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Join NEXUS this Saturday for Green Holiday Tips!
Attend a special holiday event this Saturday, December 12, at NEXUS, a D2E partner. Learn how to green your holiday season. From sustainable food and restaurants, to energy efficiency, to wellness and nutrition, to green cleaning. This is the major green event this holiday season.
For more information, visit NEXUS online.
Tomorrow Saturday October 24th is International Climate Action Day!
The D2E blog is BACK!
Down:2:Earth is coming off a month of diverse environmental events throughout Boston, but we’re looking forward to one this weekend that takes the cake!
As many people already know, this Saturday October 24th is International Day of Climate Action, organized by the 350 Organization. Founded by Bill McKibben, who kicked off Down:2:Earth in 2008, 350 is dedicated to encouraging social and political change to secure the future of our environment. The number 350 stands for 350 parts per million (PPM), or the scientist-suggested safe upper limit for carbon dioxide in our atmosphere.
In December 2009, a meeting of world leaders in Copenhagen will discuss creating a new treaty concerning emission cuts. However, the currently crafted treaty does not require that emissions be lowered to the recommended level of 350PPM. In order to ensure that our voices are heard and that our leaders are held accountable, 350 has organized this grassroots campaign.
So what exactly IS the International Day of Climate Action? The event is made up of thousands of “actions” in thousands of locations around the globe. Actions are whatever you chose them to be from demonstrations to tree planting. 350’s goal is to raise awareness by having this actions take place simultaneously in iconic locations internationally, like the Taj Mahal and Times Square.
This picture was sent to 350.org recently from Korengal Otpost in the Korengal Valley, Kunar Province, Eastern Afghanistan:
Here are a few of the actions taking place in the Boston area tomorrow!
350 on Marsh Plaza, Boston University
Students are invited to take part in forming the number “350” for a photograph.
BYOMug and Drink Coffee!, Boston Common Coffee Co.
Bring in your own mug from 7-9AM and receive half-price coffee!
Mission Hill Energy Fair and Climate Justice Rally
Featuring music, food, vendor and organizational displays, workshops on how to save money by conserving energy, and speakers calling for government and corporate action on energy efficiency and global warming.
Boston “Under Water” 350 Festival
3:00 – 5:30 pm, Saturday, October 24, 2009. Photo at 3:50 pm
Taking place at Christopher Columbus Park by the Aquarium T stop and waterfront, the festival will feature:
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A race to build a wall of sandbags to protect Boston from rising sea leveland stronger storms!
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A massive group photo in front of the sandbag wall!
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Beach and water games!
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Participatory Climate Theater!
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Relay racing!
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Flooding Station: learn about what sea level rise and higher storm surges will mean for Boston.
- Plus blue face-painting, bike-flag making, and more!
For those of you Twittering about the event, the suggested hashtag for this event is #350ppm!
For more information about these and other actions taking place globally visit www.350.org. Find an action in your area and get out there!
Mayor’s Cup Pro Cycling Race & Concert
September 26, 2009
I have attended a few of these bicycle events organized by the City, and they are always a lot of fun. You get to meet some great people. D2E gives this two thumbs up!
More than 200 top professional racers, including Olympic cyclists and national champions, will descend on Government Center for high speed, fast-action racing. On Sunday, nearly 6,000 riders, young and old, beginner and experienced, will take to the streets for the Hub On Wheels citywide ride and festival to help raise money for a great cause.
Saturday will also feature a mascot race, a kids race and a concert.
Contact:
Nicole Freedman
617-918-4456
nicole.freedman.bra@cityofboston.gov
www.mayorscupcycling.org
Women Business Owners Lead the Way
How could I resist re-posting an article with this title? I received the below information from Steven Jones-D’Agostino, who is one of the Energy Freedom Fighters and has been a great supporter of D2E. Thanks Steve!
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Women business owners are at the forefront of leading America toward energy conservation and clean energy. In fact, a majority cite moving to clean energy as our most important energy policy goal, according to a similar survey of 455 women business owners also commissioned by WIPP and WCEE.
On both of these measures, women business owners are even more committed to clean energy than the general female population. They strongly believe wind and solar energy should have an important role in addressing our country’s electricity needs. They are also more aware of nuclear energy’s clean-air benefits—that it is not a cause of global warming and releases no air pollution—than women as a whole, and they are more supportive of nuclear energy than the general female population. Other significant findings are:
- 77 percent of female business owners have cut their electricity use at their businesses in the past few years, and 98 percent have done the same at home.
- Nearly 8 in 10 (79 percent) have made their businesses more environmentally friendly.
- 87 percent favor federal tax incentives – including 52 percent who strongly favor them – to encourage companies to become more energy-efficient and use more clean energy.
