[ Tuesday, January 31, 2012; 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm. ] On January 31st, there will be a meeting of the Pima County Food Systems Alliance, at Tucson Village Farm, 4210 N Campbell Ave

The Pima County Food Systems Alliance (PCFSA) is an open membership network comprised of a variety of groups and individuals—including but not limited to farmers, chefs, restaurants, schools, educators, youth, gardeners, researchers, food [...]

[ Tuesday, January 24, 2012; 9:00 am to 10:30 am. ] Green for All and The Southern Arizona Green for All Coalition (SAGAC) invite you to our first Tucson Meet and Greet information session.

Join us on January 24th from 9:00 A.M. to 10:30 A.M. to learn more about how Tucson is engaging in a new initiative to build a broad-based coalition to address our local issues [...]

Ten Good Things About a (Not So) Bad Year
Medea Benjamin, CommonDreams
I had the privilege of starting out the year witnessing, firsthand, the unfolding of the Egyptian revolution in Tahrir Square. I saw people who had been muzzled their entire lives, especially women, suddenly discovering their collective voice. Singing, chanting, demanding, creating. And that became the [...]

The 12 most hopeful trends to build on in 2012
Published by YES! Magazine on Sat, 12/31/2011
Original article: http://www.yesmagazine.org/blogs/sarah-van-gelder/12-most-hopeful-trends-to-build-on-in-2012
by Sarah van Gelder
Who would have thought that some young people camped out in lower Manhattan with cardboard signs, a few sharpies, some donated pizza, and a bunch of smart phones could change so much?
The viral spread of [...]

[ Monday, February 13, 2012; 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm. ] at DuVal Auditorium, University Medical Center, 1501 N Campbell Avenue

Sustainable Tucson’s February Meeting will be a special public lecture event in collaboration with the Tucson Audubon Society and the Community Water Coalition.

University of Arizona climate scientist Dr. Jonathan Overpeck will speak on Climate Change: What does it mean for Tucson and the Southwest?

Last year’s increase [...]

Sustainable Tucson’s statement of support for the Occupy Wall Street movement and Occupy Tucson
The mission of Sustainable Tucson is to create a community-wide network of people and organizations facilitating and accelerating Tucson’s transition to sustainability through education and collaborative action.
A sustainable community embodies social justice and economic justice as well as environmental justice. Our vision [...]

[ Monday, January 9, 2012; 5:30 pm to 8:00 pm. ] at Joel D. Valdez Main Library
101 N. Stone, Downtown (free lower level parking off Alameda St)

How do we “green” our homes and neighborhoods?
How do we work together and contribute to each other?
How do we prepare for climate change?
Join us on January 9th to learn of some exciting efforts now underway in your home town to [...]

[ Thursday, January 12, 2012; 5:30 pm to 8:00 pm. Thursday, February 9, 2012; 5:30 pm to 8:00 pm. Thursday, March 8, 2012; 5:30 pm to 8:00 pm. ] We’re starting a local Timebank for the Tucson region, and hosting Timebank community potluck & orientation meetings on the 2nd Thursday every month at the Tucson Ward 3 Office (Grant & Vine).

If you’re interested in joining us, please sign up at tucson.timebanks.org/user/register, and come to an orientation meeting.

We’ll also be at the next Sustainable Tucson [...]

Dreaming New Mexico has built a map of pragmatic and visionary solutions to create a more localized and green economy with greater local self-reliance and enhanced prosperity.
Peter Warshall is Co-Director of the Bioneers’ Dreaming New Mexico Project, and a world-renowned water steward, biodiversity and wildlife specialist, research scientist, conservationist, and environmental activist.

from 2011 September TEDx [...]

The following national plan for investing in the energy-efficiency of our buildings is a further evolution of  Ed Mazria’s 2009 Plan which Sustainable Tucson is suggesting as a model to develop a local green retrofit  stimulus program. See the Mazria Plan here:
 
$4B public-private program for energy efficiency planned
Jim Kuhnhenn The Associated Press , Arizona Daily [...]

Inside the Civano Project: A Case Study of Large-Scale Sustainable Neighborhood Development (Mcgraw-Hill’s Greensource Series) 2009
By C. Alan Nichols and Jason A. Laros
Forward by Sustainable Tucson — Co-Founder Bob Cook
Forward
The following story is about a group of people who recognized a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and took it upon themselves to reinvent the future and work for [...]

