Who's Who | Wilderness Awareness School

In a tiny strip of city park somewhere in Beacon hill, pairs of adults (and one kid) huddle around Sword ferns. First they feel the fuzzy stem coming out of the dirt, then they work their way up, noticing the angle of the leaves, the patterns of colors, and finally they scrape the spores from the back of an upper leaf and taste them. This is the type of thing students are asked to do when they come to the Wilderness Awareness School to connect with nature in the Northwest. The school brings out the natural hunter-gatherer within us all by teaching "The Six Shields of Awareness". One set of knowledge, nature observation, is described as learning to "develop the awareness of a wild animal". One of the six "shields" teaches the use of edible and medicinal plants, and another, wilderness survival, has you "practice skills that can save your life"; what could be more useful?

Why it's not just for campers:

The core values of the Wilderness Awareness School are Peacemaking, Vitality, Nature Mentoring, and Community. The fourth, Community, illustrates why their system of education is so valuable and important:

"We nurture an ever-deepening awareness of the vital interdependence of nature, community, and self. With this awareness, we learn to honor and appreciate the richness that a diversity of life experiences, ideas, backgrounds, and gifts bring to the whole community. We encourage genuine relationships, work-life balance, service to community, and living in rhythm with nature."

The school, headquartered in Duvall, teaches children and adults in classes as long as a summer or as short as a day. They also have a preschool program, a homeschool program, and a home study training course. Class descriptions and more information about the school can be found on their website.

Who's Who | EOS Alliance

Green jobs are becoming more abundant, and working people such as myself would love to have them. The problem is that most of us have the wrong kind of experience or education to actually get hired. The Environmental Outreach and Stewardship Alliance (EOS Alliance), founded by Erick McWayne, solves this problem by providing the technical training for everything environmental, from chemical contamination cleanup to policy issues to home weatherization. Their environmental training course calendar can be found here.

If you're not interested in advanced technical training, EOS hosts many programs for the average citizen, like how to raise chickens in your backyard. The public events calendar is here.

Meanwhile, The EOS Alliance is doing green work now. They provide residential energy audits and weatherization (see the Green Blocks Pilot Project), and organize volunteer work parties to restore the local ecology by replacing invasive species with native ones. Go here to find out more about volunteering.

Entry by Alyssa Ballinger Johnson

Who's Who | Chaco Canyon Cafe

Chaco Canyon Café has gone above and beyond to run their business sustainably, support the community, and to offer animal-friendly products. They compost and recycle over 80% of their waste. The quality of their nutrient rich, vegan, certified organic food waste allowed them to switch from using Cleanscapes compost pick up to donating it to a local farmer who picks it up and uses it to feed his chickens. They save about 1200 dollars a year doing this! One really unique thing I was able to learn about them through contacting the owner is that they use recycled denim instead of insulation in their walls. The list of sustainable business practices they exercise is so long my blog would turn into an essay so here is a link to more information on them, and I highly recommend taking a look at it.

They donate generously to local community organizations and a percentage of credit card sales goes towards Wind Energy. They support a number of local businesses, the ingredients they buy are about 75% local in the summer and 50% in the winter. Charlie’s Produce, Glory Bee, and UNFI are the three venders they primarily go through. They also have teamed up with quite a few local companies such as Green for their wheatgrass, Holmquist Farms for hazelnuts, and Earth Conscious Organics, Full Circle Farms, and Cascadian Farms for some of their produce.

With the exception of offering organic milk for coffee drinks and using honey in their spelt bread they are an all vegan café and the only one in Seattle that features a daily Raw Foods menu.

One last thing I must not forget… the food is great! Take a look at the menu and support this great restaurant!

Chaco Canyon Cafe
4757 12th Ave NE
Seattle, WA 98105
(206) 522-6966

post by angela herr

Who's Who | The Pacific Science Center

Science education enables communities to make informed decisions about everything, including decisions that affect the environment. That is why the Pacific Science Center does such a great service to our society. The Science Center has interactive displays that hook people on science for life. The Science Center also has a host of education programs that extend beyond the familiar white arches. The Mercer Slough Environmental Education Program lets kids experience natural systems and biodiversity first hand. The Science Center also hosts Camp-Ins, where kids stay overnight and learn in-depth on a topic that varies throughout the year. For those that can’t make it to Seattle Center, the Science on Wheels program brings the Center’s entertaining science education to schools and events all across the state. The Science Center constantly keeps its science displays up to date with currently relevant issues. To see what they’re teaching right now, visit their website here.

Entry by Alyssa Ballinger Johnson

Who's Who | Sustainable Path

The Sustainable Path Foundation: Scientifically Informed Giving. It's as awesome as it sounds. Sustainable Path is a charity for smart ideas that will change the world. The Foundation is always both optimistic and realistic, looking for solutions to the world's most complex problems, while never settling for a short cut solution that would sacrifice something we care about.

Formerly Seattle Biotech Legacy Foundation, Sustainable Path's board is full of scientists, and the causes they choose to fund range from promoting science awareness, especially in young people, to enabling "think-tanks" of qualified people to solve seemingly unsolvable problems.

The Foundation's ability to give is based on donations, and they strive to make the highest impact from every dollar they receive. The board puts grant applicants through rigorous scientific scrutiny and only supports evidence-based solutions. In addition to grants, the Foundation uses the connections it has made to promote collaborations between some of the world's most qualified, innovative people.

It is clear why the Foundation chose to change their name to Sustainable Path. By applying scientific thinking to charitable giving, they are systematically creating a path to "a healthy, sustainable future".

