Sustainable Lehigh Valley 2015 - Alliance for Sustainable Communities - Lehigh Valley
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Sustainable Lehigh Valley
Directory of Organizations & Businesses • Voices of the Valley
2015
Published annually
on Earth Day
2015 Directory 403a.indd 1 4/3/15 10:29 AM
Building community resiliency to environmental risk through
informal science education, art- centered approaches to learning,
and community dialogue and networking.
Featuring NOAAʼs Science on a Sphere
TM
suspended globe and other exhibits.
SCIENCE PROGRAMS • COMMUNITY DIALOGUE • ART EXHIBI
URBAN GARDEN • SCIENCE ON A SPHERE • FILMS • KID’S CRAFTS • ENVIRON
Nurture Nature Center Home of
518 Northampton Street BUY FRESH BUY LOCAL
Easton, PA 18042 GREATER LEHIGH VALLEY
www.nurturenaturecenter.org
2015 Directory 403a.indd 2 4/3/15 10:29 AM
Sustainable Lehigh Valley
Directory
Organizations & Businesses
That Promote Sustainable Communities
Voices of the Valley
Essays by Faramarz Farbod, Sheila Gallagher,
Adam Heidebrink-Bruno, Karen Henninger,
Colton Krial & Leah Triber, Tom Moroz,
Gary Olson, Joris Rosse, Bruce Wilson
2015
Published annually
on Earth Day
1966 Creek Road
Bethlehem, PA 18015
484-893-0475
www.sustainlv.org
info@sustainlv.org
2015 Directory 403a.indd 1 4/3/15 10:29 AM
Megan McGlynn
ii
2015 Directory 403a.indd 2 4/3/15 10:29 AM
An Invitation to...
Consider this Sustainable Lehigh Valley an invitation to become engaged in system
change efforts, grounded in conversations that matter and enabled by alternative orga-
nizational structures. To get to a more sustainable, peaceful future—indeed, to save our
future—we need to create a togetherness built on “public conversation” (Krial and Triber,
p. 4) made possible by “infrastructures of resistance” (Heidebrink-Bruno, p. 6).
Sustainable Lehigh Valley is one such infrastructure of resistance, its essays priming the
pump of public conversation and its directory pointing to organizations where folks can
work and connect as part of a new sustainability paradigm. (We say more about the direc-
tory on page 20.) To find out about the many portals to more sustainable lives, we invite
you to read the many listings themselves .
This year the submitted essays call attention to important sustainability matters that
have not been getting sufficient attention, because we’re reluctant to look at them or be-
cause we’re insensitive to them or because we don’t see important things that are missing.
The essays are there to start conversations. We invite you to continue the conversations
they begin by posting your thoughts and comments to their online versions on the Alli-
ance website (www.sustainlv.org), another infrastructure of resistance. Visit the “Essays &
Articles – Voices of the Valley” pages of the Sustainable Lehigh Valley/Directory section
(accessible via “Tools”) to post your comments!
Further, we invite you to submit your own writings to voices@sustainlv.org for post-
ing as Voices of the Valley blogs. Since the Alliance takes a broad, whole system view of
sustainability, connecting environmental, social, political, economic, and psychological/
ideational matters, you can address just about any sustainability matter that you are pas-
sionate about.
And if you’d like to engage in ongoing dialogue, building collaborative efforts and
planning actions, ask commons@sustainlv.org to invite you to participate in the Sustain-
ability Commons (for information about it, look for it in the Act Locally section of the
Alliance website). The Commons is another infrastructure of resistance. It’s a virtual
workspace for working groups to work on the whole gamut of sustainability concerns. We
invite you to join in the conversations!
The Alliance is also developing or supporting creation of other organizational frame-
works to take us beyond discussion. A bare-bones listing would include our working
groups, like Beyond Capitalism and Transitions Lehigh Valley, and projects, like Transi-
tions U, Community Bills of Rights efforts, and Green Shadow Government. Visit our
website or sign up to receive our e-newsletter, Sustainability Doings (see the About Us
menu on our website), to find out more about them.
iii
2015 Directory 403a.indd 3 4/3/15 10:29 AM
Acknowledgements
We thank all who made this edition of
the Sustainable Lehigh Valley directory
possible, including the organizations and
businesses whose listings provide a picture
of the sustainability community in the
Greater Lehigh Valley; the essayists whose
thoughts, experiences, and visions give
voice to many concerns, and the artists,
identified below, whose images reach us
through the other side of our brains.
Cover Art by Megan McGlynn
The beautiful yet distorted hummingbirds
show the collision that results when habitat
shaped for humans alone ignores collateral
damage it causes to other living things.
Additional Artwork
Kathryn Amari
Caitlin Campbell
Karen Henninger
Megan McGlynn
Tara Morrison
Jillian Pagliei
The Directory Team
Martin Boksenbaum
Peter Crownfield
Shannon Gardner
directory@sustainlv.org
from a drawing by Caitlin Campbell (adapted by Jillian Pagliei)
iv
Printed on 100% post-consumer recycled paper by Nacci Printing, Allentown. C
2015 Directory 403a.indd 4 4/3/15 10:29 AMContents
Voices of the Valley
Let’s Shoot for the Moon, Again! ................................................................2
Social Spaces, Public Discussion, Political Action .....................................4
Building Infrastructure of Resistance .......................................................6
Is It Time for an Impact Hub in the Lehigh Valley? ..................................8
It’s Capitalism, Stupid ...............................................................................10
A Potent Tool for Reversing Climate Change ...........................................12
Trees ...........................................................................................................14
Reviving and Sustaining Humanity and the Earth ...............................16
Torture In Service to Empire ...................................................................18
Essays express the views of the writers and do not necessarily represent the views of the Alliance.
Directory Listings
Organizations & Programs....................................................................... 21
Businesses & Health Practitioners........................................................... 69
Index by Category — find the organizations and information you want........ 83
Note: Listings are also posted on the Alliance website, where they are updated throughout the year.
