Feb 27: Sustainability Salon Winter Film Series with Triple Divide

The 49th Sustainability Salon will continue our annual Wintertime Film Series with the powerful film Triple Divide, an award-winning film by the Public Herald's Melissa Troutman and Josh Pribanic, who will be here for discussion before and after the film.

Hailed as the best documentary about fracking, Triple Divide investigates the inevitable, negative impacts from shale gas industrial development and how those impacts are handled by the state, specifically the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP).  Narrated with help from actor and solutions advocate Mark Ruffalo, major findings include stark negligence and endangerment of public and environmental health due to shale gas extraction.  Through personal stories, expert interviews, and investigation of state case files, Triple Divide tells a cautionary tale about a public agency meant to protect the public and environment that is instead protecting industry.  Though extraction of shale gas will one day end, taking many 'boom and bust' jobs with it, contaminated groundwater aquifers, polluted land, and stories of victimization will remain.  Pennsylvanians, fed up with corruption and destruction, won't 'go down' without a fight and are learning how to protect themselves.

Neither partisan nor hyperbolic, Triple Divide is an honest look at an industry that deserves more scrutiny. The film explores and uncovers the haphazard way in which natural gas has been exploited in Pennsylvania, causing significant damage to formerly-pristine waterways. It clearly illustrates through painstaking investigative journalism how current safety measures and industry standards have proven entirely inadequate. I highly recommend this film to anyone who lives in the immediate area of hydraulic natural gas fracking, as well as those downstream from a drilling site.   – Andrew Riedy, Security Policy (Washington, D.C.) 

Thanks to GASP for sponsoring this screening!

Why films this time (and in December and February)?  During the winter (when weather can throw a wrench into the best-laid plans), we take a break from our usual multi-speaker format to host screenings of important environmental films, sometimes with the filmmakers or other folks on hand to lead the discussion, and often in collaboration with the CMU International Film Festival (which featured A Dangerous Game last spring, leading to our selection this winter).  Please be sure to RSVP if you might come (email Maren with "salon" in the Subject line).  General information and links to past Salon topics are below.  The March salon will be on the 12th, and will feature Mark Dixon, Mayor Bill Peduto, Angela Wiley, and Randy Sargent back for a post-COP21 climate update.  Check back on MarensList for updates!

Salons run 3-10 p.m. at Maren's house in Squirrel Hill.  Please don't arrive before 3 p.m.  We usually aim to start the program sometime around 4, after folks have had a chance to meet, mingle, and tour around an interesting and productive urban permaculture site.   Please email me (at maren dot cooke at gmail dot com) with salon in the Subject line to RSVP (yes or maybe), or click on the link in your EventBrite invitation (if you're not already on my list, please email me to be added!).  Please RSVP each time -- it helps greatly in several ways.  Among other things, attendance varies widely, and these events have been so successful that we need to begin limiting attendance.  So RSVP early if you can, to ensure your participation!  The free virtual "tickets" on Eventbrite may run out (you don't need to print any tickets, by the way, just be on the list).  Also, weather and such can be unpredictable and it's good to know who to contact if there's a change -- and I'll send directions and/or a trail map if you need 'em on Friday or Saturday.  Be sure to include salon in the Subject line, as I receive a ridiculous amount of email every day.  And if you're new, please let me know how you heard about the Salons!
Bring food and/or drink to share if you can, along with musical instruments if you play.  Check back on MarensList (where you can find information on all sorts of environmental and social justice events) for updates.  And if you aren't yet on my list, if you're interested in Sustainability Salons (and our occasional house concert, simply contact me and I'll put you on my email list.  

As always, I'll be sending out directions and such, and any late-breaking info, to all the RSVP'd folks by the morning of the salon if not before.  So if you don't have it yet, please be patient!  One of these days I'll streamline this process a bit, but for now it takes a while to to dot all my i's and cross all my t's.  (All the extraneous requests for the address don't help;  I have lots of other stuff I send out with it, but don't like to let them go unanswered so it adds hours to my prep time.  If you RSVP properly (see above), you should get the info by the morning of the salon!)
For the uninitiated, a Sustainability Salon is an educational forum;  a venue for discussion and debate about important environmental issues;  it's a mini-conference;  it's a house party with an environmental theme.  We usually have featured speakers on various aspects of a topic, interspersed with stimulating conversation, lively debate, delectable potluck food and drink, and music-making through the evening.

Past topics have included Solarize Alleghenyclimate (again, this time focusing on the upcoming COP21 negotiations), air quality (again, with news on the autism connection), reuse (of things and substances), neighborhood-scale food systems, other forms of green community revitalizationsolar powerclimate changeenvironmental artenvironmental education (Part I & Part II), community mapping projectsenvironmental journalismgrassroots actioncommunity solar powerMarcellus shale development and community rightsgreen buildingair qualityhealth care, more solar powertrees and park stewardshipalternative energy and climate policy, regional watershed issues, fantastic film screenings and discussions (led by filmmakers) over the winter with Rachel Carson and the Power Of One VoiceSustainability Pioneersfilms on consumptionLiving DownstreamBidder 70YERTGas Rush Stories, and foodfoodfoodfoodfoodfood, and more food (a recurrent theme;  with California running out of water, we'd better gear up to produce a lot more of our own!).



