Sustainability Week

Sponsored by the Sustainable Heights Network

October 2–10

The Sustainable Heights Network invites Heights residents to participate in Sustainability Week 2010, a week-long series of community events designed to help us build a more sustainable community.

The Sustainable Heights Network is an active and open group of over 50 organizations and individuals who came together in April to celebrate the work undertaken by the people, the community, and the organizations of Cleveland Heights and University Heights to improve their quality of life and to inspire others to become involved. The network is an outgrowth of Sustainable Cleveland 2019, a process that seeks to mobilize Greater Cleveland to create a green and sustainable economy by the year 2019.

Tour a solar-powered house, ride your bike to the farmer’s market, hike Doan Brook or participate in a Green Assets Mapping Party in historic Coventry Village. Most events are free and many are family friendly. See a partial list of events below and visit www.sustainableheightsnetwork.blogspot.com for a full list of events. For more information, e-mail the network at sustainablehts@gmail.com or call 216-320-1423.

AVAILABLE ALL WEEK

Keeping Your $Green$: Financial Stability Kits. The Home Repair Resource Center presents ways to trim your budget and save on everyday things. You can download a kit from the HRRC website, www.hrrc-ch.org, or pick one up the HRRC office, 2520 Noble Road, beginning Oct. 1. Family Friendly Handicapped Accessible, Near Public Transportation.

Sustainable Community Displays at the Cleveland Heights Community Center,1 Monticello Boulevard. Learn about the various projects and activities initiated by the City of Cleveland Heights that promote sustainable practices: solar panels on the Cedar Lee parking garage, solar bus shelters, energy-efficient lighting at the Cleveland Heights Community Center, Forest Hill Park Clean Ohio project, EPA Cumberland Pool parking lot project, Sustainable Zoning update and other projects. A schedule of Sustainability Week Activities will also be available.

SATURDAY, OCT. 2

8:30 a.m. Nature Center Hike and Run The Nature Center's annual Hike and Run in memory of Jenny Goldman is held annually to benefit the Nature Center at Shaker Lakes and the Jenny Goldman Outreach funding of enrichment programs at the Michael R. White School and John Hay High School. Join in your choice of a 5k race, a 12-mile hike to Dike 14, a one-mile hike for families (leashed pets welcome), or a two-mile Doan Brook Gorge Hike. Scout troops welcome. Hikes start at 9 a.m. and the 5k race begins at 9:15 a.m. at the center, 2600 South Park Boulevard.  FEE: Adults $15 before Sept. 29; $20 after Sept. 29. Children (age 12 and under)/Scouts/Student Club members $5. Family rate (max. 2 adults/4 kids) $35. Sponsored by Baker Hostetler. Call 216-321-5935 to register or visit www.shakerlakes.org.

10 a.m. Farmer's Market By Bike Ride to the Shaker Square Farmer's Market with other cyclists to purchase locally-grown produce. Learn to carry food and other items on your bike. Meet under the P.E.A.C.E. Arch at the corner of Coventry Road and Euclid Heights Boulevard. FREE. For more information e-mail ann@bikesintheheights.org or visit www.bikesintheheights.org/shopbybike.html. Family Friendly. Near Public Transportation. Sponsored by the Cleveland Heights Bicycle Coalition.  

10 a.m.-4 p.m. Ohio Solar Tour Green Energy Ohio (GEO) is the Ohio Chapter of the American Solar Energy Society (ASES), and GEO's 8th Annual Ohio Solar Tour is part of the National Solar Tour managed by ASES. This year's tour features open house sites in communities across Ohio. One of the sites is located in Cleveland Heights (1042 Renfield Road). This FREE statewide event provides a unique opportunity for people to visit homes and talk with owners living and working with clean energy technologies. For more information, visit www.greenenergyohio.org.

