Green, Smart, & Sustainable Central: BOOST Green, Smart, & Sustainable Stakeholder Education and Training '08-'09

Wednesday, January 30, 2008

BOOST Green, Smart, & Sustainable Stakeholder Education and Training '08-'09

Introduction to GSS-SET '08-'09:

BOOST is a creative community solutions network of individuals, organizations, businesses, and institutions dedicated towards providing timely, relevant, reliable, and well-structured information to the general public and target audiences. Green building, sustainable design, smart growth, and environmental economy are all gaining headway as focal points of discussion in both the community and governmental arenas and the need for educational venues facilitated by industry experts is growing rapidly.

Green, Smart and Sustainable Stakeholder Education and Training is the natural outgrowth of three years of research, community organizing, network building, and over one hundred small group meetings, focus sessions, conferences, workshops, and seminars produced by dozens of stakeholders in the BOOST network. Our activities have been featured in newspapers, magazines, program books, radio, and on the internet and the expectations and demand for producing more focused, leading-edge, and geographically broader programming have lead us to this point.

Our 2007-08 activities have include:

¨ Community outreach programming that brought in over 1,000 curiosity and residency seekers to the newly renovated historic, sustainable design Broad Street Bank mixed-use multifamily apartment complex in New Jersey’s capital, Trenton (NJ)

¨ Community Building Forum #3 (January 20, 2007)with over 100 in attendance and media coverage) featuring seven presenters of nearly three dozen programs for local residents to take advantage of regarding job, career, housing, education, cultural, and business options and opportunities in the Trenton region;

¨ Workshop by Bob Blakeman for P. S. & S. Keyspan on “Current Best Practices in Green Building;

¨ Workshop by John Cusack for NJHEPS on “Leadership by Example: Creating Sustainable College Campuses”;

¨ (2) workshops by Mel Leipzig for Mercer County Community College on the “Role of Arts and Artists in Revitalizing Older American Urban Centers;

¨ Workshop by Terri Jover for New Jersey Future on “How Citizens can Measure Smart Growth Using NJF’s Municipal Smart Growth Scorecard”;

¨ (3) workshops by Greg Jones for USA Closers on “Smart Credit Building: How to Development Personal, Business, and Community Credit”;

¨ (2) workshops by Angelica Redpath-Perez for Green Design Now on “How Everyday Citizens can ‘Green-up’ their Home and Offices”;

¨ (2) workshops by Robert Estock for MCCC on “Continuing Education and Training Options and Opportunities at Community Colleges”;

¨ (4) public talks/Q & A by Richard Libbey for Bayville Holdings LLC – the developer of the newly renovated historic green Broad Street Bank Building – on “Real-Time Experiences on Adaptive Reuse Green Building: Hidden Assets and Challenges” – several newspaper articles generated and presentation for NJHEPS (2007) created;

¨ (2) focus sessions with Princeton Area Community Foundation on behalf of Atlantic Philanthropies “Community Experience Partnership: Engaging Older Americans for Civic Good” at two Trenton sites;

¨ (5) workshops by Tim Razzaq for BOOST on “Three Major Challenges to Community Benefits: Leadership Matters” in Asbury Park (NJ) and several Trenton-Mercer locations;

¨ (6) workshops, “Invitation to Civics Education” in association with The Civic Formation Inc.; and

¨ (12) forums featuring (MCCC) Professor Alvyn Haywood’s Documentary Viewings & Community Discussion Series timely and relevant issues of import at Classics Used and Rare Books.

This year, we are building on these relationships and forum-production activities by expanding both our network of partners and geographic reach. Sundance TV Channel, Rutgers University’s Leading Institute, GreenWorks Studio, New Jersey and Company Magazine, and five New Jersey Community Colleges are a few of our new associates as we move from our Trenton-Mercer base into five major regions throughout the Garden State.

We are committed to bring residents of the Tri-State area and our potential sponsors and opportunity to grow their personal, organizational, and business capacities to engage effectively in the new and emerging eco-economy and related industries and are inviting you to be a part of our efforts.

Interested sponsors should contact Tim Razzaq @ timrazzaq@comcast.net to recieved a sponsorship inquiry letter.

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Mrs. Mercer County joins We Are BOOST Contest to Camp CURE Campaign

"About Kieanna Childs Alexander" below. The theme of the Contest is "What does the election of not only America's first Black president, but our country's first 'green' president mean to you and your future?" More jurists and sponsors welcome to inquire, and everyone welcome to get Trenton's youth engaged.

Special Note: Back2Tap is helping consumers and supporters obtain We Are BOOST Eco-Bottles and joins Rein Triefeldt (kinetic solar sculpture) on March 13 for Contest Launch. Please RSVP now to attend. (206) 202-2883 or email cure@weareboost.org. Proceeds for Contest cash awards! Official press release on Monday, March 9. Get in and get your word out.

We Are BOOST and our panelists are inviting youth organizations, educators, arts programs, home school parents, charter and private school leaders and concerned citizens to participate in this very innovative and highly collaborative process of creating a culture of youth, arts & leadership for the 21st century.

Contest details including applications, guidlines, award types, and time-lines will be unveiled on:

Friday, March 13 from 5pm until 7pm at Planet Havana located at 449 South Broad Street in Trenton's arena district. Full buffet dinner and presentations by Rein Triefeldt and Lydia Chambers will be highlights of the evening. $18 per-per to attend and please RSVP at (206) 202-2883 or cure@weareboost.org.

Also, contact us if you are interested in:

- Being a jurist;
- Sponsoring awards ceremony;
- Organizing youth to participate;
- Hosting an event to promote the Campaign; or
- Making a contribution in the form of cash, material, or gift-certificate(s) for the more than twenty awards to be issued.

About Kieanna Childs Alexander

Kieanna was born and raised in Trenton New Jersey and was educated in the gifted and talented program in the city of Trenton. She received her Associates in Arts and a Bachelors of Arts in Liberal Studies with a specialization in Applied Social Science from Rider University. She currently attends Liberty University and is scheduled to receive a Masters of Arts in Human Services with a specialization in Executive Leadership in May 2009.

Kieanna works diligently on a daily basis to reaffirm the principles of unity and community service by actively participating in various projects throughout the community. Kieanna currently serves on the board of directors for the Martin House Learning Center and the Mobile Meals of Trenton/Ewing.

As a board member of the Martin House Learning Center, Kieanna actively supports the learning center by attending various activities sponsored by the learning center such as the annual Martin Luther King Jr. program, Black History program and honor roll/attendance programs held at the learning center, as well as provide guidance to the center as a board member. As a board member of the Mobile Meals of Trenton/Ewing, Kieanna participates in various fundraising events and has taken the initiative in actively supporting the program by assisting with the delivery of meals to homebound individuals located within the city of Trenton.
Kieanna has maintained an active membership with the

Trenton Branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) for many years. She has served as the past Youth Council Advisor, as an Executive Committee member and was recently elected as the 3rd Vice-President. Kieanna has been active in assisting the branch with the annual Roy Wilkins Luncheon, Trenton Heritage Day celebration, NAACP membership drives, community outreach and NAACP State Conferences. The mission of the NAACP is to ensure the political, educational, social and economic equality of rights of all persons and to eliminate racial hatred and racial discrimination.

Kieanna is also a coach for the Hamilton YMCA's SKOR (special kids organized recreation) youth basketball team. As a coach for SKOR, Kieanna assist youth with emotional and physical disabilities, in organized recreation through the fun of learning and playing basketball.

Kieanna is also an active member of the Mercer County Medical Reserve Corps. MCMRC volunteers are called upon to perform a variety of functions needed to protect the health of the citizens of Mercer County during a public health emergency.

As the current titleholder of Mrs. Mercer County New Jersey, Kieanna is set to participate in the 2009 Mrs. New Jersey pageant to be held in May 2009 at Rider University. The Mrs. New Jersey pageant highlights the accomplishments of married women in the state of New Jersey. As her platform, Kieanna will be advocating on behalf of the early detection of ovarian and prostate cancer. As a family member of those affected by both diseases, Kieanna has seen how early detection of cancer can save lives and seeks to inform the community about early detection of both diseases.
Kieanna is the loving mother of one son "KJ" who was featured in Oprah Winfrey's "O" magazine. Contact We Are BOOST at (206) 202-2883 or email cure@weareboost.org to inquire about collaborating with our growing network.

