Dear ,
Sometimes democracy takes the form of putting up a roadblock. When citizens don't succeed in influencing government to go down the road they desire, it is sometimes possible--and easier--to prevent government from going down an undesirable road. Ultimately, foreclosing the option of the unsustainable or unhealthy road opens the way for a better strategy.
Advocates of renewable energy sources have not succeeded in getting the federal government to invest more than a fraction of its energy dollars in renewables. Yet we can sometimes succeed in restraining the most harmful of fossil fuel technologies, such as new coal-fired power plants. The Sierra Club has participated in blocking the construction of a hundred coal fired power plants since 2000.
Yesterday Santa Cruz City voters approved a roadblock in Measure P, which passed with a 71% majority. Measure P prevents City construction of a desalination plant without getting voter approval. As a result of the margin of victory of Measure P, City leaders may be questioning whether the high cost and high energy desalination plant will ever be approved by voters. The new roadblock on the desalination path suggests that new paths be investigated.
To learn about "Water Market Incentives," one of the new ideas used to reduce water demand, check out the Engineers for Water Alternatives event (see below in this newsletter.)
—Rick Longinotti
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| Help design the transit corridor
tonight |
Tonight, Wednesday Nov. 7
6:30 – 9:00 PM
Live Oak Elementary School
1916 Capitola Road, Santa Cruz
How often does your local planning department float the highly resilient idea of transit-based, walkable neighborhoods development, and ask for your input on how it should be done? Not often--that's why you should turn out and show your support.
Santa Cruz County just announced this third community workshop for the Transit Corridors Plan for Sustainable Communities. The County collected feedback from two previous workshops and is actively soliciting more input. The Transit Corridors Plan is a county-wide planning effort that will focus on urban areas in Live Oak, Soquel, and Aptos, and will help shape growth and development priorities throughout Santa Cruz County.
For more information on the Plan, visit www.transitcorridorsplan.org. |
| Learn about fracking |
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| Rose Braz |
Tuesday, November 20, 7 – 9 pm
Quaker Meeting House
225 Rooney St., Santa Cruz.
Free/by donation
Fracking in California is unregulated by State government, although hundreds of fracked wells have been drilled in the state. Many more may be in store, because California contains nearly two-thirds of the nation's shale oil reserves.
Our Resilience Partner WILPF has organized a program with two great speakers:
Rose Braz coordinates the climate campaign for the Center for Biological Diversity, including organizing against fracking in California. The climate campaign wages innovative legal and public-pressure campaigns to limit global warming pollution and to prevent climate change from driving species extinct.
Steven Craig, former Director of the Ventana Wilderness and Land Trust, and CEQA advisor to cities and counties in central and southern California, has explored how oil and gas excavation are regulated in Monterey and San Benito Counties. Mr. Craig will be focusing on “what you can do at the local government level.” |
| Can we talk about Climate Change
Now? |
We didn't hear about it during the presidential debates, but...
Now, thanks (unfortunately) to Sandy, we have an opening to talk about climate change and be heard by a few more people. New York Mayor Bloomberg has become quite vocal about the need for climate action, and a photo of flooded NYC with a very unsubtle headline about Global Warming graces the cover of his Businessweek mag. (Sample article here.)
We, too, can talk to people about the urgent need for action on Climate Change. But isn't it true that "no one weather event can be said to be caused by climate change"? Not exactly, explains George Lakoff, master of effective communication. In his article, "Global Warming Systemically Caused Hurricane Sandy," he lays down some language for us to use. Why not try it out on your friends and family today? |
| Engineers for Water Alternatives |
Thursday, Nov. 15, 7-8:30 pm
Mid-County Senior Center
829 Bay Ave., Capitola
Free
In a talk entitled, "Water Market Incentives: Can they unlock a race to conserve?", James Workman, developer of water conservation firm AquaJust, will speak about incentives that resolve the paradoxes of attempting to create conservation via water pricing. With Ron Duncan from Soquel Creek Water District and Sue Holt, Environmental Studies and Economics instructor at Cabrillo College. For more information, call Peter at 426-9054. |
| Also worthy of attention... |
♦ Carpool to the Green Festival in San Francisco
This Saturday, Nov. 10
Two seats available; contact Cara at ratbert@cruzio.com.
♦ Book Sharing event for Global Sharing Day
Wednesday, Nov. 14, 7-8:30 pm
Downtown Santa Cruz location
We’ll gather with a book we’d like to give someone. We’ll each take a few minutes to say why we care about this book, so we’re sharing ourselves as well! For info and location, contact Cecile at cecile@cecileandrews.com.
♦ The Art of Engagement, with Lisa Heft
Wednesday, Nov. 14, 5-7 pm
Kresge Seminar Room 159, UCSC
An evening of snacks, tea, experiential learning, and conversations that matter. Lisa Heft is an international consultant, facilitator and educator specializing in participant-driven group facilitation using such methods as Open Space Technology. For more information, please contact Christine King, chlking@ucsc.edu.
♦ Two Permaculture Courses from RDI
Permaculture Design Course, held at Santa Cruz Waldorf School
2-day introduction Nov. 10-11; 12-month course
Advanced Permaculture Design Practicum, Bolinas
Sign up for 4-month modules or a full year
For more information, go to the RDI Website
♦ Resilience.org, a great new resilience website
This evolution of the former "Energy Bulletin" website is a great place to get cutting edge news and thinking on all topics related to energy challenges and resilient responses.
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| Become a member of Transition Santa Cruz |
Help support our important work of building local resilience! Go to http://transitionsc.org/donate and join at the $25, $50, $100 or $200 level, or join as a volunteer. Your participation matters!
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Contact Details
831-427-9916
http://transitionsc.org
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Potluck with a Purpose
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Tuesday, November 27
6-8:30 pm
Live Oak Grange, 1900 17th Ave.
Free/by donation
Family friendly!
The First Millimeter:
A film on farming that takes care of the atmosphere
This inspirational film interviews leading scientists and features success stories from farmers and ranchers in Zimbabwe, Australia, Mexico and the U.S. They illustrate how successful carbon sequestration in top soil and other approaches will not only curb the gases that cause global warming, but increase biodiversity, lessen the use of fertilizers and pesticides and create effective rainfall within just a couple of years.
Special guest: Sallie Calhoun from Paicines Ranch, local grass-fed beef producer and chair of Holistic Management International
(http://holisticmanagement.org/).
Co-sponsored with Slow Food Santa Cruz.
Can you offer a ride to the potluck? Please contact Cara to coordinate rides, at ratbert@cruzio.com.
Potluck 6:00, Program 7:00
Feel free to come for either or both!
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