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Sponsors
Heard Robins Cloud Black & Lubel, LLP
Ambassadors
Melissa Coleman
Beverly Ryhmes
Margo & Harvey Taylor
Hal & Paula Wingo
Board Members
Todd Lopez, President
Colin Keegan, VP
Don Devito
Steve Dilg
Mercedes Downing
Jason Espinoza
Nolan Eskeets
Joe Garcia
Andre Jones
Shawn Katz, Treasurer
Zoe Nelsen
Jessie Parker
Christina Selby
Taylor Selby, Secretary
Sandra Wechsler
Staff
Angela Harris
Karen Rencountre
Christina Selby
Lora Sheldon
Bianca Sopoci-Belknap
Interns
India Davis
Lucy Gent
Paul Navrot
Adelante Food Bank Needs help keeping their pantry stocked for families in need. Contact Gail Herling at 467-2571 to donate.
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Greetings!
In this time of deep crisis and opportunity, a well-spring of action is bursting forth from young people through the walls of classrooms to the streets of our desert community and beyond.
Over the past almost decade, Earth Care has cultivated a network of youth and teachers who are educated and concerned about the state of the world and actively seek and take part in change efforts through their own actions and their collective work in the community.
We are bringing 2009 to a close inspired by our local heroes - from our ally classroom teachers who are engaging their students in the study of government and economics through "individual symbolic action" such as living a plastic-free life to Earth Care's youth organizers who are raising awareness about the injustice of sweatshops and waste through do-it-yourself sewing workshops.
As we bring in the new year, we are committing to extending these actions to create long-term community change. Earth Care with our partners in the Food Security Coalition will engage problem-solving skills that recognize the interconnectedness of the world, enable youth to address pressing food security needs, build a just, sustainable food system, align local renewable energy sources, and implement innovative water solutions to help us live within the means of our desert ecosystem. We are seeing the rise of collective courage and action for deep change in a moment that demands nothing less.
We hope you will rise to this challenge with us. If you have an envelope from Earth Care sitting on your table, we hope you will take a minute now to read its contents and make an end of the year donation at whatever level you can afford. Join us in our belief that with you by their side, youth can and are changing the world.
With peace and gratitude,
Christina Selby
Executive Director and Co-Founder |
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Why I Donate to Earth Care International
By Benefactor Anne Corbett Moore
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Last October I gave nearly every single thing I owned to Earth Care International as a donation for them to sell. I cannot think of a single thing I have done in my life that gave me more satisfaction and reward. Giving away everything except what fit into my SUV was a dramatic thing to do for a 62 year old widow who had very little left in the bank.
I had always viewed major gifts to non profit organizations as something done only by people of the stature of the Kennedys and Rockefellers. I wanted to be a giver. I loved the concept. But I always felt I had to win the lottery first and have a few extra millions to do it. I was too scared to part with my precious nest egg of art and collectables which I now view as the thousand ton albatross around my neck. (Maybe I should not be maligning endangered species here.) Of course I had always made those $50 or $100 donations here and there to National Public Radio or Smile Train over the years, but never in my wildest dreams did I think I would ever be in a position
to give on this scale.
What I had not realized until I started unpacking those 17,000 pounds was that I was dragging every single bit of my dead past with me into the future. I was trying to keep it alive and had been storing and moving it ever since my husband's death as a way of refusing to just let go. The germ of a desire to just give it away began to build.
Earth Care was prepared to be as willing a recipient as I was to be a giver. Angela represented the organization with graceful professionalism and immediately said to me, "Wonderful! Of course we can get a truck and six volunteers there this weekend. We will find a place to put all of it and we are so grateful for this gift."  The co-founders of Earth Care did cheerful heavy lifting at the house those two days along with five other volunteer staff. As I saw my life leaving the exit I was so happy to discover that there was not one pull at my heartstrings that I was making a mistake and my angst behaved itself too. I had been a teacher and a lawyer and I could see the concept of training teenagers to be leaders in sustainable living was as close to my ideal of how to help the world as an organization could get.