Announcement Courtesy

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Sponsored by

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Contest to Camp CURE Campaign Opens Friday March 13 at Planet Havana

Contest to Camp CURE 2009, as the initiative is being billed, will launch on Friday, March 13 from 5pm until 7pm at Planet Havana located at 449 South Broad Street in Trenton's arena district. Contest details including applications, guidelines, award types, and time-lines will be unveiled along with a full Cuban buffet dinner. Special presentations by Rein Triefeldt, who will discuss his kinetic solar sculpture and Lydia Chambers of Back2Tap will highlight the event. Donation is $18 per-per to attend with a portion of all proceeds going to support the Campaign. Please RSVP at (206) 202-2883 or cure@weareboost.org.

BOOST to Form Youth Task Force, Invites Citizen Leaders to Join

Rebuilding Communities from the Inside Out Theme of Saturday Forum - Saturday, January 17 at Planet Havana

Trenton, New Jersey– This Saturday, January 17, We Are BOOST (We Are Building Open Opportunity Structures Together) will convene a panel of diverse leaders for “Inventing the Future: Designing Our Tomorrow, Today”, the second of a series of community-building and networking forums designed to motivate and mobilize Trenton-Mercer citizenry to provide young people a broader range of options in jobs, careers, and education. “Rebuilding Communities for the Inside Out” will be held from 11am until 3pm at Planet Havana located at 439 South Broad Street in Trenton’s arena district. Admission is free to the general public and businesses and nonprofits are welcome to inquire about setting up exhibitor space by calling (206) 202-2883 or emailing info@weareboost.org. Vendor registration forms can be found at the group’s web site www.weareboost.org.

“With budget cuts in the City and throughout the State of New Jersey coupled with increases in homelessness, decreases in youth services, and rising tides of despair and hopelessness, this is not the time to wait on financial capital coming in from D.C. We have to identify, mobilize, and organize other assets and resources, such as human, natural, manufactured, and social capital and create and maintain new relationships between these capital centers to compliment what little money we have” Says Tim Razzaq, BOOST’s founder lead organizer of Saturday’s event. “We offer a ‘five capitals’ approach and an asset-based community development model to get good work done at an affordable cost. The current and widely adhered-to deficiencies-based model has created more problems than it can effectively solve. We have to reinvent our future to overcome the challenges of our past, then move forward together.”

The Trenton Society of Friends and YWCA’s Racial Justice Institute will award prizes five winners of their 2008 Trenton Week without Violence Youth Poetry Contest and more than a dozen speakers, including Sababu, Sa Mut Angela Scott of the firm Magical Mother Coaching and Empowerment, and Dr. Renee Walker, Coordinator for Project Inside, an prison outreach and education group based out of Mercer County Community College.

Topics include:

Challenges and Opportunities of Urban Agriculture by Amy Iseneker
Chromium 6 and Urban Environmental Racism by RJ Harper
Clean Water: an Urban and Global Crisis by Lydia Chambers
Building Strong Communities One Daughter at a Time by Yvonne Haughton
Turning Waste into New Products through Innovation & Policy Change by Priscilla Hayes
Urban Revitalization & Redevelopment Opportunities and Outcomes by Roland Pott

“BOOST’s Inventing the Future is a perfect umbrella under which many like-minded individuals and organizations, such as PBIC, can collaborate and pool resources and ideas to develop a shared vision for our future,.” says Amini K. Sababu, Positive Black Images CONNECT founder and convener of the recent Kwanzaa celebration in Trenton which attracted upwards of 300 people looking for personal and family inspiration.

Positive Black Images CONNECT, or PBIC, is “here to facilitate a process wherein people of African descent, or other ethnic groups with dark skin, make a positive psychological, or emotional association between people, things or events in order to foster a more optimistic, constructive, and encouraging view of themselves and the future” Sababu explained.

The brainchild of Mr. Tim Razzaq, BOOST plans, promotes, and coordinates public awareness forums and community-building activities throughout the State of New Jersey, Eastern Pennsylvania, and City of Philadelphia. It is the natural outgrowth of Razzaq’s 20 years community organizing efforts and experience. In 2008, BOOST sponsored and hosted dozens of workshops, focus sessions, panel discussions, redevelopment site tours, and youth enrichment activities.

In 2009, the group has concrete plans for mini-conferences, extended courses of instruction, and a summer sustainability program for middle school aged children, and to launch an innovative sustainable business venture, WAB (We Are BOOST) Waste-Stream Eco-Solutions. For more information, call (206) 202-2883, email info@wereaboost.org or visit their web site www.weareboost.org.

Rub of the Green? Practicing people, planet, and profit not an obstacle, but an opportunity

A cranberry massage or spicy pumpkin body treatment anyone? How about redesigning, redecorating, or greening up a room or home to make it healthier for you, your family, and the environment? Did you know that Americans drink an average of 167 bottles of water per year and throw 100 million plastic water bottles in the garbage everyday! Is suburbia sustainable and can its residents substantively contribute to a post-carbon world? Aside from the bodywork and rub down, do these problems sound insurmountable? Not at Highland Park’s newest full-service wellness spa and organic products supply company.

All of this and more will be discussed and practical green products and materials will be on display Thursday, December 18 at Eden Organix located at 245 Raritan Avenue in Highland Park New Jersey from 11am until dusk. Admission is free to all who choose to attend. A portion of the proceeds of all product sales and services rendered will be donated to help women, children, and the environment.

Eden owner, Valarie Mason-Robinson and a consortium of environmental advocates, green builders and interior designers, artists and sculptors, merchandisers, and community organizers will play host to a series of video screenings, workshops, and panel-style discussions. The line-up of presenters and exhibits will include:

All day exhibit: Peter Abrams of Modern Metal Work and Trenton Atelier - likes to refer to himself as a reverse engineer. He has always been intrigued by the world’s detritus, culling recycled materials out of the waste stream and transforming them into objects of desire. Referred to by others as a gifted artist and furniture designer, his choice of raw materials is only one of the things that distinguish his work. Elegance, comfort, functionality and a sense of humor complete the recipe.

11am Presenter and Exhibit: Lydia Chambers of Back2Tap Stainless Steel Bottles - Lydia Chambers graduated from Dartmouth College with a degree in Earth Sciences and went on to earn a Master's Degree in Geology at the University of Colorado. She worked for Shell and Exxon as a geological engineer and later as an in-house hydro geologist supervising the assessment and remediation of contaminated sites. In 2008, she founded Back2Tap, LLC with three other women as a green triple bottom line business to combat the wastefulness of bottled water.

11:30am – 1pm -- Anastasia Harrison for Clean Solutions and Wesketch Architecture + Design - AIA, LEED-AP, IAQA - As an Associate and Director of Business development for WESKetch Architecture + Interior Design, Anastasia’s architectural experience is diversified starting her career with the Port Authority of NY/NJ. Her work touches on every major aspect of the firm, from marketing and public relations, to client sales and the firm’s numerous awards. As the first licensed architect in the State of NJ to earn an Indoor Air Quality Certification from the Indoor Air Quality Association, she is currently very active in the firm’s design development and interior design components.

2:00pm – 3pm: Lynne Templeton for Greenable Building Supplies + Design of Philadelphia PA – American Society of Interior Designers (ASID) and Associate Member of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) - If you ask Lynne Templeton to write about her design philosophy, she'll tell you that she'd "rather paint than write" and will proceed to demonstrate her design values in a creative work. Lynne has a passion for architecture, design and creative processes that has been cultivated over most of her life. It is evidenced in virtually all aspects of her creative work, discovering fresh and creative solutions for clients on virtually any type of project.

5:00pm Special presentation with questions and answers with Larry Menkes, Menkes is the founder and coordinator of the ECLA PA (Earth Charter Lifeboat Academy of Pennsylvania), the Post Carbon Institute's first outpost in PA. Working with homeowners, small businesses, municipalities, and faith-based institutions, he is an advocate, advisor, and example of sustainable living, he has established a new sustainability video-discussion series in Hatboro (First Friday at The Art of Life Studio) and Warminster (Second Fridays at the Centrifuge). He's a member of the Alliance for a Sustainable Future, the Earth Charter Citizens of Philadelphia, Penn Future, Penn Environment, the Sustainable Business Network, the Bucks County Sierra Club, and the National Wildlife Federation.

Eden Organix is an Eco-Conscious Beauty Company and Spa whose guiding mission is to enrich the lives of their clients with organic, natural, and eco-essential based products and services. And, in the spirit of giving and being socially responsible, they donate 10% of all their profits to organizations that help women, children, and the environment. We Are BOOST, a Trenton New Jersey-based nonprofit community education, policy advocacy, public relations group will be the beneficiaries of Eden’s passion and philanthropy.

We Are Building Open Opportunity Structures Together (We Are BOOST) is a creative community solutions network of individuals, businesses, organizations, and institutions the highlight, promote, and advance programs, projects, and policy work in the areas of urban revitalization, equitable development, sustainable community design, and smart growth. They are opening up for new members of their speakers’ bureau for 2009 and anyone interested in learning more about them can call (206) 202-2883, email info@weareboost.org, and visit www.weareboost.org.

