EcoWatch Journal June/July : Page 2

Stefanie Penn Spear, founder and executive director of EcoWatch, has worked on environmental issues for more than two decades. She is dedicated to providing a voice for grassroots environmental organizations and activists working to better our planet. She can be reached at spear@ecowatch.org. VOLUME V • ISSUE V PUBLISHER EcoWatch EDITOR/EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Stefanie Penn Spear • spear@ecowatch.org SENIOR EDITOR Thomas J. Quinn • quinn@ecowatch.org ADVERTISING Great Lakes Publishing -Frank Bird bird@glpublishing.com • 216-377-3657 CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Megan Quinn Bachman • Suzan Beraza Sandy Buchanan • Pamela L. Davis Jeffrey Feldman • Gwen Forte • Stephen Gabor Jane Goodman • Michelle Hill • Andrew Hyman Brad Masi • Fran Mentch • Dan Morgan Jack Shaner • Toni Temple • Chris Trepal Kara Walsh BOARD OF DIRECTORS Matt Castelli • Lindsey Daniel • Monica Deadwiler Piyush Dubey • James Leikin • Oakland Lewis David Lindner • Sam S. Mathew • Steven Newman Ann-Marie Potemski • Thomas J. Quinn Michelle Sheehan • Jeff Smith • Ameya Tamhaney Donna VanRooy • Eileen Victoriano PROOFREADERS Jen Burke • Michele McBride • Rita Nagusky stefanie penn spear I am not sure I have ever mentioned in my letter how much I enjoy being the editor of EcoWatch Journal . When deadline roles around, I am always excited to begin reviewing the submissions that have come in. From letters to the editor to feature articles to upcoming events to the thoughts of EWJ’s columnists, it is always enlightening to see what’s been going on and learn new things. The June/July issue is certainly no exception. From the controversy in South Euclid over the best use of the former Oakwood Country Club to the best way to generate electric-ity for Cleveland to the need to preserve food crop diversity to trying to shut down four of Ohio’s dirtiest coal plants— this issue is jam-packed with hard hitting sustainability news. As many of you may have already figured out, I am an extreme optimist. I could never be this dedicated to a cause if I didn’t believe that there are solutions to our most challeng-ing issues regarding the health of the planet and our stay on this earth. But to solve these issues we must come together— unite. The articles on pages 8 and 9 on the Oakwood contro-versy are perfect examples. You have a community group fighting for greenspace, and a city council and mayor who are leaders in sustainability at odds. What will it take for the two groups to come together and strategize the best solution for Oakwood’s 61 acres? I am certainly no fan of big box, but South Euclid is strug-gling to provide basic services for its residents, and needs to increase tax revenues and balance its budget. So what’s the best sustainable choice for this land? Read the two sides of the issue and let me know your thoughts via email at spear@ ecowatch.org. I know one thing for sure, if they don’t listen to each other and work together, they will both lose. As I mentioned in my last letter, EcoWatch is expanding its services nationally by becoming a twenty-four-seven news service. We will be making another big announcement this month so be sure to stay connected with EcoWatch by liking us on Facebook, following us on Twitter and joining our email list by visiting www.ecowatch.org. I hope to see everyone at this years Burning River Fest on July 23 and July 24 at the historic Coast Guard station at the mouth of the Cuyahoga River—one of my favorite spots in Cleveland. Be sure to come out and show your support for our most precious resource—Lake Erie. — Stefanie Penn Spear TABLE OF CONTENTS 01 01 03 05 06 08 09 10 11 13 13 15 15 Energy-Efficient SmartHome Provides Solutions to Climate Change Burning River Fest—Celebrate the Great Lakes Letters to the Editor Is Waste-to-Energy a Good Idea to Help Power Cleveland? Help Shut Down Four of the Nation’s Dirtiest Coal Plants Citizens for Oakwood Work to Protect Greenspace What is a Sustainable City? Hands Across the Sand —June 25 at Edgewater park Sustainable Gardening Practices—Key to Local Foods Movement Growhio ExpandsLocal Food Movement GardenWalk Cleveland Bag it Documentary Urges End to Single-Use Plastics Multiple Chemical Sensitivity Month Like EcoWatch on Facebook: facebook.com/EcoWatch Follow EcoWatch on Twitter: twitter.com/ECOWATCHorg Follow Stefanie Spear on Twitter: twitter.com/StefanieSpear Connect on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/StefanieSpear OUR MISSION EcoWatch is an Ohio-based nonprofit media source dedicated to uniting the voice of the grassroots environmental movement to impact policy and promote sustainable lifestyles. EcoWatch Journal is distributed for free throughout Ohio. We print 80,000 copies per issue. ARTICLE SUBMISSION EcoWatch Journal relies on the sustainability movement to provide the content for this newspaper. Visit www.ecowatch.org and click on ARTICLE SUBMISSIONS for details. Submitting an article does not guarantee it getting published. EcoWatch reserves the right to edit all material for clarity, length and content. E-mail submissions to: spear@ecowatch.org. DEADLINE FOR THE AUG/SEPT ISSUE: JULY 1 EcoWatch, Inc. is a non-profit, 501(c)(3) organization. EcoWatch Journal is published six times a year and distributed free throughout Ohio. Copyright ©2011, EcoWatch, Inc. All rights reserved. For reprinting in other publications or electronically, permission must be granted by EcoWatch and proper credit given. The views expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the publisher or editors. EcoWatch Journal is printed on 100 percent recycled, non-bleached newsprint. Inks are soy based. When finished reading EcoWatch Journal please pass it on to someone else or recycle it. ECOWATCH 720 Literary Rd. Cleveland, Ohio 44113 216-387-1609 www.ecowatch.org Thank You for Your Support Cleveland Foundation George Gund Foundation Barbara Van Benken Edith Chase Dave Wingenfeld Jack Zeller Elaine Miller Thank you to everyone who attended the Green Gala and donated to EcoWatch’s Fund-A-Need to support the launch of our new website and mobile application. We appreciate the support! COLUMNS 02 07 10 12 14 Letter from the Editor by Stefanie Penn Spear EarthWISE by Megan Quinn Bachman Policy Corner by Jack Shanner Local Food by Brad Masi Green Investing by Jeffrey Feldman and Andrew Hyman 2 • ECOWATCH JOURNAL • JUNE -JULY 2011 WWW. ECOWATCH.ORG

