ROOTING DC 2012

ECO STUDIO hopes to see you there – we will be helping Healthy Living, Inc. provide cooking demonstrations.

ROOTING DC 2012

ECO STUDIO hopes to see you there – we will be helping Healthy Living, Inc. provide cooking demonstrations.

Another Eco Sighting in Takoma Park

The Franklin Apartment building at 7520 Maple Avenue in Takoma Park, Maryland installed these large, deep rectangular planters for residents to grow vegetables and flowers on the eastern edge of their huge parking lot.

Apartment Gardens

Daily Eco Sightings – sunrise shots in Takoma Park, Maryland

What a sunrise!!! – Or, is this a mural made of recycled/repurposed materials that otherwise might end up in a landfill? I saw a lot of ceramic tiles and glass on my last trip to Community Forklift….and I would love to see more of these murals throughout the area.  You can visit this mural at the Takoma Park Library at 101 Philadelphia Avenue, Takoma Park, Maryland.

Sunrise Recycled...a good name I think

Part 2 – with photos! – Takoma Park’s new Sculpture Trail

Here’s a follow-up to last week’s post (read that one for more details on the exciting project) after attending the unveiling ceremony
this past Sunday. The trail is easily accessible along Carroll Avenue, see
the downloadable trail map. Below, you’ll find photos of all 8 bike sculptures, although the map does not make reference to the one inside the park across from the TSSP food coop, only to the one on the exterior of the park.

not on map, located in B.Y. Morrison Park across from food coop

#7 “Wheels in the Sky” by Howard Connelly Design at Takoma Junction (across from coop)

#5 “A Musical Bike” by james Colwell at 7030 Carroll Avenue at Takoma Bicycle

#4 “Old town Shopper” by Richard Lorr at Old Takoma Clock Tower at Laurel & Carroll

#2 “Germinating Seed” by Richard Lorr at 6930 Carroll Avenue

#6 “The Amazing Alien Egg” by Alison Baker at 201 Ethan Allen Avenue at TPSS Co-op

#1 “Turtle” by Howard Connelly Design at 341 Cedar St, NW, DC at the Culture Shop

#3 “Mandala” by Robert Wertz at 6903 Laurel Avenue

Also I should note that #3 on the map was initially hard to find because I
was looking for it on the sidewalk, it is actually mounted on a wrought iron
fence along the sidewalk. Thanks and congratulations to all involved! If anyone
knows of any other recycled public art within the watershed, please let me know
- it’s a growing interest of mine.

Takoma Park’s exciting reCYCLE Art of Bike Project

Sometimes if I think enough about a great idea, someone else will actually do it for me!  Seriously, kudos to Laura Barclay and all involved.  I am very excited to see this project unfold in the Takoma Park community.  This article came from the Takoma Park Newsletter, June 2011 edition.

New sculptures made of bicycle parts will be rolling into Takoma Park this month, as the reCYCLE Art of the Bike Project is installed.

The concept, to create public art from mostly bicycle parts, is designed to highlight the art, bicycling and recycling culture of Takoma Park.  Seven sculptures were commissioned by the Old Takoma Business Association, and will be mounted along the sidewalks of Carroll Avenue to create a self-guided walking tour.  Once installed, the art will remain in place for five months, then be auctioned off to the public at the Takoma Park Street Festival on October 2nd.

Artists, who were chosen by a five-person jury of specialists inclucing artists, an engineer, a museum consultant and an historian, are mostly local.  They are sculptor Howard Connelly of Silver Spring (two sculptures), Montgomery College sculpture student Richard Lorr (two sculptures), Takoma Park artists Alison Baker and James Colwell (one sculpture each) and San Diego artist Robert Wertz.  reCYCLE is the brainchild of Takoma Park resident Laura Barclay, who works with the City to promote the Old Town business area.  Barclay saw a similar project while on vacation in Belfast, Maine and was inspired to bring it home.  With support from the Old Town Business Association, Barclay solicited funding, put out a call to artists, recruited a jury and obtained permits for public art.  The project is financed by grants from the Takoma Foundation and the City’s Small Community Grant Program, and with support from the Takoma Park Arts and Humanities Commission, the Takoma Park Silver Spring Co-op, Mark’s Kitchen, Pyramid Atlantic, Franca Brilliant and Seth Grimes as well as Heritage Building and Renovation and Leda Black.

