White Roofs, Thrilling Retreat, and Fuel-Efficient Vehicles – GC News #668

668: 16 February 2010 – Published by Green Communities Canada.

THRILLING RETREAT. “Strategic positioning” of Green Communities in the next five to 10 years was the focus of a three day retreat in early February, attended by about 45 people from Green Communities Canada member organizations, national staff, and board. We also celebrated the 15th anniversary of our founding conference in Cornwall in 1995. One participant enthused: “To be sitting in a room with so much passion, integrity, experience, intelligence, talent, and biting sarcasm was a complete inspiration and honour.”  Our Thursday night session was described as “wonderful, in fact thrilling, and … insanely useful.”

NEW BOARD MEMBER. Paula Steele was appointed as a member the Green Communities Canada Board of Directors last week. Paula is the Communications Director at City Green Solutions (Victoria).

RENEWABLE ENERGIES. Rideau Environmental Action League ( REAL) is hosting two presentations in Smith Falls about Ontario’s FIT and microFIT programs (renewable energy development). First presentation by SWITCH, 10 March.  Second presentation by ecoPerth, 23 March.

WEBSITE REDESIGN. Have a look at EcoSuperior new website: green spaces booklets; youth, school and driver education; water protection and more … Clean Nova Scotia new website features video and photo galleries, events page, and What Can I Do? section.

SEEDY SATURDAY. Clean North hosts its third annual Seedy Saturday: presentations, workshops, displays and vendors. Sault Ste-Marie, 20 February. 

WHITE ROOFS. Circumpolar Housing Conference brings together keynote speakers and panel members from Finland, Alaska, and Canada to envision new ways to approach housing design and delivery in northern climates. Don Eaton, former executive director of Elora Environment Centre, will participate in aCapacity Building in Northern Communities session. Inuvik, 22-25 March … Painting the roofs of buildings white has the potential to significantly cool cities and mitigate some impacts of global warming, says new study. For cities in northern climates, a roof tile is being developed to turn dark in cold weather and white in warm weather. 

NEWSLETTER. See Clean Nova Scotia’s Clean and Green Winter 2010 newsletter: armchair gardening,  green kitchen remodeling, bottled water.

CONFERENCE. Green Energy and Climate Change Politics: German-Canadian Perspectives breakfast seminar focuses on Germany and European Union’s political agenda on climate change, and potential for building stronger transatlantic partnerships. RSVP. 23 February.

FUEL-EFFICIENT VEHICLES. Promoting and Sustaining Consumer Demand for Highly Fuel-Efficient Automobiles webinar: recent research findings and social marketing implications for promoting demand for these vehicles at the local and regional levels. Presented by Cullbridge Marketing & Communications. 24 March.

PIPELINE MEGAPROJECT. See Nature Canada’s reaction to the environmental assessment report on the pipeline megaproject that threatens the Mackenzie River and area. “The Mackenzie Gas Project is unsustainable unless governments and the proponents make a huge conservation effort".

IT’S THE ECONOMY. The economy is like an impossible hamster, says New Economics Foundation … Progress is measured by the speed at which we destroy the conditions which sustain life, says UK columnist George Monbiot.

GREEN OLYMPICS. “Several people have asked me if the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics will be the greenest games yet. The answer may be yes – if we’re talking about the abundance of greenery and lack of snow brought on by record high temperatures during one of the earliest spring seasons the city has experienced,” says David Suzuki.

JOBS. Toronto Green Community, Garden Coordinator.  No due date … Conservation Corps Newfoundland and Labrador has six positions: Regional Supervisors/Green Team Program. Due 12 March …  Junction Creek Stewardship Committee, Environmental Stewardship Intern.  Due 19 February … Ecovert, LEED Project Manager/Energy Modeler. Toronto, due 22 February … M. K. Ince and Associates, Renewable Energy/ Environmental Assessment Manager. Dundas, ON, no due date.