RECENT EVENTSSkillshare: Speculum Exam Workshop
Sunday, August 1st
4-5 PM, UU, 608 Whitney Ave,
New Haven, CT
Contact Person: Meg Rudne
860.334.3934
This workshop will provide
instructions for performing a speculum exam, as well as the chest/breast
exam and other pelvic exam techniques, both for self exam or with a
partner.
Intent of the workshop is to provide tools and
knowledge for DIY sexual/reproductive health.
We will also
touch on trans health, sensitivity to sexual assault survivors, and
ways to empower ourselves on the exam table and in the clinician’s
office.
This workshop is free and open to all genders.
******
SOUTHERN CONNECTICUT "Tour des Farms"
Presented by
CT Folk
Hamden, CT
Sunday, August 01, 2010
IN SEARCH
OF THE PERFECT SUNDAY AFTERNOON?
CT Folk’s
Tour des Farms: Cycling to Discover Local Food and
Local Music.
Love to ride? Love to eat local? Love
music? CT Folk’s Tour des Farms offers the
perfect marriage of all three in a Sunday afternoon event the entire
family will enjoy.
CT Folk is thrilled to announce the
second annual Tour des Farms, a day-long bicycle ride to take place on
Sunday, August 1. Starting in Hamden,
the Tour will take cyclists to local farms, greenhouses, orchards, and
historic sites along the 25-mile route. The route takes in lightly
travelled scenic country roads, rolling hills, pleasant residential
streets and a few miles on a paved linear park. At each stop along the
road, riders will be entertained by a Connecticut-grown musician.
http://www.bikereg.com/events/register.asp?eventid=11169
*******
Bird House Building
at
Urban Miners
30
Manila Ave., Hamden
203-287-0852
Sat, July 17, 10 AM - 2 PM
Come use reclaimed lumber and
reusable materials to build a birdhouse for
your fine, feathered
friends.
Pre-cut kits and instruction available
by Todd
Wormell
All ages welcome!
...Pre-registration appreciated. $10 per
structure
Tour the facility
before or after your project
is complete!
Pre-register by calling
Urban Miners
203-287-0852
or by emailing-- alexis@ducktruckcomposting.com
Support
a Local Green Business
To learn more visit:
urbanminers.com
************
East Shore-Short
Beach Walk Celebrate CT Trails Day
Sat, June 5, 10 AM
Meet at 10 AM to carpool
from:
UU Society, 608 Whitney, New Haven
We will carpool to Short Beach
to begin walk; the walk will end at Branford Point.
The area along the Short
Beach Coast has changed dramatically in the past 50
years. An area that once had small cottages, some open space, and
relatively easy access to our wonderful local resource, the Long Island
Sound, is now heavily populated, small cottages have become relative
"mansions" and beach access is only possible on foot or
bike.
Come explore this interesting local area with us.
The walk will be easy and relatively flat, lasting about 2 hours. We
will begin the walk at the end of the old shoreline trolley tracks and
end at Branford Point.
For
information contact: mariatupper@gmail.com
****
Free Skillshare Workshops
Practical
Solar Power
Sat, May 22
12 Noon Potluck, 1 PM
Skillshare
UU Society, 608 Whitney Ave, New Haven
Building
a Raised Garden Bed
Sun, May 23
4:30 PM
Southern
Connecticut State University Garden
(Behind Davis Hall – see
building #3 on the link to the campus map below)
http://www.southernct.edu/aboutscsu/map/
Building a Compost Bin
Sunday,
May 23
4:30 PM
Southern
Connecticut State University Garden
(Behind Davis Hall - see
Building # 3 on the link to the campus map below)
http://www.southernct.edu/aboutscsu/map/
Contact
person:
Meg Rudne (860) 334-3934,
megrudne@yahoo.com
*****
5th
Open Space: Health & Wellbeing
"When the economy is
sick, how do we keep ourselves well?"
“How can creative choices
help make our
neighborhoods & communities more healthy and resilient in a low
energy future?"Sat, May 15, 10 AM—5 PM
Common Ground High School
358 Springside Ave, New Haven
What
are your questions, concerns?
Come and join our
community think-tank!
Bring your ideas and inspirations as
we work on building community together!!
Possible questions to explore:
*If we
could no longer afford or access modern medical care as we have known
it, could “barefoot doctors” and herbalists fill the gap? *What do we really mean by wellbeing?
*How might we develop a culture of wellness, returning the
power of basic health to ordinary people?
*What would it take to
set up “wellbeing clinics” where health would be understood as an active
and positive process? Could we teach/create a way of life so
healthy that medical care would seldom be needed?
*How will we cope with the inevitable
stresses of transition to a lower energy future?
*How will we care for those suffering depression, anxiety,
psychosomatic illness, despair-- in case magic pills are not available?
*Will we be able to let go of
our individualism and find the support we will need by creating
extended family-like or “tribal” networks of mutual aid and care?
*If public health infrastructure (esp.
water and sewage) were to fail, what other arrangements might we make
to prevent communicable diseases and epidemics?
