GOOD Competition: $500 for a Day of Car-Free Fun

Dear community,

GOOD LA just announced a competition, and Local to Global Life Works (LTG) would like to invite you to participate in creating a group submission. 

GOOD LA's competition is to come up with a great idea for how LA (or part of LA) can go car free for a day. The winner will be awarded $500 to make their vision happen. Local to Global Life Works would like to submit as an organization by gathering ideas from you. We have one week to make this happen, so if you are interested in shooting out an idea, let us know! See below this message for more details.

Just to add a bit on bicycle magic, at the last CicLAvia it was announced that Los Angeles will be installing bike share stations, which will help more people in Los Angeles get around car-free while stimulating LA bike culture (at least, this is the idea behind this). This will be a for-profit endeavor, but hopefully bikes will be affordable. Bike sharing was also an idea called for at LTG's GOOD Growth event last year. The strategy paper is still in progress, however, it will soon be fully available thanks to LTG's new Development Coordinator, Meghan Smith. :)  

As for more LTG event calls to action, I am currently building a vegetable learning garden at a school in response to dialogue on how to stop food waste in America following a screening of the film Dive! at the Los Angeles Eco-Village. Look out for some work parties later this year.

Links:

GOOD growth strategy paper teaser

Dive! at Eco-Village strategy paper

Bike share in LA

Scroll down to see the competition announcement from GOOD.

Thanks and much love,

Nisha Namorando Vida

Founding Director // Local to Global Life Works

* We do not inherit the Earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children * 

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: GOOD LA <hello@goodinc.com>
Date: Tue, May 8, 2012 at 1:28 PM
Subject: We're Giving Away $500 for a Day of Car-Free Fun
To: GOOD LA Team <vida@localglobalworks.org>

Design Your Ideal Car-Free Day in Los Angeles. You Could Win $500 to Make It Happen.

Tired of Angelenos complaining that this city doesn't move? GOOD has teamed up with LA/2B, a project of the Los Angeles Departments of City Planning and Transportation, to envision the future of mobility in LA. As part of that partnership, we're challenging you to come up with creative ideas for an amazing car-free day in the city. From the Santa Monica pier to Griffith Park, there's lots to do in LA. Where do you want to go—by bus, foot, bike, or even horseback? Submit an idea this week for the chance to win $500 to bring it life.

Submit your ideal car-free day to the GOOD LA/2B Challenge 

The deadline to submit is Tuesday, May 15, at noon PST. At that point, we’ll open up all ideas for voting, so rally your colleagues and friends to join the GOOD community and decide which idea is most deserving of the cash. Voting is open May 15-31. The top-voted idea will take home $500 to make it happen.

Connect with this challenge on Twitter at @GOODmkr and follow the conversation via #LAcarfreeday. If you’d like to be notified of future GOOD Maker Challenges, let us know here. If you have any questions, please email GOOD's own Manasa Yeturu at manasa@goodcorps.com.

Want to make a difference? Drive your car less and sign a petition.

Petitions are an easy way to let your voice be heard on an issue by lending support to a cause through your signature. Receiving a petition on an issue signed by large numbers of people sends a BIG message to elected officials, by showing them that people care enough about an issue to spend a few moments of their time looking into it and officially stating that they support or oppose it.

As actions speak louder than words, you shouldn't just sign a petition because you feel guilted into it. Instead, think about whether or not you agree with the cause. If you do, sign the petition and think additionally about what you can do in your life to stop perpetuating whatever the root issue is relating to the particular petition.

In this blog post, please find links to three separate petitions fighting against the same issue: American dependance on dirty energy.

Tar sands, via savebiogems.org

One petition is working to gather signatures to stop the building of the Keystone XL Pipeline, which would threaten our country's last remaining nature spaces, would shlep tar sands 1700 miles from Canada down to Texas to be refined. This would pollute vital sources of fresh water, and destroy wildlife habitats and ecosystems. Check the following video for more information:

The other two petitions each take a stance against H.R. 7, the American Energy and Infrastructure Jobs Act of 2012. If you can't sign both of these, at least sign one. This bill would open up the Arctic Refuge for oil drilling (one of our LAST remaining wild spaces - it is being saved for a reason!!!) and would allow for deepwater drilling to not only continue in the Gulf, but to drill in even deeper parts of the Gulf than where the Deepwater Horizon spill occurred.

