We are warriors; We are leaders; We are stewards of our planet and innovators in a sustainable world; The time is now to engage in environmental issues and actively pursue change
No Meeting Tomorrow (although Lindsey Motlow has done great work behind the scenes planning our Green Winter Bash)
—INSTEAD—
Attend the Drummond Coal Protest Downtown, beginning at 3:30!
Drummond Company Inc., a coal company based in Birmingham, Alabama, has been accused of serious human rights abuses against Colombian workers. Come hear the testimonies of Colombian activists and join Witness for Peace in demanding compensation and accountability from Drummond. Witness for Peace (WFP) is a politically independent, nationwide grassroots organization of people committed to nonviolence and led by faith and conscience. WFP’s mission is to support peace, justice and sustainable economies in the Americas by changing U.S. policies and corporate practices which contribute to poverty and oppression in Latin America and the Caribbean.
Linn Park, Birmingham, Alabama — BE THERE! Facebook event: http://www.facebook.com/home.php?ref=home#/event.php?eid=176751487946&index=1
And this Saturday… bring your old electronics (walkmans, DVD players, NO TVs though) to Whole Foods on 280 — They will be recycled, making space for more holiday stuff!
-P.S.- If any of you are following the Climate Change Debate:
NY Times writes about Obama, Denmark and other Asian Powers claiming that Copenhagen will not include a binding treaty: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/15/world/asia/15prexy.html?_r=1&partner=rss&emc=rss
Some saw it as a loss, but some see this is as a necessary and inevitable step: http://climateprogress.org/2009/11/15/copenhagen-international-climate-conference-deal/#more-14091
The Senate Climate Change Bill (The American Power and Clean Jobs Act) gets reviewed in the Senate Finance Committee by conservative think-tanks, and Senator Kerry tears their financial predictions apart (fast-forward to the 50 minute mark): http://cspan.org/Watch/Media/2009/11/10/HP/A/25735/Senate+Finance+Cmte+Hearing+on+Climate+Change+Legislation+and+Jobs.aspx
The sequel to Freakonomics, SuperFreakonomics, contains half-truths and downright conclusions about climate change: The New Yorker’s Elizabeth Kolbert tears it apart (http://www.newyorker.com/arts/critics/books/2009/11/16/091116crbo_books_kolbert?currentPage=all) along with Raymond T. Pierrehumbert, a climatologist who, like the author Levitt, teaches at the University of Chicago (http://www.realclimate.org/index.php/archives/2009/10/an-open-letter-to-steve-levitt/#more-1488) and even the Washington Post joined in the critique (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/11/13/AR2009111304254.html)
Hope you enjoyed that media summary! — By the way, Sarah Palin’s book “Going Rogue” and Glenn Beck’s “Arguing with Idiots” just edged out “Superfreakonomics” on Amazon’s Bestseller list…a bit disconcerting.
1. Reminder to get out and invite all your friends to the film on Thursday at 6 30 PM in the Norton Theatre (the facebook event link is http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=190097429001&ref=mf)
2. Hike this Sunday 2 PM at Red Mountain Park (meet here http://bit.ly/shqbf) enact hike flyer
Meet in the Norton Turnaround at 1 30 PM
3. Protest Next Thursday at 3 30 PM with the Witness for Peace — What the Drummond Coal Company has done in Columbia has been horrendous. Human rights violations, environmental abuses, you name it.
We are gathering as a global community to demand JUSTICE. See attached flyer DrummondActionNov.19
That is all.
See, not all Green Updates are two pages long!
Best,
Ben
PS – For all you interested Climate Citizens: Check out CSPAN’s coverage of this morning’s Senate Finance Committee Hearing on the Climate Change Bill (fast forward to about 53 minutes to hear Kerry rip apart conservative thinktanks!): Finance Committee Hearing: Climate Change Bill
Hope you had a great week of rest and a spooky Halloween!
*Meeting Thursday at 5 PM in Upstairs Norton– Show up and Get Green!