[ Thursday, December 1, 2011; 5:00 pm to 9:00 pm. Wednesday, December 7, 2011; 5:00 pm to 9:00 pm. Thursday, December 8, 2011; 12:30 pm to 4:30 pm. Saturday, December 10, 2011; 1:00 pm to 5:00 pm. ] Thursday, Dec. 1, at Corona Foothills Middle School, 16705 S. Houghton Rd., from 5 to 9 PM (and see comments below for further meetings at other locations)

From: Keith Willmarth <canduthis(at)toast.net>
Subject: Oppose the Rosemont Mine

I am sending this message to mobilize informed opposition to the proposed Rosemont Mine. Several organizations, in particular Save the Scenic [...]

[ Wednesday, November 30, 2011; 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm. ] On November 30th (this Wednesday) from 6-8 pm, there will be a large group meeting of the Pima County Food Systems Alliance (PCFSA) with a potluck at the Sam Lena Library (1607 S. 6th Ave, Tucson; call 520.594.5265 for directions)

The Agenda is as follows:

Welcome & Introduction (Nick) (5 min; 6:00-6:05)
Presentation by PCFSA Consultants (Bryn/Lewis) (25 min; 6:05-6:30)
Break & Get [...]

[ Monday, December 12, 2011; 5:30 pm to 8:00 pm. ] at Joel D. Valdez Main Library
101 N. Stone, Downtown (free lower level parking off Alameda St)

Activism, Advocacy, and Political Action are ramping up all over the world.  Tucson is no exception, and so Sustainable Tucson begins an exploration into the realm of political expression and action, and how we can use it to promote sustainability [...]

6 Burning Questions About the Violent Crackdowns on Occupations Around the Country
By Lynn Parramore, AlterNet Posted on November 15, 2011 http://www.alternet.org/story/153083/6_burning_questions_about_the_violent_crackdowns_on_occupations_around_the_country
Occurring without provocation, the Occupy crackdown gives the appearance of an orchestrated effort to thwart an emerging protest movement. Early morning Tuesday, in New York City, hundreds of police officers, many in riot gear, swept down on [...]

Sustainable Tucson comments on proposed Rosemont Mine
Sustainable Tucson is a non-profit, grass-roots organization that builds regional resilience and sustainability through awareness raising, community engagement and public/private partnerships. We recognize the need to focus on sustainability within the Sonoran bioregion.
The proposal by the Augusta Resources Corporation to develop a copper mine in the Santa Rita mountains [...]

By Caroline Dobuzinskis
 
(Ed Mazria’s  Revised One-Year, 4.5 Million-Jobs Investment Plan available here:)
 
With the job market crashing and a reported one in five mortgages underwater, the need for complex solutions to fix the US economy grows increasingly urgent. Ed Mazria, founder of the non-profit research and education organization Architecture 2030, has put forward a proposal to [...]

With half of all mortgaged homes “underwater” and owing more than their market value, housing prices continue to decline even after four years of collapsing prices. The ongoing global credit and debt crisis combined with declining house prices spell disaster for the home-building industry for at least the next decade. The escalating climate crisis also [...]

2012 Green Retrofit Economic Stimulus Proposal for Tucson
With half of all mortgaged homes “underwater” and owing more than their market value, housing prices continue to decline even after four years of collapsing prices. The ongoing global credit and debt crisis combined with declining house prices spell disaster for the home-building industry for at least the [...]

New recession threatens the globe as debt crisis grows
by Ambrose Evans-Pritchard – Telegraph  (UK)  published 11/10/11
Europe’s escalating debt crisis has cast a black shadow over the world’s fragile recovery, threatening to tip large parts of the global economy into a deep downturn and even outright recession.
The OECD’s index of leading indicators for China, India, Brazil, [...]

Sustainable Tucson founding coalition member, Tom Greco gives a presentation on his transformational model of economic change to the International Conference on Sustainability, Transition and Culture Change: Vision, Action, Leadership. This TED-like talk is video-streamed from the conference and is viewable here:
 
http://www.livestream.com/localfuture/video?clipId=pla_ade24121-d46d-4448-863c-babe129a604f

Buying Underwear, Along With the Whole Store
By AMY CORTESE
 
SARANAC LAKE, N.Y.
 
THE residents of Saranac Lake, a picturesque town in the Adirondacks, are a hardy lot — they have to be to withstand winter temperatures that can drop to 30 below zero. But since the local Ames department store went out of business in 2002 — [...]

[ Monday, November 14, 2011; 5:30 pm to 8:00 pm. Tuesday, November 22, 2011; 5:30 pm to 8:00 pm. ] We’re starting a local Timebank for the Tucson region.  If you’re interested in joining, please sign up at tucson.timebanks.org/user/register, and/or contact us by email – timetraders(at)sustainabletucson.org

We’ll be at the Sustainable Tucson General Meeting on Food Security on November 14 to give information about time banking and our local timebank, and help you sign up online.

We’re also hosting [...]