About the Alliance
Alliance Interns: Working for a More Sustainable World ................................. 45
What We Do............................................................................................................. 88
Vision, Mission, and Goals..................................................................................... 89
Also see our website at www.sustainlv.org
1
2015 Directory 403a.indd 1 4/3/15 10:29 AMLet’s Shoot for the Moon! Again!
I
t’s 2015. Have we reached the point of It takes a village. It will take many vil-
“Now or Nothing”? lages. It may take every one of us. But it
Climate chaos is reigning. We know can be done. Using carbon sequestration,
we cannot survive on a dead planet, yet we bio-diverse organic farming, no biocides, no
forge forward, fracking for that ever elusive, pesticides, reforestation, methane & carbon
pre-historic fossil fuel locked deep within re-capture, efficiencies, lower thermostats,
our native rocks, literally under our feet. It LED lights, no lights, electric cars, walk-
will give some untold wealth! Others, jobs! ing, biking, sharing, local foods, community
Heat for our homes and businesses! Fuel for gardens, solar panels, windmills, …the list
our stoves! But—wait, what else awaits? goes on and on. There is no magic wand. No
We have been warned. With the burn- abracadabra! No magic pill! But we can do
ing of those fossil fuels, global warming has this. Now. We must. There really will be no
come upon us. Greenhouse gases amass in tomorrow, if we don’t.
the skies above and we do little in response. “The only alternative—impos-
Ice caps and icebergs melt, sea levels rise, and sible as this may seem right now—is to
we lament. Can nothing be done? Is there overthrow this global economic system
no will among the people; have we lost our and all of the governments of the 1%
backbones? Are we afraid—afraid to act, that prop it up and replace them with
afraid to confront, afraid to stand up to our a global economic democracy, a radical
bottom-up political democracy, an ecoso-
government, afraid of the corporations who
cialist civilization. I argue that, although
dominate our world?
we are fast approaching the precipice of
Is it that we need the stuff they make— ecological collapse, the means to derail
the food, the phones, the computers, the this train wreck are in the making as,
cars? We are told again and again that we around the world, we are witnessing a
cannot live without them—now or ever after. near-simultaneous global mass demo-
Do you believe that? They would control our cratic ‘awakening,’ as the Brazilians call
every move. Can you envision a world without it, almost a global uprising from Tahir
corporate control? A new world where peace, Square to Zuccotti Park, from Athens to
prosperity, health and justice for all exists? Istanbul to Beijing and beyond such as
the world has never seen.”
There are billions of us—real people! And
only thousands of them—corporate fictions. —Richard Smith, in “Capitalism
and the Destruction of Life on Earth: Six
We can win. Together. Connecting the dots.
Theses on Saving the Humans”, in Real-
Around the world. World Economics Review, 2013.
We all need and want the same things.
We are all in this together. We have to
Not stuff! Clean air, clean water, healthy
stop being part of the problem. We all need
abundant food—the rights of all humanity.
to be part of the solution.
These are NOT commodities in need of cor-
porate control. These are human rights. Con- Grassroots—the only way real change has
stitutional rights. They belong to people. ever come about. Start today. In your home,
in your neighborhood, with your friends and
2
2015 Directory 403a.indd 2 4/3/15 10:29 AMfamilies. Transitions, make a pact, make of us. Eventually the reversal of the climate
a game, make one small change every day. chaos we created will be the new reality.
Include the children, the old and the young. Let’s shoot for the moon! Again! Pretend
All of us together. Adding up to the billions it is 1962. Dream! And it will come true.
by Sheila Gallagher
Sheila is active in community opposition to Marcellus Shale, the PennEast
Pipeline, and expansion of the Forks compressor station and serves on
committees of the Sierra Club, Easton Historic House Tours, and the Alliance.
For more inspiration and ideas:
Ronnie Cummins, “Letter from Lima: What’s Wrong with the Climate Movement?”, on the Organic Consumers
Association website, dated 12/16/14.
Vandana Shiva: “Food System Transformation and Reversing the Climate Crisis”
Naomi Klein, This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. The Climate
Links to these references are included in the online version of this essay.
Megan McGlynn
3
2015 Directory 403a.indd 3 4/3/15 10:29 AMSocial Space, Public Discussion, Political Action
D
uring the first month of 2014, change is not simply caused by humans;
Oxfam released a report on the rather, it is capitalism’s newest crisis.
state of global inequality. The fact To think that we can roll back climate
that quickly came to define the report spoke change, much less devise a plan to combat it,
of the unprecedented level of wealth that without critiquing the system that bore it is
a small group of individuals accumulated not just absurd, it is deadly. Whether we are
through what capitalists would have us think scientists or social scientists, the question we
of as “hard work” and the “entrepreneurial must be concerned with is how to live with
spirit of competitiveness and risk taking.” the planet and all of the species that inhabit
The fact was that 85 individuals owned as its ecosystems—but that is just it: capitalism
much wealth as the 3.5 billion poorest people does not live with anything; it exploits every-
on Earth.1 Unfortunately, these demoraliz- thing. Over this past summer, we conducted
ing statistics did not lessen over the ensuing research on how capitalism is exploiting our
year. The most recent report published by ability to partake in a political discourse.
Oxfam concluded that by 2016, the top one Our research focused on how capitalism,
percent would possess half the wealth in the through its construction of social space, dis-
world.2 incentivizes and at times outright forbids in-
If we are concerned with climate change, formed political discourse from taking place.
we must be concerned with such breathtak- This public conversation, in conjunction with
ing inequality. We must understand this the work of scientists, is desperately needed
crippling inequality as a part of climate if we wish to save the future of our planet.