10 a.m. Tai Chi and Qi Gong These gentle forms of exercise are designed to bring about a total union of mind, body and spirit. Join instructor Ruth Butler at the Coventry Village Library, 1925 Coventry Road, as she teaches the 24 short forms of Tai Chi and Qi Gong exercises, including the "Eight Best Movements for Health." Classes are ideal for any age group. FREE.

SUNDAY, OCT. 3

A Day at Forest Hill Park Come for one or all of the activities scheduled in the park. Ongoing walking tours will be provided on request. Spend a day discovering or rediscovering historic Forest Hill Park. Sponsored by the City of Cleveland Heights, the East Cleveland Parks Association and Severance Neighborhood Organization.

9:30 a.m. Dog-Gone Dog Walk in Forest Hill Park Bring your well-behaved dog on a leash to Forest Hill Park for a fun group activity. Enjoy the early autumn weather, meet your neighbors and their puppies, see the beauty of the park. Meet in the East Cleveland parking lot of Forest Hill Park, off Lee Boulevard., just north of Forest Hill Boulevard, on the left. FREE. Family Friendly. Near Public Transportation. For more information, contact ECPA (East Cleveland Parks Association) at 216-956-5533.

10 a.m. Walking Tour of Forest Hill Park Enjoy a walk through Forest Hill Park discovering natural and historic facts led by a trained naturalist. Bring water bottle and binoculars if you have them. Wear good walking shoes and dress for the weather. Meet at the Cleveland Heights Community Center. FREE. Family Friendly. Near Public Transportation.

10:30 a.m. and 1 p.m. Forest Hill Park Volunteer Clean-ups Prune, lop, and help eradicate invasive species from historic Forest Hill Park, a gem of nature right in your own backyard! Be part of a grassroots movement to restore the park's natural beauty. Park volunteers will greet you either in the City of Cleveland Heights parking lot #2 off Forest Hill Boulevard (just west of Lee Road), or in the East Cleveland lot off Lee Boulevard (north of Forest Hills Boulevard). Bring your own tools, dress for the weather and the work. Bring your lunch if you plan to stay the day. There will be a potluck/mixer for all volunteers at 4:30 p.m. Bring a nonperishable lebeled if contains common allergens. Cosponsored by the City of Cleveland Heights. For more information, contact ECPA (East Cleveland Parks Association) at 216-956-5533. FREE. Near Public Transportation.

12 p.m.  Forest Hill Park on Horseback The Cleveland Mounted Police Unit will be riding around Forest Hill Park starting at noon. Enjoy a walk with them or just have fun watching them in the distance in this beautiful green space. Forest Hill was John D. Rockefeller's summer home. Sponsored by the Severance Neighborhood Organization. FREE. Family Friendly. Near Public Transportation.

MONDAY, OCT. 4

Noon-6 p.m. Red Cross Blood Donation Help the American Red Cross and your community by donating blood at the Lee Road Library, 2345 Lee Road. Donors' names will be entered into a special drawing and receive a buy-one-get-one coupon for the Friends of the Library ongoing book sale. For more information visit www.heightslibrary.org.

5 p.m.–7 p.m. Home Repair Resource Center Open House Drop in to see our facilities and learn about programs to help sustain you in your home: keeping your home in good repair, keeping your finances in shape, and knowing your options if you are facing mortgage delinquency. Our counselors and instructors will be on hand to meet with you and answer questions. The center is located at 2520 Noble Road. Visit www.hrrc-ch.org for more information.

7 p.m.  Energy Audits: Assessing and Improving Your Home. Energy audits are a sustainable approach to assessing building performance and maintaining your older home. Join speaker Wesley B. Walker, BPI, at the Home Repair Resource Center, 2520 Noble Road. You can make an older home energy-efficient and save on heating costs. Learn what techniques and equipment can be used to assess and improve the efficiency of your home. In addition, Allison Urbanek, HRRC financial programs counselor, will give a brief overview of HRRC programs that can help make energy-saving improvements more affordable. Call 216-381-9560 to register. Handicapped Accessible. Near Public Transportation.

