Moving Gracefully, Organizing, and Thriving in Viral Times; Monday April 6, 2020 6:30 - 8:00 PM on-line

From Kelly Yagatich of the Climate Reality Project:

I hope this finds you well. Like every other group, our top priority is ensuring the health and safety of all of the people who are engaged in the Reimagine the Turtle Creek Watershed & Airshed Communities Plus initiative during this uncertainty, while also making sure that we don’t lose our sense of community and purpose in the panic. The regularly scheduled Monday, April 6, 2020 will be a Zoom meeting from 6:30pm to 8:00pm. We want to provide you with the resources that you need to keep your families healthy while also providing you with tools to continue organizing around the projects we’ve started. The topic of this event will be “moving gracefully, organizing, & thriving in viral times.” Here is the description of what we will cover in the meeting:
With travel, events, and in-person meetings canceled, you might be wondering how to stay connected to your community and continue advocating for positive change. Reimagine the Turtle Creek Watershed & Airshed Communities Plus invites you to a virtual meeting to learn more about how to practice mindfulness and meditation at home, how to put together simple, inexpensive meals using plant-based ingredients, and how to use online tools to connect with other community members and organize. With these tools, you can continue planning campaigns to promote health and wellness and sustainability in your communities. Together, we can overcome the obstacles posed by COVID-19 and work to impact our communities in a positive way to bring safety, equity and sustainability to our region. From 6:30 to 7:30, we will provide you with the skills that you need to maintain a healthy mind and body in this time and resources to continue organizing virtually from your home. From 7:30 to 8:00, we will provide an optional virtual space for people to meet in their project groups from the last meeting and continue collectively organizing.

In order to attend, you must register in advance via this Zoom link. Once you register, you will be provided with a link for the meeting on April 6^th in your email inbox. You can also find all of this info (and share it with your friends) through the Facebook event. We hope that you will be able to join us and that you will invite your friends to join us as well.

Again, we understand that this is a difficult time for many people, so please don’t hesitate to reach out to me or other members of the ReImagine TCWAC+  planning team if there is anything we can assist you with, if you have ideas for future topics that we should cover, or if you have any questions or concerns.

All the best,

Kelly

Kelly Yagatich | Regional Organizer - PA

T: 202.567.6829 | C: 412.427.3232
E-mail: kelly.yagatich@climatereality.com

ReImagine! Turtle Creek Watershed Communities. Yay!

Monroeville CommUNITY Day, ReImagine! Turtle Creek Watershed Communities, and more:

Please join us at our booth on Monroeville CommUnity Day on Saturday, July 27, 2019 in Monroeville Park from 11:00 AM to 6:30 PM! 

Our next meeting of Sustainable Monroeville is on Monday evening, August 5, 2019 at 7:00 PM in the downstairs program room of the Monroeville Public Library. Come learn about our newest collaborative initiative. This amazing vision, ReImagine! Turtle Creek Watershed Communities is inspired by ReImagine! Beaver, ReImagine! Butler, and the League of Women Voters. We'll also review the work of Sustainable Monroeville since its inception ten years ago.

Save the Dates:

• Turtle Creek Watershed Association Board Meeting on Tuesday, July 30, 2019 at 5:30 PM-Murrysville, PA
• Sustainable Monroeville on Monday evening, August 5, 2019 at the Monroeville Public Library in the downstairs program room
• Monroeville Citizens' Night on Thursday evening, August 8, 2019 at 7:00 PM-Monroeville Municipal building
• Monroeville Council meeting on Tuesday evening, August 13, 2019 at the Monroeville Municipal building

We have been asking at each Monroeville Citizens' Night and Monroeville Council meeting who owns the mineral rights under the municipal pool property. We continue to wait for an answer from our municipal attorney, Mr. Wratcher. 

Sustainable Monroeville has also been asking why Monroeville Council is not concerned about putting a protective of the citizens of Monroeville detailed oil and gas ordinance in place just like has been done in Churchill, Forest Hills, South Fayette, Oakmont, and the City of Pittsburgh. 

