flsi syllabus

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Foresight Leadership & Sustainability Initiative at Oberlin College

Oberlin College | Foresight Design Initiative July 20 to August 2, 2014 Table of Contents FLSI@Oberlin 2014: Itinerary at a Glance .................................................................... 2 COURSE SYLLABUS

Course Description ....................................................................................................... 7 Outcomes ...................................................................................................................... 7 Expectations ................................................................................................................. 8 Program Faculty Bios .................................................................................................... 8 Speakers & Site Visits By Topic .................................................................................. 10 Projects ....................................................................................................................... 12 Reading Assignments ................................................................................................. 12

Detailed Course Schedule ........................................................................................... 14 RESOURCES Oberlin Campus Map ...................................................................................................... 47 Oberlin Social and Recreational Options ........................................................................ 49 What is Sustainability? .................................................................................................... 51 Sustainability 101 Glossary ............................................................................................ 52 A Brief History of the Modern Environmental Movement in America .............................. 58 !NEXT!STEPS!Environmental Youth Membership Organizations .......................................................... 62 Environmental Organizations with Youth Focus ............................................................. 65 National Environmental Organizations ........................................................................... 67 Environmental Studies Departments at U.S. Colleges

Top 10 of the Best Environmental Studies Programs in the U.S. for Undergrads ...... 68 Top 5 Greenest College Campuses in the U.S ........................................................... 68

Recommended Books .................................................................................................... 69 Sustainability Related Websites ..................................................................................... 71 Media Sources—Podcasts & Blogs & DVDs .................................................................. 73

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2014 Foresight Leadership and Sustainability Initiative at Oberlin College

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FLSI@Oberlin 2014: Itinerary at a Glance WEEK 1 Sunday, July 20: Oberlin Campus 12:00-2:00 Residence hall check-in (includes lunch) Robert Lewis Kahn Hall (Kahn) 169 N Professor Street 3:00-5:30 Group Activity: Get to Know Oberlin Leaving from Kahn Hall 5:30-6:00 Debrief and Group Initiation 6:00-7:00 Dinner Stevenson Dining Hall 155 N Professor Street 7:30-9:00 Evening Discussion Kahn Hall Student Lounge Housing rules and social activities 10:00 Check-in Monday, July 21: Oberlin Campus 7:30-8:30 Breakfast, Stevenson Dining Hall 8:50-10:20 Lecture/discussion: Leadership as a Concept Adam Joseph Lewis Center for Environmental Studies (AJLC) Elm Street between Professor and Cedar 10:20-10:30 Feed the Machine 10:30-11:30 Guest speaker: Sean Hayes, The Oberlin Project 11:30-12:30 Tour of the AJLC and the Living Machine with Sean Hayes 12:45-1:30 Lunch, Stevenson Dining Hall 2:00-3:30 Biking Systems Analysis Project 3:30-6:00 Free Time 6:00-7:00 Dinner, Stevenson Dining Hall 7:30-8:30 Evening Discussion, Kahn Lounge Collective agreements and group goals, preparing for field trip 10:00 Check-in

Tuesday, July 22: Rural NE Ohio 7:30-8:15 Breakfast 8:30-10:00 Drive to Wooster, Board bus in front of Stevenson 10:00-11:30 Meeting with Casey Hoy Kellogg Endowed Chair in Agricultural Ecosystem Management Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center 11:30-11:45 Drive to Quasar Energy Group facility 11:45-1:00 Tour Quasar Energy Group anaerobic digester 1:00-1:40 Lunch, Secrest Arboretum 1:40-2:00 Drive to Local Roots Market & Café


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2:00-3:30 Tour and Discussion of Local Roots Market & Café 3:30-3:45 Break, reboard bus 3:45-5:00 Drive to Oberlin College 6:00-7:00 Dinner 7:30-9:00 Optional group activity: Sustainability Comedy Night 10:00 Check-in Wednesday, July 23: Oberlin Campus 7:30-8:30 Breakfast 8:50-10:00 Class, AJLC Guest Speakers: Meghan Riesterer and Bridget Flynn Oberlin Office of Environmental Sustainability 10:00-11:00 Guest speaker: Marvin Krislov President of Oberlin College 11:00-11:15 Feed the Machine 11:15-12:15 Guest Speaker: David W. Orr 12:15-12:30 Check-ins 12:45-1:30 Lunch 2:00-4:00 Biking Systems Analysis Project 4:00-6:00 Free Time 6:00-7:00 Dinner 7:20-9:00 Evening Discussion, AJLC Lanita Stevens, USG Corporation (Skype) 10:00 Check-in Thursday, July 24: Cleveland Neighborhoods & Land Use 7:30-8:30 Breakfast 8:45 Gather to board bus, in front of Stevenson 9:45-10:00 Drive to Cleveland, Board bus in front of Stevenson 10:00-11:30 Meeting with Jim Rokakis, Director of Thriving Communities Institute 11:30-11:45 Break and walk to lunch location 11:45-12:30 Lunch, Market Square Park 12:30-12:45 Walk to Ohio City Farm 12:45-1:45 Ohio City Farm Tour Discussion with Maggie Fitzpatrick, Farm Manager for Refugee Response 1:45-2:00 Break, reboard bus 2:00-2:30 Drive to Vineyards of Chateau Hough 2:30-4:00 Tour and discussion with Mansfield Frazier, Founder of Vineyards of Chateau Hough 4:00-5:00 Drive to Oberlin College 6:00-7:00 Dinner 7:30-9:00 Optional group activity: Sustainability Movie Night 10:00 Check-in


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Friday, July 25: Oberlin Campus 7:30-8:30 Breakfast 8:50-10:45 Class, AJLC Lecture/ Discussion: Field Trips Debrief, and Article Discussion: Social and Environmental History of Northeast Ohio 10:45-11:00 Feed the Machine 11:00-12:30 Guest Speaker: Sylvia Hood Washington Diversity in Sustainability Movements, 12:45-1:30 Lunch 2:00-4:00 Biking Systems Analysis Project 4:00-6:00 Free Time 6:00-7:00 Dinner 7:30-9:00 Sustainable Movie Night 10:00 Check-in Saturday, July 26: Oberlin Campus 7:30-8:30 Breakfast 9:00-12:30 Free Time 12:45-1:30 Lunch 2:00-5:30 Optional Social/Recreational Activities (TBD) 6:00-7:00 Dinner 7:30-10:00 Student-Initiated Group Social Activity 11:00 Check-in Sunday, July 27: Oberlin Campus 7:30-8:30 Breakfast 9:00-12:30 Free Time 12:45-1:30 Lunch 2:00-4:00 Optional Field Trip: Tour of Trail Magic green home Discussion with Carl McDaniel 6:00-7:00 Dinner 7:00-10:00 Free Time 11:00 Check-in WEEK 2 Monday, July 28: Oberlin Campus 7:30-8:30 Breakfast 8:50-11:00 Class, AJLC Guest Speaker: Michele Banik-Rake, McDonald’s Corporation 11:00-12:30 Student-Led Oberlin Sustainability Tour with Michele Banik-Rake 12:30-1:30 Lunch, Informal Chat with Michele Banik-Rake 2:00-4:00 Biking Systems Analysis Project 4:00-6:00 Free Time


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6:00-7:00 Dinner 7:20-8:30 Evening Discussion, AJLC: Guest Speaker: Karen Florini, Environmental Defense Fund (Skype) !Tuesday, July 29: Oberlin Campus 7:30-8:30 Breakfast 8:50-10:30 Class, AJLC Presentations and Discussion: Collective Leadership 10:30-11:00 Article Discussion: Why are American Colleges Obsessed with Leadership? 11:00-11:15 Feed the Machine 11:15-12:30 Lecture/Discussion: Thinking in Systems 12:45-1:30 Lunch 2:00-4:00 Biking Systems Analysis Project 4:00-6:00 Free Time 6:00-7:00 Dinner 7:30-9:00 Evening Discussion: Film Viewing: Network Theory 10:00 Check-in !Wednesday, July 30: Oberlin Campus 7:30-8:30 Breakfast 8:50-10:00 Class, AJLC Lecture/Discussion: Leadership Self-Assessment 10:00-11:00 Lecture/Discussion: Potential Education and Career Paths 11:00-11:15 Feed the Machine 11:30-12:30 Guest Speaker: Oberlin Admissions How to Be a Strong College Applicant 12:45-1:30 Lunch 2:00-4:00 Biking Systems Analysis Project 4:00-6:00 Free Time 6:00-6:45 Dinner 6:50-8:30 Evening Discussion, AJLC Guest Speaker: Brad Masi, Open Collaborative Networks !Thursday, July 31: Cleveland Systems and Collaborations 7:30-8:30 Breakfast 8:45-10:00 Drive to Cleveland, Board bus in front of Stevenson 10:00-11:30 Meeting with Jenita McGowan, City of Cleveland, and Andrew Watterson, KeyBank, at Sustainable Cleveland Center 11:30-12:30 Lunch 12:30-2:00 Meeting with Ted Howard, The Democracy Collaborative and Evergreen Co-ops 2:00-2:15 Break and reboard bus 2:15-3:00 Drive to West Creek Conservancy 3:00-4:30 Discussion and tour with Derek Schafer,


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West Creek Conservancy 4:30-4:45 Break and reboard bus 4:45-5:45 Drive to Oberlin College 6:00-7:00 Dinner 7:00-9:00 Independent Research/Free Time 10:00 Check-in Friday, August 1: Oberlin Campus 7:30-8:30 Breakfast 8:50-12:30 Class, AJLC Final Lectures/Discussion (Focus TBD) 12:45-1:30 Lunch 2:00-3:00 Program Evaluation, AJLC 3:00-5:30 Free Time, Final Presentation Prep 6:00-7:00 Dinner 7:30-9:00 Closing Ceremony and Biking Systems Analysis Project Community Presentation, At AJLC 10:00 Check-in Saturday, August 2: Oberlin Campus 7:30-8:30 Breakfast 10:00-11:00 Residence Hall Checkout, Kahn Hall Lobby 10:00-TBD Students Depart for Airport


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Foresight Leadership and Sustainability Initiative at Oberlin College Course Syllabus July 20-August 2, 2014 !Program Leaders: Peter Nicholson & Tim Jones-Yelvington Residential/Teaching Assistants: Jane Clark, Jennifer Goldsmith & Max Herzog !Course Description Focused on cultivating the skills and insights of a forthcoming generation of sustainability-oriented leaders prepared to address complex problems, FLSI@Oberlin will help students become more effective change-makers. The curriculum incorporates a dynamic mixture of readings, lecture, discussion, field trips, conversations with established professionals, and hands-on projects and leadership opportunities, and is informed by four building blocks: • Sustainability. A range of topics (e.g. energy, transportation, food, housing, waste and

economic development) will be examined across differing locations and sectors, including business, government and nonprofits. The program will make use of Oberlin College and the greater Cleveland area's unique geography to study these issues across a transect from a recovering rust belt city, to rural and small town Ohio. Students will gain skills and insights by learning how real-world practitioners create change, and how they have addressed the obstacles they've encountered along the way.

• Leadership. Emphasis will be placed on identifying and developing each student's leadership potential, as well as analyzing the unique forms of leadership required to confront complex and rapidly evolving problems.

• Systems perspective. Sustainability issues are complex. Students will learn to better understand their interdependencies and recognize their root causes.

• Ongoing Network. Students will forge ongoing relationships with sustainability professionals and undergraduate mentors to support their future education and career paths.

!Outcomes Students will:

• Begin reflecting critically on their own leadership potential and future engagement; • Be introduced to a broad range of sustainability-related content areas; • Develop the perspective required to understand the systemic nature of complex issues; • Be introduced to concrete skills for influencing change.


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Longer-term, the intention is for participants to deepen their engagement with both their own leadership development and sustainability-related content, and to forge successful careers as sustainability-oriented change-makers across diverse sectors (e.g. business, government, nonprofit) and issue areas (e.g. climate, transportation, natural resources, environmental health, etc). !Expectations In order to ensure an optimal learning environment, students should arrive to each session on time and fully prepared for the day’s activities. They will be held accountable for the commitments made previously in their Student Learning Agreements including:

• Attendance and active participation in all FLSI@Oberlin classroom sessions, field trips and activities, a minimum of 6-8 hours daily, and perhaps sometimes a bit more based upon field trip schedules, extracurricular events, and project deadlines;

• Practicing personal wellness and self care (e.g. exercise, sufficient sleep); • Contributing fully to group discussion and project work; • Staying open to constructive criticism, and acknowledging one’s own limitations and

potential areas for growth; • Completing assigned readings and meeting project deadlines as required; • Promptly and fully communicating any issues that arise to FLSI@Oberlin faculty, and to

group members as relevant; • Seeking help/support for any challenges that arise that may affect one’s participation; • Holding oneself accountable for achieving personal goals.

In accordance with these expectations, FLSI@Oberlin staff commit to uphold the following:

• Opportunities for experiential learning, networking with established professionals, and personal development;

• Facilitation of a respectful and inclusive space conducive to exploration, learning and growth;

• Clear communication with students regarding expectations, including feedback to inform project goals;

• Respect for students’ own assets, skills, and leadership potential; • Openness to constructive feedback.

Program Faculty Bios Peter Nicholson, Program Director Peter Nicholson is Executive Director of the Foresight Design Initiative, a unique nonprofit organization he established in 2002, and Principal of the organization's consulting practice. Since early 2012, he has also led Foresight Bright, LLC, a for-profit innovation firm he established to serve private sector clients. Through these positions, Peter leads a multifaceted career focused on challenging the status quo and the pursuit of greater social, environmental and economic sustainability. Peter consults on and undertakes sustainable transformation projects for a diversity of clients, including government agencies, institutional nonprofits, and diverse businesses. Considered an engaging presenter and master facilitator, he is in regular demand as a guest speaker and moderator. Peter is dedicated to the education of the next generation of sustainability-minded leaders and has created and taught programs for participants ranging from high school students to corporate executives. His concise, personal reflections on sustainable innovation are a popular


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feature of the weekly Foresight Forecast newsletter and blog (http://www.foresightblog.org). Peter began his study of Sustainability and Design at the Institute of Design at the Illinois Institute of Technology, and holds a bachelors degree from Oberlin College. Tim Jones-Yelvington, Program Manager Tim Jones-Yelvington possesses a range of facilitation, research, communications and program development and assessment skills. He worked for five years as program staff at Crossroads Fund, a public foundation supporting grassroots community organizing and social justice activists groups in the Chicago area, including a number of youth-led campaigns. His position included managing a portfolio of grantees and helping to coordinate a community-led grantmaking process. He worked closely with the staff and leaders of small, new and emerging organizations to navigate their organizational growth, and contributed to fundraising and communications efforts. Tim recently completed a Masters of Education in Youth Development at University of Illinois at Chicago, and received his undergraduate degree in Women's and Gender Studies from DePaul University. Jane Clark, Teaching/Residential Assistant Jane Clark is a rising junior at Oberlin College, and will soon be declaring a double major in Environmental Studies and East Asian Studies. She works for the Oberlin Student Co-operative Association (OSCA) to coordinate cleanliness, maintenance, and food safety standards for several hundred student members. She is fascinated with how human activity can be shaped to positively impact the environment, quality of life and culture. After learning more about sustainability initiatives in Cleveland through FLSI, she has become interested in how societies can rebuild to create more sustainable communities and regions after natural disasters (e.g. the 2011 Japanese tsunami-earthquake) or regional decline (ex. the Rust Belt). She enjoys organizing spreadsheets, blues and swing dancing, hiking, and will learn to unicycle once she finds the time. Sometimes, when she’s procrastinating, she draws comics. Jennifer Goldsmith, Teaching/Residential Assistant Jenny Goldsmith is rising fourth-year Economics major at Oberlin College, with a focus on Environmental Economics. She believes in the necessity of moving from single (profit) to triple (environment, profit, social equity) bottom-line thinking, to reverse climate change. Outside of the classroom, she mentors a 5th grader, and is a captain of Oberlin’s Varsity Softball team. Jenny is interested in working with high school students and younger children on sustainability issues because this generation has the opportunity and power to bring triple bottom line values into the business world at a large scale.

Max Herzog, Teaching/Residential Assistant Max Herzog is a rising junior at Oberlin College, planning to double major in Politics and Environmental Studies, and potentially minor in Philosophy and Economics. During the past four summers, he has accumulated extensive scientific research experience at Washington University in St. Louis (where he hails from), but has focused more on political, philosophical, and literary theory in his college coursework. His academic goals include personal philosophical development and preparation for a meaningful and impactful career in sustainability. His extracurricular interests can be generally described as music, music, music, and exercising (sort of). He also enjoys camping, skiing, and SCUBA. At Oberlin he participates in both Men's Ultimate Frisbee (go horsecows!!) and WOBC, the college radio station.


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Speakers & Site Visits By Topic Built Environment Tour: Adam Joseph Lewis Center for Environmental Studies (AJLC) and the Living Machine Speaker and Tour: Carl McDaniel, Oberlin alum, author and retired biologist, his energy positive home, “Trail Magic,” is an example of advanced sustainable architecture, http://www.greenenergyohio.org/ost/siteDetail.cfm?site_id=729 Business & Government Speaker: Michele Banik-Rake, Director of Sustainability – Worldwide Supply Chain, McDonald’s Corporation, http://www.aboutmcdonalds.com/mcd/sustainability.html, http://www.aboutmcdonalds.com/mcd/sustainability/signature_programs/beef-sustainability.html Speaker: Jenita McGowan, Chief of Sustainability, City of Cleveland, http://www.sustainablecleveland.org/ Speaker: Lanita Stevens, Manager, Product Stewardship and Sustainability, USG Corporation, https://www.linkedin.com/pub/lanita-stevens/3/294/474 Speaker: Andrew Watterson, Head of Sustainability, KeyBank, https://www.key.com/about/community/key-bank-environmental-commitment.jsp Previously served in the Office of Sustainability for the city of Cleveland for six years, most recently as the city’s first chief of sustainability, http://www.sustainablecleveland.org/ Authority on Appreciative Inquiry, an asset-based community engagement approach, http://www.greenbiz.com/blog/2012/08/01/creating-positive-change-through-appreciative-inquiry !!Community, Economic & Workforce Development, and Environmental Justice Tour: Local Roots Market and Café, a Wooster, OH-based cooperative market and community center connecting producers with consumers of locally-grown, sustainable food, http://localrootswooster.com/ Speaker: Ted Howard, Executive Director of the Democracy Collaborative, http://democracycollaborative.org/, and key strategist behind the Evergreen Cooperatives, an effort to create green jobs in low-income neighborhoods using the purchasing power of Cleveland’s anchor institutions (hospitals, universities, etc.) to create local worker cooperative businesses, based in part on the Mondragon Cooperatives in the Basque Region of Spain, http://evergreencooperatives.com/ Tour: Vineyards of Chateau Hough, a community revitalization project that has repurposed vacant land to establish a vineyard to generate income for youth, veterans and formerly incarcerated residents, http://chateauhough.org/ A project of the nonprofit Neighborhood Solutions, Inc, http://www.neighborhoodsolutionsinc.com/ Speaker: Sylvia Hood Washington, award-winning project engineer, environmental health scientist, historian and environmental justice activist, http://www.e3hra.com/


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Energy & Climate Speaker: Sean Hayes, Executive Director of the Oberlin Project, a citywide initiative to become a climate-positive community, http://www.oberlinproject.org/ Speaker: Karen Florini, Managing Director, International Climate Program, Environmental Defense Fund, http://www.edf.org/people/karen-florini Speaker: David W. Orr, Paul Sears Distinguished Professor of Environmental Studies and Politics, Oberlin College, special assistant to the President of the College, and internationally esteemed climate change leader, http://new.oberlin.edu/arts-and-sciences/departments/environment/faculty_detail.dot?id=21065 Tour: Quasar Energy Group, a company that produces biogas for energy and fuel. Their 550,000-gallon anaerobic digester at the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center provides more than a third of the campus' energy needs, http://www.quasarenergygroup.com/pages/profile_wooster.pdf Speakers: Meghan Riesterer, Meghan Riesterer, Assistant Vice President of Energy Management and Sustainability for Oberlin College and Bridget Flynn, Sustainability Coordinator, facilitate the implementation of the College’s comprehensive environmental policy, http://new.oberlin.edu/office/environmental-sustainability/ !Food & Agriculture Speaker: Casey Hoy, Kellogg Endowed Chair in Agricultural Ecosystem Management, Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center, http://oardc.osu.edu/phone_single.asp?id=314 Speaker: Brad Masi, consultant, filmmaker and local food systems advocate, founder of Cleveland's City Fresh program to bring healthy food to low income communities, and former director of Oberlin's New Agrarian Center, http://www.neofoodweb.org/biography-brad-masi Tour/Speaker: Ohio City Farm, one of the largest contiguous urban farms in the United States, and a groundbreaking collaboration between five nonprofit, business and government partners, http://ohiocity.org/ohio-city-farm Discussion with Maggie Fitzpatrick, Farm Manager for Refugee Response, http://therefugeeresponse.org/our-work/reap !Land Use & Urban Planning Speaker: Jim Rokakis, Former Cuyahoga County Treasurer, Director of the Thriving Communities Institute at the Western Reserve Land Conservancy, http://www.thrivingcommunitiesinstitute.org/ Tour/Speaker: West Creek Conservancy, a land conservation organization focused on urban watersheds, the outgrowth of a grassroots-lead effort to establish a 300-acre reservation in Parma, OH, http://westcreek.org/ Discussion with Derek Schafer, Executive Director


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!Projects!Biking Systems Analysis Biking provides a potentially healthy and energy efficient transportation alternative. The town of Oberlin possesses unique biking infrastructure, in the form of the Oberlin Bicycle Cooperative, which makes bikes available to students and residents, while also teaching them how to better understand and repair them. Yet the overall number of residents adopting biking as a major form of transportation remains small. This project will seek to identify systemic barriers to bike adoption in the town of Oberlin, and potential new leverage points for creating change. Once on campus, students will be provided with a thorough “design brief” outlining the project’s parameters. Leadership Self-Assessment Students will complete a brief (1-2 pages) written reflection upon their own leadership potential, and preferences and potential plans for their future engagement in creating sustainability-related change. The goal will be for students to synthesize leadership-focused readings, lectures and discussions with their own interests and experiences, and insights gleaned from guest speakers and field trips. A more detailed assignment description, including guiding questions, will be provided. Reading Assignments Students should have the following readings completed by the dates indicated on the syllabus. They may wish to get a head start prior to the two-week seminar. Bonta, M. (2008). The movement’s greatest challenge is its own lack of diversity. Grist. Retrieved

from http://grist.org/article/how-to-diversify-environmentalism/. Burton, I. (2014 January 22) Why are American colleges obsessed with leadership? The Atlantic.

