Sustainability
The RNA's Sustainability Committee is dedicated to finding ways to raise awareness about environmental issues within our boundaries, build a sense of community and camaradrie, and have fun!
Upcoming Events
The next Richmond Sustainability Committee meeting will be held Monday, October 26th at Caffe Pallino, 3003 SE Division at 7:00 PM. The present plan is to meet the last Monday of every month.
Recent News
Richmond Neighborhood association passes resolution in opposition to the Columbia River Crossing $4.2 billion dollar bridge. Read the letter here.
RNA presents to SE Uplift Land Use Committee, who unanimously agree to oppose the Columbia River Crossing.
Past Events
Screening & discussion of the film "The Power of Community: How Cuba Survived Peak Oil "
Tuesday, Oct. 20, 7:00PM
Where: Flying Cat Coffee Company, 3041 SE Division
This upbeat 53 minute film chronicles the Cuban peoples' transition to a low-energy society through permaculture, organic farming and large-scale cooperation. Why’d we choose this film? We wanted to watch an energizing film about a community coming together to tackle a seemingly impossible problem and enriching their lives in the process!
With all the doom and gloom about climate change and peak oil, we wanted to show that we have choices, that there is another way to live, and that we have the power to help make our communities better places to live. The movie is fuel for our fire to talk about ways we can apply these concepts to our own lives and neighborhood and make our fair city shine!
The event is hosted by the Flying Cat Coffeehouse, which offers great ambiance along with beer, wine, coffee, tea, and tasty treats!
Columbia River Crossing Event
On August 26th community members came together to learn more about the issues surrounding the Columbia River Crossing (CRC) $4.2 billion bridge proposal.
The event kicked off with a fun motivational bike ride led by Jeff Cropp to places in the neighborhood that would have been dominated by the 1974 Mt. Hood Highway if not for the local activism that defeated that proposal. The group then gathered at the Flying Cat Coffee House at 3041 SE Division for coffee and libations while attending the rest of the program which included: an informative talk by Mara Gross of Livable Futures, the passing of petitions and postcards by David Osborn of Stop the CRC (http://www.stopthecrc.org), viewing of PBS documentary “Road to the Future” which contrasts choices Portland and Denver have made in their city planning impacting transportation infrastructure and therefore the life styles of those cities. There was even time spots for questions and discussion at the end.
Here are links for further information:
http://wweek.com/editorial/3428/11009/
http://www.oregonlive.com/opinion/index.ssf/2009/07/columbia_river_crossing_a_brid.html
Solarize Portland!Sign-up is now closed for for EnergyTrust/SE Uplift's bulk solar program, but you can learn more about future opportunities by visiting: www.solarizeportland.org.
Richmond Cleanup Cleans House!
Thanks to everyone who took part in the annual RNA spring cleanup this year! Overall, nearly 21 tons of material came through the gate from 120 households. Of this amount 15 tons was diverted for re-use or recycling. It took a lot of hard work to get everything sorted out and collected and only the best volunteer crew in Portland could handle such a task! If you have any feedback on how to improve the event, please email Colin Cigarran at colincigarran@yahoo.com.
For additional recycling resources the other 364 days of the year, call Metro’s Recycling hotline at 503.234.3000.
Downspout Disconnection!
Last August, we learned how to disconnect residential downspouts from the city sewer system. We disconnected 24 downspouts, which removes 334,505 gallons of stormwater from the sewer system every year!
Get your sustainability on with these handy links:
Plant Trees: Friends of Trees
Weatherize your home: Community Energy Project
Save Energy: EnergyTrust
Start Biking: Bicycling Transportation Alliance
Recycle Beyond the Curb: Far West Fibers
Save Water: Downspout Disconnection