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Events

World Environment Day Updates

This weekend: Earth, trees, water and more!

Numerous World Environment Day activities are on tap for this weekend and the following week. The Women's Health and the Environment Conference is set for Wednesday, April 21 and the 40th anniversary of Earth Day is on Thursday, April 22. On Saturday, April 17, participate in a tree planting with Lawrenceville and Highland Park Tree Tenders and visit Frick Environmental Center for its Fifth Annual Earth Day Celebration. Explore nature, enjoy local entertainment, learn ways to practice sustainable living, and much more. This same day join thousands of individuals across the country passionately supporting Nuru International's Be Hope to Her Campaign. BH2O+ is an experiential event designed to shed light on the serious issues facing the 1.1 billion people around the world lacking access to clean, safe water. And last but not least, consider participating in the Impact E.A.R.T.H 5K, scheduled also for April 17. The EARTH DAY 5K was organized to create awareness about the wide variety of environmental issues and to inform residents of what they can do locally to help the EARTH.

Also, from April 17-24, consider donating crutches, canes, and wheelchairs for Haiti. Not only will these materials be kept out of our landfills, but they will serve a humanitarian purpose. Drop-offs are available at various sites. For more information on this and all World Environment Day activities, please visit www.pittsburghwed.com.

Plan to attend Planners Unite II

Monday, April 26
3:00 pm – 4:30 pm
Regional Enterprise Tower, 23rd Floor, O'Neill Room, Pittsburgh
RSVP: Lori Butler at lbutler@sustainablepittsburgh.org
No fee to attend.
Community developers and planners unite! Let's not go out with a whimper.

The follow-up meeting to the first in December, this forum will discuss Planners Unite workgroup efforts to promote planning as an essential function of local government, to better quantify the benefits of planning as an investment, and to advocate for the restoration of state funds for local land use planning. Come learn and be part of the legislative strategy that is mounting around the Commonwealth.
More details

Events Continued

Resources

Planners Unite II

Monday, April 26
3:00 pm – 4:30 pm
Regional Enterprise Tower, 23rd Floor, O'Neill Room, Pittsburgh
RSVP: Lori Butler at lbutler@sustainablepittsburgh.org
No fee to attend.
Community developers and planners unite! Let's not go out with a whimper.

The follow-up meeting to the first in December, this forum will discuss Planners Unite workgroup efforts to promote planning as an essential function of local government, to better quantify the benefits of planning as an investment, and to advocate for the restoration of state funds for local land use planning. Come learn and be part of the legislative strategy that is mounting around the Commonwealth. Several state-wide organizations are already on board including PSATS, PSABS, CCAP, 10,000 Friends, and Pennsylvania Works! –- and the list is growing!

What’s a planner to do? Glad you asked. Homework will be assigned. Come prepared to keep this effort moving forward!

Presented by:
Southwest Section Council, Pennsylvania Chapter of the American Planning Association
Local Government Academy
Sustainable Pittsburgh

REGISTER NOW!
Water Matters! Global Water Conference

A World Environment Day key event serving to raise awareness of the importance of water and its interconnectedness with biodiversity.

Thursday, June 3
8:00 am - 4:00 pm
David L. Lawrence Convention Center, Pittsburgh
For sponsorship opportunities, email cgould@sustainablepittsburgh.org.
To be an exhibitor, email sue@mcmahon-cardillo.com.
Registration is now open. For more details visit the Conference Web site.

The United Nations Environment Programme appointed Pittsburgh as North America's Host City for World Environment Day 2010. Plan to attend this remarkable, milestone for the region, Water Matters! Global Water Conference.

This conference will be a milestone for our region in establishing water as imperative to prosperity--life, health, recreation, industry, competitiveness. Water Matters! will galvanize the region to address water challenges and opportunities and be a leader in providing sustainable water solutions for the world.

Open to the public and intended for all audiences. Conference will conclude with a networking reception and exhibition providing hands-on activities and displays.

Come be part of a remarkable, eye-opening exploration of the ways Water Matters!

