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Events

Resources

Public Officials Design Charrette

Thursday, November 29
8:30am - 12:30pm
Greentree Municipal Building, 10 West Manilla Avenue, Greentree
No fee to attend; lunch will be provided.
Register: 412.258.6643 or cgould@sustainablepittsburgh.org

Attention municipal leaders! Sustainable Pittsburgh and the American Institute of Architects, Pittsburgh Chapter, are hosting the Fifth Annual Pubic Officials Design Charrette on Thursday, November 29. The Charrette provides municipalities with the opportunity to gain pro bono expert assistance to assess and identify solutions to a specific community design and sustainable development challenge and opportunity. This may include issues related to: main street revitalization, infill development, transportation access, energy efficiency or resource conservation, community development, a social or human service concern, community or green space, etc. At the event, a team of experienced professionals will work with the municipalities to identify, evaluate and recommend solutions that are financially realistic and workable. Space is limited to five municipalities, so call today. Attendance from each municipality must include at least one elected official, a municipal staff person, and one community leader.

Don't Forget!

4th Annual Regional Equitable Development Summit - November 16

Sign up today!

Resources Continued

Global Problems, Global Solutions: Saving our Earth and its people

October 26-27, 2007
Friday - 7:00pm; Saturday - 9:00am to 5:00pm
LaRoche College, North Hills (9000 Babcock Blvd, Pittsburgh, 15237-5808)
Free admission
To register, visit www.laroche.edu/global or call the Office of College Activities at 412-536-1071.
Space is limited; early registration is encouraged.

Conference host La Roche College will join with other sponsor organizations to once again bring to the public this free conference that focuses on awareness of important global issues. This year, the theme focuses on U.N. Millennium Goal No. 7: Ensure Environmental Sustainability. Yet the vision for a better world goes beyond global warming and the earth's sustainability issues. Individuals must continue to affect change in such areas as gender equality, human rights and poverty...This year's featured speaker is Erin Brockovich, a former law firm file clerk who won one of the nation's largest class-action lawsuits in history when she found that a public utility company was contaminating a town's water supply and causing its residents to become ill. Now director of research for the same California law firm, Masry & Vititoe, Ms. Brockovich continues her fight against environmental concerns.

Historic Preservation Workshop to Focus on Washington, Pa.’s Main Street District

Saturday, October 27
10:00am
Burnett Center, Room 103, Washington & Jefferson College
Workshop Fee: $35; Workshop fee plus tour: $50; Fee for tour alone: $15
YPA Member rate - workshop + tour: $25
Student rate - workshop + tour: $20
Register by mail by sending a check to “Young Preservationists Association of Pittsburgh” PO Box 2669, Pittsburgh, PA 15230, or onsite at W&J on the day of the workshop.

This workshop, co-presented by the Young Preservationists Association of Pittsburgh and the Professional Writing Program at W&J, is designed to teach property owners to navigate the ins and outs of owning a historic property in Washington’s historic Main Street District. The workshop will feature Edward A. Shriver, AIA, a principal with Strada Architecture in Pittsburgh. Following Mr. Shriver’s lecture and a lunch, participants will tour historic properties in the Main Street District. The workshop will help owners make informed decisions about the renovation of their older and historic properties. Information about financing a preservation project will also be provided.

Creating Community in the 21st Century

Sunday, October 28
2:00pm - 4:00pm
Squirrel Hill Library, corner of Forbes and Murray Ave. (Squirrel Hill)
Free parking under the library
Register: TPCHG@aol.com or 412-963-1971
Sponsored by the Pittsburgh Cohousing Group

A free introduction to Cohousing in Pittsburgh. Learn about creating, building and living in Pittsburgh's first Cohousing Community, a community that wants to have welcoming and cooperative neighbors, ecologically minded planning, energy efficient private and individually owned homes, child friendly designs with multigenerational and diverse families. Plus a Common House for activities like fitness, shared weekly meals, celebrations, after school activities, workshops, and arts and crafts. For more information, visit www.PittsburghCohousing.org.

Green Building Products Summit

Monday, October 29
9:00am to 4:00pm
Location: The Regional Learning Alliance (Cranberry, PA)
Fee: $95 until October 1; $125 after October 1
To see the full agenda or to register, click here.

