DOUBLE HEADER – Two Important JC School District Projects, PLEASE SUPPORT !

FIRST UP, is the amazing +ART STEM (SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, ENGINEERING & MATH) = STEAM Project led by fabulous Music Teacher John Flora in partnership with Science Teacher Mrs. Wusu at MS #7, one of Jersey City’s newest Eco Schools !! Supported financially by the Grammy and Honeywell Foundations, I received this email today –

I'm glad I collaborated with science teacher Mrs. Wusu this school year for a unique S.T.E.A.M. initiative! First, we selected an 8th grade class based on our shared schedule. Then, we used our training and resources from the Honeywell Ecosystems Institute this past summer, in addition to supplemental curriculum and resources from the GRAMMY Museum in L.A. We wanted students to see the relationship between watershed and biodiversity. Our final theme became: "Our City and Nature: Songs of Biodiversity". Hopefully, homeroom 217 will never forget the cross-curricular lesson plans we exposed them to, thanks in a big way to many of the individuals and organizations involved in this email.

This initiative has offered kids the opportunity to be intimately engaged with our urban ecology and nature’s happenings here in JC – yes amongst our hardscapes NATURE IS HAPPENING !  Get inspired !! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n9dWbtzs1eQ&feature=youtu.be

Come on out if your schedule permits – applaud these kids on Thursday 5/26 at 6:30pm in the MS#7 auditorium at their annual Spring Concert for family/friends, 222 Laidlaw Avenue, for any who can join to congratulate these students.

     SECOND UP, and this one needs some $$$ Folks !!  TEAM WILDERNESS TAKING KIDS OFF CITY STREETS TO LEARN TEAMWORK ON MOUNTAIN PEAKS, founded by Steve Cunningham and incubated at Snyder HS will offer kids the opportunity to intimately engage with nature OUTSIDE OF JERSEY CITY and promises the opportunity to develop our young people’s leadership skills and HATCH THEIR CHARACTERS into new inspiring choices they will make as a result of this experience.  Here’s more about this new organization and how to donate https://www.ioby.org/project/team-wilderness-taking-kids-city-streets-learn-teamwork-mountain-peaks

We’re 95% there – helps us over the finish line !!

SJC is doing cartwheels over these and other initiatives spearheaded by Teacher Champions, Principals, Vice Principals and the Superintendents Office – the JC School District is challenged in many ways, as we all know, but we should take great pride in the fact that VERY GOOD things are happening and some very innovative, project based learning opportunities are emerging for our kids, both inside curriculum based initiatives and thru independent and innovative program offerings like the above – synergies move the needle and now is the time for all of us to LEAN IN, CREATE MORE.  That’s the new culture of Jersey City ~

More about SJC's Sustainable Schools initiative here.

SLOWFASHIONFFFARS/SJC Footwear Drive @JCKIDS RACE 4/21 9AM-2PM

SLOWFASHIONFFFARS & SJC present another chance to donate and volunteer! Your gently used shoes go to charity and top donors can enroll and win tickets to our upcoming fundraiser TBA! Details below:  

SLOW FASHION: The Race to Recycle Foot Gear w/SJC+ART @The Mother Earth Festival tomorrrow, Saturday, April 24th.

SJC+ART AND SLOWFASHION/FFFARS IS HOT OFF A FABULOUS EARTH DAY WEEKEND @LIBERTY STATE PARK FOR #HUDSONEARTHDAY AND THE PEACE COMMUNITY GARDEN @SAINT PAUL'S LUTHERAN CHURCH AND NOW AT HISTORIC JERSEY CITY HARSIMUS COVE CEMETERY FOR THE ANNUAL MOTHER EARTH FESTIVAL AND THE ARRIVAL OF THE BABY GOATS! 

SLOW FASHION: The Race To Recycle Foot Gear! Footwear Drive Fundraiser To Benefit Ecuador Earthquake Relief

When: Saturday April 30th, 2016, 12 NOON-4 PM Where:The Historic Jersey City & Harsimus Cemetery’s annual 'Mother Earth Festival' A Celebration of Earth and Arbor Day + the arrival of the Baby Goats!

