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Events

Everybody will lose if there's a transit strike

Letters to the editor
Sunday, November 09, 2008
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

The prospect of a transit disruption at the Port Authority of Allegheny County is a sorry situation ("Union Says 'Work Stoppage' Likely If Port Authority Imposes Contract," Nov. 5). This is the last thing our region needs, particularly in this economy. It is not just the people who account for the 230,000 rides a day who would be hurt. All of us, whether we ride public transportation or not, whether we work for the Port Authority or not, will be devastated.

Clearly both the authority and union are committed to the fact that transit is a public necessity that links us all and is the lubrication of our economy. Likely there is ample blame to go around on how we got here, but the present impasse in labor negotiations is an unacceptable road to ruin.

We urge the Port Authority and Local 85 to revisit the compromise that was afforded months ago -- by the state-appointed fact-finder. When the union leadership convenes rank-and-file members in a special meeting around Thanksgiving to call for a walkout or strike vote, why not also put to a vote the option of accepting the previously rejected fact-finder's recommendations? We urge Local 85's executive board to extend this choice -- a democratic gesture that hits square with this nation's labor tradition of empowering workers to control their destiny. Given an option, union employees may well open a new door through this muddied impasse and bring both sides together in step with the fact-finder.

Prior to the union's convening of its membership, we urge the Port Authority to signal an opening by announcing that if the union accepts the fact-finder's recommendations, the authority would be willing to compromise on its "final best offer" and once again agree to accept the terms and conditions contained in the report.

Both sides gain ground in this scenario, but more important, everybody wins.

COURT GOULD
Executive Director
Sustainable Pittsburgh
Downtown

Resources

What Are Sustainable Communities, and How Do We Get There?

Monday, November 17
7:00 pm - 8:30 pm
Monroeville Public Library Gallery Space, Monroeville
Contact: Mark Hudson, Adult Services Librarian, at 412-372-0500 ext. 13 or hudsonme@mac.com

Come join a lively community discussion with Court Gould of Sustainable Pittsburgh to explore what sustainability is about -- its promise and potential. There is growing excitement about sustainable communities, and the mantra of simultaneous wins in economy, social equity, and environment sounds appealing. But what does sustainability mean, how can we assess if a community is on the right track, and what's the best foothold for accelerating the path to sustainability? We'll explore these questions and benefit from your ideas about practical steps the community can take for making sustainability the new business-as-usual.

Smart Transportation Roundtable

Tuesday, November 18
10:30 am - 12:30 pm
Regional Enterprise Tower, O'neil Room, 23rd Floor, Downtown
Cost: Free
Register Here

Through the new Pennsylvania Community Transportation Initiative (PCTI), PennDOT is allocating $60 million of federal/state transportation funds over the first two years of the 2009 Transportation Improvement Program to invest in smart transportation projects across the Commonwealth. This forum is intended to provide background information, insight on smart transportation and the program's priorities, and how to apply. Initial applications must be submitted no later than December 15th.

Fundamentally, smart transportation is linking land use and transportation to create better communities. This linkage requires strong partnerships between the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, MPOs/RPOs, and local municipalities. PCTI is intended to provide an incentive for projects that promote collaborative decision-making, advance integrated land use and transportation decisions, and to incentivize regional and multi-municipal cooperation throughout the Commonwealth.

Join the Local Government Academy, Sustainable Pittsburgh, 10,000 Friends of PA, and the Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission as they host this free, roundtable discussion on the PCTI and Smart Transportation.

Speaker: Dan Cessna, PennDot District 11 Executive

Additional information regarding Smart Transportation can be found at www.smart-transportation.com

2nd Annual Cycling Specific Winter Lecture Series

Walls are Bad: Southwestern PA's Outdoor Network & How You Can Get Involved
Wednesday, November 19
7:00 pm
Trek of Pittsburgh, Shadyside
Contact: 412-788-8735 or visit www.trekofpittsburgh.com for a full schedule.