change, not something divorced from it. In Below is an excerpt of our research, describ-
short, we should not create a barrier between ing how capitalism’s construction of social
scientific and social approaches if we are to space both physically and phenomenologi-
understand the world. When we do, conclu- cally exploits our public being:
sions such as the one reached by the most August 2, 2014: March for Refugees
recent Assessment Report published by the in the Lehigh Valley
UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate
This march shed great insight into
Change, which claimed that climate change
the relationship between space and po-
is anthropogenic,3 not only distort the reality
litical action for us. As we, Beyond Cap-
of the situation, but such a knowledge bar- italism, and members of the Industrial
rier leads us closer towards our own destruc- Workers of the World (IWW), made
tion. We must awaken to the reality that 90 our way up downtown Bethlehem’s
corporations have been responsible for a full Main Street, we were met with stares of
two-thirds of the carbon emissions generated both curiosity and confusion. Of course,
since the onset of industrialism, and that both responses were desired, since we
concepts such as modernity and progress are wanted to capture people’s attention. We
the ideologies creating such abject poverty planned the march in Bethlehem’s most
for most of the human population.3 Climate compact and populated business section
4
2015 Directory 403a.indd 4 4/3/15 10:29 AMfor a reason: to subvert the activities and let them be be exposed to the “other”
of those bodies that are orientated to- body, the non-neoliberal body. One can
wards spaces of consumerism. In other potentially see the non-neoliberal body,
words, our goal was to disorient those but there is no space to hear the argu-
normative lines of desire generated by ments or stories or the background of the
capitalism, by marching a political mes- non-neoliberal body.4
sage right through them. Despite this The common thread uniting all of the
disruption, it felt like we were marching problems we face today is the need for an in-
in a void, because while the bystanders
formed citizenry to discuss and understand
were curious and confused as to what
these problems, whether the issue is climate
our message was, or perhaps disagreed
change, wealth inequality, or anything else.
with our message, there was no place to
serve as a discussion space. This meant Without these spaces of social interaction,
that despite the fact that our initial goal we cannot expect critical discourse to flour-
of disorientating the consumer body was ish in a productive manner. If we want to
met, there was no place to then gather engage reality, we must take the conversation
these differing orientations of the world to the streets where inequality lives.
by Colton Krial & Leah Triber
Colton and Leah are students at Moravian College.
NOTES:
1
Wearden, Graeme. “Oxfam: 85 Richest people as wealthy as poorest half of the world”. The Guardian, 20
January, 2015.
2
“Richest 1% will own more than all the rest by 2016”. OXFAM International, 19 January, 2015.
3
“Climate Change 2014: Synthesis Report” (AR5), Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. 2015.
4
Colton Krial and Leah Triber, “The Politics of Place and the Freeing of Political Discussion”. 2015.
Megan McGlynn
5
2015 Directory 403a.indd 5 4/3/15 10:29 AMBuilding Infrastructures of Resistance
I
t’s easy for the individual to feel quite tures, however, the possibilities for alterna-
small in relation to the global super- tives are as endless as our imaginations, and
structures that control the greater part every individual, neighborhood, and commu-
of our lives. Even with a real, honest concern nity has the power to build them. Bartering,
regarding the current state of things, indi- community gardening, neighborhood re-
viduals may feel lost in terms of taking the source pooling, free schools, food and worker
next step. Yet, many do. Some reach out to cooperatives, and learning collectives are just
their friends, while other join work groups a few structures that offer exciting and par-
and book circles. Others, still, contact their ticipatory ways to reduce our dependence on
legislators, to urge lawmakers to create sys- dominant institutions.
temic change. And while these strategies are The good news is that most of us read-
important, alone they are not enough. ing this essay are likely already participating
In order to push for an even more sus- in some alternative way of being that runs
tainable and peaceful future, we need to not counter to the dominant institutions. Indi-
only organize for change from above, but vidually, it is within our power to make little
also build new systems from below. We need choices every day that positively impact the
to build “infrastructures of resistance,” a world, whether this means choosing how and
concept that Jeff Shantz describes as alter- where we spend our money, deciding to plant
native systems that “operate in the shadows backyard gardens, or starting to walk and
of the dominant institutions [and] provide bike more frequently. To imagine a sustain-
frameworks for the radical reorganiza- able world beyond capitalism, it is important
tion of social relations in a miniature, pre- to first realize its possibility personally. And
insurrectionary form” (Shantz, Re-Building sometimes that begins in the home.
Infrastructures of Resistance). These new The bad news, however, is that operating
social relations offer “alternative ways of be- in the shadows of the dominant institutions
ing”—not far off in the distant future, but can be lonely business, fraught with difficul-
here and now. But without them, without ties; after all, the dominant institutions are
clear, functional alternatives, those who seek designed that way. Dominant institutions
something different may be discouraged. (such as neoliberal, global capitalism) are
Building “infrastructures of resistance” strengthened by participation and thus
requires an exacting critique of the systems those who benefit from these systems have a
that we oppose. Exposing systemic faults is vested interested in keeping us involved. This
only the first step, as in many cases the critic makes alternatives difficult, as material pres-
in question remains dependent on that very sures limit one’s time and resources, from
system for sustenance (be it food, energy, which one could carve out an infrastructure
capital, etc.). Unions and NGOs are two of resistance. And without this infrastruc-
well-established examples of infrastructures ture, without a community and culture of
of resistance and their growth should be resistance, the impact of one’s actions fade
supported. Beyond these more formal struc- quickly. It’s a cruel system, indeed.
6
2015 Directory 403a.indd 6 4/3/15 10:29 AMThis is why we need to work together. these small ways add up and form a larger
Infrastructures of resistance lay the network and culture of resistance that’s hard
foundation for new possible futures. They to ignore.
are experiments fueled by the hopes of a bet- I invite those reading this essay to do the
ter tomorrow. They are the realizations of same. Consider the acts of resistance already
what a small, dedicated community can do present in your daily life and structure them
in face of systemic pressure to do otherwise. into visible, shareable, community practices.
For example: I organize local, money-free And if, in doing so, you encourage just one
bartering events not simply to trade excess person to engage in more sustainable prac-
goods, but to practice an alternative mode of tices, you’ve already doubled the impact
exchange. By growing, making, and trading of your resistance. Together, we can build
locally, we reduce our dependence on super- more sustainable neighborhoods and com-
markets, warehouses, and chain retailers as munities, the collective impact of which can
well as minimize the use of fossil fuels and ripple out into neighboring communities.
oppressive labor practices it often takes to Together, we can refuse to participate in the
fill those buildings. I take the time to make dominant superstructures. In order to do so,
what I do visible, in hopes of encouraging we first need alternatives. And these alterna-
others to join and reveal that in this one tives don’t exist until we make them. So let’s
small way, an alternative is possible. In time, get started.
by Adam Heidebrink-Bruno
Adam Heidebrink-Bruno is a ‘rogue educator and community activist, learning
every step of the way’; he is involved with Education Underground, Lehigh
Valley Bartering Community, LEPOCO Peace Center, and Hybrid Pedagogy.
