Many Waters, Many Lands
2008
International Symposium on River Management and Ecosystem Services Lt. Governor
Pat Quinn would like to invite you to the Many Waters, Many Lands: 2008 International
Symposium on River Management and Ecosystem Services in Chicago, IL on September
22 and 23, 2008.
For more information click on this link
http://www.conferences.uiuc.edu/manywaters
World Initiative for Soy in Human Health (WISHH) workshop:
Nutrition and
Food Technology, Industry and Farm Visits, Test Kitchen, Product Development, Corporate Social Responsibility, International
Business & Alliance Building
Date: Monday-Friday October 20-24, 2008
Location: Champaign-Urbana, Illinois
WISHH
12125 Woodcrest Executive Drive
Suite 100
St.
Louis, MO 63141
wishh@soy.org
The Illinois Wind Working Group (IL WWG) is holding its second annual conference,
"Advancing Wind Power in Illinois 2008," on June 25-26, 2008. The conference will be held at the Interstate
Center, 2301 W. Market Street,
Bloomington, Illinois, 61701.
More information about the organization and the conference is available at www.wind.ilstu.edu.
GREEN
RIBBON ENERGY EFFICIENCY WORKSHOPS
Pre-register for your workshop
today. Workshops are being held:
* June 10 - Chicago Hilton, 720 S. Michigan
Avenue
* June 12 - Doubletree Guest Suites,
Downers Grove
* June 19 - Crowne Plaza Hotel, Mundelein
* June 20 - Holiday Inn, Tinley Park Convention Center
* June 25 - Pheasant Run,
St. Charles
* June 27 - Cliffbreakers
Riverside Resort, Rockford
http://events.ABCsignup.com/EEworkshop CLICK HERE to pre-register. For more
information, visit www.ComEdCARE.com or www.illinoisenergy.org
Illinois drivers seeking relief from soaring
gas prices are eligible for a $1,000 rebate with the purchase of a new hybrid or other fuel efficient vehicle.
Please contact our office for more
information about Green Rewards by emailing cultivateillinois@treasurer.state.il.us or calling (217) 557-6436.
Illinois Green Streets Initiative
The
Governor’s new Illinois Green Streets Initiative is part of the Replanting the Prairie State Initiative to further reduce
greenhouse emissions in the state. Funds for this program can only be used for planting of trees or prairie grasses.
www.dot.il.gov/opp/itep.html
Summer Institute for Teachers
The Earth Partnership for Schools-Chicago Partnership is currently seeking
K-12 school teams to apply for the 2008-2009 graduate level habitat restoration institute. The Earth Partnership for Schools
(EPS) institute will take place July 28, 2008, through August 1, 2008. Application Deadline: Wednesday, April 30, 2008. For
more information or to request an application, please call David Guritz, Director of Education, at (630)-462-5654, or send
an e-mail request to: DGuritz@dupageforest.com
Youth Garden Grants Program
Application deadline: Nov 1,
2008
Helps children reap rewards and vital life lessons from working in gardens and habitats.
Solar, Wind Energy Workshops Begin Throughout Illinois
Learn How Your Home or Business Can Benefit from Solar and Wind Energy
WHEN: Saturdays Spring through Fall, generally from 9:30-12:30 (Solar) and 1:30-4:30 (Wind). Visit www.illinoissolar.org for details and to enroll.
Illinois Solar Energy Association
800 W. Evergreen Avenue
Chicago, IL 60622
708-305-3891;
Visit
our web site: www.illinoissolar.org
Illinois
Clean Energy Community Foundation Grants
LIGHTING UPGRADES
The Foundation's seven indoor lighting programs have assisted schools, libraries, child care centers, park districts, colleges & universities, county
historic courthouses, and public safety facilities in hundreds of communities
throughout Illinois embrace cleaner energy and lowered utility bills by the simple act of replacing old lights with high efficiency
light bulbs and controls. If you have questions about this grant program, please contact Lisa Starks at Illinois Clean Energy
(312-372-5191), lstarks@IllinoisCleanEnergy.org) or Kelly Murray at IACBM (217-528-5331), (iacbm@msn.com).
