green news

VOL.23 - NO. 5 Newton and Brookline, both home to active advocates of home energy efficiency, are two of this years ten communities selected to participate in the Solarize Mass program, organized by the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center (MassCEC) and Department of Energy Resources (DOER). Solarize Mass is a group-purchase program, created to promote discounted residential photovoltaic (PV) installations based on sales volume and savings gained through community outreach by volunteers. In addition to the Solarize Mass program, Newton and Brookline are also engaged in energy efficiency and heat pump programs (Newton: Energy Smart Newton and Cool Heat Initiative; Brookline: Green Homes Brookline and Cool Heat Initiative). The Solarize program discount deepens as more homes sign up before the September 30, 2013 deadline (with a year more to install the PV system). The two communities, led by Green Decade Newton and Climate Action Brookline are collaborating to inform residents about the time-limited Solarize Mass opportunity, while each continues with long-running home energy efficiency outreach coupled with promotion of newer high-efficiency heat pumps. Currently there is a friendly cross-border wager to determine which municipality--the City of Newton or arch rival, Town of Brookline -- can sign up the most households for solar panels, home energy audits, or highefficiency heat pumps during the month of September. There will be a prize for the 1st place winners and only minimal humility for the 2nd place winners since everyone wins with this program. Homeowners stand to benefit from substantial savings of 24-35% off current market rates for solar panel installations. Your lot can be assessed by a satellite image for free to see if it has the proper roof exposure to install a solar array. Just visit www.Solarflair.com - follow the Solarize Newton tab and enter your address. If the building appears to be a good candidate, you will be contacted to schedule a free visit for further evaluation. For more info contact Newtons Solar Coach at SolarizeNewton@gmail.com or call 617 527-8383.

NEWSLETTER OF GREEN DECADE / NEWTON Over 20 Years of Environmental Leadership 1990 - 2013 SEPT/OCT 2013

Incentives from Energy Smart Newton Friendly solar competition

The goal is tough but doable: 500 no-cost home energy assessments and 120 heating and cooling assessments by 12/31/13. The effort is part of the overall Energy Smart Newton goal to reduce energy use in the City by 20 percent by the year 2020. Green Decades partner group, Next Step Living is giving $10 and $25 restaurant gift certificates to Newton residents who complete a Mass Save home energy assessment or heating and cooling assessment with Next Step Living by the end of December. Participating restaurants include OHaras, Paddys, Roxs Diner, Terry OReillys Pub, Cabots Ice Cream and Restaurant and The Local. Next Step Living will also contribute $400 to support GDN environmental education projects and award a $100 Whole Foods raffle prize for every 100 Newton home energy assessments completed by 12/31/13. For every 50 Newton heating and cooling system assessments completed during the Challenge, Next Step Living will contribute an additional $400 to Green Decade and another $100 raffle prize to use at Whole Foods. Sign-up for a no-cost home energy assessment (a $300+ value) as part of the Mass Save Program and you may qualify for 75% - up to $2,000 off - insulation and air sealing for your home. Renters, homeowners and landlords living in 1-4 unit buildings with MA NSTAR and/or National Grid accounts are eligible. Next Step Living will make a $10 donation to support our work after each assessment is completed. Visit: http://nextsteplivinginc.com/gdn/or call 866867-8729. Please mention Green Decade Newton!

Energy Smart Newton Challenge Update:

(6/18 - 8/9/13) Home Energy Assessments: 107, Weatherizations: 27 Cool Heat Initiative (5/1/13 - 8/9/13) Heat Pump assessments: 80, Heat Pump contracts signed: 8 Energy Smart Newton (10/1/10 to date): Home Energy Assessments - 1664, Weatherizations - 472 (youth sizes only) with the Energy Smart Newton logo imprinted on the front are available for sale from Green Decade at $18 per organic cotton shirt. Contact: info@greendecade.org or 617 965-1995 to place your order.