Photo via Oceana

Take a stance against drilling in the Arctic - sign here.
Take a stance against deepwater drilling - sign here.

Finally, probably THE most important thing you can do to prevent some of these horrible things to happen to the plants, animals and ecosystems of this fragile Earth with regard to the petitions above is to drive your car WAY less, use WAY less energy generally (turn off the lights/tv/computer/etc if you aren't using it!), and try to avoid using plastic anything  (which is made of oil) as much as possible. Every time you use one of these things, imagine a big chimney shooting black smoke out into the clean sky. Find a way to make changes in your life, even if they start off rather small.

Take this blog post as a challenge to yourself, or at least as an opportunity to combat boredom, if this is something you experience at times.

Massive smog cloud over China including Beijing. From NASA Earth Observatory.

On jobs - the Keystone Pipeline and H.R. 7 both draw on the concept of 'job creation' to get boosts from voters. Please realize that while jobs are crucially needed in many parts of the country, if we destroy the last of our wild spaces, pollute our air and water, and destroy the last of increasingly fragile natural ecosystems, we will put the future health of our planet in limbo, meaning possible major natural disasters and far fewer jobs for everyone.

'Security' does not lie in more of the same that has gotten us in this mess. 'Security' lies in creating a healthy future for all. Let's invest in education instead of oil. Our future generations should be innovating healthier ways to live.

"We do not inherit the Earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children."

*

Thanks and peace!

Weekend events in LA: Dia de los Muertos, Occupy LA, Bike Summit and Creative Seeds!

Dear community:

There is a ton of amazing stuff going on over the next few days.  See info below for Dia de los Muertos events, a teach-in at Occupy LA (featuring UC professors, Wall Street experts and other professionals), the California Bike Summit, a play at The Last Bookstore, a fundraiser for Thailand flood victims, and the Cornerstone Theater Creative Seeds exploration of hunger in Los Angeles.

Also, as of this month I am blogging for two sites: Local Blu (they filmed the last Local to Global event) and Green LA Girl (for whom I am posting a list of weekly events around LA).  And please don't forget to follow or check in with me at localtoglobal.blogspot.com!  :)

Thank you and have a great weekend! 

Nisha Namorando Vida
Director/Founder

Local to Global Life Works

Photo via Space 4205

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Angelica De La Torre (Space 4205) and the Eastside Cafe are organizing great Dia de los Muertos activities:

Fri., Nov. 4:  All are welcome to Dia de los Muertos event at Eastside Cafe with a special performance by Las Cafeteras...a traditional Mexican Fandango.

Sun., Nov 5:  Lazy Sunday afternoon at Space 4205 (4205 Maycrest El Sereno 90032)...bbq and special performance by Kid Band Live Transmission playing classics by The Cure, Joy Division and Nirvana!  at 5p...and last chance to catch the artshow...

see/ buy/ and take!  with many items below $100. :)

Lastly, wrapping up this weekend (til Sunday) is the Saints Behind the Glass altar artwalk on Huntington Drive and Maycrest in El Sereno. Check out these beautiful handmade altars before they are gone!

Click here for map location of events, or search for 'Maycrest and Huntington Drive, El Sereno, CA'.

Cost: free!

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California Bike Summit 2011:

Saturday, Nov. 5: There will be bike tours of Los Angeles and the day will conclude with a reception and party at Angel City Brewing.

Sunday, Nov. 6: Full day session dedicated to strategizing how to increase bicycling in California.

Monday, Nov. 7: Full day session dedicated to sharing and learning skills necessary for implementing goals established the day before. 

