Green Goodness: a Grounded Look at Being Green

From my inbox (thanks to WakeUp Wake County) to you, a recap on last week’s Triangle Transit forum:

TRANSIT FORUM HUGE SUCCESS!

The June 26 forum Transit: Is Wake County Ready for it? attracted almost 300 attendees, and the enthusiasm in the room was palpable!   Transit is an issue clearly gaining public support, and this event hopefully ignited the spark needed to bring a bold transit plan to our county and region.

Keynote speaker Carol Coletta CEOs for Cities, commented that our region has many assets that make a great city, minus one important component - transit. We risk losing what is great about our home if we fail to plan for future growth.  Transit and coordinated land use planning must be a priority for our community.

Other speakers talked about Charlotte’s success story, and the new proposal for regional transit recommended by the Special Transit Advisory Commission. Elected officials from across Wake County attended the event, as did representatives of community organizations, business leaders and local government staff. Forum panelists were engaging and explained what opportunities transit can provide for economic development and a better quality of life. To view tv press coverage, go to www.wakeupwakecounty.com.  WakeUP plans to work with community leaders and organizations to build public education and support for transit in Wake County and the Triangle.

COMMUNITY PARTNERS of the Forum:
Capital Group Sierra Club, Raleigh Wake Citizens Assoc., NC Conservation Network, Downtown Housing Improvement Inc, Society of Women Environmental Professionals, WTS-NC Triangle Chapter. 

I wish I had been there to round out that 300…

Sustainably yours,  Ashley Sue

From my inbox to you:

Transit:  Is Wake County ready for it?
A community forum on transit

Thursday, June 26, 2008
7 pm – 9:30 pm
NCSU McKimmon Center, 1101 Gorman Street, Raleigh, NC

Community Partner Host Groups:
Downtown Housing Improvement Corp., North Carolina Conservation Network, Raleigh-Wake Citizens Association, Sierra Club Capital Group, Society for Women Environmental Professionals, WakeUP Wake County, WTS NC Triangle Chapter

Forum Sponsors:
Community Leaders: City of Raleigh, Dean Debnam, Falcon Engineering, Triangle Community Foundation

Community Builders: Capitol Broadcasting Company, Carolina Asphalt Pavement Association, Carolina Cottage Company, Cherokee, NC Go!, PBS&J, Stewart Engineering

Community Supporters: Community United Church of Christ – Justice in a Changing Climate, Greg and Anita Sawhney Flynn, Anne S. Franklin, Kimley-Horn & Associates, The Louis Berger Group, Inc., North Carolina League of Municipalities, Stan Norwalk, Parsons Brinckerhoff, Mack Paul, Ralph Urban Development I, LLC, Josh and Anna Stein, Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Raleigh Social Action Committee, Carter Worthy, York Properties

We also would like to extend a special thanks to RTN and WRAL for taping and airing the forum.
 
Forum Agenda

Welcome and Overview     7 -7:10 pm
Karen Rindge, Chair, WakeUP Wake County
Joe Bryan, Chair, Wake Board of Commissioners

Keynote Address    7:10 – 7: 45 pm
“By Choice or by chance:  How can transit help us plan for a future of growth?”
Carol Coletta, CEO, CEO’s for Cities
Q&A: 7:45 – 8:00 pm

The Charlotte Transit Story    8:00 – 8:15 pm
Keith Parker, CEO, Charlotte Area Transit System
Introduction by Jonathan Parker, Sierra Club Capital Group
Q&A: 8:15 – 8:25 pm

SHORT BREAK  8:25 – 8:30 pm

Panel Discussion on Local Perspectives on Transit    8:30 – 9:25 pm
Community leaders respond with their perspective to questions related to the future of transit in the Triangle.

Moderator and introductory remarks:
Nina Szlosberg, board member, NCDOT, and NC 21st Century Transportation Commission

STAC overview:
John Hodges-Copple, Triangle J Council of Governments

Panel Participants:
Mary Ann Baldwin, Raleigh City Council
Matt Christensen, Division Vice President, KB Home
Courtney Crowder, SE Raleigh Assembly
Sig Hutchinson, Board Chair, Triangle Transit
Smedes York, Co-chair, Special Transit Advisory Commission
Kirsten Weeks, Cisco Systems

Closing Remarks    9:25 – 9:30 pm

Presenter Biographies
Carol Coletta is president and CEO of CEOs for Cities and host and producer of the nationally syndicated public radio show Smart City. Before moving to Chicago to head CEOs for Cities, she served as president of Coletta & Company in Memphis. In addition, she served as executive director of the Mayors’ Institute on City Design, a partnership of the National Endowment for the Arts, U.S. Conference of Mayors and American Architectural Foundation. Carol is a passionate advocate for cities, and she has devoted her life to answering the question: What makes cities succeed?

