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Events

A wealth of knowledge imparted on Engineering Sustainable Solutions participants

On June 18, 2009, 55 participants attended Engineering Sustainable Solutions for Your Community: a Conference on Strategic Dimensions of Infrastructure at the Regional Learning Alliance at Cranberry Woods. The American Society of Civil Engineers Pittsburgh Section, Environmental & Water Resources Institute, Architectural Engineering Institute, and Champions for Sustainability (a Program of Sustainable Pittsburgh) hosted this conference, which featured experts on real-world, practical, cost-saving, sustainable solutions for infrastructure design. Conference topics included Sustainable Energy Practice, Green Building, Water Resources Sustainability in Practice, and Sustainable Communities.

The overall theme of the conference was on the increasing importance of useful knowledge in the growing field of sustainability. As the “greening” bandwagon continues to accelerate, responsible community and corporate decision makers need to look past rhetoric for realistic solutions. Engineers rose to meet these challenges and offered some of the latest practical solutions.

Read more here.

Resources

Bicycle Film Festival

July 2-4
Times vary
Andy Warhol Museum, North Side
Tickets: $8 per night - May sell out.
More information

The international Bicycle Film Festival is in its ninth year, traveling to more than 30 cities, including New York, London, Paris, Sidney and Tokyo. This year, for the first time, the festival will be coming to Pittsburgh thanks to Urban Velo and BikePGH.

The heart and soul of the film festival are the short films—contributed by filmmakers from around the world, both professional and amateur. Additionally, two high-profile films highlight this year’s festival. Made in Queens tells the story of New York City youths from Trinidad who attach 15,000 watt stereo systems to their bicycles. Where Are You Go documents an incredible bicycle ride across Africa—from Cairo to Cape Town.

The Big Lie of Cheap Energy - Coal and Natural Gas in Pennsylvania

Sierra Club Meeting
Wednesday, July 8
7:00 pm - 9:00 pm (Note earlier start time!)
Phipps Garden Center, Fifth and Shady Avenues, Squirrel Hill
Free and open to the public
Contact Donald L. Gibbon dongibbon@earthlink.net with questions.

Join the Sierra Club for a screening of the movie “Mucked,” a hard hitting look at the effects of mountain top removal mining on the people and the surrounding natural world, followed by live phone calls to the field to community leaders. Bob Gates, lead activist in Applachia to stop Mountain Top Removal Mining, will be onhand through an audio hook-up at the meeting to take questions. Hear first-hand about the flooding taking place this spring down-stream from the mountain top sites. The remainder of the meeting will review the Marcellus Shale natural gas situation and longwall mining, and close with some action steps one can take at the meeting to express your own views to our leaders. Refreshments will be provided.

Funds available to engage youth in environmental projects

Information Session
Thursday, July 9
4:00 pm - 6:00 pm
Sarah Heinz House, North Side

The participants in The Heinz Endowments summer youth philanthropy internship program released their requests for proposals on July 1, and are seeking to award funds to local non-profit organizations that connect young people with environmental issues. The requests for proposals is available at the Endowments’ Web site, www.heinz.org.

An information session is scheduled for July 9th for organizations interested in applying for funds. This year, the program features seven teams, with each team awarding $25,000 in grants. Teams are assigned to the Endowments’ offices, the United Way of Allegheny County, Sustainable Pittsburgh, The Pittsburgh Foundation and the Sarah Heinz House. Three groups of interns are based at the Endowments.
- One team at the Endowments will fund programs that highlight the importance of conserving green spaces in Allegheny County by restoring distressed ecosystems while involving the local youth.
- The second Endowments team will fund programs that use the visual, performing or literary arts to educate youth ages 5-18 about an environmental issue.
- The third group at the Endowments seeks to fund active environmental education programs for youth ages 5-12 that stress experiential learning and advocacy efforts, including the advantages of green operations.
- The United Way interns aim to improve urban gardens throughout the area. They envision projects that encourage students to make their communities more environmentally friendly while learning green concepts.
- Sustainable Pittsburgh will review programs that improve the environmental operations at the YMCA, which is currently developing a plan to green its operations.
- Interns at The Pittsburgh Foundation will be looking to fund environmental advocacy groups that focus on youth media.
- Sarah Heinz House interns are looking to improve the health of the region’s rivers.