Letter From The Editor

Stefanie Penn Spear

I am not sure I have ever mentioned in my letter how much I enjoy being the editor of EcoWatch Journal. When deadline roles around, I am always excited to begin reviewing the submissions that have come in. From letters to the editor to feature articles to upcoming events to the thoughts of EWJ’s columnists, it is always enlightening to see what’s been going on and learn new things. The June/July issue is certainly no exception. From the controversy in South Euclid over the best use of the former Oakwood Country Club to the best way to generate electricity for Cleveland to the need to preserve food crop diversity to trying to shut down four of Ohio’s dirtiest coal plants— this issue is jam-packed with hard hitting sustainability news. As many of you may have already figured out, I am an extreme optimist. I could never be this dedicated to a cause if I didn’t believe that there are solutions to our most challenging issues regarding the health of the planet and our stay on this earth. But to solve these issues we must come together— unite. The articles on pages 8 and 9 on the Oakwood controversy are perfect examples. You have a community group fighting for greenspace, and a city council and mayor who are leaders in sustainability at odds. What will it take for the two groups to come together and strategize the best solution for Oakwood’s 61 acres? I am certainly no fan of big box, but South Euclid is struggling to provide basic services for its residents, and needs to increase tax revenues and balance its budget. So what’s the best sustainable choice for this land? Read the two sides of the issue and let me know your thoughts via email at spear@ ecowatch.org. I know one thing for sure, if they don’t listen to each other and work together, they will both lose. As I mentioned in my last letter, EcoWatch is expanding its services nationally by becoming a twenty-four-seven news service. We will be making another big announcement this month so be sure to stay connected with EcoWatch by liking us on Facebook, following us on Twitter and joining our email list by visiting www.ecowatch.org. I hope to see everyone at this years Burning River Fest on July 23 and July 24 at the historic Coast Guard station at the mouth of the Cuyahoga River—one of my favorite spots in Cleveland. Be sure to come out and show your support for our most precious resource—Lake Erie. —Stefanie Penn Spear

Previous Page Next Page

Publication List
Using a screen reader? Click Here