Retrieved from http://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2014/01/why-are-american-colleges-obsessed-with-leadership/283253/.

Fleisher, J.S., & Jeffers, A. (2013). Social and Environmental History of Northeast Ohio: An

Introduction for the Sustainability Case Studies. Retrieved from http://www.bw.edu/academics/sustainability/neo-case-studies/cases/Introduction_Chapter_final.pdf.

Freeman, J. (1973). The Tyranny of structurelessness. * Retrieved from

http://www.jofreeman.com/joreen/tyranny.htm. McDonald’s Corporation. Corporate social responsibility and sustainability.

Retrieved from http://www.aboutmcdonalds.com/mcd/sustainability/our_focus_areas.html. McKibben, B. (2013 August 19). Movements without leaders: what to make of change on an

overheating planet.* Grist. Retrieved from http://grist.org/climate-energy/movements-without-leaders-what-to-make-of-change-on-an-overheating-planet/.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!* This is one of three readings on “collective leadership” that will be assigned to groups for presentations. While


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Preskill, S. (2005). Fundi-The enduring leadership legacy of civil rights activist ella baker. *

Advancing Women in Leadership Online Journal, 18. Retrieved from http://www.advancingwomen.com/awl/social_justice1/Preskill.html.

United States Department of Agriculture National Agricultural Statistics Service. (2014). 2013

State Agriculture Overview, Ohio. Retrieved from http://www.nass.usda.gov/Quick_Stats/Ag_Overview/stateOverview.php?state=OHIO

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!*!This is one of three readings on “collective leadership” that will be assigned to groups for presentations. While students are enthusiastically invited to read all three, only one will be required, and will be assigned during the first class session on Monday 7/21.!!


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7/20 Sunday: Oberlin Campus ! 12:00-2:00 Residence hall check-in.

• Includes lunch; • Students arriving by air will be transported from Hopkins Airport to campus in

groups, with logistics coordinated through email. ! 3:00-5:30 Group Activity: Get to Know Oberlin Designed and facilitated by Jerry Cruz, Jillian Doane, & Henry Gardner

Students will be broken into teams for an activity that will get them out on their feet, exploring the campus. Questions:

• What are some exciting aspects of the campus and town of Oberlin? !

Objective: • For students to get oriented to campus and one another through immediate,

hands-on activity. 5:30-6:00 Debrief and Group Initiation Facilitated by Caroline Plott and Brooke Wallery

A brief discussion will be followed by a full group initiation. !

Questions: • What were the most interesting/exciting things students discovered about

Oberlin? • What will students need to know for a successful evening and first day of

class? !

Objective: • Introduce/get the full group comfortable with one another.

6:00-7:00 Dinner 7:30-9:00 Evening Discussion and social activities !

Objectives: • Familiarize students with housing rules and procedures. • Introduce the Student-Initiated Group Social Activity assignment (see

Saturday, July 26) • Relax, unwind, socialize, and prepare for the first day of the course.

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7/21 Monday: Oberlin Campus ! 7:30-8:30 Breakfast 8:50 -10:20 Lecture/Discussion: Leadership as a Concept Students should arrive for this session prepared with an example of a leader who

has personally inspired them, identified during the course of their pre-curriculum research and assignments. Students will engage in an activity that positions them as leadership theorists/researchers, forcing them to inorganically consolidate their individual lists of leadership qualities into a single group construct.

Objectives:

• Understand that leadership is a concept and construct; • Shift from understanding leadership as character traits to leadership as a

social change process; • Gain initial understanding of the concepts of “transactional” and

“transformational” leadership; • Accept a working definition of leadership for the course of the program; • Develop a framework for future exploration (throughout the program) of

sustainability-specific leadership processes. !10:20-10:30 Feed the Machine !10:30-11:30 Guest Speaker: Sean Hayes, The Oberlin Project

Questions: • What does it take to implement a project like this in a town like Oberlin,

where the divide between the College and town has at times proven an impediment to collaborations? What institutional and cultural barriers have they encountered, and how were they addressed?

• What are the benefits and limitations of Oberlin’s small size, with relation to an effort like the Oberlin Project? How much of an impact can this have on climate change? What might it take to bring it to a larger scale?

• What qualities does Sean believe are essential for sustainability-oriented leadership? How has he seen his own approach to his work shift with his transition from managing the AJLC into his relatively new role with the Oberlin Project?

Objective:

• Familiarize students with the Oberlin Project’s unique challenges and successes;

• Discover what lessons the Oberlin Project affords about leadership, and implementing effective change strategies.


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11:30-12:30 Tour of the AJLC and the Living Machine with Sean Hayes

Questions: • What makes the AJLC unique? Can these features feasibly be replicated and

implemented more broadly outside Oberlin?

Objectives: • Learn the science behind how the Living Machine functions, and what

features that have made the AJLC an iconic and award-winning green building;

• Develop insight into how the AJLC’s lessons may be applied beyond Oberlin.

12:45-1:30 Lunch 2:00-3:30 Biking Systems Analysis Project (see “Projects”) 3:30-6:00 Free Time 6:00-7:00 Dinner

7:30-8:30 Evening Discussion: Collective Agreements and Group Goals/Preparing for Field Trip

Questions: • Based upon students’ first day and a half together, what procedures and

practices will ensure a respectful environment going forward in the program?

• What learning and/or action goals would students like to accomplish by the conclusion of these two weeks?

• What questions will be important to ask speakers during the first day of field trips?

Objectives:

• Establish written collective agreements; • Draft written group learning/action goals; • Identify questions to ask during field trips; • Assign participant roles for field trip days, including schedule manager, note

taker and thank yous. • Assign the Student-Led Oberlin Sustainability Tour with Michele Banik-

Rake (see Monday, July 28) !About the Organization & Speaker The Oberlin Project The Oberlin Project is a citywide collaboration between the City of Oberlin, Oberlin College and other private and institutional partners with the goal of making Oberlin one of the nation’s most


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sustainable towns, and a replicable model for other communities. Its goals include becoming climate positive through renewable energy and energy efficiency projects, meeting 70% of the town’s food needs through local sources, spurring environmentally friendly economic development, and other projects. !Sean Hayes, Executive Director Prior to becoming Executive Director of the Oberlin Project, Sean was responsible for the management and oversight of the Adam Joseph Lewis Center, including the grounds and the building’s mechanical systems. He holds a BA in psychology from Wabash College and an MS in appropriate technology from Appalachian State University, where he worked with the university’s bio-fuels research group and office of sustainability. Further Reading: The Oberlin Project: http://www.oberlinproject.org/ 2014 Analysis of Oberlin Project implementation by Kristin Braziunas, past Assistant Director: http://www.thesolutionsjournal.com/node/237132 2011 Oberlin Update from David W. Orr in Oberlin Alumni Magazine: http://oberlin.edu/alummag/fall2011/features/project.html !!The Adam Joseph Lewis Center for Environmental Studies (AJLC) This solar-powered building has earned national acclaim as a showcase for green building technologies and operating systems. Photovoltaic panels on the center's roof and parking pavilion capture renewable energy from the sun, and south-facing windows allow for passive solar heating. Indoors, a specially engineered wetland called the Living Machine purifies non-potable wastewater for reuse in toilets and the landscape. Flows of energy and cycling of materials are monitored and displayed by a sophisticated system (150+ sensors) that gives real-time feedback, teaching about sustainability in the built environment. Further Reading: ALJC Building Dashboard: http://buildingdashboard.net/oberlin/ajlc/ U.S. Department of Energy Building Profile: https://buildingdata.energy.gov/project/adam-joseph-lewis-center-environmental-studies-oberlin-college Tour of the Living Machine with FLSI@Oberlin TA/RAs Max and Jenny (video): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RVQXcM3PmxI !!! !


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7/22 Tuesday: Wooster, OH (Rural Food Systems) ! 7:30-8:15 Breakfast ! 8:30-10:00 Drive to Wooster 10:00-11:30 Guest Speaker: Casey Hoy, Kellogg Endowed Chair in Agricultural Ecosystem

Management, Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center (OARDC) Reading: 2013 State Agriculture Overview, Ohio !!

Questions: • How is OARDC and the Agricultural Ecosystems Management Program’s

work contributing to the creation of a more sustainable food and agriculture system in Northeast Ohio?

• What is the role of research and academia in spurring change toward more sustainable food systems?

Objective:

• Develop a more nuanced understanding of food systems in Northeast Ohio; • Begin reflecting upon how sustainability issues manifest in a rural context,

and how this may be distinct from, or intersect with, their manifestation across the transect into urban Cleveland;

• Discover potentially effective strategies for reshaping food and agriculture systems.

!11:30-11:45: Break, and travel to Quasar Energy Group anaerobic digester 11:45-12:45: Tour Quasar Energy Group anaerobic digester

Questions: • What is anaerobic digestion, and why is it considered both a renewable

energy and sustainable waste management solution? • What has been the impact of Quasar’s facility? What implications might this

have for other locations? Objectives:

• See/experience the implementation of anaerobic digestion solutions firsthand.

• Understand/reflect upon the role of scientific/technical innovations within broader systems change efforts.

1:00-1:40 Lunch, Secrest Arboretum 1:40-2:00 Drive to Local Roots Market and Café


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2:00-3:00 Tour and Discussion of Local Roots Market and Café

Questions: • Where does an entity like Local Roots fit within Northeast Ohio’s food

system, and efforts to transform it? • What factors have ensured Local Roots’ success?

Objectives:

• Understand the potential role of collaborative, community-based networking projects in food systems change-making efforts.

3:30-3:45 Break, reboard bus 3:45-5:00 Drive to Oberlin College 6:00-7:00 Dinner 7:30-9:00 Optional group activity: Sustainability Comedy Night 10:00 Check-in About the Organizations & Speaker The Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center (OARDC) The OARDC, a campus of the Ohio State University, undertakes a variety of research and education initiatives that promote safe, healthy, and affordable food and agricultural products; sustainable food and agricultural systems; strong rural and urban communities; stewardship of natural resources and the environment; and keeping Ohio positioned favorably in a global economy. !Casey Hoy, WK Kellogg Endowed Chair in Agricultural Ecosystems Management Casey Hoy holds both B.S. and Ph.D. degrees in entomology from Cornell University. He joined The Ohio State University as an assistant professor upon completion of his graduate work in 1987, and was promoted to associate professor in 1993 and professor in 1998. The former associate chairman of the Department of Entomology, he has held the Kellogg Endowed Chair in Agricultural Ecosystems Management and provided leadership to the Agroecosystems Management Program of the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center (OARDC) since 2006. Professor Hoy’s past research has included systems analysis and its application to integrated pest management and applied ecology. His current work provides interdisciplinary leadership toward advancements in agroecosystem health and sustainable communities. He teaches graduate level courses that include systems analysis, quantitative methods in environmental research, landscape ecology, and interdisciplinary teamwork. Professor Hoy has received the OARDC Multidisciplinary Team Research Award, OARDC Distinguished Faculty Research Award, and the Award for Excellence in Integrated Pest Management presented by the Entomological Society of America. He has served on many federal grant review panels, the Ohio Food Policy Advisory


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Council, several boards of trustees, and the executive committee for the Kellogg endowed Inter-institutional Network for Food and Agricultural Sustainability. Further Reading: The OARDC website: http://oardc.osu.edu/ The Agroecosystems Management Program: http://amp.osu.edu/ !!Quasar Energy Group Based in Cleveland, Quasar is a full service waste-to-energy company with a laboratory and engineering facility at OARDC campus. Quasar designs, builds, owns and operates anaerobic digestion facilities to produce renewable energy from agricultural waste that would usually be incinerated or hauled to landfills. The resulting biogas becomes reusable energy, while remaining liquid and resulting solids can be used for fertilizer and organic soil amendments. Further Reading: Quasar Energy Group: http://www.quasarenergygroup.com/ Wooster bio-digester project profile: http://www.quasarenergygroup.com/pages/profile_wooster.pdf !!Local Roots Market & Café The result of a community effort guided by a 12 member steering committee, Local Roots is a Producer/Consumer food Cooperative that includes a market and café, while also serving as an informal community center, hosting meetings of local organizations and presenting classes on topics such as gardening, healthy cooking, food preservation, crafts, and issues relating to sustainability. All products are local (defined as Ohio) and sold on consignment by the producer, and the majority of the labor is volunteer, so that 85% of the selling price goes back to the producer. Further Reading: Local Roots website: http://localrootswooster.com/ Local Roots profiled in the Washington Post: http://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/food/smarter-food-a-farmers-market-with-a-difference/2011/12/20/gIQAUHYcYP_story.html ! !


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!7/23 Wednesday: Oberlin Campus ! 7:30-8:30 Breakfast 8:50-10:00 Guest Speakers: Meghan Riesterer, Assistant Vice President of Energy Management and Sustainability Bridget Flynn, Sustainability Coordinator Oberlin College Office of Environmental Sustainability

Questions: • How do Meghan and Bridget define leadership in their respective roles? • What skills do they each bring, and view as necessary to be effective in their

jobs? Objectives:

• Learn more about Oberlin’s sustainability initiatives; • Discover what skills are required, and what processes most effective, for

coordinating diverse stakeholders, and leading sustainability efforts at an institution like Oberlin.

10:00-11:00 Guest Speaker: Marvin Krislov, President of Oberlin College

Questions: • As the person who initiated the FLSI@Oberlin program, why does President

Krislov feel it’s important that this program exist? • As President of the College, Mr. Krislov is accountable to a diversity of

audiences with varying levels of sustainability interest and commitment, and potentially competing objectives, including the College’s board of trustees, students, alumni, and others. What does it mean to take a leadership position on sustainability within this role?

Objectives:

• Discover qualities and processes for successfully leading complex institutions toward greater sustainability.

11:00-11:15 Feed the Machine !11:15-12:15 Guest Speaker: David W. Orr Paul Sears Distinguished Professor of Environmental Studies and Politics and

Special Assistant to the President, Oberlin College


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Questions: • How does Dr. Orr define leadership? What types of leadership does he

believe are necessary to effectively address sustainability-related challenges?

• What strategies or actions does Dr. Orr believe are needed to successfully curb and/or adapt to the threats posed by climate change? What would it take to bring these about?

Objective:

• Deepen and/or reframe students’ analyses and approach to the “big picture” problems of climate change.

12:15-12:30 Check-ins Flex time to accommodate guest speaker overruns, or students’ course and project-

related questions and concerns. 12:45-1:30 Lunch 2:00-4:00 Biking Systems Analysis Project (see “Projects”) 4:00-6:00 Free Time 6:00-7:00 Dinner

7:20-8:30 Evening Discussion: Guest Speaker (Skype): Lanita Stevens, USG Corporation

Questions: • How does Ms. Stevens define leadership in her role at USG Corporation?

What qualities does she feel are necessary for success? • Why did Ms. Stevens commit to serve on the FLSI Steering Committee?

Why does she feel this project is important? About the Speakers Meghan Riesterer, Assistant Vice President of Energy Management and Sustainability Meghan leads the Office of Environmental Sustainability at Oberlin College and focuses on strategic development and implementation of the College’s energy management and sustainability initiatives, projects, and programs. Collaborating with a diverse group of stakeholders, including students, faculty, staff, the Board of Trustees, and community partners, Meghan utilizes her technical energy engineering expertise, together with her background in planning and facilitation to propel strategies to sharply reduce energy consumption and carbon emissions at the College. Prior to joining Oberlin College in January 2014, Meghan was the Director of Sustainability for the Medical Center Company, a nonprofit district energy system serving thermal energy and power to the University Circle neighborhood of Cleveland, Ohio. Meghan is a Certified Energy Manager and LEED Accredited Professional. She earned a Master in City Planning degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.


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Bridget Flynn, Sustainability Coordinator As Sustainability Coordinator, Bridget interacts with the administration, faculty, staff, students, and wider communities to focus attention on ways to maximize the environmental performance, social equity, and economic viability of Oberlin College. Bridget is instrumental in coordinating sustainability programming and providing a connection between Oberlin and regional and national activities. Bridget also oversees the OES internship program where she works with a team of five to ten students. Prior to Oberlin, Bridget was employed at the Indiana University Office of Sustainability (IOUS), as the Sustainability and First Year Experience Coordinator. She organized and led IU’s first sustainability pre-orientation trip for incoming freshmen, and implemented the Green Room Certification Program, which encourages sustainable living in residence halls. Further Reading: The Oberlin College Office of Environmental Sustainability: http://new.oberlin.edu/office/environmental-sustainability/ !!Marvin Krislov, President of Oberlin College Marvin Krislov became the 14th president of Oberlin College in summer 2007. He came to Oberlin from the University of Michigan, where he had been vice president and general counsel since 1998. At Michigan, he was responsible for the university’s legal affairs, including establishing goals and strategies; serving as senior legal counsel to the Board of Regents, the university administration, and units, including the health systems; and supervising the professional staff and outside counsel required to carry out these activities. Mr. Krislov led the University of Michigan’s legal defense of its admission policies, resulting in the 2003 Supreme Court decision recognizing the importance of student body diversity. He was lauded by the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund for his “counsel and leadership” for his work on the cases. He also co-chaired the university’s presidential initiative on ethics in public life and served on the athletics department’s transition committee. Further Reading: About the President: http://new.oberlin.edu/office/president/about.dot David W. Orr David W. Orr’s career as a scholar, teacher, writer, speaker, and entrepreneur spans fields as diverse as environment and politics, environmental education, campus greening, green building, ecological design, and climate change. He is the author of seven books, including Down to the Wire: Confronting Climate Collapse (Oxford, 2009) and co-editor of three others. He has served as a board member or adviser to eight foundations and on the boards of many organizations including the Rocky Mountain Institute, The Aldo Leopold Foundation, Bioneers, and the Worldwatch Institute. He has been awarded seven honorary degrees and a dozen other awards. He headed the effort to design, fund, and build the Adam Joseph Lewis Center, which was named by an AIA panel in 2010 as “the most important green building of the past thirty years,” and as “one of thirty milestone buildings of the twentieth century” by the U.S. Department of Energy. He is the Founder and Visionary of the Oberlin Project, and a founding editor of the journal Solutions.


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Further Reading: David W. Orr at the Oberlin Project: http://www.oberlinproject.org/about/founder-visionary/david-w-orr !


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7/24 Thursday: Cleveland (Neighborhoods & Land Use) ! 7:30-8:30 Breakfast 8:45-10:00 Drive to Cleveland 10:00-11:30 Guest Speaker: Jim Rokakis, Director of Thriving Communities Institute

Questions: • Mr. Rokakis has pursued change strategies within government as well as the

nonprofit sector – how have his approaches in each of these contexts differed, and/or intersected and overlapped?

• What connections does Mr. Rokakis draw between the economic crisis/issues of economic development and vitality, and sustainable land use?

• What have been both the challenges and impact of implementing a region-wide solution for revitalizing vacant land?

Objective:

• Understand what strategies and processes can enable effective region-wide approaches to challenges such as vacant land revitalization;

• Identify what forms of leadership may be required for initiatives like this to be successful.

!11:30-11:45: Break and walk to lunch location 11:45-12:30: Lunch 12:30-12:45 Walk to Ohio City Farm 12:45-1:45 Tour and Discussion of Ohio City Farm with Maggie Fitzpatrick, Farm Manager for Refugee Response

Questions: • What factors have ensured a successful collaboration between the multiple

community, government and business partners involved with Ohio City Farm?

• How does Ms. Fitzpatrick see Ohio City Farm contributing to the local food system?

• What is the impact of the farm upon the lives of the individuals who participate in Refugee Response’s programming?

Objectives:

• Experience a successful collaboration across sectors and communities;


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• Reflect upon the relationship between grassroots’ community members’ experiences, and systems-level collaborative change projects.

1:45-2:00 Break, Reboard bus 2:00-2:30 Drive to Vineyards of Chateau Hough 2:30-4:00 Tour and Discussion of Vineyards of Chateau Hough with Founder Mansfield Frazier

Questions: • How does the Vineyards of Chateau Hough project seek to be an engine for

community revitalization? What challenges have they encountered? Where have they been successful?

• What is the relationship between grassroots, community-based change efforts and larger systems?

Objectives:

• Connect neighborhood struggles and change-making efforts to broader issues;

• Identify qualities of successful leadership in a grassroots community context.

4:00-5:00 Drive to Oberlin College 6:00-7:00 Dinner 7:30-9:00 Optional group activity: Sustainability Movie Night 10:00 Check-in About the Organizations & Speaker The Thriving Communities Institute The Thriving Communities Institute at the Western Reserve Land Conservancy works region-wide in Cuyahoga County to transform vacant and unproductive properties into new opportunities to attract economic growth, to bring green space to cities, and to support safe and more beautiful neighborhoods. Their approach is enabled by the establishment of county land banks, which acquire and safely hold vacant properties. !Jim Rokakis, Director Mr. Rokakis served for a decade as Cuyahoga County Treasurer, where he helped pass a bill that streamlined the foreclosure process for abandoned properties, and was the driving force behind the bill that allowed for the creation of the Cuyahoga County Land Reutilization Corporation, also known as the Cuyahoga County Land Bank. Prior to his role as County Treasurer, he served for 19 years in the Cleveland City Council, having ben elected as its youngest member at age 22. His tenure saw several successes in reversing neighborhood blight, redeveloping Downtown


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Cleveland, creating the Cleveland Housing Court and serving as chairman on the influential Finance Committee for his last seven years on Council. He has been recognized by local and national organizations for his efforts in strengthening neighborhoods and communities. In 2007 he received the NeighborWorks America Local Government Service Award, the Leadership in Social Justice Award from Greater Cleveland Community Shares and was named the County Leader of the Year by American City and County Magazine. He earned his undergraduate degree at Oberlin College, and his Juris Doctorate degree from Cleveland-Marshall School of Law. Further Reading: The Thriving Communities Institute: http://www.thrivingcommunitiesinstitute.org/ Interview with Jim Rokakis (video): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BuCpVOVJ5H4 !!Ohio City Farm Ohio City Farm is one of the largest contiguous urban farms in the United States at nearly six acres. It aims to provide fresh, local and healthy food to Cleveland’s underserved residents, boost the local food economy, and educate the community about the importance of a complete food system. The Farm is the result of a groundbreaking collaboration of community groups, businesses and government agencies. It is jointly managed by Ohio City Incorporated (a community development corporation) and the Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority, and additional collaborators include Central Roots, a for-profit market farm; Cleveland Crops, a workforce development program for people with disabilities established by the Cuyahoga County Board of Developmental Disabilities; Great Lakes Brewing Company, Ohio’s first microbrewery and an advocate of “triple bottom line” business approaches; and Refugee Response, a nonprofit working to help resettled refugees become self-sufficient. Refugee Response Refugee Response helps refugees become self-sufficient and contributing members of their new communities in Northeast Ohio. Their Refugee Empowerment Agricultural Program (REAP) nourishes the community with local food and provides resettled refugee trainees with employment, education, and training. Maggie Fitzpatrick, Farm Manager for Refugee Response At Refugee Response, Ms. Fitzpatrick is responsible for managing a team of eight trainees who are resettled refugees. Prior to this, she served as the Ohio City Farm and Farm Stand Project Coordinator for the Ohio City Fresh Food Collaborative, and continues to manage their Community Kitchen Incubator Project, a shared-use community food incubator and kitchen that will serve Northeast Ohio’s local food entrepreneurs. Her experience includes conducting community-based food systems research, group facilitation techniques, non-formal garden-based education, public speaking and presentations, and writing for academic and public audiences. Further Reading: Ohio City Farm: http://ohiocity.org/ohio-city-farm Refugee Response: http://therefugeeresponse.org/ Digging Ohio City (video): http://vimeo.com/86721364 Solutions journal article about Refugee Response: http://www.thesolutionsjournal.com/node/237142.