*What about withdrawal symptoms as we can
no longer maintain our usual addictive practices, such as high-energy
consumption, media mainlining, speed, frenetic activism?
*If a lot of folks hit bottom at the same time, will there be
enough 12 step groups to get us through?
******
Transition Tunnel
at the
13th
Westville Village Art Walk
Sat,
May 8, 11 - 4 PM
Westville,
New Haven
Between Whalley Ave and
Fountain St Edgewood Park near the tennis & basketball courtsCome
and walk through the
Tunnel of Transition which tells the story of the Transition Initiative
and Bioregionalism in New Haven. The story is told in pictures and
words and offers an opportunity for an experiential response at the end.
*****
The Rock to Rock Earth Day Ride
Sat, April 24, 2010
New Haven, CT
--
Celebrate the 40th anniversary of Earth Day. Explore New
Haven's
parks and neighborhoods. Raise funds for great local environmental
organizations. Check out the details below, and register today at
www.rocktorock.org.
Explore New Haven by bicycle! Rock to Rock is a
day-long celebration of Earth Day, and of New Haven's rich environmental
and cultural resources. Here's how it works: You and a few hundred
others will travel between West Rock and East Rock, with celebrations on
both sides of the city. Along the way, you will eat tasty food, hear
great music, take on environmental service projects, explore Edgewood
and Beaver Ponds Parks, and ride Farmington Canal Trail and official
city bike lanes. Think you're hard-core? Take detours to the top of the
two rocks. Have a little kid in tow? Join us from Common Ground to
Edgewood Park. Families and college students, 20-something hipsters and
teenagers, young and old, serious riders and weekend warriors will all
be welcomed.
Support great local environmental organizations! Rock
to Rock raises funds for the following a bunch of great environmental
organizations: The Urban Resources Initiative, Common Ground, Solar
Youth, New Haven Parks Department, Friends of East Rock Park, Friends of
Beaver Pond Park, Friends of Edgewood Park, New Haven-Leon Sister City
Project, Sierra Club's Inner City Outings, and Elm City Cycling. All of
these organizations share a commitment to helping New Haven residents
explore and learn from the city's parks. And all of these organizations
need of additional resources in order to keep their important work
strong and growing.
If you have any questions about Rock to Rock, visit
www.rocktorock.org,
or contact
Maggie@solaryouth.com.
****
West
River Walk
Sun, April 25, 1:30 - 3:30 PM
Cosponsored
by
CT Fund for the Environment
Save the Sound
New Haven
Bioregional Group 
Meet:
At the sundial in Edgewood Park at the corner of Ella Grasso Blvd. and
Chapel St.
Speakers: Curt Johnson, Kierran Broatch, Gaboury
Benoit
We will walk along the river and learn about the
restoration project that is in process. Our speakers will share
some
of the history of the area and explain the projects and research that
are now in progress in the area. We will end the walk at the tide
gates.
We are also asking people to bring plastic trash bags so
that we can clean up the area that we will be walking through.
****
Permaculture Workshop-
Humans as a Keystone
Species: Permaculture, Traditional Ecological Knowledge, and the
Journey
Towards Sustainability
Mon, April 26, 8 PM
UU
Society, 608 Whitney Ave, New Haven
In this
presentation, permaculture designer Connor
Stedman will share stories and principles of regenerative land use and
traditional ecological knowledge.
We will discuss heritage crops of the Northeast, best practices for
temperate
perennial agriculture, and how permaculture design provides a concrete
framework for restoring ecosystems and transforming landscapes into
thriving
human habitats. We will also examine
how to consciously grow the "deep map" of a bioregion
among all life stages in a community.
Connor is a lifelong naturalist, passionate wildcrafter, and veteran
wilderness
educator who teaches permaculture and traditional skills around the
Northeast.
******
Movie
"In Transition 1.0" & Potluck
Fri, April 30, 6 PM Potluck, 7
PM Movie
USNH, 700 Hartford Turnpike, Hamden
‘In
Transition’ is the first detailed film about the
Transition movement filmed by those that know it best, those who are
making it happen on the ground. The Transition movement is about
communities around the world responding to peak oil and climate change
with creativity, imagination and humor, and setting about rebuilding
their local economies and communities. It is positive, solutions
focused, viral and fun.
‘In
Transition’ has
been shown in communities around the world to enthusiastic audiences.
Come to the potluck and bring a dish to
share or just come for the movie. "THE
SKY BEGINS AT YOUR
FEET & LANDED:
A
Bioregional Reading of Memoir and
Poetry from Earth and Sky"
Caryn
Mirriam-Goldberg
Poet Laureate of Kansas
Tue,
April 6
7:30 PM Never Ending Book Store
810 State Street
New Haven
Caryn
Mirriam-Goldberg is the poet laureate of Kansas and the author of ten
books, including the bioregional memoir, The Sky Begins At Your Feet:
A Memoir on Cancer, Community and Coming Home to the Body, and her
fourth collection of poetry, Landed.
At Goddard College, Ms.