Saturday and Sunday events will be held at the Kyoto Grand Hotel in downtown Los Angeles.  Monday's events will be held at The California Endowment.  Both locations are next to Metro Gold Line station stops.  For more info, check out the website: http://calbike.org/events/2011-california-bicycle-summit/

Cost: $110 for the weekend.  However, get in for free by volunteering at the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition bike valet!  Email Martin for more info: martin@la-bike.org. 

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Fundraiser for Thailand flood victims:

A childhood friend of mine (who is Thai) is organizing this fundraiser along with the owner of Thai restaurant Night Market.  

They will be donating $.75 per small plate ($5-$8) and Chang beer ($4). Come with a couple friends and get a beer tower ($29) and we'll donate $9. The money goes to the Thai Red Cross Society.  The fundraiser will be going on through Sun., Nov. 6.  See link: http://www.nightmarketla.com/.

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Cornerstone Theater - two weeks of events addressing hunger in LA!

This series actually starts on Monday, however, I wanted to include it in this blast since I am working with these folks!

Cornerstone Theater Company presents the first annual “Creative Seeds: An Exploration of Hunger.” This two-week event has some of LA’s most innovative artists, food activists, farmers, chefs, food critics and thought leaders address the issue of hunger through an artistic lens.  The first day of events is on Nov. 7.  

Cost: some events are free and some have suggested donations.  See website for details.

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A Record of Light - A play at The Last Bookstore

You may remember that the last LTG event, Generating Good Growth, hosted with GOOD LA, took place at The Last Bookstore.  Well, this amazing store is featuring a play written by local artists and writers.  Check it out this Saturday and Sunday at 8 pm.  

A RECORD OF LIGHT is a play about the Akashic Records (complete sacred knowledge of all human experience) being housed, in secret, in downtown's The Last Bookstore.  Orelia Key, a woman whose spirit moves faster than her body can handle, is determined to access it.  On this mission, she encounters denizens of the bookstore - analog people - who in a world of technology, discover the link between body and the substance of the soul.

Cost: $10.

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Occupy LA Teach-in

Saturday, Nov.5 
2:30 - Introductory Remarks

2:45 - Robert Reich:  Professor of Public Policy at UC Berkeley and former US Labor Secretary
3:15 - Robert Scheer:  Executive Editor, Truthdig.org, author of The Great American Stick Up: How Reagan Republicans and Clinton Democrats Enriched Wall Street While Mugging Main Street
3:30 - 5:00 - Economics Panel:
William Black (professor of Economics and Law at the University of Missouri)
Joel Rogers (professor of Law, Political Science, Public Affairs and Sociology at the University of Wisconsin and president of the Center for Wisconsin Strategies in Madison, Wisconsin)
Michael Hudson - (via livestream) President of The Institute for the Study of Long-Term Economic Trends (ISLET), a Wall Street
Financial Analyst, Distinguished Research Professor of Economics at the University of Missouri, Kansas City.
Robert Scheer (Executive Editor of Truthdig.org) - Moderator
5:00 - Carol Wells (Executive Director of Center for the Study of Political Graphics)

5:15 - George Lakoff (via livestream): Professor of cognitive linguistics at UC Berkeley and author of Don't Think of an Elephant! Know Your Values and Frame the Debate  
5:30 - Closing Speaker TBA
6:00 - Music - Performers TBA    
8:00 pm - Sneak Preview of "Heist: Who Stole the American Dream?" Directed by Donald Goldmacher and Frances Causey - a documentary film which reveals how American corporations orchestrated the dismantling of middle-class prosperity through rampant deregulation, the outsourcing of jobs, and tax policies favoring businesses and the wealthy and gave rise to corporate power. The Director will present the film.

