SustainME

From ItsGettingHotinHere.org:

This weekend, February 8-10, 2008 over 60 students from all over Maine descended on Bates College for a charged learning and action experience. Kicking it off with a keynote from State Senator Phil Bartlett the students put all of their energy towards concluding with a pathway to a campaign and network that will eventually reach all of the colleges in Maine. Senator Bartlett was instrumental in getting the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) passed in Maine, and Maine students will now build off of this legislation to achieve the goals set by the 1Sky platform:

-20% reductions by 2020 and 80% reductions by 2050

-Moratorium on new Coal power plants

-Create 5 million new green jobs

Maine Students have set an action plan towards this goal that will work in small achievable steps to arrive at new legislation that strengthens RGGI in its post-2019 regime. Students will start on Tuesday by attending a public hearing of Maine bill LD 2149: “An Act to Lower Energy Costs and Increase Renewable Energy in Maine” sponsored by Representative Hannah Pingree. Along with working to push this legislation, students will be working on the bill LD 2126: “An Act To Minimize Carbon Dioxide Emissions from New Coal-powered Industrial and Electrical Generation Facilities in the State” sponsored by Representative W. MacDonald. These two bills are a step in the right direction, but will not be enough, so Maine students will work with other organizations and the legislature to work on a bill that will take RGGI into the post-2019 regime. Over the next 8 months this focus will be accompanied by the network’s push to get all colleges in Maine to sign the American College and University President’s Climate Commitment (PCC).

These are bold steps we must take to ensure our future. The students of Maine will work together on making their state an example for the national and international climate movement. They are calling on all Maine colleges and universities to join us in this unified effort and to realize the power we can have together.

Together, we call ourselves SUSTAIN MAINE!

Thank you so much to all of the speakers who gave their time to educate us, and all of the participants that braved the elements to create something truly inspiring.

If you want to contact SustainMaine do so at sustainmainesteering@gmail.com

The Countdown Begins!

Days Until The Maine State Climate Summit

5th Annual Maine State Climate Summit: Schedule

To register: http://www.ssc.org/involved/registrationsup_mz.php?e=117.

Friday, February 8^th

4:00 pm – 5:30 pm Arrival and Sign-ins

5:30 pm – 6:00 pm Welcome and Introductions (logistics and goals for the weekend)

6:00 pm – 7:30 pm Dinner and 1^st breakout discussion – a chance to list questions and set goals for the weekend (with school group)

7:30 pm – 8:10 pm Keynote address: Maine State Senator Phil Bartlett!

8:10 pm – 8:30 pm Socializing/networking

8:30 pm - ?:00pm Festivities!

Saturday, February 9^th

8:45 am – 9:30 am Breakfast

9:30 am – 9:45 am An introduction from B.E.A.M and an overview of the day ahead

9:45 am – 11:15 am Panel Discussion #1 – an introduction to climate change and our options for mitigation

• Paul Kando – Climate Expert to be presenting “Global Warming, an Update for Maine”

• Normand Laberge PhD – Tidal Power specialist, Maine Tidal Power

• Dr. Michael Dorsey - Dartmouth Professor and climate change policy specialist, Dartmouth College

• Tom Stokes – Climate Crisis Coalition Coordinator

• Kurt Adams – Chairman, Maine Public Utilities Commission
  

• Mike Jacobs - VP of Transmission, UPC Wind

11:15 am – 11:30 am Break

11:30 am – 12:45 pm Panel Discussion #2 – much ado about climate change (the student's role)

• Jennifer Andrews – Campus Program Manager, Clean Air – Cool Planet

• Mark Orlowski – Founder, Sustainable Endowments Institute

• Sarah Lovitz – Clean Energy Project Outreach Coordinator, Natural Resource Council of Maine

• Julie Rosenbach – Environmental Coordinator, Bates College

• Maura Cowley – Campaign Director, Sierra Student Coalition

12:45 pm – 1:30 pm Lunch

1:30pm – 2:45 pm Break out into focus groups – discuss options for achieving carbon neutrality (speakers and presenters can take part in these discussions) each discussion will be facilitated by a Bates students

2:45 pm – 3:00 pm Break – picture on the puddle with a banner

3:00 pm – 4:00 pm Each focus group will briefly discuss and lead a Q&A on their findings

4:00 pm – 4:30 pm Break out into school groups, prepare a profile of your campus organization

4:30 pm – 6:00 pm Campus group profiles – meetings, campaigns, initiatives, etc., what works, what doesn't work, followed by short Q&A and an opportunity to ask for suggestions

6:00 pm – 7:30 pm Dinner

7:30 pm – 8:30 pm Statewide campaign brainstorm activity

8:30 pm - ??:00 pm/am Festivities!

Sunday, February 10^th

9:00 am – 9:30 am Breakfast

9:30 am – 10:30 am Breakout session (workshops and additional presentations)

• Eco-sculpting

• Environmental Justice

• Climate Change and the Maine Coast

• Presidential Candidate Overview

• Coal and Mountaintop Removal

• Climate refugees

• Carbon Trading and Capping

• Sustainable Agriculture

10:30 am – 12:30 pm Laying the foundation for a statewide campaign

12:30 pm – 1:00 pm Closing statements

1:00 pm – 2:00 pm Lunch available, open-time for ongoing discussions

The 5th Annual Maine State Climate Summit February 8-10

The Bates Energy Action Movement is proud to announce that this year's Maine State Climate Summit will be held at Bates College in Lewiston, ME. Please forward this message along to any relevant lists or potential participants at your school.

What is it?