Mirriam-Goldberg is the Founder of Transformative Language Arts which is
a master's program that educates students on using storytelling,
writing, and performance for social and personal change.
She teaches, she leads
community writing workshops widely, including workshops for people
living with serious illness, adults in transition, and many other
populations.
Her poet laureate
project, “Poetry Across Kansas: Reading and Writing Our Way Home,” helps
connect Kansans with their own words, stories and writing through
reading the work of contemporary Kansas writers, community-building
writing workshops, and podcasts and radio shows (on High Plains Public
Radio) that offer listeners writing exercises and approaches.
Caryn
is also a registered songwriter with B.M.I., and with singer Kelley
Hunt, she co-writes songs, leads Brave Voice writing and singing
retreats, and performs collaboratively.
She lives just south of
Lawrence, Kansas where the deer and the turkey roam.
See her websites: http://CarynMirriamGoldberg.com
and http://BraveVoice.com.
On her blog: http://CarynMirriamGoldberg.wordpress.com
You
can also access radio shows, podcasts, columns and resources on writing
your own way home.
For
more information contact:
mariatupper@gmail.com
Roger:
203-773-9510
_________
Garden Work in Bioregional Garden
Sat, Apr. 3, 11 AM
FUUS, 608 Whitney
Ave., New Haven CT
Last
weekend we spread wood chips and compost. WOW!! what a group of
workers we had. The garden looks fantastic.
We also cleaned out the
flower beds in front of the UU and some other raking. Things are really
looking GREAT!!
We planted peas, chard, kale and collards, but ran
out of time to do any other planting.
When we left last weekend I
said to some folks that we wouldn't meet this weekend. But it turns
out that it is going to be warm and sunny and there are more things that
we should be getting in sooner rather than later-arugula, lettuce,
carrots, etc. and uncover the garlic.
So, Fred and I would like
to work this weekend. Sorry for the change.
Hope you can make it.
Digging in the dirt is good for the
soul.Maria
Skillshare:
Maple Syrup Tapping, Boiling, & Processing
Sat, March 20, 1 PM
Laine Harris'
Sugar House, 18 Turner Ave, Hamden, CT
Come and learn how an old New England
tradition is done!! Put this on your calendar!!
*****
Movie "Blind Spot"
& Potluck
Sat., March 13
6 pm Potluck, 7 pm
Movie
UU Society, 608 Whitney Ave., New Haven
Blind Spot is
documentary film that illustrates
the current oil and energy crisis that our world is facing. Whatever
measures of ignorance, greed, wishful thinking, we have put ourselves at
a crossroads, which offer two paths with dire consequences. If we
continue to burn fossil fuels we will choke the life out of the planet
and if we don’t our way of life will collapse.
The film is by far
the most beautiful of this genre, rich with the wisdom of community
wise people and elders, and an excellent presentation of the issues of
peak oil, climate change, economic crisis, population growth and
their interweave.
It is definitely worth you time to see this
film.
****
East Shore-Short Beach Walk
Sun, March 14, 1 PM
Meet at 1 PM to carpool
from:
UU Society
608 Whitney Ave., New
Haven
We
will carpool to Short Beach to begin walk; the walk will end at Branford
Point.
The
area along the Short Beach Coast has changed dramatically in the past 50
years. An area that once had small cottages, some open space, and
relatively easy access to our wonderful local resource, the Long Island
Sound, is now heavily populated, small cottages have become relative
"mansions" and beach access is only possible on foot or bike.
Come
explore this interesting local area with us. The walk will be easy and
relatively flat, lasting about 2 hours. We will begin the walk at the
end of the old shoreline trolley tracks and end at Branford Point. *****
4th Open Space: Building & Housing
Sat, March 27, 10 AM—5 PM
Common Ground High School
358 Springside Ave, New
Haven
"When
the rug is pulled out from under
our feet, how do we keep a roof over our heads?"
- How
can we house more people within existing
buildings? How might buildings be modified to make it easier for larger
groups to cohabit?
- How
will we make old houses more energy efficient and eco-friendly?
- How will we adapt when elements of
infrastructure and public services become unreliable or fail altogether?
E.g., garbage pickup, water, snowplowing, fuel delivery, electricity,
police and fire services.
- How will we keep warm? Are there practical alternatives to gas
or oil heat?
What
are your questions, concerns? Come and join our community think-tank!
Bring your ideas and inspirations as we work on building community
together!!
Click here
for more.
Urban Farming in Westville: Springside Liberty
Garden-Building Community Through Urban Farming
Wed, March 3,
6-7:30 PM
Mitchell Library, 37 Harrison
Street, Westville, New Haven
Tom
Bell, Garden Coordinator, Springside Liberty Garden,
will discuss and show slides about:
·
An urban farm that
is a 10 minute walk from Westville
Center
·
Explain how an
urban farm works
·
Invite community
members who would like to grow their own
food to join
·
Talk about the
benefits of this model for building ties in our community
CT NOFA 28th Annual Winter
Conference
in partnership with Manchester Community College's "Team Green"
Saturday, March 6, 8:30 AM - 4:45 PM
Manchester Community College, Manchester, CT
CT NOFA (The Northeastern Organic Farm Association of Connecticut)
has promoted local organic agriculture through education and
advocacy since 1982. Its members are a growing community of
farmers, gardeners, land care professionals, businesses and
consumers.
