Consensus Grows Over Need to "Go Local"

Dear friends,

The trend is unmistakable. A new consensus is building. Going local is truly catching on. Okay, perhaps not among the world's power-brokers and corporate globalizers.

Yet every month new groups are forming to prepare our communities for peak oil and climate change, farmers markets are expanding by leaps and bounds, campaigns are mounting to break our fossil fuel dependency (see right and below), and more and more decision-makers are seeing localization as vital to forging stronger economies and a greener planet.

At the recent West Coast Bioneers conference, a yearly gathering of environmental and social justice advocates, a number of speakers stressed the local imperative. Michael Pollan explained how local farming boosts regional food security, Spencer Beebe declared "bioregional economies the only way to go" given how attuned they are to their local environs, and Paul Hawken spoke of "ecological freedom" arising only where communities protect the biological integrity of the places they call home.

Clearly, our sprawl-based, consume-more-at-all-costs economy is reaching its endgame. A new society that respects all people and lives in harmony with the earth's natural cycles beckons. It is our privilege and obligation to speed along its arrival. Join this growing movement of cultural renewal and creation!

Yours for community self-reliance, sustainability, and justice,

- Aaron, Allyse, Brian, Dave, Ingrid, and Kirsten

Become a Matching Donor for Our Year-End "Localize the Bay" Drive!

At this critical juncture, the Bay Localize team realizes we must broaden our network of supporters to take our work to the next level. This December, we are embarking on a year-end "Localize the Bay" support drive to raise $25,000 toward our efforts.

As one who understands the urgency of transitioning our region to one that lives within its means and in peace with the global community, we ask that you issue a matching grant to Bay Localize by Wednesday, December 6. All donations are tax-deductible and support our vital programs to localize our regional economy.

Matching grant donors of at least $250 will be personally acknowledged in our next newsletter and on our website, and all donors of $1,000 or more will receive a printed and bound copy of the policy report, Building a Resilient and Equitable Bay Area, as well as advance online access to our Localization Asset Map directory of local food, energy, and materials reuse efforts throughout the 9-county Bay Area (slated for Spring 2007). Contact Aaron at aaron@baylocalize.org for more info.

MAKE A DONATION ONLINE: http://www.baylocalize.org/?q=node/11

• Rooftop Resources Project Makes Strides, Forms Volunteer Task Forces
• Campaign for Bay Area Localization Urges Greater Regional Self-Reliance
• Oakland Passes Historic "Oil Independence by 2020" Resolution
• Bay Localize Shortens Name, Carries Same Mission Forward
• Bay Localize Secures a New Home Office in Downtown Oakland!
• Events Roundup: Recent and Upcoming Gatherings
• Support or Get Involved with Bay Localize Today!

Rooftop Resources Project Makes Strides, Forms Volunteer Task Forces

Now in its third month, Bay Localize's Rooftop Resources Project is making strides towards mainstreaming rooftop gardens and green roofs, rainwater catchment systems, and rooftop solar in our region.

In October, the project received a generous grant from the Laurence Levine Charitable Fund to assess the potential for rooftop development on a range of buildings in Oakland and beyond. For this stage, we are working with engineering firm Holmes Culley (www.holmesculley.com) and urban planning group Design, Community and Environment (www.dceplanning.com). The firms will collaborate to produce a conceptual rendering of suitable rooftop resource systems in a select Oakland neighborhood and project probable yields in food, energy, and rainwater capture.

On November 19th, Bay Localize teamed up with the Dig City Cooperative and Berkeley EcoHouse for a hands-on edible rooftop garden workshop. Stop by the EcoHouse at 1305 Hopkins Street to see the fruit, veggie and herb garden that workshop participants created on the tool shed roof.

In addition to demonstrating the feasibility and benefits of rooftop systems, the Rooftop Resources Project is moving them into mainstream prominence through a broad campaign that's rallying and representing the community. In the past month, project volunteers from Oakland, Berkeley, and San Francisco have formed Research, Outreach and Neighborhood Assessment task forces -- each of which is looking for new members!

