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Newsletter Team
Editor
Lenny Bernstein
Copy Editor:
Carolyn Keefe
Design/Production
Katie Cavert
Writers
Tim Ballard
Lenny Bernstein
Katie Cavert
Kevin Locke Wilson
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BRSI's
Definition of Sustainability
The Blue Ridge Sustainability Institute is an advocate and catalyst for actions that make the earth more sustainable. Sustainability means creating and maintaining conditions under which humans and nature can exist in productive harmony, that permit fulfilling social, economic and environmental requirements of present and future generations. |
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Board of Directors
Paul Bellows
Chair
Retired Chief Operating Officer, Kilpatrick Stockton LLP
Patricia S. Smith
Treasurer
Retired President, The Community Foundation of Western North Carolina
W. Louis Bissette, Jr.
Secretary
Partner, McGuire, Wood & Bissette
Becky Anderson
Consultant; Founder and Former Director, Hand Made in America
Jack Haiden Britt
Blackwell Britt & Associates; Retired Executive Vice President of The University of Tennessee
Susan Fox
Assistant Director of Research, Southern Research Station, US Forest Service
Holly Jones
Buncombe County Commissioner; Director, YWCA of Asheville
Robert K. McMahan
Dean, Professor of Engineering, The Kimmel School, Western Carolina University
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BRSI Profile
We have an amazing collection of talented professionals who contribute their time and resources to the management and development of BRSI projects and programs.
This month's featured member is:
Kevin Locke Wilson
Special Assistant to the Executive Director
Thank you, Kevin, for your contributions!
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Special Thanks to:
Build it Naturally
for donating more than $700 worth of bamboo flooring for the floor renovations at the BRSI office!
We appreciate your support and we are excited we will be able to showcase a sustainable flooring option in the our office!
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Partnerships and/or Collaborations
AdvantageGreen
AdvantageWest
Asheville Buncombe Sustainability Community Initiative
Asheville Buncombe Technical Community College
Asheville Chamber of Commerce
Asheville Design Center
Asheville Green Drinks
Asheville Green Opportunities
Asheville HUB
Asheville Independent Restaurants (AIR)
Biltmore Farms
Blue Ridge Biofuels
Buncombe County
City of Asheville
Conrard Industries
FIRC Group
Global Institute for Sustainability Technologies at Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College
Green Jobs, ABCCM
Hickory Nut Gap Farm
Land-of-Sky Regional Council
North Carolina Department of Environmental and Natural Resources
Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Progress Energy
PurpleCat Networks
Push Designs
Self-Help Ventures Fund / Self-Help Credit Union
Southern Energy & Environment Expo
Sundance Power Systems
Sustainability Advisory Committee on Energy and the Environment
The Community Foundation of Western North Carolina
The Nauhaus Institute (NHI)
U.S. Forestry Service's Southern Research Station
University of North Carolina - Asheville
Warren Wilson College
Waste Reduction Partners
Western Carolina University
Western North Carolina Clean Energy Leadership Group
Western North Carolina Green Building Coalition
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LEADERSHIP GROUP
Tim Ballard
Energy Campaign Manager
Paul Bellows
Chair of Board of Directors
Lenny Bernstein Projects and Programs Director
Brandee Boggs Advisor on Collaborations
Katie Cavert Communications Coordinator
Jennifer Cory Administrative and Financial Advisor Steve Cochran Principal
Paul Dezendorf Business Manager
Rebecca Efroymson Senior Advisor on Natural Environments
Alan Escovitz
Director of Government Relationships Jordan Elaine Special Assistant for Development
Chris Fargo-Masuda
Researcher on Wind Generation
Bill Hargrove
Senior Science Advisor
Tom Hatley
Special Advisor on Rural Development
David Johnson
Senior Advisor on Built and Natural Environment
Drew Kitt
Special Advisor on Renewable Energy
Georgi Kostov
Information Technology Advisor
Lisa Manning
Director of Post Awards Grant Management
Russ Martin
Co-Chair Advisory Board
David Mosrie
Advisory on the Built Environment
Teresa Matthews
Manager of BRSI's Contacts
Laura Piraino
Principal
Jon Snover
Senior Advisor on Sustainability
John Stevens
Executive Director
Sherry Vaughan Administrative Assistant David Wallace Co-Chair Advisory Council Kevin Locke Wilson Special Assistant to the Executive Director
Noah Wilson Manager of Information Technology
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Asheville Green Drinks is a networking party and part of the self-organizing global grassroots movement that connects local communities with environmental ideas, media and action.