For those seeking additional information concerning the youth philanthropy project, contact Wayne Jones at the Endowments, 412-338-2637 or wjones@heinz.org.

Pittsburgh Regional Environmental Stewardship Symposium

Saturday, July 11
8:30 am - 3:00 pm
Environmental Charter School at Frick Park
Fee: $10 for EcoStewards, Tree Tenders, Master Gardeners, and Allegheny Land Trust members; $15 for non-stewards
Pre-Registration is Required!
For registration information, visit www.ninemilerun.org/programs/stewardship or call Jeffrey Bergman at 412-371-8779 ext. 14.

Amazing! Over the last two years there were over 20,000 hours of labor to improve the ecology and health of the Pittsburgh region. Many many stewards have planted trees, removed invasive and non-native plant species, maintained trails and cleaned up illegal dumps. Join in celebrating this effort and learn something new!

Steven Handel, a professor of ecology from Rutgers University will talk to us about urban stewardship. Dr. Handel is a researcher and practitioner whose work examines the potential to restore native communities. His projects include the restoration of Fresh Kills landfill and the Brooklyn Bridge Park in NYC, the landscape for the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, and public parks in Dublin, Ireland and in Orange County, California. We will also explore Frick Park, delving into our urban environment specifically looking at street trees, watershed restoration, native landscaping, wild edibles and invasive plant and insect species.

Public Health Advocacy Workshop

Wednesday, July 15
9:00 am - 3:30 pm (Sign-in from 8:30 am - 9 am)
Four Points Sheraton, 910 Sheraton Drive, Mars
Registration is free and includes lunch. Space is limited. Register early to reserve your seat.
For more information please contact Rachael Bieltz at bieltzr@edc.pitt.edu or 412-383-2884.
Register online

This workshop will give you the skills and tools to:
- Understand your role as an advocate
- Set advocacy goals
- Utilize public opinion data
- Develop effective messaging
- Develop relationships with local policy makers and media

Trainer: Karen A. Goraleski, VP, Public Health Partnerships, Research!America

Applications have been made for general continuing education units and continuing education credits for medical doctors, health education specialists, and social workers. Credits will be available pending approval.

Buy Fresh Buy Local Farm Tour

Saturday, July 18
10:00 am until 4:00 pm
Fee: $10 per carload (Proceeds benefit PASA’s work building vibrant, regional food systems.)

The Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture (PASA) is pleased to host its 3rd annual Buy Fresh Buy Local® Farm Tour in Western Pennsylvania. The Farm Tour presents the opportunity to forge personal connections with local farmers and is suitable for all ages. Tour goers can learn about the origins of healthy foods raised using sustainable practices and how critical local production is to preserving rural and urban landscapes.

This year’s tour includes over 20 farms across Western Pennsylvania, featuring spinning & sheep shearing at Wild Rose Farm, sustainable living at Quiet Creek Herb Farm, goat cheeses & milk at Paradise Farms and Gardens, in-depth tours of Pounds Turkey Farm, pick your own organics and grain milling on antique farm equipment at Morris Farm, pick your own raspberries and blueberries at Soergels and biodynamic growing at Three Sisters Farm. Farms will offer tours, kid-friendly activities, fresh samples, hands-on demonstrations, and some discounts on homegrown products.

An interactive map of participating farms, along with further information, is available online at BuyLocalPa.org and tinyurl.com/farmtour09. On the day of the tour, detailed print maps will be available at each participating farm and in advance at the East End Food Coop or by mail request. Tour goers simply select a route and pay $10 for a day pass at their first farm. The pass gains you access to all the farms on the tour.

