 
Chesapeake Education, Arts, and Research Society A nonprofit organization dedicated to all who share the Chesapeake watershed environment.
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Greetings!
"Cheers to a New Year and another chance for us to get it right." ~Oprah Winfrey
As we move into 2012, reflection, resolutions, and renewal are on the edge of many movements merging together. We hope that you will join us at some of the exciting gatherings/events planned for this month.
In solidarity, Kim Walsh ~ Executive Director |
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Two Discussion Circles that started in October - World on the Edge and Common Security Club/Resilience Circle - will be finishing up in January/February. Rumor has it that some circle members would like to host some Re-Skilling Workshops or work with Greenbelt GIVES on a Barter Network. New circles will start up later this winter or early spring.
Please join GCAN in January for the following dates:
Sat, Jan 7 (2-4 pm) Winterize Your Home Workshop
Greenbelt Community Center, Multipurpose Room #201
Wed, Jan 11 (7-9:15 pm) **MONTHLY GCAN EVENING**
Guest Speaker Juanita Constible from the Climate Reality Project
Wed, Jan 11 (10-12 pm) Rally for Offshore Wind Power, Annapolis, MD. We will be gathering on Lawyers' Mall to let our elected officials know that Marylanders support offshore wind energy. For more information, contact Joelle Novey-
joelle@gwipl.org ~ 202-256-1450; more details at www.gwipl.org.
Jan 12-13 Join a House Party to discuss overturning Citizens United. As long as corporations have a stranglehold on our elected officials, we will never make progress on climate change. http://www.united4thepeople.org/action.html Below is a House Party in Greenbelt to attend along with more information about this action!
Jan 14-16 March for Jobs & Justice, attend a rally in Baltimore (1/14) or DC (1/16) or "march" from Baltimore *to* DC http://www.occupy4jobs.org/baltmlk2012.shtml
Jan 19-21 Attend a rally in Annapolis or DC to encourage our Annapolis Legislators and Congress to overturn Citizen's United. Some of the events are being referred to as "Occupy the Courts" and "Occupy the Corporations", but these are really good old-fashioned rallies. http://www.united4thepeople.org/action.html
Tues, Jan 24 (5-6:30 pm doors open at 4:30 pm) 18th Annual Environmental Summit, Miller Auditorium, Miller Senate Building, Annapolis. Come to Annapolis and hear from top legislative leaders and advocates about 2012 environmental legislation.
ANY DAY - drive past the Greenbelt Baptist Church (Crescent & Hillside) and take a look at the new solar panels on the flat section of the church roof! For more info and photos of the installation, visit www.greenbeltcommunitysolar.com
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 HOUSE PARTY TO OVERTURN "CITIZENS UNITED"
JANUARY 13 ( 7-9 PM)
Join us in working against the Supreme Court ruling that allows corporations to spend unlimited funds to influence our elections. Public Citizen is teaming up with Common Cause, Free Speech for People, Move to Amend and People for the American Way to host house parties all over the country. Help lead the movement for a constitutional amendment to reverse the disastrous Supreme Court ruling in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission.
Here in Greenbelt there will be a house party in a private home on Friday, January 13 (7-9 pm). We will discuss goals and actions on a city, state and national level. We will strategize on how to re-introduce a proposed resolution to the Greenbelt City Council, will learn about Jamie Raskin's plan to introduce a resolution in the Annapolis Legislature, and will hear about several state and federal congressional attempts towards a constitutional amendment to overturn Citizens United or to challenge the ruling (e.g., Montana and California). We will prepare for public events to be held in Annapolis with Senator Jamie Raskin on January 19 in the evening, at the Supreme Court with Cornel West on January 20 (Union Station or Capital South Metro train exits), and possibly again at the Supreme Court on January 21, 2012 - the two year anniversary of the ruling.
Please RSVP to Eugenia Kalnay at ekalnay@gmail.com or 301-313-0208 |
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TapRoots: Gardens at Greenbelt Middle School
TapRoots enhances middle school science by integrating an agricultural educational program committed to introducing topics of environmental sustainability, agroecology, food safety and nutrition. Through rigorous hands-on learning activities, students will relate to the environment on a more personal level while simultaneously broadening their ecological understandings.
TapRoots is active at Greenbelt Middle School and will invest in a variety of projects geared to stimulate environmental stewardship among the student body. The Green Team, the school's environmental club, is seeking to involve their students in local environmental issues. TapRoots will support the Green Team by connecting university students to the club, and providing participation incentives with cooking demonstrations centered on healthy diets and ecological sustainability.