Megan McGlynn
7
2015 Directory 403a.indd 7 4/3/15 10:29 AMIs it time for an Impact Hub in the Lehigh Valley?
I
mpact Hubs are part innovation lab, There is much happening in the Lehigh
part business incubator, and part Valley in terms of transforming from the old
community center. They offer their industrial economic base to a more diversi-
members a unique ecosystem of resources, fied local economy, but much of the work
inspiration, and collaboration opportunities seems to be happening in a fragmented man-
to grow impact; they believe a better world ner, without effective collaboration between
evolves through the combined accomplish- local governments, the business community,
ments of creative, committed, and compas- and the non-profit sector. Establishing a
sionate individuals focused on a common place such as the Impact Hub could help
purpose. catalyze the relationships between people in
The concept started in London in 2005 different sectors and with different perspec-
and since has grown to a global network of tives, helping to engage the entire communi-
62 Impact Hubs, recently growing at a rate ty in the transformation that is taking place.
of one new Impact Hub per month. In There are many stories to tell from across
2014, new Impact Hubs have been estab- the globe since the first Impact Hub was es-
lished in Philadelphia and in New York City. tablished in London in 2005 and an Impact
Is it time to create an Impact Hub in the Hub in the Lehigh Valley would connect us
Lehigh Valley? to this global community of practitioners
Essentially, an Impact Hub consists of and resources.
three distinct elements: The Lehigh Valley has a history of work-
• a vibrant community of passionate and ing with traditional business incubators
entrepreneurial people who share an un- such as Ben Franklin Technology Partners
derlying intention to bring about positive and the Bridgeworks Enterprise Center. An
change and act as peers to cross-fertilize Impact Hub in the Lehigh Valley would
and develop their ventures.
fill a niche by addressing the needs of social
• a source of inspiration that provides mean-
entrepreneurs and bringing together diverse
ingful content through thought-provoking
events, innovation labs, learning spaces, groups of people committed to working on
incubation, and facilitated conversations complex local and regional challenges. A
that matter. more detailed market analysis will be done in
• an inspiring space that offers a flexible and the coming months to determine who would
highly functional infrastructure to work, likely belong to and/or benefit from an Im-
meet, learn and connect. pact Hub in the Lehigh Valley. In other
The magic happens when these three Impact Hubs, membership & participation
elements connect and are brought to life has included:
through the Art of Hosting (a methodol- • business enterprises working on social and
ogy for effectively bringing people together environmental issues
to reach consensus and achieve greater im- • non-profit organizations
pact. [www.ar tofhosting.org] • local universities and other institutes of
higher education
8
2015 Directory 403a.indd 8 4/3/15 10:29 AM• social entrepreneurs and independent In addition to the work defined above,
consultants the Lehigh Valley also has many of the nec-
• branches of government offices collaborat- essary ingredients for an effective and robust
ing with the private sector Impact Hub:
For the past three years, the Envision • rich natural resources and infrastructure
Lehigh Valley project has been an effective • strong, educated workforce
public outreach effort designed to engage the • vibrant network of higher education insti-
citizens of Northampton and Lehigh Coun- tutions
ties to create a sustainability plan for the • proximity to large markets in Philadelphia
Lehigh Valley. The output of this 3-year ini- and New York
tiative, funded by a $3.4 million HUD grant, • cooperative, though somewhat fragmented
has been various studies and reports cover- local governments
ing topics such as local food, transportation, There is a growing interest to take this
housing, economic development, climate, concept from an idea to create an actual
energy and the environment. The HUD place where we can come together to share
grant established a consortium of local lead- our knowledge and resources to resolve the
ers from both the government and non-profit social, environmental, and economic chal-
sector. It is not yet clear how these initia- lenges of our region. If you are interested to
tives will continue, now that funding from learn more and to participate in this process,
the HUD grant has ended, but the establish- contact me at tjmoroz@gmail.com or join
ment of an Impact Hub could be beneficial the ‘Impact Hub Lehigh Valley’ community
to carrying out the projects that have been on the Sustainability Commons.
prioritized in the EnvisionLV draft reports.
by Tom Moroz
Tom is a Knowledge Management and Organizational Development
Specialist, currently working with the Open Future Institute
and serving as a Senior Advisor / Consultant for Techné Verde.
Megan McGlynn
9
2015 Directory 403a.indd 9 4/3/15 10:29 AMIt’s capitalism, stupid!
G
lobal capitalism is the 800-pound Take the US. The richest 20 persons
gorilla. The twin ecological and have as much wealth as the bottom 150 mil-
economic crises, militarism, the lion.4 Since 1973, the hourly wages of work-
rise of the surveillance state, and a dysfunc- ers have lagged behind worker productivity
tional political system can all be traced to its rates by more than 800%.5 It now takes the
normal operations. average family 47 years to make what a hedge
We need a transformative politics from fund manager makes in one hour.6 Just about
below that can challenge the fundamentals a quarter of children under the age of 5 live
of capitalism instead of today’s politics that is in poverty.7 A majority of public school stu-
content to treat its symptoms. The problems dents are low-income.8 85% of workers feel
we face are linked to each other and to the stress on the job.9 Soon the only thing left
way a capitalist society operates. We must of the American Dream will be a culture of
make an effort to understand its real char- hustling to survive.
acter. The fundamental question of our time Take the global society. The world’s bil-
is whether we can go beyond a system that is lionaires control $7 trillion, a sum 77 times
ravaging the Earth and secure a future with the debt owed by Greece to the European
dignity for life and respect for the planet. banks.10 The richest 80 possess more than
What has capitalism done to us lately? the combined wealth of the bottom 50% of
The best science tells us that this is a the global population (3.5 billion people).11
do-or-die moment. We are now in the midst By 2016 the richest 1% will own a greater
of the 6th mass extinction in the planetary share of the global wealth than the rest of us
history with 150 to 200 species going extinct combined.12 The top 200 global corporations
every day, a pace 1,000 times greater than wield twice the economic power of the bot-
the ‘natural’ extinction rate.”1 The Earth has tom 80% of the global population.13 Instead
been warming rapidly since the 1970s with of a global society capitalism is creating a
the 10 warmest years on record all occur- global apartheid.
ring since 1998.2 An increase of 2° Celsius is What’s the nature of the beast?
