Thoreau Center Brown Bag: Whitopia - Race and Public Policy

Whitopia--Race and Public Policy
Presenter: Journalist/Scholar Rich Benjamin
Friday, March 12, 12:30p to 1:30p
Thoreau Center for Sustainability - Pacific Room at Tides

This brown bag gathering will address the impact of race and ethnicity on pressing policy debates: social spending, immigration, citizenship, and voting. Rich Benjamin will discuss his timely research findings on those issues, and the challenges surrounding ethnic diversity, civic inclusion, and progressive public policy. You will be encouraged to offer thoughts on pressing topics: What does the Obama administration, the present Congress, and civil society portend for these policy issues, the quality of race relations, and our democracy’s health? Can we form the necessary ideas and talking points to move a progressive agenda forward, one that revives viable progress towards the commonweal and the common good?

Rich Benjamin is the author of Searching for Whitopia: An Improbable Journey to the Heart of White America, and Senior Fellow at Demos, a nonpartisan public policy center based in New York. Searching for Whitopia was selected for the 2009 Editor's Choice Award by Booklist and the American Library Association. Benjamin’s social and political commentary is featured on television and radio, in major newspapers and magazines, and in the blogosphere.

Brown Bag events are free informal mid-day learning sessions hosted at Tides. Friends, neighbors and colleagues are welcome. Visitors, please sign in a the front desk.

New Books - March 2010

When you hear “West Coast Lady,” “Golden Hairstreak,” or “Great Basin Wood Nymph” what do you think of? The rich and diverse population of butterflies in northern California, of course. And these are just a few of the many species covered in the comprehensive Field Guide to Butterflies of the San Francisco and Sacramento Valley Regions by Arthur M. Shapiro and Timothy D. Manolis, number 92 in the California Natural History Guides series from the University of California Press. UC Press recently donated this book and others from the series to the library's collection, including:

Introduction to Air in California, by David Carle – Carle surveys all aspects of the air around us, how it has shaped life in the state, and how it has in turn been shaped by human activity both locally and globally. Find out why the sky is blue, why it gets so foggy around here, and why some regions are better for growing certain wines than others. It is also a useful guide for more environmentally conscious living, with information on alternative energy sources, regulatory regimes, and tips for cleaner running cars.

Introduction to Fire in California, by David Carle – Over eight million Californians live at risk near the edge of wildlands subject to periodic wildfires. This guide explores the nature of fire and its role in the structure and processes of native ecosystems throughout the state. It also examines how humans have responded to wildfires and lays out the challenges we need to face to realize our place as a fire-adapted species.

Geology of the San Francisco Bay Region, by Doris Sloan – How did the ocean floor get to the top of Twin Peaks? How far do you have to dig beneath your flowerbed in the Sunset District before you find some of the dune sand that once covered half of San Francisco? Such questions are answered in this guide to the diverse, complex, and dynamic geologic processes that have molded the Bay Area over millions of years. In addition to clearly explaining complex topics such as plate tectonics, it suggests places where you can go to explore and to see geology in action.

Also, our friends at the Columbia Foundation made a large donation of items to the collection recently, including:

It Takes a Pillage: Behind the Bailouts, Bonuses, and Backroom Deals from Washington to Wall Street, by Nomi Prins – Former Goldman Sachs managing director and current senior fellow at Demos, Prins dissects the financial system, the financial disasters of 2008, and the revolving door between Wall Street and Washington that enabled the disastrous behavior of large investment banks.

Why Marriage Matters: America, Equality, and Gay People's Right to Marry, by Evan Wolfson – The executive director of Freedom to Marry brings his experience as a civil rights litigator to bear on the legal issues surrounding same-sex marriage and demonstrates why the right to marry for all couples is important for America's promise of equality.

Food is Different: Why We Must Get the WTO out of Agriculture, by Peter M. Rosset - Global food and farming researcher-activist Peter Rosset's guide to how the WTO “free trade” regime and agricultural subsidies have created an unequal food system that benefits a small corporate elite, and to the alternatives being proposed by social movements around the world to protect food sovereignty.

And from an anonymous donor, a fascinating work of scientific journalism:

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, by Rebecca Skloot – Henrietta Lacks was a 31-year-old black mother when she died of cervical cancer in 1951. While treating her, doctors took tissue samples for research without her knowledge, and from these samples they began growing in culture the first viable line of “immortal” human cells, known as HeLa. HeLa cells have since been used extensively in many areas of scientific and medical research, aiding in the development of the polio vaccine, AIDS treatments, in vitro fertilization methods, and much more. The Lacks family, however, has derived no benefit from this use of her cells and today lack health insurance. Skloot tells the story of Henrietta, her family, and HeLa, illuminating the human side of issues of scientific ethics, race, poverty, privacy, and the sanctity of the human body.

