Green Empowerment

Article by Jazmin Ogle, one of my teammates for Green Empowerment
November 12, 2008

Green Empowerment sounds like it could be Portland's premier green revolution yoga "joint", a new stationary store specializing in recycled paper, or a second hand clothing shop on the corner of Main and 6th... but it's not. Green Empowerment is a narrow office with large green logos and even larger windows. Understated though it may be, the work they do is far from small. Green Empowerment is a not-for-profit organization located in our own downtown Portland. Green Empowerment partners with rural communities in the developing world to implement renewable energy and water systems that alleviate poverty and preserve the environment. Although they may be small, they are mighty!

Green Empowerment’s mission is what first attracted me to the organization. I am your average PSU senior studying international studies with focuses in development studies and the Latin America region, who wanted to do more. Dr. John Rueter, PSU Environmental Sciences, tracked me down for a very intriguing project; he needed an international development studies perspective on a very small, intimate study team traveling with Green Empowerment to remote villages in Nicaragua. As you can imagine, I jumped on the opportunity.

And what a unique opportunity. Our team will apply what we learn on our study tour towards a business model or innovative project which we will, in turn, apply towards Green Empowerment’s development work in the region. This project is funded by a generous grant from the National Collegiate Inventors and Innovators Alliance (NCIIA) which will not only enable us hard working students to gain academic credit but to also fly us to the region for next to nothing.

One of the great and unique things about this trip is the involvement of senior capstone students. I am in the unique position to double dip in both aspects of this trip; I am part of both the small study team as well as part of the capstone group. This capstone group will be responsible for writing a grant which will fund development projects.

These two groups will come together with professor Dr. John Rueter, ESR, and Jason Selwitz, Green Empowerment’s Director of Service Learning, for a study tour/service project trip to several villages in Nicaragua. During our trip, we will learn about and visit recently installed water systems, meet with community members, build solar cookers and improved cook stoves, help install a wind turbine demonstration and solar panels, as well as celebrate with the families of a community who will have electricity for the first time.

Having never seriously stepped outside of a social science academic bubble, I find myself suddenly surrounded by engineers, environmental science and business students. Our academic backgrounds, expertise and perspectives on development are varied but we are coming together with guidance from Green Empowerment to address development issues through sustainable renewable energy systems. Green Empowerment is our beginning so that we may empower ourselves, our international partners and our global community.

And now I empower you, dear reader, to join us in making our world a better place. If you are a PSU student interested in renewable energy systems, travel or innovative thinking, join us! NCIIA is a two year grant. This means that you can continue our work in 2009-2010! Spots on both the NCIIA study team and the Capstone team could be yours. If you are interested, touch base with Dr. Reuter in the Environmental Science Dept.

If you can't join us abroad but would like to help out, check out Willamette Weekly instead. Now on the internet and on a newsstand near you, it’s the Willamette Week Give Guide 2008. And guess who is in it for the first time among 55 select organizations? Green Empowerment! This means that you can donate online to Green Empowerment via the Give Guide website from November 12th through December 31st.

In recognition of your donation, the Willamette Week will send you a little something special in thanks. For just $25 dollars you can, not only help support Green Empowerment and our work in Nicaragua, but also receive a couple of TriMet bus tickets, a coupon for a loaf of Dave’s Killer Bread, a coffee drink at Peet’s, two scoops from Staccato Gelato, a stash tea bag, and a coupon good for a discount at Trebol restaurant. All that for your donation! That's less than making a donation to support Green Peace canvassers on campus. And you get gifts. As a college student, I know that it can be hard to give out hard-earned money, but the first $2,500 in donations to Green Empowerment will be matched! That means your contribution will have the biggest impact on the communities they reach. So think, if you cannot be there with us in person, be with us in spirit as we reach out to families in need.

For more information I encourage you to explore:

Willamette Weekly’s Give Guide 2008: https://www.giveguide.oaktree.com/
Green Empowerment: www.greenempowerment.org

Re-Energize the Northwest Notes

Heather's notes from Re-Energize the Northwest Summit Nov 14 - 16 in Seattle!

Online Organizing
You can embed maps in any site (see the contacts area of CCN site)
Student Sustainability Initiative at OSU has a google site
citizenspeak.org - create a campaign
ipetitions.com - $40 for a custom petition or free for a simple one
uncoverintelsecrets.blogspot.com

Working with Volunteers
Operation Green Beaver

Components of Delegation
1) tasks - are they meaningful? Let peole start their own projects but connect to a common vision
    Give titles to the individual tasks
2) Timing - set deadlines for things to be done.  How consequential is it? How important to the person?
3) Measures - how to quantify the task so people know what's expected of them

3 Components of Commitment
    1) Recognition
    2) accountability
    3) Feedback

Jefferson Smith has called our generation the "Coalition of the Irrationally Benevolent"

Volunteers who come to help should get almost as much recognition as the organizers.  Step back and allow them to get it.

Set up a structure of group accountability rather than having just one person blaming.

Check in during the process to make sure they know what's going on

Enabling conditions - structure, coaching/mentoring, context


Making a career out of social change
Switch off between working a higher paying position and volunteer-type work
become a "development director" and have side schools to offer organizations

Create green teams and terminology in job descriptions
Make sust. related terminology part of organization objectives
Do informaitonal interviews - just ask if you can come and hang out with the staff and tell them about yourself without a specific position in mind. If they don't want to, you probably don't want to work there anyway.
Require that you receive 3 weeks of vacation a year if you're in activism type stuff - because you're going to work more than 9-5


Equity in elementary education at rural and tribal schools
Alternative Spring break at UW
research state science standards
Pea Patch gardens
Read Last Child in the Woods
Hanna wants to teach outdoor education with kids
Send Kristiane the Story of Stuff
What are the mandatory minimums for environmental education in Oregon.
Look at the Multnomah educational service district (MESD)
James John Elementary School needs volunteers for projects.