In collaboration with the League of Women Voters of Pennsylvania (LWV), we'll begin the process to ReImagine! the Communities in the Turtle Creek Watershed. We have reached out to a few other organizations and are waiting to hear back from them to let us know if they'd love to collaborate with us. If you have ideas about which individuals and organizations throughout the Turtle Creek Watershed would love to join in this amazing process, please let us know by messaging the Sustainable Monroeville Facebook page or to sustainablemonroeville@gmail.com. Sustainable Monroeville will be a participant in this process. There will be many leaders. How about you?! :)

To see which communities we're referring to, go the the Turtle Creek Watershed Association website and look at the map of the many communities that are part of the Turtle Creek Watershed. 

It will be wonderful when we can all feel comfortable to swim again in Turtle Creek and know that we are doing all we can to promote the health and wellness of ourselves and of our wonderful region by promoting healthy businesses, healthy economic development and so much more! This day will happen when acid mine drainage from sixty years ago or more is addressed with mindfullness and full responsibility is taken by all of us to clean up this mess instead of building on top of it and pretending it's not there! The Turtle Creek Watershed Association (TCWA) is doing well addressing the issue of Acid Mine Drainage in Irwin, PA. They just had a wonderful event a few weeks ago to raise awareness and raise funds for both their organization and for the city of Irwin. Support the Turtle Creek Watershed Association! There's also a newly formed Chalfont Watershed Association that is in the process of raising 

It is important for us to be proactive and not allow further pollution to our airshed and watershed with upcoming proposals for further extractive industries such as the Marcellus Shale/Natural gas industry. The natural gas industry is not required to comply with the environmental standards of even the coal industry. And look what mess we are in sixty years later with acid mine drainage!!! We must be sure we have protective of the citizens oil and gas ordinances in place in our populated regions. Minimally, we must insist that industry complies with existing environmental standards and not simply pay fines when they do not follow the rules. If you're not familiar with the oil and gas issues in Southwest PA, here's a few wonderful resources to begin with:

• The book Amity and Prosperity by Eliza Griswald
• The League of Women Voters of Pennsylvania Shale Gas Extraction and Public Health, A Resource Guide
• The Environmental Health Project: www.environmentalhealthproject.org
• The Climate Reality Project: www.climaterealtiyproject.org

Thank you all for your belief in truth and your work in moving us into the more beautiful world we all know in our hearts is possible.

Blessings to us all,

Elisa Beck, on behalf of over 125 individuals who have been engaged with Sustainable Monroeville for a decade.

You Are Invited! Celebrating Moving Into Our Regenerative Future Now!

Hello, and Happy warm sunny days! *** 

Sustainable Monroeville has been collaborating with Food and Water Watch, and we are deeply grateful for their insights regarding our move into our beyond sustainable, regenerative future. What does a regenerative future, now, look like? Hey, scroll back and read and study the blogs from the inception of Sustainable Monroeville in 2009-2010 to learn about morphing culture... How do we create a healthier economy in Monroeville, PA and beyond? We can support many more small businesses, social and environmental justice, more community interaction and integrating solar, wind, and growing our own food... Imagine what it will look like in our town with all of the front, back and side yards in Monroeville of both private residences, municipal property, and commercial spaces, including the lawn of Forbes Regional Hospital as Food Forests with solar panels and small cylindrical Wind Stax, wind turbines .. Plant that seed today! Blessings for a wonderful end of 2017, Elisa Beck:)

What's Next?
Let's celebrate our accomplishments! 
December 4, 2017 from 6:00 to 10:00 PM: Please join Food & Water Watch and Sustainable Monroeville as we host a potluck celebrating a year of Allegheny County communities standing up to fight the fracking industry.

***Help us keep track of how many people we should be prepared for by RSVPing here: fwwat.ch/mopfundraiser. Once you RSVP, we'll send you an email with the event location ***

We’ve seen amazing victories over the past year. In Monroeville and Oakmont, we passed ordinances to protect communities from seismic testing, and are moving forward with oil and gas zoning ordinances to protect families from fracking. The Plum Borough community is fighting newly proposed fracking wells and underground injection wells for the disposal of fracking wastewater.