Partial list of presenters:
- David Ainsworth, United Nations Convention on Biodiversity
- Herb Buxton, US Geological Survey
- Marla Cone, Environmental Health News
- Don Correll, American Water
- Marc Edwards, Virginia Tech
- Julie Eilperin, The Washington Post
- Amy Fraenkel, UNEP Regional Office for North America
- Kate Jackson, Westinghouse Electric Company
- Greg Koch, Global Water Stewardship Program, The Coca-Cola Company
- Mike Magee, healthy-waters.org
- Rich Meeusen, Badger Meter Co. and Milwaukee 7 Water Council
- James Rogers, Duke Energy
- Carl Safina, PhD, Blue Ocean Institute

Presented by the Pittsburgh World Environment Day Partnership
In Collaboration with: United Nations Environment Programme
Conference Sponsors:
Bayer Corporation
LANXESS
UPMC
Calgon Carbon Corporation

SIGN UP NOW! Paddle at the Point: Kayak and Canoe World Record Attempt

A World Environment Day key event serving to raise awareness of the importance of water and its interconnectedness with biodiversity.

Saturday, June 5
Email worldrecord@ventureoutdoors.org or visit www.paddleatthepoint.com for more information and updates.

Bring your boat down to Pittsburgh’s North Shore on Saturday, June 5th and help break the World Record for largest flotilla of kayaks and canoes. Venture Outdoors is organizing this event in celebration of World Environment Day on June 5th. Groups, individuals and clubs welcome! The record is currently held by the Inlet Area Businesses Association in upstate New York and it will take 1,105 kayaks and canoes for Pittsburgh to set the new world record.

PreservePGH Public Meeting

Monday, April 19
6:00 pm - 8:00 pm
New Hazlett Theatre, 6 Allegheny Square E, Pittsburgh 15212

The City of Pittsburgh, through its Department of City Planning, is in the process of preparing a Cultural Heritage Plan. By sharing your opinions about the City’s historic and cultural resources, and the ways they are cared for and protected, you will help the City make decisions about how to best preserve its character. PreservePHG is part of PlanPGH, the City’s Comprehensive Planning process. A public opinion survey will be available online from April 10 to May 23, 2010 at www.planpgh.com.

Design Excellence Lecture Series: Robert Freedman

Monday, April 19
6:00 pm - 8:00 pm (doors open at 5:30)
George Rowland White Theatre, University Center, Point Park University, Downtown Pittsburgh
Single tickets: $20.
More information

Join the Community Design Center of Pittsburgh for the third lecture in its 2009/2010 Design Excellence Lecture Series, The Intentional City. Robert Freedman, director of urban design for the City of Toronto Planning Division will present his experiences practicing and advocating for architecture, planning, and design in an urban setting.

Following the lecture, Alan will join in a panel discussion, moderated by Grant Oliphant, president and CEO of the Pittsburgh Foundation, with Anne-Marie Lubenau, AIA, president and CEO of the CDCP; Maelene Myers, executive director of East Liberty Development, Inc. and Lisa Schroeder, executive director of Riverlife. The evening concludes with a reception.

The Business of Brownfields Conference

April 19 - 21, 2010
Sheraton Station Square Hotel, Pittsburgh, PA
Questions: Call 412-261-0710, ext. 11 or e-mail c.mcgarvey@eswp.com
More information
Program

Plans are underway for the 15th Annual Business of Brownfields Conference (BoB)! The 2010 event will highlight the technical, legal and financial aspects of brownfields reclamation and development, and will feature experience and research-based presentations from stakeholders who are involved with the assessment, cleanup and reuse of abandoned, idled or under-used commercial and industrial sites.

If you are associated with brownfields development, the "BoB" is the place to be!

The 2010 Technical program of the "BoB" will feature the five main actions of brownfields development:
* Public Health/Institutional Controls
* Marketing & Finance
* Site Characterization
* Site Remediation
* Working within Legal/Regulatory Framework

Women's Health & the Environment Conference

Wednesday, April 21
8:00 am - 3:45 pm
David L. Lawrence Convention Center
Registration is free; Space is limited.
Visit www.womenshealthpittsburgh.org for more information.