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!!Vineyards of Chateau Hough A project of the grassroots nonprofit community development organization Neighborhood Solutions Inc., the Vineyards of Chateau Hough have transformed three vacant land banks into an urban vineyard, and an abandoned home into an aquaponics biocellar. Cleveland’s Hough neighborhood is predominately African American, and well-known as the site of 1966 riots stemming from racial inequity. The project provides hands-on training to individuals returning home from a period of incarceration, thus providing work opportunities for the community. Mansfield Frazier Mansfield Frazier currently serves as the executive director of Neighborhood Solutions, Inc., which in addition to creating and managing the Vineyards of Chateau Hough, publishes Reentry Advocate, a national magazine that goes into various prisons, libraries, county jails, halfway houses and prison ministries around the United States. Mr. Frazier initially developed his own voice as a writer and journalist through the publication of his essay collection “From Behind the Wall,” which addresses his own experience of incarceration and issues of racism and the U.S. prison system. Mr. Frazier is a native Clevelander who left Cleveland in 1969, and returned in 1995 to begin his career as the associate editor of an urban news magazine, The Downtown Tab. He’s served briefly as the editor of the minority-focused weekly, The Call & Post before moving on to edit CityNews, a startup urban weekly. His writing currently is featured nationally on Newsweek/The Daily Beast, and locally on both CoolCleveland.com and The Cleveland Leader. Further Reading: Vineyards of Chateau Hough: http://chateauhough.org/ Neighborhood Solutions, Inc: http://neighborhoodsolutionsinc.com/index.htm Mansfield Frazier at TEDxCLE (video): http://www.tedxcle.com/mansfield-frazier/ Brief history of Hough neighborhood: http://clevelandhistorical.org/items/show/7#.U7rlfY1dUcg ! !


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7/25 Friday: Oberlin Campus ! 7:30-8:30 Breakfast 8:50-10:45 Lecture/Discussion: Field Trips Debrief, and Article Discussion: Social and Environmental History of Northeast Ohio

Students will break into groups of 4-5, each with a facilitator. They will discuss field trips for 20 minutes with one student recording notes. They will then prepare a 5-7 minute presentation and a question for the class. The entire class will regroup to discuss each group’s notes and questions. This will build into a discussion about the article, which will provide the basis for diagramming the Northeast Ohio “transect” from rural to recovering rust belt city, identifying issues across this span.

!10:45-11:00 Feed the Machine 11:00-12:30 Guest Speaker and Discussion: Sylvia Hood Washington, Diversity in Sustainability Movements Readings: The movement’s greatest challenge is its own lack of diversity !

Questions: • Why has increased diversity proven a challenge in sustainability

movements? What are some strategies for addressing this? • What are unique sustainability issues and challenges facing low-income

communities and/or communities of color? • Why has there been a tension/division between mainstream

environmental/sustainability organizations, and environmental/climate justice movements? How can this division be reconciled?

Objectives:

• Develop students’ insights into how they might most effectively promote more diverse sustainability movements in their future engagement and careers.

!About the Speaker Sylvia Hood Washington Dr. Sylvia Hood Washington is currently the President and CEO of Environmental Health Research Associates, an environmental health consulting firm. She is a project engineer, historian and environmental health scientist with more than 15 years of on-the-ground involvement with community and environmental justice grassroots activists concerned with environmental and health inequalities tied to industrial operations. She has over 30 years of experience developing environmental risk assessment models, corporate environmental histories and environmental impact studies for industry, government and community groups. Her varied projects have included developing and managing an environmental health disparities and environmental health literacy grant for Chicago's Black Catholics, serving as Principle Investigator for a National Science Foundation-funded effort which developed and utilized GIS models to examine environmental


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health disparities tied to sewage infrastructures in the Great Lakes, and working as an environmental chemist/engineer responsible for the oversight, implementation and enforcement of solid waste, hazardous waste, water and air pollution regulations at coal fired power plants in Cleveland. She holds an undergraduate degree from Oberlin College, a Master of Science in Engineering and PhD in Environmental History from Case Western Reserve University, and a Master of Public Health in Epidemiology from the University of Illinois at Chicago. She is the author of Packing Them In: An Archaeology of Environmental Racism in Chicago, 1865-1954. Further Reading: Sylvia Hood Washington on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drsylviahoodwashington Sylvia Hood Washington on Chicago Tonight (video): http://chicagotonight.wttw.com/2013/03/06/looking-deeper-claims-environmental-racism-chicago Environmental Health Research Associates, LLC: http://www.e3hra.com/ !


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!!7/26 Saturday: Oberlin Campus ! 7:30-8:30 Breakfast ! 9:00-12:30 Free Time 12:45-1:30 Lunch 2:00-5:30 Optional Social/Recreational Activities (TBD) 6:00-7:00 Dinner 7:30-10:00 Student-initiated Group Activity Students will plan and implement their own group social activity. 11:00 Check-in ! !


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7/27 Sunday: Oberlin Campus ! 7:30-8:30 Breakfast ! 9:00-12:30 Free Time 12:45-1:30 Lunch 2:00-4:00 Optional Field Trip: Tour of Trail Magic Positive Energy Home and discussion with Carl McDaniel

Questions: • What is required to successfully build, manage and document the

performance of a home like Trail Magic? Is this a viable model for other sites?

• Why does Professor McDaniel see the leadership of the historical explorer Ernest Shackleton as a potential model for action on climate change?

Objectives: • Gain firsthand experience of sustainable architectural practices. • Broaden understandings of sustainability-oriented leadership.

6:00-7:00 Dinner 7:00-10:00 Free Time 11:00 Check-in About the Field Trip/Speaker Trail Magic Trail Magic is a LEED Platinum, “energy positive” home that feeds energy back to the grid. Its features include active and passive solar, self-maintaining native plants, an on-site cistern, a food-producing garden, a vegetative carbon sink, a stairwell wind tower that permits cooling, and more. Extensive documentation has been produced in order to make the house a replicable and cost-efficient model for other sites. Carl McDaniel Professor McDaniel worked as part of the biology faculty at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and was the founding director of their undergraduate degree program in environmental science, in which capacity he served for eight years. Prior to Rensselaer, he taught at the U.S. Naval Academy, and did postdoctoral work at Yale University with Ian Sussex in plant developmental biology. He has been a Benedict Distinguished Visiting Professor at Carleton College, and a CSIRO McMaster Fellow in Canberra, Australia. He has published over 60 scientific articles on animal and plant development and ecological economics, and written four books, Paradise for Sale, co-authored with economist John M. Gowdy (California University Press, 2000), Wisdom for a Livable Planet (Trinity University Press, 2005), Trail Magic, Creating a Positive Energy Home


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(2011), and At the Mercy of Nature: Shackleton’s Endurance Saga Give Promise for Our Future (Sigel Press, 2013). He has developed and taught endocrinology, developmental biology, developmental genetics, environmental biology, a half dozen interdisciplinary courses in environmental science, and taught Introductory Biology for 33 years. He is a graduate of Oberlin College, and upon retirement, moved back to town to build his positive energy home Trail Magic, and support the Oberlin College Environmental Studies program as Visiting Professor. Further Reading: Carl McDaniel’s article about Trail Magic for Solutions journal: http://www.thesolutionsjournal.com/node/237151 Carl McDaniel’s thoughts on Ernest Shackleton as a model for sustainability-oriented leadership (two chapters from his book, “At the Mercy of Nature”): https://files.podio.com/109794574 !


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7/28 Monday: Oberlin Campus ! 7:30-8:30 Breakfast 8:50-11:00 Guest Speaker: Michele Banik-Rake, Director of Sustainability – Worldwide Supply Chain,

McDonald’s Corporation Reading: Corporate Social Responsibility and Sustainability

Questions:

• What are the challenges of pursuing a more sustainable supply chain in a large, complex corporation like McDonald’s?

• What skills or qualities does Ms. Banik-Rake feel are necessary to succeed in her role?

• What strategies or tools has Ms. Banik-Rake found particularly effective in leading others within her institution toward a more sustainable future?

Objectives:

• Develop an understanding of effective change-making strategies within complex corporate structures, and reflect upon the leadership qualities and processes necessary to pursue them.

11:00-12:30 Tour of Oberlin Sustainability Sites Students will be responsible for facilitating a tour of campus sustainability sites for

Michele Banik-Rake, including the AJLC. 12:30-1:30 Lunch, Informal Chat with Michele Banik-Rake 2:00-4:00 Biking Systems Analysis Project 4:00-6:00 Free Time 6:00-7:00 Dinner

7:20-8:30 Evening Discussion: Guest Speaker (Skype): Karen Florini, Environmental Defense Fund (EDF)

Questions: • How does Ms. Florini define leadership in her role at EDF? What qualities

are necessary for success? • Does she believe that sustainability-related challenges require unique forms

of leadership? • Why did Ms. Stevens commit to serve on the FLSI Steering Committee?

Why does she feel this project is important?


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!About the Speakers Michele Banik-Rake, McDonald’s Corporation Michele is a 35-year veteran of McDonald’s Corporation where she has a track record of strong performance within Supply Chain in a variety of roles. She is currently the Director of Sustainability -- Worldwide Supply Chain, responsible for integrating sustainability and supporting key performance indicators into product supply chain strategies. This has included working on the initiative to move toward more sustainable beef sources, and create a sustainable beef verification system. Prior to her current role, she completed a 3-year secondment with McDonald’s UK, which included leading McDonald’s supply chain for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Michele earned her MBA from the Stuart School of Business at the Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago. Further Reading: “Our Journey to Verified Sustainable Beef”: http://www.aboutmcdonalds.com/mcd/sustainability/signature_programs/beef-sustainability.html Inside McDonald’s Quest for Sustainable Beef: http://www.greenbiz.com/blog/2014/01/07/inside-mcdonalds-quest-sustainable-beef Karen Florini, Environmental Defense Fund Karen Florini is the Managing Director of Environmental Defense Fund’s International Climate Program. Previously, she was the Director of Strategic Alliances for EDF’s National Climate Campaign, serving as EDF’s liaison on climate-change policy to key external partners. Before joining the climate program, she led EDF’s Human Health Program for many years, focusing on chemicals policy, antibiotic resistance, nanotechnology, and other issues. Ms. Florini clerked for Judge John Fullam of the U.S. District Court (PA) and served in the U.S. Department of Justice's Land and Natural Resources Division for three years before joining the EDF in 1987. She is a graduate of Oberlin College, and serves on the College’s Board of Trustees. Further Reading EDF International Climate program: http://www.edf.org/climate/international-climate-policy ! !


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7/29 Tuesday: Oberlin Campus ! 7:30-8:30 Breakfast 8:50-10:30 Presentations and Discussion: Collective Leadership In three groups, students will present their respective readings on collective

leadership to their peers (previously assigned). Time will be afforded after each for brief questions/discussion, with a synthesizing reflection at the conclusion of all three presentations.

Questions:

• What forms of leadership are described in each article? How do they differ from “traditional” notions of leadership?

• Are the leadership models described in each article viable for confronting complex, sustainability-related challenges? Are they more viable in certain situations than others?

• Do these models resonate with students, i.e. can they see themselves using or participating in them in their own future change-making efforts?

Objectives:

• Develop a more complex perspective on leadership and leadership processes.

• Reflect upon the viability of cooperative and non-hierarchical leadership models.

10:30-11:00 Article Discussion: Why Are American Colleges Obsessed With Leadership? Questions:

• Why are Americans especially focused on “leadership”? Is this less common in other cultures and contexts?

• The article focuses on higher education, but what would it mean to extend this analysis to sustainability issues? As change-makers, are we too focused on leadership?

• Is “leadership” the only framework for thinking about social change efforts? What are other approaches?

Objectives:

• Question students’ fundamental assumptions about the importance of “leadership.”

11:00-11:15 Feed the Machine 11:15-12:30 Lecture/Discussion: Thinking in Systems


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12:45-1:30 Lunch 2:00-4:00 Biking Systems Analysis Project 4:00-6:00 Free Time 6:00-7:00 Dinner 7:30-9:00 Evening Discussion: Film Viewing: Network Theory 10:00 Check-in ! !


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7/30 Wednesday: Oberlin Campus ! 7:30-8:30 Breakfast 9:00-10:00 Lecture/Discussion: Leadership Self-Assessment Project Deadline: Leadership Self-Assessment Questions:

• Do students identify as leaders? Why or why not? • What leadership approaches or processes do they find themselves most

attracted to? Anticipate using in the future? • What personal assets do students have to contribute as leaders? Based upon

these assets, what types of leaders do they see themselves being? Becoming?

• What goals do students have as leaders – either for personal development, or for creating change? Have these changed as a result of their experiences during FLSI@Oberlin?

Objectives:

• Identify students’ own leadership goals and potential. 10:00-11:00 Lecture/Discussion: Potential Education and Career Paths Question:

• What should students consider in order to ensure an impactful and fulfilling college education and future career?

11:00-11:15 Feed the Machine 11:30-12:30 Guest Speaker: Joshua Levy, Oberlin Admissions How to be a Strong College Applicant 12:45-1:30 Lunch 2:00-4:00 Biking Systems Analysis Project 4:00-6:00 Free Time 6:00-6:45 Dinner 6:50-8:30 Evening Discussion, Guest Speaker: Brad Masi, Open Collaborative Networks Questions:

• What are “open, collaborative networks?” Why does Mr. Masi consider them a particularly impactful platform for creating change?


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• What is the role of leaders and leadership in open collaborative networks? How might this differ from other approaches to change-making?

10:00 Check-in About the Speakers Josua Levy, Oberlin Admissions Joshua Levy graduated from Oberlin in 1994 with majors in History and Judaic Studies. From there, he went to Brandeis University for a Masters in 1997, and New York University for a PhD in Medieval Jewish History. He began working in the Admissions Office in 2003. Brad Masi Brad Masi is an independent consultant with 19 years of experience in local food systems development, nonprofit management and ecological design. A social entrepreneur, writer, filmmaker, community organizer, and teacher, Masi is one of the early innovators in local food systems development in Northeast Ohio. He is the founder of the New Agrarian Center, and served as its Executive Director until 2009. In this role, he established several social enterprises to address the development of a more sustainable regional food system in Northeast Ohio, including the City Fresh initiative, focused on improving urban market access for rural farmers, while improving food access in urban neighborhoods in Cleveland, and George Jones Farm and Nature Preserve, a 70-acre farmstead that models transitional strategies for moving from high-input commodity farming to low-input sustainable farming. In 2003, he spearheaded and organized the first regional Food Congress for Northeast Ohio, working with Leslie Schaller from ACENet to frame a strategic framework for regional food development. In 2006, he founded the Agrarian Learning Network, a tool to encourage cross-learning between communities in Northeast Ohio. In 2007, he co-founded the Cleveland-Cuyahoga County Food Policy Coalition in collaboration with the Cleveland Department of Public Health, OSU Extension, and Case Western Reserve University. The coalition provides a collaborative network of more than 50 organizations, agencies, and businesses focused on improving food access, public health, urban agriculture, food waste recovery, community food assessment, and rural-urban linking. He holds a B.A. from Oberlin College, and an M.S. in Urban Studies from Cleveland State University. Further Reading Brad Masi at Neo Food Web: http://www.neofoodweb.org/biography-brad-masi ! !


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7/31 Thursday: Cleveland (Systems & Collaborations) ! 7:30-8:30 Breakfast ! 8:45 Gather to board bus 9:00-10:00 Drive to Cleveland 10:00-11:30 Guest Speakers: Jenita McGowan, City of Cleveland and Andrew Watterson, KeyBank

Questions: • How does the Sustainable Cleveland 2019 process function? What have

been its successes? Where has it encountered challenges? • What does it mean to be Chief of Sustainability for a city like Cleveland?

What skills, competencies and leadership approaches are required to be successful in this role?

• What is Appreciative Inquiry? How does it work? What challenges is it particularly well-suited to address?

• For Mr. Watterson, how has pursuing greater sustainability in business been different from his past work in government? What distinct strategies are required for each? Where do these roles/sectors intersect?

Objective:

• Understand the roles of government and business in driving change, and different strategies and approaches within each;

• Develop knowledge of what have proven to be effective change processes in citywide and regional sustainability initiatives in Cleveland and Northeast Ohio, and what lessons from these efforts may be applicable elsewhere.

11:30-12:30: Lunch 12:30-2:00 Guest Speaker: Ted Howard, the Democracy Collaborative and Evergreen Co-ops

Questions: • The Evergreen Co-ops were designed after the Mondragon model from

Spain. What are the characteristics of this approach, and why is it considered more sustainable?

• How was the model customized for Cleveland’s unique context? What changes were made along the way?

• What challenges have the Co-ops encountered in the implementation process, and how have they overcome them?

• What forms of leadership have been necessary to support this cooperative model?


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• How have he Co-ops been incorporated into the overall sustainable redevelopment strategy for the Greater University Circle area?

• What would be required for this model to be replicable in other cities? Objectives:

• Understand the design of the co-operative model being implemented at the Evergreen Co-ops;

• Consider factors that have been necessary to implement this strategy successfully.

2:00-2:15 Break, Reboard bus 2:15-3:00 Drive to West Creek Conservancy 3:00-4:30 Tour and Discussion of West Creek Conservancy with Derek Schafer, Executive Director

Questions: • How did the Conservancy evolve from a grassroots, community-led effort to

protect a 300-acre area, to an urban land conservancy serving Greater Cleveland?

• What forms of leadership were necessary to the success of their grassroots effort?

• What strategies are they currently pursuing to protect natural areas and waterways in Greater Cleveland? What challenges are they encountering, and how do they overcome them?

Objectives:

• Reflect upon how what began as a grassroots, resident-led land conservation effort fits within broader, systems-level initiatives, like those visited previously;

• Experience firsthand a protected, natural space in an urban environment. 4:30-4:45 Break and reboard bus 4:45-5:45 Drive to Oberlin College 6:00-7:00 Dinner 7:00-9:00 Independent research and project work/free time 10:00 Check-in


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About the Organizations & Speakers Jenita McGowan As Chief of Sustainability, Jenita McGowan is responsible for advising the City on policies related to sustainability and the oversight of the Office of Sustainability; leading the coordination of Sustainable Cleveland 2019 to develop new strategies that allow Cleveland to use sustainability as an innovation engine for economic growth, and reducing the City’s ecological footprint. Previously, Jenita served as Sustainability Manager in the Office of Sustainability. In this role she managed the development of city-wide policies and procedures related to implementing sustainability principles throughout city departments; assisted in implementing sustainability projects; coordinated Sustainable Cleveland 2019 initiatives; interfaced with nonprofit communities; and researched strategies to develop best management practices on addressing sustainability issues in the community. Prior to her work for the City, she held several positions related to sustainability and community engagement, including at Urban Community School, Neighborhood Connections, the office of City Councilman Joe Cimperman, All Aboard Ohio, A Piece of Cleveland, Cleveland Neighborhood Development Corporation, MC2 STEM high school, and the Cleveland Cuyahoga County Food Policy Coalition. She also held various arts-related positions including teaching, performance and choreography. Jenita holds a Bachelor of Science in Journalism and a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance Performance from Kent State University, a master's degree in Nonprofit Management from the Mandel Center for Nonprofit Organizations and the Weatherhead School of Management, and a certificate in Appreciative Inquiry from Case Western Reserve University. !Andrew Watterson In his current role as Head of Sustainability for KeyBank, Mr. Watterson leads the company in the development and execution of their sustainability strategy, which includes working with the corporate responsibility team and bank leadership to balance margin and mission to achieve dependable results. Previously, Andrew worked as a Senior Consultant at BrownFlynn, providing sustainability and corporate responsibility consulting, communications and training for clients. He served in the City of Cleveland’s office for over six years, first as Sustainability Director, and then as Chief of Sustainability, advising the city on policies related to energy, buildings, fleet and purchasing; overseeing the Office of Sustainability; and leading the coordination of the Sustainable Cleveland 2019 initiative. Prior to his time with the City, Andrew worked in real estate development, focusing on historic restoration and green building projects. Andrew holds a B.A. in environmental policy and economics from Bates College, and a master’s in positive organizational development from Case Western Reserve University. Further Reading: City of Cleveland Office of Sustainability: http://www.city.cleveland.oh.us/CityofCleveland/Home/Government/CityAgencies/OfficeOfSustainability Sustainable Cleveland 2019: http://www.sustainablecleveland.org/ Andrew Watterson on Appreciative Inquiry: http://www.greenbiz.com/blog/2012/08/01/creating-positive-change-through-appreciative-inquiry Sustainability at KeyBank: https://www.key.com/about/community/key-bank-environmental-commitment.jsp !