Sunday, Nov.6 
11:00 - Opening Speaker TBA                
11:30 - 1:00 - Organizing and Civil Disobedience Panel:
Madeline Janis - Executive Director of LAANE
Kent Wong - Director of the Center for Labor and Research at UCLA
Erick Huerte - Organizer at Dream Team Los Angeles
Peggy Mears - Organizer of the Home Defenders program for ACCE, the Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment
Jill Furillo - California Nurses Association, National Nurses United Union
Peter Drier - Chair of the Urban and Environmental Policy Department at Occidental College - Moderator
1:00 - lunch
1:30 - Sustainable Living Panel:
Frank Tamborello - Hunger Action LA
Autumn Rooney - Echo Park Time Bank
South Central Farms
Open Neighborhoods
Joan Stevens - Los Angeles Permaculture Guild and the NELA Permaculture Guild, Organizer of the West Coast Women's Permaculture
Gatherings and the 2011 SoCal Permaculture convergence.
3:00 - American Civil Liberties Union  - speaker TBA
3:15 - Iraq Veterans Against the War - speaker TBA
3:30 - 5:00 - Corporatocracy Panel:
Alex Caballero - Brave New Foundation
Tracy Rosenberg - president, Media Alliance
Mary Beth Fielder - Organizer Move to Amend
Derek Cressman - Common Cause, director of Campaign to Reverse Citizens United
Lauren Steiner - Local political activist, - Moderator
5:00 - Jim Lafferty of National Lawyers Guild
5:15 - David DeGraw - Organizer at Occupy Wall Street, publisher of ampedstatus.org

Additional speakers/updates to be announced. Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=117112968398746

The Occupy LA Education and People's University will also be holding workshops at various times of the day to discuss some of the topics addressed for those who are interested. http://www.olapeoplescollectiveuniversity.org/

Actions:
Bank Transfer Day/ Move Your Money
March Through Financial District - Rally begins at 10:30am at California Plaza

To see the most up to date schedule, please visit www.occupylosangeles.org. (This will be updated soon.)
Search the Facebook event page: Nov.5 & Nov.6 Occupy LA - Teach-In and More!

LA needs more bike lanes! LA is GETTING more bike lanes!

In the past couple of weeks, I have had two conversations with people I am close to (family friends and coworkers) about cyclists in Los Angeles.  Both conversations turned violent, with the people involved (all who only use cars to commute) talking about how frustrating it is to be in a car behind slow cyclists, that cyclists should just be bumped of the road or killed, and that Los Angeles was obviously made only for cars.

I found the conversations I had with folks about killing cyclists to be very sad and disturbing, though I do understand why people in a fast moving vehicle would feel frustrated by a smaller and slower vehicle clogging up the road in front of them.  I believe that the best way to resolve such a conundrum is to change the way things are in our city - such as by having more bike lanes.

A few days ago, former LTG panelist LaTanya Spann sent me an article from Blog Downtown about how a bike lane is being built through the historic core of downtown Los Angeles:

"Downtowners could soon be seeing green on Spring Street as the city moves forward with plans to remove two vehicle lanes, adding a green bike lane to the roadway and setting the stage for future mini-park plans."

At LTG's last event at The Last Bookstore (which happens to be on Spring St.), participants all addressed innovative ways to develop downtown Los Angeles.  One such plan focused on fusing bike lane creation with gardens.  Such lanes would leave room for cars, buses, bikes and pedestrians, while stimulating traffic to local businesses and even the growth of plants (like building garden bike lanes).  Some of these ideas are contained in our strategy paper, which you can find here. 

LTG exists to help people identify things that need to be changed, to identify change-makers, and to show people things that they can do to make change right at home.   Whether you are a cyclist or secretly hate cyclists, we all agree that Los Angeles County streets can and should be made much more bicycle friendly.  If you want to do something to make this change happen, just know that there is a lot you can do.  We suggest for starters that you get active with the Los Angeles Bicycle Coalition, check out the LTG strategies (and maybe advocate to implement one!), or attend this weekend's California Bike Summit 2011!  

 Learning about cyclists and why people cycle, and advocating for better roads, more bike lanes and safety for roadway commuters just might provide the solution to violent thoughts and actions related to bad city planning.  

Peace and love!

Nisha Namorando Vida
Director/Founder
Local to Global Life Works