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Events

Smart Growth Brown Bag Forum - "Negotiating Better Design for New Development"

Friday, April 27
11:30 am - 1 pm
O'Neil Room, 23rd Floor
Regional Enterprise Tower - 425 Sixth Avenue
No cost to attend
RSVP 412-258-6642 or info@sustainablepittsburgh.org

Hosted by : Local Government Academy and Sustainable Pittsburgh

Please bring a brown bag lunch, refreshments will be provided.

The forum panelists will offer tips and tools on how to negotiate better design for your communities. These tools can be helpful to participants in community-planning processes, to newly elected officials and civic leaders, and anyone who would like to get a leg-up on better development. Panelists will provide case studies, "profiles of development" and the lessons they have learned to succeed.

Panelists:
John Barrett - Municipality of Murrysville
Jeff Funovits - Burt Hill
Andrea Geraghty - Geraghty and Associates

Moderator: Brian Bell - The Hill Group

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Resources

Rachel Carson Legacy Celebration

Friday, April 20
5 - 8 pm
Senator John Heinz History Center
Pittsburgh (Downtown)
Register Online

Don't miss this chance to join with our host, Teresa Heinz, and special grammy-award winning guests, The Indigo Girls, to celebrate the woman whose words and personal commitment moved the world to action in defense of our environment and our health. Make a commitment to the Rachel Carson Legacy Challenge: green steps to a sustainable future - permanent, measurable changes in behavior and policies that promote Rachel Carson’s environmental ethic - and learn about others working to meet this challenge.

High Tunnel Technology: A tool for economic development, job creation, and increased quality of life through urban agriculture

Tuesday, April 24
5:30 - 7 pm
Carnegie Mellon University (Oakland)
Rangos Hall, University Center
Cost: Free
Click for more information

The Urban Farming lecture series at Carnegie Mellon University concludes with Dr. William James Lamont, Jr. of Penn State University. High tunnels are one of the components of season extension technology. They are not conventional greenhouses, but like plastic-covered greenhouses; they are generally quonset-shaped, constructed of metal bows that are attached to metal posts which have been driven into the ground about two feet deep. They are covered with one layer of 6-mil greenhouse-grade polyethylene, and are ventilated by manually rolling up the sides each morning and rolling them down in early evening. There is no permanent heating system although it is advisable to have a standby portable propane unit to protect against unexpected below-freezing temperatures. There are no electrical connections. The only external connection is a water supply for trickle irrigation. They are used to extend the growing season, and a high tunnel without any supplemental heat in Pennsylvania can produce crops from March until early December. Since 1998, and the founding of the High Tunnel Research and Education Facility at Penn State, a wide variety of vegetables, small fruits and cut flowers have been successfully grown in high tunnels.

Biodiesel Basics and Beyond

Thursday, April 26
1:30 - 4 pm 4:15 Reception
Regional Enterprise Tower, O'Neil Room, 23rd Floor
425 Sixth Avenue, Pittsburgh
RSVP: nathaniel@steelcitybiofuels.org or charles.cross@unitedoil.com

Steel City Biofuels, Sustainable Pittsburgh, and Pittsburgh Region Clean Cities cordially invite you to an afternoon conference exploring benefits of biodiesel. Featured presenters include Michael J. Haas – Fats, Oils and Animal Co-Products Researcher, USDA and Joe Biluck – Operations Manager, Medford, NJ School System. Michael has conducted Federal Biodiesel studies, actively participated in the creation of Federal Biodiesel legislation, and has written numerous books & scientific publications on Biodiesel. Joe was responsible for integrating Biodiesel into the Medford, NJ school bus fleet starting in 1997. The event is generously sponsored by the United Oil Company.

Alliance Building Breakfast: Green Operations & Maintenance

Friday, April 27
7:30 - 9:30 am
Sheraton Station Square
Pittsburgh (Southside)
Cost: GBA Members $30. Nonmembers $40
Click to register

GBA is proud to partner with International Facility Management Association's Corporate Facilities Council on this breakfast program on green building operations and maintenance. By adopting new cleaning practices, water saving tactics, and a "green" mindset for all aspects of building operations, you will learn how to reduce energy costs, improve indoor air quality and occupant productivity with green operations.

Going with the Flow: Governance Options for Clean Water Act Compliance 2007 Road to Excellence Conference

Thursday, May 3
9 am - 3 pm
Sheraton Station Square
Pittsburgh
Click for more information

The 2007 Road to Excellence Conference will feature as its keynote speaker Dr. Bruce Stiftel, editor of Adaptive Governance and Water Conflict. Adaptive governance is a relatively new concept. Based upon the principles of adaptive management of environmental systems, adaptive governance emerges as "the kind of governance that can both preserve the strengths of existing specialized authorities to exploit natural resources and alternatives in order to ensure the sustainability of both human and nature systems." In addition to Dr. Stiftel's presentation, join local, state and regional leaders in a discussion of local concerns and the steps we must take to overcome barriers to adaptive governance for Clean Water Act Compliance.

