[Sosfbay-discuss] Fun DeAnza Tabling and networking w/ other SC Environmental NGOs

[Drew Johnson]

DeAnza Event Th Fe 5th: "Global Warming Solutions: A National Teach-In" ,
'solutions-driven'

 (schedule and event info at bottom)

My Event Experience:
Overall strong impression:People WANT badly to go green and save our planet.

I took the morning shift till 12:30 or so and Tian the afternoon.

There was a bevy of interesting and informative speakers.  The speaker's
meeting was quite full.  Lots of students intent on learning how to
improve our situation.   Unfortunately I didn't get to listen in much.

I had good conversations with students interested in finding ways to live
out their green values in terms of politics.  They were excited to learn
that their is a political party dedicated to bringing Nonviolence,
Grassroots Democracy, Social Justice, Ecological Wisdom (The Green Party's
'4 Pillars') into government by electing Greens to office.

Other Groups Represented:
Representing the Green Party of Santa Clara we tabled beside the SVTC
(Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition) whose recently retired founder Ted Smith
registered Green a Cameron's table one day and whom I've previously put
calls into to ask if he wanted to run for office.  He'd be fabulous!  No
response so far.  The SVTC is working on projects like getting
manufactures to take cradle to grave responsibility for their products,
making sure the burgeoning solar industry is eco-friendly, blowing the
whistle on prison waste disposal industry (and the related environmental
and social justice issues), etc.  Great group: labor-funded with
long-standing solid results.

Around the corner was the Santa Clara Valley Audubon Society.  The
volunteer there was whimsically imitating bird calls as her 'draw' to the
table.  Worked on me. :-)  I'd say the Audubon Society is THE most
effective environmental organization in the valley.  They've been
especially involved in working on the whole Coyote Valley thing.  Riparian
corridors, healthy creeks, etc.
After the event I bicycled over to their way cool office/store on
McClelland in Cupertino.  On the Stevens Creek across from the golf
course).  They give out education info and sell bird and nature-related
stuff in their cute little store.  They have fun activities like bird
hikes and such.  Fun!

Sierra Club Cool Cities campaign:  Good stuff.  Their rocking Mountain
View, Palo Alto, Sunnyvale getting energy audits for residents and city
and commercial building audits too.  Soon to come to your
city/neighborhood.

Our City Forest: I've spoken to them before and I'm intrigued by them but
I ran out of time to talk to them yesterday.  Their volunteers and staff
always seem friendly, young and enthusiastic to me.

Two student body groups:

W.Y.S.E. 37: Environmental campus club. The event's sponsoring group which
I'm a member of at De Anza.  Cool grassroots student and faculty
environmental organization that is effectively bringing things like
locally grown organic food to the campus cafeteria, campus recycling,
education programs like this event.

Students for Justice: A nationally networked group vaguely socialist in
orientation (symbol is a red flag with a closed black fist).  Some Greens
involved and I'm on the e-mail list.  Has done good work on the
Palestinian rights issues and taking a stand against the imperial wars. 
This is the group that got some of their folks arrested when Collin Powell
visited De Anza a few years back.  Got a good ruckus going.


Event evaluation: Very fun!  Very green!

Green is Cool!

Drew

http://www.deanza.edu/eventscalendar/view_entry.php?id=354&date=20090205
Global Warming Solutions: A National Teach-In

Description:	 For the second consecutive year, De Anza College will join
hundreds of colleges and universities in solutions-driven dialogue on
global warming.

The event will include discussions on the green economy and green careers,
as well as workshops and a 12:30 p.m. policymakers panel featuring De Anza
President Brian Murphy with Foothill-De Anza Board of Trustees President
Laura Casas Frier; Cupertino Mayor Orrin Mahoney; Cupertino Councilmember
Dolly Sandoval, who also serves as chair of the VTA board of directors;
and Chris Schwarz, aide to U.S. Rep. Mike Honda (D-Calif.).

Full Agenda

**8:30-9:30 a.m. Tour Kirsch Center for Environmental Studies at
**9:30-10:30 a.m. Welcome Science, Politics, and Vision of a Sustainable
Future
**10:30-11:30 a.m. Green Economy and Careers
**11:30-12:15 p.m. Keynote Speakers and Panel Discussion
**12:30-1:30 p.m. Round table Discussion with Policy Makers
**1:30-2:30 p.m. Action Workshops
**2:30-3:00 p.m. Reflection and Closure

For details on the National Teach-in on Global Warming, see
www.nationalteachin.org .

Date:	 Thursday, February 5, 2009
Time:	 9:30 a.m.-3:00 p.m.
Duration:	 5 hours 30 minutes
Category:	 Community and Civic Engagement
Location:	 Hinson Campus Center, Conference Rooms A&B
Sponsor:	 Institute of Community and Civic Engagement
Phone/Email:	 communityengagement at deanza.edu or 408.864.8349