Tee-Shirts

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SEPT/OCT 2013

Newton wins LED streetlight grant

The City was successful in its application for a $250,000 Green Communities grant to be used for converting streetlights to LEDs. You may have seen the LED street-lights that were installed as part of a pilot program around the City Hall block. The glow from these lights looks better than the yellowish high pressure sodium lights used throughout the city and make it easier to identify objects under the lights. They also provide more even illumination, use approximately half the power for the same light level, and they are expected to last a lot longer. Green Decade developed an analysis of costs and benefits that was instrumental in getting the city to apply for the funds. City staff and the Energy Commission refined the analysis and prepared the application. It showed that converting all 8,404 streetlights will save about half of the annual $324,000 cost for electricity and reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 720 tons per year (equivalent to the electricity-related emissions of 100 homes). It will also substantially reduce annual maintenance because of the longer life of LEDs compared to the current lights, saving an additional $118,000. The project is a winner in both reducing our carbon foot-print and the cost to light the citys streets. The net cost of the full project after the grant and NStar rebate is estimated at $1.3 million. With the annual savings, the project will pay for itself in three years and continue to provide financial benefits into the future. by Jim Purdy

Bulloughs Pond Fair

Please join the Bulloughs Pond Association and your Newton neighbors for the Bulloughs Pond Fair on Sunday morning, September 29, 2013. The fair will be the morning partner to that afternoons Newtonville Village Day festival. The fair will feature: guided bird watching, fly-fishing demonstration, en plein air painting lesson, model yacht regatta, childrens activities, sponsored kayak race, music, art exhibit, yummy snacks and more. The fair is the kick-off to a year of events and initiatives in 2014 celebrating the 350th birthday of Bulloughs Pond, which was created by miller John Spring in 1664 to power his gristmill. The Bulloughs Pond Association has a 30-year history of working to protect the pond. In this anniversary year, look out for news of the launch of the BPAs new website, a gala fundraiser next spring, and other exciting news.

Schedule:

Students for a Greener World

Students for A Greener World (SGW) is Green Decades student committee, founded in 2007 with volunteers from middle schools and high schools. We help GDN reach out to kids of all ages and to help them learn and practice environmentally friendly actions at home, school, wherever -- and have fun doing it. We are kids teaching kids about the environment! Our projects and activities to make Newton greener go all over town -- in schools, special events, workshops, the library, NewtonSERVES, the Farmers Market and more! SGW meets once a month during the school year and presents an annual spring program for the Greening Our Community series at the Newton Free Library. Check out some of our events and photos at greendecade.org/sgw-you may even see someone you know! Are you (or a student you know) ready to go greener --our next meeting will be in mid-September. Visit us at the Farmers Market on Tuesdays at Cold Spring Park or contact us at sgw@greendecade.org or 617-965-1995 to find out more!

Newton Community Farm Fall Festival

8:30 am - Expert-guided bird watching - until 9:30 am 9:00 am - Fly-fishing demonstration w/expert fisherman - until 10:00 am 9:30 am - En plein air painting lesson with local artist and New Art Center instructor Michael Wilson until 10:30 am 10:00 am - Model Yacht Regatta demonstration until 11:00 am 10:30 am - Childrens nature/arts & crafts activity led by experienced teachers - until 11:30 am 11:00 am - Sponsored fundraising kayak race (experienced adult kayakers only, who have pre-registered and signed a liability waiver) - until 11:45 am by Kathleen Kouril Grieser, Bulloughs Pond Association

Sept. 29 (Sun) 11 am to 3 pm, Free admission, purchase tickets at entrance for food & activities. Celebrate the harvest! Live music, farm tours, childrens activities, including pumpkin decorating, baked goods, delicious food, and more. There will also be produce for sale at the farm stand. Check fall classes on gardening, cooking and more: www.newtoncommunityfarm.org

Clean Water Action party

Green Decade is a proud sponsor of the 19th Annual Clean Water Action Benefit Party on Sept. 21, 2013 (Sat.) 3- 5:00pm at Garden in the Woods, Framingham Enjoy hors doeuvres, Awards Program and hear about CWAs work in 2013 and plans for the 2014. To purchase tickets, visit http://www.cleanwateraction.org/ MA/2013Benefit Or mail a check made payable to Clean Water Action or MA Clean Water Action Vote Environment PAC, 262 Washington Street #601, Boston, MA 02108.