Fair Trade Update – Petition to Get the Dirty Coffee Out!
350 Follow-Up — Wake-Up Calls to Politicians!
Recycling Update — We’ve Made Some Progress…
December Green Bash Update — Good News from our Great Organizer Lindsey!
*Did you know that enAct’s 350 October 24th Climate Event Was a HUGE Success! Read more at the bottom about what is being called “most widespread day of political action in history” Or Download the Press Release Here
*The attached 350 crowd photo from the event should be featured in the upcoming Photo Of the Week! Stay Tuned!
We will have the event as extra credit for several classes but there is still work left to do!
- Please come by the enAct Atrium table between 11-1 TOMORROW (we will have the table on wed, thurs, and friday as well) and get a sticker to wear, bumper stickers, help set up yard signs and posters, and sign up to be a 350 SHOUTER for your residence hall (going door to door asking people to come out to the event)
b) Meeting Thursday in SGA Room at 5 PM — Will go over progress with 350 Event, Fair Trade, Recycling, among other things
c) FREE Fair Trade Coffee TOMORROW morning (Thanks Skyler for all her hard work!)
You guys, this is an exciting time to be a part of such an active group! I hope that we can gain more support, have a great kick-off on Saturday, get this campus going Green, and have FUN all the while!
No meeting this Thursday — Go to Dialogue on Food Events instead!
No River Clean-Up Saturday — Too rainy Look for a reschedule from Patrick soon. Instead come to East Lake Farmer’s Market Saturday 7753 1st Avenue South (call for more details at 205-836-3201)
We will meet on Friday at 3 30 PM for a bit in the Green House Apartments (1025E) to briefly go over the “plan for October” — We will watch “Wall-E” afterwards, if people would like!
Sunday at 12 45 prepare to leave from the Norton Turnaround for the Sidewalk Film Festival screening of “Crude” — Showing at 1 15 PM : The most anticipated documentary out this year, exposing Exxon bigtime! Ginny and Anna Rose will be organizing the carpool, so have a great time without me (I will be in Atlanta for Yom Kippur)
Check out the Hilltop News for our enAct feature!
Lastly, after spending the afternoon yesterday with Frances Lappé, Dialogue speaker, author of 16 books, who went from lost in a bar with her children in 2000 to working and traveling around the world, collaborating with two now-Nobel Prize winners, working at MIT, she had this to say:
Did you know that enAct will be featured TWICE in the upcoming issue of the “Hilltop News“ get a copy and check out our articles!
Did you know that this week enAct will be finishing up a Green Board in the Caf, to replace the old “Napkin Board”. Look by the end of the week for a Green Calendar, Green Living Tips, News Articles, and more! Don’t worry, you will still have a folder to put in your own “Green Comments and Questions”!
September
20th
4:30 - 6 PM
enAct and the Green-Theme House will host a FREE “sneak-peak” of Ken Burns’ newest documentary The National Parks: America’s Best Idea at the Apartment Poolhouse — Food and refreshments will be provided but please show up on time!
All Week Long — 21st to the 25th
A “Dialogue on Food” Week hosted by Jeanne Jackson (enAct faculty advisor) and the Hess Center: Sounds Delicious!
FILMS, FREE LOCAL FOOD, PROVOCATIVE DISCUSSIONS ON WHAT’S ON OUR PLATE, CULTURAL AWARENESS EVENTS, AND MORE!
Over this summer, enAct has been busy. President Ben Tracy has drafted a One-Year Plan with ambitious Campus Impact Campaigns. This year enAct will attempt to bring everything from Fair Trade coffee to a recycling program with the Greek organizations, to local outdoor events (hikes and river-cleanups), an environmental radio talk show, environmental awareness rallies featuring conservation groups and political leaders, electricity competitions, prizes, parties, and much more!
