permaculture

[Michael Burns <burns@panix.com>]

Sustainability Series spawns listserv: SustainableIthaca@topica.com

SUSTAINABLEITHACA@TOPICA.COM BEGINS

To all conference participants and like-minded folk,

Last week a good number of us were inspired by the "Steps to a
Sustainable Ithaca" presentation by Rob Young; and further inspired by
the small group brainstormin'/networking session that followed. 

Our overlapping experiences, projects, ideas and dreams created quite a
bit of enthusiasm as we compared the outcomes of our small group
sessions and a few of us volunteered to continue with a few initiatives
to continue the networking and inspiration. I offered to start a
listserv for anyone with email access who could use this networking
tool. 

I encourage everyone to sign on and contribute. If just once a year each
of us could send out to the list an introduction and description of our
projects or ideas we might find ourselves constantly reminded,
throughout the year, of all the great work being done in our area.
Likewise, we may find the many resources and contacts--that we had a
glimpse of last week--that are so crucial for building the critical mass
of Ithaca's sustainable community.

To subscribe, simply send an email to
SustainableIthaca-subscribe@topica.com and wait for an automated
response that will give further (easy) directions.

Looking forward to seeing everyone again in "reality" and cyberspace...

en solidaridad,

Michael



P.S. COMING UP:

  Wednesday Oct 10, 4-6 PM, One World Room, Anabel Taylor Hall, 
Cornell. "Visions of Sustainability: From Farm and Forest to Downtown 
Redevelopment" by John Barney, conservation planner at Cornell, and 
David Kay, regional planner, Local Government Program at Cornell. 
John and David will focus on our sense of place, on how our regional 
land use patterns have changed, and on achievable visions for the 
future that can serve the well being of both urban and rural areas 
within Ithaca.

Thursday, Oct. 25, 12:10-1:05pm, Ithaca College, for room location 
contact Tom Shevory (274-1347) shevory@ithaca.edu. "Teaching and 
Practicing Sustainable Living." by Barbara Anderson, founder, Penn 
State Center for Sustainability.  This presentation is a good 
introduction and complement to the more extensive evening program 
below.

Thursday Oct 25, 7-9  PM, Unitarian Church of Ithaca (Buffalo and 
Aurora Streets). "Partnerships for Sustainability: A Success Story 
from Penn State and the Center County" by Barbara Anderson, founder, 
Penn State Center for Sustainability. Barbara will share lessons from 
her pioneering work at Penn State where she has applied simple 
ecological principles to campus greening, university and community 
partnerships for sustainability, and healthy lifestyle change. Small 
group discussions to follow.

  Thursday Nov 8, 7-9 PM, Women's Community Building (Seneca and 
Cayuga Streets).
  "Promoting Sustainability in Established and Planned Communities: 
The Northside and EcoVillage Cases" by Liz Walker, director, 
EcoVillage at Ithaca; Rob Champion, EcoVillage field supervisor for 
second neighborhood construction; and Ken Reardon, neighborhood 
planner and professor of city and regional planning at Cornell. Our 
panelists will explore how "bottom-up" neighborhood envisioning and 
organizing, building cooperative relationships, and taking a 
long-term perspective can help reverse inner city decay and suburban 
sprawl in our region.

Thursday, Nov. 15, 12:10-1:05pm, Ithaca College, for room location 
contact Tom Shevory (274-1347) shevory@ithaca.edu "Sustainable 
Agriculture and Living in Place," by Elizabeth Henderson, CSA farmer 
and organic foods activist. This presentation is a good introduction 
and complement to the more extensive evening program below.

Thursday Nov. 15, 4-6 PM, 401Warren Hall, Cornell. "Civic 
Agriculture, Regional Diets, and Sustainable Living" by Tom Lyson, 
mayor of Freeville, and professor of rural sociology at Cornell; 
Jennifer Wilkins, senior extension associate in nutritional sciences 
at Cornell; and Elizabeth Henderson, CSA farmer and organic foods 
activist. Our panelists will explore local, sustainably oriented food 
production and consumption options, and their link to creating a 
healthy lifestyle, regional economy, and culture.

Wednesday Nov 28, 7-9 PM, Women's Community Building (Seneca and 
Cayuga Streets). "Foundations of a Sustainable Economy: Small 
Businesses Development, the Living Wage Campaign, Sustainable 
Homebuilding, and Transportation Strategies" by Bill Myers, CEO, 
Alternative Federal Credit Union; Sara Highland, Natural Builder's 
Network; and Frances Vanek, Director, Sustainable Technology and 
Energy Institute. Our panelists will explore cutting-edge 
developments and creative options for building a sustainable local 
economy through changes in our ways of doing work, homebuilding, and 
transportation.

************************************************************************
  This series was made possible through major co-sponsorship from the 
Cornell University Department of Rural Sociology, the Cornell Center 
For The Environment, EcoVillage at Ithaca, the Student Sustainable 
Agriculture Working Group, Ithaca College Department of Environmental 
Studies, the Ithaca College Environmental Society, and the 
Alternative Federal Credit Union, with support from the Sierra Club, 
Citizen's Planning Alliance, Tompkins County Green Party, and the 
Finger Lakes Land Trust.
  For more information on these events and on the Community 
Sustainability Project, see www.cfe.cornell.edu/community/or contact 
Elan Shapiro at 607-275-0249, or e-mail 
elansla@ecovillage.ithaca.ny.us