I bought an Airstream trailer with the boat money and am writing this from the warmth of Carmel-by-the-sea in California where I plan to spend the winter. I am happier than I have been since my husband died and I couldn't be here without that gift, strangely enough.
Keep your eyes out for the upcoming Valentine's Day Art Auction, details to be announced.
- Anne Moore
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Youth Allies Program Update |
| The Youth Allies now have their own e-newsletter with more information about the program. Click here to view the Youth Allies Newsletter
Please email Karen@earthcare.org to be added to the Youth Allies e-Newsletter list.
Current youth-led projects include:
Climate Change Action: Promoting actions that reduce CO2 emissions. Current actions include: No Car Idling Campaign, supporting the development of Public and Alternative Transportation
Food and Health: Strengthening Community Gardens and providing hot, healthy meals to homeless and those in need through Food Not Bombs
Consumption & Consumer Awareness: Raising awareness about the social and environmental costs of U.S. consumption around the world. Promoting self-reliance through Do-It-Yourself workshops, School Eco-Footprint Reduction Campaign, and promoting local economy.
Art & Social Change: Providing workshops to develop art skills and public pieces to educate on themes of social justice and sustainability. Look out for the Hip Hop Convergence in April.
Radio shows providing the youth perspective on sustainability with Youth Media Project
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Youth Allies Graduate and Gates Scholar, Selinda Garcia
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Selinda
"Sully" Garcia, Youth Allies Class of 2007, received a four-year scholarship from the Bill and Melinda Gates
Foundation. The scholarship covers tuition, room, board, and books,
plus trips home to see her family a few times a year.
Currently a
sophomore at Kalamazoo College, MI, we asked Sully if her experience in
Earth Care's Youth Allies has helped her in college and her continuing leadership for change. She replied:
"Two
movements that I am a part of right now is fighting for equal rights
for the LGBT community for the greater Kalamazoo/Michigan area, and
also the movement to make Kalamazoo College more sustainable and
environmentally friendly. Being part of Youth Allies has tremendously
helped me open up my eyes and WANT to take action towards creating a
change. Being in Youth Allies greatly expanded my own "bubble" and
comfort
zone, making me interact with others. It awakened me in a
sense to the issues of the world, and sparked the leader inside me
and has made a more aware citizen with a purpose to change the world
for the better."
We
are proud of Sully and all graduates who carry their organizing and leadership skills
with them into college and beyond. Many Youth Allies grads continue to participate with Earth Care through the Youth Allies Network.
 Selinda Garcia, Santo Domingo Pueblo |
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Sustainable Schools Program Update:
Announcing the Sustainability Education Task Force
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This September, a group of teachers and organizers from around Santa Fe and supported by Earth Care formed the Sustainability Education Task Force to carry out the education and outreach segment of the Sustainable Santa Fe Plan.
While recognizing the importance of change in all systems of education, the Sustainability Education Task Force's primary focus is on how Santa Fe Public Schools can be responsive to global contemporary issues and enable students to contribute solutions to the real world issues our communities face - especially solutions to the urgent challenge of social, economic, and environmental sustainability.
The Task Force launched it first public education campaign to promote November 9-13th as National Sustainability Education Week in collaboration with schools and organizations around the country through the U.S. Partnership for Education for Sustainable Development. The Task Force was successful in engaging the support of public officials. Governor Richardson, Mayor Coss, SF County Commissioners, and the School Board of Education all passed resolutions declaring their support for NSEWeek and the integration of sustainability education in schools and colleges of education. Read resolutions here.
The Task Force produces the e-newsletter Sustainable Education...Education for Change. The newsletter provides resources and thought-provoking articles for educators of all kinds. The first issue, released during National Sustainability Education Week, was distributed to the entire Santa Fe school district by Superintendent Gutierrez. To sign up to receive the Newsletter or view archives of past issues, visit Earth Care's Sustainable Schools website. The next issue will be released on January 11, 2010 in time for Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service and provide information and resources on the link between social justice and sustainability. |
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Thank You to our Donors since September '09!
