org From sjr37 at cornell.edu Fri Jul 31 08:43:21 2009 From: sjr37 at cornell.edu (Sandra Repp) Date: Fri, 31 Jul 2009 08:43:21 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] FARM TRAIL this weekend, 8/1 & 8/2 Message-ID: <6.2.5.6.2.20090731083957.0306bc98@cornell.edu> Farm Trail Open House Weekend Saturday and Sunday, August 1 & 2, 12:00-5:00 pm Ever wonder what goes on at the farms you drive by? Gather up friends and family and hit the Farm Trail! Visit with local farmers, enjoy the scenery, taste the harvest and support local organic and sustainable farms. Bring a cooler and buy farm fresh products along the way. Participating farms feature organic veggies, apples, u-pick crops, pastured poultry, dairy, horses, alpacas, and even a camel! Your Farm Trail Tour Button ($2/person or $5 for 4 buttons) is your entry to the farms for one or both days. Buttons and maps are available at Cooperative Extension, Greenstar Cooperative, or at the farms on the day of the tour. For a tour brochure, visit: http://ccetompkins.org/localfood/FarmTrail/2009_farm_tour.pdf For more information, call 607-272-2292 on Friday or email evk4 at cornell.edu. Saturday, August 1st: Littletree Orchards in Newfield White Dog Apiary, Newfield Settlement Horse Stables, Spencer Heaven Llama Farm (with llamas, alpaca, ducks, and a camel), Spencer Locust Woods Blueberry Farm, Spencer Plantasia Nursery, Spencer Sunday, August 2nd: Cayuga Pure Organics Beanery, Brooktondale Gardens of Earthly Mirth, Brooktondale Three Sisters CSA Vegetable Farm, Ithaca Quinn's Irish Hill Farm (pastured poultry), Freeville Lew-Lin Dairy Farm, Dryden Farmers' Choice Blueberries, Dryden From kqj at quinn-jacobs.org Fri Jul 31 10:53:45 2009 From: kqj at quinn-jacobs.org (Katie Quinn-Jacobs) Date: Fri, 31 Jul 2009 10:53:45 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] BPA in home canning lids In-Reply-To: <1FF44012-BD2C-42F8-B763-AE4010A6B06D@twcny.rr.com> References: <60B0176781A6433D85E6539256D2C7B0@Main> <5.2.1.1.2.20090730101012.02121920@pop.lightlink.com> <1FF44012-BD2C-42F8-B763-AE4010A6B06D@twcny.rr.com> Message-ID: <4A730579.7050007@quinn-jacobs.org> Weck jars are a alternative to the American standard mason jar and use rubber gaskets (100% natural rubber) to form the seal. Although they are widely used in Europe, they are difficult to find here. I get them from Lehman's mail order or directly through Weck and do a small amount of my water bath canning using these every year. I was initially attracted to them because they don't have throw-away lids. All of the jar is reusable, though the rubber gaskets will wear out with multiple uses or age. The downside to the Weck jars is that they are expensive, non-standard sizes (using metric), don't fit into preformed wire racks and, last but not least, are not approved by the Nat'l Ctr for Home Food Preservation. Weck's website: http://www.weckcanning.com/ -- Katie Q-J Margaret McCasland wrote: > Joel's context is important. > > Hhowever I do worry that new non-rubber gaskets under heat may have > more BPA migrate than once all is cool and static. > > I have totally stopped eating from BPS-lined cans: now I need to write > the companies and tell them so (I'm allergic to beans or I would be > buying Eden beans in BPA-free cans). Let's see how my resolve is come > February (time to freeze some summer magic). > > Margaret > > > On Jul 30, 2009, at 10:22 AM, Joel and Sarah Gagnon wrote: > >> There are a lot of old bale jars out there, but the jar rubbers are >> an increasingly scarce commodity. I standardized on regular mason >> jars years ago, as have most home canners. >> >> A little perspective is wanted here. The lid is a pretty small part >> of the surface area of the enclosure, and normally it is not in >> constant contact with the contents. I certainly wonder what bpa is >> doing in there, but I doubt it is a serious concern. I'd be much more >> concerned (and am) about commercial food cans where the entire lining >> is bpa-containing and in contact with the food. >> >> Joel >> >> At 01:50 PM 7/29/09 -0700, you wrote: >>> Do they still manufacture the glass top jars with rubber rings? >>> >>> The rubber probably has a lot of toxins in it as well, but there is >>> at least a rim of glass between the rubber and the contents. >>> >>> George >>> >>> >>> --- On Wed, 7/29/09, Kristie wrote: >>> >>> >>> From: Kristie >>> Subject: [SustainableTompkins] BPA in home canning lids >>> To: sustainabletompkins at lists.mutualaid.org >>> Date: Wednesday, July 29, 2009, 7:26 PM >>> >>> >>> Hi to any fellow canners out there, >>> I've been doing some research on what food containers do and do not >>> contain BPA, and was pretty annoyed to find it's in Ball canning >>> lids. Please send an email to the parent company, Jarden (which >>> seems to make all canning lids on the market, Ball, Kerr, etc -- as >>> far as I can tell, there are no BPA-free alternatives), at >>> http://www.freshpreserving.com/pages/contact_us/10.php asking them >>> to come up with a BPA-free version! >>> Wishing we didn't live in a world so infiltrated with toxins that >>> you have to worry about your own, home-canned food... >>> -Kristie >>> PS Please pass along to other canners! Maybe they will come up with >>> an alternative if they hear from enough of us. >>> _______________________________________________ >>> For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County >>> area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ >>> >>> RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: >>> SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org >>> http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins >>> Questions about the list? ask >>> sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org >>> free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> _______________________________________________ >>> For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County >>> area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ >>> >>> RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: >>> SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org >>> http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins >>> Questions about