Posted by Alyssa Ballinger Johnson

Who's Who: Sustainable Connections

The mission of Bellingham-based Sustainable Connections is to be the local forum where businesses come together to transform and model an economy built on sustainable practices.

They work with local, independently owned businesses that have the autonomy to make any transformational change in their business that they can imagine… reexamining where we buy goods and services, how we consume energy, grow and distribute our food, build homes, and even, how we define success in business. Sustainable Connections is supporting a community of innovators in green building, sustainable agriculture, renewable energy, supporting independent businesses in town centers, and mentoring a new breed of entrepreneurs that have designed their business with a sustainable vision.

Posted by Matt Ross.

Who's Who: Properity Partnership

The Prosperity Partnership's economic strategy is based on the following fundamental principles:

1. People living here have good jobs and earn good incomes.
A healthy, educated, vigorous and engaged citizenry is vital to a successful economy. We all share the goal of building an economy that provides good jobs with good wages. We all want the opportunities to learn skills, bring them into the marketplace and be rewarded for our efforts.

2. Jobs are created by businesses.
Good jobs and incomes come from competitive and prosperous enterprises. We want our region to be a great place for people to start businesses that will have the potential to grow and prosper. This means a place where policies and regulations are clear and effective, and are constantly adjusted to create a good business climate.

3. Embracing our region's diversity is good for business.
The new economic reality means that we must marshal all of our resources to compete successfully in a global economy. That means historically under-developed economic sectors-small and minority-owned businesses in particular-must be fully integrated into our region's economy.

4. The region has vibrant cities and thriving communities.
Over the past decade, the region has successfully focused employment growth into dense, walkable, urban centers. This approach has enabled employees to commute to work through a variety of modes, and has guided the region's transportation investments. As the region's economy grows, it will provide additional opportunities to further enliven our cities and communities.

5. The region has a healthy and beautiful environment and a good quality of life.
Our high quality of life and healthy environment make the region a great place to live and raise a family, which is crucial to a healthy and vibrant economy. We need diverse housing choices, effective transportation systems, good schools, as well as public parks and places for our enjoyment. A healthy environment, with clean air and water, is at the core of the Puget Sound lifestyle. We also need strong communities that offer residents opportunities for recreation and leisure, promote the arts, celebrate our heritage, and preserve our cultural resources.

6. Regional collaboration on a shared economic agenda ensures our region's long term, sustainable economic prosperity.
In this increasingly interconnected global economy, we must recognize that the 4 counties and 82 cities of our metropolitan region are a single economic unit. Working together as a region is our best chance to guarantee shared economic prosperity for us all.

Posted by Matt Ross.

Who's Who: Northwest Environmental Business Council

Since its formation as a regional organization in 1996, NEBC has become the recognized voice of the industry - advocating for science-based regulation, supportive policies and tax structures, the dissemination of knowledge, and the adoption of best practices.

Going beyond its roots in environmental protection and remediation, NEBC product and service members also work in waste and recycling, water supply, wastewater treatment, energy, land use and construction, "green" chemistry and manufacturing, greenhouse gas management, and related fields. This collection of sectors is now coming under the umbrella of "sustainability" or "clean technologies," but NEBC members were there from the start.

Members cover an ever-widening spectrum, including engineers, consultants, contractors, scientists, lawyers, product and technology providers, insurers, project financers, business support professionals, plus a host of other disciplines and firms supportive of NEBC's goals. NEBC's structure as a cross-discipline, cross-sector organization fosters transfer of knowledge and learning, builds synergies among members, and expands business opportunities.

Posted by Matt Ross.

Who's Who: Yes! Magazine

YES! Magazine is an award winning, ad-free, nonprofit publication that supports people's active engagement in building a just and sustainable world.

The heart of their work is to spotlight practical possibilities for deep shifts in our society

• They inspire people to say YES!
• They support and connect individuals and communities working for a just and sustainable world.
• They reframe issues, reflect diverse human-scale stories, and offer tools for people to use and to pass along.

YES! now reaches over 150,000 readers each quarter and draws some 100,000 visitors to their website each month.

Posted by Matt Ross.

Who's Who: Urban Visions

Urban Visions believes sustainable development choices, smart growth and increased density can create a vital, vibrant and compelling alternative urban sprawl.

They believe in creating innovative urban communities that offer a wide array of experiences for individuals, where life's amenities and necessities are within easy reach. A vibrant downtown is a powerful mixture of office space, housing, retail, open spaces and the arts.

Posted by Matt Ross.

Who's Who | Eco-Logica Magazine

Eco-logica is a new Spanish-language publication in the Pacific Northwest looking at environmental and social sustainability. The magazine's editor, biologist Stuart Vasquez, explains that the title is broken into two parts: Eco – having to do with the natural environment, and -Logica, having to do with ideas, community, and society. The contents reflect this by including both tips on green living and articles exploring issues of identity, as well as pieces that combine the two, such as a profile of a local neighborhood. The magazine, in part inspired by Conscious Choice, seeks to educate people on the ways in which daily actions and choices use natural resources and otherwise affect the environment. The Washington State Department of Ecology has been supportive of Vasquez's efforts, providing information to support the magazine's content.

Eco-logica is still getting started and Vasquez is seeking advertisers interested in reaching the Spanish speaking population, as well as volunteers to help write articles. For more information contact info@ecologicamagazine.com

Blog entry by Julia Cechvala.

Who's Who: Great City

We're big fans of Great City here at Sustainable Seattle, so we are totally excited to see their fancy new website. Even better, they've started up a new networking site called Seattle Network. Great City kicked butt on the Parks initiative last election so who better than Great City to have the coolest, hippest, most action oriented website around. Check it out, join a group (like Streets for people), and create some change!