Past topics have included getting money out of politicsSolarize Alleghenyclimate (again, this time focusing on the upcoming COP21 negotiations), air quality (again, with news on the autism connection), reuse (of things and substances), neighborhood-scale food systems, other forms of green community revitalizationsolar powerclimate changeenvironmental art, environmental education (Part I & Part II), community mapping projectsenvironmental journalismgrassroots actioncommunity solar powerMarcellus shale development and community rightsgreen buildingair qualityhealth care, more solar powertrees and park stewardshipalternative energy and climate policyregional watershed issues, fantastic film screenings and discussions (often led by filmmakers) over the winter with Rachel Carson and the Power Of One Voice, You've Been Trumped and A Dangerous Game, A Fierce Green FireSustainability Pioneersfilms on consumptionLiving DownstreamBidder 70YERTGas Rush Stories, and foodfoodfoodfoodfoodfood, and more food (a recurrent theme;  with California running out of water, we'd better gear up to produce a lot more of our own!).

Quite a few people have asked me what sorts of food to bring -- and my answer, as always, is whatever inspires you;  I believe in the "luck" part of potlucks.  Tasty noshings for the afternoon, hearty main dishes or scrumptious salads and sides for dinner, baked goods from biscuits and breads to brownies or baklava -- and/or beverages of any kind:  wine, beer, hard or sweet cider (the latter we can mull if you like), juice, tea, whatever.  The more the merrier!  Local fare is always particularly welcome, whether homegrown or boughten.  Dishes containing meat or dairy are fine, though if it isn't really obvious please make a note of it.  


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.  

And if you like to make music or listen to homemade music, don't forget the evening sing -- we typically run the gamut from Irish fiddle tunes to protest songs to the Beatles, and a fun time is had by all.  Bring instruments if you play, and/or pick up one of ours.  Conversations will continue through the evening, as well. 

Feb 27: Citizen engagement in shale gas development

Citizen Engagement:  What You Need to Know about Oil and Gas Permitting Process

Marcellus Outreach Butler (MOB) has invited attorneys from Fair Shake Environmental Legal Services – Ryan Hamilton and Oday Salim – to give a free educational presentation about opportunities for citizen engagement in state and local permitting related to natural gas development. The presentation will describe which local- and state-level authorizations are necessary for drilling and related activities, and which standards must be maintained during operation. Most importantly, the presentation will highlight the many opportunities for citizen engagement in the process, from negotiations related to impacts anticipated on one’s own property to participating in local hearings to challenging state-issued environmental permits. 
 
1 p.m. at the Butler Public Library (218 N. McKean St., Butler, PA 16001).  Free & open to the public;  refreshments will be on hand.

Feb 26: CMU Film Festival preview with 3.5 Bullets, 10 Minutes

The 10th anniversary season of CMU's International Film Festival this spring will be so chock-full of great films that this moving documentary is being offered as a preview.  


"3  ½ Minutes, 10 Bullets  is a powerful, gripping and deeply shocking film, and a contemptuous critique of Florida’s stand-your-ground law.–Simon Crook, Empire

The last moments of Jordan Davis’ life are the starting point for 3 ½ Minutes, 10 Bullets.  Marc Silver’s drama, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival 2015, explores the danger and subjectivity of Florida’s Stand Your Ground self-defense laws by weaving Dunn’s trial with a chorus of citizen and pundit opinions, and with Jordan Davis’s parents’ wrenching experiences in and out of the courtroom.  The film portrays Davis’s murder and its aftermath as anything but generic. Instead, the intimate camera particularizes each character as singular, as if to say: The more we see each other as human beings, the less inevitable will be violent outcomes from racial bias and disparate cultures colliding.
Director Marc Silver will introduce his film with a special greeting from Cuba -- and after the film we'll welcome Jordan's father Ron Davis, who will speak about turning his tragedy into a life of activism, along with a panel discussion.  Come learn how you can become a face of change!

6 p.m. in Jared Cohon University Center's McConomy Auditorium.  Parking is free in the Forbes Avenue lot after 5 p.m.   Tickets for this event or the whole International Film Festival are available at the door or online. Discounts for students, seniors (60+), and Sustainability Salongoers.

Feb 23: Urban Agriculture forum

Come hear from Shelly Danko+Day from the City of Pittsburgh present about the Urban Agriculture Zoning Code and the Adopt-A-Lot program, and learn about preparing for gardening in Spring 2016.  Shelly will review the rules for growing food, selling food, and using vacant lots for garden projects! 

6-8 p.m. at the Black Forge Coffee House, 1206 Arlington Ave. 15210 (South Side Slopes).

All residents, nonprofits, community groups, and community members across all 11 Hilltop neighborhoods are encouraged to attend (Mt. Washington, Beltzhoover, Allentown, Arlington, Arlington Heights, Carrick, Mt. Oliver City, Mt. Oliver Borough, St. Clair, Bon Air, South Side Slopes & Knoxville)!!

