What Grows On in Rhode Island News

Clean Water Action & Earth Day

Here at Clean Water Action, we're eagerly preparing for many environment- and action-focused events. Below is a list of our April and May offerings (followed by details)... if you have questions about any of these events, please feel free to contact us at the office!

April 22: Earth in Jeo-Party 6-9pm @ Local 121, 121 Washington St., Providence
April 23: Peace on Earth Day 10-1pm @ 37 Portland St., Providence
April 27: Students in Action 10-2:30pm @ the RI Foundation, One Union Station in Providence
April 27: Earth Day at the State House 2:00-4:30pm State House, Smith St. Providence
April 29: Breakfast of Champions 9-11am @ the Aspray Boathouse at 1 East View Street, Pawtuxet Village, Warwick
May 11: Draw it Out 4-7pm @ RiverzEdge in 68 South Main St., Woonsocket

Earth in Jeo-Party
Our 4th Annual Earth in Jeo-Party event will be better than ever! We'll be celebrating the good work of environmental and social justice organizations in RI, complete with a visit from the Mayor, an earth-centered Jeopardy game, free pizza and desserts, and a killer raffle.Tickets are $10, and can be purchased at the door.
Friday, April 22, 6-9pm @ Local 121, 121 Washington St., Providence

Peace on Earth Day
Join us as we unite with community members, non-profits, and earth-lovers to clean an abandoned lot in Providence! We'll also have some community art stations, education stations, and free t-shirts for volunteers (printed by RiverzEdge Arts Project). Come at 10am if you'd like to be picking up trash alongside Providence's Mayor, Angel Tavares!
Saturday, April 23, 10-1pm @ 37 Portland St., Providence

Students in Action
Join students and youth from around the State of Rhode Island for the 2nd Annual Students in Action Summit at the Rhode Island Foundation. The conference will provide a roundtable for all to connect about environmental happenings, as well as a crash course on lobbying and the environmental issues that currently have emphasis in Rhode Island. After the conference, head to the State House to join the Environment Council of RI's Earth Day at the State House to talk to policymakers about the issues you just discussed.
Tuesday, April 27, 10am-2:30pm @ the RI Foundation, One Union Station in Providence

Earth Day at the State House
Featuring Watershed Counts – A Report on the Narragansett Bay Watershed followed by the Presentation of ECRI’s Legislative Agenda with Governor Chafee, Senator Sue Sosnowski, and Representative Art Handy. Tell your Legislator that you care about our state's environment, that you are paying attention, and that you vote! Environmentally conscious citizens from across the state will be converging at the State House to speak out in support of the environment. Organizers will be on hand to support you and help you find your State Senator and Representative. All Rhode Island individuals and groups are invited to attend.
Wednesday, April 27th 2:00-4:30pm State House, Smith St. Providence

Earth Day Breakfast of Champions
At the ninth annual Earth Day Breakfast of Champions, Clean Water Action and Ocean State Action will honor four of Rhode Island’s environmental leaders for their work on initiatives such as mercury pollution reduction, working with community groups and decision-makers to clean up toxic dump sites and former manufacturing sites, and establishing a non-toxic personal care product line.  Breakfast will be provided by The Dinner Dame. Suggested donation of $40 dollars per person and $15 for students/low income supports the work of Ocean State Action and Clean Water Action. Call (401) 331-6972 to RSVP or for more information.
Friday, April 29 9-11am @ the Aspray Boathouse at 1 East View Street, Pawtuxet Village, Warwick

Draw it Out
Recent legislation introduced at the statehouse would overturn RI's ban on incinerators. What would that mean for our wallets, lungs, and communities? Come to RiverzEdge Arts Project for a community discussion, some political activism opportunities, and a charcoal drawing lesson by one of the RiverzEdge youth! Drop in hours between 4 and 7pm.
Wednesday, May 11, 4-7pm @ RiverzEdge in 68 South Main St., Woonsocket

Hope to see you at one (or more!) events, and please recruit your friends!

