Category Archives: Uncategorized

Protesting the Center Formerly Known as “Delta”

People unhappy with the new name for the Delta Center, home of Utah’s Jazz Basketball Team, gathered in front of the building tonight to protest the recent name change. “Energy Solutions Arena” is the new name of the facility. Many Utahns are unhappy with a Utah icon being named after a nuclear waste facility.

Is this what Utah really wants to be known for?

HEAL Utah organized tonight’s event. Durign the press conference, a boycott was been called against all enterprises of Larry H. Miller, Jazz owner and supposed pillar of the community.

Here is a list of Miller’s holdings: Continue reading

Gift Giving for the Gardener in your life

Gift Certificate

Seeds of Change has a lot of gift giving ideas for the gardener in your life. Consider giving a gift certificate or other item from the Seeds of Change store.

New York Town Adopts Sweatfree Policy

Nov 16, 2006 (New York State Labor-Religion Coalition) — NEW PALTZ ADOPTS SWEATFREE POLICY

On November 1, 2006 the Village Board of New Paltz, New York (pop. 6,000+) adopted a new sweatfree purchasing policy for apparel and textiles as allowed by New York state law. The Village of New Paltz has some of the oldest houses in North America and was founded in 1678. Its Village Board is led by two Green Party activists, Mayor Jason West and Deputy Mayor Rebecca Rotzler- a National Green Party Co-Chair who also led the effort to pass the sweatfree ordinance.

New Paltz’s new policy establishes a sweatfree advisory committee staffed by the Village Treasurer to implement the policy. This Advisory Committee is also charged to recommend possible membership in the new national sweatfree consortium. Apparel and textile contract information will be made public and the outside parties will be allowed to comment on companies. Contractors and subcontractors who violate the policy, such as being untruthful about actual labor standards, can be fined $5,000. New Paltz joins Suffolk County, Long Island as the second New York jurisdiction to successfully enact a sweatfree ordinance. New York City enacted a sweatfree law in 2001 that was opposed successfully to the New York Supreme Court by Presidential Candidate and former Mayor Rudolph Giuliani.

SweatFree Purchasing Policies

To see which of the following policies require factory disclosure, go here.

Sweatfree procurement policies adopted in the United States as of October 2006:
States: 6
Cities: 35
Counties: 10
Dioceses: 4
School Districts: 117
Individual High Schools: 3
Total: 174

CALIFORNIA
State of California
City of Los Angeles – [Report, Ordinance]
Los Angeles Unified School District – [Report, Motion]
Port of Los Angeles
City of San Francisco – [Sweatfree Ordinance, Fair Trade, Organic]
Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District

COLORADO
Jefferson County Open School

ILLINOIS
State of Illinois

Oak Park and River Forest High School

MAINE
State of Maine [2001 law, 2006 law]
City of Bangor
City of Biddeford
City of Orono
City of Scarborough

City of Portland Public Schools
City of Bangor Public Schools

MASSACHUSETTS
City of Boston
City of Fall River

MINNESOTA
City of Minneapolis
Minneapolis Public School District
Saint Paul Public School District
Stillwater Public School District

NEW JERSEY
State of New Jersey
Archdiocese of Newark
City of Camden
City of Clifton
City of Deptford
Township of East Brunswick
City of Neptune
City of Newark
City of Redbank
Bergen County
Cumberland County
Essex County
Gloucester County
Hudson County
Mercer County
Middlesex County
Passaic County

NEW MEXICO
City of Albuquerque

NEW YORK
State of New York – [language renewed in 2006, Apparel, Sports Equipment]
Albany Diocese
Buffalo Diocese
Rockville (Long Island) Diocese
Village of New Paltz

109 school districts, including:
Albany City School District
Averill Park Central School District
Brentwood Union Free School District
Berne-Knox-Westerlo Central School District
Bethlehem School District
Central Islip United Free School District
Edinburg Common School District
Guilderland Central School District
Jordan Elbridge Central School District
Lansingburgh Central School District
Newburgh City School District
North Colonie Central School District
Northport-East Northport United Free School District
Patchogue-Medford United Free School District
Rondout Valley Central School District
South Colonie Central School District
South Glens Falls Central School District
Three Villages Central School District
Troy City School District
Voorheesville Central School District

NORTH CAROLINA
City of Durham

OHIO
City of Bedford Heights
City of Berea
City of Brookpark
City of Elyria
City of Fairview Park
City of Lakewood
City of North Olmstead
City of Parma
City of Toledo

Cuyahoga County

PENNSYLVANIA
State of Pennsylvania
City of Pittsburgh Ordinance (Dec 2004), Proclamation (July 2006)
Northampton County

RHODE ISLAND
City of Providence

VERMONT
Brattleboro Union High School

WASHINGTON
City of Olympia

WISCONSIN
City of Madison – [Resolution, Report, Ordinance]
City of Milwaukee
County of Milwaukee
Milwaukee Public School District

Visit the Worker Rights Consortium website to see the list of affiliate colleges and universities.

Holiday Gift Giving: Examine the Label

Be sure you know where your purchased gifts are made. Keep this in mind:

Toys for the World (tune of Joy to the World)
Toys for the world are made by kids… and not by elves at all!
We work them night and day, for very little pay,
And little tiny hands…..make all your fav’rite brands
That fill up the shelves in every shopping mall!

