California
California is a state on the west coast of the United States, known for its relatively progressive policies on sustainability and support of renewable energy, as well as its natural beauty, including redwood forests.
California community action
Sustainability initiatives
- Eco Vista Community, Taking The Community Of Isla Vista Into The Future added 09:02, 25 April 2020 (UTC)
- Communities for Sustainable Monterey County, A Transition Initiative
- A Place for Sustainable Living, Oakland
- Sustainable Fairfax
- Transition United States, listing of official (local) initiatives
- Transition Joshua Tree
- Transition Pasadena
- University of California, Santa Cruz, Office of Sustainability, UCSC Education for Sustainable Living Program
- UC Santa Barbara Environmental Affairs Board
Local sustainability initiatives
Please see our Local communities in California pages, where of course you can share any more information you may have about local sustainability initiatives.
♥ Community involvement
♥ Climate action
Cool Block - CoolCalifornia.org - Cool City Challenge
Wikipedia:
- Climate change in California: California has taken legislative steps towards reducing the possible effects climate change by incentives and plans for clean cars, renewable energy and stringent caps on big polluting industries.
- City of Oakland Energy and Climate Action Plan
Community energy
Local Clean Energy Alliance, Bay Area membership organization - Lancaster Choice Energy
Wikipedia:
- Solar power in California: California leads the nation in the number of homes which have solar panels installed, totaling over 230,000. California Solar Initiative
Cycling activism
California Bicycle Coalition - Davis Bicycles!, 501(c)(3) nonprofit citizen group dedicated to promoting bicycling in Davis, California - Wikipedia: Bike paths in California (category), Bike paths in Orange County, California (category)
Environment quality
Wikipedia: Pollution in California, Air pollution in California (category)
Food activism
Lunch at the Library, free meals and learning opportunties added 16:04, 30 September 2020 (UTC)
See also: Urban agriculture in California, Category:Locally Delicious
Altadena Community Garden - Bay Area Seed Interchange Library (BASIL) - Benicia Community Gardens - Food Commons Fresno - Harvest Club of Orange County - Homeless Garden Project, Santa Cruz - OC Food Access Coalition
Localism
Fibershed, Local fibres, local dyes, local labor - Willits Economic Localization
Open spaces
Ulistac Natural Area
- Ulistac Natural Area, the only dedicated natural open space in the City of Santa Clara. UNA’s 40 acres of undeveloped land along the Guadalupe River, not far from the largest nearby city, San Jose, is a tiny oasis of natural beauty in a giant suburban desert. It’s also a work in progress as UNA and its many volunteers attempt to return the tract to pre-colonial condition. The Ohlone, various indigenous peoples, tended the land in the area for up to 3,000 years before European colonization. The name of the preserve is derived from their language. It refers to one past use of the area — a place to weave baskets. "A paradise made even more bountiful by the Ohlone’s land management practices." An unrestrained river fed fertile bottom land. Herds of tule elk, pronghorn, and mule deer roamed the grasslands and forests. Streams teemed with salmon, perch, and stickleback. Waterfowl were plentiful and a key Ohlone food source. As is the case today, man and beast enjoyed one of the most hospitable climates on the continent. [1]added 22:10, 1 December 2020 (UTC)
Other links
- Greenbelt Alliance
- Pogo Park, Bay Area
Reduce, reuse, repair and recycle
Californians Against Waste - Repair Café Palo Alto
Wikipedia: City of Oakland's Zero Waste Program: The City adopted a Zero Waste Strategic Plan in 2006, detailing a road map for the City to follow toward the implementation of a Zero Waste System by 2020. Oakland residents have played an important role in moving the City toward Zero Waste. Using their buying-power, consumers can tell industries that products must be non-toxic, reusable, recyclable or compostable or they will stay on the shelf.
Sharing
Toy Cycle, Platform for Families to Swap Toys
Social inclusion
Sustainable transport activism
Wikipedia:
- Plug-in hybrids in California: California has been a leader in the promotion of plug-in hybrids (PHEVs). As of January 2014, California leads the country with 5,749 public charging points, representing 26.7% of the U.S total.
- Transportation in California, Current issues: The California High Speed Rail Authority was created in 1996 by the state to implement an extensive 700 mile (1127 km) rail system. It would provide a TGV-style high-speed link between the state's four major metropolitan areas, and would allow travel between Los Angeles' Union Station and the San Francisco Transbay Terminal in two and a half hours. Voters approved Proposition 1A in November 2008, approving a $9 billion state bond to finance the project. Then in 2012, the California legislature and Governor Jerry Brown approved construction financing for an initial stage of the project. However, the High Speed Rail Authority still estimates that the initial stages will not be completed until 2021.
- Hiking trails in California (category)
Towards sustainable economies
Arizmendi Association of Cooperatives - California Center for Cooperative Development - Cooperation Richmond
Trees, woodland and forest
Friends of Carmel Forest - Wikipedia: Monterey County reforestation
Urban sustainability
Resources
Citizens data initiative
The Wellbeing Project, information from the City of Santa Monica's Office of Wellbeing.
Commons
Embassy Network Coliving, Silicon Valley
In 2006, Jessy Kate Schingler and four young engineers landed jobs at NASA in Silicon Valley. Instead of opting for cheaper housing with a long commute in one of the most expensive housing markets in the U.S., they rented a large house nearby and started the first coliving community, Rainbow Mansion. They discovered there was a glut of mansions in the area. They saw a way to create a better quality of life at a lower cost by sharing a mansion, but what was most important to them was growing as people. So, they created an environment to accelerate their personal and professional development through collaboration. In addition to sharing rent, utilities, cars, and food, they began supporting each others' professional projects including startups. They also sought out other people who were interested in changing the world for the better. They hosted workshops and events to learn and network beyond the four walls of their home. They often kept one or two rooms open so young innovators from other countries could visit.
Following Rainbow Mansion's example, many early coliving communities became hubs of learning, innovation, and social activity. Thus the pattern for coliving was set. Now there are hundreds of coliving communities worldwide.
Jessy took this one step further by creating Embassy, a network of coliving houses that give tenants access to many communities. She describes this lifestyle as, "one rent, many locations." Others have followed her lead, and the coliving movement grows as young workers have a great need for affordable housing, meaningful friendships, and professional development. My friend Chelsea Rustrum says of the coliving experience:
“You develop deeper, more real relationships and have the potential to actually work together, actually help each other. Not just in professional ways but in personal ways also." [2]
Community resources
- omnicommons.org
- Library of Things, service from the Sacramento Public Library
- Northern California Land Trust, the oldest CLT in California
Networks
- NorCal Community Resilience Network, "...activates and supports community-based and ecological solutions to climate change, economic instability and social inequity toward a Just Transition away from fossil fuels. Our vision is to transform our homes, neighborhoods and communities into self-sufficient, regenerative places." NorCal Resilience Network on facebook
Other resources
- The Ecology Center, Berkeley
- Energy and Sustainable Development, information from the City of Berkeley
Video
News and comment
see separate article: California news
Events
2014
Campaigns
Californians Against Fracking on facebook
Local communities in California
See Also
External links
- Wikipedia: California, Ecology of California, Environment of California, Water in California, Environmental issues in California (category)
- Environment California (Wikipedia, Criticism)
- Sustainability, information from the City of Ventura
References
- ↑ shareable.net, Neal Gorenflo, November 28, 2020
- ↑ @Shareable