These victories show what is possible when we get organized to fight for our health and safety. Food & Water Watch wants to replicate our fight in many of the surrounding communities, such as North Huntington, Upper and Lower Burrell, Pitcairn, and Penn Hills. That means building the resources we’ll need to scale up this important work.

Please consider signing up as a monthly contributor to Food & Water Watch at this event! If you can't make the event, or want to sign up as a member before you come, you can do so here:

http://act.foodandwaterwatch.org/site/Donation2?6194.donation=form1&df_id=6194&mfc_pref=T

We’ll have de-toxifying green drinks, made with organic veggies and roots, as well as delicious salad and soup. There will be a potluck starting at 6 PM so please feel free to bring vegan, preferably organic, dishes.

Starting at 7 PM we'll have a short program with speakers including former Pittsburgh City Councilman Doug Shields, who has led the Food & Water Watch’s Municipal Outreach Project.

RSVP at this link and we'll send you an email with the event location:
fwwat.ch/mopfundraiser

To read more about our campaign, check out this Post-Gazette article: http://www.post-gazette.com/local/region/2017/05/30/Marcellus-Shale-drilling-Allegheny-County-zoning-ordinance-pa/stories/201705240023

Adam Tuznik of Clean Water Action and IMPORTANT Action items this week and next week!

Happy December !

What does our Regenerative Future look like? What is a Tessla-Style Positive Energy Plant anyway? There's one in Russia that will take care of all of the energy needs of that country should the grid there go down.... So you say? What does that energy plant look like, and what does it do? How do we facilitate one of those Tessla`style plants in this Pittsburgh region on a site being prepared right now in Beaver County so we bring the Western PA region into the new moment of our REGENERATIVE FUTURE NOW as an incredible leader!
Donald Trump spoke with Al Gore for close to 90 minutes today and they talked about Climate Change! Hmmm. Did Al let Donald know how monetarily profitable, how gratifying, how unifying, how simply AMAZING the Regenerative Future will be for all of us? What is this new story you're telling me? It seems so different from what I am used to...How do I integrate all of it?

Try this for three minutes:
1) Connect with your heart. Go inside yourself. Connect with your heart in a way you feel comfortable with. Touch your heart with your hand, put your hands in prayer in front of your heart, or simply put your hands wherever you'd like and think of your heart.
2) Close your eyes. Slow your breath. Five seconds for an in breath and five seconds for an out breath. Three cycles of this breathing series...
3) BE compassion, gratitude, thankfulness. Count your blessings.

Adam Tuznik spoke with us tonight at our December 2016, Sustainable Monroeville meeting about Clean Water Action's initiatives including discussion about The Clean Water Rule, The "Clean" Power Plant, and the victory closing the Shenango Coke Works Plant. He mentioned the combined sewerage overflow issue and the Consent Decree...We asked about including composting toilets in the discussion of Permaculture planning to reverse the sewerage overflow issue.... Tough subject during a pot luck dinner! We missed Mya Zeronis and wonder where she is. We hope she is doing well... We talked about the importance of eating lower on the food chain as an action towards lessening our footprint on Mother Earth. We modeled taking care of ourselves by sharing a delicious whole food, plant based vegan meal together.

ACTIONS:

Mark your calendar to take a trip to Potter Township in Beaver County on the following dates: December 7, 2016 at 5:30 PM for the Press Conference regarding the proposed Shell Oil Cracker Plant. Location: Potter County Municipal Building
December 13, 2016 at 3:00 PM for the final hearing and likely vote on land use issues for the proposed Shell Oil Cracker Plant. Location: Potter County Municipal Building
December 15, 2016 from 5:00 to 8:00 PM for a Public Hearing about the Shell Oil Cracker Plant. Register to speak at this public hearing with Ms. Alwine at 412-442-4137. Location: Central Valley High School, 160 Baker road, Monaca, PA15061
December 17, 2016 at 10:00 AM to visit the site at the intersection of routes 376 and 18 one half hour north of Pittsburgh, PA to carry water protector and air protector signs outside the fence line of the proposed Shell Oil Cracker Plant site and to raise awareness in the area about REGENERATIVE ENERGY alternative ideas for this site that Shell Oil will be able to implement for the protection of our entire Pittsburgh region and to create a power of 10 more jobs than those that will be created by the proposed Cracker Plant!

