Zero Waste

Comment

Comment by Randy Chatterjee on February 21, 2011 at 4:24pm

Helen Spiegelman writes:

Dear friends at NSV ~

I salute you for the great work you guys have been doing on neighbourhood planning - particularly around land-use and zoning. I'm writing to ask you to be part of a conversation on the evening of Wednesday, March 2nd to talk about something different – but closely related.

Talk Green Vancouver - Draft Zero Waste Action Plan
Roundhouse Community Arts & Recreation Centre
181 Roundhouse Mews (Corner of Davie & Pacific)
Wednesday, March 2, 2011 
6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

Zero Waste Vancouver has been invited to host a 2-hour meeting, co-sponsored by the City through its Greenest City initiative, to look at the draft Zero Waste plan through a “neighbourhoods” lens. I leapt at the chance. Here’s a little background.
 
You may know that I have a long involvement both as a neighbourhood activist (Dunbar Residents Association, Neighbour-to-Neighbour) and as a recycling activist (Recycling Council of BC, Zero Waste Vancouver).  It is really satisfying to have these two issues converge at such a positive moment. 
 
I am a fan of the Greenest City project. Two things appeal to me most. First is the recurrent theme of creating neighbourhood capacity, to build the Greenest City from the ground up. Waste happens in part because people don’t have options when they need them: composting in your apartment building, for instance. It also happens because of social isolation: we can’t find people down the street who could use something we have no further use for. The City is asking us to come up with specific Neighbourhood Zero Waste "Assets" that could encourage exchanges rather than discards, for instance, foster repair and stewardship rather than more consumption... reduce our waste and build more resilient, connected communities at the same time.
 
The second good thing about the Greenest City project is its synergistic approach. The plan is built around ten goals, and the goals are cross-linked. If we build the neighbourhood capacity we need to achieve the Zero Waste goal, that capacity will also support the achievement of other goals: more neighbourhood recycling businesses, for instance, will support the Green Economy goal as well as the Zero Waste goal. More composting of food scraps will support the Local Food goal. More recycling in condos and apartments will support the Green Buildings goal... In the course of building neighbourhood capacity in one area, we build it in all areas and become a resilient Green City with deep roots. Ultimately, this will be given expression in new land-use and zoning policies that support a livable city.
 
I really hope you will come be part of this conversation on March 2nd. We need your insights. Let me know if you are interested and I will send more details. 

To confirm attendance, please contact:
Olive Dempsey
olive.dempsey@vancouver.ca 
604-873-7264.RSVP by February 25, 2011 
A light dinner will be provided at the event 

 

Best regards,
Helen Spiegelman
Zero Waste Vancouver

Comment by Mairi Welman on April 30, 2010 at 10:34am

Anyone interested in zero waste?
RCBC is holding its 36th annual conference during the last week of May this year, in Whistler.
Rex Weyler is the keynote and session topics range from approaches to multi-family residential waste reduction to the premiere screening of the new documentary film, The Clean Bin Project.
For more info www.rcbc.bc.ca/events/annual-conference