Get your Heirloom on

We just received our box of Sonoma County Gravenstein apples from the Fruit Guys. In addition to pleasing my palate, it has rekindled an interest in heirloom produce. Tonight’s Kitchen Table Talks in San Francisco is “Heirloom Fruit”: What’s in a name?

From Civil Eats:

Whether you are a home gardener preserving tradition, an ecologist maintaining bio diversity, an activist protesting industrial ag, or a foodie in search of distinctive flavor, there are plenty of reasons to save, support, and savor “heirloom” varietals. 
Controversy surrounds the meaning of the word “heirloom” itself; some contend that it refers to a cultivar that has been propagated for a certain length of time, while others cite a requirement that the varietals must have been passed down through generations within a family.

Peoples Grocery asks, “What does Food Justice Mean to You?”

This weekend’s Eat Real Festival was an overwhelming success, with an estimated 100,000 people coming down to Jack London Square to enjoy live music, demonstrations, contests, and of course, a delicious diversity of local food.  Peoples Grocery shares videos of folks answering the question, “What does Food Justice Mean to You?”

Warning: mouth may water!

Part I:

Why I will engage in non-violent direct action against Big Oil

(Published on Ecolocalizer)

It will not be business-as-usual at the the offices of BP, Chevron, and the Environmental Protection Agency Monday morning in San Francico’s financial district.  A rally, march, and acts of non-violent direct actions are planned by a coalition of a local organizations.

I’m participating and one of many willing to be arrested.

Sometimes I wonder what acts of non-violent direct action for a clean energy future or civil disobedience to protest a permanent war economy must look like from a different angle. For example, what does it look like to all those aunts and grandmothers in the Midwest? What does it look like through the eyes of the millions of regular families just trying to make a living, raise healthy children, and get the kids to school after a summer of BBQs and pool-splashing?

I’d venture to guess that to many Americans it looks quite bizarre, something quite out of the normal range of acceptable political action. For some it might look not just strange, but dangerous, even immoral.  But I also venture that millions of Americans also realize  that our current way of doing things is unsustainable, unfair, and unhealthy–but it’s not always clear what can be done about it.  They might not know about the situation in Ecuador or Nigeria or Richmond, CA as the result of the policy of Big Oil.  And probably not 1 in 100,000 are aware of the True Cost of Chevron as documented in the Alternative Shareholder report from the perspective of impacted communities.  They might not be much moved by the abstract prospect of forced re-locations because of rising sea-levels or the impacts on growing food because of climate change the world over.

But everybody knows about the BP oil spill–they see a devastated fishing economy, the pumes of oil, the impacted beaches, the sick animals, and the sly PR campaign.  They realize that Big Oil has inordinate power.  And they also sense that when you pump oil into the environment and its by-products into the air and water and food, there are serious implications for our health, our environment, and communities.

Creating Bay Area Habitat: Green Roofs and Beyond

General Green Roof Alliance Meeting

WHEN: Wednesday, August 25 @ 7 pm

WHERE: Bay Localize, 436 14th St., 2nd Floor, Oakland, CA

The Green Roof Alliance invites you to learn about enhancing biodiversity in our Bay Area cities with Lisa Lee Benjamin, Principal of Evo Design and founder of Alpine Initiatives, and Amber Hasselbring of Nature in the City.

Lisa Lee Benjamin designs and creates sustainable environments that integrate people and structures with their surroundings. She consults on and leads international projects focusing on what is possible in relation to our ideas of sustainability, collaboration, and community. A certified permaculturalist a plant and soil biologist, and recent insect enthusiast, Lisa will enlighten us with the possibilities for habitat creation in our area through living roofs, walls, and other architectural features.

Amber Hasselbring is a San Francisco artist focused on exploring ecological relationships. Her Mission Greenbelt Project (2007-present) explores themes of gentrification, education, and urban ecology through performances and garden building efforts in San Francisco. By harnessing community creativity to construct a contiguous wildlife corridor, the Mission Greenbelt Project fosters urban environmental stewardship.

The Green Roof Alliance works in collaboration with industry professionals, government representatives, and communities to promote healthy and sustainable green roofs in the Bay Area.

Smart Green Infrastructure: How To Grow Sustainable Cities

Inspiring video about improving local water and food systems and integrating agency and community efforts! Andy Lipkis, Founder and President of TreePeople, describes how this organization has pioneered an integrated approach to managing urban ecosystems as watersheds in the Los Angeles region. This involves strategic tree planting, tree-mimicking technologies, and community engagement to generate multiple solutions to the environmental threats facing our cities, including ensuring a sustainable water supply, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, preventing water and air pollution, fostering stronger neighborhoods, and creating jobs.

SF Community Congress this weekend

Please come out to this important event next weekend and be part of San Francisco history!

2010 Community Congress
Saturday, August 14, 9am – 5pm, and Sunday, August 15, 9am – 1pm
University of San Francisco, Fromm Hall (please note change of location)

The Community Congress will be held on August 14-15th to bring together community activists, residents, workers, artists and thinkers seeking to create a progressive vision for the future of San Francisco. Topics will include how San Francisco can begin to become energy independent; strategies for creating alternative systems of municipally controlled finance; progressive revenue reform; sustaining arts and culture as a vital aspect of urban development; improving public transportation; increasing affordable housing; supporting critical health and human services; and participatory budgeting.