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!Evergreen Cooperatives Launched in 2008 by a working group of Cleveland-based institutions (including the Cleveland Foundation, the Cleveland Clinic, University Hospitals, Case Western Reserve University, and the municipal government), the Evergreen Cooperative Initiative is working to create living wage jobs in six low-income neighborhoods in an area known as Greater University Circle (GUC), through the establishment of employee-owned, for-profit businesses, which include a laundry, an energy company that develops and installs solar panels for institutional clients, and a growers’ cooperative that operates a hydroponic greenhouse. Modeled after Spain's Mondragon Corporation, a world leader in the movement for worker-owned cooperatives, the Evergreen Co-ops pursue community wealth strategies aimed at improving the ability of communities and individuals to increase asset ownership, anchor jobs locally, strengthen the municipal tax base, prevent financial resources from “leaking out” of the area, and ensure local economic stability. Democracy Collaborative The Democracy Collaborative helped design the Evergreen Cooperatives. Founded in 2000, they work to promote strategies and innovations in community development that promote ownership and stewardship over capital, democracy in the workplace, the stabilization of community and local economies, equitable and inclusive growth and environmental, social and institutional sustainability. Their Community Wealth Building Initiative works on a range of project that support the field through research, training and policy development. Ted Howard, Executive Director, The Democracy Collaborative Ted Howard is the founding Executive Director of The Democracy Collaborative. Mr. Howard directs the Collaborative’s partnership with The Cleveland Foundation on the Evergreen Cooperatives. For the past three decades, he has worked in the not-for-profit/civil society sector, including more than 15 years in international development with NGOs and agencies of the UN system. Most recently, he was the Executive Director of the National Center for Economic and Security Alternatives, a research and policy institute. He served for nine years as Chairman of the Board of Search for Common Ground, the world’s largest conflict resolution NGO. He also serves on the board of LIFT, a national organization dedicated to engaging college students and youth in combating poverty in our nation’s urban areas. Further Reading: Evergreen Cooperatives: http://evergreencooperatives.com/ Democracy Collaborative: http://democracycollaborative.org/ Ted Howard on the Evergreen Cooperatives (video): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CfkuE6dHgHs (Part 1), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Xl13b4m9H8 (Part 2) !!West Creek Conservancy West Creek Conservancy protects local natural areas, open spaces, streams and waterways in Greater Cleveland. Through the provision of land conservancy services to individuals, partner organizations, and communities, their efforts include protecting natural areas by acquiring land and conservation easements through purchase or donation, working collaboratively to restore water quality and natural habitats in the urban environment, reclaiming and re-using vacant urban land,


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and facilitating recreational trails and greenways to connect people with nature and each other. They have a strong focus on streams, rivers, and watershed protection and restoration. Over a span of approximately 20 years, they have evolved from a grassroots, all-volunteer effort to protect a 300-acre area in the town of Parma, to a more established organization working regionally. Further Reading: West Creek Conservancy: http://westcreek.org/ West Creek Conservancy Sustainability Case Study (from Baldwin Wallace College): https://www.bw.edu/academics/sustainability/neo-case-studies/cases/West_Creek_Conservancy.pdf ! !


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8/1 Friday: Oberlin Campus ! 7:30-8:30 Breakfast 8:50-12:30 Final Lectures/Discussion (Content/questions TBD) 2:00-3:00 Program Evaluation, AJLC ! 3:00-5:30 Free Time, Final Presentation Prep 6:00-7:00 Dinner 7:20-9:00 Closing Ceremony and Biking Systems Analysis Project Community Presentation 10:00 Check-in ! !


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8/2 Saturday ! 7:30-8:30 Breakfast 10:00-11:00 Residence Hall Checkout 10:00-TBD Depart for Airport !

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TAPPANSQUARE

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TO CLEVELAND &Routes 10, 20, I-480

TO LAKE ERIE &Ohio Turnpike, I-80, I-90

ATHLETIC FIELDS

COLLEGEADMISSIONS

OBERLINCOLLEGE

INN

CONSERVATORYADMISSIONS

ATHLETIC FIELDS

Business DistrictVisitor Parking

OBERLINBOOKSTORE

WARD ALUMNI CENTER

Cedar

South

Profess

or

North P

rofess

orWoodla

nd

North M

ain (O

hio R

t. 58)

North M

ain Willard

Pleasan

t

East Lorain (Ohio Rt. 511)

West Lorain

West College

Elm

Forest

MorganWest Vine

East College

Walnut

Union

Oberlin College Campus Map

1_2011 Office of Communications

oberlin campus map locations alphabetical listing

ALLEN ART BUILDING (Art Library) 73

ALLEN MEDICAL CENTER 42

ALLEN MEMORIAL ART MUSEUM 72

ALLENCROFT (Russian House) 3

APOLLO THEATRE 81

ASIA HOUSE (Quadrangle) 69

BAILEY HOUSE (French House) 54BALDWIN COTTAGE (Women’s Collective & Third World Co-op) 23

BARNARD HOUSE 60

BARROWS HALL 59

BOSWORTH HALL 70

BURTON HALL 55

CARNEGIE BUILDING (Arts & Sciences Admissions) 64

CHARLES MARTIN HALL HOUSE 78

CLARK BANDSTAND 71

CONSERVATORY, ANNEX (Con Admissions) 19

CONSERVATORY, BIBBINS HALL 14CONSERVATORY, CENTRAL UNIT AND WARNER CONCERT HALL 15

CONSERVATORY, LIBRARY 16

CONSERVATORY, ROBERTSON HALL 17

COUNSELING CENTER 44

COX ADMINISTRATION BUILDING 31

CREATIVE WRITING 37

DASCOMB HALL 26DAUB HOUSE (Bonner Center for Service & Learning) 36

EAST HALL 58

FAIRCHILD HOUSE 13

FINNEY CHAPEL 32

FIRELANDS 80

HALES ANNEX 40

HALES GYMNASIUM 41

HALL ANNEX 75

HALL AUDITORIUM 74

HARKNESS HOUSE 25

HARVEY (Spanish House) 5

HEISMAN CLUB FIELD HOUSE 47

JOHNSON HOUSE (Hebrew House) 1

KADE (German House) 4

KAHN HALL 66

KAHN TRACK 48

KEEP COTTAGE 68

KING BUILDING 28

KOHL BUILDING 18

LANGSTON HALL 53

LEWIS ANNEX (132 Elm Street) 22LEWIS CENTER FOR ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES (Adam Joseph) 21

LEWIS CENTER FOR WOMEN & TRANSGENDER PEOPLE (Edmonia) 6

LEWIS HOUSE (Ombudsperson & Religious Life Center) 7

LORD (Afrikan Heritage House) 9

MEMORIAL ARCH 29

MUDD CENTER (Main Library & CIT) 34

NOAH HALL 57

OBERLIN BOOKSTORE 20

OBERLIN COLLEGE INN 76

OLD BARROWS 2

PETERS HALL 30

PHILIPS PHYSICAL EDUCATION CENTER 46

PRESIDENT’S HOUSE 11

PRICE (Third World House) 8PROFESSIONAL SERVICES BUILDING (Communications & Investment offices) 43

RICE HALL 27

SAUNDERS (Afrikan Heritage House) 10

SAVAGE FOOTBALL STADIUM 51

SCIENCE CENTER (Science Library) 62

SECURITY BUILDING 38

SERVICE BUILDING 39

SEVERANCE HALL 63

SHANSI HOUSE 77

SHULTS FIELD 49

SOUTH HALL 12

STEVENSON HALL 65

STUDENT HEALTH CENTER 43

TALCOTT HALL 24

TANK HALL 79

TENNIS COURTS 45

UNION STREET HOUSING COMPLEX 52

WARD ALUMNI CENTER/ART GALLERIES 82

WARNER CENTER 33

WILDER HALL (Student Union) 35

WILLIAMS FIELD HOUSE 50

WRIGHT LABORATORY OF PHYSICS 61

ZECHIEL HOUSE 56

oberlin campus map locations numerical listing

1 JOHNSON HOUSE (Hebrew House)

2 OLD BARROWS

3 ALLENCROFT (Russian House)

4 KADE (German House)

5 HARVEY (Spanish House)

6 LEWIS CENTER FOR WOMEN & TRANSGENDER PEOPLE (Edmonia)

7 LEWIS HOUSE (Ombudsperson & Religious Life Ctr.)

8 PRICE (Third World House)

9 LORD (Afrikan Heritage House)

10 SAUNDERS (Afrikan Heritage House)

11 PRESIDENT’S HOUSE

12 SOUTH HALL

13 FAIRCHILD HOUSE

14 CONSERVATORY, BIBBINS HALL

15 CONSERVATORY, CENTRAL UNIT AND WARNER CONCERT HALL

16 CONSERVATORY, LIBRARY

17 CONSERVATORY, ROBERTSON HALL

18 KOHL BUILDING

19 CONSERVATORY, ANNEX (Admissions)

20 OBERLIN BOOKSTORE

21 LEWIS CENTER FOR ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES (Adam Joseph)

22 LEWIS ANNEX (132 Elm Street)

23 BALDWIN COTTAGE (Women’s Collective & Third World Co-op)

24 TALCOTT HALL

25 HARKNESS HOUSE

26 DASCOMB HALL

27 RICE HALL

28 KING BUILDING

29 MEMORIAL ARCH

30 PETERS HALL

31 COX ADMINISTRATION BUILDING

32 FINNEY CHAPEL

33 WARNER CENTER

34 MUDD CENTER (Main Library & Center for Information Technology)

35 WILDER HALL (Student Union)

36 DAUB HOUSE (Bonner Center for Service & Learning)

37 CREATIVE WRITING

38 SECURITY BUILDING

39 SERVICE BUILDING

40 HALES ANNEX

41 HALES GYMNASIUM

42 ALLEN MEDICAL CENTER

43PROFESSIONAL SERVICES BUILDING (Communications, Investment Office, & Student Health)

44 COUNSELING CENTER

45 TENNIS COURTS

46 PHILIPS PHYSICAL EDUCATION CENTER

47 HEISMAN CLUB FIELD HOUSE

48 KAHN TRACK

49 SHULTS FIELD

50 WILLIAMS FIELD HOUSE

51 SAVAGE FOOTBALL STADIUM

52 UNION STREET HOUSING COMPLEX

53 LANGSTON HALL

54 BAILEY HOUSE (French House)

55 BURTON HALL

56 ZECHIEL HOUSE

57 NOAH HALL

58 EAST HALL

59 BARROWS HALL

60 BARNARD HOUSE

61 WRIGHT LABORATORY OF PHYSICS

62 SCIENCE CENTER (Science Library)

63 SEVERANCE HALL

64 CARNEGIE BUILDING (Arts & Sciences Admissions)

65 STEVENSON HALL

66 KAHN HALL

68 KEEP COTTAGE

69 ASIA HOUSE (Quadrangle)

70 BOSWORTH HALL

71 CLARK BANDSTAND

72 ALLEN MEMORIAL ART MUSEUM

73 ALLEN ART BUILDING (Art Library)

74 HALL AUDITORIUM

75 HALL ANNEX

76 OBERLIN COLLEGE INN

77 SHANSI HOUSE

78 CHARLES MARTIN HALL HOUSE

79 TANK HALL

80 FIRELANDS

81 APOLLO THEATRE

82 WARD ALUMNI CENTER/ART GALLERIES


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Oberlin Social and Recreational Options !!Allen Memorial Art Museum Founded in 1917, the Museum is recognized today as one of the five best college and university art museums in the United States. The collection old master and 19th-century paintings, sculpture, and decorative arts, as well as Modern and Contemporary works. It is free to the public. Visit the website for more information, including hours: http://www.oberlin.edu/amam/ Apollo Theater The Apollo is Oberlin’s historic, single screen movie theater, open since 1913, and screening a range of first-run movies at a reasonable price: http://new.oberlin.edu/apollo/ The Arboretum Often referred to as “the Arb,” the Arboretum is a 60-acre nature preserve that is a short walk from south campus, and enjoyed by both the town and College. Firelands Association for the Visual Arts (FAVA) Fava is an independent, nonprofit arts organization that features rotating exhibitions and community activities in their space in downtown Oberlin. Visit their website for information about exhibits, hours and special events: http://www.favagallery.org/ Hales Annex This building houses the Pool Room and Oberlin College Lanes, Northeast Ohio’s only bowling center that is alcohol free. There is no cost to use the Pool Room, but the bowling alley requires a nominal fee. Visit the website for hours and rates. Hales Annex website (note the Cat in the Cream Coffeehouse will be closed during the FLSI@Oberlin program): http://new.oberlin.edu/student-life/get-out-and-do/hales-annex.dot Oberlin College Lanes: http://www.oberlin.edu/bowling/main.html Oberlin Heritage Center This museum complex includes three beautifully preserved historic sites: The Monroe House (1866), Jewett House (1884) and Schoolhouse (1836), where you can learn more about Oberlin’s crucial role as part of the Underground Railroad, and its history of abolitionism, women’s activism and scientific discovery. Building tours are $6. Visit the website for additional information, including schedules: http://www.oberlinheritagecenter.org/ Oberlin Summer Theater Festival The Festival presents free productions of meaningful theater classics. Three plays will be mounted during FLSI@Oberlin: Shakespeare’s As You Like It; Come Back, Little Sheba by William Inge, and a children’s theater interpretation of The Secret Garden, adapted for the stage by Thomas W. Olson. Reservations should be made in advance. A full performance schedule is available at the festival’s website: http://www.oberlinsummertheaterfestival.com/ Philips Recreation Center The Jesse Philips Physical Education Center is a 115,000-square-foot facility. Its gymnasium is used for basketball, volleyball, and intramural and recreational activities. Other facilities in Philips include a climbing wall and bouldering cave; Carr Pool; weight eooms containing Cybex Strength


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and Universal weight training machines, as well as free weights, a heavy bag, speed bags, and stretching room; and six racquetball and nine squash courts, two of which are set up for table tennis and one for indoor golf. The John W. Heisman Club Field House is linked to Philips, and includes a six-lane 200-meter track and four tennis courts. The facility will be available to FLSI@Oberlin students throughout the program (see “Break Hours” on the website): http://www.goyeo.com/news/2008/7/13/Rec_0713082942.aspx?path=rc# Thomas and Evon Cooper International Competition A collaboration between the Oberlin Conservatory of Music and the Cleveland Orchestra, the Cooper competition is an international contest for young pianists, and will be taking place during FLSI@Oberlin, with multiple performance/contest events. Visit the Competition’s website for more information and a schedule: http://www.oberlin.edu/cooper/2014.shtml


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What is Sustainability? Sustainability can be many different things - a motto, an ideal, a way to do business, a way to live your life or a call to action. The term “sustainability” is often misunderstood and misused, and not everyone agrees on its definition. In 1997, there were an estimated 350-plus definitions of “sustainability” and “sustainable development.” Generally, however, there is a commonly understood idea of sustainability – that is, the capacity for continuance into the long term. This concept surfaces throughout history, reflected, for example, in the “seventh generation” philosophy of the Native American Iroquois Confederacy, which mandated that tribal chiefs always consider the effects of their actions on descendants seven generations in the future. The most popular recent definition of sustainability can be traced to a 1987 United Nations Conference and states that sustainability in the context of development is: “Development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.” (Report of the Brundtland Commission, “Our Common Future,” 1987) The UN recently defined sustainable development as ”a dynamic process which enables all people to realize their potential and improve their quality of life in ways that simultaneously protect and enhance the Earth’s life support systems.”


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Sustainability 101 Glossary† The journey toward sustainability is at times technical – one which can require some definitions for added clarity and to ensure a common understanding. Below is a list of terms we come across regularly or use ourselves when defining, discussing and working toward sustainability. Appreciative Inquiry A philosophy of organizational assessment and change that seeks examples of success to emulate and organizational or personal strengths to build upon, rather than focusing upon fixing negative or ineffective organizational processes. BALLE Business Alliance for Local Living Economies. http://www.livingeconomies.org Bio-based Product A product (other than food or feed) that is produced from renewable, agricultural (plant, animal and marine), or forestry materials. Biodegradable A product or material capable of decomposing in nature within a reasonably short period of time. Biodiversity the variability among organisms on Earth and within an ecosystem. Maintaining biodiversity is necessary to preserve the health and survival of an ecosystem. Biomass Living or recently-dead organic material that can be used as an energy source, excludes organic material that has been transformed by geological processes (such as coal or petroleum). Biomimicry A design discipline that studies nature’s elements, processes and designs and uses these ideas to imitate or design new solutions to human problems sustainably. Carbon Footprint The total amount of greenhouse gases emitted directly or indirectly through an activity, or from a product, company or person, typically expressed in equivalent tons of either carbon or carbon dioxide.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!† Source: Interface, Inc. 2008. Sustainability 101 Glossary. Retrieved on June 29, 2011 from (no longer active): http://www.interfaceglobal.com/getdoc/e07d40fd-962e-4ca0-8c5d-5f2fd1c58e63/Glossary.aspx.

!


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Carbon Neutral This term effectively means net zero carbon emissions to the atmosphere. Achieving carbon neutrality means measuring the carbon emissions for an identified product, service or company, then balancing those emissions with carbon reductions or carbon offsets to reach net zero carbon emissions. Carbon Sequestration The uptake and storage of carbon. Trees can be used for carbon sequestration because they absorb carbon dioxide, release the oxygen and store the carbon. CleanTech A fairly amorphous term referring to a sector that includes products, services, and processes designed to provide superior performance at lower costs, greatly reduce or eliminate negative ecological impact, and improve the productive and responsible use of natural resources. It’s often associated with renewable energy and energy efficiency technologies. http://cleantechnetwork.com Climate Change Refers to a statistically significant variation in either the mean state of the climate or in its variability, persisting for an extended period. Climate change is a change in the “average weather” that a given region experiences. When we speak of climate change on a global scale, we are referring to changes in the climate of the Earth as a whole, including temperature increases (global warming) or decreases, and shifts in wind. Closed-loop recycling The process of utilizing a recycled product in the manufacturing of a similar product or the remanufacturing of the same product. Cradle-to-cradle A design philosophy put forth by architect William McDonough that considers the life-cycle of a material or product. Cradle-to-Cradle design models human industry on nature's processes, in which materials are viewed as nutrients circulating in healthy metabolisms. CSR Corporate Social Responsibility. http://www.ethicalcorp.com/ Deforestation the conversion of forested land to other non-forested uses by the removal and destruction of trees and habitat. Deforestation is cited as one of the major contributors to global warming. Dematerialization The reduction of mass in a product that does not diminish quality or intended service for the consumer.


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Design for the Environment (DfE) A philosophy applied to the design process that advocates the reduction of environmental and human health impacts through materials selection and design strategies. EcoMetrics Interface’s quantification of the company’s environmental performance over time. Ecometrics measures materials and energy inputs and outputs for use in benchmarking and monitoring environmental progress. Ecosystem A place having unique physical features, encompassing air, water, and land, and habitats supporting plant and animal life, including humans. Emission Reduction Credit (ERC)/Carbon Offset An emission reduction credit represents avoided or reduced emissions often measured in tons. ERCs are generated from projects or activities that reduce or avoid emissions. A carbon offset refers to a specific type of ERC that represents an activity that avoids or reduces greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions or sequesters carbon from the atmosphere. Energy Efficiency Using less energy to fulfill the same function or purpose; usually attributed to a technological fix rather than a change in behavior, examples include better insulation to reduce heating / cooling demand, compact fluorescent bulbs to replace incandescent, or proper tire inflation to improve gas mileage. Environmentally Preferable Products (EPP) Products or services that “have a lesser or reduced effect on human health and the environment when compared with competing products or services that serve the same purpose.” This comparison may consider raw materials acquisition, production, manufacturing, packaging, distribution, reuse, operation, maintenance or disposal of the product or service. EPP Certification Process by which products or services are certified as Environmentally Preferred Products (EPPs). The certification addresses all stages of the product’s/service’s life-cycle, incorporates key environmental and human health issues relevant to the category, and undergoes outside stakeholder review. Fossil Fuel Any petroleum-based fuel source such as gasoline, natural gas, fuel oil, etc. Global Warming This refers to a specific type of climate change, an increased warming of the Earth’s atmosphere caused by the buildup of man-made gases that trap the sun’s heat, causing changes in weather patterns and other effects on a global scale. These effects include global sea level rise, changes in rainfall patterns and frequency, habitat loss and droughts.


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Greenhouse Gases (GHG) These gases are so named because they contribute to the greenhouse effect due to high concentrations of these gases remaining in the atmosphere. The GHGs of most concern include carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxides (N2O). Greenhouse Effect The trapping of heat within the Earth’s atmosphere by greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide, which accumulate in Earth’s atmosphere and act as a blanket keeping heat in. Greenwashing The process by which a company publicly and misleadingly exaggerates or embellishes the environmental attributes of itself or its products, while participating in environmentally- or socially-irresponsible practices. Green Building A comprehensive process of design and construction that employs techniques to minimize adverse environmental impacts and reduce the energy consumption of a building, while contributing to the health and productivity of its occupants; common metrics for evaluating green buildings include the LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification and Australia’s Green Star program. Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) refers to the contents of interior air that could affect the health and comfort of occupants. Acceptable IAQ is air in which there are no known concentrations of harmful contaminants Industrial Ecology An interdisciplinary field that focuses on the sustainable combination of environment, economy, and technology. Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) A science-based tool for comparing the environmental performance of two or more scenarios. LCA quantifies the potential environmental impacts of products or systems throughout their life cycles, and can highlight a product’s impact areas to target strategic improvements. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Life_cycle_assessment LEED™ (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) A green building rating system encouraging and accelerating global adoption of sustainable green building and development practices through the creation and implementation of environmental tools and performance criteria. http://www.usgbc.org Natural Capital The flow of ecosystem goods and services that interact with the human economic system. The idea of natural capital expands economic models to include natural resources that have value to humanity but no inherent price.


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Photovoltaic Cells (PV Cells) Also called Solar Cells, they convert sunlight directly into electricity. PV cells are made of semiconducting materials similar to those used in computer chips. When sunlight is absorbed by these materials, the solar energy knocks electrons loose from their atoms, allowing the electrons to flow through the material to produce electricity. Post-Consumer Recycled Content Material that is recovered after its intended use as a consumer product, then reused as a component of another product. Examples of post-consumer waste that are recycled include carpet tiles (for new yarn and tile backing), aluminum cans, PET soda bottles, and office paper. Post-Industrial Recycled Content Also known as Pre-Consumer Recycled Content, it is waste material from manufacturing processes that is reused as a component of another product. Post-industrial recycled content comes from material that would have otherwise been waste, and has undergone some physical recycling process. Examples of post-industrial waste that are recycled include yarn extrusion waste, metal scrap, and fiber in paper manufacturing. PLA: Polylactic Acid PLA is polylactic acid, a biopolymer made from renewable resources. It is thermoplastic and can be used to make fibers, packaging and other products as an alternative to petroleum based plastics. It is derived from bacterial fermentation of agricultural by-products such as corn, sugar, or wheat. PLA is not only made from renewable resources, but is also biodegradable. PLA is currently manufactured by Cargill, PURAC, Hycail, and several other companies. QUEST (Quality Utilizing Employee Suggestions and Teamwork) Interface’s initiative designed to eliminate measurable waste by establishing focused and innovative teams throughout the world to identify, measure, and then eliminate waste streams. Recycling The series of activities, including collection, separation, and processing, by which materials are recovered from the waste stream for use as raw materials in the manufacture of new products. Recyclable A designation for products or materials that are capable of being recovered from, or otherwise diverted from waste streams into an established recycling program. Recycled Content Refers to the amount of recycled materials in a product – typically expressed as a percentage. ReEntry Program Interface's reclamation program through which carpet is taken back at the end of its useful life. Renewable Energy Credits (RECs), Green Tags, green energy certificates, or tradable renewable certificates These commodities represent the technology and environmental attributes of electricity generated from renewable resources.


