Over a period of roundtable "world cafe" discussions, participants at the Storm the Palace table wrote the following summary ideas on a flip chart or post-it to the idea wall - each idea is being posted to the "Community Forums: Education" on REALNEO focused on this category... read on:

Education

Over a period of roundtable "world cafe" discussions, participants at the Storm the Palace table wrote the following summary ideas on a flip chart or post-it to the idea wall - each idea is being posted to the "Community Forums: Technology" on REALNEO focused on this category... read on:

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Dear Friends of Lake
Erie ~

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Over a period of roundtable "world cafe" discussions, participants at the Storm the Palace table wrote the following summary ideas on a flip chart or post-it to the idea wall - each idea is being posted to the "Community Forums: Environment" on REALNEO focused on this category... read on:

Public comments are being accepted by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) on a draft plan for conserving the remaining open spaces and natural areas in the Lake Erie Region. In addition, as part of the state's efforts to meet eligibility on the federal Coastal and Estuarine Land Conservation Program, Ohio will hold two public meetings in November to solicit feedback on the draft plan.

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As dusk approached on a dreary, rainy Cleveland 1st of November, the skies suddenly cleared and around 80 diverse NEO Stakeholders gathered at the Palace Theater for a shared experience of insight from Mayor Campbell and Next Generation Consulting CEO Rebecca Ryan followed by "world cafe" collaboration. See the results linked below.

Around 80 diverse people from around Cleveland came together Halloween Night for a arts, culture and intellect filled evening of brainstorming and discussion on what we as a region need to do to make this a "more better" place, especially considering making NEO attractive to the next generation. Visit the links below to see the results.

Event #1:

Come to the CIA and plan for a “more better future”

October 31, 2005 - 4:30pm – free parking behind
building
Cleveland Institute of Art, Reinberger Galleries - 11141
East Boulevard

Even though you are busy, come for as long as you like - stop by, be entertained, see some friends, and enjoy - invite your friends!

Escape the trick-and-treat world... connect with your friends for a real, free treat – get tricked-out for the CIA’s great new exhibit, “Dreaming of a More Better Future” (an exhibition of Art, Architecture, Technology, Science, Politics, Life Style and Mutation) – experience the world-premier of an original composition performed by an exceptional string quartet from the Cleveland Institute of Music – view multimedia work of CIA masters in TIME (Technology and Integrated Media Environment) - have your mind supercharged by Rebecca Ryan’s high-powered energy and insight – enjoy some wine, beer and cider - get really involved in state of the art visioning on your community’s future! See http://realneo.us/Future

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Storm the Palace and act up at the
Playhouse Square

November 1, 2005 -
5:00pm
Playhouse Square, Palace Theater - 1615 Euclid Avenue.

Even though you are busy, come for as
long as you like - stop by, be entertained, see some friends, and
enjoy - invite your friends!

Come act up in the stunning Cleveland
heart of theatrics – Playhouse Square – for a theater-of-life act
of collaboration. Rebecca Ryan will set the stage – area multimedia
artists will inject visual stimulation – a pianist from the
Cleveland Institute of Music will score with virtuosity – and we
all are stars. Invite your friends to join you in the lobby of the
Palace Theater to form a cast of hundreds and begin scripting the
best possible future for Northeast Ohio, and have a blast.

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On 10.31.05 and 11.01.05, Rebecca Ryan will be back in Northeast Ohio to work with all of us transforming the region for the better - we'd like your help, on 10.18.05 and 10.20.05, to help plan this neovolution... the new twist about the center.

Whether we call this new twist a revolution, evolution, or turning our brains on, it will be very live, in person and in virtual space. We will work with Rebecca, Bridge Builders, 20/30, cleveland.com, Mark Chupp, of CSU and "Voices and Choices", and every social and change organization and individual that is interested to make certain young thinkers' thoughts are heard in the change dialogues now gaining volume and taking center stages around the region.

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On 10.31.05 and 11.01.05, Rebecca Ryan will be back in Northeast Ohio to work with all of us transforming the region for the better - we'd like your help, on 10.18.05 and 10.20.05, to help plan this neovolution... the new twist about the center.

Whether we call this new twist a revolution, evolution, or turning our brains on, it will be very live, in person and in virtual space. We will work with Rebecca, Bridge Builders, 20/30, cleveland.com, Mark Chupp, of CSU and "Voices and Choices", and every social and change organization and individual that is interested to make certain young thinkers' thoughts are heard in the change dialogues now gaining volume and taking center stages around the region.

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There is probably no need for Planners to consider this for Cleveland's downtown; however, this may be the way to help struggling neighborhoods within the city, as well as the the older, inner-ring suburbs - by encouraging pedestrian activity instead of vehicular.
I suppose the fast-food industry would put up a big fight to keep things as they have been.

For eight years Kevin Knobloch has lead one of the most well-known nonprofit groups, the Union of Concerned Scientists. A graduate of MIT, Kevin has dedicated efforts to the application of science to the preservation of life. Global Climate change is (rightfully) seen as the most pressing and important issue to resolve. Effects of unabated levels of carbon dioxide and nitrogen oxide in the atmosphere have already had significant effects – from doubling the number of category 4 and 5 hurricanes to dramatic temperature hikes of 7-12 degrees Farenheit during the summer and winter.