The summit, co-sponsored by the Sierra Student Coalition, is a three-day event that unites students from high schools, colleges and universities in Maine to discuss and take action on issues pertaining to climate change, ranging from wind power to eco-art.

Although the summit is primarily concerned with climate change in Maine, it will also address National and global issues. Our goal for the weekend is threefold: to teach, to train, and to organize. Panel discussions and workshops will serve to strengthen a participant's knowledge base and resources, while networking opportunities and campaign development will set us all on the course to effective climate change action as a powerful and united body of student activists.

Who should come?

No. Experience. Necessary. We will be starting from the basics and working our way through some of the crucial and exciting issues surrounding climate change and sustainability. Come to learn, come to network, come to organize, come to debate! This summit is for students in Maine (and surrounding states) who feel strongly about taking action on climate change, our generation's most pressing challenge.

What to expect...

The weekend will consist of a keynote address, panel discussions, student workshops and statewide campaign organizing as well as great food, socializing, recreation, and entertainment. Accommodations will be provided for all registered participants. The following is a list of confirmed speakers and presenters:

Sarah Lovitz – Clean Energy Project Outreach Coordinator, Natural Resource Council of Maine
Tom Stokes – Climate Crisis Coalition Coordinator
Mark Orlowski – Founder, Sustainable Endowments Institute
Paul Kando – Climate Expert to be presenting “Global Warming, an Update for Maine”
Michele Hertz – Environmental activist and eco-sculptor
Kurt Adams – Chairman, Maine Public Utilities Commission
Julie Rosenbach – Environmental Coordinator, Bates College
Normand Laberge PhD – Tidal Power specialist, Maine Tidal Power
Dr. Michael Dorsey - Dartmouth Professor and climate change policy specialist, Dartmouth College
Jennifer Andrews – Campus Program Manager, Clean Air – Cool Planet

Stay tuned for a full schedule of the weekend!

How to register...

Here's a link to the registration page: http://www.ssc.org/involved/registrationsup_mz.php?e=117.

Everyone who plans to attend must register by January 30th.

There is a per-person registration fee on a sliding scale from $15.00 - $30.00, which will help offset the cost of food for the weekend. Registered e-mail addresses will be added to a list serve and will receive regular updates including an event schedule and more specific information on what to bring and how to prepare. If you have any questions, suggestions, or concerns feel free to contact us (Mike Pickoff - mpickoff@bates.edu).

Thank you and we look forward to seeing you in February!

Love,
The Bates Energy Action Movement

B.E.A.M to host the 5th Annual Maine State Climate Summit

We love climate change conferences. In fact, the Bates Energy Action Movement was formed after attending a conference at Middlebury College on carbon neutrality. Last February we attended the 4th annual Maine state climate summit at the College of the Atlantic, and towards the end of the weekend we were all gathered in the dining hall after a long day of climate action, and Maura Cowley (northeast coordinator of the SSC) inquired as to who would be willing to host the conference the following year. Needless to say, we jumped at the opportunity (literally...just hopped up and down).
Well the time has come, and the organizing has begun. The conference will be held on the weekend of February 8-10 right here on the Bates College campus. And that's only 66 days away! Here's a quick description of what the conference is all about:

The summit, co-sponsored by the Sierra Student Coalition, is a three-day event that brings together students from every college and university in Maine to discuss and take action on issues pertaining to climate change, ranging from wind power to eco-art. It will be held on the Bates College campus in Lewiston.

Although the summit is concerned, primarily, with climate change in Maine, we also hope to address issues on a national and global scale. Our goal for the weekend is to provide the students of Maine and surrounding states with the knowledge base and resources they need to contribute, effectively, to the fight against global warming.

Fun! We have an organizing team set up that meets every Thursday at 8pm in the living room of Chase House (on Frye Street). Please feel free to join us if you feel at all inspired to contribute, have great ideas for the weekend, or just want to hear what we are up to. If you've got questions or suggestions about the conference, e-mail beam@bates.edu and we will do our best to address them. We strongly encourage everyone to get involved with the organizing of this amazing summit.

B.E.A.M blog makes a comeback

Hello everyone! After a long hiatus, The Bates Energy Action Movement's web log is back with a vengeance. I'd like to remind you all that this blog is intended to be interactive, so post your comments! If you are interested in becoming an author, you can e-mail me (mpickoff@bates.edu) or Jack Murphy (jmurphy3@bates.edu) for the username and password. From now on, all of B.E.A.M's campaigns, initiatives and adventures will be posted. Our hope is that this blog will help to encourage a dialog among students, and also serve as a publicity tool for B.E.A.M!

Is anyone interested in becoming the BLOG MASTER?? We'll need someone to make sure we keep this thing updated. Think about it and let us know at the next Sunday evening gathering (every Sunday evening at 6pm in the common area of Frye Street Union). Great!

President Hansen Commits Bates to Carbon Neutrality!

So there is a slight change of plans in our letter to President Hansen, as I alluded to yesterday, and this is because it was going to ask her to sign the American College and University President's Climate Commitment....but she has just signed it!!! And not only has she signed it, she is in the leadership circle! This means that she is commited to working towards climate neutrality beyond Bates, and going to her collegues at other schools and urging them to sign on. So this is really really great news. You can see the commitment, and list of signatories, at https://webmail.bates.edu/portal/services/go.php?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.presidentsclimatecommitment.org%2Fhtml%2Fcommitment.php.

She is on board! That means that together we can really make Bates a leader in the Climate movement! Let's get ready for the Maine Climate Summit next year and get her so sign to ask Maine and US government to Step It Up!

Kudos to E.T.H.!