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Lebanon Composting via Newton

One would probably say I was a lot more focused on hockey than sustainability as a kid growing up in Newton. But my motivations changed with the times, and over the years I have become increasingly drawn to patterns of global resource consumption: the cyclical, linear, and sometimes hybridized utilization of raw, processed, synthetic, and repurposed materials. After completing a MS in Urban Policy Analysis and Sustainability Management from the New School in December 2011, I returned to Beirut, Lebanon where I had completed a three-month field program the previous summer. My Lebanese partner Naji Boustany and I co-founded FERN [Food Establishments Recycling Nutrients] with the goal of redirecting organic waste from restaurants to a compost facility run by Cedar Environmental, a Lebanese company that specializes in recycling and composting. We launched operations in November 2012 and among other challenges, (most notably funding), public education was by far our greatest task. In collaborating with restaurants, we found that the single most important activity was the staff training, during which we introduced FERN, and dove straight into an overview of the state of waste and recycling in Lebanon. Most listeners perked up when we mentioned familiar garbage mounds, the prevalence of litter-strewn beaches, and the general lack of sufficient recycling infrastructure. What began as a compost initiative quickly morphed into something more elementary, involving waste reduction recommendations, recyclables collection, monthly fundraisers, and generally trying to engage the public around a dormant and stirring issue. We connected with numerous local initiatives playing their part in greater efforts towards social justice, poverty eradication, and environmental protection. On July 10th FERN was awarded a 2Degrees Sustainability Champions Award 1st place in the Waste and Resource Management category. We are very proud of this recognition, and are eager to continue developing our mission. by Meredith Danberg-Ficarelli

City offers composters: Brave New Composter (l) and Earth Machine (r)

Newton Composting Bins

Here in Newton, the city offers two styles of composting bins plus kitchen scrap collection buckets. For more info visit http://www.newtonma.gov/gov/ dpw/recycling/composting/bin.asp To purchase a bin, Newton residents can stop by City Hall during open hours. (cash and personal checks only.) Once purchased, you will receive a receipt and the bin can be picked up at the Rumford Ave Resource Recovery Facility. Check out the Brave New Composter, $53, plus tax and Earth Machine, $40, plus tax.

balance with the natural world by making significant, measurable improvements in the way we use resources. Goals include helping households, businesses and institutions to: Increase energy efficiency & seek alternatives to fossil/nuclear fuels; Use IPM and organic alternatives to pesticides; Promote high performance (green) building measures; Prevent pollution through source reduction and reduced consumption; Promote reuse and recycling practices; Improve waste disposal practices; Conserve water and other resources. Our programs are designed to build awareness, promote opportunities for public dialogue and educate and empower citizens to take personal and civic action.

Our mission is to create an environment in better

Volunteers welcome at the Farmers Market

(above) Main attraction at Green Decades Farmers Market booth, caterpillars (above right) GDN member Ted Kaplan with his vintage 1953 bike and GDN member/ volunteer, Naomi Osher. (right) Julie Gagnon, Elise Dwortzan, Audrey Gagnon, Akiva Lind & Yelena Dwortzan

Green Decade welcomes volunteers at our Newton Farmers Market booth, where we distribute helpful information on topics, including energy efficiency, composting and recycling. Our popular Magic Energy Bike and cool nature activities feature the cutest caterpillars in town. Even an hour or two of your time on an occasional basis will be appreciated. Until the last week in October, Farmers Markets are on Tuesdays, 1:30-6pm in Cold Spring Park on Beacon St. and Fridays at the American Legion Post 440, 295 California St. To volunteer, contact info@greendecade.org or call 617-965-1995.

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SEPT/OCT 2013

Save the date: Walk-Bike Week!

Dont miss eight days of fun on two feet or two wheels, October 4-11. Newtons Second Annual Walk-Bike Week celebrates the many green and healthy ways residents can get around. The celebration starts by literally painting the streets green: Volunteer painters in grades 3-8 and adult helpers will join Newton Highlands merchants to create the citys first-ever environmental Road Mural on Lincoln Street, Sunday, Sept. 22. Take a hike on the aqueducts, Saturday, Oct. 5 with the Newton Conservators. Ride the Tour de Newton, a 13 village recreational cycle ride for fun and challenge. The No-RiderLeft-Behind tour starts in each of the villages for 13 simultaneous supervised trips with 13 stops in each village, Sunday, Oct. 6. Riders can do as much of the loop as they wish. Solo riders can finish the loop or take the Elite Tour (aka the scenic route). Walk to school with your friends: The week is centered on International Walk to School Day, Wednesday, Oct. 9, when Newton children will join millions around the world in taking the active way to schooltogether. Count Bikes! To gather evidence of cycling activity in Newton, Bike Newton is looking for volunteers to spend an hour counting bikes at popular intersections on Thursday, Oct 10 (rush hours) and Saturday, Oct. 5 (recreational hours). To volunteer contact bikenewton.org More events and more details are online at www. newtonma.gov/walkbike. Green Decade is co-sponsor of the week, along other city organizations and the Mayors Transportation Advisory Group. by Andreae Downs

Ballot campaign to update the bottle bill

ELMs Ken Pruitt, MASSPIRGs Janet Domenitz, Rep. Jonathan Hecht, and Mass Sierra Clubs Phil Sego outside the Attorney Generals office

Volunteers needed for a variety of jobs including mailings and gathering signatures for the bottle bill ballot initiative.

