Thursday, September 30, 2010

Join the 10/10/10 Global Work Party, plus Green Halloween with SwapSity

Be part of the largest global movement in history on October 10th. Bill Mckibben, renown author, activist, and founder of 350.org is once more calling for a global communal response to the climate crisis. Last year we mobilized on October 24th. It was considered the largest activist event in history. As of today 5,249 10/10/10 events have been registered online, beating last year’s figure of 5,248. Where our political leaders fail us, citizens of the world are taking action.

In an email sent today to 350.org members, Mckibben writes: “I'm a bit tired, but am feeling completely recharged by today's milestone. It sure is nice to know that this movement is growing bigger all the time.”


Ok, so What’s a 10/10/10 Work Party?
According to the 350.org website, the concept of a work party derives from traditions of various cultures such as the minga in the Andes. All of these cultures have in common the idea of bringing their whole community together for a day of collective work, usually to complete a project that will benefit the whole community. These traditions are often typically followed by a fun event involving food and music to celebrate the big accomplishment. For 10/10/10, folks are invited to join forces with others in their communities to complete a sustainability project that will benefit the community, and help make carbon reduction tangible – and fun – for everyone. People are organizing bicycle workshops, reforestations, solar panel installations, apple pressing and so on.

Jane and I will celebrate Thanksgiving with family near Owen Sound. We’ve been invited to join a 10/10/10 community guided mushroom walk led by a mycologist to learn how to uncover mushrooms – the ones that won’t kill us when we eat them, or do strange and curious things to our minds. I’ll also engage the family in a letter writing campaign to urge Senators to pass Bill C-311, the Climate Change Accountability Act. I am hearing from some Liberal Senators that the Conservatives are stalling debate on the Bill.

To Join - To join a 10/10/10 event in your community, click here -
http://www.350.org/en/map

Create Your Own Event - Want to create your own 10/10/10 event? Click here for some ideas -
http://www.350.org/workparty-ideas. Click here to register your event - http://www.350.org/1010

350.org Wiki – To learn more about taking action in your community, and to share your experiences, visit the 350.org Wiki at
http://wiki.350.org/

I’ve just finished the first chapter of Mckibben’s new book Eaarth. I tell you, it’s probably the most sobering piece of news I’ve ever read. We need to work together immediately to reduce our carbon output, and make our communities economically diverse and resilient. The stable climate we’ve depended on during our civilized existence is now dramatically changing and it’s only going to get worse. Oh, and our resources have begun to dwindle. So we either work together, reduce our carbon emissions and strengthen our communities, or we ignore the warning signs and develop no skills to handle the onslaught of food and water shortages, natural disasters and economic crashes as a result of dwindling resources.

Green Halloween with SwapSity
SwapSity is offering a creative way to save money this Halloween season. Instead of shopping for costumes, decorations and accessories, eco-minded individuals can swap for them. Why buy a costume you'll only wear for a few hours when you can trade for a gently-used ensemble that's new to you?

SwapSity has two ways to save money during Halloween. Members can participate in the online swap and post all the adult and kids costumes, pumpkin carving sets and decorations no longer needed and barter for something they really want. On October 2nd, they're also holding a face-to-face swap meet in downtown Toronto to help everyone recycle their Halloween themed items. Parents can bring in their child's outgrown black cat accessories and pick up a superhero costume or trade in tombstone lawn decorations for a new sound effects CD to play during trick-or-treating. Adult costumes and accessories are also barter-worthy. To learn more, visit
http://www.swapsity.ca/pages/halloween_2010

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