Here’s your chance to CLEAN OUT & RECYCLE your unwanted footwear! While keeping this waste stream from going to landfills. Bring footwear you wish to donate with you to Sustainable JC’s table and check out all the cool projects they are working on, sign-up to volunteer with us and enter a free raffle to win a Rain Barrel!

Spread the word amongst family and friends - bring their footwear too! The more footwear we collect, the more money we raise. Donated footwear will find their way to those who need them globally, with financial proceeds going to Ecuador Earthquake Relief and toward assisting others in need!

ACCEPTABLE Footwear: All types of men's, women's and children's: athletic sneakers, shoes, and footwear. Footwear MUST be paired using rubber bands or shoelaces.

NOT ACCEPTABLE Footwear: Any footwear that is damaged, has holes or tears, singles shoes of any type, rubber flip flops, slippers, roller blades, roller skates, ice skates, ski boots or mud-covered footwear

YOU GIVE US YOUR GENTLY USED FOOTWEAR WE GIFT YOU WITH SUSTAINABLE SWAG! TOP DONORS ENROLL WITH EVELYN VON GIZYCKI ON SITE FOR A CHANCE TO WIN TICKETS TO OUR UPCOMING FUNDRAISER TBA!

Questions and for more information contact Evelyn von Gizycki at 646-522-4549 or http://press@sustainablejc.org.

Follow us on social media platforms  to connect with and check back here as well for re-caps and event photos: @sustainablejc AND www.facebook.com/SLOWFASHIONFFFARS This is not tax deductible or a charitable solicitation; footwear drive cannot supply donation receipts to participants. Your footwear is collected and sold to footweardrive.com. Every step we take helps us to divert waste away from landfills!

Madrid & Paris Green Infrastructure Movement - Next Stop Jersey City !

As a river City impacted by exteme weather events, plus our Mayor's commitment to lower our carbon footprint (ignore the Nerdwallet claim as is a form of greenwashing), we have an opportunity to ratchet up more Green Infrastructure (GI) in Jersey City - this will help mitigate climate change impacts and create a higher quality of life in line with social and environmental priorities expressed by our community. As SJC continues our educational outreach on this front, e.g., our Certificate Program In Urban Sustainability, which will highlight Green Infrastructure opportunities related to Building activity + our upcoming GI demonstration projects, the City of Jersey City is undergoing a review of opportunities to integrate Green Infrastructure into New Construction, Redevelopment Projects, and Streetscapes across the City.  This is amazing news and SJC feels that our advocacy efforts, and sometimes nudgy approach, has paid off.  The groundswell of interest in bringing Nature into the City, to help carry the load, not only makes common sense, but makes financial sense.

Integrating GI approaches to our Master Planning activities, will not only mitigate current and future costs of managing stormwater (think property taxes that are intended to pay for needed infrastructure builds and rebuilds), but will pay us all back with quality of life dividends, e.g., air quality (that same Nerdwallet survey cited JC near the bottom of those cities surveyed in this category).  Also, seems like a synergistic bonus to the City's investment in their rightfully inspired 'Culture of Health' initiative.

Gaining the partnership of the Developer community to GREEN THEIR PROJECTS, in compliance with industry best practices, will accelerate our goal to become one of America's best cities and on a practical front, will transform the resiliency of our City, should another super storm hit - tick, tock.  We need incentives on this front and while the NJ DEP might be offering municipal financial support to those who take the initiative to implement GI, Jersey City also needs to come up with local incentives to make this happen.  What about a GREEN SCORE, that is mapped to Abatements ?  Developers get rewarded for integrating greener, energy efficient building and green infrastructure attributes into their designs - or else they are not eligible for higher level Abatement awards - this is probably contentious :-) but other cities are doing it.

Lastly, IF our Economic Development Strategic Plan is to deliver on Social & Environmental Priorities, expressed by an array of community stakeholders, then certainly the opportunity to job train for Greener Building Retrofits (we have a built-in inventory, of old and now new construction, that do not meet industry best practices), GI service sector and other Green Economy Jobs, can be low hanging fruit for the Mayor's Innovation Team.  They are working really hard to connect the dots and deliver on new programs and activities that stimulate economic growth for JC - is it that Green Infrastructure is hiding in plain sight (old joke) ?

