This is turning into a busy season for the sustainability movement in Cleveland.
Last week I was invited to join a green business round-table at CSU. The place was packed. It could have been because of the free pizza, but I think it had more to do with students being interested in turning their education in science and engineering into a green career. I was very enthusiastic to see so many fresh faces and young minds who thought they could make a living while helping to save the planet. Organized by Philomena M. Johnson, the Careers Coordinator at CSU. It is great to see so much interest by students and staff at Cleveland State, but even more impressive was the response from the speakers. The panel was huge, and there was simply not enough time for everyone to speak. Philomena confided in me that she couldn’t turn anyone down after they gratefully accepted her invitation. As someone who has had to coordinate this type of an event, I know how hard it is to get commitments, and even harder to get everyone to show. In this case, nearly everyone committed and showed, which only reflects on the regions desire to move forward in the green economy. Among the speakers were scientists, faculty, business owners, and even one student who co-organized and helped to create the green roof on the new rec center building at CSU!
I also attended a NE Ohio USGBC Chapter social gathering. Held at Stone Mad, I was delighted to see people from all industries and walks of life. Michelle Kilroy has done an excellent job of making our local affiliate of the USGBC something to be proud of. When I joined, I really didn’t see the benefits, as they were going through a serious transition. Since Michelle has taken over, however, it has gone from an affiliate to full chapter status. Furthermore, she has organized committees, created programs for continuing education credits, and started social and general informational sessions. If you are interested in sustainability in NE Ohio, then you should definitely join. It is always good to connect socially with like minded individuals, and the event at Stone Mad was perfect. The weather was beautiful, and the place was full. I ran into many of my colleagues and cohorts, and was really pleased to touch base with Jennifer Eaton from Tri-C. Colleges and universities have been fairly slow in their acceptance of the green movement as an area that needs to be addressed in the curriculum. Not so for Tri-C! They have an entire Green Academy and Center for Sustainability. This goes beyond the simple make our campus buildings greener approach, they are training the leaders of the sustainability movement. With courses that help prepare the workforce in things like renewable energy, they are going to have programming that will be a leader in our education system. For those vendors, buyers, and developers who are interested in Greenbuild (the yearly trade show of the USGBC), but cannot attend in December, Tri-C is going to offer a special chance to attend without attending. On January 23, 2010 Tri-C will be hosting a Greenbuild Re-Cap. This will be an all day conference featuring Greenbuild highlights, including breakout sessions, speakers and exhibits. At only one day and $85, this will be a great way to see the best of the show without spending the huge lay out of cash. To register call 216-987-2800, and the course number is 16053. Want to exhibit? Call 216-987-2859. For more information, contact Jennifer Eaton, the Program Manager: jennifer.eaton@tri-c.edu
Then there is the Sustainability Summit. Moving forward, many groups have formed the necessary components for next steps. During the summit, 20 key areas were created which we could use to move the green economy of Cleveland forward. Many groups have been going gung-ho to organize and create momentum. The Waste to Profit group, for example, has been working hard. One sub group of this group is the Wastipedia Center group. This is the group that I have been involved with. We have been meeting regularly since the summit and have even put our first application in for a Civic Innovation Lab grant. We did not get chosen to move forward, yet, but we did get valuable insight into moving forward and honing our executive summary to a really sharp focus. We are currently working on the economics of our ideas. Another sub group, the Zero Waste Initiative has also been meeting regularly. This group is on fire! They have organized and started a zero waste pledge drive. They are striving to get 50 local business to sign the pledge and become zero waste businesses. They already have a good start, join us here! They are also working on drafting public policy for a zero waste initiative for Cleveland. This would put us in good company with the likes of Seattle, Boulder, Austin and Oakland. The Green City Blue Lake blog has a great post on what this group is doing. In addition, the steering committee has been formed for next years sustainability summit. I was glad to be included in this group who will help make next year’s event even more successful than this year. We meet next week to begin the process.
Last week also marked the grand opening of the Evergreen Cooperative Laundry. While this project is exciting for its green values alone (dry cleaners and laundries have HUGE environmental impact), it is also a cooperative. This means that the workers have a stake in the company and are going to work hard to make it a success. Hopefully this is just the beginning of the co-op movement in Cleveland, as this type of business model makes more sense that working just to make someone else rich. This could change the way Clevelanders look at work and make them proud to be employed, because they are employed by a business they partially own.
Yes, the leaves are getting colorful. While the trees are displaying a bright mixture of reds, golds and oranges, Cleveland is pulling out it the green.