the limit of what the planet can take before Firstly, the “egotistical calculation” of
major catastrophic consequences. Limiting commerce wins the day every time. Capital
global warming to 2°C requires reducing seeks maximum profitability as a matter
global emissions by 6% per year. However, of first priority. Evermore “accumulation
global carbon emissions from fossil fuels of capital” is the system’s bill of health; it is
increased by about 1.5 times between 1990 slowdowns or reversals that usher in crises
and 2008.3 and set off panic. Cancer-like hunger for
Capitalism has also led to explosive so- endless growth is in the system’s DNA and
cial inequalities. The global economic land- is what has set it on a tragic collision course
scape is littered with rising concentration with Nature, a finite category.
of wealth, debt, distress, and immiseration Secondly, capitalism treats human labor
caused by the austerity-pushing elites. as a cost. It therefore opposes labor captur-
10
2015 Directory 403a.indd 10 4/3/15 10:29 AMing a fair share of the total economic value It’s left to us as a society to think and act
that it creates. Since labor stands for the about what the real character of the system
majority and capital for a tiny minority, it is, where we are going, and how we are going
follows that classism and class warfare are to deal with the trajectory of the system. The
built into its DNA, which explains why the critical task ahead is to build a transforma-
“middle class” is shrinking and its gains are tive politics capable of steering the system
never secure. away from its destructive path. Given the
Thirdly, private interests determine system’s DNA, such a politics from below
massive investments and make key deci- must include efforts to challenge the system’s
sions at the point of production guided by fundamentals, namely, its private mode of
maximization of profits. That’s why in the decision-making about investments and
US the truck freight replaced the railroad about what and how to produce.
freight, chemicals were used extensively in It behooves us to heed the late environ-
agriculture, public transport was gutted in mentalist Barry Commoner’s insistence on
favor of private cars, and big cars replaced the efficacy of a strategy of prevention over a
small ones. failed one of control or capture of pollutants.
What should political action aim for today? At a lecture in 1991, he remarked: “Environ-
The political class has no good ideas mental pollution is an incurable disease; it
about how to address the crises. One may can only be prevented,” and proceeded to re-
even wonder whether it has a serious under- fer to “a law,” namely: “if you don’t put a pol-
standing of the system, or at least of ways to lutant in the environment it won’t be there.”
ameliorate its consequences. The range of Without democratic control of wealth and
solutions offered tends to be of a technical, social governance of the means of produc-
legislative, or regulatory nature, promising tion, we will all be condemned to the labor of
at best temporary management of the deep- Sisyphus. Only we won’t have to suffer for all
ening crises. The trajectory of the system, eternity, as the degradation of life-enhancing
at any rate, precludes a return to its post- natural and social systems will soon reach a
WWII regulatory phase. point of no return.
by Faramarz Farbod
Fara serves on the Alliance steering committee
and teaches political science at Moravian College.
Footnote references are included in the online version of this essay.
11
2015 Directory 403a.indd 11 4/3/15 10:29 AMEnergy Improvements to Existing Buildings—
a Potent Tool for Reversing Climate Change
I
magine a world where there is a climate the best ever and helped stimulate a lagging
crisis and most people, feeling help- economy. Even the conservative National
less about the vastness of the problem, Association of Home Builders lobbied for
ignore the easiest changes that can make the the extension, but Congress let those incen-
quickest impact while providing a good re- tives lapse.
turn on investment. Well, there is a climate If we are truly serious about climate
crisis here on our world and we are virtually change then we should pass The Cut Energy
ignoring improving the efficiency of our Bills at Home Act which was first intro-
buildings. Let’s face it; solar collectors on the duced in the Senate with bipartisan support
roof or driving a hybrid car are much sexier in 2011. The bill would create a new tax
than an energy audit, air sealing, and adding credit—the first residential performance-
insulation. based tax credit given to homeowners who
For years we were told that when the make energy efficiency improvements. The
concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere proposed bill would provide performance-
reached 350 ppm we risked irreversible cli- based tax credits of up to $5,000 per project
mate change. It has now passed 400 ppm so for homeowners who install qualified energy
it is past time to act decisively. efficiency measures.
To show how important buildings are in Under the bill, the value of the credit
our efforts to combat climate change, the In- begins at $2,000 for a 20 percent reduction
tergovernmental Panel on Climate Change‘s in the energy consumption of a residential
Fifth Assessment report, focused on build- home for heating, cooling, water heating,
ings. This is because buildings account for and permanent lighting. The credit increases
a 40% share of the global energy use and by $500 for every additional 5 percent-
greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. age point increase in energy savings, up to
We need to focus on energy improve- $5,000. The credit is capped at 30 percent of
ments to existing buildings since new build- the cost of the improvements.
ings are more efficient than old buildings Improving the energy efficiency of your
because of building codes. Of course we need house is one of the only things you can do for
to keep improving codes to push the enve- climate change that has a return on invest-
lope on energy efficiency. ment. It will not only lower your energy bills,
Tax incentives have been a valuable incen- but will also make your house more comfort-
tive to spur us to save energy and install renew- able and improve your indoor air quality.
able energy, but Congress is forever letting If you replaced windows and doors and
those incentives lapse—unlike the ones they added insulation to take advantage of the
pass for the fossil fuel and nuclear industries. 2009 energy efficiency tax credits without
The tax incentives passed at the begin- first doing an energy audit you may find that
ning of the Obama administration were there is still much that you can do to improve
12
2015 Directory 403a.indd 12 4/3/15 10:29 AMyour buildings energy efficiency. In fact, win- we reduced our energy use about 14 % over
dows are seldom highest on the priority list ten years.
given in an audit—air sealing leads the way. During that period we had economic
In my work as a contractor I have low- growth as our GNP grew by 94%. This was
ered the heating bills of one previously un- during a period of extremely high inflation
insulated house by close to 80%. What the with interest rates on home mortgages rang-
client likes best is the improved comfort of ing from 12 to 20 percent.
his house. We grew our economy while reducing
The first fuel economy standards and energy use because saving energy makes our
energy efficiency and renewable energy tax economy more efficient while it creates local
incentives of the Carter Administration work.
provided us with data that shows that gov- If you want Congress to act in a mean-
ernment incentives work to reduce energy ingful way concerning Climate Change, urge
use. In only the second major reduction in your Senator or Representative to pass The
energy use in this country’s energy history Cut Energy Bills at Home Act!