Sheila Dormody, New England co-director
Clean Water Action
[email protected]
 
741 Westminster St.
Providence RI 02903
(401) 331-6972 

 
Clean Water Action is a national citizens' organization working for clean, safe and affordable water, prevention of health-threatening pollution, creation of environmentally-safe jobs and businesses, and empowerment of people to make democracy work.

Ed note: All these events are in What Grows On in RI

Outdoors in RI ~ Weekend Highlights ~ April 9-10, 2011

Find details about this weekend's highlights in What Grows On in Rhode Island!

{sorry, the links below don't work this time, but they all work on What Grows On in RI!}

Friday, April 8, 2011
		Date	Event	Town/City (RI)	Time
		4/8/2011	Ask Not What Your Country Can Feed You ~ Ask What You Can Feed Your Country	Providence	6:30pm
		4/8/2011	AMC ~ Annual Potluck Social for New/Current/Prospective Members	Providence	6:30pm
Saturday, April 9, 2011
		Date	Event	Town/City (RI)	Time
		4/9/2011	Eco-Depot ~ E-Waste Collection	Johnston	8am
		4/9/2011	2011 Native Plant Conference	North Kingstown	8am
		4/9/2011	AMC ~ Fence and Trail Work Project	Providence	9am
		4/9/2011	Buckeye Brook Coalition 14th Annual Earth Day Clean-Up Weekend Over 10 sites throughout Warwick!	Warwick	9am
		4/9/2011	Community Clean-Up	Providence	9am
		4/9/2011	Tree Planting	Providence	9am
		4/9/2011	RI Rose Society ~ Rose Garden Work Day	Providence	9:30am
		4/9/2011	RI Families in Nature hike	Providence	11am
Sunday, April 10, 2011
		Date	Event	Town/City (RI)	Time
		4/10/2011	9th Annual Imagine Walk and Family Fun Day for Autism	Warwick	9am
		4/10/2011	AMC ~ Hike with Dogs at Weetamoo Woods Trail	Tiverton	10am
		4/10/2011	Buckeye Brook Coalition 14th Annual Earth Day Clean-Up Weekend ~ Over 10 sites throughout Warwick!	Warwick	1pm

Is Your Earth/Arbor Day Event in What Grows On in Rhode Island?

What Grows On in Rhode Island has compiled the most comprehensive online Earth Day calendar for Rhode Island in 2011, with dozens of cleanups, celebrations, films, nature/outdoor activities, and tree plantings, but it is not complete. IS YOUR EVENT LISTED?

WHY ADD YOUR EVENT TO WHAT GROWS ON IN RHODE ISLAND?

• Hundreds of people see this calendar.
• Events listed here show up on ecoRI and several other websites automatically.
• What Grows On in RI email newsletter reaches more than one thousand interested Rhode Islanders.
• Events listed in the Earth Day/Arbor Day Calendar will be on twitter @provgardener and on Facebook.com/whatgrowsonri
• Listings are free and indexed for easy searching.
• The calendar is being widely promoted this month, giving your event more visibility.
• Show the world how many Rhode Islanders care about our state.
• The sum is greater than the parts.

CHECK TO SEE IF YOUR ORGANIZATION's EARTH DAY EVENTS ARE LISTED HERE. Sort by your town or organization to see if your events are listed. (The indexing may not be complete for organization, but the indexing by town/city is complete.)
http://www.whatgrowsonri.com/earth_day_arbor_day.html

N.B.: CHECK FIRST BEFORE ADDING! A couple of events have been added three times. Send me updates and corrections and I'll fix existing records.

IF YOUR EVENT IS MISSING, PLEASE ADD YOUR FREE LISTING HERE:
http://www.whatgrowsonri.com/add_event.html

It only takes a couple of minutes to fill out this form, and many hundreds of Rhode Islanders will notice your event if it is in the calendar. Many hands make light work! At the moment, I am the entire staff maintaining this calendar!

With the huge number of events to be listed at this time of year, it is important for each group to add their own events. If you just send an email to me and ask me to add a new event, I may not have time to add it. I will correct existing listings, though. If there are errors in current listings please let me know. [email protected].

Please forward this post to others who may be interested or better able to add their events to the RI EARTH DAY CALENDAR.

Thank you for what you are doing for Rhode Island's environment!