To accomplish these ambitious tasks within a short amount of time, enAct has delegated itself into eleven Green Teams, led by Ben Tracy (Green Dorm and Fair Trade Teams), Chris Johnson (e-Talk Radio and CASE Political Action Teams), Patrick Welch (Greeks Going Green and Outdoor Adventure Team), Julia Guyton (Not for the Landfill Team), Emily Faust (Green Coalition Team), Ginny Coats (350 Climate Team), Anna Rose MacArthur (Green Tips and Green Board Team), and Sam Wilson (Turn Out the Lights Team). If you want to join enAct then join a Green Team at the meeting and become an “official member” of enAct (or e-mail enact@bsc.edu with your preferred team). Depending on which team you join you could be a writer, recycler, rivercleaner, activist, event planner, talk show host, and much more.
Well if you are interested in becoming engaged in the “trends” and “philosophies” behind this new movement, and whether you are a “blue”, “red”, “liberal”, or “conservative”, whether you read all the science and energy articles or none of them, enAct has a place for you! We are your central source for EDUCATION-CONNECTION-ACTION in all things “Green”
Climate Change: A Summery Summary and Winter Forecast
For all of you unfamiliar with the Climate Change issue and its evolving nature, this summer has been one of progress, excitement, prediction, and action.
Progress in that the United States Government has begun a legislative addressal of America’s biggest threat to energy, health, and national security–climate change. The American Clean Energy and Security Act, also known as the ACES bill or H.R. 2454. Some thought it was a good start, some were a bit disappointed, but public polls here and there show overwhelming support from American for clean energy, clean security, and clean jobs.
EIA (Energy Information Administration) analysis of climate bill finds 23 cents a day cost to families, massive retirement of dirty coal plants and 119 GW of new renewables by 2030 — plus a million barrels a day oil savings
We await its vote in Congress this fall, hopefully in time to display a domestic consensus (agreement on the homefront) to the world stage in Copenhagen this December (where we hope to reach a world-wide consensus).
Excitement when the United Nations’ top climate scientist, Rajendra Pachauri, voiced full support “as a human being” for the world-wide effort to reach 350 parts per million of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, therein neutralizing the effects of climate change. Read the full story here
Prediction that climate change will affect national security, written by Grist, regional conflicts as written by Foreign Policy Magazine, global security as written by the New York Times, and global health by Science Daily. The outlook, if the U.S., China, and the rest of the world don’t get to work (in December), may appear grim… so let’s fight for the most important bi-lateral relationship of our time!
Action has been taken by certain groups, with climate scientists at www.realclimate.org writing factual detailed analysis of the debate of technology, politics, and truth andwww.climateprogress.org providing opinionated views on all areas — Even attacking young activist groups such as Greenpeace and the Energy Action coalition , while James Fleming’s guest blogpost on the News Security Beat addressed a criticism of all the “new green innovations”. Definitely worth checking out.
For more on the “Winter Forecast” for Copenhagen check out www.350.org or enAct’s 350 Climate Team plan for the Fall (October 24th, set the date!).
On-Campus Green Updates:
No, we aren’t just taking your parking away… BSC is building a new dorm! A “Green” dorm, in fact. Lane Estes, the Vice President for Administration, has summed up the dorm below:
“The new residence hall will house 167 students in individual bedrooms within suites.
There will be two bathrooms per suite and each suite has a living room and kitchenette. The 65,000 square feet of space will consist of two buildings separated by a courtyard overlooking the Lake Park.”
Lane Estes, September 8th 2009 Vice President for Administration
205-226-4640
AND hopes to be in operation by next Fall! So what is so “Green” about this thing? Well it’s got:
*Building Orientation (to take advantage of optimal sun lighting) *Storm Water management *Daylighting to 75% of occupied space *increased insulation *Energy Star appliances the buildings *Locally manufactured brick veneer *Insulated Low-E glazing *Recycled content carpet squares *VRV HVAC System (Variable Refrigerant Volume) *Double-paned windows *Dual-Flow Toilets *Occupancy sensor lighting controls *Low VOC paints
And there may be more to come!