Bruce Wilson
Bruce Bruce, a LEED® Accredited Professional, is a general contractor
and consultant specializing in green building, renewable energy, energy
improvements for existing buildings, and historic preservation. Bruce was
also a founding member of the Lehigh Valley Green Builders.
Megan McGlynn
13
2015 Directory 403a.indd 13 4/3/15 10:29 AMTrees
T
rees have just become a far more the last six or seven years. The result is that
important aspect of our lives than the tree canopy as it existed 7 years ago is
they had been before climate now under a new substantially higher cano-
change. Trees, large and small, provide py, casting the original growth under 100%
crops, firewood, fruit, lumber, wind breaks, shade of the higher canopy. The likely result
and healings. Through photosynthesis, car- is a general die off of the lower branches now
bon from the atmosphere becomes a part starved for sunlight. On a large scale, what
of the carbohydrates that are food for trees may happen is that many species of trees
and the trees’ symbiotic partner mycorrhi- will be in the state of shock which may cause
zal fungi. These fungi have been proven to complete death in some species and a forced
dramatically increase carbon sequestration. branch-shedding in others.
Understanding these relationships, services, Trees can die out. Chestnut trees are
abilities, and concepts is necessary for un- an exceedingly important example of tree
derstanding the importance of trees in our extinction. “The loss of the chestnut was
current life. an ecological calamity with few equals”,
Nobody planned it this way, but too wrote Tom Horton in the Winter 2010 is-
much carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is sue of American Forests magazine. Indeed,
like force-feeding trees with too much fertil- when West Europeans settled in Northeast
izer. The increase in carbon dioxide is the America, Chestnut trees were the dominant
result of the increased use of fossil fuels, of species of the forest. (Biologists claim to be
major importance in industrialization. Be- close to bringing back Chestnut trees from
ing a careful observer, I have personally seen Chestnut blight extinction by backcrossing
that tree growth has gone from standard surviving American Chestnuts with Chinese
1-inch diameter growth in 12 years to 1-inch Chestnut trees.)
diameter growth per year (2010-2015)! Trees, as they grow, take in carbon from
Which is about a 1000% increase in the rate the atmosphere, the carbon encourages rapid
of growth. Simultaneously, I have seen the growth, and, as the trees grow, they take in
height of tree growth go from an average more carbon. This appears to be in line with
canopy height of 60 feet to 100 feet, growing the perspective of Rodale Institute’s white
at about seven feet per year. paper, ‘Regenerative Organic Agriculture
Have we asked ourselves insistently and Climate Change’. It says that sufficient
enough what may be the unintended conse- carbon sequestration will take care of stop-
quences of this vast experiment with the fun- ping global warming if only all agriculture is
damental reality of nature? Very doubtful shifted to their deeply organic, regenerative
indeed. We ask what may be the mostly un- methods (and which will require the cessa-
welcome consequences of this rapid growth? tion of industrial farming). These methods
For example, the top branches that form the include such arts as frequent turnover,
canopy have grown about 20 feet taller over composting, no till, no spray farming, but
14
2015 Directory 403a.indd 14 4/3/15 10:29 AMwith especial focus on the importance of I have no fear because it is so much fun to
mycorrhizal fungi in whose presence carbon watch the deniers cringe and cry Foul! Foul!
sequestration to roots, soil, and wood in- To find out more about mycorrhizal
creases dramatically. fungi, look up mycorrhizal fungi and read
Did the politicos get our approval before about how trees communicate their needs
they funded pumping carbon into the atmo- and have them fulfilled via a massive exist-
sphere and industrial agriculture’s assault ing network of fungi tubelets to supply trees
on our soils’ ability to sequester carbon and needed ingredients.
this mad hatter’s race with fate? Did they ap- Do trees know what they are doing?
prove any of this without realizing the long- Doubtful. But they seem to be aware …
term outcomes? Of course not! With 20/20 somehow. How do trees survive? Though
hindsight the scientists drawing up this trees lack the usual sensory organs, (ears,
monstrous experiment would have blown the nose, eyes, tongue), they nevertheless seem
whistle on the whole madness of chemical to instinctively be able to assess their own
dogma farming. needs. Living closely with trees for seventy
Copernicus, who proved that the earth years, I have experienced them to be often
rotates around the sun rather than vice versa, beautiful, friendly and supportive, exceed-
was severely and ruthlessly castigated by ingly sensitive beings whose thriving is nec-
Church and State for his impertinent truth. essary for human survival.
by Joris Rosse
Joris is a founding member of the Alliance
and a steering committee member emeritus.
Karen Henninger
15
2015 Directory 403a.indd 15 4/3/15 10:29 AMReviving and Sustaining Humanity and the Earth
“Scientific research is based on the idea and destroy and disrupt harmonious pat-
that everything that takes place is deter- terns of nature. It doesn’t have to be this way.
mined by laws of nature and therefore this Man has created a system of living that is
holds for the action of people. Our task alien to our human nature from a belief that
must be to free ourselves from our prison man is not of it but above it and creator of it.
by widening the circle of compassion to em-
When you remove man’s macadam and
brace all living creatures and the whole of
concrete, and you expose the soil, life springs
nature in beauty.” —Albert Einstein
back into the soil. And even with concrete
W
e must have a solid foundation abandoned, nature works its way through
of scientific facts about human man’s concrete. We live in such conditions.
nature and the planet to fulfill As with concrete placed on nature, this
goals for change. life force and natural design by nature have
Humans have disturbed human exis- been superseded, circumvented, and lost by
tence on the planet and amongst themselves an artificial structure based on our own spe-
and about themselves. cies’ design and intelligence as if we could
We have life; a vital life energy within us improve upon nature.
that comes from our connection to the earth. It’s the arrogance of man in which he
We have blind spots. We have studied the places himself in a position not true to his
macro and the micro successfully with our nature‚ but an imbalance of honor and value.
technologies, but we have failed to put that All as if he is above it and can control it and
information in perspective to a study about conquer it.