Cheers,

Sue Korté, Managing Editor
What Grows On in Rhode Island

Lessons Learned from 2010 Floods ~ March 24, 2011

Brown Center Investigates “What Have We Learned from the March 2010 Floods?”

9:00-10:20am on Thursday, March 24 at 135 Angell Street, Providence, RI

Everyone in Rhode Island remembers the pictures of the Warwick mall in the middle of a lake. The weather forecasters standing in a foot of water on I-95 as the major interstate was closed due to flooding. The helicopter footage of the Warwick and West Warwick wastewater treatments plant completely inundated with river water, and the “do not drink” orders from city officials.
 
After nearly two months of research and interviews, the Center for Environmental Studies at Brown is rolling out a series of six reports on “The March 2010 Floods: What Have We Learned?” 
 
“The floods revealed many ways we’re vulnerable to weather-related disasters, and opportunities to address some complex problems like how we handle storm water, zoning in floodplains, perverse incentives in insurance and disaster relief, and our emergency preparedness,” said Center Director Timmons Roberts.  
 
“The situation was ripe for chaos, miscommunication, and disaster,” said student, Charlene Kim.  “But with some luck, Rhode Island averted the worst.  No one died and, in the end, damage was limited to properties and the ecosystem.”
 
“It’s hard to say if anything has been learned long-term,” reflected Bridgette Black, another student. “I hope so, especially since serious rain events like last March are only going to become more frequent as climate change progresses.”
 
The Center is inviting the community to a panel discussion and presentation from 9:00-10:20am on Thursday, March 24 at 135 Angell Street on the Brown University campus. They hope to commemorate the work that has been done over the past year and to look a bit into the future. 
 
“The students interviewed a diverse range of distinguished community leaders and experts who all contributed unique insights into the floods’ causes, impacts, and long-term implications,” said Lauren Watka, a graduate student in the Center who supervised the project.
 
“Most people don’t realize that not every sector of the economy was negatively impacted by the floods,” said Kening Tan, “And Rhode Island, as a whole, has benefited from the federal funding for infrastructure improvements.”
 
The series of reports are scheduled to be released on the ProJo 7 to 7 blog and on the Center for Environmental Studies website starting Tuesday. One section will be published each day for the next week. They are:

• Tuesday, March 22-- The Upstream Environment: History of development and watershed change in the Pawtuxet
• Wednesday-- Zoning for Disasters? Zoning, Land-use Regulation, and Insurance in the Pawtuxet River Floodplain
• Thursday-- Emergency Management in RI: What does the Flood Tell Us About Our Preparedness?
• Friday-- The March 2010 Floods: Who Suffered Worst?
• Saturday-- Who Were the Winners?
• Sunday-- What Have We Learned?

The panelists on Thursday include:

• Karen Bradbury, who handled flood complaints at U.S. Senator Whitehouse's office;
• Ames Colt from the Bays, Rivers, and Watersheds Coordination Team;
• Jonathan Stone, Executive Director, and Rachel Calabro from Save the Bay; and
• Paul Salera, Director of Family Services and Housing, from West Bay Community Action.

The event is free and open to the public and will take place in Room 106, the Urban
Environmental Laboratory, 135 Angell St., Providence RI. There are parking meters and 2 hour parking around the neighborhood. Coffee, tea and cakes will be served.

Reminders ~ February 2011

Carbon Nation will be shown in several places over the next few days. The Chafee Award Deadline is February 16, and National Audubon has announced its Educator's Summer Workshop for July (apply now!)

There are lots of outdoor activities and workshops. Cures for cabin fever abound! Search the Calendar for interesting things to do and get out there!

BuildEnergy Early Bird Registration Ends ~ February 7, 2011

Register now, while early bird pricing is still in effect. Early bird ends February 7.
 
BuildingEnergy is an annual event organized by the Northeast Sustainable Energy Association (NESEA). It is the nation's oldest and largest regional conference for renewable energy and high performance building professionals, with participants from across the US and Europe. It will take place this year March 8-10, 2011, at the Seaport World Trade Center in Boston, MA.

