GREENING GUILFORD

Group pushes for "No Child Left Inside"

President Bush and many educators have worked over the past several years to close the academic achievement gap between groups of students. Should his educational legacy also include closing the nature gap as well?

The American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) is gathering support for the No Child Left Inside Act, a federal bill that would offer states incentives to develop Environmental Literacy Plans and integrate environmental education across K-12 curricula. The No Child Left Inside Act aims to ensure that schools have the resources and training necessary to help the next generation understand and address the challenges of protecting the environment.

Connecting children with nature is a goal that is beginning to gain steam here in Greensboro. Last Saturday, about 30 people viewed a documentary at The HIVE in Glenwood about the disconnect between today's generation of children and nature and unstructured play.

Given that No Child Left Behind has been underfunded since its inception and criticized for faulty implementation, I'm not sure another federal law is the best approach toward this issue. However, a healthy dialogue about the children's lack of exposure to the outdoors is needed.

The Homegrown Revolution: Will it hit Greensboro?

I oscillate between striving for simplicity and security, flexibility and permanency. For more than a year my husband and I have been trying to decide whether to continue renting in Greensboro or make the commitment and try homeownership again.

But the beacon toward homeownership burns brightly when I see the work going on with these urban homesteaders in Pasadena, Calif. They show what is possible when you stop complaining about politicians and corporations and start making changes in your own life. This family's personal efforts to produce more of their own food and become energy independent has turned into a formal non-profit educational tool and a revolution. I want to join in.

Check out this video about the Homegrown Revolution:

I believe this spirit is catching on in Greensboro. Yesterday, I spoke to two Glenwood residents, one a teacher who has a community garden plot and is starting a garden in her backyard; the other who intends to microfarm in a neighbor's yard. I myself have a garden plot and some herbs growing for the first time on my apartment patio.

What if one out of every 10 homeowners in Greensboro had a 2008 version of a Victory Garden? What if apartment complexes provided space for residents to develop their green thumbs? Imagine the possibilities for both income generation, self-sufficiency and better health.

One might scoff at this idea and say, "Hey, it's just easier to buy one's food at a supermarket. If everyone gardened at home, imagine the possibilities for businesses to close and people to lose their jobs!"

My response is people are already losing their jobs due to global wage arbitrage and the consolidation of corporations. I believe that food reliant on fossil fuels for production and transportation is a system that is under stress now and people need an alternative.

I also believe that if you both provide the infrastructure and education on how to microfarm, more people will do it. It may take time, but it will happen. For example, as an apartment dweller I started gardening when a community garden opened up in Glenwood. The infrastructure provided an outlet for me to exercise my interest. It's kind of like the argument that people don't bike in Greensboro so why pay to expand bike lanes. Well, it's hard for people to bike with no lanes! Chicken and egg.

Shell Oil releases report on American energy security

Shell just released a report summing up the dialogue that occurred between company executives and the consumers, community groups and politicians in 50 cities over the past two years. The purpose of the tour was to better educate the public about the challenges the country will face in diversifying its energy portfolio and to find out what was on the minds of the average Sally and Steve.

So what did Shell learn? A few notable points:

Further along the coast, in the Southeast, we found a focus on education. Residents want the public to be more aware of the current energy situation -- and they also emphasized the need to educate elected officials. We found considerable support for increased access to domestic resources and greater refinery output, again balanced by a concern for safety and environmental protection. Clean coal and carbon sequestration were in the mix. We also heard a call for greater fuel efficiency through automotive technology improvements and Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards, commonly referred to as CAFE standards. Throughout the state of Florida, residents told us that they did not want, and would fight, new exploration and production off the Florida coast."

Shell stated in its report that while it does not buy the "peak oil" argument (instead believing in a plateau and then general decline of oil supplies), the company is concerned about unrealistic expectations of energy independence from the public:

"What was most frightening? The overwhelming disconnect between the perceptions of many consumers and the hard realities of the energy picture. This is the crux of our dilemma as a country in determining an energy path forward – the belief that there are easy answers that are readily available, when in reality the choices we have to make will not come easily or swiftly."

Obviously there is a disconnect in the political sphere when our Congressmen and women are busy talking about profits from greedy oil companies rather than engaging in a comprehensive public discussion about the changing energy environment we find ourselves in. We need to move from scapegoating to honestly assessing our predicament and devising appropriate strategies for adaptation.

USDA recalls already digested beef

Check out today's New York Times article about the U.S. Department of Agriculture issuing the nation's largest recall of ground beef (143 million pounds). It follows the airing of a scandalous undercover video showing workers abusing downed cows. How many times do you have to hear/see stuff like this before you just give up eating beef? 

Undriving in Washington

This is the cutest little thing: Undriver licenses that were issued in Ballard, Wash., last year as a way to discourage automobile dependency (part of a Sustainable Ballard initiative). One woman writes about her experience for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer.