Solutions Plus

Saturday was a gloriously sunny and warm day in Southern Maine. So I spent it, along with my wife and a few other committed individuals, inside the theater at Frontier Cafe. The event was Solutions + Saturday, the brainchild of Fred Horch, proprieter of F.W. Horch Sustainable Goods in Brunswick. Solutions + Saturday was the culmination of a series of events celebrating Earth Week at the Cafe.

The were four topics examined, all of which centered around short films followed by discussion.
*Recycling
*Local and Organic Food
*Household Chemicals
*Energy and Climate Change

Each of these topics is worthy of it's own post, or even series of posts, and I intend to touch on them all in a series over the next few days or couple of weeks. I've certainly written a fair amount about Global Warming, and the economics of eating local food has been an interest of mine as well. I haven't thought as much about household chemicals, but the discussion related to pesticides, vinyl products, and other poisons that we readily bring into our homes was a real eye-opener.

The first topic, recycling, is to me a no-brainer. It is so clear to me that the foundation to protecting the planet is the mantra "Reduce, Reuse, Recycle" that it is fundamental to all decisions that I make. The discussion on Saturday centered around the new single-stream recycling system in Brunswick. Students at Bowdoin College made a short film called "The Quest for Dan the Can" to educate other students about the changes in the recycling program. The film took us to the Brunswick landfill, and the recycling processing facility in Avon, Mass.

Discussion following the film centered around the Brunswick program, what can and can not be recycled, and a few myths. One myth discussed was the common misconception that it takes more energy to recycle an aluminum can than to create a new one. This only accounts for the actual can manufacturing process. Of course, a new can requires energy to extract the raw materials, transport the raw materials, and transform the raw materials into aluminum. Once all of these uses are accounted for, the energy cost of a new can far exceeds that of a recycled one.

Other interesting facts are that metals and glass do not degrade in the recycling process, so these materials can be recycled into the same products indefinitely. Fiber-based materials like paper do degrade, so can only be recycled into lower-grade materials. Certain plastics can be recycled indefinetely (#2 PET), however plastics all have some sort of pesky toxin issues, as well as the pesky petroleum-based issue for most (there are some vegetable-based plastics now on the market.)

One topic that was not discussed, perhaps do to time, is the concept of "precycling", which can also fall under the "reduce" category. Precycling can take a couple of forms. One form that I use a lot is buying in bulk and reusing containers at home. This reduces the amount of packaging associated with your purchases. Another form is to buy products whose producers have chosen to minimize the packaging for their products. One could also let the manufacturer know that one of the reasons that you buy their products is due to the limited packaging. (Do as I say, not as I do. I think this is a great idea that I may have done once in my life!). The final form of precycling is, if you can't avoid packaging, to purchase products enclosed in recycled packaging, preferably post-consumer material if possible. Again, let the manufacturer know that their packaging decisions matter to you.

I commend Fred Horch and Frontier for running this program. The only downside was that the public participation was very light. I know that Frontier and F.W. Horch publicized the event fairly heavily, but the weather certainly wasn't in their favor, especially considering the storms that we have suffered recently. It wasn't a good day to be inside. Still, there was lively discussion of all topics, and all are very important topics for the health of the planet and those who inhabit it, including humans. After attending the presentations, it is my pledge to bring these topics to an even broader audience - you the loyal reader. Stay tuned!

Meet the Robinsons

Well, here's another trip to Vermont, and another chance to see some live music at the Langdon Street Cafe. Montpelier's cooperatively-owned hangout is just 225 steps from the front door of the Capitol Plaza Hotel, so it's terrifically convenient to pop over and have a brew or too without the need to get behind the wheel. Add in the first signs of spring - temperatures in the 50's even after sundown - and an intrepid traveller can find himself in a right proper mood to see a band.

Tonight's experience was a step up from last month, where I saw over-enthusiastic bluesman Blue Fox at the same venue. Gracing the stage tonight were Dana and Susan Robinson. The husband-and-wife duo bill their act as "new old time music." This means that they play traditional Americana and English folk music. I believe the "new" part refers to the fact that much of the music is penned by Dana Robinson. Dana plays guitar, fiddle and mandolin, while Susan accompanies him on banjo and guitar. Unfortunately, Susan arrived with a bum hand, so she was only able to play on about half of the numbers, however she contribute sweet harmonies throughout the show, and provided lead vocals to a couple of traditional English ballads.