Thoreau Center Brown Bag: Simplicity: A Holistic Approach to Fulfillment

Free Seminar - Simplicity: A Holistic Approach to Fulfillment

Presenter: Laura Edwards, Simplicity Consultant

Wednesday, February 17, 12:30p to 1:30p

Pacific Room at Tides

At the heart of the Simplicity Movement is the desire to reorient our lives away from the minutiae of modern life and create space for simple pleasures. Rather than just continually organizing stuff, we are seeking to shift the entire approach to how we acquire, receive and experience the people, places and things in our life. This workshop is designed to give you tangible steps to begin phasing in room for peace. We will cover:

• Acquiring things and experiences and how to manage the inflow
• Letting go, purging, and organizing necessities
• The three traps of modern life and how to eliminate them

"As you simplify your life, the laws of the universe will be simpler; solitude will not be solitude, poverty will not be poverty, nor weakness weakness." --Henry David Thoreau

Book Release Event: Nonprofit Guide to Going Green

When: Thursday, March 04, 2010
5:00 PM-7:00 PM

Where: Thoreau Center for Sustainability
1014 Torney Avenue
Pacific Room at Tides
San Francisco, CA 94129

The Thoreau Center for Sustainability is hosting a national book release event. Following two years of research and planning, the guide to going green on a charity budget is set for release. Timely and clearly written, with contributions from experts around the globe, Nonprofit Guide To Going Green offers practical advice on how non-profits of any size can green their own organization, even on a limited budget. Join us in San Francisco, CA, March 4, 2010. Discussion and reception begins at 5:00PM.

From the publisher:

The definitive, practical, go-to resource guide on helping all charities become more "green"

Nonprofit Guide to Going Green is your comprehensive learning tool to guide nonprofits and NGOs towards becoming greener. A desktop reference for any charitable organization to become greener, this essential book gives your organization the support it needs to take proactive steps to protect the environment while fulfilling its mission.

• Helps nonprofits green their efforts and carbon footprint
• Shows CEOs, presidents, deans, marketing officers, board members proactive steps they can take to protect the environment
• Teaches how to do a self-audit and plan for a more environmentally sensitive future

Nonprofit Guide to Going Green delivers a timely and essential call to action for this new century. Can your organization afford not to "go green?"

Thoreau Center Workshop: Getting the Results You Want Starts with Effective Communication

Free Workshop: Getting the Results You Want Starts with Effective Communication
Presenter: Nikki Anderson, President, ThinkFeelKnow
Wednesday, February 10, 12:30p to 1:30p
Pacific Room at Tides

Your ability to get what you want depends on your ability to speak clearly, listen accurately, and assert yourself with confidence. Developing powerful methods of sharing information - whether it's reading, writing, speaking, or listening - will improve your relationships, garner more respect from others, and provide higher levels of personal satisfaction.

During this interactive discussion you will

* Learn 3 simple techniques for communicating with more confidence
* Understand how to overcome your communication blocks
* Gain new insights on how to manage conflict, misunderstandings and hard to manage teams

Join Executive Coach Nikki Anderson in this lively discussion as she shares practical ways to effectively communicate in all areas of your life.

Thoreau Center Brown Bag: Man Up’s Youth Movement to End Violence

Man Up’s Youth Movement to End Violence

Presenter: Jimmie Briggs, Executive Director, Co-Founder

Thursday, February, 4, 12:30p to 1:30p

Pacific Room at Tides

Man Up is an international campaign to activate youth in a movement to stop violence against women and girls. Man Up’s call to action challenges the next generation to "man up" -- whether they are male or female -- and declare that violence against women and girls must end. Harnessing the universal power of music, sport and technology, Man Up provides innovative training, resources and support to young leaders and the human rights organizations that collaborate with them.

Jimmie Briggs, Co-Founder (Executive Director), will explain the origins and vision of Man Up and describe its unique campaign integrating hip hop, sports and technology to draw attention to youth about the need to end violence against women and girls.

Man Up is the brainchild of Jimmie Briggs, acclaimed writer, teacher and journalist. Over the last decade, Jimmie has earned his reputation as one of the most respected humans rights advocates in the field of journalism. His work has appeared in The New York Times Magazine, The Washington Post, LIFE, Vibe, Outside, and Fortune. His courageous reporting on child soldiers and the lives of war-affected children is seen in a wide array of publications such as The Nation, The Village Voice, The Source, El Pais, People, Essence among others. A National Magazine Award finalist and recipient of honors from the Open Society Institute, National Association of Black Journalists, Alicia Patterson Foundation and Carter Center, among others, his book on child soldiers and war-affected children, Innocents Lost: When Child Soldiers Go To War won him accolades in 2005. Briggs has worked for the UN Special Session on Children, Seeds of Peace in both New York City and Kabul, Afghanistan, as well as numerous other organizations including Oxfam, Amnesty International and the ENOUGH Project. He has received distinguished fellowships for his writing and advocacy. Additionally, he has served as an adjunct professor of investigative journalism at the New School for Social Research, and was a George A. Miller Visiting Professor in the Department of African and African-American Studies at the University of Illinois: Champaign-Urbana. His upcoming book, The Wars Women Fight: Dispatches from A Father to His Daughter, will be published in 2010. When asked why he chose to spearhead this initiative, he simply says, "For my daughter. I want a better world for her."

