NLCgreen

From Eugene Neighbors

The Neighborhood Leaders Council Committee on Sustainability is a local Eugene committee established by the Neighborhood Leaders Council.

Please also visit our new, expanding website, at http://eugenesustainability.org/

[edit] NLC Committee on Sustainability

The Neighborhood Leaders Council established the NLC Committee on Sustainability on April 22, 2008, appropriately enough on the 38th anniversary of the first Earth Day. Its function is as follows:

The charge of the NLC Committee on Sustainability shall be threefold: 1) to provide a city-wide forum for the exchange of ideas and recommendations for more sustainable practices within neighborhoods; 2) to create recommendations for implementing such practices that can be distributed to all neighborhood associations as well as to the NLC; and 3) to foster connections among the NLC, neighborhood associations and community groups for promoting sustainable practices.

In other words, the NLC Sustainability Committee is a kind of grass-roots group seeking to increase green living on the neighborhood level.

To locate your neighborhood on Eugene's neighborhoods map, please go here (or call Eugene's Neighborhood Services, at 682-6243): www.eugene-or.gov/portal/server.pt?open=512&objID=230&PageID=422&parentname=CommunityPage&parentid=1&cached=true&mode=2&userID=2

Vision statement:

“The NLCCS recognizes the need for awareness and action on the neighborhood level:  to mitigate the harm of the global crisis of resource depletion and climate change,  to live sustainably in our neighborhood and on our planet, and  to strengthen the bonds within and between neighborhoods by learning to meet more of our needs closer to home. For these purposes, we have established the NLCCS.”

Work accomplished during the past year, April 2009 - April 2010:

EVENTS: We organized and staffed three separate offerings at the Good Earth Home and Garden Show January 22-24, 2010:  a “conversation café” which featured exhibits on solar cooking, medicinal herbs, worm composting and other sustainable practices as well as over 20 speakers on topics such as native plants, winter gardening and open-source software. Attendance totaled more than 400.  a table with information on neighborhood sustainability efforts, a neighborhood map for attendees to pinpoint their home, a slide show of neighborhood sustainability projects and peak oil, and a survey for visitors to fill out.  two formal presentations on sustainability topics: creating a resilient neighborhood and raising our children sustainably .

We also organized and publicized nine green tours in eight different neighborhoods. These bike/pedestrian tours visited sites of “green” interest within a particular neighborhood.

TABLING: We staffed a table with information about sustainable practices and our committee at the following events: Climate Energy Action Plan kickoff meeting, the River Path Promenade, the Eugene Celebration and Earth Day at EWEB. At these tablings we also conducted a survey to find out what speakers’ bureau topics might be most important to neighborhoods.

SPEAKERS BUREAU: Our Speakers Bureau has been available to neighborhood associations and a few have taken advantage of it.

COORDINATION WITH SUSTAINABILITY COMMISSION: Co-convenor Kathy Saranpa meets monthly with Dave Funk, neighborhoods liaison from the Sustainability Commission. Several members of the NLCCS attend the Sustainability Commission’s meetings.

WEBSITE: Our committee now has a functioning website: www.eugenesustainability.org. For the time being it is primarily a calendar of events, but it is slowly also housing information about various sustainability projects in our neighborhoods as well as our contact information.

COMMITTEE HEALTH: Our committee has good momentum with consistently attending members who enjoy working together. The addition of new members has kept the committee fresh and vital.

Work Plan for May 2010 – May 2011

EVENTS:  Staff a booth, staff a conversation café and provide speakers for the Good Earth Home and Garden Show  Table at Eugene Celebration  Increase number of green tours from 9 to at least 10; increase publicity  Table at more events where possible: Mt. Pisgah events, Rotary Duck Race and others  Work on a Green Summit or other city-wide sustainability event

RECRUITMENT:  Encourage the establishment of a sustainability committee within every neighborhood association  Encourage the establishment of a community garden in each neighborhood

PUBLICATIONS AND “PACKAGES”:

 Improve and unify our existing publicity materials  Shift focus in some areas to increasingly leverage web resources  Actively promote Speakers’ Bureau both to neighborhoods and to other community organizations  Explore other venues for promoting sustainability

WEBSITE:  Expand and enhance our website  Maintain this website so that information will always be as current as possible, including key contacts in neighborhoods