Despite giving the spotlight over to his wife on occasion, however, Dana is the focal point of this act. He had released four solo albums before forming an act with Susan, and the original songs are all his. He sings with a pleasing tenor reminiscent of Cat Stevens, and plays a crisp, percussive finger-style guitar. On some tunes he picks up the fiddle or mandolin while Susan plays guitar. And while he loves the traditional old country music that fits his wife's voice so well, Dana is clearly most influenced by Woody Guthrie. The show featured a cover of Guthrie's "Pastures of Plenty", as well as an original titled "What Would Woody Do?" (The answer: "Write about it, talk about it, sing about it too.") Robinson's songs evoke the same folksy America that Guthrie wrote about more than half a century ago.

Whenever I see live music, I like to watch the guitar player and try to pick up some tips. Alas, Dana Robinson plays a fast finger-picking style that I won't be attempting for awhile, and it was difficult for me to really follow along with everything he was doing. Fortunately, Susan plays a more basic rhythm guitar. Her playing featured mostly basic open chords that were enhanced by hammer-ons and pull-offs and some fairly simple walkdowns (or walkups) on the chord changes. If you are not a guitar player, I'm sure this doesn't mean a lot to you. If you're a novice like me, who has only recently begun working these effects into his guitar playing, it's fun to watch. It shows how it really doesn't take a lot of flying fingers to turn a simple song into something with enough motion in the melody to make it sound fairly complex. This is not to say that Susan only plays simple melodies - she's a fine musician who (if I'm reading the bio correctly) has only been playing guitar for a few years. However, much of what she plays gives hope to a hack like myself.

But enough about me. Although I had never heard of the Robinsons before this week, I was excited to see that they were bringing this style of music to the Langdon Street Cafe while I am in town. They move next into Maine, where they are playing house concerts in Bangor and Blue Hill, and then a show in Massachusetts before heading back to their home in North Carolina. Dana Robinson is a former Vermont resident, and I gather that the couple comes to the northeast regularly. Their next trip to town will be to play at the Northwoods Stewardship Center in East Charleston, VT, in July. I say it's well worth the effort to see them play live.

Polar Bears Step it Up

Keepin' it cool for the Polar Bears

Saturday was the day that people gathered at over 1,400 locations across all 50 states to encourage our lawmakers to Step It Up! and enact legislation to cut carbon emissions and fight global warming. Participants certainly numbered in the tens of thousands in this grassroots effort to put democracy in action and make their voices heard.

I attended the Polar Bear Action at Bowdoin College in Brunswick. The Polar Bear is Bowdoin's mascot, and is the current poster child for species threatened by global warming (in the case of the polar bears, the issue specifically relates to shrinking ice sheets). Approximately 400 students, faculty and members of the community gathered to for food and music, and appearances by Representative Tom Allen and an aide to Senator Susan Collins. Following the speeches, participants marched down Maine Street carrying signs and chanting our encouragement for the government (and the people) to fight this global crisis. Additionally, hundreds of letters addressed to the local state reps and Maine's Washington contingent were signed encouraging their action.

Rally time.

All of us need to recognize the grave danger that we are putting the human race into, and the even graver danger for many of our population centers. Our continued dependence upon carbon-based fossil fuels is certainly speeding our own demise. We need to consider not only our energy choices, but the impact of all of our consumer choices - local food versus global agriculture, local vendors vs. sprawl-inducing big boxes and the like. Please take a moment to learn more about how your choices are impacting the globe.

Blog It!

Maybe you've come here to read if I have anything on my mind these days. Well I do, but it's not to be found here. I've encouraged others to Step It Up over at the Land Blog. Meanwhile, the baseball season is beginning to heat up, and so is my coverage of the Boston Red Sox and Portland Sea Dogs over at Joe's SeaBlog. I encourage you to check out both sites.