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Arkansas Sustainability Network (ASN)Community News |
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| July 8, 2009 |
ARKANSAS SUSTAINABILITY NETWORK (ASN) |
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| Developing sustainable communities through education, innovation and collaboration.
ASN 1419 South Main Little Rock, AR 72202 501.372.6996 501.837.7959 EmailASN@gmail.com www.littlerock.locallygrown.net Executive Director: Katy Elliott City of Little Rock Youth Employee: Jasmine Johnson Board of Directors: Alison Hall Scott McGhehee Tera Easter Penny Rudder Dwayne McFarlan Juli Brandenberger Erika Gee Julie de Preux Amie Lein Jill Bayles |
Greetings!From the Ground Up Summer Camp went great: thanks to the help of our summer staff and volunteers! We’ve posted hundred’s of photos from the camp on our Picasa account, available through our website at www.arnetwork.org (click on ‘photos’). We collected photos and plenty of video footage. I plan to edit and post short video of the camp on the website by the end of summer, so watch for updates. I want to send out a big thank you to Nathanael, Jonathan, Daryll, Larnie, Jasmine, and Ragan for their efforts on the farm, and also to our activity providers – Jack Sundell of The Root Café, Faith Anaya of Kids Cook!, and Hamid Ebrahimifar (mural.) Thanks to the Agricultural Heritage Museum, Dunbar Garden, and the Williams Library Summer Reading Program for welcoming us on our field trip. Last but not least, many thanks to the Arkansas Community Foundation for making the camp possible. In addition to our summer program, we’ve been busy re-constructing our website and planning for more summer programs and workshops (listed below). We needed a site that we can easily update. We’ve used an open source, so please check out the site and let us know what you think! www.arnetwork.org. As a side note, we can always use volunteers to help with our website, Facebook, and MySpace pages. Techies call anytime – 501.372.6996. We hope to see you this weekend: at Food Club pick-up or at the Winthrop Rockefeller Institute’s “Bountiful Arkansas” event, where we will have an informative booth. For more info on that event, which features workshops, tomato tasting, and a lecture by the distinguished authors of “The 100-Mile Diet,” Alisa Smith and J.B. Mackinnon. If we don’t see you this weekend, perhaps we’ll see you at one of the upcoming events (listed below) or at a community event listed in the newsletter. Stay in Touch and Enjoy the Newsletter, Katy Elliott, Director Workshops Galore…ASN is currently accepting registration for the following workshops: Rainwater Collection Systems – July 18thASN and Seth Baldy, of Rain Barrels AR US, will host this workshop at the 15th Street Community Garden (15th and Louisiana), at 1pm on Saturday, July 18th. Come learn the “ins and outs” of rain water collection systems. $5 donation, limit: 20 participants. For an additional fee, participants are welcome to bring their own barrels and outfit them for water collection at the workshop ($10), buy and outfit a barrel on-site ($20), or purchase a barrel complete and ready-to-install ($40). To register, or for more info, contact us at EmailASN@gmail.com, or call 501.372.6996. FoodSavers – August 1stASN, Conserving Arkansas’ Agricultural Heritage, and Bean Mountain Farm will host this collaborative workshop at Quapaw Quarter United Methodist Church, 10am to 3pm on Saturday, August 1st. We will be canning and saving seeds from a batch of Armstead Farm heirloom tomatoes. We’ll discuss the various means of food preservation (canning, freezing, and drying), and the basics of seed saving (start-up varieties, seed preparation, and appropriate technologies). Workshop facilitators have extensive experience with food preservation and seed-saving. They will share their experiences and techniques. Participants depart with a can of tomatoes, a seed drying screen and a full belly (lunch will be provided). $30, limit: 15 participants. To register or for more info contact us at EmailASN@gmail.com, or call 501.372.6996. Build an Insulated Cold Frame – September 26thOn Saturday, September 26th, we will be hosting a workshop focused on cold weather cultivation. Cold frames provide an easy and effective location for winter crops. Herb Culver, from Bean Mountain Farm, will lead this workshop at Felder Farm. Herb has been organic gardening for 30 years and currently operates Bean Mountain Farm, which specializes in open-pollinated/heirloom vegetables, herbs (culinary and medicinal), and landscaping plants. He has extensive gardening, seed-saving, and food preservation experience. We’re pleased to welcome him in leading this workshop and also to have him at our FoodSavers workshop in August. At this cold frame workshop, we’ll construct a 3’ x 12’ water barrel insulated cold frame at Felder Farm, and glean valuable experience in order to construct our own. Starts at 9am. $15, minimum: 8 participants, maximum: 20 participants. To register or for more info contact us at EmailASN@gmail.com, or call 501.372.6996. SAVE THE DATE! ASN Fundraiser, August 28th