Panel Set for Women and the Triple Bottom Line Approach to 21st Century Opportunities and Challenges

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Contact: Tim Razzaq
(206) 202-2883
info@weareboost.org

(Philadelphia, PA) October 30, 2008 – “Anyone can create a green initiative, anytime, don't wait”, is the message Arianne Delafosse has for people who want to get involved in greening up their homes, creating a community-based community green campaign, and not have to reinvent the wheel.” Women for Entrepreneurship, the Environment, and Social Equity is the theme of this most timely and relevant information-sharing and networking session that will be held on Sunday, November 16 from 3pm until 6pm at the offices of Greenable located at 126 Market Street.

Women Leaders is being co-sponsored by We Are Building Open Opportunity Structures Together (We Are BOOST), and Philadelphia-based green materials and services provider Greenable. Refreshments are being provided by Cosmic Catering, whose mission is to strive to make a small footprint on the earth but in turn a large footprint in their customer's souls and stomachs.

The all woman panel will collectively address how home-makers, small business owners, nonprofits and faith-based organizations, and even students can use environmental strategy to cut costs, create value, and be better positioned to thrive even within the reality of the current economic downturn.

We Are BOOST Founder Tim Razzaq is absolutely thrilled to have his organization be able to invite the community at large out on a Sunday afternoon, learn from the panel, but, also just as importantly, be able to do it at a site and with a company that is practicing what it preaches, “Greenable does it all. They are committed to helping people understand that there are enormous health, economic, and environmental benefits to be realized by designing, building, and living smarter. Plus, they are opening their doors to the local community on short notice and at a time where so many people to trying to find ways they can save money, help the environment, and navigate these harsh financial times.”

“In an economy where home building and remodeling is suffering one of the worst slumps in decades, green building and remodeling are experiencing incredible growth. Recent surveys reveal that home buyers will pay a premium to purchase a green, energy efficient house. Coloring your business GREEN is a smart move in a sluggish economy” says Patricia Gaylor, who has practiced green design in the northeast for over 25 years and recently featured on Good Morning America.

Delafosse is Founder and Executive Director for Community Green, an all volunteer non-profit organization based in Basking Ridge New Jersey and her message echoes that of Susie Beiler of Spectrum Health Consulting who “would like attendees to come away with inspiration to create community, an understanding of the importance of having vision, and a sense of their level of commitment to implementing their visions.”

Confirmed Women Leaders Panelists:

Patricia Gaylor, Green Interior Design and recently featured on Good Morning America
Topic: "Simple, Affordable, and Doable Ways you can: Make Your Home Healthier and More Energy Efficient, Set you Business Up Gain the Competitive Advantages of Going Green, and Find Green Materials Locally that are Readily Available and Financially Feasible"

Ariane Delafosse, Founder of Community Green (New Jersey)
Topic: "Easy Steps to Take Growing Your Community Green Nonprofit from the Grassroots to the Grass-tops."

Susie Beiler, Spectrum Health Consulting
Topic: “My Vision for Shamalada Healing Sanctuary and How You Can Become Engaged in Holistic Health for Personal and Community Wellness”

Trisha Mandes, Founder of Philly Eco Kids (PEK)
Topic: How to Easily Educate Your Children and Students about Climate Change, Global Warming, and What They Can Do About It

Marilyn Moran of Marilyn New Media Marketing and author of We Are BOOST Philly Green Blog
Topic: "Grow Your Business, Web Site or Blog: Sound Economical, Social, and Green Marketing Opportunities"

Barbara Stange, Simply Natural Living;
Topic: "Simple Steps to Improve Your Personal and Family through Easy Balance of Mind, Body, Spirit and With Nature"

Invited but unconfirmed panelists include:

Julie Hancher & Beth Funari, co-authors of GreenPhillyBlog.com, a Philadelphia-based website providing environmental information for the local region
Topic: “Planting the Seed: Growing Your Green Business from the Ground Up”

Donation is $15 per adult and $5 for children under 12 years of age. A refreshments buffet of locally grown and harvested food will be prepared by Cosmic Catering and available to all who attend. Advanced registration is required, please call (206) 202-2883 or visit the calendar of events at http://www.weareboost.org/.

Greenable Philadelphia's premier resource for interior and exterior green building products and services for residential & commercial projects whether it is simply a can of paint, a green roof installation, or an entire residential or commercial design project. Greenable is located at 126 Market Street, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Phone: 215-922-6066, Web: http://www.greenable.com/ Media Contact: Angelo Anastasio, 215-922-6066 x206

We Are Building Open Opportunity Structures Together (We Are BOOST) is a creative community solutions organization that develops and utilizes innovative and customized strategies to build structures relationships between individuals, organizations, businesses, institutions, and agencies that lead to beneficial social, economic, and educational opportunities and outcomes in under-served communities and emerging markets and neighborhoods. They can be reach at (206) 202-2883, info@weareboost.org, and http://www.weareboost.org/.

Join Christoper Zelov for American Debut, part 2, of City21 - Link to movie trailer below

City21 is a new film exploring the multiple perspectives/initiativesthat are indeed shaping the 21st Century City.

Check out the trailer from the film: (Windows Media Player) by clicking here

You can pick up your CMX-Sponsored discounted passes the easy way - only $15 if purchased by Tuesday, Oct. 21 - for "Why Live Green", by joining director Christopher Zelov, Trenton Atelier's Peter Abrams, and others for the American debut, part 2, of "City21" on Friday, http://gss-set.com/weareboost/index.php?/event_details/city21_film_public_debut_part_2_at_we_are_boost_friday_night_lights_at_maxi/a new film exploring the multiple perspectives/initiativesthat are indeed shaping the 21st Century City. Call (206) 202-2883 for more information or to inquire about sponsorship, speaker invitations, or being a panelist at upcoming We Are BOOST events. Email: info@weareboost.org.

DVGBC's 6TH Annual Green Building Celebration at the Comcast Center!

Thursday, October 16, 2008 DVGBC's 6TH Annual Green Building Celebration at the Comcast Center!

Welcome! The Delaware Valley Green Building Council, a chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council, was formed in November 2001 at historic Carpenters’ Hall. Its mission is to advance and promote sustainable and environmentally responsible planning, design, construction and operation of the region’s buildings, landscapes, cities and communities, mindful of the legacy we leave for future generations.
The DVGBC is the primary point of contact for users, agencies, and companies interested in sustainable communities and is a leader in fostering cooperation and collaboration among organizations dedicated to environmental responsibility and green planning, design and construction.
The objective of implementing green building design and construction practices is to improve site planning; to safeguard water and ensure its efficient use; to maximize energy efficiency, conserve materials and resources and insure indoor environmental quality. The goal is to significantly reduce or eliminate the negative impact of buildings on their occupants and on our environment.

Part 2, American Debut: City21 by Knossus Project - Trenton NJ

Friday, October 17 - 6PM until 8PM - Maxine's 2 Restaurant, 2nd Floor Private Party Rm. - 120 South Warren Street * Trenton NJ - Director Christopher Zelov Leads Screening and Discussion of Part, 2 of Knossus Project's City21, a unique cinematic journey illuminating key perspectives and real-time initiatives that are shaping the 21st Century City. RSVP is required; however thanks to generous contributions from stalwart supporters, Peter Abrams of Modern Metal Work and Barbara Stange, proprietor of Simply Natural Living, these screenings are now FREE to the general public. For more information or to register, please call (206) 202-2883 or email info@weareboost.org.

The Knossus Project is a Mid-Atlantic based research and development firm dedicated to seeking out and creating things that will make the world a better place in which to live. Specifically, its efforts have centered on the development of a sustainable environment, renewable energy, and environments that are not only ecologically friendly, but are artistically vibrant. Also visit http://www.weareboost.org/ for more upcoming events and information resources..

We Are BOOST Healthy Homes, Healthy You, Healthy Planet

We Are BOOST Solutions is a learning community of conscientious business, organizational, and institutional leaders concerned about creating healthier & wealthier life-styles. Visit http://www.shaklee.net/weareboostsolutions and http://www.cinchplan.com/weareboostsolutions. Also join one of our networking units at http://gssset.plaxogroups.com and learn about our work with LEED-ap, Anastasia Harrison at http://gss-set.com/weareboost/index.php?/event_details/why_live_green/.

Our goal is to build a strong and well-informed social, economic, and educational network of individuals, organizations, businesses, institutions, and agencies dedicated to sharing what we know about creating healthier environment in our homes, families, and workplaces, as well as spaces of worship and recreation.