If interested contact info@greendecade.org

Keep Plastic Bags out of Recycling Bins

Green Decades recycling committee is working on getting plastic bags out of recycling bins. Plastic bags are constantly ending up in all the wrong places: trees, oceans, rivers and the bellies of marine and land animals. The right places to put clean plastic bags are the recycling bins at the entrance of most supermarkets. Please DO NOT place your recyclables in a plastic bag and then put them in your recycling bin because the plastic will gum up the machine that sorts the recyclables! Thanks for excluding plastic bags from your recycling bins and please spread the word! by Michele Davis

On Wednesday, August 7th, The Environmental League of Massachusetts (ELM) and the Coalition to Update the Bottle Bill launched a ballot campaign to put the proposed law before all Massachusetts voters in November, 2014. This law would add water, juice and other beverages to the existing 5-cent deposit law which is a proven success - resulting in less litter, more recycling, and millions of taxpayer dollars saved due to reduced cost of waste disposal for our cities and towns. Environmental groups have tried to get the Legislature to pass this bill for years. Its long overdue. Over 200 cities and towns in the Commonwealth have passed resolutions in support of this update, and polling shows 77% of Massachusetts residents support it. Many businesses and civic leaders support the update, including Governor Deval Patrick, Governor Michael Dukakis, Mayor Thomas Menino, Republican State Senator Robert Hedlund and State Representative Dan Winslow, as well as bill sponsors Democratic State Senator Cynthia Creem (from Newton) and State Representative Jonathan Hecht. The ballot initiative is being undertaken by a coalition of over 90 organizations, led by MASSPIRG, the League of Women Voters of Massachusetts, ELM, and the Massachusetts Sierra Club. This bill makes sense for the public, and filing it as a ballot question after years of trying to pass it in the Legislature reinforces that the voice of the citizens can and will be heard. To learn more about the Updated Bottle Bill and/or volunteer to help Green Decade gather ballot signatures, please contact info@greendecade.org Printed with permission from ELM

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Bring wine corks to Whole Foods or Farmers Market !

Mason-Rice (above) and Countryside each planted new school gardens in 2012.

Green Decade School Outreach Committee

3,000 corks recycled in June at Whole Foods Market on Washington St. Pictured from left to right: Marcia Cooper, Sophie Magidson, Terri Petrunyak, Toya Pierre and Margaret Ford.

Whole Foods donates baskets

Fran Presti from Presti Realty Group is holding GDN Eco-baskets to give to clients as environmentally friendly welcome gifts. Eco-baskets include an assortment of 365 Every Day Value Products, Allegro Fine Tea, sponges and reusable cloths generously donated by both of Newtons Whole Foods Markets to support the environmental work of Green Decade. If interested in ordering a basket contact: info@greendecade.org.

Thanks for donations go to:

(for contributions received July-August) FRIENDS: Barbara Herson, Frank & Deborah Howard, Louise & Bernard Lown, Carole & Jim Rosen DONORS: Louise Bruyn, Carole & Alan Kushnir BENEFACTORS: Anonymous, Kathy Read & John Houston