Stay motivated this winter as Trek of Pittsburgh cordially invites you to its Winter Lecture Series, where cycling is the topic and mysteries are unveiled by industry professionals in casual evening presentations. Join Ginette Vinski of Sustainable Pittsburgh as she shares information on cycling and outdoor resources available through Walls are Bad, an initiative supported by many outdoor organizations and other nonprofits in Southwestern Pennsylvania. Walls are Bad. Fresh Air is Good. Complimentary refreshments will be provided. Bicycles welcome on the premises.

Sustainable Business: Capitalizing on Opportunities

Thursday, November 20
8:30 am - 4:30 am
Westin Hotel, Pittsburgh
Registration Details:
Full Symposium - Professional: $225; Academic: $125
Luncheon Only - Professional: $90; Academic: $60
Register online by November 12 or contact Rebecca Ellsworth Ligman at beardcenter@duq.edu or 412-396-4005.

Sustainable business is at once about innovation and opportunity, responsibility to stakeholders and enduring financial performance. The Palumbo-Donahue School of Business and the Beard Center for Leadership in Ethics present Sustainable Business: Capitalizing on Opportunities, a symposium for business leaders who want to contribute to sustainability while making the day-to-day decisions of running a business.

Keynote speakers and panelists will make a case for pursuing social and environmental goals while helping business leaders build the organizational processes necessary to develop and implement initiatives. Attendees will leave with a foundation for building the business case for sustainability within their organization.

"The Impacts of the Foreclosure Crisis on Local Government”

2008 Wherrett Lecture on Local Government
Friday, November 21
8:30 am
William Pitt Union on the University of Pittsburgh campus
RSVP: GSPIAIC@pitt.edu or 412-648-2282 by November 4
Event Flyer

Want to better understand the potential effect of today’s global financial situation on your local community? Want to know how local officials, community leaders, developers and businesses in the Pittsburgh region can better position their organizations to manage the fiscal uncertainties of the next several years? These and other issues facing metropolitan regions will be addressed by nationally noted researcher, lecturer, and author Dr. Susan M. Wachter, the Richard B. Worley Professor of Financial Management and Professor of Real Estate and Finance at The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania. Using the backdrop of our and other metropolitan regions she will discuss the federal housing and economic policies that have led to the current financial crisis and how the crisis and emerging policies affect local governance.

Emerging Trends in Real Estate 2009

Tuesday, December 2
8:00 am - 10:00 am
The Rivers Club, 301 Grant Street, 4th Floor, Downtown
Questions? Call 800-321-5011 or Holly at ULI Pittsburgh 724-625-9953
More information

Emerging Trends in Real Estate® is a trends and forecast publication with a 30-year history, and is the most highly-regarded and widely-read forecast report in the real estate industry. Emerging Trends in Real Estate® 2009, undertaken jointly by ULI and PricewaterhouseCoopers, provides an outlook on U.S. investment and development trends, real estate finance and capital markets, property sectors, metropolitan areas, and other real estate issues. The report draws on formal and informal surveys of real estate executives and market experts around the U.S., including survey responses from over 400 real estate executives and personal interviews with over 150 industry leaders.

Featuring Keynote Speaker: PAT LAERDO
With a response panel of local experts representing key land uses(office, retail, industrial, housing) to comment on Pittsburgh's emerging trends.

“LEED the way to Green Buildings”

Monday, December 8
12:00 pm – 4:00 pm
Regional Enterprise Tower, 23rd Floor - A.E. Hunt Room, Downtown
Cost: $15.00 Includes lunch and workshop materials
RSVP By: December 5 to 412-392-0610 or information@aaccwp.com

Featuring Robert Kobet, AIA, LEED AP - World Renowned leader & Green Building Pioneer and Stanley Salwocki/Architect - PA Housing and Finance Agency (an agency that provides financing to companies doing restoration in our region).

This workshop, the first of a four-part series, is designed to broaden your understanding about LEED & Green Building Projects. This workshop is developed for:
• Industry contractors
• Professionals services(accountants, attorneys)
• Business consultants & other professionals.