We Are BOOST Solutions works in conjunction with We Are Building Open Opportunity Structures Together's Speakers' Bureau (www.weareboost.org) and we invite you to join us in creating structured relationships that will lead to mutually beneficial social, economic, and educational outcomes.

I began my personal efforts to better my community in 1987 by selling books door-to-door in some of the most blighted neighborhoods in New Jersey’s capital and, after spending 20 plus years working in other non-profit organizations, I started my own endeavor to enhance the well being of my fellow citizens. While spending time with the Latino Community Land Trust, Old Trenton Neighborhood Coalition and the Hanover Street Civic Association, I formulated the ideas and goals that would officially become BOOST in 2005 and, then - We Are BOOST in the spring of 2008.

We Are BOOST recently focused training and education efforts on “green” technology, and started the Green, Smart and Sustainable Stakeholder Education & seminars in the Trenton area and in June 2008 I met Mrs. Anastasia Harrison, the first architect in the state of New Jersey to earn Indoor Air Quality Environmentalist certification.

Mrs. Harrison introduced me and several other We Are BOOST constituents to the Shaklee line of products and business opportunity. Since then, many of the stakeholders who attended the forum at which Mrs. Harrison presented her information about the negative health impacts of toxic cleaning products took and immediate interest in learning how to live healthier by using better formulated nontoxic cleaning, personal care, and health supplements. Why Live Green

Annie, as we affectionately call her, designed a series of ten workshops for We Are BOOST as a means of fulfilling our community’s desire to improve our quality of life while decreasing our cost of living and We Are BOOST Solutions is very excited to be able to share Shaklee benefits and Mrs. Harrison’s workshops with you.

City21 Debuts, Zelov Host Public Premiere at Maxine's 2 for We Are BOOST

Early-bird special: register for debut of Christopher Zelov's new FILM, "City21", parts 1 & 2 by Friday, September 26 and receive Automatic $10 discount on We Are BOOST Philly/NJ metro events with Jason Kliwinski (October 4 at Heritage Friends, Philadelphia) and Anastasia Harrison (October 26 at Dock Street Micro Brewery, Philadelphia). Registration forms for City21 can be obtained by calling (206) 202-2883 and by email request at city21@weareboost.org. Visit www.weareboost.org for full event calendar and registration forms.

Friday, October 10 - 6PM - 8PM for Friday Night Lights at Maxine’s Caribbean Restaurant (2nd Floor Private Party Room) located at 120 South Warren Street in Downtown Trenton - The first public screening of Knossus Project's film, "City21", part 1 of 2, hosted by director Christopher Zelov (part 2 to be held on Friday, October 17). Advanced registration required: $12 for adults, $7 for children under 12 years old and under 5 yrs. FREE. Special group rate for groups of ten or more ($7 per-person). For more information or to register, call (206) 202-2883 or email info@weareboost. Also visit www.weareboost.org for full film director's statement and additional resources.

Friday, October 17 - 6PM - 8PM for Friday Night Lights at Maxine’s Caribbean Restaurant (2nd Floor Private Party Room) located at 120 South Warren Street in Downtown Trenton - The first public screening of Knossus Project's film, "City21", part 2 of 2, hosted by director Christopher Zelov. Advanced registration required: $12 for adults, $7 for children under 12 years old and under 5 yrs. FREE. Special group rate for groups of ten or more ($7 per-person). For more information or to register, call (206) 202-2883 or email info@weareboost. Also visit www.weareboost.org for full film director's statement and additional resources.

GSS-SET September 2008 Speakers' Profiles

Anastasia Harrison, AIA, LEED-AP, IAQA

Saturday, September 13, from 3pm until dusk at Simply Natural Living, located at 2320 Stuyvesant Avenue in Trenton New Jersey's scenic west ward outlining such topics as "Living Healthier Starting Today", "From Recycling to FreeCycling", "Babies: What You Put on Goes In" and "Green Renovations and Fix-ups". Please visit www.gss-set.com/weareboost/ for details.

Sunday, October 26, from 3pm until 6pm at Dock Street Brewery, located at 50th and Baltimore Avenues in Philadelphia PA - "Why live green? What are the real reasons to change your perspective on our world: Filter out the 'Green Noise'". Please visit www.gss-set.com/weareboost for details.

As an Associate and Director of Business development, Anastasia's architectural experience is diversified starting her career with the Port Authority of NY/NJ. Her work touches on every major aspect of the firm, from marketing and public relations, to client sales and the firm’s numerous awards.

As the first licensed architect in the State of NJ to earn an Indoor Air Quality Certification from the Indoor Air Quality Assiation, she is currently very active in the firm’s design development and interior design components. A frequent speaker and lecturer and published several times, Anastasia is passionate about better living through healthy design and architecture. She will offers a ten-part workshop series she has developed exclusively for We Are BOOST, outlining such topics as "Living Healthier Starting Today", "From Recycling to FreeCycling", "Babies: What You Put on Goes In" and "Green Renovations and Fix-ups".

To inquire about Anastasia as a guest speaker or workshop facilitator for your organization or business, please contact us at (206) 202-2883 or email speakers@weareboost.org.

"Green To Gold" Discounted at Classics Used and Rare Books

GenGreen Team Selects BOOST as "New Green Leader" for Month of July

GenGreen™ has named Building Open Opportunity Structures Together, also known as BOOST, as a Featured Organization on the GenGreen Network, http://www.gengreen.org/region.php?s=NJ in the New Jersey tri-state region.

The goal of GenGreen is to "mainstream green" for all by providing easy access to the resources that make sustainable living easier for everyone on a local level. This is accomplished in a variety of ways from our extensive online network and public events that encourage connection, growth and education through communication, to our online marketplace where people can find the eco-friendly products and services they need to support their sustainable lifestyles.

GenGreen is a multi-faceted platform for communication, education and connection. From green news headlines pertinent to your area, to job listings and tips to live a sustainable life, GenGreen is a comprehensive online resource for the tools you need to live a locally sustainable life. Want to find a recycling center near you? Where are your local farmers' markets? Looking for an alternative means to get to and from work each day? You can find the answers to these questions, and much more, at GenGreen.org, such as:

The GenGreen Network

The GenGreen Network is a platform to share ideas, educate one another and get more involved in sustainable practices. Profiles, blogs, personal event calendars and, eventually, topical discussion forums are just a few of the resources that registered users can access on the Network.

The GenGreen Marketplace - Coming Spring 2008!
With localization at its heart, the GenGreen Marketplace is a new take on the green online market and is unique in its ability to pair shoppers with the product vendors and service providers nearest them.

The GenGreen Foundation

The GenGreen Foundation is a 501 (c) 3 non-profit organization that strives to educate our youth about the importance of environmental stewardship. Through student-operated environmental programs called GenGreen Gangs, young people are provided with the tools they need to implement sustainable practices on their campuses, such as recycling drives and organic gardens.

What Anastasia Harrison - AIA, LEED, IAQA - has to say about BOOST

WESKetch, an award winning architectural firm focused on inspirational architecture and Anastasia Harrison’s architectural experience is diversified starting her career with the Port Authority of NY/NJ. Her work touched on every major aspect of the firm from marketing and public relations to client sales and the firm’s numerous awards. As the first licensed architect in the State of NJ to earn an Indoor Air Quality Environmentalist Certification, she is currently very active in the firm’s design development and interior design components. A frequent speaker and lecturer and published several times, Anastasia is passionate about better living through healthy design and architecture.

Here is what Anastasia has to say about her involvement with BOOST and as a presenter at the GSS-SET Launch this past Saturday, June 7:

Dear Tim

It is always such a pleasure to speak with you, you have more energy than humanly possible. As I spoke of before, the energy and enthusiasm for knowledge of the green movement by your community is inspiring. As a design professional I am usually connecting with colleagues that either are more involved with different levels of environmental stewardship or professionals in the building community that understand through their formal training these concepts of ‘sustainability’.

Speaking to your group was a refreshing change. I immediately understood why your group formed and how much they want and need to know in order to make a better world for us all!

Typically my talks are very technical, involving percentages, actual material assemblies, detailed building system configurations, review of lists and checklists, etc... For BOOST I was able to bring my ‘lesson’ to the level in which the greatest good can come, changing the way in which people can live healthier lives RIGHT NOW.

Planners, architects, engineers, politicians, government agencies, all well intentioned take a long time to review policies and processes in order to ‘make thing better’. BOOST is about making that process easier for the people that matter the most, the residents.

After I left your offices last Saturday, my inspiration as well as my mission was altered for the best. To take my beliefs and technical knowledge and bring it to as many people that would listen. This will do a few things; it will solve my burning desire to help change the way in which we treat our world, it will create healthier lives for those around me, and then to those around them, it will be start today!