 Send a letter to John Weinstein, the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Alcosan expressing your concern that not enough Regenerative Ideas are being included yet in the solution to the consent decree.

Learn about the Louisiana Bucket Brigade and how we can DIVEST from fossil fuels and INVEST in our REGENERATIVE FUTURE!

Many Blessings for our REGENERATIVE and Restorative FUTURE that is NOW!:)

Elisa Beck :)
sustainablemonroeville@gmail.com

Our rooftop and The Search for Sustainability Documentary Series produced by Nathan Crane

Hello and Happy February!

Join us to view the entire Search for Sustainability Series produced by Filmmaker Nathan Crane for the rest of the monthly Sustainable Monroeville meetings in 2016. The movies will be followed by discussion. The next Sustainable Monroeville meeting is on Monday, March 7, 2016 from 7:00 to 8:30 PM. Episode # 2 of the series to be shared at the March meeting is titled Sustainable Food, Water, and Soil. 
Sustainable Monroeville meetings are free and open to the public and take place in the downstairs program room of the Monroeville Public Library on the first Monday evening of each month. Please note: * July date will be posted soon....  See you at the movies!

Check out the link below to see the first in the series for free:

http://theselfreliancesummit.com/the-search-for-sustainability-home/

My personal Sustainability Lesson for 2015:

My big lesson in sustainability for 2015 was when we needed to put a new roof on our suburban Monroeville home. I wanted to put the greenest, most sustainable rooftop on the face of the planet on our home, but things did not end up that way.
What am I talking about? Well, a metal roof with solar panels, the more sustainable choice in my view would have cost about three times as much as the asphalt rooftop I eventually settled for. The best we could do was put an Energy Star rated rooftop, light in color on our roof. The shingles were made in a relatively local factory somewhere in Ohio....Why is it that the metal roof would be so much more expensive? My understanding is that the oil industry is so heavily subsidized that asphalt shingles which are oil based cost way less than other alternatives including composite materials and natural materials such as slate or ceramic roof tops....

The other rooftop revelation was that at this moment in time,  there is not one place in Western PA or Eastern Ohio that will recycle asphalt shingle. A prominent roofing company in Western PA misled me initially saying that they would take the old shingle and have it recycled with an UPCHARGE. When I checked into this through the PA Resources Council and by following through myself, I found out that indeed this was NOT true. This roofing company was appalled when I told them the truth and they made sure they will not spread untruths any more. They also made sure the company that said they were recycling asphalt shingles, but were not, took that fictitious service off of their web site!

Elisa Beck :)
sustainablemonroeville@gmail.com
Like Sustainable Monroeville on Facebook!

Court Gould of Sustainable Pittsburgh on Certifying Sustainable Municipalities! Monday evening, April 7, 2014

Join Sustainable Monroeville at 7:00 PM on Monday evening, April 7, 2014, in the downstairs program room of the Monroeville Public Library to hear Court Gould, Executive Director of Sustainable Pittsburgh speak about how Monroeville can become the next Certified Sustainable Municipality! 

Accolades for the 18 Certified Sustainable Municipalities

Through an underwriting campaign on 90.5 WESA and 91.3 WYEP, Sustainable Pittsburgh is bringing community accolades to the eighteen municipalities in southwestern Pennsylvania that have earned recognition through SP’s Sustainable Community Essentials Certification.

Ranging in certification level from Bronze through Gold, these municipalities have met the program's rigorous performance criteria, which tracks 131 policies and practices that define a sustainable community.

The Sustainable Community Essentials Certification assists municipalities with saving money, conserving resources and serving vibrant communities. Municipal officials, there is still time to complete the certification and be recognized. We can even provide hands-on assistance to get you started. Call us at (412) 258-6643 or visit www.sustainablecommunityessentials.org to learn more.