Now what does any of this mean and why should we have it? Well stay tuned for more analysis from enAct at www.enactbsc.org (click to our Green Dorm page under Campus Impact Campaigns).
FAIR TRADE is now available in the Caf
– Wayne Dumas, Aramark and BSC Dining Service Manager, has cooperated with enAct to implement Fair Trade Certified Tea and Chocolate. Ben Tracy, enAct President, who this summer interned for Green America’s Fair Trade Program, traveled to Nicaragua to study Fair Trade with the United Students for Fair Trade, and has recently signed on as their Southeast Coordinator has this to say about the accomplishment:
“I am so grateful for the summer I had. Fair Trade is not just about a product, a price, a brand, or being ‘ethical’, but rather it is a consciousness, a movement, and a global community. Defeating the consumer-producer binary and buying our products justly (from some of the hardest working people in the world) is one of healthiest things this world can work towards, and I am glad to see that BSC is taking the first step.”
Look for more FAIR TRADE products soon! Film screenings, FREE Fair Trade Coffee, Prizes, and more!
September Green Events, Prizes, Films, and Competitions
Outdoor Events:
THIS SATURDAY, September 12th at Red Mountain Park—Meet at 8 30 AM in the Norton Turn-Around to carpool e-mail Patrick at pdwelch@bsc.edu with any questions!
September 26th – Coalbridge Road on Five Mile Creek
October 10th –Brookside at Five Mile Creek
Recycling Events:
Stay tuned for Trash Audits, and recycling at Fraternity Row in the coming weeks – Questions? E-mail Julia at jaguyton@bsc.edu
General Awareness:
BSC will host a Dialogue on Food from September 22nd to the 24th, featuring tons of awesome speakers, awareness on What we eat, Why we eat it, and How it impacts our lives – contact Jeanne Jackson with any questions at jjackson@bsc.edu
OCTOBER WILL BE EXCITING! Fair Trade Month, a Climate Rally, Electricity Competition with awesome prizes, Film Screenings, and more!
The Green Screen
Still want to know more about food, and feel like sitting on your butt and watching a movie? Well make sure to check out this great article on Foodie Films by Tressa Eaton at SeriousEats.com – These films really go beyond the horrors of Food, Inc. to reveal a brighter future for what’s on our plate and in our gardens.
Bored with food, and thirsty for more Green Screens? Well the trailer for the Age of Stupid Movie makes me want to see this “future-age” almost non-animated “Wall-e-esque” film.
Want to know how to live with no impact on the environment? Well then the documentary No Impact Man might be for you
In the end, if you simply don’t have the time then check out this neat short piece by CurrenTV on an island that is entirely energy independent: Canary’s Eco-Island
Stay Sustainable,
The Warriors of enAct
We are warriors; We are leaders; We are stewards of our planet and innovators in a sustainable world; The time is now to engage in environmental issues and actively pursue change
Well… according to Bill Clinton (see attached YouTube Video at the end), our generation should stop thinking , and start DOING.
Again, what does this mean?
Well, it essentially means “stop thinking of the WHAT, and start thinking/doing the HOW.”
The WHAT of healthcare reform, global warming, education reform, and Middle East progress (the pillars, really, of social progress for this county) has already been figured out, beginning in the 90’s (we just need to go read about it) — So it is a waste of time for us, as young, energetic activists, to even think about this WHAT (although we should certainly know what it is).
The HOW, however, is another story. This is figured out in larger scales/movements, and on localized political-economic platforms. And we need to get behind it.
In terms of Birmingham-Southern, enAct, and the Southern Community at large…Any ideas?
Look for a reschedule from Patrick soon. 
“The new residence hall will house 167 students in individual bedrooms within suites. 
“I am so grateful for the summer I had. Fair Trade is not just about a product, a price, a brand, or being ‘ethical’, but rather it is a consciousness, a movement, and a global community. Defeating the consumer-producer binary and buying our products justly (from some of the hardest working people in the world) is one of healthiest things this world can work towards, and I am glad to see that BSC is taking the first step.”