No more planning for change, making change happen in one person’s life starts today!

I am so excited that you found my presentation inspirational and want more! There will be a greater understanding of what we do to our world, why we do it and how we can make our own choices to be better!

FREE Summer Camp & Discounted Best Seller

Reminder: A Summer Sustainability Institute's FREE camp for Mercer County middle school students - please visit http://www.tcnj.edu/~mluc/index for more info. and to register your public, private, or home-schooled child. Announcement courtesy Building Open Opportunity Structures Together (BOOST).

Also, order your copy of “Green to Gold: How Smart Companies Use Environmental Strategy to Innovate, Create Value, and Build Competitive Advantage” (Hardcover) from BOOST for only $20.00 by mailing a check or money order to BOOST, C/O 23 West Street, Bordentown, NJ 08505. Call (206) 202-2883 or email gsssetcentral@yahoo.com to check on your order status or more information about BOOST.

BOOST, Ark of Peace, and GSS-SET at Simply Natural Living: Saturday, July 12 -

Welcome To Simply Natural Living in Serenity Plaza at 1505 Parkway Avenue, Ewing New Jersey.... (609) 406-0818.

NEW DATE - (Saturday JULY 12!) for Green, Smart, and Sustainable Stakeholder Education and Training Featuring a SPECIAL PRESENTATION by Jonathan Cloud from the Sustainable Business Incubator at Fairleigh Dickinson University: "Growing the Next Generation of Green Ventures: Green Business Opportunities New Jersey ”

Ewing, New Jersey on Saturday, July 12: GSS-SET Eco-Community Building Forum #2 at Simply Natural Living in Serenity Plaza located at 1505 Parkway Avenue from 11am until 5pm. Please visit www.gss-set.blogspot.com for full details. RSVP by calling (206) 202-2883 or emailing gsssetcentral@yahoo.com

Now, this is living!

You must have noticed our new logo.It reflects our new, expanded offerings at our new store.New beginnings!We can now begin sharing our vision of simplynaturalliving as a lifestyle center, encompassing the things we hold dear for well-being…: it’s our Holistic approach to the whole body..., mind... and spirit. Yours as well as ours.

Here at the aptly named Serenity Plaza on Parkway Avenue, you‘ll find

• our new Living Center, a place to learn and explore natural solutions to virtually any life/health problem

• music, it’s always on to listen to, to hear, to buy if you’re so inclined, and

• art, in almost any medium, hung on our walls and enjoyed by all.

Are you the artist we‘re looking for? Display your creativity here.We’ll begin new programs of education and support for our customers who must follow diet-restricted eating protocols. Other groups exist, but there is nothing like our program in Mercer County.

If this education and support group would be helpful to you and your family, sign on at the store, or send an email to barbara@simplynaturalliving.com.

We believe we can have a more positive impact in your life.

How can we do that?Small changes. Extending our HOLISTIC approach, small changes lead to Big improvements.

Find out everything you can about simplynaturalliving. Visit us soon.

We look forward to welcoming you.

Be well,

Barbara

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Meet Our Staff

Owner Barbara --

Barbara is the motivating spirit behind Simply Natural. She has broad experience in holistic medicine, including herbs, homeopathy, women’s issues, supplements and beauty products. She maintains an organic garden in her backyard, site of planned and impromptu community and neighborhood events. She believes there is a wealth of information available to bring greater balance into our busy lives, and strives daily to maintain that lifestyle.

Valued Staff Imani --

Imani means “Faith” in Swahili. Her spirit and curiosity are contagious. She is committed to the belief that the spirit, mind and body are equally important for total healing. Her daily affirmation: "Think positively, and the Universe will handle the details.”

Valued Staff Jennifer --

Jennifer joined us in 2002. With a B.S. from TCN J in Biology, she brings a wealth of experience and insight into celiac disease (wheat & gluten intolerance), food allergies, fibromyalgia meniers and other autoimmune diseases.

Consultant Peg Ritterbusch, N.D. --

Peg Ritterbusch, works as a consultant to our staff, and is a valuable practitioner resource to our customers. She can help people change their lifestyles by promoting better eating habits, offering advice about nutritional supplements and recommending proper exercise - all of which can lead to a happier, healthier life.

GreenSMART Fact: Sorry Suburbs, Cities are Cooler - Courtesy Good Jobs First Clawback Blog

Sorry, Suburbs—Cities Are Cooler

June 3, 2008 by Phil Mattera

Most discussions on how to reduce your carbon footprint focus on what you drive and how well your house is insulated. Those issues are certainly vital, but the bigger issue may really be how much you drive and how big your residence is. And those, in turn, get you into the wonky subject of land use.

There is a growing sense among experts on of climate change that development patterns of communities are a key determinant of greenhouse gas emissions: People who live in more sparsely populated suburbs will inevitably drive more miles and will tend to live in larger homes that use lots of energy, no matter how well they are insulated.

The latest example of this new consensus is a report issued last week by the Metropolitan Policy Program of the Brookings Institution. News coverage of Shrinking the Carbon Footprint of Metropolitan American in outlets such as the New York Times focused on differences in per capita carbon emissions among metropolitan areas, which Brookings attributes primarily to factors such as differences in climate and power-plant fuel mix.

Yet the main message of the report is that urban areas overall play a key role in limiting greenhouse gas emissions thanks to the more compact structure of communities and the availability of public transit as an alternative to CO2-spewing automobiles. More densely populated areas, the authors note, also make more efficient use of electric, water, sewage and communications infrastructure.

This is true, they find, not only when comparing metro areas to non-metro areas but also to a certain extent among urban areas. Older cities such as New York, Chicago, Boston and San Francisco that have denser population distribution and more extensive transit systems are all low per-capita emitters, while sprawling, car-dependent metro areas such as Nashville and Oklahoma City rank high.

The authors admit there are exceptions to the rule. Washington, DC, for instance, has a relatively high level of transit use but also has an elevated level of per-capita CO2 emissions, largely because of the large amount of coal used by electric utilities in the region.

The Brookings report builds on prior research such as the path-breaking Growing Cooler report—written by a team led by Reid Ewing of the National Center for Smart Growth—which summarizes scholarship on the links between land use and climate change. A recent working paper by Evans Paull of the Northeast-Midwest Institute takes the discussion a step further and argues that brownfield and in-fill development projects within cities create the potential for even more dramatic reductions in greenhouse gas emissions.
Smart growth turns out to be smart not only for quality of life but also for quality of the climate.

Posted in Climate Issues, Smart Growth 3 Comments »

History and Recent Activities of Building Open Opportunity Structures Together

BOOST Founder and Executive Director, Tim Razzaq, has been using community-based education and training as a means of organizing people around vital issues and current affairs his entire adult life. Starting out in 1987, Mr. Razzaq began selling African-centered books and reading materials door-to-door and at special events throughout Mercer and Burlington counties. From that activity, he was able to meet – literally – hundreds of people, such as residents, business owners, organizational leaders, and clergy. From discussions sparked by the content of some of the books he sold, people began to express a desire to collectively address some of the social issues prevalent at the time. Razzaq, as he is known to many, began to help people start social projects, form organizations and businesses, and also took up residence at the Aleda Building – located in the heart of the Old Trenton Neighborhood which was owned and managed by the Latino Community Land Trust (LCLT.) At that time, he began to work very closely with the President of the Land Trust in the area of tenant and community organizing. His primary role was research, information distribution, and the organization of public awareness forums. He then began to join and work more intimately with other area organizations and has served in diverse capacities and functions, such as secretary, administrative assistant, strategic advisor, minister of education, assistant minister, youth program coordinator, and myriad other duties and positions.

Still operating his book business and working with a Trenton-based academic and trade book publisher, Razzaq began to coordinate and promote book-signings, lectures, workshops, conferences, town meetings, fieldtrips and tours, and set up and oversaw several tutoring, Saturday School, and summer programs for children. As a result of this intensive effort, he had the opportunity to not only meet a great number of people, but also learn more about the roots of the community’s problems and become aware of the neighborhood’s inherent assets.

During his tenure at LCLT, Mr. Razzaq helped form and inform the Hanover Street Civic Association (HSCA) and the Old Trenton Neighborhood Coalition (ONTC) and, in late summer of 2005, successfully completed 1700 hours of community organizing work commissioned by the Corporation for National and Community Service through Isle, Inc. – a community development and environmental organization. In August of 2005, Mr. Razzaq authored his seminal and ground-breaking work, “The Need for an Empowered Old Trenton Neighborhood Coalition: A Call and Plan for Equitable and Community-First Economic Development”, which was picked by and published in Mercer Business Magazine in February of 2006. BOOST was conceptualized in this writing as a means of bringing Community Benefits Agreements (CBA’s) into public and private discourse. That same month, Tim participated as a panelist on Community Benefits Agreements at New Jersey Future’s first annual Redevelopment Forum, and – in March of that year – was a guest speaker at New Jersey Higher Education Partnership for Sustainability’s ‘Sustainability for Educator’s’ Summit.