The School Outreach Committee meets four times per year to share ideas and promote district-wide projects around resource efficiency and green classrooms and gardens. This past year the committee focused on bringing awareness to school gardens through collaborations with Newton Community Farms and Whitsons Food Service. Throughout the school year we saw exciting student-led green initiatives at all grade levels. At the elementary level, Franklin School initiated a host of new efforts including improved recycling, composting, a new garden, and green iMovies. Mason-Rice and Countryside each planted new school gardens. At Burr, the 5th grade green team picked up from Mason-Rices idea and researched the life-cycle of crayons, educated the student body, planned and implemented a crazy crayon recycling program. Within middle and high-school, we saw the green continuum in action through Students for a Greener World and their efforts at Newton South HS to bring textile recycling bins to the City of Newton. In addition, the Greengineers at Newton North continued their leadership through a Green Campus Long-term Strategic Plan, starting with a vertical vegetable garden. These are examples of projects that students have participated in. Other projects over time have included Zero Waste Days, Green Wednesdays, Catalog Reduction Challenge, Energy Teams, Terracycle Juice Pouch Recycling, recycling at PTO events, fundraising, outdoor learning environments, green artists, a green fashion show, and the annual Green Decade Art Contests. The new school year promises to be equally exciting. We will be kicking off a city-wide catalog reduction challenge in the Fall. If you are a student, teacher, parent or community member and would like to participate in student-led green initiatives at your school, please contact Eric Bobby at ericpbobby@hotmail.com for more information. Through these student-led and teacherenabled projects, the City of Newton should know that future leaders in sustainability are developing right here in our community. Please help and be a part of it. by Eric Bobby, Chair Green Decade School Outreach

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SEPT/OCT 2013

Attend rally to move MA state divestment forward

An on-line Petition is calling for Massachusetts pension divestment. The Massachusetts pension fund has $1.3 billion invested in the fossil fuel industry, including ExxonMobil and Transcanada. Legislation proposed by Senator Downing (bill S.1225) would require the MA pension fund, known as PRIT, to divest from fossil fuel companies. Show your support for this bill by signing the Fossil Free petition on the following link http://campaigns.gofossilfree.org/ petitions/divest-the-state-of-massachusetts-pensionfunds/ Mark Your Calendar for S.1225 Divestment Hearing and Rally. A hearing on proposed legislation S.1225 is set for Tues., Sept. 10th. To show your public support for the proposed legislation, please attend a rally on Sept. 10th at 9:45 a.m. and the hearing at 11:00 a.m.. Both will be at the MA State House at 14 Beacon St, Boston MA.

Green Decade moves out!

We appreciate all of the tremendous help with moving out of our office at the Newton Cultural Centre at the end of June. The ace team of volunteers included Marcia Cooper, Jim Purdy, Bev Droz and Sophie Magidson as well as those above (L to R): Ken Mallory, Al Calderone, Paul Holt, Tom Boyd, and Margaret Ford.

Draw the Line on Keystone XL

Last summer, environmentalist Bill McKibben wrote an article entitled Do the Mathin Rolling Stone Magazine http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/ globalwarmings-terrifying-new-math-20120719 It stirred up so much interest that McKibben went on a Do the Math speaking tour during the fall. The movie was released in April by 350.org for screening around the country. If your church, synagogue or other group is concerned about climate change and interested in hosting the Do the Math movie, contact Anne Ipsen Goldman (617-916-9662, Anne@IbusGroup.com). She will be delighted to arrange a screening with you and facilitate the subsequent discussion (within 25 miles of Newton, MA). Your meeting venue should have the capability of projecting from a DVD onto a screen or TV of sufficient size for the expected audience. A trailer of the movie is on YouTube: http://www. youtube.com/watch?v=uLr_lfyRfqY#at=35 Anne will be glad to work with your leadership to develop a program for discussing what do we do next? A short video message from Bill McKibben on Climate Change: A Moral Crisis https://vimeo. com/66081346) can be used as introductory motivation. Anne can also provide helpful web-links and references to written study materials. In particular, if your group is interested in urging an institution to divest from stocks that support the fossil fuel industry, Joshua Humphreyss technical article: Institutional Pathways to Fossil-Free-Investing is interesting: http://gofossilfree.org/files/2013/05/ Institutional-Pathways-to-Fossil-Free- Investing1.pdf The section on Re-conceptualizing Risk contains a persuasive analysis of the problems. by Anne Ipsen Goldman, PhD., writer speaker storyteller agoldmangroup@gmail.com (Newton MA)

Bill McKibbens Do the Math Movie

Green Decade is organizing a Day of Action with 350. org called Draw the Line on Keystone XL. Its on Saturday, September 21st. The Keystone Pipeline System would transport oil sands bitumen from Canada and the northern U.S. primarily to refineries in Texas. The total carbon pollution impacts of Keystone XL are the equivalent of putting 9 million cars on the road when considering the total emissions of tar sands and refining processes. We are asking everyone to stand up and be counted to show the President that the opposition to Keystone XL stretches from coast to coast -- and that we can see the connections between climate change and tar sands extraction and the health and future of our communities. Please visit www.greendecade.org to learn about our plans to participate in this event.