Greenbelt Middle School students will transition into a new educational facility in Fall 2012. The historic middle school will be left vacant for stakeholders to determine its future use. TapRoots will engage the students in the planning process of the building's retrofit by allowing them to write letters of petition to address their concerns of proposed uses.
TapRoots and Greenbelt Middle School will work together to construct a garden designed to serve as an outdoor classroom for grades 6th, 7th, and 8th.
The garden is a tool which complements the TapRoots curriculum. TapRoots lab activities are designed to synthesize classroom material by encouraging group discussion and scientific exploration. The garden promotes a safe and welcoming habitat for learning, where the students take ownership of their knowledge. TapRoots volunteers are excited to begin the spring program at Greenbelt Middle School. There are many different opportunities to work with the program. If you or someone you know is interested in becoming more involved in the TapRoots project please contact Tony DiMeglio at tonydimeglio@gmail.com for further information.
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Reel N' Meal @ New Deal Cafe
Reel and Meal is a monthly film series at the New Deal Cafe exploring vital environmental and social justice issues.
RACE: The Power of Illusion
"In this House" is the third part of the PBS series "RACE: The Power of Illusion." It deals with ways that banks, lending agencies, and other institutions control the ways mortgages are provided to different groups, resulting in racial biases in housing and how "color-blindness" only perpetrates the problem. While Greenbelt is not mentioned in the film, some footage of it (from "The City") is shown. Dianne Lyday and Nora Howell from Baltimore Racial Justice Action will lead the discussion following the film.
Monday, January 16 (7 PM) @ New Deal Cafe
FREE & Open to the Public
with optional, incredible vegan buffet at 6:30 PM for $13.
| Admission to the film is always FREE! For additional information, contact January event sponsor Prince George 's County Peace & Justice Coalition via Shirley Middleton at smiddle@me.com.
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The Center for the Chesapeake Story..
The Chestory Archive
Chestory is supporting the efforts of the Calvert Marine Museum's effort to archive Tom Wisner's creative work. From October 2011 through March 2012, we have a Chesapeake Conservation Corps volunteer, Concetta Laskey, working full time on this effort. Her progress
report on this effort follows...
The Calvert Marine Museum acquired the Center for the Chesapeake Story Collection, a compilation of documents, artwork, music and more, so that it could be archived and stored properly. Tom's main focus for the Chestory Archive was to have it reach a wider audience than just Museum visitors.
For more information about this project or if you are interested in how you or your organization could use the Chestory Archive, please email Concetta, Project Manager, at Gather 'Round Chesapeake: Tom Wisner's Vision
When Tom Wisner, the Chesapeake Bay 'Bard' died in April 2010, he'd already given us living treasures: dozens of recorded Chesapeake songs, stories and radio shows. Now, Sara Ebenreck Leeland, co-founder and partner with Tom in Chestory (Center for the Chesapeake Story) project, has published a book that collects Tom's written reflections on the powerful insights that guided his work. Gather 'Round Chesapeake: Tom Wisner's Vision is a collection of Wisner's writing, from short celebratory poems to analysis of how our cultural ways of thinking about 'nature' results in the destruction of our waters and what an alternative 'Come Full Circle' way of living might be like.
"Thanks to water for its grace, For singing on the roof when it rains". "Spiritual learning comes backwards."
"You begin mostly in the dark, choosing paths from impulse by following your heart. Then, much later, truths begin to emerge, ...and you learn why you did those things."
The book is available from the following websites.
www.chestory.com
www.amazon.com
www.saraleelandbooks.net
and selected Chesapeake bookstores.
In the works are:
- A songbook of Tom Wisner's songs for children.
- A songbook of additional Tom Wisner songs.
- A digital-archive of Wisner's regional stories & songs.
For more information, contact Joan Clement at Chestory@gmail.com
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VIDEO of the MONTH
States take on Citizens United!
 | | Undo Citizens United |
To learn more check out the interview on Democracy Now with Harvard Law School Professor Lawrence Lessig, author of a new book that examines how money buys results in Congress and fuels campaigns that put the powerful in office.
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CHEARS on FACEBOOK!
Become a fan of CHEARS on Facebook and receive updated information in a format that may best suit your networking preferences. We will continue to communicate via email but are pleased to offer yet another method to share information about upcoming events, discussion boards, photo albums, and much more.
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Follow CHEARS
on Twitter!
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Chesapeake Education, Arts, and Research Society4 Maplewood Court · Greenbelt, MD · 20770 www.chears.org
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