BARNRAISING:  Host “barnraising” projects related to sustainability in 8 member’s neighborhoods to model neighborly cooperation  Highlight these events on the website

NEIGHBORHOOD SUMMIT DOCUMENT ITEMS:  Promote water sustainability  Promote urban agriculture  Support resilient neighborhoods concept  Support gleaning  Find ways to more effectively promote conservation of energy and water  Highlight block planning on bike tours  Maintain connection with Sustainability Commission

=== Members ===

• Active Bethel Citizens: Denise-Christine, denise_for_peace@yahoo.com, 541.688.1442
• Amazon Neighborhood Association: David Stucky, david.stucky@gmail.com; alternate Jon Belcher
• Churchill Area Neighbors: Maureen Belle, renieb@gmail.com
• Crest Drive Citizens Association: Kathy Saranpa (convenor), 541.687.7199, ksaranpa@comcast.net
• Fairmount Neighbors: Katherine Lieberknecht, klieberknecht@gmail.com; Sue Jakabosky, 541.984.5420, suesolar@comcast.net
• Friendly Area Neighbors: Doug Black, 541.485.6846, deeblack@gmail.com("Green Neighbors (not just) Bike Tours" Coordinator also) and Matt Lutter, FAN Board, likebutterbaby5@yahoo.com
• Jefferson-Westside Neighborhood: Paul Howard, PVHoward@gmail.com; Cary Thompson, 541.686.5562, cdt@efn.org
• Laurel Hill Valley Citizens Association: Sally Manifold, 541.344.0169, smanifold@bespin.org
• River Road Community Organization: Jan Spencer, spencerj@efn.org, 541.686.6761
• Santa Clara Community Organization: Chara Carrier, debauw@msn.com
• Southeast Neighbors: Rene Minz, rminz123@yahoo.com
• Trainsong Neighbors: Isla Dane, islad2009@hotmail.com, 971.570.3423
• West University Neighborhood Association: Jackson Hite
• Whiteaker Community Council: Anand Keathley, 541.343.3017, eekley@efn.org

If your neighborhood association is not listed here, please contact your Board and encourage them to send a member to our committee.

[edit] Upcoming Events

2010 "Green Neighbor(not just) Bike Tours" Planning Underway

Keep your eyes here for more as the now renamed "bike tours" become the more accessible 2010 "Green Neighbor (not just) Bike Tours". The tours have already been featured in the Eugene Weekly July 15: [1] , and on KEZI TV July 16: [2] Tours this year will feature first-time Bethel, and Laurel Hill Valley Neighborhoods. Now In our 3rd consecutive year, we'll be making pedicabs from Eugene Pedicabs available for the first time on some tours. Starting from tours starting point for Green transport if you can't bike: http://www.eugenepedicab.com/Home_Page.html. Tipping your driver is strongly encouraged. Join us to visit model locations in Eugene that are looking to the future with eco logical action today! All tours themselves will be free. The tours will visit sites with different combinations of grass to garden, rain water catchment, active and passive solar design, green-building technique, chickenkeeping, non-conventional residential arrangements, permaculture, beekeeping, habitat restoration, neighborhood initiatives and more. Please check back for more as this site is updated continually. More info also at deeblack@gmail.com

[edit] 2010 "Green Neighbor (not just) Bike Tours" Schedule

July

17, 18 - River Road Community Organization/RRCO. July 17 meet at 11AM at Rosetta Park, Benjamin and Evergreen. Visit pesticide-free public park space, chicken-keeping, permaculture design, green building, neighborhood collaboration, and more. Open house afterwords at suburban permaculture site at 212 benjamin, 3 to 5PM.

August

7 - Friendly Neighborhood- West (of Jefferson St)/FAN-West (excursion into Crest Dr neighborhood 8/7). Meet at Friendly Street Market, 2757 Friendly, at 11AM. Tour will include community right-of-way cooperative "Common Ground" garden, chickenkeeping, beekeeping, edible landscaping, passive solar design, high-density new urbanism 'Lucia Village', permaculture land design, and more
8 - Friendly Neighborhood- East (Jefferson St & east)FAN-East. Meet at Village School, 2855 Lincoln, 1 PM. Tour will include permaculture design, cooperative block village living, chicken-keeping, and more. More to come.
14 - Jefferson Westside, 10AM, meet at Monroe Park. More to come.
21 - Amazon, meet at Camas Ridge Community School, 1150 East 29th Avenue, at 10am. Tour will visit school gardens, feature beekeeping, chickenkeeping, communally built outdoor oven, aerobic composting, compost teamaking, passive/active solar design, rainwater catchment, green building, and more.