This
year's theme is "Sustaining Connecticut: Growing
Local, Eating Healthier, Living Smarter."
The featured keynote speaker will be the celebrated green
activist and entrepreneur Michael Shuman.
See December 2009 Business Week's mention of Michael Shuman's study
on
the rising success of the local food movement, funded by the Bill and
Melinda
Gates Foundation - <http://bit.ly/ 6MgsRy> http://bit.ly/ 6MgsRy
This year's conference will also offer over thirty six sustainable
lifestyle workshops for the gardener, cook, farmer and land
care professional. Classes ranging from beekeeping, cheese making,
hands-on bread making, beer brewing thru permaculture. For all
persons interested in local organic food and agriculture there
will be cooking demonstrations such as Organic Home Wine
Making, expert panel discussion on Connecticut Organic Food Businesses,
Local
Vendors and exhibits focusing on food, gardening, farming, sustainable
lifestyles
and much more. Lunch will be the famous NOFA organic potluck.
For more info or to register: <http://www.ctnofa. org> www.ctnofa.org or
203-888-5146
Skillshare and Potluck - Wild Mushroom ID & Bicycle Clinic
Sat., Feb. 20, 6 pm
FUUS,, 608 Whitney Ave.
Featured Presenters:
A Beginners Guide to Wild Mushroom Identification
with Zaac Chaves
The
kingdom of the wild mushroom is a large and mysterious. Join as as we
cover basic Mushroom identification, edibility, and myths, including a
romantically timely discussion of 28000 sexes of Schizophyllum commune. Mushroom samples and keys will be passed around throughout the discussion.
Zaac has spent several years leading mushroom walks in parks ranging from rural Connecticut to
Manhattan. He is an active member and walk leader of the Connecticut
Mycological Association(COMA) and has participated in several Mushroom
University courses.
Bicycle Clinic with the Chainbreakers
The
Chainbreakers is an open group dedicated to creating a
feminist-positive space as part of the bicycle community. They host fun
full-moon bike rides.
They have a monthly potluck where women and transpeople come together
to share prepared dinners, work on our bicycles and share and teach
skills, without the interference of sexism. They also participate and
enjoy other bike projects in the city. They are creating a safe space
to grow and resisting sexism within bike culture, and act through
mutual aid and solidarity on community needs. Who knew learning skills,
building community, and getting work done could be so fun and
empowering?
*****
3rd Open Space: Economy & Livelihood
Sat, Feb 13, 10 AM-5M (put this date on your calendar!)
Common Ground High School, 358 Springside Ave, New Haven
"The Economy is going down, how can we keep up?"
"How can we build a resilient local economy to foster sustainable livelihood?”
See flyer here.
*****
Movie "In Transition 1.0" & Potluck
Sat, Feb 6, Potluck 6 PM, Movie 7 PM
UU Society, 608 Whitney Ave, New Haven
‘In Transition’ is the first detailed film about
the Transition movement filmed by those that know it best, those who
are making it happen on the ground. The Transition movement is about
communities around the world responding to peak oil and climate change
with creativity, imagination and humor, and setting about rebuilding
their local economies and communities. It is positive, solutions
focused, viral and fun.
‘In Transition’
has been shown in communities around the world to enthusiastic
audiences.
Come to the potluck and bring a dish to share or just come for the movie.
More information on the movie here.
****
Stony Creek Trolley Track
Walkabout
Sat, Jan 23, Walk begins in Stony Creek 11:15 AM (we will meet in ball field parking lot)
For a ride and carpooling: Meet at 1st UU Society Parking Lot, 608 Whitney Ave, New Haven,10:30 AM
There will be a Bioregional walk on the Trolley Track
Trail in Stony Creek. We will meet in the first Unitarian
Universalist Society Parking lot at 10:30 am to car pool and caravan
to the site. If you wish to meet at the site take exit 56 Stony
Creek off of I-95 about 10 miles East of New Haven. Turn Right at
the top of the Exit Ramp onto Leetes Island Road, toward Stony Creek. Follow this road about
two miles crossing route 146 and under a train bridge. Take
the first right after the train bridge passing between two rock
ledges and then park in the parking lot next to the ball field.
This is a very easy fairly short walk
( about a mile and a half round trip ). It goes over a trestle and
thru a rock cut and then traverses a very beautiful salt marsh. Upon
our return we may wish to walk thru the village of Stony Creek along
the water to the town dock and possibly get some lunch in one of the
local bistros.
This is a non-demanding beautiful
walk that encompasses a unique area of our bioregion.
For information about the walk contact mariatupper@gmail.com or Bob Carruthers at 860-575-9385.