Come out to Posana Cafe every Wednesday
at 5:30 pm.
Program begins at 6.
Click here for a 2011 schedule and topics
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ADVISORY COUNCIL
(Co-Chair)
(Co-Chair)
(Owner, Hickory Gap Nut Farms)
(Director of Smith Mill Creek Permaculture School)
(Director of the North Carolina Arboretum)
(Western North Carolina Marketing Director, Self-Help Ventures Fund)
(RLCape Consulting, Inc)
(Robert J. Deutsch, PA)
(Green Jobs Director, Asheville Buncombe Community Christian Ministry)
(Principal, Glazer Architecture)
(Partner, Integritive)
(Owner, Sundance Power Systems)
(President, Ridgetop Associates)
(Director, FLS Solar Technologies)
(Transit Project Manager, City of Asheville)
(Director of Integrative Healthcare, Mission Hospitals)
(EcoBuilders Founder)
(Vice President, Entrepreneurship & AdvantageGreen)
(Research Director of the Bent Creek Institute)
(Managing Director, The Nauhaus Institute)
(Director, LGS, Land of Sky Regional Council of Government)
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Comments Welcome
We, at BRSI, strive to provide useful, accurate information to residents of Western North Carolina.
If any errors exist in this publication we invite you to notify Newsletter Staff as a means of quality control.
We appreciate your assistance.
Click here to submit feedback
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BRSI Launches
Friends
at Annual Celebration
Become a Friend of BRSI
in 2012!
Blue Ridge Sustainability Institute must continue to grow and expand! Your contribution is invaluable to the development and implementation of programs and projects that further our mission of Knowledge into Action. You can become a Friend of BRSI for $25/year. Your name will be displayed in recognition on our website. With your gift, you are investing in the future of sustainability in our region. Together, we can make a difference!
Blue Ridge Sustainability Institute is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Your donation is tax deductible.
Become a Friend of BRSI ! Make a tax deductible donation now!
  
Send this form with payment to:
Friends of BRSI
Blue Ridge Sustainability Institute
1 Battery Park Ave, Suite M2
Asheville, NC 28801
Blue Ridge Sustainability Institute Mission Statement:
The Blue Ridge Sustainability Institute drives knowledge into action, solving societal problems today and for generations to come by harnessing world-class environmental, economic, and energy research to collaborations among researchers, educators, entrepreneurs, government officials, and community activists.
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Energy Upfit Campaign Update
 
 
The Green Restaurant Initiative
Notice anything different at your favorite Asheville restaurants lately? That's right, implementation of energy upfits at a number of the Asheville Independent Restaurants is now in full swing.
The Green Sage started things off with the recent grand opening of their South location on Hendersonville Road, complete with a roof-integrated solar thermal system; an all-LED lighting that uses a fraction of the energy of traditional lighting, contains no mercury and will last for more than 25 years; and a high-efficiency centralized refrigeration system that recaptures waste heat from the cooling process for water pre-heating to supplement the solar installation. The Green Sage is certainly creating a new green model for local independent restaurants.