Presented by the African American Chamber of Commerce Business Institute in partnershp with
• PA Department of General Services
• PA Housing and Finance Agency
• U.S. Small Business Administration
• Minority and Women Educational Labor Agency

The Sustainable Workplace: Efficient, Healthier, Innovative and Cost-Effective.

Wednesday, December 10
1:00 pm - 3:00 pm
Fee: $40 ($30 if paid by Dec.3)
For information or to register call Ivana Spehar at 412-397-6009 or e-mail spehar@rmu.edu.
You may also register online here.

Learn how you can apply sustainability policies and practices in your day-to-day decision making and office to accelerate innovation.

5th Annual Southwestern Pennsylvania Regional Equitable Development Summit

"The Employment Priority - Inclusion in the Workforce: Positioning Our Region to Prosper and Compete"
Thursday, December 11
8:30 am - 12:30 pm (8:00 am - Registration and Continental Breakfast)
Twentieth Century Club, 4201 Bigelow Blvd., Oakland
Fee: $10 Sustainable Pittsburgh members; $15 non-members
Register online
More information: info@sustainablepittsburgh.org or 412-258-6642
Keynote: Dr. Chris Benner, Associate Professor of Community and Regional Development and Chair of the Community Development Graduate Group at the University of California, Davis
Reaction by Dr. Larry Davis, Dean, School of Social Work at the University of Pittsburgh

Deploying talents of all residents and unleashing the benefits and innovation that come from diversity in the workforce are essential for a region and businesses that strive to secure a competitive edge. Our region, with its stagnant population growth, can ill-afford to leave behind anyone not working to his or her potential.

This year's Summit builds on the momentum from last year's discussion from which a leadership group came together to identify actions to address our region's equitable development. Rising to the fore is the regional economic benefit derived from enabling all African-Americans and others of color to participate fully in the workforce and to live to their productive potential. As southwestern Pennsylvania comes together and more than ever acknowledges that prosperity is directly linked to ensuring all residents are contributing through good jobs and opportunity, it is apparent that ongoing disparities in employment in communities of color are incongruous.

During the Summit, Dr. Chris Benner will present a draft of a landmark framing paper, co-authoried with PolicyLink, specific to southwestern PA, that substantiates this reality and economic imperative. This work will illustrate the bottom-line business benefit and productive role a fully employed diverse population stands to play in the economy. It will serve to catalyze much more than a lip service response concerning a targeted employment agenda.

By rotating through choice of two of four facilitated breakout groups, Summit participants will have the opportunity to help shape the paper and to advance partnerships and practical steps the region will take to remove barriers and to seize on inclusion in employment as a vital part of our economic development strategy and success among business and industry.

Breakout Groups and Facilitators:
- Human Resources: Surmounting Barriers
Randy Brockington, Allegheny County Department of Human Services and Candi Castleberry-Singleton, UPMC

- Business Case for Diversity
Victoria Chester, Highmark and Joe Massaro III, Massaro Corporation

- Workforce Training: Goals, Outcomes, Coordination
Jesse Fife, Manchester Bidwell Corporation and Ron Painter, Three Rivers Workforce Investment Board

- Outreach Strategy: Community, Media, Political
Allen Kukovich, Southwest Regional Office of the Governor and Bob Oltmanns, Skutski & Oltmanns

Presented by:

African American Chamber of Commerce
Allegheny Conference on Community Development
Allegheny County Department of Human Services
David Berg Center for Ethics and Leadership, University of Pittsburgh, Katz/CBA School of Business
Center on Race and Social Problems, University of Pittsburgh
Coro Center for Civic Leadership
Falk Foundation
Graduate School of Public and International Affairs: Johnson Institute for Responsible Leadership
Graduate School of Public and International Affairs: Public and Urban Affairs Program and Innovation Clinic
Heritage Health Foundation, Inc.
Local Government Academy
Mon Valley Initiative
Remaking Cities Institute
Sustainable Pittsburgh's Sustainable Community Development Network
The Black Political Empowerment Project and Coalition Against Violence
Three Rivers Workforce Investment Board
Urban League of Pittsburgh, Inc.
Welcome Center for Immigrants & Internationals
Western Pennsylvania Diversity Initiative
Women and Girls Foundation

