NY helps 45,000 low income homes get insulated

New York expects to help more than 45,000 low-income households by blowing in insulation, sealing air leaks and installing energy-efficient lighting and appliances for free.

This program is expected to create  14,000 jobs statewide as demand for contractors rises.

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Sharing Baby Food Saved My Sanity

This is a story of a woman who wanted to make healthy food for her baby, and also wanted to sleep. She formed a group of like minded parent who each made a big batch of one kind of food and shared it with the group. This idea works for baby food, soup, casseroles, you name it. If anyone in the Santa Rosa area wants to try this, I'm in.

How do you create and host a local babyfood exchange?

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Rooftop to Tabletop: Urban Farming Spreads Roots

Eighteen feet above Chicago’s honking city traffic, Mike Repkin stands in a plot of buckwheat, delicate white flowers waving about his waist as an elevated train clatters past at eye level. From this unusual spot, Repkin is farming.

He grows great leafy bunches of kale and chard, stalks of wheat and oats, chubby potatoes, sweet strawberries, and even deep-rooted rhubarb. He grows Jerusalem artichokes for diabetics at the nearby community center and basil to sell at the farmer’s market across the street.

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Help Your Neighborhood Go Solar

Everyone want to add solar panels to their house but they are too expensive for many families. 1 Block Off the Grid (1BOG) is helping people like Michael Martinez use group purchasing power to reduce these costs, assisting neighborhoods all across the US to band together and go solar.

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Do-It-Yourself: Winter Break Camp Co-ops

The original article promotes a summer camp co-op, but since the kids will be out of school over the Winter Break this idea may just save a few of the Moms out there.

If you are looking for ways to save on childcare and day camp over the holiday, consider forming Holiday Camp Co-op through Care.com.  By creating your own day camp with other parents in your neighborhood, you can be certain that the care will be affordable, trustworthy, and provide unique learning experiences for your child.

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Builders of Hope - rebuilding homes, neighborhoods and lives

This story has it all, saving older houses from demolition, reducing waste at landfills, creating "green" homes, providing affordable housing and giving the homeless and recently incarcerated folks a job.

Watch the video, read the article and be inspired.

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San Francisco Recycling Best in Nation

The city of San Francisco managed to divert 72 percent of all recyclable material from the landfill, claiming the highest recycling rate of any city in the country, according to office of San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom. The percentage inches closer to the city’s goal of 75 percent landfill diversion by 2010 and zero waste by 2020.

Watch the video and

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Paint, brushes, and volunteers clean up graffiti and build communities

Twenty-six years ago, Jane Golden took to the streets of Philadelphia armed with paint, brushes, simple designs, and a small contingent of helpers. Her goal? Wipe out the city's ugly graffiti. Her weapon of choice? Murals.

Since 1984 she has put paintbrushes in the hands of more than 35,000 city kids. The program has brought art to prison inmates and drug addicts, as well as wary stoop sitters. The waiting list for murals to be painted here is 2,000 walls long. Artists far beyond Philly want in on the design work.

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Lone Ranger with Heavy Machinery

Tad Agoglia hasn't been to his Knoxville, Tenn., office in three years. That's because the 34-year-old and his four-man team constantly rush to disaster sites, where they open roads and provide other urgent services for emergency personnel.

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Meet Your Street

Psychology student Alex Loughlin is using Halloween as part of a nationwide campaign to encourage people to get to know their neighbours, the program is called Meet Your Street.

Alex is encouraging students to enter the Pass the Pumpkin competition as a way to meet their neighbours. The idea is for folks to buy and decorate a pumpkin - then knock on a neighbor's door in their street and pass it on to them as a Halloween treat, taking a picture which can be posted on Alex's Facebook page.

I wish I had found this link a few weeks ago, I would have posted it earlier.

Alex has another campaign "Pass a Pie". Make a pie and give it to your neighbor this holiday season

Read the article
http://optimistworld.com/Halloween-Pass-Pumpkin-community-bonding-initiative/

Video of Alex and  his mentor finalize  the details for the "pass a pie" program.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gn2LK0Llm0s.
I do have to warn you, they recommend passing a mince pie, and that is not my favorite, I am going to try this and I think I will stick with apple.

Post your comments on how we could participate in the "pass a pie" idea. How fun!!

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A Different Flavor of Food Truck

When I say food truck you may visualize tacos, coffee, or a burger. What about vegies and fruit?