However, The Green Sage is not alone. Best-in-class solar thermal collectors manufactured right here in North Carolina have been installed by Sundance Power Systems at Neo Cantina in Biltmore Village, Rosetta's Kitchen on Lexington Avenue, HomeGrown on Merrimon Avenue, and Luella's BBQ on Merrimon Avenue. Be sure to drop by for lunch and check out the new symbols of Asheville's entrepreneurial green spirit!
 | | Got solar? Rosetta's does! |
The Neo Cantina solar installation is a particularly exciting achievement as it is the first solar installation to be approved by the Historical Resources Commission of Asheville and Buncombe County for the Biltmore Village Historic District. Project Manager Tim Ballard worked hard with Sundance Power Systems and the Historic Resources Commission to ensure the installation would not negatively impact the aesthetics of this highly valued cultural and historic area. If you were hoping to catch a glimpse of the solar installations in progress, you're not too late. Installations are still planned for the French Broad Chocolate Lounge on South Lexington Avenue and Posana Café on Pack Square. Lighting retrofits, high efficiency water heaters, and other measures are also still to come at many more restaurants, so keep your eyes peeled for the appearance of CFLs and LEDs around town as the incandescent light bulbs begin to disappear! The independent restaurant community has also taken the next step on the Green Certification path by moving Asheville toward the goal of becoming a Green Dining Destination. Tupelo Honey Café and Tupelo Honey South have achieved two-star Green Certification from the Green Restaurant Association, becoming the second and third Green Certified restaurants in Asheville - and only the sixth and seventh in the state of North Carolina. Three-star certified Posana Café was the first GRA certified restaurant in Asheville. More restaurants are sure to follow as they try to keep pace with these trend-setters. As always: eat well, eat local, eat green! The following restaurants are currently participating in the Green Restaurant Initiative (click to go to their websites): |
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Meet Kevin Locke Wilson:
BRSI's Special Assistant to the Executive Director
Kevin Wilson is pleased to call Asheville home again after being away for 15 years. His family's roots run deep in the area, with multiple generations hailing from WNC and Eastern Tennessee. Kevin grew up outside of Black Mountain near the Asheville Watershed and later moved to the Fairview area where he graduated from AC Reynolds High School. The mountains and woods of WNC have always called to Kevin and as a youngster he was active hiking and camping with the Boy Scouts, ultimately earning his rank of Eagle.
Kevin attended UNC-Asheville earning a BS Chemistry degree. During this time he helped implement UNCA's initial recycling program. He was active in chemical education, performing public demonstrations through the American Chemical Society's (ACS) local Student Affiliate chapter and creating ACS's initial web pages for their Student Affiliates. His chemistry research at UNCA centered on Mössbauer Spectroscopy - at the interface between nuclear chemistry and nuclear physics - where he met his undergraduate advisor and BRSI Executive Director John Stevens. After graduating from UNCA, Kevin worked for a year as a Nuclear Physicist at the Technische Universität - München, Germany, in the same laboratory as Nobel Prize Laureate Dr. Rudolph Mössbauer, for whom Mössbauer Spectroscopy is named.
Kevin then entered the Graduate Chemistry program at the University of Colorado Boulder, where he committed himself again to chemistry education in the areas of environmental studies and instrumental analysis. He received numerous teaching awards and trained other graduate students in enhanced didactic methods. At Boulder, Kevin earned a PhD in Analytical Chemistry with an emphasis in Atmospheric Chemistry, a field also at the intersection of chemistry and physics, with half of the coursework coming from each graduate department respectively. Kevin's graduate advisor was John Birks, who with Nobel Prize Laureate Paul Crutzen wrote the first publication introducing the global environmental consequences of nuclear warfare now known as nuclear winter.
Kevin's research projects with John Birks involved the development of novel, miniaturized atmospheric instruments for field measurements of ozone and nitric oxide, both criteria air pollutants. Kevin's thesis work included the development of a less expensive and simplified NO detector, which does not require an external calibration gas, and the discovery and subsequent removal of an indirect water vapor interference in the current EPA method for detecting ozone. His work, termed the "Wilson Birks" method for removing the humidity interference, resulted in ozone monitors capable of operating well in areas of rapid relative humidity changes and has spurred the EPA to begin augmenting their decades-old guidelines for ozone monitoring.