Sponsored by:

Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation
The Heinz Endowments
Richard King Mellon Foundation

Contemplating Governing: A Course for Potential Candidates for Local Office

January 2009
3 locations in SWPA: Green Tree Borough, Butler Township, Donohoe Center (Greensburg)
All sessions held at 6:00 pm
Program Fee: $45 per person
Pre-registration is required.
For more information call 412-237-3171 or visit www.localgovernmentacademy.org

Contemplating Governing is an introduction to serving in local government. These sessions will help individuals decide if local government service is right for them and encourage responsible campaigning. This program will provide citizens the opportunity to consider the challenges, requirements, opportunities, and reasons to serve in local elected office. The course seeks to inform the office seeker as they embark on the campaign process.

This 3-part program will include information on:
• Overcoming obstacles to running and meeting legal requirements
• Understanding the Pennsylvania local government environment including powers and duties of various boards and commissions such as City and Borough Councils, Township Commissioners or Supervisors, School Directors
• Measuring board effectiveness
• Determining what is a responsible campaign pledge
• Understanding local government taxation and services
• Local government’s important role in community sustainability

These sessions are being held prior to the first day to circulate and file nomination petitions on February 17, 2009. Upon successful election, the program fee will be credited towards the tuition of the 2009 - 2010 Newly Elected Officials Course.

Resources

Abandoned and Blighted Property Conservatorship Bill Enacted

The General Assembly of Pennsylvania yesterday enacted the Abandoned and Blighted Property Conservatorship (HB2188 - Walko, D, Pittsburgh). Conservatorship provides for court-appointed conservators to bring residential, commercial and industrial buildings into municipal code compliance when owners fail to comply.

Transportation Alternatives

While the Port Authority Board and staff are hopeful that ATU Local 85 leadership will not inflict a work stoppage of any kind on the citizens of Allegheny County, the Port Authority believes that it is vital to provide information to our riders and the public about other available transportation options should a work stoppage occur. Please take the time to review this material so that you can prepare for alternate transportation in the event that ATU Local 85 leadership invokes a work stoppage.

More

Water resources: Efficiency and conservation – Swimming in dwindling waters

As the planet's once plentiful blue resource gets used up, companies are acting to secure supply and be more efficient users of water. Kazakhstan's mapmakers have their work cut out. No sooner do they chart the boundaries of the Aral Sea than they have to take out their pens and redraw it. Once the world's fourth largest inland sea, this massive expanse of water has shrunk to a tenth of its original size due to a huge irrigation project introduced in the 1960s. The fishing industry is now floundering, the flora and fauna perishing and the summers becoming hotter and hotter.

New GreenBiz Report Explores the Tools and Travails of Greener Supply Chains

The paper makes the case for green supply chain initiatives and identifies the value the efforts can bring to a company. Fostering business continuity, maintaining quality, protecting brands and strengthening the bottom line are all benefits green supply chain initatives can deliver. "We're not talking about public relations," Yosie said in a GreenBiz Radio interview. "We're not talking about politics. Greening the supply chain is about dollars, it's about cents, it's about creating business value in a way that's aligned with sustainable development."

ALT to preserve County's largest privately protected conservation area

Identified by The Allegheny County Natural Heritage Inventory as one of America’s most significant Biological Diversity Areas, the Dead Man’s Hollow watershed is visible from the Boston Bridge and features a dramatic 400-foot vertical drop to the Youghiogeny River. The site meets all three criteria—biological diversity, water management capacity and highly visible lands that define scenic character—identified by ALT’s Greenprint, a strategic regional land conservation plan and map that has been incorporated into Allegheny County’s comprehensive plan.