*****
New Haven Green Drinks w/ the New Haven Bioregional GroupWed Jan 20, 6-8pm
WestSide Bar & Grille
883 Whalley Ave in Westville
(www.westsidebarandgrille.com, 203-387-WEST (9378)
We'll have a speaker at 7pm from The New Haven Bioregional Group
http://newhavenbioregionalgroup.org/default.aspx
WestSide will source local alcohols, have drink specials and some yummy eats, compliments of Keith Wortz.
Please support this new establishment and come check it out.
It's easily commutable by bike and bus. Email us if you want to carpool from the East Rock area :")
We look forward to seeing you there!
Alderman Justin Elicker and Debra Lombard, LEED AP, co-organizers
New Haven Green Drinks
justin.elicker@yale.edu or dlombard@earthlink.net*******
Food Action Group of Transition Greater New Haven
Tue, Jan 19, 7 PM
UU Society, 608 Whitney Ave, New Haven
This exciting new group has been working since our Food Open Space. At this meeting the group
will brainstorm to create a comprehensive list of components of our
Project, from which we will develop a "sort of" flow chart showing how
the various greater and lesser elements fit together to accomplish our
mission. Everyone is also invited to bring in other food related
information that might be useful in our work. ( see attached mission statement)
Come and check it out.
******
Skill Sharing for Transition/Practical Open Mike,
Sat,
Jan 9, Potluck - 6 PM,
program begins 7 PM
UU Society, 608 Whitney Ave, New Haven
This will be
an opportunity for folks to share skills and projects they are working on as
part of their adaptation to hard times and a future of reduced energy
resources. Each person will take 5 or 10
minutes to demonstrate and tell about their project.
Examples:
Knitting, food preservation, solar energy, alternative medicine,
preparing wild foods, homemade art. Try
to bring some physical object that is part of what you are doing. At the end we
will sit in circle and talk about how such work fits into the Transition
Initiative as a whole.
*****
Bread-Baking at SHARE Haven's 1st Birthday Party (music, dancing, sharing food)
Skill Sharing Workshops Begin!! (demonstrate how or learn to bake bread)
Sun, Jan 10, 5:30 - 9 PM, UU Society, 608 Whitney Ave, New Haven
Bring a dish to share!
From Jaz:
happy new year! let's ring in 2010 with some
fresh-baked BREAD! ...got a favorite recipe? want to learn some new
ways of baking? come share it at the 1st New Haven Skill Share
meeting:
when= January 10.
we're partnering with the SHARE Haven Time Bank folks for their first
birthday party. music, dancing, potluck, and more goodness from 5:30-9
PM. But, our bread party will be from 6-7:30 pm
time= 6-7:30 PM
what=
justin- easy breads
jaz- onion bread (chinese style), chinese steamed buns
jt hart- croissants, recipes from artisan bread class, sourdough
maureen- something yummy: artisan crusty style or other bread
claudette- french bread
bring= please bring a
bag of flour to compensate the folks who are sharing their time and
recipes. wheat flour preferred (much healthier).
please email
me to let me know if there's anything else you'd like to share! if you
share, then you can receive timebank hours. wooo!! :)
see you soon!
happy trails,
Jaz
ps- keep adding to the list!!!
Sat, Jan 2, Walk 6 PM, Dinner 7:30 PM
Start from UU Society, 608 Whitney Ave, New Haven, Return for Potluck
Drop off your potluck dish at the UU. Bring candles
and/or flashlights.
We will walk over to
Edgerton Park, then go through the park and over
to the water treatment facility.
On
top
of a small labyrinth hill with an expansive view of the area we should
see a full moon over East Rock, here we will do a short ceremony, and
then return to the UU
via Whitney Avenue.
Moonrise is at 5:58 p.m., so we should have a
good lunar display; even if it is cloudy, there will be quite a lot of light.
The walk is short. But if you prefer you can also just join us for the potluck and social gathering back at the UU.
Hope to see you there.
********
Bioregional Holiday Craft Fair
Sat, Dec 12, 11 AM - 4 PM
UU Society, 608 Whitney Ave, New Haven
Come to our annual Holiday
Craft Fair. We have a variety of artisans who will be selling their
local crafts. Come and support our local crafts people and socialize
while you browse.
**********
Movie: Polis Is This: Charles Olson and the Persistence of Place" & Potluck
Sat, Dec 12, 6 PM Potluck, 7 PM Movie
UU Society, 608 Whitney Ave, New Haven
"Polis is This" wrestles with
the six foot eight inch 275lb colossus of poetry, Charles Olson,
in the squared circle of understanding. Through never before seen
footage and interviews actor John Malkovich leads an all-star unit
in a search and explore mission.
Olson, the "big fire source"
for a restless generation of poets known as The Beats stands more
revealed than ever before. Through Ferrini's poetry-in-motion lens,
viewers can now see Olson's landscapes through the fresh eyes of
America's Archaeologist of Morning.
"Sublime...simply stunning"
says Author Jim Harrison. "An invaluable contribution to our literature"
notes Russell Banks.
Charles Olson the "original
aboriginal" fights to save his town from so-called progress as
the bullzoder of change rumbles down Main Street USA.