With a focus on revitalizing our commercial districts, let's not only think about marketing models and incentives that empower small businesses (both important), but let's ALSO consider the opportunity to create some synergistic returns on our investment in these footprints - yes build, yes bring in new business investment AND yes, let us create greener corridors to live and work in Jersey City.  These are NOT mutually exclusive goals.

We've already published lots about what's going on in our region - Philly, Camden, Hoboken, NYC, etal.  Here's what's going on in Europe -

http://www.fastcoexist.com/3056166/madrid-is-covering-itself-in-plants-to-help-fight-rising-temperatures

http://www.yesmagazine.org/planet/france-green-roofs-law-solar-panels-20150819

Why Do We Need More Permaculture Practicioners In Jersey City ?

Hello Folks,

Passing along a note from colleague Claudia Joseph here, founder of the New York Permaculture Exchange (NYPE).  She has orchestrated beneficial bridges across historic landmark / park / government / school / community constituents toward a COMMONS installation - purposeful and useful landscape, built and open space, offering highest and best use for greatest number of people.

Permaculture is more than just good gardening.  It is a lifelong approach to analysis, actions and social structures that results in better relationships, more functional systems and a clearer understanding of everything necessary for human communities to thrive. – CJ

SJC is very excited about our partnership with NYPE and excited at the prospect of more local JC practicioners hitting the streets as a result of this program.  We're very supportive of Permaculture Education - for adults and for our kids - as we believe it is an opportunity to help people understand the complexities of their immediate & broader worlds, through a very accessible and inspiring lens :-)

Claudia Joseph will one of the appreciated Instructors in SJC's Certificate Program in Urban Sustainability, starting at the end of February 2016 - stay tuned.

30% Discount For Course Outlined Below Is Being Offered To SJC Members.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Note from Claudia Joseph -

Dear Permaculture Enthusiasts,

Are you interested in knowing more about Climate Change and how to respond? Want to grow food, learn to forage and explore culinary and medicinal herb use?  How about organic gardening, improving soil, and urban compost systems?  Want to learn about GMO's and how you can save your own seeds? Or explore energy solutions and every day actions that help? This course offers a toolbox of techniques that can be applied on any scale - from window box to farm & forest. 12 Saturday sessions takes you from dormancy through the spring planting season. 10 hours of field training and ongoing opportunities to garden.

If money is what is stopping your learning, talk with us about payment plans and trade possibilities.  Give yourself or someone you love a life-long gift of knowledge.

PERMACULTURE DESIGN CERTIFICATE winter-spring 2016, in Brooklyn, NY Jan 9, Jan 23, Jan 30, February 6, Feb 20, March 5, April 2, April 9, April 16, April 23, May 14, May 21 at the Brooklyn Society for Ethical Culture and the Old Stone House.

Claudia Joseph, lead instructor  (also teaches Organic Gardening Techniques at NYBG) Nationally recognized Guest Instructors: Jude Hobbs, Jono Neiger, Tattfoo Tan Fabulous local teachers Claudia Keel, Wendy Brawer, Craig Desmond

Course Fee: $1,200, partial scholarships through BSEC are available. We want to empower as many people as possible to take positive steps in the coming year.

Contact: permie@earthlink.net For information visit: www.permaculture-exchange.org

Register: http://theoldstonehouse.org/education/environmental/

This 12-part Permaculture Design Certificate course teaches basic skills such as site mapping, observation, and assessment, as well as group process and effective communications. The course will include contemporary urban examples for responding to climate change, improving city environments, food systems, energy solutions, bioregional organizing, utilizing the public commons, group governance, and cooperative systems. These skills can be applied professionally and personally in combination with many related livelihoods and practices. Realize your potential by increasing your skills and knowledge.

This course helps support the first Public Commons in NYC. Washington Park is open every day, hosting a useful landscape for food, medicine, craft material and bird & pollinator support. Beds are constructed on contour to capture storm water. The 1.3 acre garden system was designed interactively with the community it serves and continues to evolve.

Brooklyn Society for Ethical Culture hopes to adapt the grounds at their historic Jacobean building near Prospect Park to have similar functionality. We are promoting a replicable model! Students will help design the new plantings as well as assess the building and other functional aspects of BSEC for the final design project. Individual design assignments will allow students to develop their skills using sites relating to their specific interests in this collaborative education model. Be part of the transformation into a carbon neutral future.