Survey Methodology
Greenberg Quinlan Rosner, the international public-opinion research and consulting firm, conducted a national telephone survey of 801 women 18 years or older, and a national web survey of 455 women business owners. The surveys were conducted between May 4 and 18, 2009. The margin of error for women 18 years and older is plus or minus 3.5 percent. The survey was commissioned by Women Impacting Public Policy in collaboration with Women’s Council on Energy and the Environment, and was underwritten through an educational grant by Entergy Nuclear.
Resources for Women
Women can learn more about how electricity impacts their world and their planet by downloading a brochure, Women and Clean Power: Electricity Matters, at www.wipp.org.
About WIPP
Women Impacting Public Policy is a non-profit national bipartisan group with more than half-a-million members. WIPP is the collective voice in Washington, DC, for 48 national women and small business organizations. WIPP advocates for and on behalf of women and minorities in business in the legislative processes of our nation, creating economic opportunities and building bridges and alliances to other small business organizations. WIPP’s policy agenda, the Economic Blueprint, the Women Business Owners’ Platform for Growth, is found on the WIPP Web site. Visit www.wipp.org.
About WCEE
The Women’s Council on Energy and the Environment is a non-partisan policy-neutral organization that focuses on women, energy, and the environment. WCEE’s mission is to provide consistently high-quality, non-partisan and policy-neutral forums for dialogue on cutting-edge energy and environmental issues, and to foster the personal and professional growth and leadership abilities of its members. Visit www.wcee.org.
Available to comment on the survey and findings:
- Barbara Kasoff, President, Women Impacting Public Policy (WIPP)
- Sharla B. Artz, President, Women’s Council on Energy and the Environment (WCEE)
For more information or to receive more survey results, please contact:
Kathryn Morris, The Huntington Group, 845-635-9828/914-204-6412, Kathryn.Morris@thehuntgrp.com
Kira Gordon, The Huntington Group 646-243-4920. Kira.Gordon@thehuntgrp.com
D2E 2009: Video Project
For those of you that were fortunate enough to catch some or all of our video project – below is a breakdown of the films that were submitted. We were very impressed with the amount of submissions – as well as their diversity and quality.
PROGRAM 1 Saturday 12:45 am -1:15 pm
Highlights
Peace Garden — John Coyne (3:47)
Sustain+ability – Cary and Yari Wolinsky at Trillium Studios (5:45)
Agent 350 — Scott Cushing and Jordan Murphy, Changents.com (2:58)
Studying toads on Cape Cod — Todd Tupper and Mark Adams (5:00)
Shadow of Time — Catherine Widgery (6:27)
Climate Change? – Boston Harbor Harbor Island Ambasadors (6:00)
Total running time: 29:57
PROGRAM 2 Saturday 5:00 – 6:00 pm
Peace Garden — John Coyne (3:47). Boston videographer profiles a community garden.
Aquafinito — Annalise Littman and the ICA (10:00) Boston high school student Annalise Littman provides astute documentary analysis of how the consumer market turns water into a commodity at great cost to the environment.
Sustain+ability – Cary and Yari Wolinsky at Trillium Studios (5:45)
National Geographic photographer captures a cross section of opinions on how we are responsible for our own well being.
Studying the toads of Cape Cod – Mark Adams and Todd Tupper (5:00). How the knowledge of amphibians can enhance our enjoyment of coastal landscapes.
B-Flat – Adam Frelin (4:34). A contemplative river journey based on a single note by conceptual artist and associate professor of sculpture at SUNY Albany.
Agent 350 — Scott Cushing and Jordan Murphy, Changents.com (2:58). Changents profiles a 24-year-old activitist on finding a simple message to engage the public and target carbon emissions.
Shadow of Time — Catherine Widgery (6:27). A public artist based in Montreal, Cambridge and Cape Cod captures a contemplation on the passage of time and the play of light on a pond in India.
Climate Change? — Boston Harbor Island Ambassadors (6:00). Inner city Boston students discuss how climate change affects their everyday concerns and expectations for their future lives as adults.
The Trees Have No Tongues — Linda Price-Sneddon (4:45). An ambient poetic montage of New England forests as the threatened foundation of landscape integrity.
Whiplash – Cary and Yari Wolinsky at Trillium Studios (4:56). Performance poet Lauren Whitehead of Youthspeaks.org delivers a passionate broadside for environmental justice.
History of Maps — Carlos Ferguson (3:01) Multi media artist and Fellow of the Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown constructs an animated vision of the world seen by a beehive.
Running time: 57:02
PROGRAM 3 Sunday 11:30 am – 12:30 pm
Big Green Bus — Earthkeepers, Changents.com (3:58)
Bumpkin Island Tin Can Communication — Sam Smiley, Astrodime Transit Authority (7:31). Boston digital artist Sam Smiley presents a pseudo documentary of appropriate technology in the Boston Harbor Islands.