Check out the Rooftop Resources section of our website for project details, task force activities and the latest updates. We are also in the process of compiling a gallery of local rooftop systems, and seek your helpful suggestions of case studies to be included.

For more details on the feasibility and applicability of rainwater catchment in the Bay Area, check out Bay Localize's recent interview with civil engineer Ben Jordan at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hPDq6ywj_Sc

Get Involved! Contact project leader Ingrid Severson at ingrid@baylocalize.org.

Campaign for Bay Area Localization Urges Greater Regional Self-Reliance

As Bay Area residents gear up for the holiday shopping season, a new coalition of business and environmental organizations is calling on elected officials and business leaders to strengthen our regional economy through localization. While most people have grown accustomed to holiday presents that come from China and meals grown thousands of miles away, the Campaign for Bay Area Localization argues that the long-term health and sustainability of our region depends on creating an economy grounded in the local production of food, manufactured goods, energy, and financial capital.

The Campaign, led by Bay Localize, the Business Alliance for Local Living Economies, the Center for Sustainable Economy, International Forum on Globalization, and Redefining Progress, warns that rising fossil fuel costs, climate change impacts, growing international instability, and massive trade deficit pose escalating risks to our region. (Note: Bay Localize's Localization Strategy Initiative has assumed the role of coordinating our participation in the Campaign for Bay Area Localization.)

In a fully updated, 30-page strategy paper released this week entitled Building a Resilient and Equitable Bay Area (see below), the Campaign urges elected officials and business leaders to work closely to transform the Bay Area economy from one utterly dependent on imported food, energy, manufactured goods, and financial capital to one that is more self-reliant.

"The Bay Area is blessed with nearly 600,000 acres of farmland, along with extensive rooftop and urban green spaces, that could serve the region's population a diversity of fresh foods," says Aaron Lehmer, Network Coordinator for Bay Localize. "Coupled with seafood from our coasts and expanded partnerships with Central Valley farmers, there is no reason for the Bay Area to be importing well over half of its food supplies from distant producers who rely on heavy doses of chemical pesticides, preservatives, and fossil fuel energy to send their food here."

To realize the transformation to a localized Bay Area economy, the Campaign has identified dozens of public governance and private sector initiatives that impede localization and favor export-led development. In the years ahead, the Campaign will work to remove obstacles to localization; call on federal, state, and local agencies to adopt localization as a primary policy objective; study the potential for replacing imports with locally produced goods and services; and identify needed changes in taxes, subsidies, expenditure patterns, procurement practices, and public investments.

To view the Campaign press release, "Business and Environmental Groups Agree: Local Is Better for the Economy," please visit:
http://www.regionalprogress.org/Localization Press Release Final.pdf

For a full list of nonprofit and government agency Campaign endorsers, go to:
http://www.regionalprogress.org/Campaign Endorsers.pdf

To read the Campaign's paper, Building a Resilient and Equitable Bay Area, visit:
http://www.regionalprogress.org/Building a Resilient and Equitable Bay Area.pdf

Or to browse the policy paper’s Executive Summary, go to:
http://www.regionalprogress.org/Executive Summary BBA.pdf

Oakland Passes Historic "Oil Independence by 2020" Resolution

On October 17, the Oakland City Council unanimously passed legislation making Oakland the first city in the U.S. to aim for oil independence by 2020. Prior to the vote, Bay Localizers Kirsten Schwind and David Room, among others from the community, gave public comments in support of the resolution.

Inspired by legislative measures in Sweden, the resolution was sponsored by Councilmember Nancy Nadel and spearheaded by the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights, the Apollo Alliance, and the Urban Accords Institute. Earlier this year, Sweden released a landmark national action plan, articulating programs and policy measures that are expected to reduce that country's oil consumption by as much as 40-50% by 2020. The City of Oakland hopes to provide a similar model for cities in the U.S.