Some clever entrepreneurs are  bringing farm fresh produce to those in both urban and rural areas. They are calling themselves Mobile Farm Trucks or Mobile Farmers’ Markets, and they don’t just cater to high-end shoppers, but provide low-income residents with affordable, fresh produce, grown using sustainable and/or organic methods.

For example, in New York City, the Holton Farms Mobile Farm Truck has taken to the streets with a progressive mobile farm stand, that will operate throughout New York City, to serve as the public and restaurant wholesale clients. "The Farm Truck allows us access to neighborhoods throughout the Five Boroughs without having to open a store.”

The Farm Truck is run by sustainable farmers who partner with other farms and artisan producers to bring other products to its members including ice cream, cheeses, breads, coffee, grains, and soaps. They are accepting Food Stamps and discounting their prices by 20 percent for low-income New Yorkers.

Last year, Maine’s Jordan Farm started a Mobile Farm Stand that travels to senior housing sites in South Portland and to Portland and Scarborough businesses. Using a renovated school bus, they offer the same fresh produce that is available at their farm stand in Cape Elizabeth.

My 2 cents:
Wouldn't it be great if at lunch and after work we could shop from the Mobile Farm Truck parked in the corporate parking lot. Saves time running to the market after work and supports local farmers.

To read the entire article
http://planetgreen.discovery.com/food-health/mobile-farm-trucks-bring-the-produce-to-the-people.html

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Wal-Mart buys more food from small local farms

I am always encouraged when a "good idea" makes it's way to a box store like Wal-Mart.

Wal-Mart is planning to double the sales of fresh produce from local farms in its U.S. stores by the end of 2015, this would lift local produce to 9 percent of total produce sales in the country.

Wal-Mart also said it will require that palm oil from sustainable sources be used in all of its private-label products by the end of 2015. The company sells hundreds of products that use palm oil. Concerns had been raised that some producers add to global warming by felling forests.

Environmentalists contend that using locally sourced agriculture and supporting small farms is one way to preserve local jobs and prevent dwindling farmland from being lost. It can also help reduce the use of resources such as fuel to transport food over long distances.

Wal-Mart joins a growing list of corporate and charitable organizations lending support to sustainable agriculture programs and small and local farmers.

I am not a big fan of Wal-Mart, but I think they got this one right. Since they are such a major force in the economy their efforts to support local farmers are to be applauded, now when they start offering health care to employees it will be even better.

Read the complete story here:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/39643023/ns/politics/

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The Sharing Exchange

A recycled Newspaper box has become a drop box where anyone can

1. take an object
2. leave an object
3. check back to see what is in there.

A simple idea with wonderful possibilites.

I wonder if I can put one in my front yard? I have been wanting to give away extra tomatoes - how fun to have a treasure box right outside your door.

Read more http://www.life-connected.com/2009/11/the-stranger-exchange/

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Time Banking

Time banking is a system where you  spend an hour doing something for somebody in your community. That hour goes into the Time Bank as a Time Dollar, then you have a Time dollar to spend on having someone doing something for you.

It's a simple idea, but it has powerful implications for folks who are trying to stretch their money, are unemployed or who have specific needs they can't afford to hire out.

If you want to save $$, have skills you are willing to share, and want to get a great deal, this is an idea for you.

How it works
http://www.timebanks.org/how-it-works.htm

Where do I start
http://www.timebanks.org/get-involved.htm

If you hear about a great idea, send me an email or post a comment at this site. Let's all get hooked on finding "ideas that work". lhemenway@santarosa.edu

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Tree Planting in San Francisco

Charlie Starbuck has helped to plant trees on the streets of San Francisco for 30 years. As an avid gardener I applaud Charlies efforts. Trees give me tremendous  satisfaction in my backyard and I am sure the trees Charlie has planted have brought great joy to San Franciscans. 

I admire his efforts to "spread the green" in an urban environment. Planting a tree is such a "hopeful" event.

Read about Charlie's efforts at

http://www.csmonitor.com/Environment/2010/0405/One-man-s-volunteer-effort-to-plant-trees-in-San-Francisco

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Shower to the People

Frank and Louise Fargo from Everett, Washington have a mobile home they use to offer showers to  homeless folks who are in need. How cool is that? Its a simple comfort, provided by generous hard working people.

Read about the Fargos at
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20100923/NEWS01/709239891/0/FRONTPAGE

How you can help

Donations of toiletries and new socks and underwear can be dropped off at Cascade View Presbyterian Church, 1030 E. Casino Road, Everett.

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