DON'T MISS GREEN DRINKS WEDNESDAY NIGHT!

Wednesday, May 26th beginning at 5:45 PM at Waterworks on Thomasville Road.  

The Deepwater Horizon oil spill is an unprecedented disaster in the Gulf of Mexico.  Join us tomorrow night to hear Dr. Jeff Chanton, FSU Chemical Oceanography professor, discuss the spill and its implications for the Gulf and the Big Bend region.
 
 Dr. Chanton is the John W. Winchester Professor of Oceanography and Distinguished Research Professor in the newly-formed Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Science department at FSU.

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GREEN AND MOBILE

Yes, most single-wide mobile homes may be considered unsightly, but who would be opposed to a hedge parked next door?  This one is covered is fake Christmas, but what if it were covered in real greenery?

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REDEFINING THE BIKE LANE CONCEPT

Going green sometimes means taking a current concept somewhere that it's never been before--in this case into the air.  

It began when Martin Angelov
sent a pencil sketch idea to the Line of Site competition in 2008.  This international architectural competition  looks for ‘quick’ initial ideas that capture the essence of creativity and mark the point when those ideas take shape.

The idea pictured here was to make flying bicycle-lanes, using steel wire, something like a ski lift, but working on the opposite principle in which the wire is static and it doesn’t need electricity.


The entire concept (and more not-for-the-Agoraphobic photos) is explained here.



Green is innovation, not unlike the students who designed wind turbines  generating power over Interstate highways in this previous post.

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GLOBAL WARMING AND FAMINE

In case we're not already terminally depressed about  the Gulf oil disaster, pick up a copy of the May 13th issue of  Rolling Stone magazine and read McKenzie Funk's article,  The Global Land Grab: A new breed of investor is planning to get rich off global warming, overpopulation and famine--meet the new capitalists of chaos.  

  "People will panic, especially those who have no land to grow food on."

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GREEN BUILDING OUTREACH TO NON-PROFITS

The Green Building Outreach Initiative assists Tallahassee non-profit organizations to achieve LEED certification, educates the community about green building principles, and provides members of the Florida Capital Regional Chapter of the US Green Building Council with LEED project experience.

Volunteers will administer LEED credits for a local building project.  

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TAPPED

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FSU MARINE LAB HOSTS SPECIAL OIL DISASTER MEETING MONDAY

An emergency meeting for information exchange related to the Gulf Oil disaster is being held tomorrow, Monday May 10th from 9:00 AM - 10:30 AM at the FSU Coastal and Marine Lab.  

The meeting is open to the public; the Lab is urging people who plan to attend to register.  Click here. The marine lab is located in St Teresa on Highway 98 (3618 Coastal Highway).  For more information, contact Felicia C. Coleman, Director, E-mail: coleman@bio.fsu.edu 

The meeting is being held by Our Region Tomorrow (ORT) organizers to discuss and plan an emergency response  to the oil spill from our panhandle counties.  The agenda will include:

• County emergency response team briefings from the four coastal counties within ORT (Taylor, Jefferson, Wakulla, Franklin)
• State of Florida EOC briefing
• Briefing from members of the State University System-wide Oil Spill Academic Task Force
• Call to Action: How can the 10-county region prepare and work together in the event this critical disaster directly affects our shoreline?

The State University System Oil Spill Academic Task Force (OSATF) website has been updated with pertinent information http://oilspill.fsu.edu. The Task Force is working with the Ecological Society of America to develop a searchable database that will help local, state, and federal agencies identify where the experts and existing baseline (pre-spill) datasets exist in Florida and throughout the nation.  

By order of the Governor, these coastal counties are under a state of emergency: Escambia, Santa Rosa, Okaloosa, Walton, Bay, Gulf, Franklin, Wakulla, Jefferson, Taylor, Dixie, Levy, Citrus, Hernando, Pasco, Pinellas, Hillsborough, Manatee and Sarasota.

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GIVE YOUR MOTHER THE PRESENT ALL OF US REALLY NEED

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Leon County's Sustainable Communities Summit

Steve Seibert, former Secretary of the Florida Department of Community Affairs and current member of the Collins Center, on the significance of sustainability:

"What sustainability is missing:  a sense of morality and sense of urgency. It's important to understand why we care. . .and it may be that the current Florida structure for solving (the state's) problems is broken."

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ELECTRIC BIKES

The company that makes cars, Volkswagen, has developed an electric bike that is collapsible to fit in the trunk of one's car.  It can recharge from its place in the spare tire well. It's sleek and cute, not unlike the original Beetle design, has a 12 mile range and a top speed of about the same, but it's more of an electric scooter than a bike.  I'm wishing it had pedals.  

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STILL TIME TO REGISTER FOR SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES SUMMIT

Registration online end today at 5:00 PM today for Leon County's Sustainable Communities Summit.  

The Leon County Sustainable Communities Summit 2010, begins Thursday, May 6th and runs through Friday, May 7th.

Coordinated by the Leon County Office of Sustainability, it will be held at the FSU Turnbull Conference Center, and will address two target audiences: the producer of a local goods or service and the consumer. 

There will be 30 breakout sessions, on topics will including green-label jargon, community gardens, the impact of shopping and investing locally, Gardening 101, policies and regulations of food sales, the costs and benefits of growing one’s own food, keeping collegiate talent local, small-business marketing and business success stories. 

More than 40 speakers, including authors – John Robbins, heir to the Baskin-Robbins empire, and Bill McKibben, creator of 350.org; Tim Center, Vice President of Sustainability Initiatives for the Collins Center; and Nathan Ballentine, also known as "The Man in Overalls."
 
Two registration options are offered for this year’s summit. General registration is $45, and registration for students is $20. Both include a continental breakfast and a lunch made with organic and locally grown ingredients. To register, visit www.LeonCountyFL.gov/Summit . Online registration ends today at 5 p.m.

For additional information, call Maggie Theriot, Leon County Sustainability Manager, at (850) 606-5380; Jon D. Brown, Leon County Public Information Officer, at (850) 606-5300; or email Sustainability@LeonCountyFL.gov .

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THE LAST MICROWAVE

WHERE DO I TAKE MY STUFF? is a disposal and recycling guide available from Leon County Solid Waste Division. If you missed the earth machine or rain barrel sale, there's a second chance next Saturday, May 8th from 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM at the County's Solid Waste Spectacular at 7550 Apalachee Parkway.  

Thanks to Cyndy Brantley, Leon County's recycling coordinator, who told me where to dispose of our broken microwave.  One less thing, is a good thing!

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