An Oakland task force composed of local, regional, and national experts will develop a robust oil independence plan, consolidating measures from around the world that can be used to reduce oil consumption citywide. The task force will report back within six months of its formation, and the resulting action plan will recommend bold initiatives to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, increase residential and commercial energy efficiency rates, establish Oakland as a national leader in green jobs creation, and secure the city's energy needs through renewable energy sources.

David Room is now working along with city officials and others to further develop the task force's "charter" and recruit members to participate.

Bay Localize Shortens Name, Carries Same Mission Forward

As you may have noticed, your favorite organization dedicated to localizing our region recently changed its name. As of October, we are now Bay Localize (an abbreviated version of our previous Bay Area Relocalize moniker). The change came about after a common recognition among group members that our old name was a real mouthful!

Despite the catchier name, Bay Localize hasn't changed a bit -- we're still a boisterous start-up nonprofit committed to advancing self-reliance, sustainability, and social justice in communities across our region. And we're still doing this in a way that respects other efforts out there, and empowers volunteers to create change where they live. We hope the name change will make it easier for you to remember to check up on us on our website (www.baylocalize.org), and to tell your friends about the new group that's promoting an exciting vision for our region -- Bay Localize!

Bay Localize Secures a New Home Office in Downtown Oakland!

Bay Localize recently moved into a new office in the beautiful Historic Central Building on the corner of 14th and Broadway in downtown Oakland. We are delighted to share the 12th floor with our friends at Urban Habitat, which coordinates the Social Equity Caucus and a new quality jobs coalition in which Bay Localize is proud to participate.

Having a home has already been an incredible boon to our work, allowing for closer coordination between team members, a workspace for interns and volunteers, and access to meeting rooms for community gatherings. In the past month alone, we've hosted meetings of the Research and Outreach Taskforces for the Rooftop Resources Project and a well-attended exploratory meeting on Community Choice Aggregation.

Office Warming Party at Bay Localize!
Join us for an office warming celebration Thursday, December 7 at 6:00 pm at:

Bay Localize
436 14th Street, Suite 1218 (right upstairs from 12th St. BART)
Oakland, CA 94612
(510) 834-0420

RSVP to Ingrid Severson at ingrid@baylocalize.org. Look forward to seeing you there!

Events Roundup: Recent and Upcoming Gatherings

It's been a busy fall for Bay Localize. Aside from settling into our new office, we've been stepping up our presence at green gatherings throughout northern California.

September 9th saw Bay Localize representatives at no less than three Bay Area events. Volunteers tabled and passed out literature at the Power to the Peaceful Festival in San Francisco and West Oakland's Green SoulFest, while Network Coordinator Aaron Lehmer spoke about localization and simple living at the Simplicity Conference in Oakland.

From September 15-17, Aaron and Rooftop Resources Project Leader Ingrid Severson joined in the Earthdance celebration in Laytonville, held in observance of the International Day of Peace. And Ingrid attended the West Coast Green Residential Building Conference and Expo from September 20-22 in San Francisco.

Bay Localize ally Ella Baker Center for Human Rights and the Oakland Apollo Alliance sponsored a Green Collar Jobs Solutions Salon on September 21. Three hundred people came out to listen and dialogue with a diverse panel of speakers, including Van Jones of the Ella Baker Center and Bay Localize Advisory Board member Prof. Raquel Rivera-Pinderhughes. The event launched the Oakland Apollo Challenge, which is a five-point plan for creating a robust, green economy and achieving energy independence.

From October 7-11, Programs Coordinator Kirsten Schwind attended the Community Food Security Coalition's "Bridging Borders Toward Food Security" Conference in Vancouver, Canada. And from October 13-15, Bay Localizers David Room, Aaron Lehmer, Ingrid Severson, and Advisory Board Member Katherine Steele took part at Bioneers in San Rafael.

Members of the Bay Localize team were in attendance at the City of Oakland passed an historic resolution to become oil independent by 2020 at an October 17th hearing at City Hall (see feature above). Councilmember Nancy Nadel proposed the resolution, which calls for a task force to propose programs for transitioning away from oil dependence.