Keith Parker is the Director of Public Transit for the City of Charlotte and the Chief Executive Officer of the Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS). As one of the fastest growing transit systems in the country, CATS provides bus, paratransit, and light rail service to Charlotte area residents and visitors. Mr. Parker’s prior positions include Assistant City Manager for the City of Charlotte, Chief Operating Officer and Deputy Director of CATS, Chief Executive Officer for the Clark County Transit Authority in Vancouver, Washington, and Assistant General Manager for the Greater Richmond Transit Company in Richmond, Virginia. In 2004, Keith was recognized as a “40 Under 40” award winner by the Charlotte Business Journal as one of the region’s most promising young leaders.
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I very much wish I were going, but instead I’ll be in Chapel Hill at the MyNC.com launch party!

Sustainably yours, Ashley Sue

The wildfire last week had Raleigh (and other parts of the state) looking like Houston in the late 1980s.  My girlfriend from the VA beach area said it covered them last week as well.

The smoke lifted by Friday, but in case you missed it, were out of town, or just want to know what Raleigh could look like if we don’t pursue alternative fuels, here are some pics from last week as well as a rockstar live stream (live at the time) from my pal Wayne Sutton on his way into the station that day.  Read the rest of this entry »

Kiddies, it is again time to pull that bike out and get to Wooly the Bull in downtown Durham by 530 tomorrow night (first Thursday) for Critical Mass.

I can think of few better ways to engage in your community, engage your physical health and start the habit of biking where you can.

Check out this great youtube clip of one of last year’s Critical Mass rides in Durham.  This is awesome!

Sustainably yours,  Ashley Sue
BTW, This post was pre-produced due to the fact Green Grounded is vacationing a la mountain hiking this week.

Here in the Triangle, the housing market isn’t our biggest financial woe.  Energy costs is.

As the price of energy goes up incrementally every day, we are less concerned with foreclosures (though some do face this nightmare, we are significantly lower in foreclosures than the national average) and far more concerned with the cost of going to work.

My own commute, as hypocritical as it may seem, is often over 60 miles a day. Nope, I’m not willing to bike that. That’s a price I pay to live where is convenient to Marc’s work (Raleigh) and me work in the city that I love and dream of (Durham). The extra kicker is that Marc drives for a living sometimes (UPS).

My sister and I were on the phone last week and joked how we’re tag-teaming to kick the Ozone’s butt, letting it know we will all do our part to destroy it a quickly as possible. Joking is all we can do to rid ourselves of some of our guilt in an action so contrary to the lives we *want* to lead and the values our hearts carry.

Then we lightened up and agreed we do our part in other areas. We try to shop and eat responsibly. We try to keep the lights off, and to use CFL or LED lights where they make sense (don’t use them in closets… that doesn’t make sense). We wash dishes only in a full dishwasher and laundry in cold water most of the time.

We are big proponents of alternative energy ~ smart research and application of alternative energies ~ here at Green Grounded. Wind is one of our faves, so far, along with solar, and even switchgrass. And there are no definitive answers right now, but by God, the current situation is bleak and getting bleaker. At the current rate, some Triangle residents will have to choose between gas to get to work and healthy food for their families, or their rent, or Read the rest of this entry »

Get biking!! Especially Wednesday and Friday of this week!!

Sustainably yours, Ashley Sue!

A couple listservs and the Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee (BPAC) of Durham are publicizing this coming week is National Bike to Work Week. 

Monday, 12 May through Friday, 16 May, get your fanny on a bike to get where you have to go.  More info is at www.bikewalkdurham.org.  Also know that you can stop at Mad Hatter’s on Friday the 16th from 7 am - 9 am and get free food, coffee and prizes for cyclists!  REI will be there too handing out water bottles and 15% off coupons as well as giving free bike inspections! 

Do any of you bike to work?  My Grandma just brought me my AutoBike last week (I have a chronic phobia of changing gears), which I have never ridden despite having it for nine years.  I guess Marc and I will put some brakes and new tires on it and see how that goes.  But I will not be biking from Raleigh to Durham, I can say that now.

If only I had the ability to bike to work!

Sustainably yours, Ashley Sue

A press release today told me a giant shopping cart with a Chevy engine on it is back, racing around the Triangle this month.  It’s the “Got to Be NC Big Cart”, which I remember seeing at the 2007 N.C. State Fair.