To learn more, contact Bruce DeMartini at bruce@thoreau.org

Brown Bag events are free informal mid-day learning sessions hosted at Tides. Friends, neighbors and colleagues are welcome. Visitors, please sign in at the front desk.

Subject Guide: Biodiversity

The United Nations has declared 2010 to be the International Year of Biodiversity: “a celebration of life on earth and of the value of biodiversity for our lives.” Its goal is to raise global awareness of the rich variety of life on Earth, the complex relations among living things and their environments, and the role biodiversity plays in sustaining the systems upon which all life, including humanity, depends. Biodiversity plays a crucial role in services including purifying air and water, detoxifying waste, stabilizing climate, moderating floods, renewing soil fertility, and ensuring that life has the ability to adapt to change. This complex combination of life forms and their interactions with each other and the environment makes Earth a uniquely habitable place. But human activity, especially the destruction of habitats resulting from the expansion of populations and development, is causing diversity to be lost at an accelerated rate. Estimates are that species are becoming extinct at a thousand times the natural rate, and once gone, such losses are irreversible. The International Year of Biodiversity is an opportunity to highlight the achievements that have been made in conserving biodiversity and to focus on the urgency of the problem.

Part of the challenge is that biodiversity is a complex, scientific subject. Different definitions exist, and new knowledge is added to our understanding of the concept every day. People are also constantly testing new strategies to conserve diversity. Here are some books from the library collection that are useful introductions, and we have others if you really want to dig into the science and the practices of conservation. While complex, at heart, biodiversity is about the amazing and sometimes surprising connections between you and the world around you.

E.O. Wilson. The Future of Life. (2002)
Harvard biologist and Pulitzer Prize winner Edward Wilson draws on two decades of research on biological diversity to describe vividly the richness of our biosphere and the damage humankind has caused and increasingly continues to cause to it. Emphasizing the need to understand fully the biodiversity of our planet and the value of the ecosystem services it supports, as well as making the case to adopt a global land ethic, he proposes a variety of strategies that seek common ground between economic progress and conservation. Although the challenges are large, he is ultimately optimistic that Earth's living history can be preserved.

Yvonne Baskin. The Work of Nature: How the Diversity of Life Sustains Us. (1997)
“How many species can be lost before the ecological systems that nurture life begin to break down?” While not always readily obvious, the complex relationships of biodiversity are crucial to maintaining the basic life support systems of our planet in the ways they provide clean air, pure water, and fertile soils, among other things. Science journalist Yvonne Basking surveys the work of leading ecologists and explains clearly the practical consequences of biodiversity loss for the health, stability, and functioning of ecosystems, as well as the extraordinary challenges involved in ecological restoration.

Niles Eldredge. Life in the Balance: Humanity and the Biodiversity Crisis. (1998)
Paleontologist and Curator in the Department of Invertebrates at the American Museum of Natural History, Niles Eldredge brings an evolutionary perspective to the present-day biodiversity crisis in which the yearly loss of species is approaching the scale of the mass global extinctions of the distant past. Written for a general audience, he focuses on four questions: “What is biodiversity?”, “Why should we care about biodiversity?”, “What threatens biodiversity?”, and “What can we do?” An appendix listing animal species that have become extinct since 1600 is a sobering indicator of how human activity had radically transformed the ecosystems of the planet.

E.O. Wilson & Frances M. Peter, eds. Biodiversity. (1988)
This book collects papers from the National Forum on BioDiverstiy, held in Washington, D.C., on September 21-24, 1986, under the auspices of the National Academy of Sciences and Smithsonian Institution. The forum featured over 60 leading biologists, economists, agricultural experts, philosophers, representatives of assistance and lending agencies, and other professionals, and it did much to popularize the concept. It is a comprehensive overview of the science, still relevant today, and an urgent warning about the rapid alteration and destruction of the environments that have fostered the diversity of life forms on the planet for more than a billion years.

Bruce A. Stein, Lynn S. Kutner, & Jonathan S. Adams, eds. Precious Heritage: The Status of Biodiversity in the United States. (2000)
This work is a joint project of The Nature Conservancy, the Association for Biodiversity Information, and natural heritage programs in all fifty states, collecting together for the first time ever over twenty-five years of research and information gathered by state biodiversity inventories. With over 200,000 species of animals, plants, and microbes, the United States is biologically rich and has the most diverse flora and fauna of any largely temperate zone nation. However, up to one-third of these species are at risk and more than 500 have already disappeared, largely as a result of habitat destruction. To address these threats, the authors review the fundamental strategies underlying most biodiversity conservation efforts and suggest a blueprint for the future.

Jack Ahearn, Elizabeth Leduc, and Mary Lee York. Biodiversity Planning and Design: Sustainable Practices. (2006)
This work explores the role of landscape architects and planners in influencing land use decisions for the promotion of biodiversity conservation, particularly with regard to minimizing habitat loss and degradation. Drawing on a wide range of case studies from around the United States, the authors examine the issues, concepts, and methods involved, and illustrate how an interdisciplinary approach led by planners and designers working with conservation biologists, restoration ecologists, and natural and social scientists can advance sustainable practices.