7 p.m. Locally-Produced Money: A Sustainable (and Legal) Economic Path Communities across the country are printing and circulating their own legal local complementary currencies to meet the needs of people and local businesses. Local currencies reinforce local businesses, trading and resources. They also help insulate communities from the wide instabilities of the larger unsustainable national and global economies. Learn what people in our communities are doing, what discussions have already taken place in the Heights and what steps are needed to move forward. Meet at the Lee Road Library, 2345 Lee Road. Sponsored by the Northeast Ohio American Friends Service Committee. For more information, call 330-928-2301 or 216-255-2184 or e-mail gcoleridge@afsc.org. FREE. Handicapped Accessible. Near Public Transportation.

TUESDAY, OCT. 5

10 a.m.  Brainstorming Session: Connecting Our Schools With the Community. Come with your wish, idea, resource and good story lists for a working meeting to start planning for better connecting our community with our schools. This conversation is inspired by the work of authors Jacqueline Edelberg and Susan Kurland, whose book, How to Walk to School: Blueprint for a Neighborhood School Renaissance, discusses the transformation of their Chicago public school. Meet at the Levey Room in the Lee Road Library, 2345 Lee Road. For more information, contact Joan Spoerl 216-371-3753.

7 p.m.  A Happier Community for All, Dogs and Cats Included! Jed Mignano, chief humane investigator from the Cleveland Animal Protective League, will give a presentation about what is considered animal abuse and neglect, and when and how you should report it. He will bring us up to date on the laws in Ohio that regulate treatment of companion animals, and the policies in place in our cities. Following the presentation, Mignano will answer questions from the audience. Meet at the Lee Road Library, 2345 Lee Road. Sponsored by the Severance Neighborhood Organization. For more information, visit www.heightssno.org. FREE. Handicapped Accessible. Near public transportation.

7 p.m.  Global Warming: An Emergency in Slow Motion Dr. Eric R. Schreiber, M.D., of the Climate Project, will frame the issues that our communities will face due to climate change and increasingly chaotic weather.This is the first in a series of talks on related subjects. In this talk, he will speak about the basic science involved, the manifestations of global warming we have already begun to see, and what we as a community and society can do about it. Meet at the Nature Center at Shaker Lakes, 2600 South Park Boulevard. FREE.

WEDNESDAY, OCT. 6

International Walk To School Day Students are encouraged to walk to their schools on International Walk to School Day, which will promote the health and environmental benefits of walking or bicycling to school. Millions of people in all 50 United States and in more than 40 countries worldwide participate in International Walk to School events. The CH-UH schools anticipate support for this event from a wide range of community resources, from physical education teachers to PTAs and more. As of Aug. 20, Fairfax, Canterbury, Gearity and Roxboro elementary schools were planning to participate. Mary Dunbar and Nancy Dietrich are Cochairing the event. Contact them at 216-321-1335 (Dunbar) or 216-371-9379 (Dietrich). For more information, visit www.iwalktoschool.org.

10:30 a.m. Stay and Play at Coventry Village Library, 1925 Coventry Road. Children and parents or caregivers learn early literacy skills and build relationships. The session starts with storytime at 10:30 a.m. and then participants can enjoy books and music and play with toys, puppets and puzzles. Savor a morning of literacy and fun! For more information, visit www.heightslibrary.org. FREE. Family Friendly. Handicapped Accessible. Near Public Transportation.

10:30 a.m. Stay and Play at the University Heights Library, 13866 Cedar Road. Children and parents or caregivers learn early literacy skills and build relationships. The session starts with storytime at 10:30 a.m. and then participants can enjoy books and music and play with toys, puppets and puzzles. Savor a morning of literacy and fun! For more information visit, www.heightslibrary.org. FREE. Family Friendly. Handicapped Accessible. Near Public Transportation.