Free seeds will be handed out at registration, along with information about Seed Starting and Spring Planting Guides!

Adopt-A-Lot Program:
The Department of City Planning (DCP) has developed an Adopt-A-Lot Program, which allows residents - and groups to build temporary edible, flower, and rain garden projects on vacant City-owned lots. The program, passed November 2015 by City Council, grants licenses and leases for use of City-owned property as well as the sale of what is grown onsite, through a “market-stand lease.” 

Urban Agriculture Zoning Code:

Passed by the Pittsburgh City Council on July 7th, the updated Urban Agriculture Zoning code streamlines the process for keeping animals and expands the opportunity for the sale of vegetables within the City of Pittsburgh. Now, a landowner can be granted a $70 over-the-counter permit via the Zoning Division of City Planning to keep bees, chicken and goats. Individuals who grow food on land they own (backyard or a parcel used for vegetable production) may now sell produce through an on-site farmstand. Additionally, the amount of land required for a full-scale farm has been reduced to two acres.


Feb 22: Clean Power Plan forum

How is Pennsylvania about to slash the carbon pollution that's fueling climate change?
That’s the question Governor Wolf’s Administration is working on right now—and their answer will chart our energy future for the next fifteen years and beyond. The options are clear: move toward a clean future powered by the wind and the sun or increase support for natural gas, trading one dirty fossil fuel for another.
Join PennEnvironment for a local educational forum on the Clean Power Plan with
  • Tom Schuster, Senior Campaign Representative for Pennsylvania and New Jersey, Sierra Club
  • Professor Neil Donahue, Director of the Steinbrenner Institute for Environmental Education and Research, and Thomas Lord Professor in Chemistry, Professor of Chemical Engineering, and Engineering and Public Policy, Carnegie Mellon University
  • Allison Steele, Manager of Community Programs and Advocacy, Conservation Consultants
The fossil fuel industry has its strongest roots here in Pennsylvania, and they’re pushing to delay, weaken and outright halt any effort to slash climate pollution.

7 p.m. at Community College of Allegheny County North Campus, 8701 Perry Highway, Pittsburgh, PA 15237.  Please RSVP here.

    Feb 1: Cafe Scientifique on Climate and Pollution

    Interested in science?  Want to learn more about the latest technology breakthroughs in normal English, minus the jargon?  Then Café Scientifique Pittsburgh at Carnegie Science Center is the place to be!
    Café Sci is THE place in Pittsburgh where anyone interested in science can get together at a scientific hub to discuss today’s science issues with experts, and best of all… you can ask your own questions!  After a brief talk by our monthly guest speaker, the evening is dedicated to a question-and-answer session.  Plus, enjoy our pub-type atmosphere with food and drinks available for purchase.  
    6 -9 p.m. at the Carnegie Science Center (doors at 6, program 7-9, and cash bar from 6-7:30).  Admission is free, though parking costs $5.  RSVP online here.
    This month:  If You Can’t See It, It Doesn’t Exist: Connections of Air and Climate Pollution with Policy Decisions with Dr. Neil Donahue.  
    The effects of climate change, air pollution, and efforts by leaders to address these effects are pressing issues that pervade recent news-cycles – from climate talks in Paris to the increase in “red alert” days in Beijing.  

    Climate pollution is mostly invisible and diffuse.  More traditional air pollution — haze and smog — is visible and localized.  However, both cause a world of hurt, and addressing them together may be a key to making progress on both.  The “social costs” of pollution can be very high, with the costs of climate pollution distributed over the globe and over generations, while the social costs of air pollution bourn locally and immediately, including contribution to millions of deaths every year.
    Donahue will discuss the role of three current research activities towards enabling decision-makers to consider the costs and benefits of policies that could affect both pollution types.  The research includes fundamental experiments about fine atmospheric particles at CERN, the particle-physics research institute in Geneva; a collaboration to model the life-cycle of carbon in regional pollution in China; and development of a decision support tool for city policy makers to compare policy “intervention” options in terms of costs and effectiveness for climate and air-pollution benefits.
    Donahue is a Professor of Chemistry & Chemical Engineering, founding Director of the Center for Atmospheric Particle Studies at Carnegie Mellon University, and a Science & Engineering Ambassador with the National Academy of Sciences and National Academy of Engineering.  He directs the Steinbrenner Institute for Environmental Education and Research.
    Donahue seeks to understand how Earth's atmosphere works and how humans affect the atmosphere.  He strives to help all graduating CMU students understand the climate problem and to apply their outstanding problem-solving skills to solutions of this enormous challenge.
    Donahue’s research focuses on the behavior of organic compounds in Earth's atmosphere.  The world experts in his research group study what happens to compounds from both natural sources and human activity when they are emitted into the atmosphere. Recently, the group’s research has focused on the origin and transformations of very small organic particles, which play a critical role in climate change and human health. Particles scatter light, influence clouds, and kill roughly 50,000 people each year in the U.S., mostly of heart attacks.
    Donahue earned a degree in physics from Brown University and a doctorate in meteorology from MIT. He spent nine years as a research scientist at Harvard before returning to Pittsburgh in 2000.