Home Ownership Finance

Register Now for the Second Course in PCRG’s 4-Part Community Development Finance Training Series
July 20-22, 2009
Location TBD
Regular Tuition: $595/person
501(c)3 Staff: $395/person ($200 discount per person)
PCRG Members: $195/person ($400 discount per person)
All RSVP’s must be received by June 30th. You will receive some pre-program materials to look over in the few weeks leading up to the course.
For questions and to RSVP, contact sstutts@pcrg.org or 412-391-6732 x210.

The Pittsburgh Community Reinvestment Group (PCRG) has partnered with the National Development Council (NDC) to bring the three-day course “Home Ownership Finance” to Pittsburgh! A part of the Housing Development Certification, this course closely examines the skills required to successfully develop single-family housing that is affordable for low- and moderate-income families. This course will focus on financing affordable single family homes. Topics to be covered include an overview of home ownership development, a look at the development process, financing and deal structuring, qualifying home buyers, income and credit barriers to qualifying, and permanent mortgage programs. This course is intended to be introductory, with no prior knowledge of home ownership deals required.

This course is made possible by funding and support from Citizen’s Bank, Pittsburgh Partnership for Neighborhood Development, and the Urban Redevelopment Authority. Their support has allowed PCRG to assist neighborhood groups and other non-profit organizations by providing scholarships to attend this valuable program. Scholarships are reflected in the discounted registration fees. You may save an additional 10% when registering two or more people for this training program.

Race, Hunger, and Food Insecurity

Tuesday, July 21
8:30 am - 4:00 pm
School of Social Work's Conference Center, 20th floor, Cathedral of Learning, Oakland
Free to attend
Registration required
For more information and to register, visit http://www.crsp.pitt.edu/Institutes.html. As part of its Summer Institutes 2009 series, the Center on Race and Social Problems in the School of Social Work at the University of Pittsburgh will host “Race, Hunger, and Food Insecurity." The Summer Institutes series examines the nature, extent, and patterns of racial and ethnic disparities in hunger and food insecurity-related problems. The sessions feature presentations, Q&A, break-out groups, and panel discussions with national and local experts. It is intended for researchers, educators, administrators, community leaders, policy makers, and practitioners. All sessions qualify for six (6.0) hours of CEUs: LSW, LCSW, LPC, LMFT, NBCC, and Psychology. (Primary and secondary school personnel should contact their district or intermediate unit regarding eligibility for Act 48 credit.)

The Compelling Case for Natural Gas Vehicles (NGV)

Wednesday, August 5
8:30 am – 4:15 pm
Westin Convention Center Hotel, Downtown Pittsburgh
More information
Cost: $50/person (covers materials and meals)

The Compelling Case for Natural Gas Vehicles in Public and Private Fleets - Seminar led by expert Stephe Yborra is coming August 5th to the Westin Convention Center Hotel, Pittsburgh, PA. This comprehensive low-cost one-day educational workshop about vehicles powered by America’s abundant, clean natural gas is designed with your time and budget constraints in mind. The day is packed with informative practical sessions covering technical, economic, and operational topics for public and private fleet operators looking for options in alternative fuel transportation technologies such as natural gas vehicles (NGV).

Third Annual Rachel Carson Legacy Conference
When Chemicals Disrupt: Managing Our Risks

Friday, September 25
8:30 am - 4:30 pm
Bidwell Training Center, 1815 Metropollitan Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15233
Tickets: $90
Pre-registration and pre-payment is required.
More information

Featuring leaders of national and state government, academic institutions, environmental and social justice advocy organizations and medical science, the conference will address the dichotomy between critical protection of the environment (and our bodies and those of the next generations) from endocrine disrupting contaminants and the unbridled economic interest of those who produce substances which directly or indirectly act as endocrine or developmental disruptors.

Bisphenol A (BPA), phthalates and other such synthetic compounds known as endocrine disruptors are chemicals that disrupt the endocrine system. They are used widely in agriculture, industry and consumer products. They fool the body into over-production or under-production of natural hormones. They have been linked to feminization of fish, hermophrodization in frogs, and there is a growing body of scientific evidence that links endocrine disruptors to obesity, insulin resistance and diabetes in humans. Other research has shown that male sperm count is dropping and that genital abnormalities in newborn boys are increasing.

