Saturday March 16th 10:30am-1:30pm Oberlin High School, 281 North Pleasant Street This pop-up event will bring together interested members of the Oberlin community, area farmers, and food buyers in Lorain County for a day of learning, sharing, and connecting. This event will feature a local market, three (3) local food films, and local food presentations. The local food films and speakers are listed on the back of this flyer. This event is free and open to the public. www.oberlinproject.org Local Food Hub Pop Up Event Presentations & Cinema Schedule In conjunction with the Oberlin Project’s Pop-up Local Food Hub, are local food presentations each half-hour and local food films produced by three local film-makers. These presentations and movies will present creative and innovative ways that communities in Ohio engage local food systems to support health, environmental sustainability, and a stronger local economy. Local Food Hub Pop Up Presentation Schedule…
News
The streets light in Pittsburgh, Pa are beginning to have a different glow. The city of Pittsburgh intends to replace its 40,000 street lights with light-emitting diode (LED) fixtures over the next five to ten years. When fully implemented the project is expected to save annually an estimated $1.7 million (70% savings) in energy and maintenance costs. In addition the conversion will reduce carbon dioxide emissions by almost 7 million metric tons annually. In May of 2008, half of the streetlights on Walnut Street, in Pittsburgh’s Shadyside neighborhood, were replaced with new LED lights as a pilot project. The lights used in this test were provided free of cost by Leotek and the installation was funded by Councilman Peduto’s office. By conducting such a test, the City was able to collect feedback from residents and business owners in a small portion of the City before considering a wider rollout. Residents…
SCENARIOS are stories about the future. They summarize likely future outcomes based on what we know about the present and what we know about how the world works. Every weather forecast, for example, presents a scenario for the future, based on what meteorologists know about the current weather and what they know about how weather patterns develop. VibrantNEO 2040’s scenarios will tell stories about our possible futures, based on where Northeast Ohio is today and the choices we might make about how we use our land and how we invest our resources. Once we create these scenarios, we will be able to compare how successful they are at achieving our common goals for the region, judge which choices would be best for Northeast Ohio’s future, and create a shared vision and framework for the future around those choices. VibrantNEO 2040’s Scenario Planning Step 1: Where is Northeast Ohio today? Every…
What are Vibrant NEO 2040 and Scenario Planning? VibrantNEO 2040’s scenarios will tell stories about our possible futures, based on where Northeast Ohio is today and the choices we might make about how we use our land and how we invest our resources. Once we create these scenarios, we will be able to compare how successful they are at achieving our common goals for the region, judge which choices would be best for Northeast Ohio’s future, and create a shared vision and framework for the future around those choices. You are invited to attend an upcoming workshop to share your voice in the conversation. We have selected six city locations throughout the region for your convenience. Pick a date and location that works for you! April 30: Oberlin (Lorain, Medina, and western Cuyahoga) Warren (Mahoning, Trumbull and Ashtabula) May 1: Cleveland (Central Cuyahoga and inner-ring suburbs) Canton (Wayne and Stark)…
The Knight Foundation has launched a campaign to improve interaction between citizens and governments. The Knight News Challenge is an opportunity to accelerate promising ideas and trends. Their definition of “open government” is broad, and ranges from small projects within existing structures to ambitious attempts to create entirely new ones. In many ways it’s easier than it’s ever been to learn about and interact with the institutions and communities around us. But there’s a long way to go. How can we make the places we live more awesome through data and technology? How can we make public information more relevant and useful? The Knight News Challenge accelerates media innovation by funding breakthrough ideas in news and information. Winners receive a share of $5 million in funding and support from Knight’s network of influential peers and advisors to help advance their ideas. For more information, visit the project website. What Can…
Construction has begun at the Iron Roots Urban Farm site. The construction project includes the complete renovation of the 91 year old, 2,693 square foot historic home and the construction of a new 1,200 square foot processing and training facility. The project also includes the installation of walkways, parking, signage, and other critical facility upgrades. The project is being completed by DSV Builders and is expected to be complete by June 1, 2013. The new facility will be home to several programs to train residents in the skills necessary to become market gardeners and food entrepreneurs or enter the environmental workforce, as the site will give residents hands-on experience at a working urban farm. The farm will also train residents in the preparation of healthy meals and processing of fresh produce. Additionally, the facility will have space for community meetings and other neighborhood revitalization activities. YNDC is also working with…
Northeast Ohio is home to a broad set of players in the agricultural-bioscience (ag-bio) sector, one of the largest and most influential sectors in the region. To better understand the potential of this diverse sector, the Fund for Our Economic Future sponsored an assessment to facilitate a more informed dialogue around the definition and scope of the ag-bio sector in Northeast Ohio, and identify high-potential areas which merit further exploration and/or investment. Based on a review of regional assets and potential opportunities by the Bush Consulting Group, the research suggests economic development efforts might focus on three areas of opportunity that could favorably impact the region’s economy, environment and labor diversity: Export-oriented cluster development opportunities such as packaged food and food safety, hardwood, and bio-polymers and composites Import substitution in local foods and beverage including beer, wine and spirits; and dairy-related industries Early stage support and start-ups such as alternative natural…
In 2011, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) initiated its Plan to Study the Potential Impacts of Hydraulic Fracturing on Drinking Water Resources. EPA’s intent is to study the potential impacts of hydraulic fracturing on drinking water resources, if any. EPA also wants to identify the driving factors that may affect the severity and frequency of drinking water resource impacts. EPA has designed the scope of the research around five stages of the hydraulic fracturing water cycle. Each stage of the cycle is associated with a primary research question: 1. Water Acquisition: What are the possible drinking water resource impacts of large volume water withdrawals from ground and surface waters? 2. Chemical Mixing: What are the possible drinking water resource impacts of hydraulic fracturing fluid surface spills on or near well pads? 3. Well Injection: What are the possible drinking water resource impacts of the injection and fracturing process?…
Learning from one another is one of the benefits of the Vibrant NEO 2040 planning process. By the end of this year, one of the deliverables for NEOSCC is a Tools and Best Practices product. It will include tools, processes, and practices that support, model, and build collaboration and other capacities essential for regional sustainability including best/promising practices; shared data; and replicable templates. The Conditions and Trends Platform, which is one tool developed by the NEOSCC, identifies housing vacancy rates as a big problem in Northeast Ohio that is in need of a series of solutions (click here and scroll down to the bottom of the page for the data). A number of cities have implemented programs such as the Vacant Property Registry to deal with abandoned bank-owned properties, often referred to as REO (Real Estate Owned) properties. These similar programs have demonstrated potential to address blight and abandonment in…
You are invited to attend our Fair Housing Forums this week! The NEOSCC is currently undertaking a study to evaluate fair housing throughout the 12 Counties of Northeast Ohio. It is known as a Regional Analysis of Impediments to Fair Housing Choice. Through a series of Fair Housing Forums, we are reaching out to each of the 12 Counties to listen to your thoughts on this important issue. Listen to preliminary findings of the study. Provide your knowledge, opinions, and feelings about fair housing choice. Please offer your suggestions on how to eliminate impediments to fair housing choice – ways we can work together to further fair housing in Northeast Ohio. State and Federal fair housing laws prohibit discrimination in housing based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, familial status, ancestry or military status. Meeting Schedule March 11 9:00am – Summit County, Akron Urban League (President’s Hall), 440…