the list? ask >>> sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org >>> free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org >> _______________________________________________ >> For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County >> area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ >> >> RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: >> SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org >> http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins >> Questions about the list? ask >> sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org >> free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org > > _______________________________________________ > For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, > please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ > > RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: > SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org > http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins > Questions about the list? ask > sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org > free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org > -- From Joel.and.Sarah.Gagnon at lightlink.com Fri Jul 31 09:58:15 2009 From: Joel.and.Sarah.Gagnon at lightlink.com (Joel and Sarah Gagnon) Date: Fri, 31 Jul 2009 09:58:15 -0400 Subject: [SustainableTompkins] Latest TCLocal article: Visioning County Food Production - Part One In-Reply-To: <4A704C4C.2000606@ibiblio.org> Message-ID: <5.2.1.1.2.20090731095650.02125cb0@pop.lightlink.com> I don't think you should take absence of comments as disinterest. Karl's article is excellent -- so much so that there is very little to add. Joel At 09:19 AM 7/29/09 -0400, you wrote: >Continuing the theme of local food production that's been the >subject of the last two tclocal.org articles, this month's >offering begins a projected three-part series by local organic >farmer Karl North. > >Karl brings more than 35 years of real-world experience to his >discussion of sustainable agriculture and local food systems. He >has practiced low-input farming in a variety of sites around the >world and established Northland Sheep Dairy in Marathon, New York >in 1980 to produce organic foods for local markets and serve as an >educational resource for the public. > >In "Visioning County Food Production - Part One," Karl introduces >some basic premises and theoretical points of departure to explain >the fundamental changes in perspective he sees as necessary to >envision how and where we produce food in the future. The article >can be found at > >http://tclocal.org/2009/07/visioning_county_food_producti.html > >People who want to comment on this article or engage Karl in >discussion should note that the TCLocal web site is specifically >designed to get feedback on these ideas as they are developed. >Please use the comment form at the bottom of the article so that >we can keep all the input in one place. > >ABOUT TCLOCAL > >Every month (approximately) TCLocal brings you another in our >series of articles addressing various aspects of energy descent in >Tompkins County. Contributors to TCLocal are members of the >community committed to helping prepare for a future with less >available energy. Articles that have appeared so far in this >series can be found at tclocal.org. They include: > > Can New York State Feed Itself? > by Jon Bosak (June 2009) > http://tclocal.org/2009/06/can_new_york_state_feed_itself.html > > Examining the potential local foodshed of Tompkins County > by Christian Peters (March 2009) > http://tclocal.org/2009/03/examining_the_potential_local.html > > Food Processing in Tompkins County > by Persephone Doliner (February 2009) > http://tclocal.org/2009/02/food_processing_in_tompkins_co.html > > Wasting in the Energy Descent: An Outline for the Future > by Tom Shelley (January 2009) > http://tclocal.org/2009/01/wasting_in_the_energy_descent.html > > Local and Urban Small Livestock and Poultry > by Angelika St. Laurent (December 2008) > http://tclocal.org/2008/12/local_and_urban_small_livestoc.html > > Health Care in an Energy-Constrained Environment (Part 1) > by Bethany Schroeder (October 2008) > http://tclocal.org/2008/10/health_care_in_an_energyconstr.html > > Preparedness Basics (Part 1) > by Katie Quinn-Jacobs (September 2008) > http://tclocal.org/2008/09/preparedness_basics.html > > Post-Peak Land Use Part 1: Ecocities and > Post-Peak Land Use Part 2: The Country > by Josh Dolan (July 2008) > http://tclocal.org/2008/07/postpeak_land_use_part_1_ecoci.html > http://tclocal.org/2008/07/postpeak_land_use_part_2_the_c.html > > Water Treatment, Water Power > by Jon Bosak (May 2008) > http://tclocal.org/2008/05/water_treatment_water_power.html > > Roads and Bridges in a Post-peak Tompkins County > by Simon St. Laurent (March 2008) > http://tclocal.org/2008/03/roads_and_bridges_in_a_postpea.html > > Fruits in a Post-Peak Tompkins County > by Angelika St. Laurent (January 2008) > http://tclocal.org/2008/01/fruits_in_a_postpeak_tompkins_1.html > >Other articles scheduled for publication in 2009 include: > > Visioning County Food Production, Parts 1-3 (Karl North) > Health care resources, Part 2 (Bethany Schroeder) > Biomass options (Krys Cail) > Local wood heat (Tony Nekut) > Local biofuel production (Tycho Dan) > >Articles appearing at tclocal.org are published under the Creative >Commons license and are owned and managed by the contributors as a >group. People interested in becoming TCLocal contributors should >first check the Terms of Reference at > >http://ibiblio.org/tcrp/process/terms.htm > >and then contact the TCLocal editor at the address below to sign >up. > >Jon Bosak >Editor, TCLocal >bosak at pinax.com > > > >_______________________________________________ >For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, >please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ > >RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: >SustainableTompkins at lists.mutualaid.org >http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins >Questions about the list? ask sustainabletompkins-owner at lists.mutualaid.org >free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org