2007 Nonprofit Summit

Thursday, May 10
8 am - 4:45 pm
David L. Lawrence Convention Center
1000 Fort Duquesne Blvd.
Pittsburgh (Downtown)
Cost: $100 for the first person and $75 for each additional person from the same organization
Click to Register

The 2007 Nonprofit Summit is a follow up to the 2006 Summit, which consisted of an electronic town hall designed to increase participants' vision of their potential for collective community action. The 2006 Summit was devoted to thinking and planning; the 2007 Summit is focused on action. The 2007 Summit is designed to: contribute to the effectiveness of individual nonprofit leaders; help to build the capacity of nonprofit organizations; and build the collective strength of the nonprofit sector.

7th Annual Southwestern Pennsylvania Smart Growth Conference "Focusing Growth for Regional Prosperity"

Friday, May 18, 2007
8 am - 3:30 pm
Omni William Penn Hotel
530 William Penn Place, downtown Pittsburgh
No fee to attend
Click here for more details
Featuring:
- Keynote address by Don Chen, Smart Growth America
- Public Presentation and Comment on Draft Long Range Transportation and Development Plan for Southwestern Pennsylvania (Project Region)
- Public input on work to date by the SWPA Smart Growth Community Committees
- Reaction panel featuring state, regional and local leaders

This year’s conference picks up from past Smart Growth Conferences in serving again as a public comment session to the Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission's process of updating the region's Long Range Transportation and Development Plan for Southwestern Pennsylvania (called Project Region).

Attendees will also hear progress reports and provide input to the on-going work of the three Smart Growth Community Committees that were created in response to the regional priorities voted upon at last year's conference:
- Leveling the Field for Redevelopment (Diane Sheets & Laura Zinski)
- Promoting Regionalism (Commissioner Tom Ceraso & David Miller)
- Funding Public Transportation (Steve Bland & Mary Jo Morandini)

Toward addressing the challenges of revitalizing the region's communities, these committees are working on practical policy options and practices, the type of which will be necessary to realize the regional plan's focused growth strategy for regional development and prosperity.

Project Region: The Southwestern Pennsylvania Growth Plan, will be the mechanism for connecting the region’s vision to an official, coordinated implementation program of projects and actions. Through Project Region, the Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission looks to raise the level of transparency in regional planning, and further improve its utility, by focusing on the functional rather than the jurisdictional/geographic aspects of desired improvements.

Come be part of this important regional planning process which represents a milestone in the region's heightened resolve to integrate and focus transportation and development for quality of life and competitiveness in the global economy.

Presented by:
PA Department of Community and Economic Development
Pittsburgh Partnership for Neighborhood Development
Regional Coalition of Community Builders
Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission
Sustainable Pittsburgh
University of Pittsburgh Institute of Politics

Sponsored by:

Supported by:
Richard King Mellon Foundation
The Heinz Endowments

To register:
Call: 412-258-6642
Email: info@sustainablepittsburgh.org
To become a sponsor call: 412-258-6643

Save the Date! Great Outdoors Week 2007

Friday, May 18 - Sunday, May 27

Leading the region to fun and healthy lifestyles one week at a time!

The sixth annual Great Outdoors Week begins on Friday, May 18 thru Sunday, May 27, 2007!

While Great Outdoors is a great communications campaign to highlight the amazing number of outdoor happenings scheduled throughout the week, it is also a great opportunity to sample many fun ways to start a healthier lifestyle!

2007 Great Outdoors Week partners include: Bike Pittsburgh, Community Design Center of Pittsburgh, Carnegie Museum of Natural History, Rachael Carson Homestead, Rack ‘n Roll, REI, Sustainable Pittsburgh, Three Rivers Rowing Association, Venture Outdoors, and the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy.

Everyone is invited to participate! To explore how to engage your constituents in taking part in Great Outdoors Week and reap year-long benefits, call (412) 258-6646 or kadams@sustainablepittsburgh.org.

Save the Date: Venture Outdoors Festival

Saturday, May 19
Pittsburgh's North Shore
http://www.ventureoutdoors.org/

The seventh annual Venture Outdoors Festival is scheduled for Saturday, May 19, 2007. The festival is an all day event and is being held on Pittsburgh's North Shore - right in front of Heinz Field. As always, the goal of Venture Outdoors is to introduce as many people as possible to the wide variety of outdoor recreational activities easily accessible right here in Western Pennsylvania. Together with the region's abundant environmental assets & the rivers, the mountains, and numerous bike and walking trails - these activities demonstrate the terrific quality of life available to residents and visitors. We invite you to be a part of the excitement so please save the date!