Activists launch certification for e-waste recycling

"Unfortunately today, most companies calling themselves electronics recyclers are scammers," said Sarah Westervelt, e-Stewards project coordinator at the Basel Action Network (BAN) in Seattle, in a statement. "They simply load up containers of old computers and ship them off to China or Africa." The point of e-Steward Initiative is to certify that toxic materials from computers and cathode-ray tubes are not dumped in developing countries, local landfills, or incinerators. It is also meant to audit the use of prison labor or unauthorized release of private data.

A President for Cities, But Where’s the Money?

Politicians like to talk about going in to “clean up the mess” in Washington. In this case, the wreckage and debris is everywhere. The climate and energy challenge requires a paradigm shift and a fundamental systems change–-and quickly. It will be expensive and painful. It may be too much to ask for the first 100 days, the first year, and perhaps even the new president’s entire first term.

Paint the bailout green

The 2 is back. Last week, U.S. retail gasoline prices fell below $3 a gallon -- to an average of $2.91 -- the lowest level in almost a year. Why does this news leave me with mixed feelings? Because in the middle of this wrenching economic crisis, with unemployment rising and 401(k)'s shrinking, it would be a real source of relief for many Americans to get a break at the pump. Today's declining gasoline prices act like a tax cut for consumers and can save $15 to $20 per tank-full for an SUV-driving family, compared with when gasoline was $4.11 a gallon in July.

Six Products, Six Carbon Footprints

A new concept is entering the consumer lexicon: the carbon footprint.

First came organic. Then came fair trade. Now makers of everything from milk to jackets to cars are starting to tally up the carbon footprints of their products. That's the amount of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases that get coughed into the air when the goods are made, shipped and stored, and then used by consumers.

The Mon Valley's promise: Bright spots aside, its redevelopment has a long way to go

Pittsburgh's ongoing gentrification may be affecting the Mon Valley, as displaced low-income Pittsburghers use Section 8 vouchers to obtain housing there. That is one of a number of observations I heard after surveying agencies involved in rebuilding the valley, an area that 25 years ago -- in the striking phrase of University of Pittsburgh historian Ted Muller -- was "thrown on the trash heap of capitalism."

Alternative Energy Suddenly Faces Headwinds

For all the support that the presidential candidates are expressing for renewable energy, alternative energies like wind and solar are facing big new challenges because of the credit freeze and the plunge in oil and natural gas prices. Shares of alternative energy companies have fallen even more sharply than the rest of the stock market in recent months. The struggles of financial institutions are raising fears that investment capital for big renewable energy projects is likely to get tighter

EPA Advisers Seek Perchlorate Review: Scientists Hope Agency Rethinks Decision Not to Issue Standard

The Environmental Protection Agency's scientific advisers have warned the agency that it should delay final action on its decision not to set a federal drinking-water standard for perchlorate, a chemical in rocket fuel, because the computer model underlying the decision may have flaws. In a letter last week, the heads of EPA's Science Advisory Board and its drinking water committee urged EPA Administrator Stephen L. Johnson to extend the public comment period on its preliminary determination to not regulate perchlorate. That decision is set to become final next month. Perchlorate, which is present in the water systems of 35 states, accumulates in the body from consuming water, milk, lettuce and other common products and has been linked in scientific studies to thyroid problems in pregnant women, newborns and infants.

Billboard Going Green on the Great White Way

The “passive” sign is not studded with light-emitting diodes like so many others in Times Square, but will be lighted by 16 300-watt floodlights. It will feature custom-printed opaque vinyl sheeting bearing the red-and-white Ricoh logo. The sign will be green, nevertheless, a message “to customers, other companies and the world that resources and energy can be used creatively,” Mr. Potesky said. “The point is that there are ways of being environmentally friendly to the planet, even on a billboard.” . . .Passers-by will be able to see the 26 blades spinning in each of the sign’s 16 turbine drums, piled in four 45-foot-high vertical stacks. When operating at their average speed of 10 miles an hour, they put out 22 kilowatts.

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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 2008 from:

Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation
Dollar Bank
The Giant Eagle Foundation
The Heinz Endowments
Elsie H. Hillman Foundation
Roy A. Hunt Foundation
Richard King Mellon 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