NESEA RI Meeting Canceled Tonight ~ February 2, 2011

UPDATE - NESEA RI Event Tonight
 
We're canceling the event tonight but that doesn't mean you have to miss the early bird discount for NESEA's BuildingEnergy 2011 (BE11) - the industry leading conference on renewables, energy efficiency and whole systems thinking.

March 8-10 at the Boston Seaport World Trade Center

Sign up before rates go up next week.
 

You'll recognize a number of the BE11 speakers, exhibitors and organizers from NESEA RI events including:

• Paul Eldrenkamp - Byggmeister Inc (PassiveHaus)
• Chris Benedict – Architecture and Energy Limited, NY
• Joe Haskett/Peter Gill Case – Box Office
• Robert Leaver – New Commons
• Ken Payne – RI Office of Energy Resources
• Fred Unger – Heartwood Group
• John Jacobson – JTJ Investments
• Kurt Teichert – Brown University Environmental Studies
• Karina Lutz – People Power & Light
• Bob Chew – Alteris Renewables

Don’t miss this opportunity to advance your career by networking and learning from the best and the brightest in the industry.
 
If you have any questions, please let me know.  Hope to see you there!

Jo Lee
Green Machine PR
NESEA Board Member
http://www.greenmachinepr.com
401.338.5445

Apply for the John H. Chafee Conservation Leadership Award ~ Due by February 16, 2011

ECRI EDUCATION FUND APPLICATION FOR CHAFEE AWARD RECOGNITION
 
The Environment Council of Rhode Island Education Fund is honored to announce the application period for the John H. Chafee Conservation Leadership Awards for 2011.  Honoring the memory of the late Governor and US Senator for his dedication to preserving the environment, The ECRI Ed Fund honors 4 Rhode Island organizations each year for their work in improving the health of the Rhode Island environment. 

Recipients are selected by an independent panel of judges based on applications received from RI businesses, non profits, municipalities, and educational institutions that highlight specific projects and programs related to conservation.  Past winners include businesses that eliminated polluting discharges, recycling programs, renewable energy projects, sewage treatment facility upgrades, land conservation, and projects providing hands on environmental education for Rhode Island children. This list is not meant to be an all inclusive list. All projects that improve the health of the RI environment are encouraged to apply.

Applications are due at the Environment Council office by February 16, 2011 and in addition to being a part of this email may be found on the Environment Council website www.environmentcouncilri.org or obtained from the Environment Council via email at [email protected] or by calling 401-621-8048.

Ed Note: The past winners accomplished an impressive array of projects.

Reminders ~ Electoberfest October 6 and Bike Summit October 7, 2010

See What Grows On in Rhode Island! for info on Electoberfest and New England Bike Walk Summit.

Open Garden Day August 26, & Plant Providence Workshops September - November 2010

Saturday evening is the Open Garden Day and Harvest Party in Providence, organized by the Urban Agriculture Task Force, Plant Providence, and Southside Community Land Trust.

OPEN GARDEN DAY, 3-5 PM
Take a self-guided tour of 6 incredible community gardens! Visit 1 or all 6! Gardeners will be waiting for you at each gate, ready to show you around.

HARVEST POTLUCK, 5-7 PM
After the tour, head over to Potters Avenue Park at 155 Potters Ave. Bring a dish to share from the bounty of your garden! Bring a blanket! Here's your chance to celebrate the hard work of Providence's 700+ community gardeners.

Also check the What Grows On in RI Calendar for upcoming Plant Providence workshops. All are in Providence and are free to all.

• Food Preservation ~ Sept 1
• Extending the Season: Growing Winter Greens ~ Sept 11
• Fall Crops, Mulch, Putting Gardens to Bed, Sept 15 and repeated on Sept 18
• Gardening with Youth ~ Oct 2
• 3rd Annual Biggest Squash Contest ~ Oct 30
• Soil Testing Demo ~ Nov 3
• Raising Urban Chickens ~ Nov 13

By the way, Providence residents are urged to contact their city council person in support of the new chicken ordinance, which will be voted on by the Council twice, on Thursday September 2 and Thursday September 16. More information is available from Leo Pollock at Southside Community Land Trust (401-273-9419 x 28)