The conference will feature nationally renowned environmental scientists, writers and activists who will share the newest science examining the possible link between the environment and health. The morning speakers will share scientific data to support the way in which toxins affect people. Afternoon speakers will share solutions that will enlighten attendees about lifestyle choices they can make to create a healthier environment for themselves and their families.

2010 Get Involved! Service Summit

Thursday, April 22
8:30 am – 4:00 pm
Union Project 801 N. Negley Avenue, Pittsburgh
Tickets: $35.00/person Proceeds help fund scholarship programs to high school, college and graduate students through Baker Leadership.
For more information, please visit www.bakerleadership.com.

Approximately 200 motivated professionals in the Pittsburgh area are attending the First Annual Get Involved! Service Summit to listen and learn how to leave their handprint and make a difference within our communities. The day is packed with an impressive lineup of the region’s most inspirational leaders and speakers. With the day’s message of community involvement, the event will be accompanied by a service expo so that attendees may apply their inspiration immediately. The expo participants consist of organizations and businesses that provide service and opportunity such as: Americorps, CCFA, CORO Pittsburgh, Amizade, CONTACT, etc. An awards ceremony will be conducted mid day showcasing the region’s most inspirational community leaders and rising stars.

Invitation to table at "A Sea Change"

Saturday, April 24
7:35 pm - 9:00 pm (pre-film reception begins at 7:15 and dessert reception and 'strolling discussion' to resume after film).
Complimentary admission for tabling organization representatives.
More information
Contact: Jolanta Lion, Director of the CMU International Film Festival (412) 268-2212 or jola@cmu.edu

Carnegie Mellon's Steinbrenner Institute invites local organizations to have a display table at an April 24 reception-event that will surround a water-focused environmental film (*A Sea Change)* in CMU's International Film Festival: Faces of Globalization. The film presentation is a part of The World Environmental Program.

The film, *A Sea Change*, (www.aseachange.net) focuses on the issue of ocean acidification through the perspective of a grandfather trying to communicate the problem to his grandson. The pre-film reception will highlight water quality issues and alternative energy options in Pittsburgh. The Institute would appreciate your participation to illustrate the wide spectrum of local organizations that deal with these issues and further the educational impact of the film. With the themes of *A Sea Change* in mind, audiences of all ages are invited. There will be light refreshments, decorations from elementary school students, and activities directed towards children's participation. Currently the Steinbrenner Institute is working with The Environmental Charter School on an art project related to the topic of the film. Their works will be displayed in the entrance of McConomy Auditorium at Carnegie Mellon University.

This will be a great opportunity to foster community awareness and discussion in critical issues related to water quality and other regional challenges.

Lessons Learned from Westchester: Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing

Tuesday, April 27
1:00 pm - 4:00 pm
Regional Enterprise Tower, 31st floor, 425 Sixth Ave., downtown Pittsburgh
RSVP to: Peter Harvey
Registration form

All jurisdictions receiving Community Development Block Grant (CDBG), HOME, Emergency Shelter Grants, and HOPWA block grants are required to reduce impediments or barriers that affect the rights of fair housing choice. It covers public and private policies, practices, and procedures affecting housing choice. Impediments to fair housing choice are defined as any actions, omissions, or decisions that restrict, or have the effect of restricting, the availability of housing choices, based on race, color, religion, sex, disability, familial status, or national origin. Michael Allen, THE NATIONAL EXPERT on affirmatively furthering fair housing, will be featured. He was the lead attorney in a case in Westchester County, New York, where the County was charged with $62M and made to develop at least 750 housing units in the most residentially segregated white municipalities, and institute meaningful housing de-segregation policies. The event is co-sponsored by the Housing Alliance of PA, Fair Housing Partnership of Greater Pittsburgh and the Pittsburgh Commission on Human Relations.