12 p.m. Tai Chi and Qi Gong These gentle forms of exercise are designed to bring about a total union of mind, body and spirit. Join instructor Ruth Butler at the Coventry Village Library, 1925 Coventry Road, as she teaches the 24 short forms of Tai Chi and Qi Gong exercises, including the Eight Best Movements for Health. Classes are ideal for any age group. FREE.

7 p.m.  A Sea Change- a documentary film and community discussion at Forest Hill Church, 3031 Monticello Boulevard. Despite wishful thinking, our lifestyle is changing our planet and has already begun to affect communities like ours. Half of the CO2 produced by burning fossil fuels has gone into the atmosphere. The other half has been absorbed by the ocean. As a result, the ocean has become slightly more acid. The change in ocean chemistry is already affecting sea life on which we depend. This documentary and the discussion afterward with Dr. Eric Schreiber of the Climate Project is a continuation of a series of talks and discussions about the manifestations and public health impact of global warming. For more information about the film visit www.aseachange.net or contact sustainablehets@gmail.com. FREE. Handicapped Accessible. Near Public Transportation.

THURSDAY, OCT. 7

4 p.m. – 8 p.m. Home in the Heights Rehab Open House Tour the Home Repair Resource Center’s latest rehabilitation project and learn how the center is working to sustain our neighborhoods by renovating foreclosed, vacant properties and selling them to responsible owner/occupants. You'll see a work in progress - a home is currently being renovated by HRRC subsidiary, Home in the Heights. All homes renovated by Home in the Heights feature high energy efficiency and low maintenance costs, with new kitchens, bathrooms, and numerous other improvements. Construction utilizes green technology, high-quality materials, and superb finish detail to match neighborhood and community standards. The open house is located at 3795 Berkeley Road. For more information, visit www.hrrc-ch.org. FREE.

4:30 p.m.  Fencepiration Workshop Join Heights Arts for a workshop to transform recycled materials, including aluminum cans and plastic bags, into eye-catching elements for the temporary public art project, Fencepiration at Cedar Center. The event takes place at the Heights Arts Workshop, above the Cedar Lee Theatre, 2163 Lee Road, at the corner of Cedar and Lee roads. For more information, visit www.heightsarts.org. Family Friendly. Near Public Transportation.

7 p.m.  Cleveland Heights Community Improvement and Historic Preservation Awards. Join in the celebration of those who go that extra mile to improve their properties, their neighborhoods, and their community through renovation and preservation. At Cleveland Heights City Hall, 40 Severance Circle. Info: www.clevelandheights.com. FREE. Handicapped Accessible. Near Public Transportation.

7 p.m. Composting Workshop The workshop is led by Kathy Rocco of the Cuyahoga County Solid Waste District at the Nature Center at Shaker Lakes, 2600 South Park Boulevard. Participants can purchase or order a compost bin or compost digester for $55. Call 216-321-5935 to register. For more information, visit www.shakerlakes.org. FREE

Beyond Green: The Essential Components of True Sustainability Heights Community Congress will present a community conversation about the key facets of a sustainable community. "Beyond Green: The Essential Components of True Sustainability" will feature conversation leaders who will help spark a community dialogue about the role of community engagement and the important role that racial, religious, cultural, intergenerational and socio-economic diversity plays in sustainability efforts. Location and time to be determined. For more information, call Heights Community Congress at 216-321-6775.

SATURDAY,OCT. 9

9 a.m.-Noon Learn Photography and Hike the Doan Brook Bring your own camera equipment and explore the gorge with award-winning local photographer David Perelman-Hall. You will learn new photographic techniques while enjoying the fall colors of the gorge. Meet at the Lower Lake Bridge at the corner of North Park Boulevard and Coventry Road, otherwise known as Lover's Lane. Then on Wednesday, Oct. 13, the group will meet at the Nature Center from 7-9 p.m. to view and critique the photos from the hike. Fee: $10. For more information, call 216-321-5935, x 234.

