by jboullion | Jan 22, 2009 | Uncategorized
Sustainable Dunn’s Web site recommends the Story of Stuff:
From its extraction through sale, use and disposal, all the stuff in our lives affects communities at home and abroad, yet most of this is hidden from view. The Story of Stuff is a 20-minute, fast-paced, fact-filled look at the underside of our production and consumption patterns. The Story of Stuff exposes the connections between a huge number of environmental and social issues, and calls us together to create a more sustainable and just world. It’ll teach you something, it’ll make you laugh, and it just may change the way you look at all the stuff in your life forever.
by jboullion | Jan 21, 2009 | Uncategorized
The brochure for the conference says:
A regional conference aimed at bringing local farmers, community leaders, businesses and institutions together to explore the increasing demand for local and organic food and the opportunity for Sustainable Community Development in Northern Wisconsin.
by jboullion | Jan 20, 2009 | Uncategorized
A media release issued by Natural Resources Consulting, Inc.:
NRC was awarded a grant to evaluate the potential impacts of wind energy development on migrating birds and bats in the Upper Mississippi River Valley. NRC will lead stakeholders from the wind energy industry, natural resource agencies, conservation groups, and research community in a series of workshops to consider migratory patterns and standardized methods to evaluate the potential impacts of wind energy facilities on migrating birds and bats.
The Upper Mississippi River Valley is recognized as a globally important bird migration corridor. Increasing interest in locating wind energy facilities along the Mississippi River corridor has created a need for objective and cost-effective methods to evaluate and mitigate potential impacts on migrating birds and bats. The workshops will bring together a diverse stakeholder group to identify research needs and objectives, build consensus on appropriate study design and methods, and expedite the process for the mutual benefit of resource agencies and wind developers.
“We are excited about this opportunity to discuss and reach a consensus on how to best evaluate migration behaviors in this part of Wisconsin” said Dave Siebert, Director of the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR) Office of Energy.
Louise Clemency, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), added, “The Service commends NRC’s proactive approach in addressing potential impacts to birds and bats from wind energy development within the Upper Mississippi River Valley.”
Funding for this project is made possible by a grant from the Focus on Energy “Environmental and Economic Research Program” (EERP), which supports the understanding of environmental and economic impacts of energy use.
Perhaps the results will be relevant to all wind projects in the Midwest.
by jboullion | Jan 19, 2009 | Uncategorized
From the home page of the Western Wisconsin Initiative for Sustainable Communities:
There have been a myriad of TNS [The Natural Step] study circles (approximately 15 to date) in the St. Croix River Valley, from River Falls to Hudson, Spring Valley, Amery, Osceola, St. Croix Falls, and beyond. We now have a TNS study circle umbrella and advocacy group emerging in the form of the Western Wisconsin Initiative for Sustainable Communities (WWISC) that has been developing in partnership with the SCISCD.
In mid-November 2008, the WWISC leadership group (Rainbow Barry, Stew Erickson, Peter Henry, Timm Johnson, John Kalmon, Tracey Mofle, Cader Olive, Jeff Peterson, and Rob Peterson, Chair) developed a mission of “Facilitating regional adoption of the TNS framework for sustainable communities through the exchange of information and the sharing of resources.”
The WWISC site includes a link to a summary table of western Wisconsin organizations and their activities.
by jboullion | Jan 16, 2009 | Uncategorized
From an announcement issued by the Wisconsin Farmers Union:
(January 16, 2009) – Grain and livestock farmers, agriculture professionals, government offices, policy makers, educators and bioenergy enthusiasts are invited to attend the Sustainable Bioenergy and Local Climate Change Solutions workshop at UW-River Falls Dairy Learning Center Classroom on January 30, 2009, beginning at 9:00 a.m.
The seminar is hosted by Wisconsin Farmers Union, Great Lakes Ag Energy, the Consortium for Education in Renewable Energy Technology (CERET), and UW-River Falls. Experts and leaders in the bioenergy field will present information on how to make and use biofuels in today’s changing global climate.
Featured presenters include: Sue Beitlich, WFU president, Jamie Derr of Kombi-Crush, LLC; Maria Redmond, biofuels specialist with the Wisconsin Office of Energy Independence; Dr. Ken Walz, chemistry instructor at Madison Area Technical College; Mike Clark past president of Prairiefire Biofuels Cooperative and current secretary of the Wisconsin Biodiesel Association; Robert Brylski, renewable energy instructor at Northeast Wisconsin Technical College; and Mark Toddy of Pepin Biotech, LLC.
More details in the workshop brochure.