His challenge to us? We must
either rediscover the earth or leave it. Have we all become estranged
from that which is most familiar? See Polis Is This before the
cultural wetlands are completely drained and maybe you can save
the place where you live.
For more about the movie, see
here.
******
Transition Road Show at SCSU
Mon, Nov 30, 7:30 PM
SCSU Adanti Student Center Room 306, corner of Crescent and Fitch Streets
There will be entertainment,
reflection, inspiration and dynamic participation all in one show!
We'll
cover the problems (peak oil, climate change,
economic meltdown) and look to
the solutions (using our collective genius to create sustainable
community on a
human scale). The
Transition Movement is about connecting the dots and getting
us from here to there (http://transitionus.org/).
******
Quarry Park Paleontological Adventure w/ Cope MacClintock, Dan Brinkman, & Tracy Blanford
Potluck to follow at Friends' Meeting House, 225 Grand Ave, New Haven, 06513
Saturday, Nov 21, 11 AM Walk, 1 PM Potluck, Meet at Friends' MH at 10:45
Copeland
MacClintock and Dan Brinkman of Yale's Peabody Museum, and Tracy
Blanford will lead a walk in Fair Haven East through Quarry Park
Preserve ending up at the Freeman P. Clark Quarry site. Last year we
toured the Park and alluded to the famous fossil Aetosurus.
Now, thanks to Tracy Blanford having located the Clark descendents, we
know exactly where the fossil came from, and we will go to that
quarry. It came from the Triassic, New Haven Formation. It is the
only vertebrate in Connecticut from that Formation, so our chances are
slim of finding anything. Dan Brinkman will, however, bring along a
cast of the original specimen in the Yale collections. With any luck,
and some heavy lifting and digging, we may find some residual scraps.
Bring climbing gear, crow bars for turning heavy rocks, picks,
shovels, and hammers. You never know. People can do this walk without
the final scramble down into the Quarry.
Park
in the Friends' Meeting House parking lot, drop off your potluck dish
before joining us for the hike, which will begin in the rear of the parking lot.
***********
Mapping Group--New
Haven’s Bioregion Seasonal Calender
Tue, Nov 17, 7:30 PM
UU Society, 608 Whitney Ave, New Haven
The New Haven Bioregional Mapping Group will be
documenting in a circular year calendar, seasonal-specific knowledge of the
Bioregion. This may include information on climate seasons, cold-hot days, local
food availability sequence, gardening and food production seasons, food storing,
fishing and hunting seasons, environmental indicators that act as cues for
farming, school year, special events (farmers market), etc.
The idea of the calendar is to pool the collective knowledge of the
participants to construct the calendar though research, group discussion, drawing
and mapping. The calendar will serve as an educational tool fostering awareness
about seasonal aspects of interest, helping all involved in connecting more
with our bioregion/our life place.
So you are invited! Come to actively participate and share your knowledge and expand our thinking.
******
Sat, Nov 14, 10 AM - 5 PM
The 2nd Open Space Community Think Tank--FOOD
Hard Times: Community Self-Reliance
Common Ground High School, 358 Springside Ave, New Haven
We are in a time of Transition.
"When the food trucks stop rollin', what's gonna keep us goin'?"
"How
can we work together to create new jobs, beautify our neighborhoods,
establish food security and build community by coming together around
FOOD?"
Bring your ideas, inspirations, experiences and passion to this gathering in an Open Space
format and help unlock the genius of this community. If you are curious
about the Open Space format go to the link below. We had a lively,
generative experience last year. This time we want to focus on the
issues related to food.
Bring Food to share--Beverages provided
Suggested Donation $15
Child Care
Available: Call in advance
For more information and to register contact:
Bernard Brennan 203-288-0001 or BernardTransition@me.com
or Maria Tupper mariatupper@gmail.com
YouTube links to Open
Space Technology and Transition Towns information can be found on our website: http://newhavenbioregionalgroup.org/default.aspx
******
Bike Ride -- Farmington Canal
Sunday, Oct 18, 1-4 pm
Meet at First Unitarian Universalist Society of New Haven, 608 Whitney Ave. @ 1 pm
We
are planning an autumn leaves bike ride along the Farmington Canal
Trail, which is now almost entirely completed from downtown New Haven to Cheshire.
In Hamden we will leave the trail briefly to ride through a scenic area
on the north side of Sleeping Giant, visit the scenic Butterworth Brook
Reservoir and stop for refreshments at Wentworth's Ice Cream.
From the 1820s to the 1840s the Farmington
Canal was a transport route for cargo, with horses pulling canalboats
through a system of locks. At its peak the canal extended from
Northampton, MA, to New Haven. The canal was later replaced by the more
efficient railway. In the 1990s the trail began to be converted to a
multi-use recreation trail. The “rail trail” is one of the
most popular jogging and biking routes in our region. See www.farmingtoncanal.org for more information.
The ride will be about 20 miles. There will be some ups and downs but
mainly we will be on the Canal Trail which is flat and well-paved. YOU
DO NOT NEED TO BE AN EXPERIENCED CYCLIST TO DO THIS RIDE. However, you
should
not be a totally inexperienced cyclist either! If you have questions
about the difficulty of the route, please contact Aaron (see below).
