Putting Down Roots: Maren's List
Information bringing people together...
Maren's list of environmental, cultural, and
social justice events in and around Pittsburgh.
Jan 13: Three Rivers Urban Soil Symposium
Join us virtually for the Three Rivers Urban Soils Symposium (TRUSS) held in partnership with Allegheny County Conservation District and members of the Pittsburgh Urban Soils Working Group. This year a shorter, online program will allow us to gather and virtually share knowledge around soils and their role in our community. The day will feature three expert presentations, some project highlights, and an interactive group discussion. Come to learn and discuss the ongoing relationship between soils and the urban environment.
Registration for TRUSS is free this year but you must reserve your spot to attend the symposium: trusspgh.org
Jan 11 or 12: Info session for new ROCIS air monitoring cohort
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Local food resources
MarensList is Experiencing Technical Difficulties
Due to a change in how this platform works, it has become very difficult to make new postings for future events. I hope to find a solution soon, but in the meantime my apologies for a rather thin slate of events! There really is a lot going on...
Dec 16: GND series -- public transportation and mobility
The Green New Deal discussion series in the spring of 2020 brought together a wide array from our diverse community to discuss a powerful vision of how we can and must adapt in order to survive as a species within our larger global ecology. We looked closely at the deep interdependence of our human needs such as health care, housing, transportation, education, food access, dignified work, and inclusive democratic process. And we agreed that surviving and thriving will depend on understanding and repairing the long-time harms of systemic racism, sexism, homophobia, xenophobia, ableism, class oppression and other unjust cracks in our collective foundations.
This next five-month series focuses on supporting collective efforts on the local and regional levels to develop concrete platforms, policies, and legislation tailored for the needs of our own communities - and to understand the power system ecologies that move decision making. Each session will focus on a different topic area. Next Wednesday, December 16th, from 6-8pm, you're invited to a policy and power mapping session focused on Allegheny County public transportation and mobility.
The first hour will be focused on providing feedback on the transportation proposals being developed by a Pittsburgh regional network convened by the UrbanKind Institute and their partners at Black Women Wise Women and Mongalo-Winston Consulting as part of the the Equitable and Just Platform for Pittsburgh, with a deep commitment to systemic racial justice and intersectional organizing by communities most affected by public decision making.
The second hour will focus on building a power map to support the outreach, advocacy, and organizing needed to push our collective visions for public transportation and mobility into practical reality. We will be starting from this initial draft of a public transit power map, working to incorporate other sectors of regional decision-makers, power players, influencers, opponents, and potential allies such as:
Boards and Commissions for Pgh and Allegheny County
Unions related to transportation operation or manufacturing, with assistance from union researchers and organizers from UE and ATU;
The foundations and other big non-profits, like Pitt, CMU, UPMC, the Allegheny Conference, etc; (we'll be using the Mon Connector as an example in the Dec 16th session.) Here's an excellent PG series of articles by Rich Lord on the broad context of how such institutions wield power and influence government and development in Pittsburgh.
Corporations in public-private partnerships with government for local public services, such as those that contract with Port Authority's paratransit Access service.
Tech-transportation privateers like Uber and Lyft, and/or other autonomous vehicle manufacturing or design companies like Aptiv.
Transportation-related advocacy organizations, many of which work across a range of modes and issues, including buses, rail, biking, walkability and disability access, racial equity, migrant justice, and environmental justice.
Transportation media: Which venues and reporters cover transportation beats that are relevant to educating and influencing both the general public and decision makers?
Your ideas of other sectors to include are strongly encouraged! This session is just one brainstorming analysis for the power mapping process in this topic, with many registrants already committed to continuing to contribute their expertise over upcoming months. The Google documents from all topics throughout the series will be shared with participants for further input, revisions, additions - and for use in their areas of advocacy, organizing, or coalition building.