Young Preservationist Association Fifth Birthday Party

Friday, May 25
6 - 8 pm
Fifth Avenue and Amberson Street
Shadyside
Info: 412-512-8885, 412-363-5964, or holland6@aol.com

Celebrate five years of preservation accomplishments with the Young Preservationists Association of Pittsburgh. YPA will hold its celebration at the elegant McCook Mansion at the corner of Fifth Avenue and Amberson Street, in Shadyside. The McCook Mansion (built 1906) and adjacent McCook-Reed House (built 1905) are being converted into one of Pittsburgh's premiere bed and breakfast inns. Guests will be able to tour the house and witness preservation in action. YPA will release its fifth-annual list of the "Top Ten Best Preservation Opportunities in the Pittsburgh Area" and announce the Promise Award to an emerging preservationist.

Allegheny Mountain Green Festival

Saturday, May 26
Four Quarters Campground
Click for more information and directions

Three emerging global issues (peak oil, global climate change, and sustainable agriculture) of the past 30 years have arrived. They are here with us today and will define the lives of our children in their new century. Understanding the inter-related nature of these three complex issues is the focus of The Allegheny Mountain Green Festival.

PennFuture's 2007 Annual Clean Energy Conference

Thursday, May 31
8:30 am - 4:30 pm
Radisson Penn Harris Hotel & Convention Center
1150 Camp Hill Bypass,
Camp Hill
Click to Register by April 23 for discounted fees

The deadline is fast approaching for the clean energy event of the year. Now in its seventh year, PennFuture's Clean Energy Conference has become a key venue for government officials, public interest organizations and the energy industry to network, make valuable contacts and find out the latest on clean energy markets and policies in Pennsylvania. With over 300 attendees last year you won't want to miss this opportunity.

Citizen & Planner Leaders for Local Sustainability Eco-municipality Leadership Training

June 1 - 6
Tufts University, Medford, MA
Click for details and registration form

In early June, 2007, a 5-day national training session will take place at Tufts University to increase citizen and planner leadership capacity in communities and their local governments to initiate and lead a change process to become a sustainable community. This sustainable communities approach has a substantial track record of successful implementation – possibly the most extensive in the world - in over 70 municipalities in Sweden and a growing number of communities in the US, as well as beyond. The objective of the training is to prepare potential local leaders – including citizens, local officials, planners, or municipal staff – to be able to lead a process involving sustainability education, communication, and a strategic implementation process.

Resources

Business world has big role on climate: UN meeting

More than 600 business executives and environmental experts gathered on Thursday in Singapore to thrash out ways the corporate world can help tackle the threat of climate change. "The private sector is now becoming an active partner in environmental protection," Singapore's Minister for the Environment and Water Resources, Yaacob Ibrahim, said in his opening address. "Many governments and businesses have also started to realise that environmental protection and economic growth can go hand in hand," he added. "Companies are being more frequently judged on the basis of their environmental stewardship."

Homes to get free energy monitors

Every household in the UK will be able to request a free device that shows how much electricity is being used in the home at any one particular moment. Ministers are set to announce the plan in the forthcoming Energy White Paper. They hope "real-time monitors" will help cut greenhouse gas emissions and the amount of energy wasted by appliances being left on standby.

Inuit on thin ice

Inuit hunters are falling through thinning ice and dying. Dolphins are being spotted for the first time. There's not enough snow to build igloos for shelter during hunts. As scientists work to establish the impact of global warming, explorers and hunters slogging across northern Canada and the Arctic ice cap on sled and foot are describing the realities they see on the ground. "This is really ground zero for global warming," said Will Steger, a 62-year-old Minnesotan who has been travelling the region for 43 years and has witnessed the impact of warming on the 155,000 indigenous people of the Arctic. "This is where a culture has lived for 5,000 years, relying on a very delicate, interconnected ecosystem, and one by one, small pegs of that ecosystem are being pulled out," Steger said.

National Urban League President Calls upon Nation's Leaders to Take Steps to Solve Black Male Crisis

If the United States does not take immediate steps to address the black male crisis, the nation risks losing its "greatest untapped resource," said National Urban League President Marc H. Morial in presenting the league's annual State of Black America (SOBA) report, which assess conditions within the black community, at the National Press Club today. "Empowering black men to reach their full potential is the most serious economic and civil rights challenge we face today. Ensuring their future is critical, not just for the African American community, but for the prosperity, health and well-being of the entire American family," he said.