LNG
nolng.net
longpollutes.org
Contact Dan Serres (503) 890-2441 or dserres@gmail.com
LNG working groups are needed on college campuses (would someone at PSU like to start this like Scott?)
January 13th - rally for renewable energy/no LNG
Eddie said Zach will organize a group to go to Salem

Coordinator position open

A coordinator position has opened up for the Environmental Club! Heather has decided to commit more time to her position in the Sustainability Office and as an ASPSU senator. We'll miss her - she'll still be involved, just not as a coordinator. Join Becca & PJ as a coordinator! If you are interested or you know someone else that you think would be good, email ecpsu@pdx.edu with your nomination (you can nominate yourself). The nomination process is open for 2 weeks. The position is paid, and the expectations are as follows. If you have questions, feel free to email us at the previous address. We will be discussing this at the next meeting Wedn, Nov 19, 5:45 pm, Smith 327.

Tasks automatically assigned to all coordinators:

• Organize 2 events above and beyond the default tasks per term (this may change to 1 event). For each event:
  
  • Email person responsible for webmail event info for weekly update 24 hours before newsletter is sent on Sunday
    
  • Maintain contact with those involved
    
  • Fill out necessary forms, expenditure forms, room requests, etc.
    
  • Turn in receipts within 48 hours after events to SALP office
    
  • Advertise to the public/members
  
  
• Attend 80% or more of officer & general meetings
  
  • Excused absences will not count against the 80% only if approved by the other coordinators
    
  • Excused absences must be called in 8 hours ahead of time to the other two coordinators
    
  • Over 15 minutes late to a meeting will be considered an unexcused absence
  
  
• Maintain a Google account
  
• Send new member info to coordinator in charge of membership list
  
• Give budget bookkeeper copies of receipts and/or expend requests
  
• Input budget transactions to Google doc “Env Club official budget”

Tasks to rotate amongst the coordinators:

• Plan and facilitate general meetings. Additionally:
  
  • Advertise (includes display case)
    
  • Prepare agenda
    
  • Maintain sign up sheet
  
  
• Notetaker and timekeeper in general meetings. Must post meeting minutes to Google documents. Must not be the same person as facilitator.
  
• Plan and facilitate coordinator meetings. Additionally:
  
  • Prepare agenda
  
  
• Notetaker and timekeeper in officer meetings. Must post meeting minutes to Google documents. Must not be the same person as facilitator.

Specifically for Heather's position:

• Possibly plan and facilitate Native Garden and work parties - ideally will be transferred to a Native Garden assistant
  
• Maintain contact with sustainability director - Heather or Noelle
  
• SALP liaison
  
  • Maintain communication with SALP advisor
    
  • Keep up on SALP updates and deadlines
    
  • Does not include filling out paperwork for other coordinators’ events
  
  
• Reserve & maintain display cases
  
• Maintain Facebook page & website blog

Expectations of all coordinators:

• Attendance policy as described above must be met
  
• Respond to emails & Google doc requests within reasonable time (preferably 48 hours)
  
• Organize 2 events each term (this may change to 1 event)
  
• Complete to-do list created at each officers’ meeting within chosen timeframe (include with minutes for reference)

Re-energize Northwest Summit and volunteer opportunities

Environmental Club members and supporters,
Is everybody surviving the rain and midterms? Our last meeting went well - if you missed it, here's a quick update! We settled on two issues to focus on:
-acquiring land on campus for a collective garden for students, with the long term goal of increasing garden access for students
-an expanded free store, possibly including book trades

If you're interested in being more involved in one of these, let me know, and I'll send you the notes from our last meeting! Also, if you're interested in working on something else, email me and we can bring it up at the next meeting.


Upcoming Events:
No Environmental Club meeting this Wednesday.
Next meeting is the following Wednesday, Nov 19 at 5:45 pm Smith rm 327

Re-energize the Northwest Summit
Friday evening, Nov 14 thru Sunday afternoon, Nov 16
Several members will be attending a Youth Climate Summit at the University of Washington where they will meet young people from across Washington and Oregon who are working to solve the climate crisis.

Workshops, trainings, discussion and planning sessions will all be offered on issues ranging from a fossil fuel free Northwest to campus community gardens.The summit is free and open to high school and college students and youth in general. Attendees will also learn how to effectively take part in the political world with briefings on important environmental legislation and lobby training.

The summit is sponsored by the Sierra Student Coalition (SSC) and the Sierra Club and hosted by the Cascade Climate Network.

Residence Hall Waste Sorts - call for help!
Volunteers needed for residence hall waste sorts! This is your chance for a hands-on experience examining PSU’s waste stream while contributing valuable help to the PSU Sustainability Department. As we prepare for Recyclemania 2009, these waste audits will provide a baseline for pitting dorms against each other in competitions to see who can best minimize their waste.

Taking Back the Tap: Why You Should Quit Your Bottled Water Habit
Did you know that PSU is ranked #1 in consumption of bottled water in the state of Oregon? We need to work to stop buying so much bottled water. Consider buying a reusable container if you don’t already have one. The PSU Bookstore sells reusable bottles in all kinds of stylish colors and designs. If you’d like to be involved in the Take Back the Tap Campaign to end bottled water consumption at PSU contact Liz at this email address: esimmons@pdx.edu

Visit the Take Back the Tap website for more information: http://takebackthetap.org

Other things:
Check out the Ecowiki for sustainability-related events, discussions, and news for campus, our community, and the nation.