To join the December 16th session, please fill out this Google form and we will email you the Zoom link. If you can't make this session and have a special interest or expertise in transportation and mobility, please reply to this email and we will share the Google power mapping document with you for your participation in the continuing process. And in the spring there will be a second session devoted to the transportation policies of the ReImagine Appalachia regional platform and transportation policy and power mapping at the regional, state, and national levels
Dec 15: ROCIS on Reducing Cooking Pollution in Homes
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Dec 13: PASUP on Plastic and the Pandemic
During these times of Covid so much is uncertain yet plastic pollution remains a growing “pandemic” in its own right. Consumers are often urged to utilize deposable, "one time use" products as a matter of safety and the plastic industry seems more than willing to help amplify and support this message. Even the CDC has advocated for single use dinnerware for the holidays! Join us Sunday Dec 13th to help separate fact from fiction. Our presenters be sharing their thoughts and we look forward to hearing yours as well!
- Staying safe with minimal waste, a Physician point of view
- Low waste shopping & dining strategies while staying Covid safe,
- Holiday gift giving: More Spirit, Less Plastic, Less Waste
Dec 10: Community Sentinel Awards
Join Fractracker and the Halt the Harm Network for the 6th Annual Community Sentinel Awards for Environmental Stewardship, an event that celebrates those who address the root causes of environmental injustice in our communities.
It is a far too rare occasion that we have moments to connect and celebrate grassroots leaders who work tirelessly to protect their communities. One of the ways that we sustain and build our movement is to celebrate these people and hear their stories.
Learn more and RSVP by following this link.
Four inspirational grassroots activists have been selected to receive the award, and at the ceremony, you will hear their stories of resistance against the oil, gas, and petrochemical industries.
The event will feature a musical introduction, inspirational speakers, short video presentations, and of course, recognition and celebration of the Sentinel Award winners. The ceremony will be followed by virtual breakout rooms where attendees can mingle, congratulate, and chat directly with award recipients.
You can learn more, and get your tickets here.
Tickets are pay-what-you-can, and all are welcome. I hope you can join me and many others across the country to hear the stories of the Community Sentinels.
Congratulations to this year’s Sentinel Award Winners!
Edith Abeyta (North Braddock, Pennsylvania)
Yvette Arellano (Houston, Texas)
Theresa Landrum (Detroit, Michigan, 48217)
Brenda Jo McManama (Fairmont, West Virginia)
Against all odds, these individuals have worked with their communities to create healthier, more equitable living conditions.
Hope to see you there!
This event is hosted by FracTracker Alliance and Halt the Harm Network, and sponsored by The Heinz Endowments and 11th Hour Project. Partnering organizations include Breathe Project, Center for Coalfield Justice, Climate Reality, Crude Accountability, Earthworks, Fair Shake Environmental Legal Services, Food & Water Watch, Foundation for Pennsylvania Watersheds, Mountain Watershed Association, Ohio River Valley Institute, Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition, Plastic Pollution Coalition, Poor People’s Campaign, Rootskeeper, Sierra Club, Southwest Pennsylvania Environmental Health Project, and Young Voices for the Planet
Dec 5: Sustainability Salon on Consumption
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If you haven't been here before, you may enjoy checking out our roof garden and solar installation (and now apiary!) as well as the many other green and interesting things around our place. If interested folks are online and everything is working smoothly by around 3:30, perhaps I can conduct a virtual tour.
And if you like to make music or listen to homemade music, think back to our evening sings -- we typically ran the gamut from Irish fiddle tunes to protest songs to the Beatles, and a fun time was had by all. Folks would bring instruments, and/or pick up one of ours. Conversations would continue through the evening, as well. With a virtual event this is less likely to happen, but we can share music by turns, reminisce, chat online, and look forward to the post-COVID era!
Nov 21: Sustainability Salon on Pandemics and Air
The global COVID-19 pandemic is still with us, and won't be gone any time soon. The 106th Sustainability Salon will look at several ways in which such events relate to air and air quality.
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If you haven't been here before, you may enjoy checking out our roof garden and solar installation (and now apiary!) as well as the many other green and interesting things around our place. If interested folks are online and everything is working smoothly by around 3:30, perhaps I can conduct a virtual tour.
And if you like to make music or listen to homemade music, think back to our evening sings -- we typically ran the gamut from Irish fiddle tunes to protest songs to the Beatles, and a fun time was had by all. Folks would bring instruments, and/or pick up one of ours. Conversations would continue through the evening, as well. With a virtual event this is less likely to happen, but we can share music by turns, reminisce, chat online, and look forward to the post-COVID era!