What you will find on the certification website
The certification website is chock full of useful information:
- Click “View Certified Municipalities near you” to see a list of certified municipalities and also those that have pledged to become certified.

- View the information municipalities provided to earn certification.
Once you access the list of certified municipalities, you will notice their names are live web links. These links allow access to the policies and practices the municipality claimed and points earned. From here one can follow web links (little green boxes) provided by the municipality to material on their website that the municipality provided as validation of their certification points earned.

- The “Learn” button on the home page includes a drop down menu link to a “Library of Sustainable Municipal Policies and Practices.” Tracking all 131 certification criteria, this library is automatically populated as municipalities provide their web links to validate their points earned.

Applause for Certified Sustainable Municipalities!
Gold: 
Forest Hills, Connellsville, Moon, Scott, Latrobe, Cranberry, Upper St. Clair, Baldwin, Monaca

Silver:
Edgewood, Dormont, Etna, Heidelberg, Findlay, Millvale, Peters, Mt. Lebanon

Bronze: 
Swissvale

Vegan Pot Luck dinner meeting for December 2, 2013 at 6:00 PM; 7:00 PM What is the Living Building Challenge?

We will meet at 6:00 PM for a Vegan Pot Luck dinner in the downstairs program room of the Monroeville Public Library. Bring along a dish to share along with your utensils, plate and a cup. After dinner, we will have a planning meeting for 2014 and Elisa Beck will give a talk on "What is the Living Building Challenge?"

All meetings of Sustainable Monroeville are free and open to the public. Join Us!

Summer Dogwood in Monroeville, PA

Windmills in Somerset, PA

Ingredients: The Local Food Movement Takes Root at the October meeting of Sustainable Monroeville; 6:00 PM Plant based pot luck; 7:00 PM documentary screening

Monday evening, October 7, 2013, Sustainable Monroeville will show the documentary: Ingredients: The local food movement takes root

6:00 PM Pot Luck with locally sourced plant based food; Pack in and out so bring cutlery and plates!

7:00 PM Film~Screen time is 67 minutes with discussion following

Thanks to Amy Baer for suggesting we screen this film! We are looking for sponsors to pay the $100.00 fee. Contact us if you'd like to donate. There will be a $5.00 suggested donation at the door. Proceeds will be sent to the filmmakers.

To Great Health!

The Monroeville Food Garden is behind the Monroeville Public Library. This amazing garden has supplied 500 pounds of fresh vegetables to four local food banks for the third year in a row! Kudos to Councilwomen Lois Drumheller, the Monroeville Public Library, the Municipality of Monroeville and all of the tireless volunteers!

Garfield Community Farm in Pittsburgh, PA

Solar panels on new bioshelter at Garfield Community Farm

Hops

Children running in Garfield Community Farm Garden

Black Snake crossing Frick Park

 Rooftop in eastern Pennsylvania

Lavender Buddha & Sage 

Sunflower from the home garden

The Joys, Trials, and Tribulations of a Permaculture Landscape in the Suburbs! Wednesday evening, September 11, 2013, at 7:00 PM at the Monroeville Public Library

Join Sustainable Monroeville on Wednesday evening, September 11, 2013, at 7:00 PM at the Monroeville Public Library. As the founder of Sustainable Monroeville in February, 2009, I will talk about the wonders and joys and challenges of the Permaculture Landscape at our home in Monroeville. Bring along a locally sourced plant based snack to share, if you'd like. All meetings are free and open to the public. Join Us!

Here's some photos to enjoy in the meantime.  If you are interested in seeing our almost 20 year old Permaculture Landscape prior to the meeting for a half hour tour beginning at 6:00 PM, please contact me by messaging me through the Sustainable Monroeville Facebook page, and join me for the grand tour of our suburban Monroeville landscape.

Jewelweed, antidote for Poison Ivy

Delicious Kale 

Delicious Apples

Maple & Tulip Poplar Trees

Echinacea

Hibicus flowers

Rain barrel

Our family attended the North American Vegetarian Society Meeting on the University of Pittsburgh's Johnstown Campus this summer. We enjoyed the T-shirts that said: Only KALE will save the world! We sure enjoyed growing it in our front yard this season and eating and juicing it too!