Green Building Alliance's (GBA's) one-day conference will feature a number of key speakers including Rebecca Flora, Executive Director of GBA & Chair-elect of the US Green Building Council (USGBC), and Katie McGinty, Secretary, Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (Invited). Key sessions include: Overview of Life Cycle Analysis, LEED®, and Green Building Product Standards; a Panel Discussion including key PA manufacturers and the Regional VP of Home Depot providing their perspectives on Green Building Products and what it means to their businesses; a presentation by Fireman’s Fund Insurance Company on financial incentives/discounts they provide on insurance products related to Green Building Products; Information on training & educational programs on Green/Sustainable Building Products; How GBA’s Green Building Products Initiative can provide assistance to you; a unique opportunity to set up one-on-one consultation meetings with the various speakers and panelists at the end of the program. In addition to the packed program, this event will also provide attendees with opportunities to meet with many other manufacturers, specifiers & buyers of green building products (i.e. architects, engineers, contractors, building owners) and other industry professionals.

Allegheny River Stewardship Project

Community Awareness Presentation
Tuesday, October 30
6:00pm - 8:00pm
Royal Gatherings Banquet Room, Dingbats Restaurant, Pittsburgh Mills Mall
Reservations requested: 724-226-9996
Free and open to the public

The Allegheny River Stewardship Program is an effort by leading researchers, working together with concerned citizens of the Alle-Kiski Valley river communities, to determine the levels of toxins in the fish living in the Allegheny River. Presenters include: Dr. Conrad Volz, Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, Graduate School of Public Health, University of Pittsburgh, "Using Fish as Sentinels for Estrogenic Pollution Sources and Mercury Levels in Allegheny River Fish", and representatives from Partner Organizations: Rachel Carson Homestead, RiverQuest, Venture Outdoors, and the Center for Environmental Oncology. This program is designed to inform the public of the goals and process of the Allegheny River Fish Study. Act 48 Educational Hours available to all Educators.

Pipeline to Success: How to Enjoy Endless Opportunity through Innovation

Tuesday, October 30
4:00pm – 6:00pm
Pittsburgh Athletic Association, Oakland
Registration is encouraged and space is limited. Please call 412-648-1544 or e-mail ieeregistration@katz.pitt.edu by October 26 to reserve your space.

Successful business leaders see opportunity for improvement in everything around them. Learn how Spiros Raftis, founder of Red Valve Company, has created a multi-million dollar empire built upon constant improvement to everyday processes. Understand his process of innovation and learn how to look at things in a new way so you can create the next big idea or world changing product. Mr. Raftis will also share examples of his industry changing innovations and explain his sources for ideas. Presented by the University of Pittsburgh Institute for Entrepreneurial Excellence Distinguished Entrepreneur Lecture Series.

Let’s JUMPSTART Immigration

Thursday, November 1
6:30pm
New Hazlett Theater, North Side
No charge
rsvp@nowall.com

Immigration brings the kind of energy, diversity, entrepreneurship, creativity, and of course, great food that makes any highly diverse city an enviable place to live. Historically, Pittsburgh’s wealth and economy, like most other US cities, was built with the help of a vast pool of immigrant workers. Now the City ranks 49th out of the top 50 metro areas in the U.S. in percentage of the population who are foreign born and have completed a college degree. Is Pittsburgh ready to focus on immigration? Will Pittsburgh be left behind if it doesn’t? How does the City jumpstart it? Bring your questions and ideas and bring your energy. Cocktails and conversation to follow. Read more at www.popcitymedia.com.

Rachel Carson Homestead presents: Rachel Carson Spirit & Nature Conference

Saturday, November 3
8:30am - 4:30pm
Chatham University, Pittsburgh, PA
Cost: $25 Adults; $10 College Students
Space Limited.
Partners: Chatham University, Citizens for Pennsylvania’s Future, Pennsylvania Interfaith Climate Change Campaign.
REGISTER ONLINE AT: www.rachelcarsonhomestead.org

Head of the National Council of Churches Eco-Justice Programs, Cassandra Carmichael is the keynote for this day-long conference at Chatham University in Pittsburgh, Pa. This is a multi-faith gathering to discuss the reverence for nature contained in all world religions. Through panels and workshops, participants can explore how earth stewardship is a matter of faith and how sustainable living, including conservation efforts, green building and using renewable energy, are practices that can be embraced by all.

The Leadership Academy

Saturday, November 3
9:00am - 5:00pm
Big Brothers/Big Sisters in East Liberty
Program Cost: $150 (scholarships available) includes breakfast and lunch.
Upon request, for more information or to register, call 412.396.6231 or visit www.leadership.duq.edu/nonprofit.