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Renewable Resources A resource that can be replenished at a rate equal to or greater than its rate of depletion. Examples of renewable resources include corn, trees, and soy-based products. Repurposing Cleaning or refurbishing that allows a product to be reused again in its current form, thereby extending its useful life. SRI Socially Responsible Investing. http://www.socialinvest.org/ Stakeholder An individual or group potentially affected by the activities of a company or organization; in sustainable business models the term includes financial shareholders as well as those affected by environmental or social factors such as suppliers, consumers, employees, the local community, and the natural environment. Standards Governmental or privately-created lists of criteria used to regulate or evaluate the products or behavior or corporations. Standards can play a critical role in stimulating the market and giving companies information to create better products or change corporate behavior. An example is the LEED green building rating system for buildings.. Sustainability The aspiration to ensure that meeting the needs of the present does not compromise the ability of future generations to meet their own needs, the most widely accepted definition comes from "Our Common Future," Report of World Commission on Environment and Development, commonly called the The Brundtland Report). Triple Bottom Line Broken down in several ways—People, Planet, Profit; or Ecology, Economy, Equity; or Social, Environmental, Economic. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Triple_bottom_line Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC) Compounds that evaporate from many housekeeping, maintenance and building products made with organic chemicals. In sufficient quantities, VOCs can cause irritation and some are suspected of causing or exacerbating acute and chronic diseases. Waste-to-Energy The burning of waste in a controlled-environment incinerator to generate steam, heat, or electricity. !


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A Brief History of the Modern Environmental Movement in America‡ !What is the green movement? The green movement as we think of it today has evolved considerably since the early days. Since there are some popular assumptions about environmental history that are incorrect, if you have an interest in green issues this article will serve as a helpful guide to the origins and evolution of “green”. To understand the modern green movement, we have to trace its origins back to the beginning. Let’s get started: While many people associate the beginning of the green movement with Rachel Carson’s breakthrough book Silent Spring and the legislative fervor of the 1970s, environmentalism is in fact rooted in the intellectual thought of the 1830s and 1840s. In fact, the “environmental movement” is a significant thread in the fabric of American philosophical thought – first developed by the Transcendentalists (most famously Henry David Thoreau) but tangibly expanded upon during the era of American pragmatism in the latter half of the 19th century. Environmentalism isn’t a trend, or a cult, or a form of hysteria. It is rooted in American philosophy and, being at once innovative and practical, idealistic and active, one could easily define modern environmentalism as quintessentially American. Environmentalism in America today is defined as: “Environmentalists advocate the sustainable management of resources and stewardship of the environment through changes in public policy and individual behavior. In its recognition of humanity as a participant in (not enemy of) ecosystems, the movement is centered on ecology, health, and human rights.” But how did we get from Thoreau and Teddy Roosevelt to “treehugging” and finally, the eco-friendly consumer-driven developments of today? !1. Roots of Environmentalism Rachel Carson (1907-1964) certainly helped foster a reawakening of environmentalism, but it was Henry David Thoreau, in his book Maine Woods, who called for the conservation of and respect for nature and the federal preservation of virgin forests. George Perkins Marsh was another key figure during the first half of the 19th century who championed preserving the natural environment. Leading intellectuals of the antebellum era called into question the standard Puritan pastoral ethic – the belief that cultivating and using the land was inherently moral and leaving the land alone to be “wild” was wasteful and uncivilized (this belief developed in large part because of the violent cultural clash between early Americans and Native Americans – something we tend to forget about in modern times). To this day there are ingrained !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!‡ Source: WebEcoist. 2008. A Brief History of the Modern Green Movement in America. WebEcoist. Retrieved on June 29, 2011from http://webecoist.com/2008/08/17/a-brief-history-of-the-modern-green-movement/. !


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negative associations between preserving wild lands and pantheistic or pagan values. This tension flares up in popular discourse from time to time (“environmental wackos”, “treehuggers”, and so forth). The classic American conflict between secular rationalism and Puritan morality is certainly not exclusive to our management of natural resources! 2. The Pragmatist Era Though Transcendentalism was famously reverent of nature, it was the thrust of can-do American Pragmatism (widely viewed to be America’s original contribution to philosophical thought) that doubtless inspired a series of steps to conserve nature. Beginning in the 1860s, the United States government saw fit to create parks and set aside wild lands for public good. Yosemite was claimed in 1864 (John Muir moved there in 1869). It was made our first national park in 1872. The Audubon Society was founded in 1872 and Sequoia and General Grant parks were established. The only setback during this era was the Mining Act of 1890, which is controversial to this day. The Forest Reserve Act finished the era of pragmatism with federal impetus. John Muir was elected president of the new Sierra Club in 1892. !3. Conservation and Teddy Roosevelt Though the federal government had begun taking actions to preserve lands, it was Teddy Roosevelt and John Muir – a bit of an unlikely pair – who publicized and popularized conservation. Teddy’s visit to Yosemite in 1903 gained national publicity. By 1916 the National Park Service had been established with leadership by Stephen Mather. But just as swiftly, the World Wars – sandwiching the traumatic Great Depression – forced environmental concerns to the background of public thought. While the Sierra Club continued to grow rapidly and became instrumental in establishing many parks during these years, environmentalism as we know it today was not a concern for most Americans – or, consequently, the federal government. It would take disasters and threats to bring environmental issues out of the organizations and ivory towers and into the mainstream again. In future posts, you can expect these events to be explored in greater detail. Your questions are welcome. !4. Conservation and Catastrophe After WWII, environmental efforts continued to be focused on conservation of land rather than more personal issues like food safety or consumer products. That soon changed. The 1948 disaster at Donora (called the “death fog”) prompted national outcry; also during this time David Brower became Executive Director of the Sierra Club (1952). 5. Things Get “Personal” The technological and industrial developments of the Cold War era and a series of surprising events (most notably Donora) fueled a new environmental concern that went beyond saving forests and establishing parks. Carson’s bestseller set off a furor with its expose of toxins in consumer products and philosophical claim that controlling nature is both arrogant and morally bankrupt. The Sierra Club prevented the damming of the Grand Canyon and an oil spill at Santa Barbara caused public outrage. The Wilderness Act was passed in 1964 to limit the construction of dams and other structures on important lands and landmarks. During these years the Environmental Protection Agency was founded. The late 1960s and 1970s saw the rise, then, of the modern green movement.


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6. Activism and Codification The 1970s saw numerous steps to clean up the environment: the National Environmental Policy Act, the Clean Air Act, the founding of Earth Day, the banning of DDT, the Water Pollution Control Act, and the Endangered Species Act (which the Supreme Court upheld in 1977. Disasters at Love Canal in 1978 and Three Mile Island in 1979 terrified the public with the visible consequences of toxic waste, pollution, and contamination. The 1980s were plagued with oil spills (the Exxon Valdez in 1989, among others), and while there was continued significant backlash from industry against environmental strictures, the various Acts were not overturned. !7. “Treehuggers” and That Infamous Owl The 1990s saw the offshoot of radical environmentalism in the face of corporate mistreatment of the land – and groups like PETA, Earth First and ELF got plenty of media attention. As conservative radio hosts went on tirades about minnows and the spotted owl and the merits of clear cutting, passionate young activists famously chained themselves to or took up residence in trees – earning the nickname “treehuggers“. These actions gained notoriety, but unfortunately also had the effect of politicizing and emotionally charging key environmental issues. Environmental protection was alternately depicted as being religious, cult-like, anti-society, anti-property ownership and anti-capitalist. Criminal stunts from fringe environmental groups did nothing to dampen the image of environmentalism as extreme. Vegetarianism experienced a popular resurgence with ground-breaking books like Diet for a New America (Robbins) but it also became the brunt of many a late-night comedian’s routine. The concept of climate change was ridiculed by many as an overreaction from misguided “environmentalist wackos”. !8. The “New” Environmentalism Sobering international events, catastrophic weather, visible climate change, 9/11 and war, gas shortages and scientific consensus legitimized environmental concerns during the early years of the new century. Al Gore’s blockbuster film An Inconvenient Truth seared the climate crisis into the popular consciousness. Suddenly, the problems were obvious everywhere you looked: our food was chemically treated and genetically modified, our water was contaminated with toxic chemicals, our resources were running out, our wasteful habits were filling landfills, New Orleans was virtually destroyed, and gas prices were soaring – to name but a few key issues that have spurred millions to “go green”. This post merely reviews the environmental movement as it relates to the United States. Consider: American leaders have yet to sign the Kyoto Protocol or earmark serious funding to green-collar jobs and sustainable technologies and energy. But American citizens have taken it upon themselves join a global movement, to learn more despite the gridlock in Washington; to conserve, to drive the development of eco-friendly consumption, to buy hybrids or use mass transit, even to telecommute. More and more people now recycle, compost, “go organic”, grow gardens and understand the connection between saving money, improving health and helping the environment. More people are interested in technology and efficient living than ever before. And more and more people are becoming curious about the natural world in all its majesty and strangeness. The great opportunity is that every individual can be a part of the green revolution in some way. Everyone can learn and take a positive step in a greener direction. No one’s perfect, but together we can solve the problems we face. Welcome to the “new” green movement. !


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Consider this your crash course in environmentalism. In future articles you will learn more about each stage of the green movement, as well as learn about both international and American contributions, challenges and solutions. Our mission is to provide interesting, educational, practical green information and ideas and we welcome everyone. !! !


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Next Steps !Environmental Youth Membership Organizations !Kids vs. Global Warming http://www.imatteryouth.org/home.html Description: Founded by 15-year-old, Alec Loorz, Kids vs. Global Warming is an educational nonprofit organization that holds presentations for people K-college age to expose the dangers of climate change and empower them to take action against it. Through these presentations, along with petitions, animation videos, and community activism, Kids vs. Global Warming is inspiring a generation of kids well-versed on the science of climate change to take action against this globe-threatening phenomenon. !Inconvenient Youth http://www.inconvenientyouth.org/ Description: Inconvenient Youth is an online forum for teenagers to discuss their ideas and actions for combating climate change. The purpose of this group is to inspire youth to create their own ideas around green living and activism, and to implement the ideas and actions of their peers into their own hometowns. EarthTeam http://www.earthteam.net/ Working primarily through school-based settings in the Bay Area, EarthTeam empowers teens to become lifelong environmental stewards through experiential education, skills development, and the building of community connections. Students implement action projects that provide active learning about environmental science, engage in peer-to-peer education activities, and share their school-based service-learning projects with other students. Energy Action Coalition http://www.energyactioncoalition.org/ Energy Action Coalition is a coalition of 30 youth-led social and environmental justice organizations working together to build the youth clean energy and climate movement. Working with hundreds of campus and youth groups, dozens of youth networks, and hundreds of thousands of young people, Energy Action Coalition and its partners have worked to build local victories into a broader movement with coordination on state, regional, and national levels in the United States and Canada. Environmental Education Programs at the Shedd Aquarium http://www.sheddaquarium.org/2902.html (Check your local museums for similar programs)

Shedd Stewards Description: Shedd Stewards is a free-program for teens 15-18 to become involved in that allows volunteers to visit local habitats in the Chicagoland area and monitor, maintain, and improve them. The program is free of charge and is a great chance to help restore the ecosystems in Chicago that wildlife and humans alike depend on.


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Shedd Teen Work Study Description: Students 15-18 can enroll in an intensive Teen Work Study program where members will work as Green Gardeners, Shedd Ambassadors, or Young Naturalists to learn about the natural world and gain a stronger connection to nature. This program will improve upon members’ knowledge in the field of science and also their communication and collaborative skills. This program meets during the summer or weekends during the school year. Club Shedd Description: This program acts as a forum for high school aged students to discuss and explore topics related to science and nature. Joining this program, members will be able to enjoy three evenings at the Shedd and a weekend field trip designed to enhance one’s connections to the local environment. High School Marine Biology Description: This program is great for students interested in marine biology. Participants must be at least 14 years of age and in high school and must have completed at least one science course. This program allows participants to live aboard Shedd’s research vessel, R/V Coral Reef II to engage in observation and research alongside professional marine biologists exploring the marine life of the Bahamas. High School Lake Ecology (Summer Only) Description: This summer camping program will allow campers to explore the Apostle Islands on the Southern Shore of Lake Superior, an area known for its majestic caves, sunken shipwrecks, and natural beauty. This program incorporates natural history and ecology of the Great Lakes Region as campers kayak between 22 different islands during the day and camp on a different island each night. Participants must be at least 14 years of age and enrolled in High School. No previous camping or kayaking experience is necessary.

Friends of the Parks’ Earth Team http://fotp.org/programs/environmental-programs Description: Earth Team is a program under Friends of the Park and a partner of After School Matters that offers an environmental education opportunity for teens in Chicagoland that may lack local environmental programming and parks. This program offers hands-on environmental science experiences and apprenticeship opportunities that foster environmental stewardship and leadership from its members. Teens in this program are involved in community outreach and work alongside scientific professionals to learn marketable skills for their future careers. Sierra Student Coalition http://ssc.org/ Description: SSC is a broad network of high school and college-aged youth from across the country working to protect the environment. The SSC is the youth-led chapter of the Sierra Club, the nation's oldest and largest grassroots environmental organization.


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Student Environmental Action Coalition http://www.seac.org/ Description: SEAC is a student and youth run national network of progressive organizations and individuals whose aim is to uproot environmental injustices through action and education. They define the environment to include the physical, economic, political, and cultural conditions in which we live. By challenging power structures that threaten these conditions, students in SEAC work to create progressive social change on both the local and global levels. SustainUS http://www.sustainus.org/ Description: SustainUS works to empower young people to advance sustainable development through education, research and advocacy at the policy-making level and at the grassroots, recognizing the interdependence of social, economic, and environmental sustainability. Their programs include sending youth delegations to U.N. conferences, a fellowship for young leaders, a scientific research competition, and a summer action project focused on shale fields in Pennsylvania. !! !


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Environmental Organizations with Youth Focus !Alliance for Climate Education http://www.acespace.org/ Description: Alliance for Climate Education is an educational nonprofit with Climate Action Teams dispersed throughout several cities in America. This group offers free presentations to high schools to teach them about climate change and empower students to become involved in activism. Some of the main issues this group focuses on include green buildings, transportation, and waste reduction issues. They are training tomorrow’s climate change leaders to speak out against climate change with bold and educated voices. !Climate Classroom http://www.climateclassroom.org/teens/about.cfm Description: Climate Classroom is an environmental education program put together by the National Wildlife Foundation in order to educate teens about the causes and solutions to climate change. Climate Classroom equips community leaders with the skills to deliver Al Gore’s Inconvenient Truth presentation in classrooms throughout America, and has since expanded to create training programs outside of the classroom environment as well. !Caretakers of the Environment International/USA http://www.caretakers4allusa.org/Caretakers_USA/Home.html Description: Caretakers for the Environment is a non-profit environmental organization that reaches out to high school students and teachers to empower them with knowledge and skills for environmental leadership. This organization helps to facilitate community action as well as national and international cooperation for environmental problem solving. Caretakers of the Environment International/USA was founded in 1989 in the Netherlands and has since spread to more than 69 countries and has an office in Illinois. Members keep in touch through the CEI magazine, The Global Forum for Environmental Education, as well as with letters and computer networking. Some of their current projects include establishing Caretaker groups in secondary schools throughout the U.S., engaging students in Seeds of Biodiversity, and continuing to host annual national environmental conferences at which students from all 50 states and territories are represented. Environmental Education Association of Illinois (EEAI) http://www.eeai.net/ Description: The Environmental Education Association of Illinois is a growing network of educators and affiliates that seeks to maintain and develop quality environmental education throughout Illinois by providing and supporting professional development services to formal and informal educators. By hosting events and curriculum such as Project Flying WILD, Growing UP WILD, Prairie School Project and the Midwest Environmental Education Consortium, the EEAI has set a higher bar for environmental education in the professional world. The EEAI is an affiliate of the North American Association for Environmental Education, the world’s largest association of environmental educators. The EEAI maintains their network through their membership program available to students and professionals alike and also holds annual conferences every Spring to discuss current environmental topics.


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Environmental Justice Climate Change Initiative (EJCC) http://www.ejcc.org/ Description: The mission of the Environmental Justice Climate Change Initiative (EJCC) is to educate and to activate the people of North America toward the creation and implementation of just climate policies in both domestic and international contexts. EJCC membership is a diverse, consensus-based group of U.S. environmental justice, climate justice, religious, policy, and advocacy groups that represent hundreds of communities across the country. !Green For All http://greenforall.org/ Description: Green For All is dedicated to improving the lives of all Americans through a clean energy economy. They work in collaboration with businesses, government, labor and grassroots communities to increase quality job opportunities in the green industry, while holding the most vulnerable populations at the center of their agenda. Their youth engagement efforts include a leadership development program targeting students at Historically Black Colleges and Universities. Green Schools Alliance (GSA) http://www.greenschoolsalliance.org/ Description: the GSA is a global Peer-to-Peer Network of schools represented by Sustainability Coordinators -- faculty, staff and students -- working together to solve climate and conservation challenges. GSA Member Schools collaborate locally and virtually to share and implement sustainable best practices, and promote connections between schools, communities, and the environments that sustain them. Indigenous Environmental Network http://www.ienearth.org Description:!Established in 1990 within the United States, IEN was formed by grassroots Indigenous peoples and individuals to address environmental and economic justice issues (EJ). IEN’s builds the capacity of Indigenous communities and tribal governments to develop mechanisms to protect sacred sites, land, water, air, natural resources, health, and to build economically sustainable communities. They maintain an informational clearinghouse, organize campaigns, develop initiatives to impact policy, and provide support and youth to Indigenous communities and youth throughout primarily North America – and in recent years – globally. ! !


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National Environmental Organizations !Greenpeace USA: Greenpeace Student Network http://www.greenpeace.org/usa/en/ Description: If you are interested in activism, consider Greenpeace and become a part of one of the world’s largest environmental organizations. By joining the Greenpeace Student Network, members who are 14 years or older will be able to work with hundreds of other students in the U.S. in one of their environmental campaigns and get assigned volunteer opportunities specialized to your local area. !Volunteer with Greenpeace: http://members.greenpeace.org/survey/start/264/?ref_source=nan_rect_website_sn !Natural Resources Defense Council: NRDC Activist Network http://www.nrdc.org/ Description: The NRDC Activist Network allows members to sign up and receive up to date information about pressing environmental issues in their area. After filling out a registration form, members may be asked to engage in call-ins or letter-writing to a local governing official or the EPA to show their support for a current environmental cause. !Friends of the Earth http://www.foe.org/ Description: Friends of the Earth is a progressive advocacy of network with members who are fighting to defend the environment and create a healthier and more just world. Members act as a grassroots support base that mobilizes to promote public policies that reflect the values of the organization. Through advocacy campaigns and policy analysis, this organization hopes to change the perception of the public, media, and policy-makers on today’s biggest environmental issues threatening our planet. Some of their current campaigns focus on climate change, food production, and marine life protection. !350.org http://www.350.org/ Description: Led by well-known author and educator, Bill McKibben, 350.org is a global grassroots movement dedicated to ending climate change. Thousands of volunteer organizers from over 188 countries are grassroot organizing and leading public actions to send a message to policy makers and people everywhere that they want to lower carbon dioxide emissions to 350ppm instead of the current 390 (+) ppm. In 2009, 350.org organized 5,200 simultaneous rallies in 181 countries to send the message of 350 and have been a growing movement since. Sign up at their website to learn about how you can organize a campaign in your area and become a part of one of the world’s largest growing grassroots action network. ! !


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Environmental Studies Departments at U.S. Colleges Top 10 of the Best Environmental Studies Programs in the U.S. for Undergrads Source: Mother Nature Network, December 4, 2012 (to be used with discretion)

1. Northland College, Ashland, Wisconsin 2. SUNY-ESF, Syracuse, NY 3. Program in Environmental Studies, Middlebury College 4. Department of Natural Resources, Cornell University 5. Nicholas School of the Environment and Earth Sciences, Duke University 6. College of the Atlantic 7. School of Sustainability, Arizona State University 8. School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, Yale University 9. Green Mountain College 10. Sustainable Food and Bioenergy Systems, B.S., Montana State University

!!Top 5 Greenest College Campuses in the U.S Source: Treehugger, August 15, 2012

1. University of California, Davis 2. Georgia Institute of Technology 3. Stanford University 4. University of Seattle Washington 5. University of Connecticut

!!!! !


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Recommended Books !Biomimicry: Innovation Inspired by Nature By Janine Benyus From Amazon.com Innovations, whether in farming, composite science, or computing, are a product of human creativity. Science writer Benyus uses these subjects and others to demonstrate how nature's solutions to situations have been the creative jumping-off points for individuals seeking solutions, developing, or simply revitalizing processes or products. The first seven chapters are a prelude to the final chapter, which tackles industrial ecology. Here, Benyus proposes "ten lessons" that an ecologically astute company, culture, or economy could practice to promote a healthier existence for us all. (Published September 2002) !Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things By William McDonough and Michael Braungart From Amazon.com: The authors present a manifesto calling for a new industrial revolution, one that would render both traditional manufacturing and traditional environmentalism obsolete. The authors, an architect and a chemist, want to eliminate the concept of waste altogether, while preserving commerce and allowing for human nature. (Published April 2002) Deep Economy: The Wealth of Communities and the Durable Future By Bill Mckibben Summarized review: In offering straightforward solutions to the looming environmental crisis, Bill McKibben has marched directly into the middle of a heated debate. Critics' personal beliefs and politics shaped their reviews, which described Deep Economy as, alternately, a "masterfully crafted, deeply thoughtful and mind-expanding treatise" (Los Angeles Times) and a "book-length sermon on what is wrong with the way we live" (San Francisco Chronicle). It is agreed that McKibben writes compellingly—with warmth, sincerity, and a sharp sense of humor. His resolute hope for the future will resound with readers no matter where their loyalties lie. But will it change any mind. (Published March 2008) Design for the Real World: Human Ecology and Social Change By Victor Papanek This foundational text was first published 1985 and was reprinted in 1991 and 1995. Papanek examines the attempts by designers to combat the tawdry, the unsafe, the frivolous, the useless product, once again providing a blueprint for sensible, responsible design in this world that is deficient in resources and energy. In this book you will find the seeds of many of the theories of commerce and design that have been popularized in the last decade, including ecological entrepreneurship, and design by nature. (Published 1985)


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Mid-Course Correction: Toward a Sustainable Enterprise By Ray Anderson Mid-Course Correction is the personal story of Ray Anderson’s realization that businesses need to embrace principles of sustainability, and of his efforts, often frustrating, to apply these principles within a billion dollar corporation that is still measured by the standard scorecards of the business world. While the path has proved to have many curves, Interface is demonstrating that the principles of sustainability and financial success can co-exist within a business and can lead to a new prosperity that includes human dividends as well. (Published 1999) Silent Spring By Rachel Carson This widely read book, a lyrically written text on the dangers of DDT, arguably launched today’s sustainability movement. Carson, a marine biologist and renowned nature writer, describes the devastating toll DDT takes on ecosystems and organisms. Silent Spring rallied thousands of Americans to protest against the chemical pesticide industry. This is a pivotal text for anyone looking to get to the root origins of current environmental concern. (Published 1962) The Ecology of Commerce By Paul Hawken Paul Hawken, the entrepreneur behind the Smith & Hawken gardening supplies, is on a crusade to reform our economic system by demanding that First World businesses reduce their consumption of energy and resources by 80 percent in the next 50 years. As if that weren’t enough, Hawken argues that business goals should be redefined to embrace such fuzzy categories as whether the work is aesthetically pleasing and the employees are having fun; this applies to corporate giants and mom-and-pop operations alike. He proposes a culture of business in which the real world, the natural world, is allowed to flourish as well, and in which the planet’s needs are addressed. (Published 1993) !!