Currently, these small, robust, light-weight, and low-power consuming instruments are used by groups such as the National Park Service, NOAA's Global Monitoring Division, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, and NASA as they are amenable for both remote ground-based and airborne atmospheric measurements on balloons and research aircraft. They are found at sites including Antarctica, the Galapagos Islands, and the Greenland ice sheet; on buoys in the Arctic Ocean; on commercial airliners; in many U.S. National Parks; and at numerous other locations throughout the world.
 | | Enjoying Havasu Creek in the Grand Canyon National Park |
Until very recently, Kevin had worked as a consultant, with his primary focus being the role of "Dr. Daddy" to his two daughters, Talia, age 5 and Maya, age 2. In early June of this year, as Kevin and his wife Jacqueline Donnelly (also a native to Asheville) were looking to return home, Kevin met with his former undergraduate research advisor, John Stevens. They discussed the critical nature of BRSI's work. To benefit the region he calls home, Kevin took the opportunity to join BRSI and assume the roles of both educator and analyst working toward practical and implementable solutions to sustainability.
Kevin says he doesn't get out hiking as much as he'd like but is pleased the whole family was recently able to walk up to Fryingpan Mountain Lookout Tower west of Mt. Pisgah a couple of weeks ago. They were fortunate to encounter a Forest Service employee and gain access to the observation house atop the mountain. The views were wonderful and Kevin looks forward to the additional outdoor activities afforded by WNC.
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BRSI Annual Celebration at historic Sherrill's Inn a Sustainable Success
This November, BRSI celebrated three years of bringing Knowledge Into Action with an evening of festivities at the historic Sherrill's Inn in rural Fairview. Over 100 supporters braved near-freezing temperatures to be in attendance, making the event a huge success and a testament to the growing presence of an eco-minded, action-oriented community in Western North Carolina.
Music for the event was graciously provided by Southern Exposure Sustainable String Band, whose blue grass renditions of classic Americana songs lent an old time southern feel to the gathering. When they're not entertaining, each of the band members is a professional in the field of sustainability, from biofuels to solar and green building. We were thrilled to have the support of this talented and forward-thinking group of musicians!
 | | Southern Exposure rockin' out in the music room |
Guests enjoyed local offerings from some of the area's best independent restaurants, all participants of BRSI's and Asheville Independent Restaurant's collaboration to launch Asheville as a the Nation's Greenest Dining Destination. Many thanks to the following restaurants for their contributions to this year's annual celebration: Posana, Tupelo Honey, NeoCantina, The Green Sage, Rosetta's, French Broad Chocolate Lounge, The Corner Kitchen, and Homegrown.
 | | Randy Talley, Roger Derrough (co-owners of the Green Sage) with John Stevens |
BRSI is grateful to have had so many local businesses supporting this year's raffle. Thanks to the donors listed below, we gave away more than $850 worth of fabulous gifts! Guests left the event with bottles of champagne, books by local authors, yoga sessions, artwork, tennis lessons and gift certificates of all kinds.
 | | Roger Klinger, a local artist, won local art by Jonathan Stacy! |
In the evening's keynote speech, BRSI Executive Director John Stevens spoke on the importance of an integrative approach to addressing present and emerging challenges, wherein collaboration
and community partnership are fundamental components in our efforts to bridge the divide between theory and practical application. He touched on several of BRSI's current initiatives to illustrate the wide variety of programs and projects in development, and he encouraged all those interested in learning more to reach out and get involved!
In closing, John launched the 2012 Friends of BRSI Campaign, a simple and effective way to promote sustainability in our region for generations to come. Become a Friend of BRSI today for just $25 by
using the form included in this newsletter.
 | John Stevens, Executive Director, launches
Friends of BRSI Campaign |
The evening would not have been possible without so many generous donors and volunteers. Evelyn Zebro's arrangements of flowers donated by EarthFare and Flying Cloud Farm brought even
more warmth and charm to the Inn and made for a most idillic setting. Thank you!
 | | Sherry Vaughn |
Katie Cavert would also like to personally thank the following volunteers: Sherry Vaughn, Jordan Elaine, Alyssa Sacora, Jonathan Gach, Tim Sadler, Ben Colvin, Sallie Gadinni-Stevens, John Stevens, Evelyn Zebro, Tim Ballard, Tiffany New and John and Annie Ager. Not only did John and Annie Ager host the event at their home, they also helped with building the fires, providing vases and taking care of small details throughout the night.
 | | Ben Colvin |
We held an almost "Zero Waste" event thanks to the planning and dedication of everyone involved! A special thanks goes to Ben Colvin of Wild South who stayed late, sorted the trash out, and took the recycling and composting bags to Danny's Dumpster, a local and sustainable waste management option.