ENVIRO-TIP
OF THE MONTH
Buy a high-efficiency washer or save up for full loads. The average washing machine uses 40.9 gallons
of water per load. Find out more about using water wisely.
http://www.epa.gov/watersense/water/simple.htm
Brownfield Redevelopment in Rural Illinois
- Does your town or village have an abandoned service station or
manufacturing site? Would your town like to clean-up the property and develop it into a business, community facility or green
space?
- If so, your site may qualify as a Brownfield and your town would
benefit from working with the Brownfield Redevelopment Assistance
Program (BRAP) at Illinois
State University.
- Our program, through the Stevenson
Center for Community and Economic Development at ISU helps rural municipalities
navigate through the Brownfield redevelopment and remediation process at no cost to your community.
- We can work with your community to evaluate sites, apply for grants,
assist with development plans, and more.
- To talk to a BRAP Fellow about this opportunity, contact
Brian Hillery, Research Fellow, at 309-438-3515 or via email at bjhille@ilstu.edu.
Electronics Recycling Drop-Off
Every Wednesday, from 9 am to 3 pm, bring your electronic recyclables
to
the Electronic Recycling Drop-Off located at 567 S. Farnham Street
(Galesburg Transit bus garage 300/342-4242). Most
items are accepted
free of charge. Computer monitors and TVs require either a $5 or $25 fee
per item. Pick up can be
arranged for large quantity school and business
customers by calling 309/331-4781.
Acceptable items include:
computer equipment such as hard drives, monitors, keyboards, printers,
scanners, etc ($5 fee for monitors);
entertainment equipment such as TVs (no consoles), radios, stereos, and
VCR/DVD players($5 fee for TVs 27" or less
and $25 for TVs 30" and 32");
small household appliances like microwaves, blenders, toasters, etc; and
small
business equipment including calculators, fax machines and
printers.
Large appliances are not accepted. These include
washers, dryers,
stoves, refrigerators, air conditioners, water heaters, etc.
This Tri-County Regional Collection
Facility is sponsored by the
McDonough County Board, operated by the Tri-County Resource and Waste
Management Council,
and administered by the Western Illinois Regional
Council. Coordination of this facility by the City of Galesburg.
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NACD
and Partners Offer Funds for Woody Biomass Workshops
NACD, in cooperation with the Department of the Interior (DOI) and USDA Forest Service
(USFS), is making a limited amount of financial support available for organizing and conducting state or regional sub-state
multi-county woody biomass utilization workshops. Intended recipients are state and local governments, tribes and non-profit
organizations and entities. Subject to funding availability, up to a maximum of $24,000.00 may be available for sponsoring
such workshops across the United States between the dates of July 1, 2008 and March
31, 2009. Please note that individual workshop sponsorships are limited to $2,000.00 each and funds will be disbursed upon
successful workshop completion.
Click here to view a full copy of the official sponsorship
announcement, which includes details about the selection process and how to apply. Applications must be submitted no later
than August 31, 2008 and will be processed on a first-come, first-served basis until the total available funds have been obligated.
All applications should be submitted to Fred Deneke, NACD Forestry Programs Coordinator, 265 West Soaring Avenue, Prescott, AZ
86301. The application form is available for download on NACD’s
website at http://nacdnet.org/workshop_sponsorship/forms.doc.
If you have
any questions or would like more information, contact Fred Deneke at (928)443-5456 or fjdeneke@yahoo.com.
GreenGov Conference, on August 14-15, 2008
in Arlington,
Virginia,
In the United States today, buildings account for 65 percent of
electricity use and more than one-third of total energy use. Consequently, building owners, architects, engineers, and construction
supervisors are looking for ways to ease energy use and costs, and are incorporating green design techniques into high-performance
buildings to maximize their health and economic benefits and minimize their impact on the environment.