Start Saving for Swap Day !

start collecting items to give away at Newtons Trade & Recycle Day. Usable household items, sporting goods, electronics and more can be given away for use by othersand you are also welcome to take others stuff! Volunteers are needed to help on Oct. 5th at the Rumford Ave. Resource Recovery Center - contact Miles at newtonrecycling@gmail.com

October 5th (Sat.) - Now is the time to

NEWSLETTER OF THE GREEN DECADE / NEWTON

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What happens to our recyclables?

Every wonder what happens to all those items we put into our recycling bins? Turns out quite a bit happens. In an earth-day slide show, the Citys Recycling Manager, Courtney Forrester, and Director of Environmental Affairs, Elaine Gentile, gave us the picture: plastic bottles keep us warm in fleece jackets and comfortable in park benches; steel cans make their way into bicycles and metal appliances; glass jars and bottles become part of the paving materials in our roads and highways; and newspapers get recycled into board games and hard- cover books. Socontinue to keep those materials out of the waste stream and put them to good use! by Ira Krepchin

Whats the Difference: Green News vs. E-Bulletin?

The movement to divest from Big Oil has gained some traction with local churches. A story by Lisa Wangsness in the Boston Globe (6/30/13) reports that: A growing number of mainline Protestant churches in New England are calling upon their denominations to divest from fossil fuel companies in an effort to cast unlimited coal, oil, and gas production as immoral as well as environmentally unsustainable. The Massachusetts Conference of the United Church of Christ divested its holdings in fossil fuels last December and a similar proposal will be debated in the national governing body of that denomination. Other churches whose leadership or membership are considering divestment include the Lutherans, Presbyterians, Episcopalians, and Unitarian Universalists. There has been less movement among synagogues although the Shalom Center in Philadelphia has initiated a divestment project called Move our Money/Protect Our Planet. If you agree with the need to reduce fossil fuel extraction and consumption, consider speaking with leaders in your religious institution to see where they stand on this issue. Your input could start a useful conversation. Wangsness article includes this quote from the Rev. Margaret Bullitt-Jonas of Grace Episcopal Church in Amherst: Just as I wouldnt want to be making money off tobacco or military operations, I dont want to be making money off fossil fuel. It is one of the only businesses I can think of that, if successful in carrying out their business plan, they are going to essentially be killing life as it has evolved on this planet. by Jack Cheng

Religious communities move toward divestment

Home and Garden Workshops

Newton Community Education
Organic Lawn Care for Autumn David Gordon, Instructor. Learn how to avoid using harmful chemicals or herbicides for a healthy lawn that will be safer for pets, children and the environment. Get helpful tips on how to seed, fertilize, plant, design, as well as improve the pH of the soil and conduct soil tests. Composting at Home John Elicone, Instructor. Learn how to build a compost system from recycled materials and to produce the kind of compost to match your needs. Find out how to avoid common mistakes, how to keep away pests. Composting is an easy inexpensive way to enrich your garden. Visit: www.newtoncommunityfarm.org

Green Decade/Newton volunteers hear this question all the time! So heres the answer and you can get both or either one, as you wish. Green News: Our newsletter since 1990, printed bimonthly, mailed to members only, either by snail-mail or on-line. Articles are in-depth, and photos are included in both versions. GD/Ns Monthly E-bulletin: A brief summary of upcoming events -- Green Decades and other organizations -- including some, which may not be in the Green News. E-mailed at the beginning of each month to subscribers who sign up on-line or at our resource table at events. Available to members and non-members, who may unsubscribe at any time. No pictures, but lots of links to additional information at other websites! Current and previous issues of the Green News and the Monthly E-Bulletin can be viewed at www. greendecade.org in our Communications & News section. Happy reading! by Margaret Ford

Thanks ! and next newsletter deadline

Shirlee Isenberg, Polly Kalman, Frank & Edie Propp.