Launching your idea in the global community: Ceramic Water Filters and Potable Water Access

Tuesday, April 27
5:30 pm – 7:00 pm
Hamburg Hall, Carnegie Mellon University on Forbes Ave., Oakland
Please RSVP
More information

Over a billiion people on earth do not have access to potable drinking water. The extent of the problem may seem overwhelming, but Professor Manny Hernandez is dedicated to traveling the developing world and training communities to construct ceramic water filters. Hernandez will discuss his work and how students can launch their own idea to benefit the global community. The ceramic water filters and their design involves engineering, fine arts, and policy backgrounds and interests. This event is part of Intelligent Action Week (iACT) at Carnegie Mellon University (April 23-29).

CityLive! Reclaiming our Air, Water & Land

Tuesday, April 27
6:30 pm
New Hazlett Theater, North Side
RSVP

How can we take control and make sure our environment is healthy and pure? How can we turn the tide and reclaim our air, water and land? Who is working to make this happen in Pittsburgh?

Three Pittsburghers will share stories of their efforts to make a cleaner environment for all of us. Our panelists are Meredith Grelli, co-founder and director of Burgh Bees; Tom Hoffmann, the Western PA director for Clean Water Action and Ned Mulcahy, the founder of Three Rivers Waterkeeper. Discussion will be moderated by Khari Mosley, Director of Green Economy Initiatives at GTECH.

Regional Water Symposium: Meeting the Wet Weather and Stormwater Challenges for Municipalities

Thursday, April 29
8:00 am – Noon
Heinz History Center, 1212 Smallman Street, Strip District
No fee, but registration is required.
RSVP to AlleghenyGreen@AlleghenyCounty.us and include your full name, affiliation, and contact information.
Registration desk opens at 7:30 am.

Municipal elected officials, planners, engineers, water and wastewater professionals – and others interested in water issues – don’t miss this half-day symposium focused on the role that municipalities play in solving regional water issues.

The featured presenter is nationally known water engineer and author of the best-selling text book, Municipal Stormwater Management, Andrew Reese. Additional speakers represent ALCOSAN, 3 Rivers Wet Weather, regional municipal water leaders, and an engineering firm panel showcasing green infrastructure solutions around the country. This event is part of the World Environment Day celebration.

This event is hosted by County Executive Dan Onorato, Pennsylvania Environmental Council, and 3 Rivers Wet Weather.

Marcellus Shale Policy Conference

May 3-4, 2010
More details to come.
For information, call: Pennsylvania Environmental Council at 412-481-9400 or marcelluspolicyconference@pecpa.org

How should Pennsylvania construct an effective regulatory framework that allows the natural gas industry to prosper. . .while protecting environmental and conservation values? If you have a stake in the development of regulatory policy and decision-making pertaining to Marcellus shale gas production in Pennsylvania, then you should attend this important conference!

The Pennsylvania Environmental Council and Duquesne University invite you to the Pennsylvania Marcellus Shale Policy Conference, which will work to identify strategies and practices for the effective and sustainable development of this extraordinary resource. Among the topics we'll discuss include:
- The economics of Marcellus shale development in America's energy mix
- Regulatory obstacles and opportunities in Pennsylvania
- Opportunities and benefits of a successful Marcellus gas development industry in Pennsylvania
- Finding the balance between conservation and gas resource development
- Local community considerations
- Environmental issues
- Best management practices and long-term conservation methods
- Policy recommendations
...and much, much more.

9th annual Great Outdoors Week

May 14 - 23, 2010
Various times and locations throughout southwestern PA
Visit www.wallsarebad.com for more information.

A celebration of the outdoors, the 9th annual Great Outdoors Week serves to highlight the many outdoor amenities available in Southwestern Pennsylvania — rivers, greenways, parks, trails, and much more. During this special week, numerous activities are available for the sampling, including cycling, hiking, paddling, and bird watching-—all hosted by local outdoor groups in the region. Four signature events are included as well: Learn to Row and Paddle (5/14), Pedal Pittsburgh (5/16), National Bike to Work Day (5/21) and the Venture Outdoors Festival (5/22).