Bring snacks, helmet, water, and camera if you have one.
We
will meet at 1 pm at FUUS at 608 Whitney Ave.
Please join us for this exploration of one of the most important recreational resources in our bioregion.
Contact Aaron (aaron.goode@gmail.com or 510 207 6310) for more information.
*******
Movie: "First Earth" & Potluck
Sat, Oct 3, 6 PM Potluck, 7 PM Movie
UU Society, 608 Whitney Ave, New Haven
FIRST EARTH is a documentary about the movement toward a
massive paradigm shift for shelter -- building healthy houses in the
old ways, out of the very earth itself, and living together like in the
old days, by recreating villages. It is a sprawling film, shot on
location from the West Coast to West Africa. An audiovisual manifesto
filmed over the course of 4 years and 4 continents, FIRST EARTH makes
the case that earthen homes are the healthiest housing in the world;
and that since it still takes a village to raise a healthy child, it is
incumbent upon us to transform our suburban sprawl into eco-villages, a
new North American dream.
FIRST EARTH
is not a how-to film; rather, it's a why-to film. It establishes the
appropriateness of earthen building in every cultural context, under
all socio-economic conditions, from third-world communities to
first-world countrysides, from Arabian deserts to American urban
jungles. In the age of environmental and economic collapse, peak oil
and other converging emergencies, the solution to many of our ills
might just be getting back to basics, focusing on food, clothes, and
shelter. We need to think differently about house and home, for
material and for spiritual reasons, both the personal and the
political.
Come and join us for this visually wonderful film. Bring something to eat to share with everyone.
********
4th Bioregional Canoe Trip led by the QRWA (Quinnipiac River Watershed Association)
Sat, Sept 19, 1 PMYOU MUST PREREGISTER TO PARTICIPATE IN THE EVENT
This
is one of the most popular events of the Bioregional Group. Please
consider joining us and having the opportunity to explore the
Quinnipiac River with people who know the river well. We get a view of
our life place that is quite different from our customary land-based
experiences.
Start: We will meet in the Tilcon Asphalt and
Gravel Co., Sacket Point Road, North Haven parking lot. The entrance to
the site is a narrow unmarked alley immediately west of the Tilcon site
and east of Frankson Fence. There is plenty of parking (but it would be
good to carpool anyway). The parking lot is adjacent to the Quinnipiac
River. Here in the parking lot we will get our boats, life jackets and
instructions from QRWA on safety, and do some other official business
necessary for the trip.
Length and Difficulty: The trip will
last about 3 hours. We will be paddling for most of the 3 hours. We
will be moving with the tide, but it is possible to have the wind
against us, and the trip could be somewhat strenuous. We will come out
at the public landing near the American Bistro Restaurant, just before
the Grand Ave. Bridge.
Clothing: We will be exposed to the
sun for the entire trip, wear a hat, protective clothing, sunglasses
and use suntan lotion. Wear old sneakers or other shoes that can get
wet and dirty.
Boats: The Quinnipiac River Watershed Association
will provide the canoes. You are welcome to bring your own canoe or
kayak, but please let us know that you are planning to do this.
Fee:
*$20 per person which covers staff & interns for group safety and
insurance coverage and a $5 donation to the Bioregional Group. The
charge for QRWA members will be $15.
Other information: We
are limited to 26 people for this trip. So pre-registration is required
and will be handled on a first come basis. If you are interested in
participating in this canoe trip, contact Maria Tupper at
mariatupper@gmail.com or call 203-387-7474. We will develop a waiting
list if more people are interested than we have spaces.
Bring: Water to avoid dehydration and possibly a lunch or a snack.
*********
The Connecticut Green Expo & "Tunnel of Transition"
Saturday, Sept. 12, 12:00 pm – 4:00 pm -- FREE admission
Edgerton Park, New Haven (Whitney Ave., on Hamden/New Haven line)
mapquest "75 Cliff St., New Haven" for directions There will be tables for SHARE Haven Time Bank and Green Haven Cohousing,
and the Bioregional Group is Working with the Transition Initiative to present
The Amazing Tunnel of Transition, bursting with insightful analysis and creative solutions
to the tripple challenges of climate change, peak oil and economic meltdown.
Green Haven Cohousing --
http://newhavencohousing.blogspot.com/ SHARE Haven Time Bank --
http://www.sharehaven.org/New Haven Bioregional Group --
http://newhavenbioregionalgroup.org/Transition Greater New Haven --
http://www.transitionnewhaven.org/Connecticut's largest Green Expo will bring together over 75 exhibitors and vendors to share earth-friendly ideas, products and services. All ages will be enlightened and entertained by exhibits, workshops, a magic show about recycling, family-friendly live music, a beautiful Garden Fairy to charm the smallest Expo visitors, storytelling on environmental themes, and a participatory art installation. Our focus is what the average family or person can do now to live more sustainably. "One planet, many choices."