Tuesday Andrew Watterson, sustainability programs manager for the City of Cleveland, addressed a dynamic gathering of concerned citizens and spoke about a variety of planned initiatives geared toward progress toward sustainable economic development. Watterson explained his mission to reduce city expense while creating a sustainable economic agenda, reforming antiquated policies internally and  educating the public.

Tuesday Andrew Watterson, sustainability programs manager for the City of Cleveland addressed a dynamic gathering of concerned citizens and spoke about a variety of planned initiatives geared toward sustainable progress toward sustainable economic development.

Watterson explained his mission to reduce city expense while creating sustainable economic agenda and help reform antiquated policies internally and help educate the public.

Watterson is organizing classes with Entrepreneurs for Sustainability, EcoCity Cleveland, and the Green Building Coalition. Thus his role is an educational one and well as economic and sustainable one.

Focus on alternative energy options for the city includes a solar powered crib, a growing fleet of hybrid vehicles, and energy conservation, reduced consumption, and optimized efficiency of pumps. Options are being studied in conjunction with Cleveland Public Power as well as Cleveland Thermal.

He also shared that he is open to suggestions – on the renewable energy side he has been focused on wind – since it makes the most sense for the region’s oft-overcast yet windy climate locally. Wind is also a great fit due to the fact that Ohio is 2nd only to California for Wind turbine production materials and infrastructure. Jon Jensen of the Gund Foundation will be meeting with top management at GE to discuss wind options. Cleveland is trying to attract the national wind conference for 2009.
The Great Lakes Science Center is also putting up a sizeable wind
turbine soon, despite controversy.

Another important initiative has focused on reducing the time trucks are idling at fuel sites – which will result in significant fuel savings. A small biodiesel pilot project of 15 vehicles is seeking funding (using 5% biodiesel which is sourced from soybean). Collectively this involves 80,000 gallons of biodiesel which has displaced particulate-producing diesel fuel. The City is also backing the EcoCity supported CityWheels carsharing project, which will be launched this January. The current city fleet is comprised of 8 Ford Escape hybrids. More are on the docket for next year – but as Andrew explained, it really takes an earnest appraisal of the full life-cycle of the vehicle to understand the true cost savings hybrids generate.

In the Health sphere, focus has been on flexible work plans and helping the elderly take public transportation. Other initiatives are looking to resolve lead and mercury issues regionally.

Focus has also been spent on making City buildings more energy efficient. This has been mandated for City Hall as well as many other city buildings. Work has commenced on the creation of a construction plan that is sustainable, energy efficient, and less waste-productive.

On October 11, 2005, the NEO Excellence Roundtable will feature City of Cleveland Sustainability Programs Manager Andrew Watterson to discuss successes and opportunities for our core city and region to lead the country and world as an environmentally-friendly and sustainable community. In a presentation Andrew made on "the State of Our Environment", at a recent meeting of the Ohio League of Conservation voters, I learned Cleveland is already a leader with sustainability, in many important ways, by adding hybrid vehicles to the city fleet and enacting an anti-idling policy intended to reduce emissions and fuel consumption (by 10%)... see Hotel Bruce for details. Andrew mentioned plans for wind turbines in the city and indicated many other exciting developments ahead - please join us on Tuesday the 11th, from 11:30 AM to 1:30 PM, at the City Club to discuss these important issues with our "Sustainability Czar".

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Thomas Hylton spoke before a packed house Wednesday afternoon at the Metropolitan on the top floor of the Huntington Building and delivered an excellent presentation on the importance of building cities that are pedestrian-friendly and feature mixed-use construction. This presentation resonated greatly with recent presentation on New Urbanism given by John Norquist, former Milwaukee mayor and author of the Wealth of Cities. Hylton began with a story from his younger days – living in a small Pennsylvania town where the most energy efficient school building in town (the only one in town without a parking lot) was leveled to construct –what else? – a parking lot!  Stories like this have been a commonly recurring story across the nation.

The most recent Third Tuesday event at the Great Lakes Brewing Company September 20th featured an excellent keynote speaker, Nadya Zherembayxa of the Organizational Behavior department at Case and Business as an Agent of World Benefit. She provided an enlightening presentation which broke down the business case for sustainability into ten key highlights. These are summarized as follows:

When:
MONDAY 9/26 and TUESDAY 9/27
6:00 pm- Gather at the Bourbon Street Grille.
6:30 pm- Walk through the parkland to the RIver Boardwalk and Coast Guard Station.
7:30 pm- Sunset and Finish up.

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What:
Whiskey Island and Coast Guard Station Walking Tour and discussion of the Next Steps for the future development of Whiskey Island and the historic Coast Guard Station.

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More pictures from the final Waterfront Plan presentation on Tuesday.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/muscatello/sets/994365/

On September 20th, Mayor Jane Campbell held a press conference to announce the Cleveland Waterfront District Plan.

An E4S Third Tuesday Networking Event

Tuesday, September 20, 2005

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