HOW CAN I REGISTER?
1. Online at www.PerformanceWeb.org
2. Via phone at 703-894-0481
The National Gardening Association has announced that Home Depot
will return as the Youth Garden Grants sponsor for 2009.
For the 2009 grant cycle, 125 grants are available. Packages are as follows:
five programs will receive gift cards valued at $1,000 (a $500 gift card to Home Depot and a $500 gift card to the Gardening
with Kids catalog and store) and educational materials from NGA; seventy programs will receive a $500 gift card to Home Depot
and educational materials from NGA; and fifty programs will receive a $250 gift card to Home Depot and educational materials
from NGA. Each award package also includes twelve months of NGA Supporter benefits.
Visit the NGA's Kidsgardening Web site for complete program information.
The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation seeks applications from organizations
First year start-up grants are available for up to $10,000 each. Second year
follow-up grants of up to $5,000 each are available to support continued implementation of the Nature of Learning program.
Visit the NFWF Web site for the complete Request for Proposals.
Green Tip of the Month
The seasons are changing and
the air is getting warmer. Carpool, take the bus, ride your bike or walk whenever you can.
Please visit: http://standingupforillinois.org/walk/
Pro
Bono Green Purchasing Assistance from the Responsible Purchasing Network (RPN) The Responsible Purchasing Network, at the Center for a New American Dream, is offering
pro bono assistance to five state and local governments committed to harnessing institutional procurement as a means of reducing
waste, achieving greenhouse gas emissions goals, limiting toxic and hazardous substances, and improving community health.
Visit http://www.responsiblepurchasing.org for more information and application materials.
ENVIRO-TIP OF THE MONTH
Test your home for radon. Radon is an invisible radioactive gas that
causes lung cancer. The only way to know if your home contains high radon levels is to test for it. http://www.epa.gov/radon/radontest.html
ENVIRO-TIP
OF THE MONTH
Buy rechargeable batteries to accompany electronic gifts, and consider giving a battery charger as well.
http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/osw/specials/funfacts/winter.htm
RENEW YOUR COMMITMENT TO RECYCLING PESTICIDE CONTAINERS
Last year, the Illinois Dept of Ag collected only 63,600 pesticide
jugs for recycling. This is the lowest level since 1993, back in the beginning stages of the recycling program. As recent
as 1999, we were collecting and recycling 218,400 containers a year. We all know that bulk and minibulk have replaced many
of the 2 1/2 gallon containers; however we also know that there are still significantly more than 63,600 containers out there.
IFCA is asking our members to please renew your commitment to collecting and recycling pesticide containers.
Although many landfills will accept rinsed containers, recycling
is a much better option and certainly demonstrates better stewardship. Containers that are triple rinsed with all labels removed
are taken to Tri-Rinse Inc. in St. Louis where they are recylced into field tiles, plastic fence posts, and other agricultural
products. The cost of recycling is paid for by pesticide manufacturers and with grants from the Agricultural Container Recycling
Program and the Illinois Council on Best Management Practices, the latter of which Illinois Farm Bureau is a member.
IFCA is working with the Dept of Ag to establish the 2007
container recycling dates this summer. If you would like to volunteer your facility please contact Susan Barron at the Dept
of Ag at (217) 785-2427. We appreciate your help and hope that this year the number of recycled jugs will increase significantly.
Faith in Place to members of the Rural Affairs Council.
We are an Illinois non-profit that has helped more than 300 religious congregations improve their
environmental practices. We are interested in partnering with more rural congregations, particularly on creating markets for
sustainable farmers and reducing energy costs. Would you please share our letter with others on the Council and ask interested
congregations to contact us?
Please encourage anyone interested to visit our website at
www.faithinplace.org or to contact the Rev. Clare Butterfield
at 312-733-4640. Thank you.
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