Wild Edibles Pot Luck dinner, Wild Edibles and Exotic Invasive talk, and Compost Tea!

For the May 6, 2013 meeting of Sustainable Monroeville, we will have a pot luck dinner at 6:00 PM.  What is the challenge for this pot luck? See if you can make a vegetarian or vegan dish that has at least one ingredient that is a wildly collected edible from a non-sprayed area in this region! 

The meeting, beginning at 7:00 PM, will feature 17 year old, Jake Cothern, teaching us about native wild edibles and supplying some delectables made of the soon sprouting exotic invasive Japanese Knotweed, Polygonum cuspidatum (that's the technical genus and species name for knotweed!). 

The other speakers for our May meeting on Monday evening, May 6, will be Jeff Newman of Steel City Soils & The Pittsburgh Garden Experiment, and Jeff Jaeger of Octopus Organics. Jeff Jaeger and Jeff Newman will talk briefly about non-toxic soil management and the importance of soil biology.  They will cover basic vegetable, lawn, and flower garden soils and how to do soil testing, balance the minerals, then maintain using the magic formula of compost, mulch, and aerated compost teas.  

Jerusalem Artichoke: Helianthus tuberosus, from the Aster family

Jerusalem artichoke is not from Jerusalem and it's not an artichoke, it's a kind of sunflower, but whatever it's called, it has fleshy edible roots that are sold in grocery storesas "sunchokes." from The Joy of Foraging by Gary Lincoff, page 126.

Genetic Roulette and Pot Luck Dinner on October 1, 2012 at the Monroeville Public Library

On Monday evening, October 1, 2012, we will have a vegetarian, non-GMO pot luck dinner at 6:00 PM followed by the movie Genetic Roulette at 7:00 PM. Remember to pack your plates and utensils as this will be a zero waste event.

 Join Us! All meetings of Sustainable Monroeville are free and open to the public. They take place in the Monroeville Public Library. See you on October 1! Elisa Beck :)

Genetic Roulette Movie Trailer - YouTube
► 2:27► 2:27	www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vv96D_ZURzsUploaded by GeneticRoulette This seminal documentary provides compelling evidence to help explain the deteriorating health of Americans ...

Natural Choices Lawn Care and A Chemical Reaction Movie on September 10, 2012n

Join us for the next meeting of Sustainable Monroeville on Monday evening, September 10, 2012, at 7:00 PM to hear Ed Hoffman of Natural Choices Organic and Natural Lawn Care and to view the movie A Chemical Reaction Go to http://www.safelawns.org/a-chemical-reaction/ for details.

Transition Pittsburgh http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=dTcvO-o8NTA

So many beautiful colors! These tomatoes on the shelf in Pittsburgh's East End Food Coop are locally grown by responsible farmers. Yippee for the East End Food Coop!

How do we figure out where our food comes from and if their genome has been genetically modified? Peppers, tomatoes, cucumbers, apples, peaches, tangerines. Would you grow these on your front yard? Do you spray chemicals on your lawn? If so, would you consider not doing that any more and morphing your lawn into a lawn that produces Food Not Lawn? How bold are we anyway?

How long does it take to transform a formally sprayed lawn into one where we are comfortable growing food on it and eating that food?

The food grown in the Permaculture style garden behind the Monroeville Public Library that supplied 500 pounds of fresh vegetables for four local food banks last summer (we are still counting the bounty from this summer) does not use genetically modified seeds. How do we know?

What is the relationship between understanding the composition of the soils on our urban and suburban lots and how the grass is growing and our food systems in the United States? So much to learn! For the October meeting of Sustainable Monroeville, we will show a movie on genetically modified organisms called Genetic Roulette. Join us at the Monroeville Public Library for our meetings. They are free and open to the public!

Jeff Newman of Steel City Soils talking about Permaculture at the Cedars of Monroeville. The Cedars has worked with Jeff to put in a Permaculture garden as part of their landscape. The hearty local plants have done extremely well this season!