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Sustainability Related!Websites !

CSR Wire Corporate Social Responsibility Newswire, a source of corporate social responsibility and sustainability news, reports and information posted by member companies and organizations. Is not filtered and/or edited by journalists. http://www.csrwire.com! Environmental Leader A self-espoused “daily trade publication,” Environmental Leader aims to keep corporate executives (and perhaps the rest of us) fully informed about environmental and sustainability news as well as the latest on corporate environmental initiatives. They offer a (free) daily e-newsletter. http://www.environmentalleader.com/! Foresight’s Chicago Sustainability Hub Stay current on sustainability events, job opportunities, and pertinent issues through the weekly Foresight Forecast. (Past Forecasts are available on the blog.) Foresight has served as a trusted resource for the Chicago sustainability community since 2003. http://www.foresightdesign.org!!GreenBiz Includes GreenBiz.com, GreenerBuildings.com, Climatebiz.com, GreenerComputing.com http://www.greenbiz.com! Grist / WorldChanging / E_Magazine Each has a slightly different angle on the same general sector. All have regular email newsletters to which one can subscribe: http://www.grist.org!http://www.worldchanging.com/!http://www.emagazine.com/!!Guardian Sustainable Business The Guardian UK’s site provides global sustainability news and multimedia related to business, operations, and energy. !http://www.guardian.co.uk/sustainable<business!!New York Times—Energy & Environment Section (online) One of the better sites for sustainability information, this site includes stories and blog postings on a wide range of topics that often provide unique angles and informed perspectives. http://www.nytimes.com/pages/business/energy<environment/index.html Planetizen Urban planning news, feature articles, op-eds and information related to planning, design and development. http://www.planetizen.com/


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Sustainable Life Media Includes Eco-Advantage Strategies, Sustainable Brand Weekly, Sustainable Business News, Climate Management Weekly, Greener IT Weekly, Greener Design Update, Sustainable Sourcing Update http://www.sustainablelifemedia.com The Living Principles Website dedicated to celebrating the use of design thinking to create positive change. The site provides articles and other resources to enable sustainable action. http://www.livingprinciples.org/ Treehugger A leading media outlet dedicated to driving sustainability mainstream. A one-stop shop for green news, solutions, and product information. http://www.treehugger.com/ Triple Pundit A media company for the business community that cultivates awareness and understanding of the triple bottom line. Provides expert editorial coverage and discussions on sustainable business. http://www.triplepundit.com/ Waste & Recycling News Published by Crain’s Waste & Recycling News started life (as Waste News) as a trade publication for the waste hauling industry. It has since changed it name, expanded its definition of “waste” and quietly become one of the leading sources for a range of sustainability-related business news. Unlike several other sustainability-related publications, I rarely if ever question the journalistic integrity of this publication (i.e. there is a healthy separation between editorial and advertisers.) http://www.wasterecyclingnews.com !! !


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Media Sources—Podcasts & Blogs & DVDs PODCASTS Bioneers Radio Series Bioneers brings bold innovators with breakthrough solutions to the airwaves with its annual radio series (now in its eighth year). Bioneers: Revolution from the Heart of Nature airs in more than 250 cities in the U.S., Canada, Australia and Ireland and is free to all stations, distributed by WFMT Radio Network. http://www.bioneers.org/bioneers<radio<series/!!!Ceres Sustainability Podcast The!Ceres!sustainability!podcast!is!an!ongoing!conversation!with!investors,!corporations,!policy!makers!and!public!interest!groups!about!how!they!are!adapting!business!strategies!and!financial!markets!to!address!the!risks!and!opportunities!of!climate!change!and!other!sustainability!issues.!http://www.ceres.org/resources/podcasts!!Poptech TED (Technology, Entertainment & Design Conference) Similar to TED, Poptech is a self-described innovation network that aims to “accelerate the positive impact of world changing people, projects, and ideas.” These talks are the result of the Poptech conference, held annually in Maine. http://www.poptech.org/popcasts TED (Technology, Entertainment & Design Conference) Inspired talks by the world’s greatest thinkers and doers, including several sustainability leaders! http://www.ted.com!! DVD—Coming Home, E.F. Schumacher & the Reinvention of the Local Economy A movie that captures both the pivotal work of the late E.F. Schumacher’s Small is Beautiful and subsequent endeavors of the E.F. Schumacher Society and the creation of a local economy in Great Barrington, Massachusetts. http://vimeo.com/19523798 !!!


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BLOGS Climate Desk A journalistic collaboration dedicated to exploring the impact—human, environmental, economic, political—of a changing climate. http://www.theclimatedesk.org !Foresight Design Initiative Blog!Transformation design in Chicago. http://www.foresightdesign.org/blog Inspired Economist Discussing the people, ideas, and companies that redefine capitalism and inspire positive change. http://inspiredeconomist.com/ Joel Makower Joel Makower speaks on business, the environment and the bottom line. He helps companies align environmental responsibility with having a successful business. http://www.makower.com/ New York Times - “Dot Earth”; Climate Change and Sustainability Reporter Andrew C. Revkin examines efforts to balance human affairs with the planet's limits. This blog offers analysis of current sustainability related stories, and offers a venue for dialog between readers and an opportunity for people to post questions about often-contentious issues. http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/!! National Public Radio – Climate Connections A partnership between the National Public Radio and National Geographic, this site offers audio and video news stories about how government, policy, art, business and various social organizations are trying to create a more sustainable world. Stories are collected from all of the NPR affiliates and the Nation Geographic network. http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=9657621!!!

† Survey Data from Quick Stats as of: Jul/18/2014Farms Operations†

Farm Operations - Area Operated, Measured in Acres / Operation 187Farm Operations - Number of Operations 75,000Farm Operations - Acres Operated 14,000,000

Livestock Inventory †

Cattle, Cows, Beef - Inventory ( First of Jan. 2014 ) 293,000Cattle, Cows, Milk - Inventory ( First of Jan. 2014 ) 267,000Cattle, Incl Calves - Inventory ( First of Jan. 2014 ) 1,250,000Cattle, On Feed - Inventory ( First of Jan. 2014 ) 160,000Goats, Meat & Other - Inventory ( First of Jan. 2014 ) 60,000Goats, Milk - Inventory ( First of Jan. 2014 ) 9,500Sheep, Incl Lambs - Inventory ( First of Jan. 2014 ) 117,000Hogs - Inventory ( First of Dec. 2013 ) 2,200,000Turkeys - Production, Measured in Head 5,500,000

Milk Production †

Milk - Production, Measured in Lb / Head 20,178Milk - Production, Measured in $ 1,154,976,000Milk - Production, Measured in Lb 5,448,000,000

2013 STATE AGRICULTURE OVERVIEW Ohio

Crops - Planted, Harvested, Yield, Production, Price (MYA), Value of Production †

Commodity Planted All PurposeAcres

HarvestedAcres Yield Production Price per

UnitValue of Production in

DollarsCORNCORN, GRAIN 3,740,000 177.00 BU / ACRE 661,980,000 BU 4.30 $ / BU 2,846,514,000CORN, SILAGE 150,000 19.50 TONS / ACRE 2,925,000 TONSCORN 3,900,000

SOYBEANSSOYBEANS 4,450,000 4,430,000 49.00 BU / ACRE 217,070,000 BU 12.60 $ / BU 2,735,082,000

HAY & HAYLAGEHAY & HAYLAGE 1,110,000 2.68 TONS / ACRE,

DRY BASIS2,978,000 TONS,

DRY BASIS 526,692,000

HAY & HAYLAGE, (EXCL ALFALFA) 750,000 2.09 TONS / ACRE,DRY BASIS

1,570,000 TONS,DRY BASIS

HAY & HAYLAGE, ALFALFA 45,000 360,000 3.91 TONS / ACRE,DRY BASIS

1,408,000 TONS,DRY BASIS

HAYHAY 1,070,000 2.46 TONS / ACRE 2,635,000 TONS 177.00 $ /

TON 462,205,000

HAY, (EXCL ALFALFA) 740,000 2.00 TONS / ACRE 1,480,000 TONS 157.00 $ /TON 232,360,000

HAY, ALFALFA 330,000 3.50 TONS / ACRE 1,155,000 TONS 199.00 $ /TON 229,845,000

WHEATWHEAT, WINTER 690,000 665,000 70.00 BU / ACRE 46,550,000 BU 6.40 $ / BU 297,920,000WHEAT 690,000 665,000 70.00 BU / ACRE 46,550,000 BU 6.40 $ / BU 297,920,000

SWEET CORNSWEET CORN, FRESH MARKET 16,400 15,500 100.00 CWT / ACRE 1,550,000 CWT 25.60 $ /

CWT 39,680,000APPLESAPPLES, UTILIZED 51,000,000 LB 21,310,000APPLES, FRESH MARKET 37,000,000 LB 0.54 $ / LB 19,980,000APPLES, PROCESSING 14,000,000 LB 190.00 $ /

TON1,330,000

APPLES, NOT SOLD 2,400,000 LBAPPLES, NOT HARVESTED 600,000 LBAPPLES 3,800 14,200.00 LB / ACRE 54,000,000 LB 0.42 $ / LB

PEPPERSPEPPERS, BELL 2,900 2,700 180.00 CWT / ACRE 486,000 CWT 43.00 $ /

CWT 20,898,000CUCUMBERSCUCUMBERS, PROCESSING,PICKLES 8,000 7,000 7.50 TONS / ACRE 52,500 TONS 325.00 $ /

TON 17,063,000PUMPKINSPUMPKINS 6,800 6,100 165.00 CWT / ACRE 1,004,000 CWT 15.40 $ /

CWT 15,455,000SQUASHSQUASH 1,600 1,400 170.00 CWT / ACRE 238,000 CWT 40.00 $ /

CWT 9,520,000TOBACCOTOBACCO 2,100 2,200.00 LB / ACRE 4,620,000 LB 2.05 $ / LB 9,471,000TOBACCO, AIR-CURED LIGHTBURLEY (TYPE 31) 2,100 2,200.00 LB / ACRE 4,620,000 LB 2.05 $ / LB 9,471,000

PEACHESPEACHES, UTILIZED 4,960 TONS 7,364,000PEACHES, NOT HARVESTED 130 TONSPEACHES 1,000 5.37 TONS / ACRE 5,370 TONS 1,480.00 $ /

TONPEACHES, NOT SOLD 280 TONS

CABBAGECABBAGE, FRESH MARKET 1,300 1,300 335.00 CWT / ACRE 436,000 CWT 16.00 $ /

CWT 6,976,000POTATOESPOTATOES, FALL 1,400 1,300 350.00 CWT / ACRE 455,000 CWT 14.80 $ /

CWT 6,734,000

POTATOES 1,400 1,300 350.00 CWT / ACRE 455,000 CWT 14.80 $ /CWT 6,734,000

STRAWBERRIESSTRAWBERRIES 660 590 49.00 CWT / ACRE 29,000 CWT 209.00 $ /

CWT 6,061,000

STRAWBERRIES, FRESH MARKET 29,000 CWT 209.00 $ /CWT 6,061,000

MAPLE SYRUPMAPLE SYRUP 0.35 GALLONS / TAP 155,000 GALLONS 36.90 $ /

GALLON 5,720,000OATSOATS 50,000 25,000 63.00 BU / ACRE 1,575,000 BU 3.50 $ / BU 5,513,000

GRAPESGRAPES, UTILIZED 6,160 TONS 3,691,000GRAPES, PROCESSING 6,100 TONS 588.00 $ /

TON 3,587,000

GRAPES, FRESH MARKET 60 TONS 1,730.00 $ /TON 104,000

GRAPES, JUICE TYPE, CONCORD,PROCESSING 4,530 TONSGRAPES, NIAGARA, PROCESSING 450 TONSGRAPES, PROCESSING, JUICE 3,160 TONS 295.00 $ /

TONGRAPES, PROCESSING, WINE 2,940 TONS 903.00 $ /

TONGRAPES 1,900 3.42 TONS / ACRE 6,490 TONS 599.00 $ /

TONGRAPES, NOT HARVESTED 330 TONS

TOMATOES

TOMATOES, FRESH MARKET75.00 $ /

CWT

TOMATOES, PROCESSING 116.00 $ /TON

HAYLAGEHAYLAGE, ALFALFA 80,000 6.40 TONS / ACRE 512,000 TONSHAYLAGE 112,000 6.20 TONS / ACRE 694,000 TONSHAYLAGE, (EXCL ALFALFA) 32,000 5.70 TONS / ACRE 182,000 TONS

Economic Characteristics QuantityFarm by value of sales Less than $1,000 18,193 $1,000 to $2,499 7,005 $2,500 to $4,999 7,305 $5,000 to $9,999 7,220 $10,000 to $19,999 6,479 $20,000 to $24,999 2,018 $25,000 to $39,999 4,151 $40,000 to $49,999 2,003 $50,000 to $99,999 5,764 $100,000 to $249,999 7,017 $250,000 to $499,999 3,668 $500,000 or more 4,639 Total farm production expenses ($1,000) 7,743,344 Average per farm ($) 102,612 Net cash farm income of the operations ($1,000) 2,996,899 Average per farm ($) 39,714

Operator Characteristics QuantityPrincipal operators by primary occupation Farming 33,140 Other 42,322 Principal operators by sex Male 66,760 Female 8,702 Average age of principal operator 56.8 All operators by race 2 American Indian or Alaska Native 169 Asian 144 Black or African American 205 Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander 7 White 112,812 More than one race 287

All operators of Spanish, Hispanic or Latino Origin 2 661

Census State Profile: Ohio

Ranked Items Within The U.S., 2012Item Quantity U.S. Rank Universe 1

MARKET VALUE OF AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS SOLD ($1,000)Total value of agricultural products sold 10,064,085 13 50 Value of crops, including nursery and greenhouse 6,597,946 10 50 Value of livestock, poultry, and their products 3,466,139 20 50 VALUE OF SALES BY COMMODITY GROUP ($1,000)Grains, oilseeds, dry beans, and dry peas 5,834,600 8 50Tobacco 7,420 10 19Cotton and cottonseed - - 17Vegetables, melons, potatoes and sweet potatoes 133,796 19 50Fruit, tree nuts, and berries 27,215 23 50Nursery, greenhouse, floriculture and sod 437,723 8 50Cut Christmas trees and short rotation woody crops 3,988 10 49Other crops and hay 153,204 30 50Poultry and eggs 946,592 17 50Cattle and calves 689,655 25 50Milk from cows 938,266 11 50Hogs and pigs 788,761 8 50Sheep, goats, wool, mohair, and milk 17,884 14 50Horses, ponies, mules, burros, and donkeys 47,068 6 50Aquaculture 3,875 39 50Other animals and other animal products 34,037 10 50 TOP CROP ITEMS (acres)Soybeans for beans 4,569,775 9 45Corn for grain 3,630,624 8 49Forage-land used for all hay and haylage, grass silage, and greenchop 1,092,183 20 50Wheat for grain, all 469,840 18 49Winter wheat for grain 469,840 16 48 TOP LIVESTOCK INVENTORY ITEMS (number)Layers 28,312,692 2 50Broilers and other meat-type chickens 12,194,024 19 50Pullets for laying flock replacement 8,495,659 2 50Turkeys 2,096,395 15 50Hogs and pigs 2,058,503 9 50

Other State Highlights, 2012

Note: See "Census of Agriculture, Volume 1, Geographic Area Series" for complete footnotes, explanations, definitions, and methodology.

1 Universe is number of states in U.S. with item.

2 Data were collected for a maximum of three operators per farm.

(D) Withheld to avoid disclosing data for individual operations. - Represents zero.

1

Social and Environmental History of Northeast Ohio: An Introduction for the Sustainability Case Studies

Jill Stephens Fleisher and Alex Jeffers

June 2013

In order to place the Northeast Ohio sustainability case studies into a larger context, this

chapter provides a brief summary of the social and environmental history of the region. After an

introduction to the area’s geographic features, we discuss interactions between native peoples

and European colonists. The chapter then turns to a discussion of the various impacts of

human systems on the region’s natural systems with emphases on agriculture, transportation,

industrialization, and urban sprawl. As social equity is one of the three pillars of sustainability -

along with economic and ecological sustainability - we have attempted to integrate social and

intergroup relations into our discussion. The final section provides an overview of the case

studies and identifies some of the common themes and patterns found amongst the 11

organizations that we have identified as examples of sustainability leadership in the region.

Geography of Northeast Ohio

The natural geography of Northeast Ohio has played an invaluable role in its

development through time. Geologically, shale, sandstone, dolomite, limestone, halite, and coal

all set the stage for Ohio’s eventual rise as a world industrial power. However, it was the

melting glacier that filled Northeast Ohio’s soils with nutrients and established its long border

with Lake Erie, attracting agricultural people to the region for thousands of years. Ohio’s native

landscape included vast forests for hemlock, conifers, massive oak and other broadleaf trees

that were burned by Ohio’s residents throughout its history for the purposes of trapping prey by

2

early inhabitants and for clearing land for farming by European settlers. Northeast Ohio’s first

settlers, between 13,000 and 1,000 BCE were gatherer-hunter communities until the

horticultural Adena people first began harvesting corn and squash (Knepper, 2001). Early

inhabitants continued on this path through the 17th century until being forced out by either

Native American tribes or European settlers.

Native American Tribes

The Native American tribes that settled in Northeast Ohio in the first half of the 18th

century came mainly for supplies or as an escape from conflict in other areas. Abundant wildlife

in the region offered new trading opportunities. Coupled with a low level of competition for

natural resources with other Native Americans, the southern shores of Lake Erie were an

attractive place to live for tribes searching for new territory. In addition, many tribes were driven

here by the Iroquois from present day New England to Ohio as they traveled along the Ohio

River to Mississippi (Knepper, 2001). The tribes that inhabited the majority of Northeast Ohio

were the Mingo, Delaware, and Ottowa, though smaller factions of other tribes existed in the

area as well. Northeast Ohio tribes were mostly nomadic due to pressure from European

settlers, the traveling Iroquois tribes, and discoveries of lands with less harsh geographies.

Arrival of the European Settlers French presence in Ohio was established through Canadian fur traders and missionaries

who migrated down through present day Michigan and Wisconsin. Conflicts with Iroquois tribes -

the largest Native American tribe in the area at the time – led the French to settle closer to the

area around Detroit. In the early 1700’s, British traders began establishing posts in the

Northeast Ohio region which increased tensions with the French over rights to the land around

the Great Lakes. Though the French claimed rights due to their “discovery” of the land, the

British claimed the region based on the Sea-to-Sea Charter of the King of England (Knepper,

3

2001). Native American relationships with the British in NEO were harmed during the resulting

French-Indian War as the Native Americans sided with the French, assuming the British

presence in America would be temporary. The French-Indian War ended in 1754 with Ohio

coming under British colonial rule. Subsequently, Native Americans primarily sided with the

British, or remained neutral, during the Revolutionary War due to violent land skirmishes with

Ohio settlers.

Initially, Native Americans sold portions of their land in order to strengthen their alliances

with European powers (Banner, 2005). As smallpox decimated Native American populations,

they needed less land. Over time, more manipulation, coercion and violence ensued. Land

sales in Northeast Ohio with Native Americans often involved some manipulation and culturally-

based misunderstanding. The settlers who completed these transactions often used liquor to

impair the judgment of the Native Americans. Also, the European concept of property rights was

not fully conveyed to the Native Americans. Though Native Americans understood property

rights for other belongings, they did not have a concept of exclusive land ownership. The

earliest “sales” of land were most likely seen by the Native Americans as selling Europeans the

right to use the land in conjunction with the native tribes. Europeans, however, essentially

placed no trespassing signs on the land and used violence against those who continued to use

it for subsistence. Though Banner (2005) argues that much of the Native Americans’ land was

acquired by combination of legitimate and coercive means, it is clear that the dispossession of

Native Americans from their ancestral lands was a systematic violation of human rights and a

profound environmental injustice with repercussions on contemporary intergroup relations.

The Founding of The Western Reserve

After the American War for Independence, Congress asked the states to transfer their

claimed land to the federal government. In 1786, Congress approved Connecticut’s “reserve” of

3,000,000 acres of which 2,500,000 was sold to the Connecticut Land Company for $1,200,000

4

(Knepper, 2001; Hatcher, 1991). The remaining land in the Western Reserve, around Erie and

Huron Counties, and the “Firelands,” went to Connecticut residents who suffered losses to

British Raiders during the war. Land comprising the current Western Reserve consists of eight

counties in Northeast Ohio: Ashtabula, Trumbull, Lake, Geauga, Portage, Summit, Cuyahoga,

Medina, and Lorain.

Settling of the Western Reserve was delayed due to fear of violence from Native

Americans, whom the settlers felt did not have the right to the land because the British who

were perceived to be their allies (though many Native Americans remained neutral), had lost the

Revolutionary War. Initially, the new Congress attempted to purchase the land from the Native

Americans, but over time, violence and other forms of coercion were employed to remove

Native Americans from the land.