Please plan to register early for the next opportunity to learn all about the roles and responsibilities of nonprofit boards. The next session of The Leadership Academy is Saturday, November 3, and will take place at Big Brothers/Big Sisters in East Liberty . Staff and board members are encouraged to attend. Speakers for the November session will include: Michael Kumer, Dee Jay Oshry, Colleen Fedor, Terry Beggy, Sr. Linda Yankoski, James McConomy, Carolyn Falk and Allison Jones.

David Lewis Lecture

“Tradition and Sustainability: Truly Green Architecture and Urbanism”
Monday, November 5
6:30pm
Carnegie Museum of Art Theater, Oakland

Hank Dittmar, chief executive of The Prince's Foundation for the Built Environment, will present this free public lecture. The London-based foundation is an educational charity established by Prince Charles to teach and demonstrate principles of traditional urban design and architecture. Dittmar, an American, also is chairman of the board of the nonprofit Congress for the New Urbanism (CNU), which promotes the creation and restoration of compact, walkable, mixed-use cities, towns, and neighborhoods. His talk, the sixth annual David Lewis Lecture on Urban Design, is sponsored by the Heinz Architectural Center of the Carnegie Museum of Art and underwritten by Urban Design Associates in honor of Lewis, the firm's founder and Carnegie Mellon University professor emeritus.

Sustainable Business: Beyond the Bottom Line

Friday, November 15
8:30am - 1:30 pm
Hilton Hotel, Gateway Center
Fees:
Full Symposium - Professional $225; Academic $125
Luncheon Only - Professional $90; Academic $60
Register online by November 9 at www.business.duq.edu/sustainabilitysymposium or contact Rebecca Ellsworth Ligman at beardcenter@duq.edu or 412-396-4005.

Duquesne University's John F. Donahue Graduate School of Business and Beard Center for Leadership in Ethics are pleased to offer this inaugural event in support of their new focus on sustainability and continued emphasis on ethical leadership in the business world.

This half-day symposium will offer those in attendance an understanding of what it takes for a business to truly be sustainable. Additionally, global, national and regional perspectives on best practices, financial implications and the ultimate role of a leader in growing and maintaining a sustainable business will be addressed.

4th Annual Regional Equitable Development Summit: "Most Livable Region By Growing Opportunity for All"

Friday, November 16
8:30am-12:30pm (8:00am - Registration and Continental Breakfast)
Twentieth Century Club, 4201 Bigelow Blvd., Oakland
Keynote: David Rusk, author of Cities without Suburbs, Baltimore Unbound, and Inside Game/Outside Game, presented by the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public and International Affairs Annual Wherrett Lecture on Local Governing
Free and open to the public
Register: info@sustainablepittsburgh.org or 412-258-6642

This 4th Annual Summit is intended to be a catalyst for engaging civic leaders in helping to advance existing efforts in our region to accelerate regional equity. Listen to how some of the region's leading champions of equitable development are working to close the racial disparities gap. Get involved—share your thoughts and ideas during the breakout sessions.

As explained by keynote speaker, David Rusk, right now, right here, some of the nation's most innovative civic initiatives are unfolding to narrow the disparities gap. Moderated by Sala Udin (Center for Civic Leadership), panel speakers include Jane Downing, The Pittsburgh Foundation (Community Benefits Agreements & Minority Contracting); Caren Glotfelty, The Heinz Endowments (Environment & Public Health); Bob Grom, Heritage Health Foundation Inc. (Access To Work); Mike Langley, Allegheny Conference on Community Development (Economic Development); Aimee LeFevers, Good Schools Pennsylvania (Education); Luis Rico, Western Pennsylvania Diversity Initiative (Racial and Economic Inclusion); Scott Smith, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (Affordable Housing); Tim Stevens, The Black Political Empowerment Project (Racial Equity & Empowerment); and Bill Thompson, Executive Director, Westmoreland-Fayette Workforce Investment Board (Workforce Development).

More information is available on Sustainable Pittsburgh's website .

Public Officials Design Charrette

Thursday, November 29
8:30am - 12:30pm
Greentree Municipal Building, 10 West Manilla Avenue, Greentree
No fee to attend; lunch will be provided.
Register: 412-258-6643 or cgould@sustainablepittsburgh.org
www.sustainablepittsburgh.org

Attention municipal leaders! Sustainable Pittsburgh and the American Institute of Architects, Pittsburgh Chapter, are hosting the Fifth Annual Pubic Officials Design Charrette on Thursday, November 29. The Charrette provides municipalities with the opportunity to gain pro bono expert assistance to assess and identify solutions to a specific community design and sustainable development challenge and opportunity. This may include issues related to: main street revitalization, infill development, transportation access, energy efficiency or resource conservation, community development, a social or human service concern, community or green space, etc. At the event, a team of experienced professionals will work with the municipalities to identify, evaluate and recommend solutions that are financially realistic and workable.