ourselves as humans. We are the containers, The mistakes that present themselves
condensers, creators, repressors, restorers throughout our exterior world mirror the
and destroyers of this life energy within our- same mistakes in the human interior world
selves and with those around us. that humans experience. We don’t know
Just like all the miraculous patterns in who we are or our proper relationship to the
nature we bear witness to—from butterfly planet. Until we understand more fully our-
cocoons, beehives, and bird migrations to selves, we won’t be able to stop the harm.
cloud formations and the cyclical pattern The natural laws that govern the creature
of water—we also have an innate human we are, are embedded in living processes that
harmonious pattern inherent in design by naturally occur when untampered. But we
nature. We deserve to see ourselves with the have tampered. Tampered with insufficient
same awe and wonder we so often experience knowledge.
as an observer of the natural world. We are Scientists who have studied our world
nature; our human nature is nature. We are have never gotten far enough in study to
in it and it is in us. There is an inherent de- scientifically see and acknowledge human
sign by nature. life energy patterns as they did with the rest
But this is not honored or respected. It of the natural world from tigers and frogs to
is man’s arrogance and creations that pollute clouds or water.
16
2015 Directory 403a.indd 16 4/3/15 10:29 AMPsychology and psychiatry have failed Nature’s design in the human is yet to be
to take into account the study of human be- known. But it doesn’t have to be in the future
havior within ‘the environment’. They have with mass studies needed. We just have to
studied the internal with no connection to not try to fix what’s broken in our system.
the external. We instead need to position ourselves to
Ancient, inaccurate beliefs have stood in honor nature in an entirely new way.
the way creating our inability to see the mag- How do we get there? Simply by remov-
nificent design that is so profoundly evident ing the falseness, like concrete, we are living
in the world around us. We are left with a in. The foundation of the truth of who we are
social and environmental structure that is lies just beneath the surface of the artificial
inherently alien to our being and specifically functioning just as the earth lies dormant
destructive to our personal, creative, human under the concrete.
life energy, to each other as well as the whole If we remove the falseness, what emerges
of the planet. will be nature.
We can change this. We can change im- All we have to do is witness it to know it.
mediately. It requires we give up what we’ve But we can’t witness it until we give up our
learned and dare to take different action current beliefs and distorted lens.
today and change what we think. In this extreme cultural mind-space we’ve
Imagine if we did see ourselves as a spe- inherited, no room exists for the whole of na-
cies as highly magnificent‚ with honor and ture in beauty; the whole of human beauty.
respect. Not in the imbalances we live with But we can find it, simply.
today. But in a way yet unknown that takes
our level of respect for ourselves, each other
and planet to a whole new level.
by Karen Henninger
Karen is an artist and writer whose creative work includes media
literacy, violence prevention, and cultural environmentalism.
Karen Henninger
17
2015 Directory 403a.indd 17 4/3/15 10:29 AMTorture in Service to Empire
L
ast August, our Nobel Peace Prize ecuted in 1945–46, established the principle
laureate, President Barack Obama, that heads of state and other responsible
admitted that “we tortured some government officials who committed acts
folks,” but then added, this is “not who we that constitute crimes were not relieved from
are.” At best, his statement was a half-truth. responsibility under international law. The
First, it’s not “some” folks but massive torture statute of the federal War Crimes
numbers over a long and sordid history. Act defines torture as an “act intended to
State-sponsored torture has been an imple- inflict pain or suffering upon another person
ment in the imperialist toolbox at least since within his custody or physical control.” Un-
the early 20th century when U.S. troops der international law, the torturer is defined
employed the “water cure” during the U.S. as hostis humani generis, the enemy of man-
conquest of the Philippines. kind.
Alfred McCoy’s Torture and Impunity, And J. Wells Dixon of the Center for
published in 2012, is only one book in volu- Constitutional Rights reminds us that “Tor-
minous scholarly literature confirming that ture is a crime of universal jurisdiction.”
from the early 1950s to the present, the U.S. The 1949 Geneva Convention and Ar-
government has been the principal purveyor ticle 7 of the Convention against Torture,
of direct and indirect torture around the approved by the U.S. Senate in 1994, obli-
globe. This background of torture in service to gate the United States to conduct a “prompt
empire is the critical missing piece in the U.S. and impartial investigation” of any citizen
Senate Intelligence Committee’s revelations of suspected of engaging in torture. Further, it
Oval Office-sanctioned CIA depravity. states, “No exceptional circumstances what-
A few examples include the U.S. Army soever, whether a state of war or a threat
School of the Americas in Fort Benning, of war, internal political instability, or any
Ga., which trained Latin American soldiers other public emergency, may be invoked as a
in torture (graduates returned to Central justification for torture.”
America and conducted wholesale barba- No exemptions are listed for nations
rism); the CIA’s widespread torture program claiming to be “exceptional” and therefore
under Operation Phoenix in Vietnam; not subject to the laws and moral standards
and the infamous Operation Condor in applicable to everyone else. Parenthetically,
the 1970s where as many as 60,000 Latin for his heinous crimes against humanity,
Americans were kidnapped, tortured, and Osama bin Laden should have been captured
murdered. The CIA provided technical, and tried before an ad hoc international
financial, and coordination support to the tribunal in The Hague. Extra-judicial execu-
governments carrying out the program. tion is not who we are.
Recall that the Nuremberg laws, under Second, ordinary American citizens nei-
which high-level Nazi officials were pros- ther authorized nor carried out these heinous
18
2015 Directory 403a.indd 18 4/3/15 10:29 AMacts. However, we live in a society of us and ecuted or held accountable by U.S. courts.
them. For them, national security means do- Must this be the case? Our rulers employ
ing whatever is necessary—at times, includ- a tremendous amount of deception to keep
ing torture—to further the interests of the us in the dark about the economic and geo-
one-tenth of 1 percent who own and run our political motives behind U.S. foreign policy.
country. In their endless pursuit of wealth, They fear that if the American people know
they seek to control the global economy, its even a fraction of the crimes done to other
natural resources, markets, and sources of human beings—and on behalf of whose in-
cheap labor. And “defense” spending also terests—it would awaken their nascent sense
functions as a gigantic public subsidy for the of empathy.
corporate sector. Understood in this larger Whether our rulers’ fears are warranted
context, torture is exactly who they are. remains to be seen. Torture and other crimes
For these reasons it’s safe to assume that against humanity won’t end until the Ameri-
the political and military power of the United can people demand that the global empire be
States will prevent the application of any uni- dismantled and we reclaim our democracy.
versal jurisdiction for its own actions. No one The whole world is watching.
in the upper chain of command will be pros-
by Gary Olson
Gary is a professor in the political science department at Moravian College.