Jeff Newman Peddling with his Pierogies on Pittsburgh's Historic South Side! Peddlin' Pierogies uses whole wheat flour from Clarion River Organics and wonoderful organic potatoes too! Mmmm, mmm good!

Monroeville Interfaith Ministerium

Elisa Beck and Lorraine Vincent of Sustainable Monroeville presented to the Monroeville Interfaith Ministerium today. The faith leaders in attendance wrote suggestions about how to involve themselves in gardening efforts in the Monroeville Food Garden behind the Monroeville Public Library and beyond. The Monroeville People's Garden provided 500 pounds of vegetables for the four local food pantries this past year!

Here are some of the things the faith leaders wrote: "My parish may have a person or two who might be interested in working in the Monroeville Food Garden. I would be happy to publicize events in the bulletin, newsletter, etc." Eric Ash

"Advertise, Educate, Inform, Invite congregation to participate. Have a Monroeville Interfaith Ministerium member as part of the leadership."

"Have congregations take turns tending garden. Give us a 'garden mentor' to come to our congregations and create our own, also to benefit the food banks. Help us write the grant to the Monroeville Foundation."

"Ask parishiners to become involved. Develop own garden."

"Promote volunteers via weekly e-mails." Crossroads Church has a wonderful garden. They use their vegetables they grow for the folks that frequent their own food pantry.

"We can volunteer to weed and tend the garden, or start various plants at our homes and bring to garden to transplant."

"Tell someone else about it."

Thanks so much Monroeville Interfaith Ministerium for your efforts!

We talked about the importance of a pure food system, enriching the soil, living soil vs. sprayed lawns and promotion of the ideas of Food, Not Lawns in our beautiful suburb. We are the change we have been looking for!

Come one, come all to our February meeting of Sustainable Monroeville on Monday evening, February 6, 2012, in the downstairs program room of the Monroeville Public Library. Our third anniversary dinner pot luck will be at 6:00 PM with the meeting from 7:00 PM to 8:30 PM. Bring food that is locally sourced, if possible and your own place setting. This will be a zero waste event and leftovers will be composted. We will have reports from the Recycling Committee,  the Monroeville Food Garden, the developing permaculture landscape at the Cedars of Monroeville, and plan for 2012 including the action item of filling out the application for the Monroeville Foundation! Elisa Beck, Founder, Sustainable Monroeville

Seeds for a food forest in Monroeville, PA: July 11, 2011, 7 PM

Photo above shows a bioswale for water collection next to a row of young vegetables.

Photo shows young cabbage plant with straw mulch.

For our next meeting on July 11, 2011 at 7:00 PM, Michelle Johnson of Spectrum Charter School and Coordinator of Sustainable Monroeville's Recycling Committee will give an update. Lois Drumheller, third ward councilwoman, will take us on an outdoor tour of the new permaculture influenced garden in the back of the library, and there will be a guest speaking on an interesting non-profit that does work with recycling outside the continental U.S.

See you July 11 at 7:00 PM at the Monroeville Public Library Program Room. Bring friends along too!

Happy summer solstice!

Permaculture in our town, Darrell Frey, and April 29, 30 and May 1, 2011

Permaculture in our town. What town am I referring to? Well, first and foremost the town I live in called Monroeville, PA. What other towns am I referring to? Any community urban, suburban, and even rural, for that matter. Who am I referring to? Well, that would be you I'm referring to if you are reading this.  Stay tuned for a call for volunteers as we plan and implement our first official permaculture designed garden in a public space out here in Pittsburgh's suburb, Monroeville, PA. When you'd like your very own yard or your apartment designed inside and out with permaculture principles, you'll have many in this region to call upon to help you with designing and implementing your vision.

I, along with 20 others, have just completed the first Permaculture Design Certificate course offered by Phipps Conservatory in Pittsburgh, PA.  Three of the attendees were Phipps employees and two of the three teachers were directly employed by or contract with Phipps to do work. The crowning jewel last day of this amazing course was a visit yesterday to Three Sisters Farm in Sandy Lake, PA. It is about an hour and a half drive north of Pittsburgh. Carpooling recommended!