For the next newsletter, please send submissions by e-mail to Ira Krepchin, irapk@alum.mit.edu, by Mon, Sept 23, 2013. Thanks for making this newsletter possible to Managing Editor Ira Krepchin, Editor Peter Smith and article authors. Many thanks to our mailing volunteers Sarah and Octo Barnett,

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SEPT/OCT 2013

Sunday, October 20 - 10am-5pm

Green Solutions

Envirothon team 13 success

We are overjoyed to let you know that the Newton North High School team, representing Massachusetts at the North American Envirothon competition in Bozeman, Montana, finished second place overall! Kaija Gahm and the team took first in wildlife, and they shared a first place finish in the current issue (rangeland management) field station. Eliana Gevelber and the team took second in forestry, Kavish Gandhi propelled the group to a third in soils, and Ying Gao led the envirogeeks to a fourth in water. Malini Gandhi, team captain, spearheaded the groups excellent current issue presentation and held the team together all year with her superlative leadership, smarts, and organizational skills. In addition to their academic prowess, the team was a paragon of sportsmanship, collegiality, collaboration, and friendliness. They exhibited good humor even in the tensest moments of the week, and genuine joy for the successes of their competitors. They were great ambassadors of the Commonwealth, and with their peers from 56 other states and Canadian provinces, gave us in the older generations great hope for the future of our society and our planet. Based on a report from the teams advisor Anndy Dannenberg

At Newton Centre with Newtons Harvest Fair

This years Newton/Needham Chamber of Commerce EXPO showcases solutions you can use to reduce your carbon footprint and over 50 exhibitors in one area. It will be held from 10-5pm in Newton Centre during the Newton Harvest Fair which also features continuous entertainment, food and games for the kids. Get tips on how to live a green life style. See exhibitors with green products, services and ideas. See how far electric cars can take you before you have to switch to gasoline. Find out how you can convert to solar electricity and reduce your electric bills without spending thousands. Have a green lawn all summer without watering and only cut once a month. This years EXPO will include games and activities for kids. Solar Flair Energy, Inc. is the first sponsor to sign up for this years EXPO. Solar Flair is a Mass. based company that was selected for the Solarize Mass Newton program by the City. Look for more of Green Solutions EXPO on www.greendecade.org

Please join !

Tues, Sept 24 - Business & non-profit, solar workshop:

save energy and money on your bottom line!
Come see a presentation of how you can save money on solar for your organization at the Newton Centre Century Bank, 32 Langley Rd. from 8:30 to 10am. SolarFlair has teamed up with the City of Newton and the Mass CEC for the 2013 Solarize Mass program, a program that offers non-profits and businesses competitively priced solar installations. Free site assessment! Take advantage of great Mass incentive programs. The more systems contracted, the lower your price will be! Take advantage of our low cost opportunities by spreading the word. Refreshments and Raffle/giveaways. Contact Peter Smith, Chair of the Chamber Env. Committee at 617 233-6071 for a reservation. Since October 2010 Green Decade helped more than 470 local residents to weatherize their homes with Next Step Living. Sign up for your assessment today at: www.nextstepliving.com/gdn/
Printed with soy-based ink on 100% post-consumer waste unbleached recycled paper that is made without a chemical separation process.

online at www.greendecade.org
Green Decade is proud of its 23 year history and our organizations efforts to help residences, businesses and public facilities become more sustainable. You may also send a $25 payment for a basic membership to Green Decade/Newton, P.O. Box 590242, Newton, MA 02459
Jessica Avery, Recycling Ann Berwick, at large Eric Bobby, School Outreach Al Calderone, at large Jack Cheng, Transportation Marcia Cooper, President Sharon Cushing, Treasurer Michele Davis, Recycling Lucia Dolan, Clerk, Transportation Paul Eldrenkamp, at large Paul Holt, at large Ira Krepchin, Newsletter Lois Levin, Transportation Ken Mallory, Library Speakers Eric Olson, at large Jim Purdy, Vice Pres, Energy Myron Rosenberg, Development Dan Ruben, Chairperson Mindy Sieber, Membership Peter Smith, Newsletter; Chamber Elaine Vildzius, Energy

Board of Directors

Advisory Board

Karen Albert Ana Zarina Asuaje Solon, Louise Bruyn, Past Pres. Sheila Clawson David & Elva Del Porto Bev Droz, Past President Dianne Dumanoski Kevin Dutt Katherine Gekas Bonnie Glickman,EcoTeams Ellie Goldberg, New TV Fred Gordon, MCAN Bd. Barbara Herson, Past Pres. Sunwoo Kahng Francoise LaMonica Brooke Lipsitt Jean MacRae Matt Pawa Annabelle Ship Rohna Shoul Heather Tausig Maeve Ward

617 965-1995

e-mail: info@greendecade.org

www.greendecade.org