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Donors
Acequia Madre Elementary
Katie Bell
Bobbe Besold
Tai and Satara Bixby
Patti Bott
Lea Bradovich
Maria Isabel Breheny
Chris Calvert
Randi Chaikind
Kelle Cochran
Anthony D'Agostino
Craig Deforest
Don Devito
Steve and Lisa Dilg
Brenda Dominguez
Nate Downey
Jessica Emerson
Jason Espinoza
Sasha, Aviva and Kurt Faust
Lisa Flynn
Sue Garfitt
Lydia Garvey
Lucy, Eric and Elise Gent
Matt Glass
George Gonzales
Bonnie Granieri
Christie Green
Bill and Betty Harris
Pat and Bessie Harris
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Donors Cont'd
Byron Hatcher
Catherine Hebenstreit
Maria Jackson
Jessica and Brian Jensen
Denise Johnston
William Leeson and Heather Karlson
Lara Katz
Shawn Katz
Ron Kent
Carl Kolber
Betty Kuhn
Patrick Malone
Pamela Mang
Melissa Adair and Galindo Mazatl
Dominique Mazeaud
Richard Meltz
Ty Middleton
Katherine Mortimer
Zoe Nelson
Stephen Noseworthy
Louise Pape
Marita Prandoni
Margaret Vigil and David Rael
Mark and Jocelma Rendleman
Jeanne Rosner
Cliff Ross
Jennette Rude
Taylor Selby
Margo Taylor
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Donors Cont'd
Rae Marie Taylor
Marvin LLC
Sandra Weshcler
Hal and Paula Wingo
Nancie Wingo
Todd Yocham
Youth Service America
Members
Esha Chiocchio
Joan Henderson
Toby Herzlich
Ellen Kemper and Ken Hughes
Lara Katz
Leslie Lakind
Tama Jones Lombardo
John Parker
In-kind
Stephen Bohannon
Clear Light Books
Jennifer Esperanza
La Montanita Co-op
Melissa Adair and Galindo Mazatl
Monte del Sol Charter School
Anne Moore
Tanya Story
Tune Up Cafe
Chuck Paterson Oriental Rugs
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2010 Sustainable Santa Fe Guide
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We would love to hear your feedback about the SSF Guide to help usmake the next issue even more useful to you and the community.
Please take our survey.
CLICK HERE FOR THE GUIDE SURVEY
The 2010 Guide is released and can be picked up at:
Real Food Nation, Koffee Klatch at the Hospital, all three Los Alamos National Bank locations,
SF Community College, Genoveva Chavez Community Center, New York Deli, Lucci's
pizza, SF Chamber of Commerce, Plaza Cafe Southside, Natural Grocers, India House,
Ace Hardware, Plants of the Southwest, Second. St. Brewery, Tree House Cafe,
Broken Spoke bike shop, Amanda's Flowers, Dahl Plumbing, Whole Foods- Main
& Wild Oats, Montoya Gov't Bldg., Reynolds Gov't Bldg., the Roundhouse, NM State
Library and Archives, the Main library, Rob and Charlies, Annpurana, La Montanita
Co-op, Solana Center Laundromat, Fort Marcy Complex, Ecco Gelato, Starbucks on
San Francisco St., 1st National Bank on the plaza, Santa Fe Hemp, Santa Fe
Farmers Market, Critters and Me, The Feed Bin, TheFirebird, and Bumblebees Baja Grill. Or online at www.sustainablesantafeguide.com
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Give us your old cell phones!
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| Earth Care and Cell Funds are joining up to refurbish or safely recycle your unwanted or broken cell phones. Drop old cell phones off at our office M-F from 9-5 and help us raise funds to support our work with youth and teachers! |
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Warmest Wishes for a Happy Holiday Season,
Christina, Bianca, Angela, Lora, Karen, India, Lucy and Pablo
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