Darrell Frey, author of the newly released Bioshelter Market Garden, c 2011 by New Society Publishers is the genius behind this farm along with Linda Susan Strawbridge Frey, and many, many others Darrell credits in his book. Permaculture is all about community, redefining the way we live in these times. In the book's introduction, Darrell defines bioshelter as a "greenhouse operated as an ecosystem. " Lucky I just defined that too because my computer underlined it as if it is not a word. This is all about learning new vocabulary, and defining new ways to do things, and to be, in this culture of ours. Redefining culture as we go. Darrell defines market garden as "a commercial scale farm that supplies fresh produce to a regional market." HIs farm is a permaculture farm complete with chickens for eggs, and goats to eat the weeds. The newest amazing design in the works is to make the farm handicapped accessible.

Go to this link to register for an amazing weekend workshop with David Jacke, an amazing and original permaculturist. David will be accompanied by Liz Lynch, Juliette Jones and other permaculturists. Darrell Frey will be introducing David Jacke at an evening event the night before the weekend workshop.

http://pittsburghpermaculture.org/events/healthy-land-healthy-water-healthy-community-regenerating-pittsburgh-from-the-ground-up

See you soon! Elisa Beck  www.sustainablemonroeville.com

David Jacke in Pittsburgh! Food Forest Heaven!

Schwartz Market on Pittsburgh's Historic South Side is closing for the time being and planning for a new era in food systems and health and healing in America is beginning! Go to http://1317eastcarson.blogspot.com/ for some insights.

Join David Jacke at Chatham University and at the Phipps Garden Center the last weekend in March and through April 1. Details follow.

We will all learn together how to develop our own food forests, produce our own food on our own property and in our own neighborhoods. Clean water, pure air, real food and healthy bodies will move us into our healthy future!

Food, not lawns, is the next phase for Monroeville! Learn with us!

Healthy Land, Healthy Water, Healthy Community: Regenerating Pittsburgh from the Ground Up

Friday Lecture and Weekend Workshop by Permaculture Expert Dave Jacke

Okay, I changed my light bulbs to CFLs, I recycle and compost. What else can I do?! If you are looking for ways to delve deeper into lasting sustainable solutions, then this inspiring evening lecture and weekend workshop is just what you need to discover practical ways to create a healthy and vibrant life—and to regenerate the city in the process!  Liz

Friday evening, April 29, 7-9PM, Eddy Theatre, Chatham University, Pittsburgh

Regenerating Communities, Ecosystems, and Landscapes with Permaculture

During the Friday evening lecture, explore the forest gardening vision with Dave Jacke, author of Edible Forest Gardens, as he presents “Regenerating Communities, Ecosystems, and Landscapes with Permaculture.” Learn how to create high-yielding, low-maintenance backyards with lush ripe fruit and perennial edibles, and see ample examples of existing edible Edens. Discover how this systems design model can be used for backyard growing as well as community empowerment to create an abundant future right here, right now. This event takes place on Friday April 29, 2011, from 7-9pm, at Chatham University’s Eddy Theatre.

§       Suggested donation: $10.  No one turned away for lack of funds.  All are welcome.

Saturday & Sunday, April 30 & May 1, 9AM-4PM 1059 Shady Ave, Phipps Garden Center

Regenerating Pittsburgh from the Ground Up

Join Dave Jacke and regional permaculture teachers for a two-day workshop, April 30^th and May 1^st, at Phipps Garden Center on Shady Avenue. Gain a fresh perspective on functional relationships in plant and human communities. Experience permaculture principles and learn how to replicate the way nature works to provide us with everything we need – food, energy, shelter, medicine, biodiversity, beauty, health, enjoyment - with minimal work in the long run. Engage with other Pittsburghers in real solutions to our region’s most pressing environmental challenges.

§       Sliding scale fee for the weekend workshop is $150- $200.  Discounts for groups of 5 or more, pay only $125 per person. Scholarships available, please ask.

§       Pre-registration required, please visit PittsburghPermaculture.org or call Juliette at 412-780-5833.