Space is limited to five municipalities, so call today. Attendance from each municipality must include at least one elected official, a municipal staff person, and one community leader.

YWCA Greater Pittsburgh 2007 Racial Justice Awards

Friday, November 30
6:00pm
Omni William Penn Hotel, 530 William Penn Place (Downtown Pittsburgh)
Fee: $75 (Dinner Included)
For more information call 412-255-1257 or email specialevents@ywcapgh.org.

Join the YWCA for the 16th Annual YWCA Greater Pittsburgh Racial Justice Awards, for a night of admiration and recognition. The Racial Justice Awards recognizes individuals and organizations that are making a difference in promoting racial justice and equality throughout the community. Awardees include: Ronell Guy, Community Empowerment; Valerie Dixon, Community Service and Public Safety; Reed Smith, LLP, Legal; Larry E. Davis, Ph.D., Education; Doris Carson Williams, Company and Business; Councilwoman Brenda L.Frazier, Government; and Pennsylvania Commission for Women, Government.

Resources

Power Plant Rejected Over Carbon Dioxide For First Time

The Kansas Department of Health and Environment yesterday became the first government agency in the United States to cite carbon dioxide emissions as the reason for rejecting an air permit for a proposed coal-fired electricity generating plant, saying that the greenhouse gas threatens public health and the environment.

The Future Is Drying Up

...Steven Chu, a Nobel laureate and the director of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, one of the United States government's pre-eminent research facilities, remarked that diminished supplies of fresh water might prove a far more serious problem than slowly rising seas. When I met with Chu last summer in Berkeley, the snowpack in the Sierra Nevada, which provides most of the water for Northern California, was at its lowest level in 20 years. Chu noted that even the most optimistic climate models for the second half of this century suggest that 30 to 70 percent of the snowpack will disappear. "There's a two-thirds chance there will be a disaster," Chu said, "and that's in the best scenario."

More

Pa. Power Lines Lead Senator To Issue Threat

Sen. Robert P. Casey Jr. (D-Pa.) vowed yesterday to block the renomination of a government energy board's chief until the Bush administration scales back its push for new high-voltage power lines in his state. Casey took to the Senate floor to declare that he would put a hold on the renomination of Joseph T. Kelliher as chairman of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. He denounced the boundaries of a "national interest electric transmission corridor" to promote the construction of new power lines in the Mid-Atlantic states.

DEP Praises Phipps Center for Sustainable Landscapes as Leader in Clean Energy Deployment, Environmental Protection

For its efforts to construct the world's first "living building," the Department of Environmental Resources today championed the Phipps Center of Sustainable Landscapes as a model for meeting Pennsylvania's clean energy and environmental protection goals. "Pennsylvania is leading a revolution in clean energy development and deployment by making strategic investments and partnerships with progressive organizations such as the Phipps Center for Sustainable Landscape," said Pennsylvania Bureau of Energy Innovations Director Dan Griffiths as he presented a $250,000 grant from the Pennsylvania Energy Development Authority. "Pennsylvania is investing in its future and establishing itself as a leader of the new energy economy."

You can change light bulbs, but changing leaders is a lot more important

Because leaders write the rules, set the standards and offer the tax incentives that drive market behavior across a whole city, state or country. Whatever any of us does individually matters a tiny bit. But when leaders change the rules, you get scale change across the whole marketplace. And the energy-climate challenge we face today is a huge scale problem. Without scale, all you have is a green hobby.

Infrastructure choice: Ramp up or crash down

Vilsack claims he cracked the code as governor of Iowa, by establishing a fact-based infrastructure budgeting system for the state, tied to explicit goals — income growth through financial services and advanced manufacturing, power generation, renewable energy and fuel. Each step, he said, “required us to articulate specifically what every dollar for infrastructure is going to buy for us.”...Barrett suggested strong and thoughtful federal leadership could create incentives to overcome “micro localism” — for example the 272 Chicago-area mayors all “jealously guarding” town-by-town powers, easily ignoring big metro-wide priorities. Metropolitan planning councils, which receive a small percentage of federal transportation dollars, lack guidelines or incentives to stop them from shortchanging center city areas.