New this year is the recognition of Great Outdoors Week as part of the official World Environment Day (WED) - Pittsburgh celebration. Individuals and groups are encouraged to take an active part in Great Outdoors Week this year by hosting or participating in an event, and helping to promote this ten-day celebration. Flyers are available for distribution.

Rachel Carson Celebration of Biodiversity with E.O. Wilson

Thursday, May 27
1:00 pm - 8:00 pm
Carnegie Museum of Natural History, 4400 Forbes Avenue, Oakland
Contact: Fiona Fisher at (724) 274- 5459 or fiona@rachelcarsonhomestead.org
Register

As part of the United Nations World Environment Day celebration in North America, the Rachel Carson Celebration of Biodiversity Symposium will focus on the human impact on biodiversity. Featuring E.O. Wilson as keynote speaker and including a panel of experts, people can begin with an initial visioning for a New American Dream that is environmentally sustainable, developed by participants in this event--a roadmap that will address the effect people have on the environment, and the critical inter-relationships between human habitat and the quality of life for generations to come.

There will be a special reception after the symposium at which E.O. Wilson will be presented with the Rachel Carson Legacy Award, which recognizes and honors people who have made significant impact on the application of Rachel Carson's principles to modern public policy issues that interface the environment. Wilson is a two-time Pulitzer prize winner, world-renowned entomologist and one of the scientists who provided research data to Rachel Carson while she was writing Silent Spring.

Resources

Act now on climate change: Pennsylvania can lead the way to ensure America's energy and national security

Western Pennsylvania has made great strides in protecting the environment and growing its economy through innovation and forward-thinking business and civic leadership. What's been missing is a national framework that establishes targets for reducing emissions, sparks innovative solutions and stimulates job growth. . . Climate change legislation would provide a much-needed booster shot to our slowly recovering economy. A recent study led by economists at the University of California Berkeley, estimated that proposed legislation could create 80,000 new jobs in Pennsylvania and 1.9 million nationwide by 2020.

DUQ to air keynote from Regional Equitable Development Summit April 25

On Tuesday, December 15, 2009, Sustainable Pittsburgh, in partnership with the Johnson Institute for Responsible Leadership at the University of Pittsburgh and the Housing Alliance of Pennsylvania, hosted the 6th Annual Regional Equitable Development Summit, which focused on how regional capacity can be developed to address blight and abandonment. Keynote speaker John Kromer, Senior Consultant at the Fels Institute of Government, University of Pennsylvania and author of Fixing Broken Cities: The Implementation of Urban Development Strategies, presented findings of the report, entitled, "Southwestern Pennsylvania Blighted and Abandoned Solutions Project."

Addressing blight and abandonment offers the chance to build assets in a community. It is a win-win strategy that pays in stabilizing neighborhoods, increased revenue, job creation, increase in property values and lower crime. Given the regional nature and economic impacts of this issue, regional approaches are in order. However, there exists no regional plan, decision-making table, nor coordinated regional effort to tackle the growing crisis of blight and abandonment around southwestern Pennsylvania. Listen to Mr. Kromer's keynote and some Q&A on WDUQ 90.5 FM at 6pm on Sunday, April 25. The program will last 59 minutes and will also be available on DUQ's Web site.

More

Blight hurting Mid-Mon Valley economy

Daley, House commerce committee chairman, has drafted a bill, titled "The Neighborhood Blight Reclamation and Revitalization Act," which would create a process to deal with abandoned properties in order to bring them up to code, acquire and demolish them or, where cost-effective, rehabilitate them for productive use. . . A recent study by Sustainable Pittsburgh identified 70,000 abandoned homes in the 10-county region of southwestern Pennsylvania

How to Solve America's Water Crisis

Robert Glennon, author of the new book "Unquenchable" outlines the nature of America's emerging water crisis, and how ending water subsidies could encourage efficiencies and conservation.

Treehugger's Jaymi Heimbuch interviews Robert Glennon about water misuse and wastage. Glennon argues that we're overdrawing aquifers and that agricultural uses are particularly overconsumptive.