We're already planning next year's celebration. Don't miss it!
Some comments from celebration goers:
"Thanks for a great evening ;-)"
"Awesome!"
"I thought the celebration held last evening at the old Sherrill Inn home was a wonderful time. The folks seemed to really enjoy themselves and the food was terrific. John and Annie Ager are such gracious hosts and so generous in making their home available to such good causes like BRSI."
Some photos from the evening:
 | | Helen and Paul Dezendorf |
 | | "We saw the secret room!"Patti Glazer, Laura Piraino, Tom Adams, Ben Colvin, and Jacob Barrocas |
 | | Kevin Wilson, Joe Kasben, Stella Bergan, and Gail Weidman |
| Kelley Cranford and Erika Schneider from Sundance
enjoy the warm fire |
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Thanks to all our Celebration Sponsors and Donors!
We appreciate your support, time and energy!
Southern Exposure, Sustainable String Band
 | | If you really loved the music and want to book this band, contact Joe Hallock. |
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Eco-Tourism December 12, 2011
Eco-tourism, responsible travel to natural areas that conserves the environment and sustains the well-being of the local people, offers enormous potential to Western North Carolina. Our area is rich in biodiversity, breathtaking landscapes, and authentic local cultural experiences. However, the development of this lucrative market is still in its infancy, despite the area's identity as a vacation destination.
Speakers at the Blue Ridge Sustainability Institute's December 12th Green Monday will discuss some of the initiatives underway to expand eco-tourism attractions in Western North Carolina.
- Alex Naar, Director of Sustainable Tourism Outreach at East Carolina University's Center for Sustainable Tourism, will talk about the growth of eco-tourism, nationally and in North Carolina, and about his office's programs to enhance that growth;
- Sarah Marcinko, Environment Leader for Navitat, will talk about the efforts her company has made to develop an environmentally-responsible zipline attraction;
- Julie Judkins, Manager of the Appalachian Trail Conservancy's A.T. Communities Program, will talk about this effort to enhance the benefit local communities obtain from use of the Appalachian Trail;
- Alice Cohen, U.S. Forest Service, will talk about a public dialog the Forest Service is initiating to provide input to the strategy they will be developing for non-motorized trails. The availability of trails for hiking, mountain biking, and horseback riding is one of the major eco-tourism attractions our area offers;
- Ed Mayer, co-founder of Earth Matters, will briefly discuss national and international organizations that promote ecotourism, establish standards, criteria, and certify tourism operations for environmental and cultural sustainability similar to organic or fair trade certification; and
- Jennifer Flynn, Coordinator for NC STEP (Small Town Economic Prosperity) Program in Marshall, NC, will be talking about eco-tourism efforts in Marshall and Madison Counties.
Come join us for what promises to be a lively discussion!
The December 12th Green Monday will be held in the Board Room of the Asheville Area Chamber of Commerce Building from 3:00-4:30 p.m. Green Mondays are funded by a grant from Progress Energy, with support from the Asheville Area Chamber of Commerce and Purplecat Networks.
Short presentations from speakers will be followed by a general discussion.
Green Mondays are open to the public.
Join us on December 12th from 3:00 - 4:30 p.m.
Monthly Green Monday events take place at the Asheville Area Chamber of Commerce located at 36 Montford Avenue, Asheville.
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A New Look at Sustainable Food Systems November 14, 2011 Review
BRSI's May 16th Green Monday considered sustainable agriculture from the local level. This past November 14th Green Monday considered agricultural sustainability from a more global level and the challenge of feeding the U.S.
