Green Sanctuary Meeting Notes August 18, 2019

Present:  Adeline Bailey, Mike Bailey, George Banziger, Andrew Clovis, Vic Elam, Tim Finkel, Dawn Hewitt, Ralph Olander, Rebecca Phillips, Cindy Taylor, Annie Warmke

 1.	Minutes. Amended minutes from July 21 meeting were approved.

 2.	Call for volunteer for Green Tips for September orders of service. Annie Warmke agreed to send tips to Chris Keller by the last week of August.

 3.	 Meeting chair for September and November. Annie Warmke agreed to chair the meetings.

 4.	 Harrison installation of on-demand, under-sink water heaters in RE bathroom and kitchen. Dawn Hewitt reported that a majority of the GSC voted via-email in favor of the proposal. She also shared that an inspection revealed condensation on the basement ducts and that Wilson Heating and Cooling installed insulation for $100.

 5.	Post mortem on recycling at the YMCA race.  Dawn reported that the race itself left very little litter, so our six volunteers may have been too many. Only one bag of bottles was collected. There was contamination of recyclables at the awards location. Mike Bailey reported that he collected recyclable packaging and cardboard.
Other recycling-related topics:
�	Fruit was served in plastic—should we suggest/donate paper containers? George Banziger noted that the fruit is usually bananas. 
�	This was a small race. George will contact River Cities Runners and Walkers about future races. Need to consider how many volunteers will be required.
�	 Need to educate event organizers/ask about recycling opportunities. 
�	Dawn will contact Hunt Brawley about Peoples Bank Theatre event recycling.
�	Jay Phillips will contact Dawn about Blues Fest in March.

  6. 	CCL updates. Dave Ballabtyne and George Banziger will meet with Rep. Johnson on August 		19. George reported that Johnson's responses to recent letters indicate more consideration of 		climate change but also state that he is not willing to do anything that will harm jobs in the 		district. Discussion of area employment included the following:
�	growth in wind and solar, decline in coal. 
�	question about Shale Crescent/natural gas—Johnson connected to group—goal to exploit gas 		resources and attract businesses with high need for energy—steel, etc. Shale Crescent 			initiatives—new cracker plant in Eastern Ohio
�	Can Rep. Johnson help us bring solar jobs to area? Wind turbine construction? Other components? 
�	Senators Rob Portman and Jeanne Shaheen have cosponsored a bill requiring  green building and renewable energy/efficiency in federal building standards. George sent a thank-you note to Senator Portman.

 7.	Oct. 5 hoedown fundraiser in Shari and Dave Ballantyne’s barn hayloft. The event will be a fundraiser for the winter sustainability forum.

 8.	November 16 “Beat Climate Change” Coffee House at 7:00 PM.
Planning committee for event: Rebecca Phillips (chair), Andrew Clovis, Dawn Hewitt, Annie Warmke. The group will meet at 9:30 AM on September 15.
Rebecca will add our event to the Climate Change Theater Action website and forward information to committee. Annie will draft a description of the event for publicity.
Play selection committee—Annie, Andrew, Dawn, and Rebecca. 
 	Rebecca will contact the Serenity coffeehouse poetry group and the WVUP writers group if it 	still exists.

 9.	Sustainability Forum, Jan. 31-Feb.
	Andrew Clovis will chair the planning committee. Dawn noted the need for each committee		 member to have a specific charge. Other discussion topics:
�	Should the forum focus on individual actions regarding climate or include organizations and city/county programs? 
�	George noted the upcoming levy for a new school building. If it passes, community members can give input regarding issues such as LEED construction and bicycle access. Cindy noted other possible uses for the building, such as being a community shelter during emergency situations.
�	Rebecca noted the work of a citizens committee on riverbank protection and improvement. 
�	Inviting organizations and governmental bodies was agreed on as a possibility.
�	Need for a mission description for the sustainability forum, with a stress on proactive approaches.
�	The planning committee will meet on Tuesday, October 1, via Skype. Committee members and times TBD.
�	The winter gardening series. George noted that people look forward to it. It was agreed to do a shortened series in February only, with the sustainability forum as a kickoff.

 10.	Climate Change and Public Health forum in Morgantown on Sept. 21. Cindy Taylor has registered for the event. MOVCA is tabling. 

 11.	 Mayoral candidate Harley Noland listening event on August 20. Dawn will share information on Oberlin's zero-emission plant. Rebecca will share riverbank group notes.

 12.	September 15 Sierra Club community discussion of public lands. 
Discussion of need for publicity in local media, possibly approaching WTAP regarding a segment on Daybreak.

Respectfully submitted by Rebecca Phillips