19
2015 Directory 403a.indd 19 4/3/15 10:29 AMThis directory lists organizations & businesses that
promote sustainable communities and provides thou-
sands of people with information about the many orga-
nizations and businesses that promote sustainability
in the Lehigh Valley—what they do, what services
they provide, what products they make, and how to
contact them. It also provides a view of the size and
scope of the sustainability movement here.
The directory also serves as a database for building
connections—for gaining co-sponsors, partners, and
participants for events and projects.
This year we are again publishing 6,000 copies of
Sustainable Lehigh Valley and are distributing them
throughout the Greater Lehigh Valley, some at places
where the general public can pick them up, some at
events that sustainability-minded folks attend, and
some as reference copies in campus offices, govern-
ment agencies, libraries, and the like.
This directory is published annually and is also avail-
able on our website, where it is updated during the
year to keep information about organizations and
businesses current.
To list your organization or business, go to the
Alliance website and look for Submit a Listing in the
Directory section.
For more information, contact directory@sustainlv.org.
Tara Morrison
20
2015 Directory 403a.indd 20 4/3/15 10:29 AMDirectory Listings
- 350 Berks & Lehigh Valley Climate Action
260 East Main Street 350 Berks & Lehigh Valley Climate Action is a network of
Kutztown, PA 19530 leaders of environmental, renewable energy, and sustain-
ability efforts in Berks County and the Lehigh Valley who
610-678-7726
have joined together to spotlight the climate crisis. We are
Karen Feridun dedicated to educating and informing the public and taking
karen.feridun@gmail.com action to mitigate the effects of climate change in our region.
We invite interested individuals to join us!
www.blvca.org
NON - PROFIT ORGANIZ ATION
- ACLU of Pennsylvania – Greater Lehigh Valley Chapter
PO Box 3018 The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is a nonparti-
Allentown, PA 18106 san organization devoted to the defense of civil liberties. It
files legal briefs in civil liberties cases, discusses civil liber-
610-398-3074
ties problems with government officials, and testifies before
Jim Palmquist legislative bodies. It also conducts educational programs
jim.palmquist01@gmail.com on effective lobbying and being a legal observer, Voter ID,
Patriot Act, and gay and lesbian rights. Our chapter meets at
www.aclupa.org/chapters/ the UUCLV, 424 Center Street, Bethlehem, 6:30 PM, fourth
greaterlehighvalley Thursday every month except for November and December
NON - PROFIT ORGANIZ ATION when we meet at a date early in December. Contact us to get
on our chapter email list. All are welcome.
- AGSHEN (One With the Earth Project)
824 N Berks Street Agshen promotes use of the universal One With the Earth
Allentown, PA 18104 eco-symbol. Climate change, deforestation, overfishing, over-
population, water shortages, and desertification are all com-
610-434-1396
ponents of one over-arching challenge ensuring a livable world
Dan Poresky for our children and future generations. Widespread visibility
dan@onewiththeearth.org of the symbol will be a constant reminder that there are many
issues affecting the environment. As with the peace symbol,
www.onewiththeearth.org the One with the Earth symbol is free for anyone to use. See
NON - PROFIT ORGANIZ ATION usage examples and download artwork from our website. The
symbol design represents Earth, Land, Water, Sun, and life.
Conservation eco-stickers are available at no charge.
See our ad on page 92.
21
2015 Directory 403a.indd 21 4/3/15 10:29 AM- Allentown Hiking Club
Box 1542 The Allentown Hiking Club, founded in 1931, has ap-
Allentown, PA 18105 proximately 275 members from throughout the greater
Lehigh Valley. It has maintained a 10.3-mile section of the
Lucy Cantwell
Appalachian Trail since 1931. Its quarterly newsletter in-
president@allentownhikingclub.org cludes articles and a 3-month activities schedule. Meetings
www.allentownhikingclub.org are the first Wednesday evening of the month, currently at
St. Timothy’s Lutheran Church in Allentown. An enthusi-
NON - PROFIT ORGANIZ ATION
asm for outdoor recreation and adventure and concern for
conservation of the resources which make their activities
possible bind its members together.
- Allentown Public Theatre (APT)
905 Harrison Street, Suite 105 Presenting – in various Lehigh Valley locations – theatre
Allentown, PA 18103 that makes people talk: comedies, dramas, contemporary
classics, work by regional playwrights, and plays with a
888-895-5645 (voice-mail)
social justice theme – in the belief that theatre can inspire
Marcie Schlener change. APT also works with schools and organizations
info@allentownpublictheatre.com to present plays and theatre workshops for youth. Valley
Actors Lab (an APT-Touchstone Theatre collaboration) pro-
www.allentownpublictheatre.com vides training for seriously inclined actors. APT produces
NON - PROFIT ORGANIZ ATION the popular improv comedy troupe, The Associated Mess,
and partners with other troupes, 4am in Thailand and Goat
Rodeo. Want to know more? Like us on Facebook; sign up
for free e-newsletter on our website.
- Allentown Recycling
1400 Martin Luther King Jr. The Bureau of Recycling and Solid Waste located at 1400
Drive Martin Luther King, Jr. Dr. provides for the collection and
Allentown, PA 18102 disposal of municipal waste and recyclables in the City;
operates a Recycling Drop Off Center and yard waste site;
610-437-8729
performs education and enforcement of trash and recycling
Ann Saurman ordinances; and organizes cleaning and beautification efforts
ann.saurman@allentownpa.gov to improve the quality of life for Allentown’s neighborhoods.
Animal Control Services are also based out of this bureau.
allentownrecycles.org Please call or visit our website, www.allentownrecycles.
GOVERNMENT AGENCY org for more information on curbside trash and recycling,
SWEEP, drop off center, yard waste site, appliance collec-
tion or electronics disposal.
22
2015 Directory 403a.indd 22 4/3/15 10:29 AMYou can also read