Green Streets Green Jobs Grants Expand Green Infrastructure and Boost Local Economies for 10 Maryland Towns

(sharing from the Bay Trust website)   The Chesapeake Bay Trust, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Maryland Department of Natural Resources and the Maryland Department of the Environment announced the first-ever grant recipients of the collaborative Green Streets-Green Jobs Initiative, a program designed to promote green streets, urban green infrastructure, and green jobs as part of an overall community or watershed plan.  In total, 10 cities and towns were awarded $25,000-$35,000 grants to fund the planning and design of green infrastructure projects within the Chesapeake Bay and Anacostia watersheds. This announcement was made at the start of the EPA’s Green Streets-Green Jobs Forum, a two-day event in support of innovative, green infrastructure practices to restore urban waters, promote renewable energy and protect public health and safety.  

“The Green Streets-Green Jobs Initiative is a winner because it combines the expertise and resources of federal and state governments with the know-how of local communities to improve our environment by building green streets that reduce urban runoff,” said Senator Ben Cardin, a member of the Environment and Public Works Committee.  “The communities that have been selected to receive these grants will be able to make significant upgrades to the urban landscape.”

Senator Cardin joined top officials from the EPA, Maryland’s Department of Natural Resources and Department of the Environment, local and regional technical experts and mayors from the selected towns to discuss plans for green street/green infrastructure projects that reduce polluted runoff and create green jobs in urban areas. The Green Streets-Green Jobs awardees include: BaltimoreCity, College Park, University Park, Capitol Heights, Bladensburg, Edmonston, Mount Rainier, Hyattsville, Cottage City and Colmar Manor. 

“Green infrastructure projects offer more cost-effective approaches to water protection while at the same time making our communities cleaner, healthier and more desirable places to live and work,” said EPA Regional Administrator Shawn M. Garvin.  “By managing rainwater as a resource instead of a problem, communities can save $27 for every $1 invested in green infrastructure.”

The Green Streets-Green Jobs Initiative, administered through the Trust’s Watershed Assistance Grant Program, supports the implementation of President Obama’s Chesapeake Bay Protection and Restoration Executive Order through the creation of “green streets.” A “green street” is a street that 1) minimizes impact through an approach that incorporates water quality, energy-efficiency, and other environmental best practices; 2) integrates a system of stormwater management to increase infiltration and/or reduce flow; 3) reduces the amount of water that is piped directly into streams; 4) makes the best use of the street tree canopy for stormwater interception, temperature mitigation and air quality improvement; 5) encourages pedestrian and/or bicycle access; and 5) provides an aesthetic advantage to a community.

“These mayors and towns are shining examples of community stewardship efforts that are taking hold across Maryland and across the broader Chesapeake Baywatershed,” said Allen Hance, Executive Director of the Chesapeake Bay Trust. “The Trust looks forward to providing continued support for innovative green infrastructure projects that link together three outcomes sought by all communities: improved livability, a strengthened local economy and a healthier environment.”

A New Green Job Really Helps the Green Economy

As someone who has been seeking a new green professional position, I want to extend as much support to anyone else out there who might be looking as well.  Please contact me with any additional resources to share on www.ecostudio.info.

Local Green Collar Training Programs

A crucial starting point for the rejuvenation of our economy and getting many more in our workforce back to work, not to mention in jobs that create a sense of tremendous contribution, is to focus on building rapid, large-scale deployment of energy independence and employment training to support the green-energy industry in five key areas: 

• Energy Efficiency (50% savings in five years)
• Solar and wind (achieving an all-renewable electric grid)
• Plug-in electric hybrids-PHEVs- (to make up at least 20% of the U.S. fleet in ten years)
• Smart grid (rebuilding our aging electric grid with a smart grid that makes it easy to scale up energy efficiency and renewables)
• New national and state electric utility regulation and building codes that make it easy to scale up with efficiency, renewables, and PHEVs.

