An Earth Day Tribute to My Teachers

It is said: “when a student is ready, the teacher appears.” For over 20 years, I have been asking the question of how can we live in ways that sustain and restore the earth, and ourselves? Over that time, I have been blessed to learn from some amazing teachers, each adding new dimensions and experiences… Read more

Hold the Vision, Dad, Hold the Vision

I’m pleased to share this guest blog post from John Tener, my dad, who has been an inspiration to me in his persistence in working for positive social change over decades.  “Tommy” Menino, 20 year-long mayor of Boston, died a month ago…  He was eulogized and buried on November 3, the day before the election. … Read more

Dashboards to Track Progress on Greenhouse Gas Emissions

This week, the State of Massachusetts just launched a new dashboard to track the progress of greenhouse gas emission reductions and related indicators. The Massachusetts Global Warming Solutions Project (GWSP) Network has been working with the state to develop a meaningful set of metrics to enable progress to be evaluated.

An Innovation Accelerator: The 2013 New Hampshire Social Business Innovation Challenge

“Our aim is for the New Hampshire Social Business Challenge to serve as an innovation accelerator” was how Yusi Turell of the Carsey Institute described the intent behind this first-ever Business Challenge in New Hampshire. The Challenge involved teams submitting proposed designs for innovative, business-oriented solutions to pressing social and environmental issues at the state,… Read more

Doing More with What the Earth Produces

This blog is part of a series about permaculture, drawing on experiences in a Permaculture Design Course I am taking with Chop Wood Carry Water Permaculture in Nottingham, NH. “We must stop expecting the earth to produce more, but start doing more with what the earth produces.”   – GUNTER PAULI, Upsizing: The Road to… Read more

Fragmented Bureaucracies or Integrated Policy Coordination?

NPR’s Living on Earth show recently ran an interview with David Suzuki, author of “The Legacy: An Elder’s Vision for Our Sustainable Future,” where he shared a moving story illustrating the interdependence of the temperate rainforest ecosystem. He contrasted that to how compartmentalized our government agency approaches are to “managing” our forests. Coincidentally, the same… Read more

Networks: A Core Strategy for Sustainability

Consider these scenarios: Every hotel could adopt greener practices, such as saving water, reducing energy use, serving food from local farms in its restaurants – and many leaders already have. How do we get the rest of the hotels to learn from the leaders and adopt these innovations? Buildings are responsible for about one-third of… Read more