This Rachel Carson Legacy Conference will look at the serious and urgent topic of endocrine disruptors in three parts: Policy, Science and Remedies.

Society for the History of Technology: Annual Meeting

October 15-19, 2009
Pittsburgh Hilton, Downtown
Details

Please join SHOT members this fall in getting to know this beautiful city that technology built and re-built. Consistent with the reality of this revitalized city, the meeting’s themes will be “Reform(ed) Technologies” and “Circulation of Technology.” At a moment when decaying infrastructure is a major topic of public discussion and large promised investment, Pittsburgh looks the right place for historians of technology to reconsider linear tales of innovation or destruction. Some sessions focus on the ways in which technologies are reformed and on the historical development of technologies for reform. Environmental technologies are an obvious topic, but the theme also embraces topics such as urban renewal, new uses of old technologies, and issues of maintenance. Other sessions will deal with the geographical circulation of technology, including models that attend to the relevance of local contexts in accounting for the circulation of technologies on a global scale. Also, this year a new format for the Sunday morning program will encourage our Special Interest Groups (SIGs) and associated groups, to organize their own paper sessions, workshops, roundtables, or other events.

Resources

A wealth of knowledge imparted on Engineering Sustainable Solutions participants

On June 18, 2009, 55 participants attended Engineering Sustainable Solutions for Your Community: a Conference on Strategic Dimensions of Infrastructure at the Regional Learning Alliance at Cranberry Woods. The American Society of Civil Engineers Pittsburgh Section, Environmental & Water Resources Institute, Architectural Engineering Institute, and Champions for Sustainability (a Program of Sustainable Pittsburgh) hosted this conference, which featured experts on real-world, practical, cost-saving, sustainable solutions for infrastructure design. Conference topics included Sustainable Energy Practice, Green Building, Water Resources Sustainability in Practice, and Sustainable Communities.

Black and Gold City Goes Green - July's Action

This July, help cool down the City of Pittsburgh by turning your air conditioner temperature setting up two degrees – that’s this month’s action for the Black and Gold City Goes Green campaign. Doing so not only saves you money, it also helps prevent 252 pounds of global warming pollution from going into the air each year. If you want to go even greener, you can also air dry your clothes, buy green energy, and/or reduce your peak energy use. Once you've completed an action, remember to report it on the website (www.theblackandgoldcitygoesgreen.com) or through postcard. Thank you for helping Pittsburgh become even cooler by going green.

More

Job Opening - Manager of the TreeVitalize Project

Western Pennsylvania Conservancy has an exciting opening in its Community Gardens & Greenspace program for a Manager of the TreeVitalize Project – a significant tree-planting initiative in the City of Pittsburgh and the County Parks. Working with a leadership team consisting of DCNR, City of Pittsburgh Planning, Allegheny County Parks, and Western PA Conservancy, the TreeVitalize Manager will execute plans and tasks identified by the team and coordinate with its many local partners to establish and expand the initiative. Success will be measured by the number of trees planted, the amount of matching funds raised and the number of successful partnerships that are developed for both short and long term efforts to improve and increase the region’s tree canopy.

Nicholas D. Kristof: Mother Nature objects
Potential health disaster linked to chemicals in the environment

Apprehension is growing among many scientists that the cause of all this may be a class of chemicals called endocrine disruptors. They are very widely used in agriculture, industry and consumer products. Some also enter the water supply when estrogens in human urine -- compounded when a woman is on the pill -- pass through sewage systems and then through water treatment plants. . . "A lot of these compounds act as weak estrogen, so that's why developing males -- whether smallmouth bass or humans -- tend to be more sensitive," said Robert Lawrence, a professor of environmental health sciences at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. "It's scary, very scary."