The Dark Side of the ‘Green’ City
By Andrew Ross
PHOENIX
The struggle to slow global warming will be won or lost in cities, which emit 80 percent of the world’s greenhouse gases. So “greening” the city is all the rage now. But if policy makers end up focusing only on those who can afford the low-carbon technologies [...]

Welcome to the Post-Growth Economy
“As humanity has chewed through the low-hanging fruit of our natural resources and has turned to lower-grade and more expensive ores and fuels, managers of the economy have attempted to keep growth going by piling up debt in the mistaken belief that it is money that makes the economy run rather [...]

(from The Vote Solar Initiative www.votesolar.org)
Friends,
Your elected utility regulators at the Arizona Corporation Commission (ACC) are considering cutting funding for the state’s solar programs. Can you help us urge the ACC to keep Arizona’s solar growth and job creation on track?
The ACC is currently reviewing the 2012 Renewable Energy Implementation Plans for three major [...]

[ Sunday, November 6, 2011; 11:30 am to 12:30 pm. ] Event: Occupy Tucson: Tar Sands Keystone XL Pipeline: Decision by Obama on behalf of the American People
Sunday, November 6, 11:30–12:30, followed by General Assembly meeting.
Amory Park, 221 S. 6th Ave. ??? moved to Veinte de Agosto Park at Church & Congress ???

This Sunday, exactly one year before the next presidential election, protesters plan to encircle the [...]

Published by Democracy Now! on Wed, 11/02/2011
Original article: http://www.democracynow.org/2011/11/1/move_your_money_campaign_grows_to
by Amy Goodman
As participants in the Occupy Wall Street movement continue protesting the record profits made by banks bailed out by taxpayer money, a group of grassroots activists are hitting America’s largest banks—including JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America and Wells Fargo—where it hurts most: the wallet. Dubbing [...]

How Germany became Europe’s green leader: A look at four decades of sustainable policymaking
by Ralph Buehler, Arne Jungjohann, Melissa Keeley, Michael Mehling

In Brief
Over the last 40 years, all levels of government in Germany have retooled policies to promote growth that is more environmentally sustainable. Germany’s experiences can provide useful lessons for the United States (and [...]

[ Monday, November 14, 2011; 5:30 pm to 8:00 pm. ] at  Joel D. Valdez Main Library
101 N. Stone, Downtown (free lower level parking off Alameda St)

FOOD SECURITY
What is it? … Do we have it? … What can we do about it?
Please join us for the next Sustainable Tucson General Meeting, where we will begin to tackle the issue of creating a secure food supply for [...]

Subject: #OccupyWallStreet and the #Climate Movement
From: organizers(at)350.org
Date: Fri, 7 Oct 2011 19:49:56 +0000
Dear friends,
I’m writing from New York City, where the Occupy Wall Street movement is taking off.
What started as a small group of young people with a vague call to action is evolving into something truly inspiring — and our crew at 350.org is [...]

[ Monday, October 10, 2011; 5:15 pm to 8:45 pm. ] Sustainable Tucson is offering a very special Book Sale fundraising event at our October  General Meeting. We have more than 150 titles, including some hard-to-find classics. The winter reading season is coming, so come and browse this rich collection of sustainability literature. You can shop with gifts in mind for particular friends, relatives, or colleagues [...]

[ Monday, September 26, 2011; 5:15 pm to 7:30 pm. ] иконописJoin an interactive community meeting to help shape the greater Tucson region’s efforts to achieve a sustainable water future. This meetings will present the results of the <Regional Water Assessment Task Force ThinkTank Report>. The meeting will be held at the Tucson Association of Realtors building, 2445 N. Tucson Blvd., Tucson.

The report was the result [...]

[ Saturday, September 24, 2011; 9:00 am to 11:00 am. ] We’re starting a local Tucson Timebank soon.  If you’re interested in joining, please pre-register below, and/or contact us by email – timetraders(at)sustainabletucson.org

We will also be at the Connect 2 Tucson – Moving Planet event on September 24 to meet people and give information about time banking.

What Is A Time Bank?
A TimeBank is a group of [...]

Massive default is best way to fix the economy
by Brett Arends – MarketWatch
Clearing away the debt is the only way forward
You want to fix this economic crisis? You want to put people back to work? You want to light a fire under the economy?
There’s a way to do it. Fast. And relatively simple. But [...]

The Automatic Earth is a unique, one-stop website which presents the world’s best current writing on the ongoing financial and economic crises. The following Primer lists key articles and analyses written by the Automatic Earth team.
Nicole Foss (aka Stoneleigh) writes:
It is time to undertake the yearly review and update of our primer guide, with a [...]