By June of 2006, Razzaq graduated from the 10-month Neighborhood Leadership Initiative training program and formed Building Open Opportunity Structures Together (BOOST) as a means of providing timely, relevant, reliable and well-structured information to residents in the Trenton-Mercer region. Since then, Mr. Razzaq has had success in the developing, promoting, and coordinating dozens of educational forums highlighting the need for local community inclusion in the real estate planning and decision-making processes that affect and impact them. The efforts have included Community Building Forums, policy workshops; focus sessions, redevelopment site tours, and real-time and on-line social networking activities and all have included citizens, real estate developers, public officials, academics, and industry-specific professionals. We have covered such topics as workforce development, smart growth, green building, sustainable community design, eminent domain, arts as a driver of urban renewal, greening practices for homes and businesses, and Community Benefits Agreements (CBA’s). GSS-SET 2008-09 is the natural outgrowth of the efforts.

BOOST Green, Smart, and Sustainable Stakeholder Education & Training (GSS-SET 2008-09)

In July of 2007, BOOST began a series of workshops on civic engagement, continued its relationship-building efforts with local, regional, and national leaders in urban revitalization and, in November (2007), began work as the community outreach arm/guru drawing in several hundred people interested in Trenton’s newly renovated Broad Street Bank mixed-use, mixed-income green complex. With the Building as a base of operation, BOOST hosted forums focused on green building, sustainable design, and smart growth and our 2008-09 Green, Smart, and Sustainable Stakeholder Education and Training (GSS-SET) Program is the natural outgrowth and logical next steps to bring similar programs to a statewide audience. Our 2007-08 activities have included:

BOOST 2007 Workshops & Community Building Activities:

- Community outreach programming that brought in over 1,000 curiosity and residency seekers to the newly renovated historic, sustainable design Broad Street Bank mixed-use multifamily apartment complex in New Jersey’s capital, Trenton (NJ). BSBB was a strong model and catalyst for GSS-SET and still a work in progress.

- Community Building Forum #3 (January 20, 2007) with over 100 in attendance and media coverage, CBF #3 featured seven presenters of nearly three dozen programs for local residents to take advantage of regarding job, career, housing, education, cultural, and business options and opportunities in the Trenton region.

- Workshop by Bob Blakeman for P. S. & S. Keyspan on “Current Best Practices in Green Building” – Blakeman design the sustainable features for BSBB project.

- 2 workshops by Mel Leipzig for Mercer County Community College on the “Role of Arts and Artists in Revitalizing Older American Urban Centers”

- 4 public talks by Richard Libbey for Bayville Holdings LLC – the developer of the Broad Street Bank Building – on “Real-Time Experiences on Adaptive Reuse & Green Building: Hidden Assets and Challenges”

- 2 focus sessions with Princeton Area Community Foundation on behalf of Atlantic Philanthropies “Community Experience Partnership: Engaging Older Americans for Civic Good” at two Trenton sites;

- Workshop by Terri Jover for New Jersey Future on “How Citizens can Measure Smart Growth Using NJF’s Municipal Smart Growth Scorecard”

- 3 workshops by Greg Jones for USA Closers on “Smart Credit Building: How to Development Personal, Business, and Community Credit”

- Workshop by John Cusack for NJHEPS on “Leadership by Example: Creating Sustainable College Campuses”
6 workshops, “Invitation to Civics Education” in association with The Civic Formation Inc.

- 2 workshops by Angelica Redpath-Perez for Green Design Now on “How Everyday Citizens can ‘Green-up’ their Home and Offices”

- 5 workshops by Tim Razzaq for BOOST on “Three Major Challenges to Community Benefits: Leadership Matters” in Asbury Park (NJ) & Trenton-Mercer locations;

- 2 workshops by Robert Estock for MCCC on “Continuing Education and Training Options and Opportunities at Community Colleges”

- 12 (plus) sessions with Mercer County Community College Professor Alvyn Haywood’s Documentary Viewings & Community Discussions at Classics Used & Rare Books

GSS-SET 2008-09 will provide enrollees from around the state of New Jersey with customized education and training that will help them in choosing, developing, and deploying individual and group projects to be implemented for their respective organizations, and in their home-town communities and neighborhoods. Model projects/programs will include, but are not limited to: sustainable neighborhood plans; urban science/career paths for high school students; clean energy retrofits for nonprofits, churches, and small businesses; advocacy for community and environmental benefits agreements; eco-entrepreneurial ventures; green business and industry inventory and data centers; sustainable design assessment teams; and unionization of the emerging green collar workforce. Partners and resources have been identified for GSS-SET graduates who choose one or more of these areas of post-program focus.

BOOST Board of DIRECTORS and Fiscal Agent:

Two Mercer County Community College Professors:

- Alvyn Haywood – Distinguished Teaching Award 2008 honoree, and

- Monique Simon - Coordinator and Professor in the Dept. of Communications;

- Kevin W. Wortham – Entrepreneur/Entrepreneur Trainer, Teacher, and Consultant;

- Linda Hollingshead – Founder Outreach Media Group;

- Tyrone Gaskins – Founder and President of Targeting Alternative Growth Resources;

- Calvin B. Thomas - New Jersey Training Coordinator with the Support Center for Nonprofit Management;

- Winnie Fatton – Project Manager for the Municipal Land Use Center at TCNJ; and

- Susan Wolf – PHD and Psychologist;

Fiscal Sponsor: Doretha L. Riley for Visionary Economic Business Solutions (VEBS) 501c3 Fiscal Sponsor

Haywood Continues "Introducing Abraham" Screening and Discussion

On Friday, June 6 from 1:00pm to 3:00pm, BOOST's Community Ambassador and Spokesperson, Professor Alvyn Haywood, will conduct another of his popular documentary viewings and community disucssions at Gallery 125, located at 125 South Warren Street in downtown Trenton as a part of Classics Used and Rare Book's Trenton Book Fair. This is a free event and all those who attend will received a Green Gift Certificate good for 15% off of the entire menu at Gilmore's Cafe (the G-Spot), located directly across the street at 118 on Warren. For more information, please contact (206) 202-2883 or email timrazzaq1@yahoo.com. Parking validation tickets available at Classics Books - please see Laurice Reynolds.

Professor Haywood and Building Open Opporunity Structures Together began the Ark of Peace series of film screenings and discussions in spring of 2007 at venues in Trenton west, north, south, and east wards and settled at what has become the "hub of community building", Classics Used and Rare Books.

BOOST’s own Green, Smart, and Sustainable Stakeholder Education and Training series of public awareness forums and community capacity building workshops launches on Saturday, June 7 from 11am to 4pm, at Gallery 125 located at 125 South Warren Street in downtown Trenton. Classics Trenton Book Fair and Trenton’s 30th annual Heritage Days Celebration serve as splendid backdrops for a screening of Sundance Channel produced, Big Ideas for a Small Planet (the Build episode), and presentations by Mitchell Joachim Terreform and Archinode Studio; Anastasia Harrison of WESKetch Architecture; Fred Stine for the Delaware RiverKeeper Network; Jason Kliwinski for Spiezle Group; and Elizabeth Slate-Rutledge for the Alchemical Nursery Project. For more information, please call (206) 202-2883 or email gss-set@gss-set.com.

Gilmores Café’ (The G Spot), located at 118 S. Warren Street, has been providing BOOST and its partners meeting space for the past two months and its owner, Kevin Gilmore, has made a commitment to contribute to environmental and public good by using eco-friendly compostable cups made from corn, and containers, cup sleeves, utensils, trays plates, and napkins. Gilmore’s also employs a line of natural cleaners that are formulated to leave the G-Spots indoor environment super clean, and best of all, do not pollute the Spot with toxic smells and chemicals. To top your green experience off, Gilmore’s offers 5 cents payback to customers who bring their own mugs, cups, and food storage containers to take home leftovers. As for GSS-SET and the Trenton Book Fair, Gilmore’s is contributing 100 Green Gift Certificates good for 15% off its entire menu for each paying customer who attends GSS-SET activities and/or purchases a book or gift item from Classics Used and Rare Books, co-owned by Laurice Reynolds and her son-in-law, Eric Maywar. Gift certificates will be good for Friday, June 6 and Saturday June 7.