9 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Ohio Fair Trade Expo hosted by John Carroll University Ohioans will gather to further the fair trade consumer movement across our state. The Ohio Fair Trade Expo will bring together students, faith community members, community leaders, and business owners who will learn and become active in the international campaign for socially and environmentally responsible consumerism. Held at JCU’s Dolan Science Center, 20700 North Park Boulevard. Fee: $6.00 - $15.00. Volunteers Needed. Near Public Transportation. For more information, call 216-397-4777 or visit www.ohiofairtrade.com.

1 p.m. Coventry Village Green Mapping Party On your walking tour of the Coventry Village neighborhood identify neighborhood assets and what makes Coventry Village a sustainable place. Add these important sites to the Sustainable Heights Open Green Map, an online mapping project of FutureHeights. There will be refreshments and fun for all. Meet at the Coventry Village Library,1925 Coventry Road. Family Friendly. Handicapped Accessible. Near Public Transportation. For more information, call FutureHeights at 216-320-1423 or e-mail sustainablehts@gmail.com.

1:30 p.m. Your Health & Social Well-being through Yoga and Meditation Learn how yoga and meditation can improve your health and well-being at the Atma Center, Yoga for Every Body, 2319 Lee Road. A healthier, happier you will benefit all those around you. For more information, visit www.atmacenter.com. Handicapped Accessible.

4 p.m.-6:30 p.m. A Play Date in the Heights Come one, come all to A Play Date in the Heights, family fun for everyone! Visit "play stations" for people of all ages to explore and play in nature around the Coventry School site. Scavenger hunt, games in nature, rubbing and journaling, storytelling, refreshments and more. Join us at the Coventry P.E.A.C.E. Park, playground and library in celebrating a beginning of connecting to nature in the Heights and to our playful sides in the Heights. The event is sponsored by Funny Times and the Sustainable Heights Network. Please note: event will be canceled in case of rain. Family Friendly. Near Public Transportation. For more information, contact sustainablehts@gmail.com.

5 p.m.–7 p.m. Community Pot-Luck and Rain Barrel Workshop Join the Unitarian Universalist Society of Cleveland, 2728 Lancashire Road, as it celebrates its community garden and makes rain barrels for its building. Bring a dish from your garden or favorite farmers' market and learn how to catch rainwater, and reduce runoff, at your home. FREE. Family Friendly. Handicapped Accessible. Near Public Transportation. For more information, call 216-932-1898 or visit www.uucleveland.org.

SUNDAY, OCT. 10

2 p.m.-5 p.m. Adopt A Tree The Funny Times Peace Fund and Council Gardens want to keep our cities green with trees. Their goal is to have 100 new trees planted in the yards of local residents. Heights residents are invited to adopt a small hardwood or flowering tree to plant in their yards. Free trees will be available at Council Gardens, 2501 North Taylor Road, to residents who promise to plant the trees and care for them. The Funny Times, Council Gardens, The Cleveland Botanical Garden and Lawn Lad are teaming up to make trees and knowledge about tree care available through workshops and printed materials. FREE. For more information, call 216-382-8625 or contact Sasha Usher at sasha.usher@gmail.com. Or contact the Funny Times at 216-371-8600.

3 p.m.-4:30 p.m. Organic Gardening and Tree Planting Program Come to Council Gardens, 2501 North Taylor Road, for an afternoon of basic organic gardening and tree planting education from local experts. Learn to go pesticide-free and see how organic gardening works in cooperation with nature for a healthier environment. See Council Gardens’ community garden and urban farm project. FREE. Family Friendly. Handicapped Accessible. Near Public Transportation. For more information, e-mail Spencer Caress at spencer1612@yahoo.com.

Read More on Sustainability
Volume 3, Issue 9, Posted 1:05 PM, 08.24.2010