This cart is showing off for the NC Dept of Ag “Got to Be NC” campaign, which is the first official marketing campaign of “Goodness Grows in North Carolina” (like the pretty sign at the Fairgrounds animates).

Apparently, this giant Chevy-powered cart is “an effort to support NC farmers and food producers by increasing consumer awareness about the availability and benefits of buying locally grown or produced foods”.

Is anyone else as confused by the sponsorship as I am?

What in the world does Chevy have to do with locally grown foods?  I mean, I know they have all their commercials about having the first hybrid SUV and longer running electric cars, but is this all about the money of sponsorship, or am I missing a link somewhere (which is possible)?

Just humored, and honestly, slightly annoyed.  But aren’t most of us “treehuggin’ liberals” considered cranky pants cynics anyhow? 

Well, in case you’re in need of seeing a gigundo shopping cart with a big honkin’ car engine, check it here and then.  If you want to question the sponsorship tie-in, email the NC Dept of Ag.

May 9 - Wal-Mart in Zebulon @ 11:00 am
May 12 - Durham Bulls @ 10:00 am
May 16 - Kroger in Apex @ 11:00 am
May 23 - Whole Foods in Raleigh @ 11:00 am
May 24 - Carolina Railhawks @ 4:00 pm
May 30 - Food Lion in Garner @ 11:00 am

Sustainably yours, Ashley Sue

I am going “there” to let you know how I feel about all this talk from Hillary Clinton and John McCain about a gas tax holiday.  I think it’s ridiculous.  Yep.  I went there.

We are within 24 hours of voting in the primary elections, and for the first time in ages, NC has an opinion that the entire nation actually cares to hear.  When’s the last time that happened, eh?

What I think much of the US fails to know about NC is that we are an incredibly complex little state.  A state that is much bigger than people give us credit for, with a tremendous population boom that has no end in sight.

On top of our tremendously growing population, we are a diverse people, mixed heavily of all different nationalities, backgrounds, religions and socio-economic standings. 

We have farmers fighting for their due credit, respect and compensation.  We have growing energy concerns and a couple major nuclear plants.  We have the hub of technology and education that is the Triangle and the hub of finance that is the Charlotte Metropolitan area.  We have a dying furniture and textile industry, leaving many babyboomers without job stability or adequate retirement. We have tremendous transportation issues, from whether and how to create efficient mass transit, to making roads safer for bicyclers, to severe droughts and infrastructure issues for such growth, to housing and building and bridge concerns, to reducing emissions and commute times for our residents. 

And those are just tidbits of all that NC is but has yet to be fully recognized for.

After hearing a variety of arguments in many directions, I do not see how having a gas tax holiday (if they could even get congress and the President to back it) is helping working-class Americans, as so many NC residents are.  Don’t bother thinking I am also “out of touch” or “elitist”.  I myself am from two working-class American families that have worked far too hard to have earned as little as they do.

I found this clip on 2sides2ron that really highlights why I think that supply and demand are all the evidence we need to see that a gas tax holiday is a short-term relief for a large-scale problem… and in reality, the bandage will only make the problem worse.

So get out there tomorrow and VOTE, no matter whether you agree with me or not… or don’t complain.  Don’t complain about immigration.  Don’t complain about our factories closing down and getting shipped overseas.  And don’t complain about how much you are paying at the pump.

So, as I mentioned previously (April 19th), Marc and I attended the Raleigh Planet Earth Celebration for Earth Day after I got home from Herbfest.

I also previously mentioned that Herbfest was actually awesome while Raleigh’s huge hoopla was… well, less than awesome.  And that’s being nice.  Unless you are under the age of 12.  Or you happen to have children under the age of 12.  Then, and only then, you may have found Raleigh’s event worth going to.

I nearly decided to scrap the video from the Raleigh event, but I might as well share my highlights from the event.  See for yourself and let me know if I’m overreacting.

Regardless, I think from here on out, I’ll go to Durham’s Earth Day Celebration.  It was only supposed to be from 12 - 6 pm, and I hear that they were having to FORCE people to leave at 7 pm!  Raleigh, on the otherhand, promised Rockstar fun for everyone from 11 - 7, and by 530, it was nothing but sloppy seconds.

As a seasoned manager once said, it’s better to under-promise and over-deliver than to promise the world and disappoint.  Take note of that, Raleigh.  I *won’t* be giving you a second shot next year, no matter whether my fave band is supposed to play or not (since you have them play at 4 pm!).