Portraying Franklin Park’s Gorillas — Justin Freed and Jen Bradley (7:19). Boston videographer Justin Freed profiles artist Jen Bradley and her 10-year intimate quest to capture the personalities of Boston’s gorillas.
The Incoming Tide — Chris Hamilton (5:00). Whale videographer and sailor plays with time and examines the flow of tidewater in a Cape Cod lagoon.
Sweet Crude — and Kate Wolf (6:00). Footage from a forthcoming documentary about how multi-national oil exploitation in Nigeria undermines the lives and livelihoods of African villagers.
Paper Man – Tony Rizzi (4:28) Dancer/choreographer from Boston and Frankfurt explores how a deluge of paper consumes and buries us.
The Ladder/ Fence Thief – Adam Frelin (3:50). A wry fable on the imperative to organize and frame nature by conceptual artist and associate professor of sculpture at SUNY Albany.
Listen to your Mother — Zoe Lewis and Mark Adams (3:00). Cape Cod singer-songwriter summarizes geologic time.
Jetty Orbit – Ted Olier (3:00). Boston conceptual artist gives a birds-eye perspective of a coastal structure.
Youthcan (5:00). The search to build a curriculum about sustainability for the Boston Schools.
Climate Change? — Boston Harbor Island Ambassadors (6:00). Inner city Boston students discuss how climate change affects their everyday concerns and expectations for their future lives as adults.
History of Popcorn – Carlos Ferguson (1:55) Multi media artist and Fellow of the Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown constructs an animated vision of the how popcorn was discovered.
59:10
D2E 2009: Back to Basics
Mayor Menino stopped in to see the expo.
We are all recovering from a full weekend of events, exhibits and discussions. A big thanks to everyone that attended, we hope you left with more information and enthusiasm about your own impact. We’d also like to thank all of our sponsors, exhibitors, presenters, The City of Boston, Mayor Menino and of course, all of the contestants that entered their ideas in our Pitch the City contest. The jury had a hard time each step of the way, since there were so many great ideas. The City has mentioned several times that they plan to coordinate with many of the contestants. We love knowing that we helped catapult your ideas right into City Hall. Small business can make a difference.
We have seen D2E in many blogs around town and love hearing what you all have to say. There was a lot of great talk this past weekend, and I know that the people talking will take action.
Below are some photos to share – enjoy!
Alie and Mimi, two neighborhood kids from JP pitched their idea to Boston.
Adventours brought their bikes and expertise to D2E and offered free bike tours of Boston.
Mayor Menino addresses the crowd and talks about the importance of Pitch the City.
Progressive Management was at D2E to talk about how you can align your investment money with your values - and get ahead.
We have a new car dealer in town: Electric City Cars (scooters & bikes too!)
You don’t have to suffer, for eco-fashion
Here at D2E we are committed not only to finding sustainable clothing companies and designers so that we can feel good about what we wear – we are also committed to finding good fashion. You don’t have to be limited fashion-wise to be eco-wise.
Check out this great video created by the talented Hired Pens. They help us get this message across in a humorous way.
Recycling within reason
Check out this great video that the Hired Pens created for us. They are a local copy writing and video production company and they are very good at what they do – and they have a great sense of humor.
This video shows that though recycling is good – it can be taken overboard. Have fun viewing!
D2E 2008 video – check it out!
We just posted a video from last years event. If you attended last year, it is fun to watch and remember the energy. If you did not attend, this will give you a better picture of D2E. We work hard to promote sustainable businesses and organizations that are helping us move to a sustainable future. We also enjoy the educational programming for people like us. We have all learned so much with this show, and it is a pleasure to share the wealth with all of you. We can enrich our lives with more than money.
Does government policy matter?
Alternative energy is alive in Massachusetts
We have been talking about Policy a lot these days at D2E. One of the many things we have learned in this exploration is how important our government policy is in moving us closer to a more sustainable world. The US is far behind Europe in this regard. So It is great to see the Patrick administration taking action. It looks like the economic climate might slow us down a bit, but with the right leadership, we can make great strides.
We spoke with NEEP, Northeast Energy Efficiency Partnership, yesterday. They have agreed to moderate a panel at D2E on policy. So now we are looking for some city, state and federal policy makers to sit on the panel and speak to the audience at D2E. What are they up to? What progress has been made? What plans are set for the future? How can citizens get involved? These are the questions that keep us up at night.
Check out today’s Globe to see a story about what’s going on here in Massachusettes.“Will the economy take the wind out of Patrick’s plan?” by Erin Ailworth.
“It’s pretty clear that we can meet every one of those goals if we have the will,” Rogers said. [John Rogers, a senior energy analyst for the Union of Concerned Scientists] “And it’s pretty clear from what the science is telling us that we have to meet so many of these goals to get on the path that we need to be.”
Are you interested in what the governement is up to? What type of policy discussion would you like to see at D2E in April?
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