Green DMV is non-profit organization seeking to promote sustainability and green jobs in low-income communities across America as a pathway out of poverty. The organization was founded and self-funded by cofounders, Philip O’Neal and Rhon Hayes in 2007. The initial focus is our nation’s capital and the Washington Metropolitan Area (Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia – DMV) to help influence policy change in the region that will spur sustainable green job growth and equitable environmental policies. Green DMV is fueled by a passion to ensure that the green economy is inclusive of all people.

Mayor Vincent C. Gray’s Green Zone Environmental Program (GZEP) is one of the largest green jobs training program for youth in the nation. GZEP introduces District youth, age 14 to 21, to the green job labor market, exposing them to numerous exciting career paths and offers academic enrichment opportunities. The program’s primary goal is to afford young adults an opportunity to develop the skills and work ethic necessary to succeed in the workplace. District youth workers participating in GZEP work on projects that have immeasurable sustainability benefits on the District.

The Green Builders Council of DC has embarked on the process of taking unprecedented steps to see that workers in DC are skilled in eco-friendly modes of construction. Through the creation and management of one of the city’s largest green jobs training programs, the development of the nation’s first green training module for contruction workers, and a unique weatherization program for DC youth, GBCDC is working to ensure ‘green building’ goes hand-in-hand with job creation and the strengthening of our local economy.

The BlueGreen Alliance is a national, strategic partnership between labor unions and environmental organizations dedicated to expanding the number and quality of jobs in the green economy.  The Alliance organizes the annual national conference GOOD JOBS GREEN JOBS

Listed below are some of the most commonly utilized sites for finding broader employment within areas of renewable energy, conservation, green building, fair trade and other areas of sustainability.

Business for Social Responsibility, a group that helps companies navigate sustainability issues, is a good place to start.  SustainableBusiness.com is an excellent source for employment because it broadly covers all sectors that impact sustainability:  government, renewable energy, efficiency, green building, green investing, and organics. Others are treehugger.com  and ecojobs.com, which include a broad array of positions from conservation to engineering to international opportunities.  The Fair Trade Federation Job Board lists opportunities with Fair Trade businesses within the FTF network of over 250 members.  Idealist.org focuses on the non-profit sector. Greenjobs.com focuses on the renewable fuel industry.  GreenBiz.com, Great Green Careers, Green Dream Jobs from Sustainable Business.com, Sustain Lane and GreenJobs.net also contain employment boards.  

The Green Collar Blog lists RECRUITERS who focus on social or environmental responsibility, they are also developing a list of green job training and education programs for later in 2011.

(below: Eco Studio offers a page consolidating these links – easy to share with a friend)

 Find a Green Job

And, since I am also looking for an incredible green job -  please extend my RESUME

to someone who might be interested in a stellar green and entrepreneurial professional.

Ayrshire’s Extendable Farm Business Model

Chicken Pot Pie at Hunter's Head Tavern

Driving through the surroundings of Middleburg, Virginia (Fauquier County) to reach this weekend’s local foodie destination in Upperville,  fox hunting is apparently the sport of choice in the area deemed “Virginia H-U-N-T country”.  The locals’ affinity for English things is also noticed in the red telephone booths typical of London in front of several businesses, including Hunter’s Head Tavern (9048 John S. Mosby Hwy).  As we were parking the car, a wave of British patrons exited the tavern, and I now wondered if these phone booths were actually some sort of Dr. Who travel vessel.  Of course, the fare on the tavern’s menu was also typical British.  While the jaw-dropping surrounding countryside and charming streets and businesses of both Middleburg and Upperville extended the trip into late afternoon, the tavern was our first stop  since I came to explore how it was integrated into an extendable local sustainable farm business model. 

Ayrshire Farm,  located in Upperville at 21846 Trappe Road, is a fully-certified organic, humane and USDA-inspected farm, raising heritage breed livestock.  The farm itself is spectacular and the original plantation house dates back to 1821.  Ayrshire Farm also owns and supplies its farm products to three local retail establishments: Home Farm Store, a traditional Butcher Shop, in what appears to be a former bank building, sells organic, local, and other specialty foods with a loft old-fashioned soda bar, in Middleburg, Virginia, Hunter’s Head Tavern in Upperville, Virginia and Home Farm Catering Company offering catering for private on-farm (a spectacular dreamy site), tavern or off-site events.  Ayrshire Farm products are also available at the Inn of Little Washington and Nora’s Restaurant. 