September

4 - Whiteaker Community Council/WCC
11 - Active Bethel Citizens/ABC
19 (Sunday)- Laurel Hill Valley. 1-3 pm. Meet at Northwest Youth Corps, 2621 Augusta St. Tour by bike, pedicab and carpool. Sites feature organic gardens, PV electricity, green home design and reuse of materials, wildlife-friendly landscaping, small-scale chickenkeeping, food preservation, bioswales and watershed protection.
25 - Southeast Neighbors/SEN, meet at 450 E 30th Ave, 10 AM.

Successful 2009 Neighborhood Green Bike Tours

The 2009 bike tours were featured in the Eugene Weekly July 9: http://www.eugeneweekly.com/2009/07/09/news.html#4 , KUGN-AM July 10th, on KMTR TV July 18: http://www.kmtr.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoId=69090@kmtr.dayport.com&navCatId=5, were featured in an in-studio interview July 27, on KVAL TV: http://www.kval.com/news/interviews/51805107.html?video=pop&t=a, on August 12th at River Road neighbor and bike tours pioneer Jan Spencer's home: http://kezi.com/page/137475, and with KMTR-TV at the final 2009 bike tour Sept. 26, in Fairmount Neighborhood (advance video timer to 5:34 of news broadcast): http://www.kmtr.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoId=69822@kmtr.dayport.com&navCatId=37

The 2009 tours included were:
Far West Neighborhood, meeting at at the Intersection Repair at Garfield and 22nd.
River Road Community Organization, met at Rosetta Park, Benjamin and Evergreen Sts. More info is at: www.suburbanpermaculture.org
Friendly Area Neighborhood West, met at Friendly Street Market, 2757 Friendly St. Tour included shared-neighbors backyard gardening, chicken-keeping, and rainwater catchment system; permaculture land design, urbanite construction, beekeeping, and more...
and
Friendly Area Neighborhood East, Friendly Neighborhood East, met at the Village (formerly Francis Willard) School, 2855 Lincoln St. Tour included neighborhood habitat restoration education, grass to garden, shared-neighbors backyard gardening & chicken-keeping, a presentation on beekeeping, solar-powered design, permaculture land design, and more.
Crest Drive Citizens Association, started at Friendly St Market, 2757 Friendly St.[CHANGED FROM Tiara Circle cul-de-sac on Tiara Street]. Tour included community-living, straw-bale construction, rainwater catchment system, recycled building materials, net-positive building design, a green roof, and more. More at jim@bikelanecoalition.org
Jefferson Westside Neighborhood, met at Monroe Park. Tour included co-housing, permaculture land design, rainwater catchment, solar power, locally-owned business, a green 'village', and more.
Southeast Neighbors, met at Rene and Bob's house, 880 East 43rd avenue (between Donald and Fox Hollow). Tour included lawn to garden, edible/medicinal plants, rainwater collection, food preservation, solar power/hot water, seed saving, winter gardening, and more...
Whiteaker Neighborhood, met at Red Barn Grocery, corner of 4th and Blair Blvd. Tour included community-owned businesses, an alternative living situation, reclaimed housing, and more.
Fairmount Neighbors, met at Walnut Street Co-operative, 1680 Walnut Street. The tour included examples of permaculture design, natural playscapes, creative material reuse, local production, community-owned businesses, neighborhood infrastructure, and more.

Look for the 2009 bike tours originally planned for Amazon and Laurel Hill Valley, to be sometime in Summer 2010.... Add to that plans for a first-ever Green Homes bike tour in Bethel-Danebo!

The NLCCoS has a Speakers' Bureau to offer presentations to neighborhood associations and other local groups. Contact NLCCoS convenor Kathy Saranpa for further info: ksaranpa@comcast.net Keep checking back for future projects and other information.

Reference: NLCgreen Essays