David Room, Founding Member of Bay Localize's Board of Directors, was in Boston October 26-27 for the World Oil Conference, hosted by Boston University and the Association for the Study of Peak Oil and Natural Gas (ASPO-USA). Dave also serves on the Advisory Board for ASPO-USA.

On October 26th, Localization Asset Map Project Leader Brian Holland attended the Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG) Fall General Assembly, which focused on local solutions to environmental challenges.

Bay Localize Outreach Coordinator Allyse Heartwell and Aaron Lehmer attended an October 28th screening of An Inconvenient Truth at the Chabot Space & Science Center in Oakland, and engaged filmgoers about addressing climate change through local living.

From November 10-12, most of the Bay Localize team could be found at the Green Festival in San Francisco. Bay Localize shared a table with Garden for the Environment in the Community Action Pavilion, Kirsten Schwind spoke on a panel about urban permaculture, and Ingrid Severson co-facilitated a workshop with the Greater Ukiah Localization Project's Cliff Paulin on the topic of preparing for peak oil.

The Urban Permaculture Guild, Bay Localize, the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights, and the Urban Alliance for Sustainability sponsored two mid-November talks entitled "The Village Lives" by Mark Lakeman of the City Repair Project.

On November 17th, San Francisco's Local Agency Formation Committee (LAFCo) held the second of a series of hearings on peak oil preparedness and response. Larry Robinson, former mayor of Sebastopol, spoke on the extensive measures his city has taken to enhance local self-reliance and sustainability, and LAFCo recommended the establishment of a task force to study mitigation strategies for the City of San Francisco. Bay Localize ally San Francisco Oil Awareness continues to work with city officials on this vital effort to prepare San Franciscans for an era of diminishing fossil fuels.

Bay Localize volunteers were also on hand at the Bluegrass Bash & Benefit for Clean Energy, on November 22 in Berkeley.

UPCOMING EVENTS:

• Jerry Mander of the International Forum on Globalization (IFG) talks about Paradigm Wars: Indigenous People's Resistance to Economic Globalization, on November 28th at Cody's Books in San Francisco.
• CounterCorp Anti-Corporate Film Festival, December 1-3 at the Victoria Theater in San Francisco.
• Berkeley Farmers' Market 15th Annual Holiday Crafts Fair, December 2, 9, and 16, Center St. at Martin Luther King, Jr. Way in Berkeley. Benefit for the Ecology Center with local crafters and farmers.
• The Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives (GAIA) Holiday Recycled Craft Sale, December 3 at the Ecology Center in Berkeley.
• Bay Area Environmental Education Resource Fair, January 27th, 2007, at the Marin Civic Center in San Rafael.
• Ella Baker Center Solutions Salon, location and date to be announced. Visit www.ellabakercenter.org for more information.

Look for announcements of other upcoming gatherings on our online Events page.

Support or Get Involved with Bay Localize Today!
Support Bay Localize!
We strongly urge you to support this project to assess relocalization opportunities in the Bay Area. Your contribution will help propel this vital work forward.
To make a tax-deductible contribution, please click on the online donation button at the right, or write a check or money order made payable to Center for a Sustainable Economy (our fiscal sponsor) with "Bay Localize" in the memo and mail it to: Bay Localize
436 14th Street, Suite 1218
Oakland, CA 94612
Thanks for your support!
Get Involved with Bay Localize!
Bay Localize is a largely volunteer-run project. There are many volunteer opportunities ranging from working on promotions, events, and media, to fundraising, research, community outreach, and developing the localization assessment model to apply at the neighborhood level.
For more information on volunteering, please contact Aaron Lehmer at aaron@baylocalize.org.

About Bay Localize News
Bay Localize News features regular news and updates from Bay Localize, a growing network of nonprofits, businesses, and municipal leaders working to build a more resilient, self-reliant, and socially just economy.
EDITORS: Aaron Lehmer, Allyse Heartwell
CONTRIBUTORS: Aaron Lehmer, Allyse Heartwell, Ingrid Severson,
Kirsten Schwind, David Room, Brian Holland
For more about Bay Localize, please visit our website at http://www.baylocalize.org.