Moderator Dr. Jack Britt, Executive Vice President, Retired, of The University of Tennessee, opened the discussion by showing the impact of agriculture intensification. Globally this has avoided 590 billion metric tonnes of greenhouse gas emission (CO2-eq) since 1961, 16 times the 31.3 billion metric tonnes of greenhouse gas the world emitted in 2009. While there is much concern about the fate of American family farms, in 2007, 86% of all farms and 62% of all farmland was owned by families or individuals. From 1982 to 2007 U.S. population rose 30%, but cultivated crop land decreased by 19%. Globally the U.S. ranks number one in total farmland, corn and soybean production, and milk per cow; second in meat and citrus production; but only 40th in fertilizer use per acre and 43rd in pesticide use per acre.
Dr. Jeanine Davis, Associate Professor at NCSU and Extension Specialist at the Mountain Horticultural Crops Research and Extension Center, talked about the intensification of tomato production. Eighty-five percent of U.S. tomatoes are grown in two states, California and Florida. Americans eat about twenty pounds of tomatoes per person per year, three-quarters of which are in processed form: ketchup, salsa, and sauce. Growing all of the tomato products consumed in Buncombe County (Asheville and surroundings) would require about 25% of the county's existing vegetable acreage. However, supplying Mecklenberg County (Charlotte and surroundings) would require six times the existing vegetable acreage.
Dr. Davis assessed several measures of sustainability and showed how complex the interactions were. Even though tomatoes are mostly water and are irrigated, water usage is lower than for many other crops. Nitrogen use was high, but could be reduced with existing techniques. Food miles are not an important consideration; 80% or more of greenhouse gas emission occur before the produce leaves the farm, and primary and secondary processing are also important emission sources. Local farms pay workers about 5% more than industrial farms. Other issues, such as hours worked, pesticide exposure, and working and living conditions are harder to quantify but need to be discussed.
Keith Collins, President of Milkco, an Asheville milk processing plant, talked about the concentration of the U.S. milk industry. Fifty-two percent of U.S. milk is produced in five states: California, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, New York, and Idaho. The number of milk processing plants in the country has decreased from over 8,000 in 1950 to 324 currently, while the amount of milk processed has increased by more than 50%. North Carolina has a $1 billion/year dairy industry, of which $200 million/year goes to the approximately 300 dairy farms in the state, 97% of which are family-owned. Milkco processes over 1 million gallons of milk/week, 75-80% of which comes from a 150 mile radius. Since the Southeast produces less milk than it uses, it is necessary to bring milk in from other regions. Mr. Collins said that typical milk plant use 1.5 gallons of water per gallon of milk processed, mostly for cleaning equipment, but Milkco is at half the national average. Even so, Milkco is the largest industrial user of water in Buncombe County.
Tony McGaha, Haywood County Agricultural Agent, talked about the beef industry. Fifty-three percent of beef cows are raised in eight states, with Texas having the largest number of cows. However, 56% of feed lots are in three states, Texas, Nebraska, and Kansas. The industry is even more concentrated at the meat processing level, with four companies (TysonFoods, Cargill Meat Solution, JBA-Swift Foods, and National Beef) accounting for 75% of the beef processed in the country.
Mr. McGaha outlined the production chain for beef. A calf is raised for 6-7 months to a weight of 500-700 pounds, then sold to feeders who raise it 1000-1400 pounds on cereal grains. It is then sold to a meat packer who tries to break even on the meat and make a profit in byproducts (hide, tallow, etc.), then to the supermarkets and other retailers who serve the ultimate consumer. He concluded by talking about the land availability and feed production limitations on producing organic or natural beef and on using local food.
A video of this Green Monday can be found here on the BRSI website: www. blueridgesustainability.org.
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BRSI's monthly newsletter, Knowledge Into Action, is made possible by a generous donation from the
James McClure Clarke Fund
Thank you for your dedication to sustainability in Western North Carolina
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