The Green Expo is one part of the CT Folk Festival & Green Expo. The full festival includes a Tour des Farms bike ride, children's theatre, a Green Works job fair, an outdoor concert in Edgerton park headlined by Amos Lee, and other events. Please see our website for the full schedule: http://www.ctfolk.com/ctff/schedule.html
*********
2009 CT TOUR DES FARMS BIKE RIDE
Saturday, September 12
8:30-3 pm, start & finish at Edgerton Park in New Haven
Register at: http://ctfolk.com/ctff/tour.html
Founded in 2003, CT Tour Des Farms is a bike ride intended to promote local agriculture.
In 2009 the sponsors are CT Folk Fest / Green Expo, East Coast Greenway Alliance, Connecticut Commission on Culture & Tourism, and CT NOFA. This is the first year the ride has been based entirely in Greater New Haven.
There will be two routes - a shorter, flatter route (~25 miles) and a
longer, more challenging route (~35 miles). Both will start and end at
Edgerton Park in New Haven in time for Green Expo and Folk Fest
activities in the afternoon and evening. We are planning to visit
(among other sites) Common Ground High School, Lockwood Farm, Mill
River Valley CSA, and Boulder Knoll Community Farm. Also the route will
showcase the Farmington Canal Trail -- part of the East Coast Greenway -- as it nears completion along the New Haven-to-Cheshire section.
We are also looking for volunteers to help with advance planning as well as logistics on the day of the event.
Questions? Contact Aaron at aaron.goode@gmail.com or Alice-Anne at
aliceanne.harwood@gmail.com.
*********
Hiking Our Bioregion with Overnight Camping at Common Ground High School
Sat. & Sun, Aug 8 & 9, meet at UU Society, 608 Whitney Ave, 10 AM Sat, Aug 8
Please let us know if you would like to join any part of this event. We need to know who is coming to plan food and transportation.
Cost $10 to cover food, a donation to Common Ground, and ice cream at the end of the hike.
If you have any questions after reading all the info below, please contact us and we will try to answer your questions.
The Bioregional Group has been talking about gradually walking the circumference of the New Haven-Quinnipiac Bioregion. We will begin with a short piece of that this summer.
For the first leg of this we have been planning a hike that will begin at the New Haven Green and head north through some New Haven neighborhoods. We will walk along the West River, up West Rock and then end on Sat. evening at Common Ground School. We will have a campfire and camp in tents which are provided by Common Ground, with permanent platforms for the night. The next morning we will hike back up to the West Rock Ridge and further north, ultimately coming down and ending at Shepard's Farm. At Shepard's we will have an ice cream treat waiting for us. The entire two day hike will be about 8 miles.
We will be leaving shortly after 10 AM and arriving at Common Ground sometime in the late afternoon. After breakfast on Sunday morning we will head out hiking again around 10 AM.
When we arrive at Common Ground we hope that others who don't feel up to the hike will join us for a potluck supper, and singing and drumming around the campfire, and camping for the overnight. There is space at Common Ground for up to 50 people with tents on platforms. It will be dry and mosquito free inside the tent.
Hikers are asked to bring lunch for Sat, any snack you might like, and water for hiking. Wear good hiking shoes.
We will load our gear into a vehicle at the UU, so we won't have more than a day pack to carry.
If you are staying overnight bring:
Sleeping Bag
Mat
Bug spray
Flashlight
Toiletries
Towel
Musical Instrument
Rain gear
Sunglasses
Hat
Plate, bowl, spoon, knife, fork, cup
Perhaps some food to share
Bring stories to tell around the campfire
Please let us know if you have an interest in joining the hike and/or the overnight. Contact Roger Uihlein 203-773-9510 or mariatupper@gmail.com
*********
Wepawaug River Walkabout
Sat, July 18, 9 AM meet at UU, 608 Whitney Ave, New Haven
9:30 AM meet at Wepawaug Conservation Area, Orange (walk will last 2 hr)
Irena Salina's award-winning documentary investigation into what experts label the most important political and environmental issue of the 21st Century - The World Water Crisis.
Salina builds a case against the growing privatization of the world's dwindling fresh water supply with an unflinching focus on politics, pollution, human rights, and the emergence of a domineering world water cartel.
Interviews with scientists and activists intelligently reveal the rapidly building crisis, at both the global and human scale, and the film introduces many of the governmental and corporate culprits behind the water grab, while begging the question "CAN ANYONE REALLY OWN WATER?"
Beyond identifying the problem, FLOW also gives viewers a look at the people and institutions providing practical solutions to the water crisis and those developing new technologies, which are fast becoming blueprints for a successful global and economic turnaround.
*PLEASE NOTE TIME CHANGE - This film was originally scheduled for Sat., April 25 but the FUUS was already booked at that time.
Inform local residents about the benefits which come to an area when its people consciously and deliberately support their local businesses, especially the enhanced circulation of money and the increase of relationships and connections among people
Develop local sources of capital to support and enable local businesses. Avoid sources of capital that come with strings attached. Capital which remains under the control of powerful outside interests cannot bring real local economic vitality.