In 1796, the Connecticut Land Company hired Moses Cleaveland to survey lands east of

the Cuyahoga River and to negotiate with the Native Americans they encountered. Upon

entering the territory, Cleaveland claimed that he provided “trinkets, wampum and whiskey” to

the Six Nations for which his party was promised safety while surveying the land

(Encyclopedia of Cleveland History). The land was divided into five square mile town lots and

the Connecticut Land Company began selling plots of land to settlers. In 1803, Ohio became

the 17th state in the union. The 1805 Treaty of Fort Industry forced Native American tribes in the

western portion of the Western Reserve to surrender their land which degraded the relationship

between settlers and Native Americans in Ohio. These and other conflicts between the U.S. and

Great Britain culminated in the War of 1812 as Native Americans turned to their British allies in

Canada for help. As a result of establishing Ohio’s northern border in the battle of Lake Erie, the

region experienced increased economic development from war supplies, new roads and a

decrease in conflict with local Native American tribes.

Economic losses from British trade blockades and crop failures due to the colder climate

pushed New Englanders to the Western Reserve. They began to settle west of the Cuyahoga in

5

areas such as Medina, Lorain and Elyria. These communities reproduced the culture and social

structures of New England which resulted in a high degree of social stratification. Many of the

rich landowners remained on the East Coast which led poor farmers and craftspeople to garner

resentment towards the absent wealthy land owners.

Farming practices of European settlers

Upon arrival in late winter or early spring, settlers from Connecticut to the Western

Reserve would clear cut or burn trees in order to be able to plant crops. As they had to subsist

on whatever they brought with them until their crops grew, it was essential for them to begin

planting as soon as possible. One threat to their food supply was the large number of wildlife

present in Northeast Ohio. An early Ohio law required men of military age to deliver 100 squirrel

scalps to the township officials every year (Knepper, 2001). Organized hunts were used to clear

wildlife to protect crops. In 1818, the infamous Hinckley Hunt by 500 farmers encircled and killed

17 wolves, 21 bears, 300 deer and an unknown number of turkey, fox, raccoons and other small

animals. Buzzards still arrive in Hinckley each spring in search of the carnage.

After clearing the land, the first crops were corn, buckwheat and rye but these were

largely displaced by wheat. By the 1830’s, the most important agricultural production in the

Western Reserve was dairying due largely to the migration of New England dairy farmers.

Subsequently, fruit production rose as the second type of crop, beginning with peaches and

cherries followed by table grapes, grown along the southern shore of Lake Erie.

The expansion of agricultural production over time blurred class lines in the region as the

hired farm laborers married the farmers’ daughters or sons, which subsequently raised the

social status of the hired help. Although this practice led to less social stratification based on

class, women in the Western Reserve still struggled with vast inequality. Women were typically

overworked in caring for their 10-15 children, working on the farm and preserving food for the

6

winter. Women often died much earlier than men due to childbirth, exhaustion and social

isolation.

The Ohio & Erie Canal

Canals played a major role in the economic development of Northeast Ohio. By 1825,

the Erie Canal connected Cleveland to New York City. The Ohio & Erie Canal between

Cleveland and Akron opened in 1827 and was connected to the Ohio River by 1832

(Grabowski, 2002). Together, the canals enabled shipping from New York City to Buffalo to

Cleveland and to Cincinnati. Built primarily by German and Irish immigrants, the canal

transported raw materials - such as coal, pig iron and lumber to burgeoning new industries in

the cities, in addition to food stuffs and people (Campbell, 1997). As Cleveland became more

connected, exports began to rise almost immediately. Pre-canal shipments of flour out of

Cleveland typically numbered around 1,000 barrels a year to Buffalo for $0.10/barrel. Six years

after the completion of the Erie Canal, Cleveland exported 250,000 barrels of flour to the

eastern seaboard at prices as high as $1.00/barrel. Revenue from the canal peaked in 1851,

less than 20 years after its completion, due to the rise of railroads.

Ecologically, the canals significantly altered the Cuyahoga River. In 1827, a new mouth

was dug to facilitate the increasing traffic of ships along the river (Jain, 2010). Spent coals used

to power the ships were dumped off the sides into the river thereby degrading water quality and

ecosystems. Furthermore, the canals required the installation of dams and locks that controlled

and redirected the flow of the river which dried some river ecosystems and flooded other

ecosystems located on either side of the dams and locks (Hott & Garey, 2008).

Railroads

After losing the bid for a Northern Ohio canal terminus to Toledo in the 1830’s, Northeast

Ohio began investing in railroads in Sandusky. By 1850, the number of miles of track in Ohio

had reached 299. Cleveland’s first railroad was laid in 1838 between Public Square and

7

University Circle. This commuter line only made two trips per day, thus ridership was low.

Cleveland then invested heavily into a railroad on stilts that ran west to the Maumee River, but

failed due to structural issues (Hatcher, 1966).

Counties and cities in the Western Reserve that were distant from the canal or the lake,

including Hudson, Ravenna, Medina, and Elyria, demanded that more action be taken by

Cleveland to connect them to shipping ports. These demands were met by the Cleveland,

Columbus, and Cincinnati Railroad with passage between Cleveland and Columbus which was

completed in 1851.

Public demand then shifted eastward to Pennsylvania and New York resulting in the

Cleveland, Painesville and Ashtabula railroad, which reached Painesville late in 1851. As

progress continued into Pennsylvania, issues surfaced due to neighboring states using different

gauge lengths on their railroads which required trains to stop, unload, and reload when crossing

state borders. States economically benefited by this lack of standardization due to gains in

economic activity (Hatcher, 1966). Once resolved, Cleveland was positioned at the center

between western and New England train stations.

The construction of the railroads, connecting Cleveland to major cities both by sea and

by land, set the stage for Cleveland’s rapid industrialization. Companies could now expand their

business to meet the manufacturing needs of the entire nation. The construction, coal mining,

and engineering needed to build and run these railroads was a boost to Cleveland’s growing

industrial economy.

Industrialization

The earliest industries in the Western Reserve were derived from the high number of

dairy farms. Agricultural processing and manufacturing, dairy packaging, and meatpacking

served as an early base to Cleveland’s industrial rise. By the mid to late 1800s, coal mining, oil

refining, and iron and steel smelting all began to develop in the region (Knepper, 2001; Warf &

8

Holly, 1997). Cleveland’s rise as an industrial center for the country was largely due to its

geographic location. Lake Erie, the canals and the new railroads provided access to critical raw

materials - coal from Appalachia and the Mahoning Valley, oil from Pennsylvania and western

Ohio, iron ore from Lake Superior – with access to markets in both the East and West.

In 1866, Sherwin-Williams was founded and became one of Cleveland biggest and

longest running employers (Grabowski, 2005). Standard Oil, founded by John D. Rockefeller,

was incorporated in Cleveland in 1870, the same year that B.F. Goodrich moved his rubber

company from New York to Akron (Knepper, 2001). Due to the location of Akron, companies

headquartered there were able to ship their rubber to almost any major city using the Ohio &

Erie Canal. Rubber flourished due to a rapid rise in bicycle usage in the 1890s and then the rise

of automobiles and trucks at the turn of the century. By 1900, the region bore multiple

companies that produced iron, steel, electric motors, machine tools, meat packing, clothing, and

paints/varnishes. The increased manufacturing of automobiles also fueled a number of other

industries in Northeast Ohio. Cleveland, along with having a number of its own auto

manufacturing plants, provided many of the production factors to Detroit’s auto manufacturing

plants. To fuel its growing industrial base, the region increased its demand for coal. By the

early 1900s, 90% of Ohio’s factories were powered by coal from Ohio and the surrounding

Appalachian region (Warf & Holly, 1997).

In addition to rubber, Akron was the sewer pipe capital of the world at the turn of the

century. Due to Akron’s clay resources and innovative production techniques, the sewer pipes

were more durable than those from other regions. Around this time, Berea became the nation’s

main supplier of sandstone which once accounted for 80% of all the nation’s grindstones, and

the majority of the nation’s millstones. Salt mining under Lake Erie began in the late 1800s.

Cleveland became the nation’s second largest exporter of salt (Knepper, 2001). Salt mining

continues to be important to the local economy (Jain, 2010).

9

Manufacturing drew immigrant workers from around the world to the factories on Lake

Erie’s southern shore. The primary immigrant groups moving to Cleveland were of Italian and

Eastern European descent. The average growth per decade in Cleveland between 1870 and

1930 was 47%, which led to Cleveland becoming the nation’s fifth largest city in 1920 with a

population of 796,841. At this time, Shaker Heights, one of Cleveland’s oldest suburbs, had the

highest per capita income in the United States. Increases in manufacturing to provide artillery,

tanks, and other goods to the U.S. military during WWI and WWII continued to create jobs in

Ohio. Labor demands were met by African Americans from Alabama and other southern states

as there was a reduction of immigrants from Europe during the world wars. Population influx

and manufacturing peaked in 1967 when total manufacturing jobs reach 307,700 (Warf & Holly,

1997).

Heavy industrialization resulted in a number of environmental issues in the region. The

county planning commission estimated that 14% of the county’s land has at some point been

devoted to industrial activity with high risk of environmental contaminants. Within the City of

Cleveland alone, there are 350 documented “brownfield” sites that pose a barrier to the health

of Cleveland’s residents and development on these contaminated properties (“About

brownfields redevelopment,” n.d.). Pollution from industrial growth also caused a number of air

quality and water quality issues, which will be discussed later.

Ethnic and Racial Tensions

Due to technical advancements, increased efficiencies, and changing labor markets in

the 1870s, non-skilled workers began to displace skilled craftsmen. This shift impacted

intergroup relations as skilled workers in Cleveland were primarily English, Welsh, and Scotch

while unskilled immigrant workers were primarily from Southern and Eastern Europe, especially

Poland and Bohemia (Czechoslovakia after WWI). Consequently, labor tensions were fraught

10

with ethnic overtones as Poles and Bohemians displaced skilled English, Welsh, and Scotch

workers. Riots over labor rights and unions were present throughout the late 1800s between

factory owners and workers, but even more so between Eastern European workers and the

skilled workers of the United Kingdom. Although the groups had attempted to work together on

a few occasions to push for better labor rights, neither group could keep peace with the other

and violence or intimidation often resulted. Not all of the effects of the strikes were negative,

however. A letter written to the editor of the Cleveland Leader noted that both the trees and

vegetation in the city improved while the factories were out of commission, but returned to their

degraded state once the factories resumed operations (Leonard, 1979).

Starting in the 1920s, African Americans moving to Cleveland during the Great Migration

came primarily from Alabama to fill the demand for labor. Census data show that most male

African Americans were moving from urban areas with previous manufacturing experience. A

number of them had traveled to Kentucky to work in the coal mines before continuing northward

to Cleveland (Ross, 1994). Many of the West Virginian migrants to northeast Ohio, however,

traveled to either Ashtabula County’s farmlands or Akron’s rubber plants (Feather, 1998). Due

to a shrinking labor force caused by immigration restrictions during WWI, many factories sent

trains down to southern towns around Alabama to recruit workers for their factories. Many

workers, however, were unable to afford train tickets for themselves or their family, forcing them

to either stay behind or go on without their family and send for them later (Phillips, 1999).

African American newspapers in Cleveland showed mixed responses to the influx of southern

African Americans, some viewing it as a benefit for solidarity in the city, and others condemning

the new arrivals as unmannered and rowdy (Ross, 1994).

As the African American population continued to grow in Cleveland, so did racial

tensions, especially amongst other ethnic groups. Like other urban centers in the nation, five

separate civil disturbances were reported in Cleveland between 1964 and 1971. In the Hough

Riots of 1966, four people died and the Glenville Shootout of 1968 resulted in ten deaths. Both

11

of these major civil disturbances were cordoned off by the National Guard to prevent the looting

and fires from spreading into other neighborhoods, but resulted in extensive damage within the

neighborhoods in which they started (Collins & Smith, 2007).

On July 23,1968, another riot began on Cleveland’s east side that was catalyzed by the

shooting of a tow truck driver towing an abandoned car and resulted in a large scale police

shootout in which the police were unable to maintain control of the situation. The riot lasted

through the night and was settled the next day, but resulted in 10 deaths before it had ended.

Although the Glenville riots produced more deaths, the Hough riots are typically seen as the

more serious due to the duration and overall resulting property damage (Collins & Smith, 2007).

Although the riot zones were cordoned off by the National Guard, the effect of these riots

extended beyond the Hough and Glenville neighborhoods. Residents of Little Italy, located on

Cleveland’s east side adjacent to predominantly African American neighborhoods, began

resorting to violence and intimidation to prevent African Americans from moving to or visiting

their neighborhood. In addition to small bombings and shootings, inflated real estate prices were

used to ensure that only white ethnic residents moved into their neighborhood. Still today, Little

Italy remains one of the only predominantly white neighborhoods on Cleveland’s east side

(Michney, 2006).

These racial tensions exacerbated urban sprawl as those who could afford to move out

of the central city left for new homes in the suburbs. Those who could not afford to move were

left to deal with the environmental burdens caused by the heavy industrialization. The air, water

and soil pollution emitted by the factories would have a more drastic effect on those living in

greater proximity to them as opposed to those living further out into the suburbs.

Burning River

The City of Cleveland has had a profound effect on the Cuyahoga River. The first major

impact that Cleveland had on the river came in 1827 when the present mouth of the river was

12

dug to facilitate ships by straightening the path of the river. The river has continually been

engineered since this first project to ensure that ships can navigate the naturally crooked and

shallow river (Jain, 2010). In addition to using the Cuyahoga for the shipping of goods and raw

materials, the river’s other main function was for the disposal of industrial and human waste.

Due to the number of manufacturing plants located along the river - oil refineries, paint

manufacturers, coal burning factories, and iron smelting plants - large quantities of chemicals

and other toxic substances accumulated in the waters of the Cuyahoga over the past two

centuries (Hott & Garey, 2008).

The use of the river for waste disposal was the leading cause of the infamous June 22,

1969, fire that burned in Cleveland on the Cuyahoga River. The fire caught when a spark from

the railroad trestle overhead landed on a patch of pollutants floating in the river. This was not

the first time a river in a major industrial city had burned, nor was it the first time the Cuyahoga

had caught fire (Hott & Garey, 2008). The river burned for the first time in 1868 and then in

1883,1887,1912,1922,1936,1941,1948,1952 and the last time in 1969 (Jain, 2010). Because

the 1969 fire was not as large or as long burning as many of the other fires had been, the

picture that was shown in Time Magazine, the one that sparked the interest of people around

the world, was not actually of the most recent fire (Hott & Garey, 2008).

Voters in Cleveland approved a $100 bond issue with a two-to-one margin for clean-up

efforts of the Cuyahoga, This money helped to create a Clean Water Task Force and started

construction on two wastewater treatment plants. These efforts began making significant strides

towards cleaner water before the 1969 fire. The federal and state governments, however, were

much less involved in any clean-up efforts. The state government provided meager assistance

in funding and the federal government, that had agreed to provide money towards the clean-up,

did not provide funding before the fire burned for the last time. Cleveland had even taken the

lead among other cities in the Lake Erie Basin to clean up their water with no federal assistance

for regional water quality efforts involving multiple municipalities along the lake (Adler, 2003).

13

Jurisdictional issues between the state and city governments also prohibited many of the

clean-up efforts of the Cuyahoga River. Due to water pollution permitting laws at the state level,

the city officials were unable to combat many of the industries found to be responsible for the

flammable state of the river. This prompted city officials, environmentalists, and eventually the

federal government to pressure the state to involve themselves more in the water quality efforts

(Adler, 2003).

The effects of the famous Cuyahoga River fire were felt all over the country. Three years

after the fire, Congress passed the 1972 Clean Water Act in response to pleas from

environmentalists and then mayor Carl Stokes. Along with the Clean Water Act, the

Environmental Protection Agency was founded to be in charge of monitoring and enforcing the

new environmental regulations (Hott & Garey, 2008).

Regulations that the river is still held to today focus on the diversity and size of fish

populations, the number of pollutants and bacteria found in the river, and the source of pollution

entering the river. Many grassroots cleanup projects were organized throughout the 1970s that

still persist today to address the water quality of Lake Erie and the Cuyahoga River. Two main

sources of pollution that remain concerns today, however, are stormwater pollutants and non-

point source pollutants. Because Cleveland’s sewage system and stormwater system are

combined, during heavy rains the untreated sewage and stormwater are released into the river

and the lake to prevent backups into the city. This is a major issue that the Northeast Ohio

Regional Sewer District is addressing (see NEORSD case study). Non-point source pollutants -

pollutants that do not come from one specific point - are another area of concern still affecting

the river’s water quality. These pollutants come mainly from two sources in metropolitan areas:

roadways with runoff containing salts and petrochemicals and residential source from chemical

applied to lawns and contaminants dumped down drains (Hott & Garey, 2008).

14

Deindustrialization and Urban Sprawl

Around the early 1970s, the region’s industrial base began to shrink with many factories

and major companies abandoning the urban cores. The combination of rising prices of oil, high

costs of unionized labor, aging machinery and a globalizing economy led corporations to reduce

costs by relocating their factories and headquarters to suburbs, the non-unionized sunbelt,

and/or overseas. Deindustrialization led to a shrinking tax base for the cities. Cleveland

endured a 13% drop in total employment between 1979 and 1993 with low-paying service

sector jobs replacing higher paid manufacturing jobs. The drop in manufacturing employment

fell 40% between 1979 and 1994, hurt by the closings of six General Electric factories, a

Westinghouse factory and a number of others (Warf & Holly, 2007). The shrinking industrial

economy, combined with tensions between the city government and financial institutions, led

Cleveland to become the first city since the Great Depression to default on its loans in 1978

(Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, 2006). The Cleveland Metropolitan Area had an 8% drop in

population between 1970 and 1980, while the city of Cleveland’s population fell by 24%. All of

these factors caused housing values to fall and poverty rates to increase, both of which were

evident in Cleveland. Housing values fell one-half to two-thirds of 1967 value and the poverty

rate rose from 27% in 1980 to 40% in 1987. These dramatic shifts in the demography of

Cleveland are still evident today. Akron also endured deindustrialization though it maintained its

top four firms including Goodyear and Firestone (Warf & Holly, 1997).

Deindustrialization of Northeast Ohio combined with other social factors throughout the

19th and 20th centuries, led to a decentralization of the urban cores through urban sprawl.

Older suburbs - such as Lakewood, Shaker Heights, and East Cleveland - that were

incorporated early in the 20th century had resisted annexation with the rest of the city during

their beginnings which allowed for them to experience rapid growth in the 1920s. With the

advent of the automobile and pressure from homebuilders, federal funds were allocated for

controlled access freeways. The Housing Act (1934) which created home loan guarantees

15

though the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) further incentivized new housing subdivisions

because the loans were only for new single-family units located in low population density areas.

Restrictive insurance policies set by the FHA against urban housing discouraged investment in

urban housing. In 1930, Cleveland’s share of population to its metropolitan area was 75%, in

1960 it was 65%, by 1970 it was 38%, and finally 34% in 2000. Cuyahoga County as a whole

also lost population as residents moved further away from Cleveland; 19% of its population left

between 1970 and 2000 (Keating, 2008). Outer-ring suburbs, such as Westlake, Strongsville

and Twinsburg absorbed the population from both the City of Cleveland and its inner-ring

suburbs such as Lakewood and Maple Heights. Cleveland and its suburbs now occupy over 600

square miles, even though the total population is not rising. As people move further from the city

center, businesses follow (Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, 2006). As middle and upper class

consumers move East, South and West, new shopping malls (e.g. Eaton Square in Beachwood,

Southpark Mall in Strongsville, and Crocker Park in Westlake) contributed to the decline of

inner-ring shopping centers (e.g. Randall Park Mall in Warrensville Heights and Euclid Mall)

which are now largely vacant buildings with impervious parking lots.

This population decline from urban sprawl has had major effects on the City of

Cleveland. Education in Cleveland, as in most American cities, is partially funded by property

taxes. As more residents and businesses moved further out, the urban tax base greatly

decreased. Subsequently, schools in the Cleveland Metropolitan School District have fallen into

disrepair with increasing the class sizes and a student body with disproportionately high need

for social services (Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, 2006).

Another side effect of urban sprawl has been an increase in asphalt in Cleveland’s urban

areas. Increased demand for parking caused by the rise of the automobile in the first half of the

20th century has affected Cleveland’s composition in multiple ways. First, it has pushed

shopping centers and businesses to the outer ring suburbs where parking is more readily

available. This prompted downtown Cleveland to tear down a number of its buildings to allow for

16

parking in the city to attract businesses. Although this plan was unsuccessful, the need for

parking persisted as more people had to drive into Cleveland because they lived too far to walk,

bike, or take public transit. There are now 120 acres of parking lots in Downtown Cleveland

alone (Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, 2006). More pavement has drastic effects on the water

quality of Lake Erie due to increased stormwater runoff and combined sewage overflows.

Energy Use

Due to Northeast Ohio’s proximity to the Appalachia and Mahonning Valley regions,

much of its development has been fueled by coal. A number of other fuel sources, however,

were present throughout the development of the region. Both western Ohio and Pennsylvania

were rich in oil supplies, which John D. Rockefeller made popular in the region with the founding

of Standard Oil in 1870 (Knepper, 2001). Another popular fuel source in Ohio, although primarily

for homes rather than factories, was the burning of artificial and natural gas. There were two

major artificial gas suppliers for the Cleveland area in mid-19th century, then in 1902 Standard

Oil formed the East Ohio Gas Company which supplied natural gas at a much cheaper rate. By

1958, the East Ohio Gas Company served 750,000 customers in six communities around

Northeast Ohio and in 2000 they were purchased by Dominion Electric (J. Grabowski (Ed.),

2004). The East Ohio Gas Company, however, is most well-known for the explosion of one of

their gas tanks by their Cleveland office building. On October 20, 1944, one of the company’s

tanks caught fire shooting flames into the city’s sewer lines and causing the worst fire in

Cleveland’s history. Flames covered about one square block consuming 130 lives, 79 homes

and 2 factories (Grabowski, 1998).

Despite Cleveland’s long history with fossil fuel based energy, renewable energy has

also made its mark on the region. Charles Brush, a wealthy scientist living on Cleveland’s east

side, designed and built an electric generating wind turbine on East 37th and Euclid Avenue in

the late 19th century (Krouse, 2011). The turbine was featured in the December 20, 1890 issue

17

of Scientific American in which it was described as the only “successful system of electric

lighting operated by means of wind power” at the time. Northeast Ohio is also home to two

operating nuclear energy facilities. The Davis-Besse Nuclear Power Station in Oak Harbor

which became operational in 1978 and the Perry Nuclear Power Plant in North Perry which

became operational in 1984 (Energy Information Administration, 2004). Though touted as a

clean source of energy for the region, controversy persists as residents of Toledo and Cleveland

recall the “near-miss” incidents at the Davis-Besse station, especially the reactor head hole

accident in 2002, which the Nuclear Regulatory Commission identified as the fifth most

dangerous nuclear incident in the U.S. since 1979 (Nuclear Regulatory Commission, 2004).