Evaluation of Smart Growth on the Ground

This report evaluates the outcomes to date, in addition to the effectiveness, efficiency, impacts, and sustainability of the Smart Growth on the Ground (SGOG) initiative. The report highlights key strengths, challenges, and lessons learned in the three pilot communities where the initiative has been implemented, which are then used to inform a set of guiding principles for the future of the project, including recommendations on strategies for improving the SGOG approach and its partnerships.

Some cities try going 'green' with blackouts

For anyone who has wondered about the wastefulness of the bright lights in big cities, it turns out that some simple fixes do work. U.S. skylines, particularly in California, have become "greener" in recent years with the help of new technologies, tighter regulations, and simple changes in behavior…Mr. Tyler hopes the Lights Out event will show that small, individual efforts can be collectively powerful and bring people together. He first stumbled on a similar event while traveling in Sydney, Australia. The one-hour event there cut out the release of 25 tons of carbon dioxide, comparable to taking 49,000 cars off the road for an hour.

Emerging trends in five European cities suggest what could be ahead for the U.S. development environment

In the past, Europe has offered early clues to a number of coming trends for the United States, including historic regeneration, brownfield redevelopment, and transit-oriented development, among others. So it is no surprise that the much-discussed recent tipping point in the U.S. sustainability agenda also had its counterpart in Europe and, if anything, was reached there first as well.

Eco-friendly city branding

Last April, [Sacramento] Mayor Heather Fargo signed the United Nation’s Urban Environmental Accords, a list of 21 actions related to energy, waste reduction, urban design, urban nature, transportation, environmental health and water. Signing the accord fell in line with the city council’s decision in 2005 to add sustainability to its top three priorities—affordable housing, safe neighborhoods and economic development—and it serves as the foundation for the city’s Sustainability Master Plan, which calls for the city to reduce its greenhouse-gas emissions from city operations 25 percent by 2030.

Transportation Finance at the Ballot Box: Voters Support Increased Investment & Choice

One of the most important recent stories in transportation policy and finance has been largely hidden. That story is the unprecedented rise in the use of voter-approved ballot measures to generate local and state funding. Over just the last five years, communities in 33 different states have approved more than $70 billion in new transportation investment, much of it for public transportation.

Risking the Weather: The Insurance Sector Faces Climate Change

Munich Re has calculated that by 2050, climate change could cost up to $300 billion annually in weather-related damages, industrial and agricultural losses, and other associated expenses...The number of climate related products and activities offered by insurance companies is rapidly growing...The insurance industry has the potential to greatly reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by creating policies that provide discounts to owners of green buildings, or that promise to upgrade non-green buildings in the event of a loss...One interesting policy some US insurance companies are working on is pay-as-you-drive auto insurance policies. Although popular in other areas of the world, these policies are just being explored in the US. They have been shown to reduce miles driven by 10-15%, which in the context of the US represents a huge potential to reduce GHG emissions. They also can save consumers money.

Working for the Earth: Green Companies and Green Jobs Attract Employees

New research shows that employees want to work at green companies and are happiest at companies with solid corporate social responsibility programs in place.

King County (WA) First in the Nation To Require Climate Change Impacts To Be Considered During Environmental Review of New Projects

King County Executive Ron Sims has issued an Executive Order requiring County agencies to consider climate change impacts as part of their project review under Washington’s State Environmental Policy Act (“SEPA”). The Executive Order applies to any project that requires a SEPA checklist...King County is not the only jurisdiction nationally to require environmental review of climate change impacts. The state of Massachusetts issued administrative regulations in April 2007 under which developers and state agencies are required to quantify GHG emissions and assess GHG mitigation measures in their environmental review documents under the Massachusetts Environmental Policy Act.

Getting a greener education: School goes all out to conserve energy and water

...The installation is the biggest symbol of the Houston school's nod to nature and the environment. But the building also boasts plenty of windows to bring in sunlight, energy-efficient light bulbs and — a favorite among students — toilets that flush automatically...The new Walnut Bend campus, which opened in August, is one of two facilities that the Houston Independent School District has built according to nationally recognized green standards. Last month, HISD Superintendent Abelardo Saavedra vowed that the 24 new schools slated for construction in the most recent bond proposal would be environmentally friendly. If that promise is realized, Houston would be one of the largest school districts in the nation to go green, said Rachel Gutter, who manages the school program for the U.S. Green Building Council.

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
The 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