Yahoo! Abandons Carbon Offsets in Favor of Efficiency

Yahoo! today said it will no longer purchase carbon offsets for its operations, focusing its climate strategy on reducing the energy used by its data centers. . ."Reducing our carbon footprint has always been a priority and we've decided to focus all our energy and investment on that philosophy," said David Filo, the company's co-founder and Chief Yahoo. "We believe creating highly-efficient data centers will have a greater long-term, direct impact on the environment and gives us the best opportunity to play a leadership role in addressing climate change."

Thomas Friedman On Cap and Trade - Just Do It

Henceforth, every investment decision made in America — about how homes are built, products manufactured or electricity generated — will look for the least-cost low-carbon option. And weaving carbon emissions into every business decision will drive innovation and deployment of clean technologies to a whole new level and make energy efficiency much more affordable. That ain’t beanbag.

Nineteen major US companies send open letter to Congress in WSJ for economy-wide cap and trade legislation

Competing by Leading: Rise to Our Nation’s Economic Challenge and Our Prosperous Future. Enact Economy-Wide Cap and Trade Legislation. We are business leaders from companies of all sizes, many sectors, and from across the country, calling for your leadership to ensure America’s prosperous, competitive future. We need you to swiftly enact comprehensive legislation that will cut carbon pollution and create an economy-wide cap and trade program.

Westmoreland to Pittsburgh rail transit outlook strong, study finds

Alex Graziani, executive director of Smart Growth Partnership of Westmoreland County, said he favored the rail proposal as part of a larger regional transportation network. "Smart Growth advocates transportation options. The more options we have, the better it is. We're a very automotive-dependent county, and now we're not prepared for any other mode of transportation," Graziani said.

July 5th of Three Rivers Regatta will be completely green

Sunday, July 5th the event will be dedicated to eco-friendly entertainment and activities. There will be no motorized vehicles, powerboats and jet skis are removed from the rivers in order to allow only muscle-powered racing and sports.

How does the new transportation bill draft measure up?

Once you dig into the fine print, it becomes clear that although individual programs are assigned certain goals and performance measures, there are no clear, cross-cutting, national performance targets for measuring the success or failure overall of such a massive investment.

Black Enterprise Names UPS Among "40 Best Companies For Diversity"

According to the magazine’s July issue, UPS demonstrated strength and outperformed its peers in the key categories of senior management and supplier diversity.

Low Carbon Urbanism Campaign

Although conversations about reducing greenhouse gases often turn to hybrid cars and other technical fixes, neighborhoods play a huge and underappreciated role in determining our impact on our planet's climate. Neighborhoods either make walking, biking, and transit-use convenient options -- they either bring destinations like stores, schools, and offices nearby -- or they make it so that we need trips in cars and trucks, often long trips, for all of our daily needs.

A Green Way to Dump Low-Tech Electronics

Since 2004, 18 states and New York City have approved laws that make manufacturers responsible for recycling electronics, and similar statutes were introduced in 13 other states this year. The laws are intended to prevent a torrent of toxic and outdated electronic equipment — television sets, computers, monitors, printers, fax machines — from ending up in landfills where they can leach chemicals into groundwater and potentially pose a danger to public health. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates 99.1 million televisions sit unused in closets and basements across the country. Consumer response to recycling has been enormous in states where the laws have taken effect.

Temporary Staff Needed

The Blue Green Alliance (bluegreenalliance.org) is looking for 10 – 18 temporary staff members to work out of its Political Mobilization Center in Downtown Pittsburgh. Over the next month the Alliance will be doing an educational and mobilization campaign on an important piece of legislation. This campaign will be done by phone to members and registered voters across the country. It is projected that this effort will last through the month of July, 2009. EOE. $10/hour. Experience as a volunteer or staff person with political campaigns is preferred but not required. Email a resume to warroom@usw.org.

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 2009 from:

Bayer Corporation
Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation
Dollar Bank
Falk Foundation
FedEx Ground
The Giant Eagle Foundation
The Heinz Endowments
Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield
Elsie H. Hillman Foundation
Richard King Mellon Foundation
Dylan Todd Simonds 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