Toys for the world that Santa brings……So your sweet kids can play!
What’s underneath your tree….Is our economy.
And all those girls and boys…..Who make you’re children’s toys
Are not getting squat from us on Christmas Day!
Are not getting squat from us on Christmas Day!

More on holiday gift giving

Treehugger has posted this Holiday Survival Kit from The Center For a New American Dream

 

giftmonster.jpg

We just told you How To Green Your Gifts, and rest assured that our upcoming Gift Guide will rock your holidays. You’re also likely to find a gem or two among the comprehensive, wholesome tips from our friends at The Center For a New American Dream. We’ve referenced the Baltimore-based nonprofit when talking about local eating, getting rid of junk mail, and tween shopping. When it comes to the holidays, they really outdo themselves, with everything from a “Simplify the Holidays” booklet, to “Gift of Time” cards, to alternative gift resources. The E-cards are a little cheesy, and the kids/family focus might not cater to everyone, but you’ve got to hand it to a group that so successfully redefines abundance! ::Center for a New American Dream

This week’s Carnival of the Green

This week’s Carnival of the Green is being hosted by Great Green Goods.

Highlights of Carnival of the Green #55:

  • polluted waterways of Western Maryland (my stomping grounds!)
  • charging cell phones with ethanol batteries
  • global trade issues
  • how you can start to “go green”
  • Save the Ribble River update
  • “stingy” gifts
  • climate change discussions
  • paying more for energy from renewable resources worth the cost
  • getting hot water from your tap instead of heating it from your stove

    Happy green reading!

  • Peace Sign Christmas Wreath “Symbol of Satan”

    By Robert Weller
    The Associated Press

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    “New” 7 Wonders of the World?

    I read with skepticism today about a new worldwide initiative to select 7 “new” wonders of the world.

    The “New7Wonders Foundation”, which is the body behind the New7Wonders campaign, has the express aim of documenting, maintaining, restoring and reconstructing world heritage under the motto:

    “OUR HERITAGE IS OUR FUTURE.”

    After perusing the website, I finally found a section where you can find out how this project got started.  The preface tells the reader about how one man, Philon of Byzantium, in 200 B.C. solely selected the 7 Ancient Wonders of the World and that it is time for the people of the world to choose the new 7 Wonders of the World.  Then readers go on to discover that one man, Bernard Weber, a wealthy filmmaker, museum curator, aviator, and explorer, created this project and financed the beginnings of the campaign, which developed a panel to select the “finalists” in this contest.  The campaign is billed as a global movement as participants will be “making history”.

    Then I discovered this link on the website:  Business Opportunities

    New7Wonders is a truly global movement, combining mass-media reach with global interactivity and in-market events. A worldwide communications agency has calculated awareness amongst the world’s population already at 25% – this can only grow.
    If you would like to be associated with this campaign in a commercial capacity, as a sponsor, event, media or other licensee, then please review the relevant categories in this section and use the contact form to communicate with us.
    Information packs for each of the categories are available.

    Unique business benefits are available with New7Wonders – together we can make marketing and commercial history!

    On the surface, this project is exciting and appealing.  However as you dig deeper into the project, one discovers that it seems to really be a project that may possibly line the pockets of some already rich people.

    So I’m still skeptical of this campaign.

     
    acropolis, greece, athen
     
     

    I am very happy with the Winter Coat Exchange that took place yesterday.

    What made it all worthwhile was being able to give coats away to folks from all socio-economic levels. Well-off folks took coats, driving home the concept of reusing; Women with children that had been referred to us by a local social agency came and took coats. One young man, dressed in very thin, practically sleeveless, clothes was looking at the coats and started to walk away. We told him he could take a coat and he said “for FREE?”. We explained the coat exchange. He walked away with a warm coat on a rather cold day. He was one of many like this.

    A veteran picked out a coat and profusely thanked us and stayed around to chat for awhile. An older man exchanged his thin hoodie for a warmer jacket.

    Folks who donated appeared with arm loads of coats and sweaters with smiles on their faces. Some stayed and participated and others dropped off their donations as part of their errand-running for the day.

    The smiles were priceless. The looks of content as folks walked away with warm clothing were “warming” in themselves.

    Although we got lots of media to show up, I haven’t seen anything appearing on the TV stations that covered us, nor in the papers today. I think there were stories more important than ours to put in today’s news. But that’s o.k. We got the coverage of the feature article in “IN Utah this week” magazine and hopefully our sound bytes will be on KCPW radio Monday or Tuesday. We were listed on multiple community calendars and the Deseret News announced it as an article in the Utah section on Thursday. The reporters/videographers/photographers that did show up shared personal stories with us and it was obvious that they enjoyed being with us rather than at the stampedes at the shopping malls – by virtue of the fact that they stayed around for a long time.

    The left over coats are being taken to Crossroads Urban Center Thrift Store next week.

    Start saving your coats – Next year this will be even bigger. Thanks to all who participated in any way with this – from donating and coming down to hang out, to printing out flyers and posting and publicizing to all your friends, co-workers, and clients. And a special thanks to the Green Party of Rhode Island for the inspiration to do this, which got this coverage of their event:

    The comfort of strangers

    Continue reading

    What Barry Says – Project for a New American Century