"The carbon footprint of water is gigantic...To consider one example, 19 percent of all of the electricity used in California is for the purpose of pumping, treating, transporting, and delivering water. I do not foresee moving people out of cities, but I do predict severe environmental damage. Unsustainable groundwater pumping and excessive diversions from our rivers will reduce the quality and quantity of water, and in many places we will see earth subsidence, saltwater intrusion, and earth fissures or sinkholes.

I hope it does not come to this. There is no doubt that the United States is facing a water crisis, but a crisis is a time of opportunity when there are still choices to be made...My vision is that, if water was not subsidized, individual citizens, businesses and farmers would pay the real costs, and water would become much more expensive. After the outrage, we'd see the prices drive conservation and push waste out of the system."

Corporate Toxics Information Project - From the Right to Know to the Right to Clean Air and Water

The Corporate Toxics Information Project analyzes and disseminates information from the US Environmental Protection Agency on corporate releases of toxic chemicals and the resulting exposures of communities to air and water pollution hazards. The Project aims to help community-based activists and socially responsible investors to translate the right to know into the right to clean air and water.

America's Great Outdoors to focus on U.S. conservation

A memorandum Obama signed to launch the initiative is short on policy details but sketches out broad goals that the administration hopes to pursue over the next few years: forming coalitions with state and local governments as well as the private sector, encouraging outdoor recreation by Americans, connecting wildlife migration corridors and encouraging the sustainable use of private land.

Eds, Meds and a Sustainable Pittsburgh

Forecasts of Pittsburgh’s future cite education and medicine, complemented by entrepreneurial “green energy” and high-tech ventures, as engines of 21st century growth. However, the country is entering its third year of economic contraction and fiscal crisis.

Moving Toward a Shrinking Cities Metric: Analyzing Land Use Changes Associated With Depopulation in Flint, Michigan

"Cities around the globe have experienced depopulation or population shrinkage at an acute level in the last half century. Conventional community development and planning responses have looked to reverse the process of depopulation almost universally, with little attention paid to how neighborhoods physically change when they lose population. This article presents an approach to study the physical changes of depopulating neighborhoods in a novel way. The approach considers how population decline creates different physical impacts (more or less housing abandonment, for example) across different neighborhoods. Data presented from a detailed case study of Flint, Michigan, illustrate that population decline can be more painful in some neighborhoods than in others, suggesting that this article's proposed approach may be useful in implementing smart decline."

Planners issue update on comprehensive plan in Cranberry

It's been a year since Cranberry adopted a 224-page vision of how the next 25 years should unfold. In the first 12 months since the April 2009 vote by township supervisors, dozens of initiatives have been undertaken or completed. It took strategic planner John Trant Jr. about a half-hour to enumerate just a handful of them for the board of supervisors at a recent public meeting. Supervisor Bruce Mazzoni commended staff, noting: "You've shown that [the comprehensive plan] isn't just something that's sitting on the shelf. It's in play every day."

T4 America outlines priorities in letter to key Senate Environment and Public Works Committee members

Congress must move toward a 21st Century system that focuses on accountability and results, while creating jobs, providing access to opportunity for all Americans, reducing carbon emissions and our dependence on foreign oil, and improving America’s economic competitiveness. Congress should incorporate the following principles to craft a bold new transportation bill that gets America moving in the right direction.

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Sustainable Pittsburgh affects decision-making in the Pittsburgh Region to integrate economic prosperity, social equity and environmental quality bringing sustainable solutions to communities and businesses.

Sustainable Pittsburgh benefits from support ($1,000 and up) in 2010 from:

Allegheny County - Dan Onorato, County Executive
Atkins Family Foundation
BNY Mellon
Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation
Dollar Bank
Elsie H. Hillman Foundation
FedEx Ground
Port Authority of Allegheny County
Richard King Mellon Foundation
The Heinz Endowments
UPMC
Waste Management


Special thanks to the SP Members

Sustainable Pittsburgh
425 Sixth Avenue, Suite 1335
Pittsburgh, PA 15219
(412) 258-6642
fax (412) 258-6645
E-mail SP