BOOST’s Green, Smart, and Sustainable Stakeholder Education and Training (GSS-SET 2008-09) is the organic outgrowth or natural progression of Building Open Opportunity Structures Together’s work at achieving community benefits for traditionally under-served populations as real estate and economic development growth is steered into New Jersey’s older urban centers and first-suburbs.

GSS-SET Launch, Part 2: Sun Fest for Green Living - Saturday, July 5

On Saturday, July 5, Building Open Opportunity Structures, also known as BOOST, will hold its second public awareness forum for Green, Smart and Sustainable Stakeholder Education and Training outreach from 11am until 4pm in collaboration with Ark of Peace and Black Gold Sacred Living Per-Ankh at Simply Natural Living, located at Serenity Plaza, 1505 Parkway Avenue in Ewing New Jersey. This event is free to the public and open to people of all ages. For more information or for early RSVP, please contact BOOST voice/fax center at (206) 202-2883 or email timrazzaq1@yahoo.com.

Professor Alvyn Haywood continues his popular documentary viewing and community discussion for “Introducing Abraham: The Secret behind ‘The Secret’”, Mut Seshatms Ma’atnefert EL Salim from Montclair New Jersey’s House of Life for a presentation on “Rethinking Solar: Giving Power Back to the People”, and a host of presenters to be announced. Please visit www.gss-set.blogspot.com for updates.

GSS-SET Sponsorship Opportunities Now Open

BOOST is deploying GSS-SET in five major cities/regions throughout the Garden State this year: Atlantic-Cape, Camden, Trenton-Mercer, Newark-Essex, and Elizabeth-Union and your company, organization, institution, or agency can tag along and get your marketing message delivered to tens of thousands of potential clients, customers, and constituents.

We are committed to creating win-win partnerships that lead to mutually beneficial opportunities and outcomes. Call us at (206) 202-2883 to work out a customized tactical plan that fits your budget and our mission. Email: sponsors@gss-set.com.

Eco-Career Opportunity: Ridge and Valley Charter School in New Jersey.

SEEKING EDUCATIONAL LEADER FOR EARTH LITERACY PUBLIC K-8 CHARTER SCHOOL

Ridge and Valley Charter School, a public charter school in Northwest New Jersey, seeks an experienced educational team leader for the 2008-09 school year to work in an energetic, collaborative and non-hierarchical learning environment. The mission of the school is to connect children to the natural world through an innovative outdoor experiential, project-based curriculum, with an integrated ecological and sustainable living focus. We are looking for a lover of the outdoors and a proponent of ecological sustainability with strong educational team-building and leadership skills to coordinate and support a small dedicated staff in an experiential, multi-age setting. All staff and students spend significant time outdoors.

Supervisor/principal certification or equivalent professional leadership experience preferred.

Send cover letter, resume and copies of certifications to: RVCS Search Committee at Ridge and Valley Charter School, 1234 State Route 94, Blairstown, NJ 07825. 908-362-1114 (Fax: 908-362-6680)

ridgeandvalleycharterschool@yahoo.com

http://www.ridgeandvalley.org/

Invitation to the public, sponsors, and media

If you are interested in sponsoring one or more components of GSS-SET 2008-09, please contact our voice/fax center at (206) 202-2883 and by email at gss-set@gss-set.com.

Building Open Opportunity Structures Together (BOOST) will launch its Green, Smart, and Sustainable Stakeholder Education and Training (GSS-SET 2008-09) series of public awareness forums and community capacity building workshops on Saturday, June 7, at Classics Used and Rare Books located at 117 South Warren Street in downtown Trenton (NJ) at 12 noon with a screening of the Sundance Channels "Big Ideas for a Small Planet, the Build" episode and a special guest presentation by one of the films featured designers, Mitchell Joachim of Terreform Studios, a nonprofit philanthropic architectural design collaborative that integrates ecological principles in the urban environment. We will also be joined by Anastasia Harrison from WESKetch Architecture, Inc. Anastasia is a licensed and LEED certified architect and one of the first indoor air quality certified professionals in the state and will share "Greening for Family Health: Improving Indoor Air Quality" with forum attendees.

Dr. Joachim will present several scenarios for and applications of "whole ecological design", a way of building structures that minimizes the environmental destructive impact by integrating itself with living processes.

This event is free to the public and will coincide with Classics Book Fair and Trenton's 30th annual Heritage Days Celebration and FREE signed copies of "From Green to Gold: How Smart Companies Use Environmental Strategy to Innovate, Create Value, and Build Competitive Advantage" will be available at the launch for BOOST's Green, Smart, and Sustainable Stakeholder Education and Training (GSS-SET 2008-09) for the first 30 individuals to register for the ten-month series of community capacity building seminars.

For more information about BOOST, GSS-SET, registering for the ten-month course, or sponsorship, please call our voice-mail/fax center at (206) 202-2883 and email us at mailto:t@gss-set.com.

Zero Footprint Youth Calculator

In celebration of its Carbon Footprints theme, EE Week 2008 is proud to announce the Zerofootprint carbon calculator specifically designed for American students. Built by Zerofootprint, the EE Week Carbon Calculator encourages students, classrooms, and entire schools to measure and manage their own carbon footprints while developing creative ways to curb their carbon output and slow climate change. Students can compare their carbon footprints with students in other schools, boys vs. girls and more! Access the EE Week Carbon Calculator

Bike to Work Day/Ride - May is National Bike Month!

This year, Bike to Work day is May 16. Tell us about your planned celebration! And don't forget to memorialize fallen cyclists one week later, on a Ride of Silence, held nationwide on May 21.

May is National Bike Month

The League of American Bicyclists is promoting Bike-to-Work Week from May 12-16 and Bike-to-Work Day on Friday, May 16. Need some ideas? Here are 50 ways (large PDF) to celebrate Bike Month. Help us Count Cyclists In this May, and every month!

This is the official site for National Bike Month. Check the events section often to see what bike month and bike to work week events are going on in your community. If you would like to submit your event information to be posted on this site, email it to communication@bikeleague.org. Please make sure you write, "Bike Month Event" in the subject line of the email.

Mitchell Joachim of Terreform to Appear at June 7 GSS-SET Launch in Trenton

Watch video preview of Dr. Joachim on whole ecological design and his Fab Tree Hab project

BOOST Green, Smart, and Sustainable Stakeholder Education and Training to launch registration drive on Saturday, June 7 at Classics Used and Rare Books located at 117 South Warren Street in downtown Trenton featuring a screening of Sundance TV's "Big Ideas for a Small Planet, the Build" episode and a special appearance by Mitchell Joachim, principal with Terreform, a nonprofit 501(c)3 organization and philanthropic design collaborative that integrates ecological principles in the urban environment. Admission for this event is free and activities will coincide with Classics Book Fair and Trenton's 30th annual Heritage Days Celebration.

Green, Smart, and Sustainable Stakeholder Education and Training 2008-09 (GSS-SET) are the natural outgrowth of our past efforts for community benefits by way of engaging redevelopment and economic growth-producing activities. GSS-SET will contribute to fighting global warming and pollution by stimulating the green building and clean energy economy and positioning local community leaders to help their constituencies capture a good portion of green collar jobs, develop or expand green businesses, and conduct advocacy and policy work to the benefit of populations with barriers to employment.

Mitchell Joachim, Ph.D. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, MAUD Harvard University, M.Arch. Columbia University, BPS SUNY at Buffalo w/ honors. He is a Partner at the nonprofit organization Terreform. Formerly an architect at Gehry Partners, Michael Sorkin Studio, and Pei Cobb Freed & Partners. He has been awarded the Moshe Safdie and Assoc. Research Fellowship, and the Martin Family Society Fellow for Sustainability at MIT. He won the History Channel and Infiniti Design Excellence Award for the City of the Future, New York and Time Magazine Best Invention of the Year 2007, Compacted Car w/ MIT Smart Cities Group. He is faculty at Columbia University GSAPP and Washington University.

For more information about Building Open Opportunity Structures Together (BOOST), GSS-SET 2008-09, and the June 7 launch, please call our voice/fax center at (206) 202-2883 or email gss-set@gss-set.com.

Trenton is a walkable place!

Pride is afoot in Trenton: Named 1 of most walkable cities

Wednesday, March 05, 2008

BY ANDREW KITCHENMAN for the Times of Trenton

TRENTON -- Bayard Street resident Jimmy McFadden enjoys walking in Trenton, whether it's a short trip to buy food or to take a leisurely stroll.

"Everything's so convenient, you don't really need a car," McFadden said.

His experience is apparently not an isolated one. Prevention magazine and the American Podiatric Medical Association have listed Trenton as the eighth-best "walking city" in the country.