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Community HappeningsIt’s our pleasure to keep you informed of community events, info, and announcements… Village Commons Grand OpeningThis Friday July 10th stop by and welcome our new neighbors to the Bernice Historic Building (1400 block S. Main St.) Village Commons is a 501(c)3 grassroots non-profit organization whose mission is to raise awareness through education and programs on sustainable living. Friday’s Grand Opening event will be a potluck style celebration so please feel free to bring a dish. For more info call Pam Choate at 501.351.4406. Green Corner Store- open for business and receiving new items daily!Speaking of neighbors, have you been by the Green Corner to Store (corner 15th and S. Main) to check out their eco-friendly inventory? If not, pop by and if so, stop by again! They’ll be receiving new inventory each week, so you’re bound to see something new. Spotlight on More New Green BusinessesOpal Abram’s Way delivers laundry detergent and cat litter to your door in reusable glass containers! Visit http://opalabramsway.com/index.html for info. Rain Barrels AR US provides affordable rain water collection systems: supplies and installation. Visit their Facebook page for info ( http://www.facebook.com/pages/Little-Rock-AR/Rain-Barrels-AR-US/83002581853 ), or register for our Rain Water Collection Workshop on July 18th. Seth, owner and founder of Rain barrels AR US, will be leading the workshop. Station Market and Deli sells Local Products DailyWhile we’re on the topic of green community businesses, let’s not forget the Station Grocery and Deli. They’ve got a large variety of local products and produce and delicious deli selections as well! Root Café Hosts a Series of Food Preservation/Canning WorkshopsFor more information about this workshop series, to be held at the end of this month, email Jack Sundell or Rebecca Stover at TheRootCafe@yahoo.com. Conserving AR Agricultural Heritage Releases New Short Film:http://www.youtube.com/ozarksatchel Central AR Alternative Fuels (CAAF) group in Faulkner County seeks support to attend a fuels conference…CAAF is comprised of a few members of the Faulkner County Supporters of Sustainable Communities (FCSSC) coordinating team. The group explores a variety of alternative fuel technologies, and currently is in the process of retrofitting lawnmowers with a system that reduces not only emissions but reduces the need for petrol. The group would like to attend this conference in New Mexico and need help to get there: http://www.teslatech.info/ttevents/2009conf/program2009.pdf Help them raise funds to attend the conference and get some help around the house at the same time! Aside from being members of CAAF and FCSSC the fuels group members have other skills such as: Journeyman Plumber, 3rd yr Electrician, Painter, and much more. We have over 15 years combined experience in all trades of construction/repair. If you need any repair/handyman work done just give us a call at (501)339-8538 and let us know how we can help. They have tools and will even mow your lawn. CAAF appreciates any support we can get to attend this wonderful learning opportunity!!! Box Fan Drive in NLRThe City of North Little Rock, North Little Rock Fire Department, and the North Little Rock Health Department are asking the public to donate new or gently used box fans to be distributed to elderly persons or those in need who are without air conditioners this summer. Fans can be dropped off at any of the North Little Rock Fire Stations Monday -Friday, 8:00 a.m.-4:30 p.m. For more information, contact Jeannetta Martin 791-8551. Photo Competition, $500 1st PrizeArkansas Workforce Centers, LR Workforce Investment Board, UALR, Bedford Camera, and CALS are sponsoring a photo competition. The task: capture the best original photos of Arkansans at work. Contact us for a copy of the rules. EmailASN@gmail.com. VeridianUSA makes recycled notebooks from paperboard and construction plansVeridianUSA, formerly ecoIntegration, seeks donations of construction plans and certain paperboard materials to implement and sustain the Recycled Notebook Project. A variety of partners are helping us with this project including the United Cerebral Palsy of Arkansas. For Construction Plans: The general public receiving the notebooks would see 5.5” x 4.25” sections of your plans. Please do not donate old plans if this is a confidentiality issue for your company. For Paperboard: This should not be corrugated, must have at least one side free of any printing, and be of a size that is at least as large as 5.5” x 4.25”. If you are capable of making a contribution of construction plans or paperboard, Viridian will pick up your material on a regular basis or you can drop it off at their office. For more information or to donate, contact Todd Spain at intern@viridianusa.com. Heifer Village Offers Discussion Courses and More!This summer Heifer Village will be offering courses on food, simplicity, and sustainability. More events are in the works. Keep informed about Heifer Village Events and Programs by visiting their website - http://www.heifer.org/site/c.mmKTJbNUJrF/b.5076899/k.E13E/Programs.htm Green Jobs, Anyone?Recently we received notices about several green job openings, including positions at Audubon Arkansas. While we’re not sure if these positions have been filled or not, we do know that you can sign up for this great Google group run by April Ambrose to find out about green job opportunities in Arkansas: http://groups.google.com/group/greenarjobs |
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