Hunter’s Head Tavern is a deservedly popular neighborhood spot and an authentic English Pub that serves pub fare, fine dining cuisine, and mouthwatering homemade desserts. At Hunter’s Head Tavern, you can experience organic local farm meats and produce harvested from neighboring Ayrshire Farm.  From burgers and bangers, to roasted chickens, to veal and pork chops, Hunter’s Head Tavern provides a unique opportunity for customers to have confidence that their meals come from a farm dedicated to maintaining the health and well being of its animals.  After almost 100 years as a tenant house, antique shop, and office, current owner Sandy Lerner’s efforts in 1997 to open a restaurant in Upperville were repeatedly blocked, particularly by the monied horsy set. Consequently, fox hunters are not allowed to cross her property, and her disdain for them is reflected in the restaurant’s name: Hunter’s Head.

Wonderful domestic and imported beers are available on tap, along with an excellent wine selection including local and organic wines. Five different dining rooms and extensive outdoor seating during the summer season, provide a dynamic dining experience including family-friendly, romantic, and neighborhood pub-style.  The Tavern also accommodates private parties.

There are some striking original remnants, such as fireplaces, walls and mantles, of the 1750s log cabin built by Scotsman Steven McPherson, known as the Old Carr House for a second-generation Irishman Joseph Carr who bought the farm and cabin and later opened a general store as well as founded Upperville.  The ordering system is true British tavern style. Guests place an order at the bar’s open Dutch door and then take a numbered wooden spoon to be placed in the empty wine bottle sitting on the table; servers look for your number and deliver your order directly to your table in one of the atmospheric tavern rooms or outside on the terrace, in good weather. 

The Tavern continues its British heritage by serving organic Scottish Highland cattle and Gloucestershire Old Spot hogs. It stews its beef in Guinness, makes its Welsh rarebit with English Cheddars, and lays out tea midweek and seasonal custard year-round. My dining partner enjoyed the bangers and potatoes, a very generous portion that I was happy to share since my puff pastry-topped chicken pot pie turned out to be the smallest entree on the menu. Chips here, of course, mean french fries.  It should be pointed out that despite the name, Hunter’s Head is not only carnivore country. Lighter and vegetarian options include salmon and tuna, a variety of salads and seafood Caesars as well as vegetarian versions of either the pot or shepherd’s pie.  I will definitely be back to explore more of the menu!

Open for dinner daily; afternoon tea Tue-Wed-Thu;
Lunch Tues-Sunday; 540-592-9020
Outdoor seating available in good weather.
http://www.huntersheadtavern.com/

A Conference Not to be Missed

The 2011 Good Jobs, Green Jobs National Conference takes place February 8-10 at the Washington Marriott Wardman Park Hotel in Washington, D.C. The Conference is the leading forum for sharing ideas and strategies for building a green economy that creates good jobs, reduces global warming and confronts other environmental problems, and secures America’s economic and environmental future. The 2010 Conference brought together nearly 3,000 people from across the country.

This year’s workshops represent important concentrations in building the green economy, including: Green Infrastructure and Transportation; State and Local Initiatives and Partnerships; Workforce, Economic Development and Youth Education; Emerging Green Sectors: Recycling, Chemicals, Water, Agriculture and Other Growing Industries; Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency; Business, Investments and New Markets; and Clean Energy Manufacturing. Speakers include EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, White House Council on Environmental Quality Chair Nancy Sutley, U.S. Congressman Keith Ellison, National Economic Council Director Gene Sperling, and Vice President Biden’s Chief Economic and Economic Advisor Jared Bernstein. For more, view the agenda.

Registration:   $175. Starting Monday (today), you can register for the Conference on-site only on a first-come, first-served basis. Registration will be held on the Lobby Level, adjacent to the Marriot Ballroom, Monday from 3:00 – 9:00 p.m., Tuesday from 7:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m., and Wednesday from 7:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Where:  Washington Marriott Wardman Park Hotel in DC

When:   Tuesday – Thursday

For more information:  www.greenjobsconference.org/