The 2008 rankings were based on 14 factors, including the opinions of podiatrists and transportation experts; the fewest cars per resident; and the amount of park land per square mile.

Trenton was the smallest of the top 10 cities, although another relatively small city -- Cambridge, Mass. -- was ranked first, followed by New York and Ann Arbor, Mich.

Trenton's ranking was attributable to its walkable downtown, the relatively low number of cars and the walking path along the Delaware & Raritan Canal.

The ranking drew a mix of agreement and skepticism yesterday afternoon from pedestrians at the corner of East State and South Warren streets, one of Trenton's busiest intersections.

State worker Janet Cooper of Willingboro said she enjoys walking in the city.

"I try to walk every day on my lunch break," Cooper said.
Ewing resident Thaddeus Wy socki frequently walks in downtown Trenton, where he catches a bus to Mercer County Community College's West Windsor campus. He said drivers in the city are "reasonably courteous."

"It seems pleasant," said Wy socki, who added there is a "goodly amount of cops around to keep everything in order."
City Mayor Douglas H. Palmer expressed pride in the ranking and said the city aimed to build on it. He noted the planned Stacy Park expansion along the Delaware River would be an excellent place to walk.

"I'm not surprised (by the ranking), because every day you see hundreds of people -- state workers and other people that work in downtown -- walking at lunchtime around the city," Palmer said.

Others walking in downtown Trenton found the ranking hard to believe.

Princeton Borough resident Marvin Israel said Trenton isn't a bad walking town, but thought that other cities were more deserv ing -- pointing in particular to Bos ton, which was ranked one spot below Trenton.

"To put Boston below Trenton, that's absurd," said Israel, a retired software engineer who has visited cities across the country. "You've got to be out of your mind to do that."

Even McFadden, who likes walking in the city, said he will not walk around at night because he feels unsafe.

Dr. Steven Lorynski, a Trenton podiatrist, was both surprised and pleased by the rankings. Lorynski cited the city's Chambersburg sec tion, where he was raised, as a good neighborhood for walking.

Many new Latino shops and restaurants are revitalizing aban doned storefronts in the neighborhood, said Lorynski, who recommends walking to his patients. He noted that walking can also help cholesterol and blood-sugar levels.

"It's just much easier on your feet than running," Lorynski said.

The top 10 Best Walking Cities in America 2008, as listed in Prevention magazine, are:

1. Cambridge, Mass.
2. New York, N.Y.
3. Ann Arbor, Mich.
4. Chicago, Ill.
5. Washington, D.C.
6. San Francisco, Calif.
7. Honolulu, Hawaii
8. Trenton, N.J.
9. Boston, Mass.
10. Cincinnati, Ohio.

Contact Andrew Kitchenman at akitchenman@njtimes.com or (609) 989-5706.

What is National Environmental Education Week? How do I become involved?

National Environmental Education Week (EE Week) is the largest organized environmental education event in the United States. Made possible by Canon, it increases the educational impact of Earth Day by creating a full week of educational preparation, learning, and activities in K-12 classrooms, nature centers, zoos, museums, and aquariums. By participating in EE Week, you encourage your students to make a difference in their schools, homes, and communities!

You can become involved by being a host, sponsor, official Partner, and by attending an activity. For more information, please see our NEE Week posting inside GSS-SET Central blog at http://gss-set.blogspot.com/2008/02/national-environmental-education-month.html

Welcome to Green, Smart & Sustainable Central

*If your are seeking more information about or visited GSS-SET Central to register for New Jersey Future's Redevelopment Forum 2008, please click here.

Thank you for visiting Building Open Opportunity Structures Together - BOOST's - Green, Smart, and Sustainable Central (GSS-SET Central), your first-source information center for education, training, resource development, networking, and community building.

This year, BOOST will be hosting a series of public awareness forums and community capacity building workshops under the banner of Green, Smart, and Sustainable Stakeholder Education and Training (GSS-SET) that will be custom designed to highlight, promote, and advance our collective understanding of these concepts, especially as to how they apply to generating an increased range of job, career, housing, business, and educational options and opportunities and outcomes for traditionally under-served population-sets and re-emerging urban markets.

SPONSORSHIP NEEDED AND WELCOME:

We are also inviting corporations, small businesses, and individuals to become sponsors of our upcoming series of public awareness forums and capacity development workshops: Green, Smart, and Sustainable Stakeholder Education and Training (GSS-SET). GSS-SET is being offered as a means to to highlight, promote, and advance policies and practices that increase society's capacity to effectively implement green building, sustainable design, and smart growth principles into projects and programs.

Our sponsors will enjoy enhancing their corporate and business image, promoting good will among their employees and investors, reach high-caliber volunteers whom are all leaders in their professions, foster an association between their customers and our growing network of Partners and community stakeholders, and create an atmosphere for positive change throughout the state of New Jersey and the tri-state area.To inquire about this exciting and unique opportunity, please call (206) 202-2883 or email GSS-SET Central.Thank you, in advance, for your interest in and support of Green, Smart, and Sustainable Stakeholder Education and Training 2008-09.

ABOUT GSS-SET CENTRAL:

GSS-SET Central, the site you are viewing, is being presented as a prelude and supplimental resource to this initiative and not meant to be either a comprehensive or certifiable source of information and does not include content that may be deemed or construed to constitute approval, sponsorship or endorsement by any of our existing or future funders, sponsors, or training faciliators. Secondly, the statements expressed by this site's publisher, commentors, and referenced contributors reflect their own views and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of the myriad professional associations, goverment agencies, organizations, or individuals cited or referenced. Questions related to specific statements made herein may be addressed by either posting a comment (see "how to post a comment") or emailing GSS-SET Central: Comment .

BOOST and Partners welcome and encourage you to post your comments on any and/or all of the entries we have created. Their is no right or wrong "opinion"! We live, learn, and share our experience and knowledge in a free and open manner with respect for diverging views. If you are new to the "blogosphere"*** and need a tutorial on posting comments, please click here: "How do I post a comment?".

***Remember and know: Blogosphere is a collective term encompassing all blogs and their interconnections. It is the perception that blogs exist together as a connected community (or as a collection of connected communities) or as a social network.

How to contact BOOST and Partners for collaboration?

BOOST is a creative community solutions organization that develops and utilizes innovative and customized strategies to build structured relationships between residents, businesses, organizations, and government agencies that lead to beneficial economic, social, and educational opportunities and outcomes in underserved and emerging urban neighborhoods.

We are seeking reliable partners to conduct our programming, projects, and processes and welcome financial, technical, technological, and human resources from dedicated sources. Soon, we will be providing a listing of our current Partners and announcing real-time, on-the-ground public awareness forums and community capacity building activities.

If you have questions, suggestions, ideas, and information you would like to share with us, please call (206) 202-2883 and leave your name, date and time of call, brief purpose of call, and your return phone number and we will contact you at our earliest convenience. To fax a document, dial (206) 202-2883 and begin faxing your document when prompted (directly after our greeting!).

You can also email us at: GSS-SETCentral Email

Thank you for your interest in BOOST and we look forward to Building Open Opportunity Structures Together, with you, from now into the foreseeable future.

Very best regards,

Tim Razzaq for BOOST and Partners
(206) 202-2883 (Voice)
http://gss-set.blogspot.com/ (Vision)
Email: Tim Razzaq (Velocity)

Green, Smart, & Sustainable Central

Wednesday, January 30, 2008

BOOST Green, Smart, & Sustainable Stakeholder Education and Training '08-'09

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Mrs. Mercer County Kieanna Chlds Alexander Steps Up to We Are BOOST Contest Jury

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Join BOOST Healthy Homes, Healthy You MeetUp Group and Social Marketing Association

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New copies of "Green to Gold" available at Classics

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Subscribe To GSS-SET News Feed

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BOOST in the Media, Part 1 of a Series

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Facebook Badge

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Plaxo Badge

Plaxo Badge

Green to Gold by Winston From BOOST for Only $20.00

FREE Summer Camp & Discounted Best Seller

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BOOST, Ark of Peace, and GSS-SET at Simply Natural Living: Saturday, July 12 -

GreenSMART Fact: Sorry Suburbs, Cities are Cooler - Courtesy Good Jobs First Clawback Blog

History of BOOST and Recent Activities

History and Recent Activities of Building Open Opportunity Structures Together

Haywood Continues to Introduce Abraham to a Growing and Enthused Audience

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Anastasia Harrison, AIA, LEED, AIQA

Invitation to the public, sponsors, and media

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League of American Bicyclists

Bike to Work Day/Ride - May is National Bike Month!

Blog with BOOST

BOOST to host Mitchell Joachim of Terreform, on sustainable architecture

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