Sustainability is the capacity to continue a desired condition or process either social, ecological or both. Resiliency is the ability of a system to adjust its configuration and function under disturbance. Both concepts are important as we seek to ensure a sustainable built-environment and economy which can function under changing conditions in the emerging future…  read [...]

The peak oil crisis: reality on hold
by Tom Whipple
 
As much of America bakes in some of the highest temperatures ever recorded and while Washington argues interminably over taxes, budget cuts and debt caps, one is struck by the unreality of it all. When the House of Representatives votes to preserve the incandescent light bulb for [...]

Welcome to the Post-Growth Economy
by Richard Heinberg
 
During recent weeks, evidence has piled up that U.S. and European economies, far from recovering, are swirling back into recession. Failure of American politicians to address the federal debt crisis, the U.S. credit rating downgrade, and increasing fragility of European economies have investors running for the hills.
 
Concern is being [...]

[ Sunday, October 30, 2011 to Friday, November 4, 2011. ]  

October 30th – November 4, 2011 at the NS/S Conservation Center – 3584 E. River Road, Tucson, AZ

Join NS/S Executive Director Bill McDorman and special guests for a 6-day immersion into a new regional and sustainable seed production and distribution system. Bill is a 30 year veteran of the seed industry who has recently joined [...]

[ Monday, September 19, 2011; 5:30 pm to 7:30 pm. ] Monthly Community Series – Ideas, Conversation, Food – 3rd Monday of every Month

Sep. 19, 2011, 5:30-7:30p, Native Seeds/SEARCH Retail Store, 3061 N. Campbell Ave.

Guest Speaker, Coley Ward, Marketing Mgr., Food Conspiracy Cooperative, “What does a food cooperative do and why is it important?”

Door Prizes! See our new Seed Room Library!

For more information: www.nativeseeds.org

[ Monday, September 12, 2011; 6:30 pm; ] If you think the idea of a flat tax on income is a good idea because it sounds simple and fair, come to this forum and learn what it will really mean to Arizona taxpayers if it passes in 2012.  For example, the taxes on 8 out of 9 Arizonans will increase! This free event [...]

Learn about an important example of sustainable development in Egypt.
SEKEM, founded by Ibrahim Abouleish, winner of the Right Livelihood Award — the “Alternative Nobel”
 
Sekem: Born of the sun  5:17
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v-D23-OjmoM&feature=fvsr
 
Ibrahim Abouleish – Founder Sekem Group   9:58
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N2tmH1wK2YU
 
SEKEM English Part 1   9:51
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BXXpamUjYmg
 
SEKEM English Part 2   2:47
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gn7T0bz7sPg
 
Sekem website film
http://www.sekem.com/english/Filmen.aspx
 
Official SEKEM website
http://www.sekem.com

August 4th , 2011 from CNBC.com
 
Dow Sinks 500, Worst Day Since Dec. 2008
 
Stocks plunged sharply Thursday, with the Dow down more than 500 points, in its worst one-day drop since December 2008.
 
All three major averages tumbled into negative territory for the year as investors were rattled over an intensifying global economic slowdown and ahead of [...]

[ Monday, August 8, 2011; 5:45 pm to 8:00 pm. ] Sustainable Tucson General Meeting
Monday, August 8th,  5:45 – 8:00 pm
Joel D. Valdez Main Library 101 N. Stone
(free lower level parking – off Alameda St
This month’s General Meeting will continue our project on “Becoming a Desert Community” by presenting films relevant to desert natural buildings  and thriving desert communities.

Our Main film is    “First Earth: Uncompromising Ecological [...]

[ Saturday, June 11, 2011; 10:00 am to 11:30 am. ]  

The PRO Neighborhoods Newsletter informs us that:

The Community Food Bank’s Community Food Resource
Center will team up with the Pima County Library system in
June to present a series of workshops on Sustainability and
Home Food Production June 11th, 18th, 23rd and 25th. See details here.
The workshops are free and open to the public. Pre-registration
is not required. For [...]

The PRO Neighborhoods Newsletter informs us that:
 
The Community Food Bank’s Community Food Resource
Center will team up with the Pima County Library system in
June to present a series of workshops on Sustainability and
Home Food Production. The workshops are free and open to
the public. Pre-registration is not required. For questions or
information on this series, contact Leona Davis [...]

[ Tuesday, June 28, 2011; 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm. ] 320 N. Commerce Park Loop, Sentinel Building, Rillito/Sabino Room.

Growing a Monsoon Vegetable Garden. Learn how some simple techniques and carefully choosing delicious and desert-adapted varieties of corn, squash, beans, melons, and others can make your vegetable garden a success during this upcoming summer monsoon-rain season. The workshop will cover how to place your garden for [...]