W. PA could become another Vermont -- a crunchy, popular place for residents and eco-tourists alike

The same thing could happen in Pittsburgh. We've just never seriously considered the granola demographic. Mayors build bike trails, but what if Pittsburgh became famous for its challenging, scenic rides? And its kayaking. And Chinese dragon-boat races. We already have some of the greenest architecture and highest concentrations of urban parks in the nation. Pittsburgh already is home to Dirt Rag Magazine. Why not start telling people about it?

Environmental poisons are making us sick, and women seem to be getting the worst of it

Here are some unsettling facts: One woman in three will develop cancer over the course of her life. Some 5 to 10 percent of couples are infertile. Autoimmune diseases like lupus and multiple sclerosis, in which one's immune system attacks itself by mistake, are on the rise. Seventy-five percent of those who suffer from these diseases are women.

The future of coal

Many utilities accept the inevitability of restraints on greenhouse-gas emissions, but most won't act unless they are required to act. And while Washington delays in establishing such requirements, utilities are making investment decisions that could undermine whatever strategy the nation finally adopts...Moving away from conventional coal too abruptly might disrupt the economy. But sticking with it too long would surely doom our efforts to stabilize the environment. The best formula would be to accelerate research on technologies that promise cleaner coal -- and to slow the deployment of conventional coal plants until that research catches fire.

The Power of Green

Well, I want to rename “green.” I want to rename it geostrategic, geoeconomic, capitalistic and patriotic. I want to do that because I think that living, working, designing, manufacturing and projecting America in a green way can be the basis of a new unifying political movement for the 21st century. A redefined, broader and more muscular green ideology is not meant to trump the traditional Republican and Democratic agendas but rather to bridge them when it comes to addressing the three major issues facing every American today: jobs, temperature and terrorism...We are who we are — including a car culture. But if we want to continue to be who we are, enjoy the benefits and be able to pass them on to our children, we do need to fuel our future in a cleaner, greener way. Eisenhower rallied us with the red menace. The next president will have to rally us with a green patriotism. Hence my motto: “Green is the new red, white and blue.”

Retired generals warn that warming threatens U.S. security

Global warming poses a "serious threat" to U.S. security and should be elevated to the highest levels of military preparedness, according to a report published today by 11 former generals. Released as the United Nations Security Council prepares for a first-ever meeting tomorrow on climate change, the Pentagon retirees offer a stark look into the threats from global warming to U.S. interests at home and around the world.

Region mulls $31.4 million in clean, alternative energy funds

The alternative energy grants will be funded through Pennsylvania's three alternative energy development programs: $16.4 million through the Alternative Fuels Incentive Grants program, $10 million through the Pa. Energy Development Authority and $5 million in Energy Harvest Grants. The programs are accepting applications now with deadline set for June 15th.

New Penn Future Podcast: Landmark Supreme Court Decision, Greenhouse Gases Are Pollution

On April 2, 2007, the United States Supreme Court issued one of the most important decisions on environmental matters in U.S. history. In a 5 to 4 decision, the court ruled that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) violated the Clean Air Act when it refused to regulate emissions standards for new cars and trucks to control for pollution that contributes to global warming. This means that the EPA can and should treat carbon dioxide and other heat-trapping gases as pollutants, and regulate them accordingly. In this podcast, PennFuture's Joy Bergey speaks with Professor Robert McKinstry, Maurice K. Goddard Chair in Forestry and Environmental Resources Conservation at Penn State University about his involvement in the historic case, and the implications of the decision. McKinstry represented climate scientists in the case, writing an amicus brief in favor of the petitioners.

GOP leader: Cities, counties should fund transit

Mr. Smith didn't offer any significant substitute for the governor's plan to aid mass transit. He wouldn't say how much additional transit money the Legislature may provide, but said it wouldn't be anything like $760 million a year. He said if mass transit agencies need additional money to close deficits, which both the Port Authority and SEPTA do, they should look to city and county sources primarily, not the state.

Impact of Housing/Land Use and Mobility On Physical Activity and Older Adults

The goals of the meeting were to: increase cross-sector understanding of housing/land use and mobility issues as they impact physical activity for all age groups and the skyrocketing 65+ population anticipated over the next 25 years; and identify actionable ideas, practices and resources that can be applied to address housing/land use and mobility in California communities.

For information on becoming a Member of Sustainable Pittsburgh, please visit our website.

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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 in 2007 from:

Dollar Bank
Elsie H. Hillman Foundation
Giant Eagle Foundation
The Heinz Endowments
Richard King Mellon Foundation
Roy A. Hunt Foundation
University of Pittsburgh


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