Due to these risks, a proposed plan for reducing the region’s carbon emissions generated by

the Green City Blue Lake Institute (see GCBL case study) calls for nuclear energy to be phased

out of the region’s future energy mix.

The Comeback City: Urban Renewal

Due to a wave of reinvestment throughout the city, Cleveland gained the nickname of

“Comeback City” in the 1990s. The most well-known of these investments focused on creating

a vibrant, walkable downtown that attracted suburban visitors to spend money in the city center.

The Gateway Project of the 1990s included the development of a new stadium and an indoor

arena which connected sports fans to new shopping being developed in the old Baltimore &

Ohio Terminal Tower, now known as Tower City (Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, 2006; Warf &

Holly, 2007). A collection of vacant movie houses located on Euclid Avenue in Downtown have

also been restored as one of Cleveland’s biggest regional attractions, Playhouse Square, for

residents and visitors to enjoy plays, musicals, movies, and concerts (Warf & Holly, 2007). On

the Lake Erie shore, the city also invested in a new professional football stadium, the Great

Lakes Science Center, and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, all of which serve to bring more

money into the city (Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, 2006). In the 2010’s, the city invested in the

18

redevelopment of Euclid Avenue (the healthline) and incentivized a casino in the old Higbee

building adjacent to Tower City.

In addition to bringing in people, Cleveland also saw a resurgence in employment in the

1990s. Auto-manufacturing companies such as Ford and Nissan opened new factories in the

city and US Steel reopened one of their plants in 1986. The biggest increase in employment,

however, came from the service industry rather than manufacturing. In 1993, the Cleveland

Metropolitan Area had 592,000 residents working in the service industry and only 185,000 in

manufacturing. The health services industry led this employment boom with a number of large

medical facilities including the Cleveland Clinic and University Hospitals (Warf & Holly, 2007).

Since the 1990’s, the Cleveland Clinic Health System has been the single largest employer in

the city (Hillyer, 1999) and the second largest employer in the state of Ohio. In 2013, a new

Medical Mart and Convention Center opened which was made possible by county taxpayers.

Cleveland has also been investing in urban renewal programs to bring development and

people out of the suburbs and to reside in the city. Cleveland’s CitiRama program offered

potential residents a 15-year tax rebate for moving into central city neighborhoods such as

Hough where newly renovated housing was being built (Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, 2006).

Cleveland also developed a number of innovative strategies to turn unused, vacant land that

blighted the city into productive areas of development. Responding to the population exodus

from the central city in the 1970s, Cleveland developed a city land bank that could take

ownership of vacant land and sell it at a discounted rate to those who wanted to build on it

(LaCroix, 2010). For example, housing developers who wanted to build new houses, like those

in the CitiRama program, would pay only $100 for the land on which to build (Lincoln Institute of

Land Policy, 2006). The Cleveland Land Bank was restructured in 2009 to include all of

Cuyahoga County and give them more power in acquiring vacant land.

Reimagining Cleveland is another example of a urban renewal program in the city,

however, this one focused on sustainable reuse of vacant properties. Reimagining Cleveland

19

worked with both the city and the land bank to apply sustainable practices to the redevelopment

of vacant properties, such as urban agriculture, soil remediation on toxic sites, renewable

energy development, and stormwater management zones. Through working with Reimagining

Cleveland, the city even developed a new zoning regulation, the “Urban Garden District,” to

encourage the use of vacant land for growing food (LaCroix, 2010).

Conclusion

From its beginnings as a forested, marsh-covered coast on a Great Lake, through the

hunting, mining, burning, and harvesting of the 18th century and the great industries of the 19th

and 20th centuries, Northeast Ohio has had a profound impact on the natural world in which it is

located (Knepper, 2001). Today, brownfields cover the city as a reminder of its industrial past

while decedents of migrants from Alabama and West Virginia, and immigrants from Poland,

Romania and West Virginia continue moving to outer suburbs to escape poverty, crime, and

pollution (“About brownfields redevelopment” n.d.; Leonard, 1979; Phillips, 1999; Feather,

1998). Residents of the city struggle with the effects of a shrinking tax base and issues of air

and water quality stemming from industrial waste and poor stormwater management induced by

ever increasing pavement throughout the region (Hott & Garey, 2008; Jain, 2010; and Lincoln

Institute of Land Policy, 2006).

The future holds hope, however, in the efforts of city and county officials, community

development corporations, non-profits organizations and devoted residents. The CitiRama

program, offering 15-year tax breaks for new residents who move into the city, is working to

reverse urban sprawl and increase the population and density of the city’s central

neighborhoods. Reimagining Cleveland is turning vacant properties into opportunities by

transforming unused land into sustainable initiatives such as urban agriculture, renewable

energy, green stormwater management, and brownfield remediation (Lincoln Institute of Land

Policy, 2006). Finally, Cleveland’s transition from a manufacturing economy to a service based

20

economy, anchored by employers such as the Cleveland Clinic, is creating an economy that is

less dependent on fossil fuels and better for the health of Cleveland residents and the natural

world alike (Warf & Holly, 2007).

The various programs, initiatives, and businesses discussed throughout these case studies

give a glimpse into the tireless work being done in Cleveland to revitalize the city as a center for

sustainability. As the NEO sustainability case studies illustrate, residents, businesses, nonprofits

and city government are collaborating to realize Cleveland’s potential as a city leading the

nation, as it did at the turn of the 20th century.

These 11 case studies represent a range of different types of organizations, each with

their own particular mission. West Creek Conservancy is a highly effective community

organization that emerged out of concern for preserving natural areas in the region. Rather

than a single issue, the Corporate Sustainability Network, Green City Blue Lake, and

Sustainable Cleveland 2019 represent organizations that aim to promote sustainable

development by sharing strategies and coordinating efforts between various businesses,

governmental bodies, educational institutions and community-based organizations. While

focused on particular goals, the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District and LEEDCo both rely

on cross-sector collaboration from a myriad of organizations and institutions to accomplish their

respective missions of protecting water quality in the region and developing wind energy on

Lake Erie. The three businesses selected for the case studies project, Great Lakes Brewing

Company, Lube Stop Inc. and Fairmount Minerals, have served as models for other businesses

in the region as well as setting high standards for sustainability in each of their respective

industries. As the region is also recognized nationally as a leader in the local foods movement,

we selected City Fresh and the Countryside Conservancy as case subjects for the case studies.

Readers who study multiple cases will quickly note that the leaders of these

organizations are actively involved outside their organizations to help move the larger region

21

toward more sustainable economic, ecological and social systems. In fact, leaders of these

organizations often interact amongst each other and mutually benefit from sharing insights and

strategies. Another commonality amongst these organizations is that most of them have

benefitted either directly or indirectly from support from a local foundation. In particular, the

leadership development and financial support provided by the Cleveland Foundation has been

instrumental for several of the organizations featured in these case studies. The people and

organizations featured in this project are contemporary examples of Northeast Ohio’s legacy of

innovation which is now tirelessly engaged in building a more sustainable region for this

generation and the generations that follow.

Citations

About brownfields redevelopment. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://development.cuyahogacounty.us/en-US/northcoast-brownfield-coalition.aspx Adler, J. (2003). Fables of the Cuyahoga: Reconstructing a history of environmental protection. Fordham Environmental Law Journal, 14, 89-146. Banner, S. (2005). How the Indians lost their land: Law and power on the frontier. Cambridge: Belknap Pres of Harvard University Press. Campbell, J. B. (1996). Cleveland in the Western Reserve: 1796-1996. Unknown publisher. (Cuyahoga County Public Library holding). Cleaveland, Moses. (2013). J. Grabowski (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Cleveland History Cleveland, OH: Case Western Reserve University. http://ech.case.edu/ech-cgi/article.pl?id=CM10 Collins, W. & Smith, F. (2007). A neighborhood view of riots, property values, and population loss: Cleveland 1950-1980. Explorations in Economic History. 44, 365-386. East Ohio Gas Company. (2004). J. Grabowski (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Cleveland History Cleveland, OH: Case Western Reserve University. East Ohio Gas Company explosion and fire. (1998). J. Grabowski (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Cleveland History Cleveland, OH: Case Western Reserve University. Energy Information Administration (2004)."U.S. Nuclear Reactor List - Operational" (XLS).

22

Feather, C. (1998). Mountain People in a Flat Land. Ohio University Press. Athens, OH. Hatcher, H. (1966). The Western Reserve: The Story of New Connecticut in Ohio. Cleveland, OH: The World Publishing Company. Hillyer, D. (1999). Largest Cuyahoga County Employers. Crain's Cleveland Business. 12/27/99, Vol. 20 Issue 52, p28.

Hott, L. (Producer), & Garey, D. (Director) (2008). Return of the Cuyahoga [DVD]. Jain, P. (2010). Regeneration of Cuyahoga flats – [de]-industrialized riverfront in Cleveland,Ohio . (Master's thesis, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign).

Keating, D. (2007). Cleveland: A midwestern rustbelt city struggles to sur(re)vive. Cleveland State University

Kingsley, R.F. (1993). Chestnut Grove: An early 19th –century lime burning industry in the Connecticut Western Reserve. North American Archaeologist, 14(1), 71-85.

Knepper, G. W. (2003). Ohio and its People. Kent, OH: Kent State University Press. Krouse, P. (2011, August 11). Charles Brush used wind power in house 120 years ago: Cleveland innovations. Cleveland.com Hott, L. (Producer), & Garey, D. (Director) (2008). Return of the Cuyahoga [DVD].

LaCroix, C. J. (2010). Urban agriculture and other green uses: Remaking the shrinking city. Urban Lawyer, 42(2), 225-285.

Leonard, H. (1979). Ethnic cleavage and industrial conflict in the late 19th century: The Cleveland Rolling Mill Company strikes of 1882 and 1885. Labor History. 20(4), 524-549.

Lincoln Institute of Land Policy. (Producer) (2006).Cleveland: Confronting decline in an American city[DVD]. Michney, T. (2006). Race, violence, and urban territoriality Cleveland’s Little Italy and the 1966 Hough uprising. Journal of Urban History, 32(3), 404-428. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (2004). NRC Issues Preliminary Risk Analysis of the combined safety issues at Davis-Besse. http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/news/2004/04-117.html Ohio and Erie Canal. (2002). J. Grabowski, (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Cleveland History Cleveland, OH: Case Western Reserve University. Phillips, K L. (1999). Alabama North: African-American Migrants, Community, and Working-Class Activism in Cleveland, 1915–1945. Urbana: University of Illinois Press.

Ross, F. (1994). Preserving the Community: Cleveland Black Papers’ Response to the Great Migration. Journalism Quarterly, 71(3), 531-539.

23

Sherwin Williams Co. In (2005). J. Grabowski (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Cleveland History Cleveland, OH: Case Western Reserve University. Stradling, D., & Stradling, R. (2008). Perceptions of the burning river: deindustrialization and Cleveland’s Cuyahoga River. Environmental History, 13(3), 515-535.

Warf, B. & Holly, B. (1997). The rise and fall and rise of Cleveland. Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science. 551, 208-221.

3 Jan 2008 3:28 AM

How to diversify environmentalism?

The movement’s greatest challenge is its own lack of diversity

By Erik Hoffner

The following is a guest essay by Marcelo Bonta. Marcelo is founder and director of the Center forDiversity & the Environment and the Young Environmental Professionals of Color. He is also a seniorfellow with the Environmental Leadership Program and a member of the advisory board of the OrionGrassroots Network.

—–

How Do We Diversify?

Diversifying the environmental movement is one of the greatest

challenges we face this century. Not only is it the right thing to

do, but the movement needs to keep up with the rapidly

changing demographics of the U.S. if it is to remain effective.

Today, people of color in the U.S. amount to over 100 million

people (about one third of the population), and by 2050, their

numbers will more than double, growing to almost 220 million

(over 50 percent of the population). People of color already

constitute a majority of the population in California, New

Mexico, Hawaii, and Texas.

The political and social implications of an increasingly diverse

population and nation are vast. Communities of color have a

mounting influence on society and politics, including the

distribution of public finances, the way cities develop and grow, and the strength and creation of

environmental laws and policies. Diversifying is not only a great challenge but also a great opportunity.

Can you imagine if the environmental movement was effective at engaging people of color and leveraging

their substantial support and talents? Millions of new supporters would surely translate into more political

victories for the environment, more public support, more members, a larger volunteer base, richer

partnerships and more financial support. In other words, the movement would be potentially more

successful and influential than it ever has been before.

Furthermore, people of color support environmental issues at a higher level than their white counterparts.

An exit poll for a 2002 California multibillion-dollar bond issue for open space protection revealed that 77

percent of African Americans, 74 percent of Latinos, 60 percent of Asians and 56 percent of Caucasians

approved the measure. Another recent poll commissioned by The Nature Conservancy and Trust for Public

Land showed that 77 percent of Latino voters (versus 65 percent of all voters) support a tax increase to

protect water quality and open space.

This news should be encouraging, right? Yes, to a certain degree, but it also highlights a serious problem

that exists in the movement. The movement continues to struggle with diversity, whether it’s in outreach,

collaborations, hiring and retention practices, or other facets.

Not many people of color work in the environmental movement. The Minority Environmental Leadership

Development Initiative found that out of 158 environmental institutions, 33 percent of mainstream

environmental organizations and 22 percent of government agencies had no people of color on staff. In

another study, the Natural Resources Council of America found that people of color make up only 11

percent of the staff and 9 percent of the boards of member organizations.

Although it is concerning to see this lack of involvement of people of color, these numbers are actually

symptoms of a much deeper problem. They reflect the root cause of the movement’s diversity crisis — a

homogeneous, unintentionally exclusive culture that pervades most environmental institutions. [For a moredetailed layout of the movement's diversity-related problems see "Diversifying the American EnvironmentalMovement" (PDF)]

If we are to work on our diversity crisis, we will need to effectively tackle cultural change as well as a slew

of other areas where we can diversify. Nothing short of a comprehensive strategy that will sufficiently

address the diversity crisis and create sustainable and lasting change will do.

A Strategy to Diversify

Diversifying the movement is complex, and it will take a diversity of approaches to succeed. A

comprehensive strategy for diversifying includes working on cultural change, outreach, partnerships and

collaborations, recruitment, retention, leadership development, and the educational pipeline. [See"Diversifying the Conservation Movement" (PDF) for a detailed description of a comprehensive strategy].

We need to work on making the movement and our organizations attractive places to work for a diverse

array of people, while also drawing out the environmental values of people of color — especially to the

point of pursuing an environmental career. In order for diversity efforts to succeed, it is absolutely crucial

for leaders to view diversity as a top priority, and to commit resources (i.e., money and staff time) to the

effort. Most importantly, we all need to commit to the cause to the point of taking action. Movement-wide,

we must focus on four major areas in order to initiate effective change:

1. Seek Partnerships and Collaborations. We need to seek strategic alliances both within and outside

the movement. Within the movement, we will need to work together to share information, efforts, and

lessons learned about diversifying while more efficiently using resources and keeping costs down.

Collaborating with each other on our diversity efforts is essential so we can move forward

synergistically and grow exponentially. We also need to work across movements, including the labor,

civil rights, and faith movements. We especially need to partner with groups that already effectively

work with communities of color. Most importantly, these partnerships need to be based on equity,

meaning all parties equally share resources, power, and decision-making responsibilities. Expanding

our list of partners will extend our reach, improve our understanding, and ensure our relevance.

2. Engage Young People. Working along the educational pipeline by providing experiences for young

people of color from infancy to graduate-school age is essential to achieving a diverse environmental

community for generations to come. How we engage young people today will have significant effects

far into the future, since many of these same people will be our environmental leaders when people of

color make up our nation’s majority. Providing opportunities for youth to exercise leadership skills

and voice their opinions is an effective way to engage young people. Since internships are often the

entry point to environmental careers for young folks, paid internships are essential to attract students

of all socioeconomic backgrounds.

3. Connect the Generations. We need to unify the generations that are currently working within our

movement, and cultivate emerging leaders of color. Experiences, wisdom, and lessons learned need

to be passed from one generation to the next if we are to build upon the progress already made. Babyboomers need to identify and mentor emerging leaders who can carry the mantle forward. Likewise,young emerging leaders need to take the initiative in connecting with more experienced leaders in themovement.

4. Create Cultural Change. Creating cultural change is the most important aspect of diversifying.Cultural change means having an inclusive, diverse mindset that translates into actions, behaviors,and attitudes that exemplify multiculturalism and equity. Transforming into a multicultural movementrequires continually addressing diversity and providing workplaces where all staff feel comfortableand are attaining their true potential. Eventually institutions that become multicultural will discoverthat people of color will want to work for them and stay for the long term. By initiating effectivecultural change, we will build a movement that is relevant to all Americans. (As the environmentalmovement’s history has shown repeatedly, limiting diversity efforts to recruitment only, especially atentry-level positions or for support staff, will fail more often than not. To be successful andsustainable, diversity efforts need to include cultural change issues.)

So What Can You Do?

Most people that I talk to in the environmental movement agree that the lack of diversity is a problem, yetthe amount of interest far outweighs the amount of action committed to the cause. Whatever the cause forapathy — whether it’s lack of time or resources, a fear of venturing into the unknown, or a passing ofresponsibility — we need to get over it and start taking action. We, as a movement, have cornered ourselvesinto this predicament. Now we collectively need to solve it. It is imperative to begin diversifying ourmovement immediately and seek bold change. Simple steps from each and every one of us can take us along way. Here is what you can do today to push forward on diversity issues:

Find opportunities to diversify within your spheres of influence. Figure out what you can start doingtoday. What organizational responsibilities do you control and have influence over? For example, ifyou have access to discretionary funds or control of budgets, earmark money toward diversityactivities. If you work on outreach, learn how to become culturally competent, and expand youroutreach activities to include communities of color.Seek opportunities to broaden your experience, expand your network and continue learning. Attendor organize diversity workshops, sessions, and trainings, which are becoming common atenvironmental conferences. Become involved in efforts that bring a broad range of organizations andpeople together, such as the Diverse Partners for Environmental Progress series of national summitsand regional roundtables. Reach out to and learn from organizations that work on diversity issues,such as Environmental Learning for Kids. Numerous diversity resources can be found on thewebsites of organizations, including the resources section of the Center for Diversity & theEnvironment. The book Diversity and the Future of the U.S. Environmental Movement is one of thepremier resources on the topic.Find allies. Talk to others at your workplace and to people working on diversity issues outside yourorganization. Organize a lunch discussion about diversity issues at your workplace. Find or create anetwork of people with which you can comfortably discuss diversity issues. For example, a group inPortland, Ore., aptly named the Young Environmental Professionals of Color, meets monthly tonetwork, strategize, and discuss various environmental topics that affect them.Broaden your thought processes. Think long-term with an expansive vision. Constantly questionyour “business as usual.” Ask yourself questions like “For whom am I protecting these lands orwaterways? When thinking of the communities or constituencies I serve, who do I think of? Whoshould I think of? What type of people would find working at my workplace appealing or notappealing? Why?”Engage leaders at your workplace and foundations. Talk to leaders about adopting diversity as anorganizational priority and taking action. Ask for a commitment of resources, especially money and

staff time. Lack of funding devoted to diversity severely limits the scope for diversifying themovement. Ask your funders to provide grants for diversity efforts.Start building relationships with communities and organizations of color now. If you want to startengaging people of color, you will need to invest time building relationships and trust, and providesomething of value. You will need to do your homework about the community members, meet them,and speak to their environmental values.

Every situation is different and will require a unique strategy. For effective efforts, environmental entitiesneed to conduct a diversity assessment and develop a diversity action strategy specific to their workplace. Anumber of organizations and consultants can point you in the right direction, such as the Kenian Group andDR Works. And the Center for Diversity & the Environment website provides information about efforts,organizations, people, research, and strategies that are diversifying the movement.

As the nation continues to diversify, the environmental movement faces one of the greatest challenges ofthis century. Will we diversify so that we can be successful and relevant for generations to come, or will weignore our diversity problem and continue to compartmentalize ourselves into a continually irrelevant andineffective movement that only appeals to homogeneous elites? I don’t think it’s a choice anymore.Diversifying is essential to creating a healthy, influential, and sustainable movement.

The environmental movement has overcome immense problems and has achieved great feats in the past.There is no reason why we can’t be up to the task again. The first and most important step is to start takingaction.

So what do you plan on doing today?

For more on this topic, read Diversity and the Future of the U.S. Environmental Movement and“Diversifying the Conservation Movement” (PDF) by Marcelo Bonta and Charles Jordan (published inthe Land Trust Alliance’s Special 25th Anniversary Issue: A Report on the Future of Land Conservation inAmerica.)

Erik Hoffner works for Orion magazine and is also a freelance photographer and writer. Follow him on Twitter:@erikhoffner.

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Advancing Women in Leadership Online Journal

Volume 18, Spring 2005

AWL Journal Home Current Volume Archives Call for Manuscripts/Guidelines

[ Journal Index ]

Fundi- The Enduring Leadership Legacy of Civil Rights Activist Ella BakerStephen Preskill

University of New Mexico

Many Black activists have pronounced Ella Baker the Fundi of the American Civil Rights Movement. Mosesand Cobb (2001), veterans of the Mississippi voter registration project from the early 1960s, named her

“our Fundi in the tradition of community organizing” (p. 4). Joanne Grant (1981), who later wrote animportant biography of Ella Baker’s life, called her film about Baker’s legacy – Fundi: The story of EllaBaker. Fundi is a Swahili word for the person who possesses practical wisdom and is skilled at passing onto new generations the knowledge that the community’s elders regard as most important. The Fundi is ateacher and a learner. The Fundi supports other people in learning the lessons of the elders. The Fundidoes not seek credit or fame. She is quietly satisfied to provide a bridge from one generation to the next

and to help young people root their ideas and actions in their culture’s most enduring traditions.

Throughout her life Ella Baker stepped in again and again to model learning, relationship-building,

teaching, and leadership.

Although she devoted her life to upholding the cause of racial justice and gained a reputation among civil

rights activists for being a great leader, the name of Ella Jo Baker remains largely unknown to the general

public. Born in 1903 in Norfolk, Virginia, Baker was the granddaughter of proud and defiant ex-slaves.

With the support of her parents who made many sacrifices to further their daughter’s education, Baker

graduated from North Carolina’s Shaw University as the valedictorian of her 1927 class. Almost

immediately after graduation, she left the South for New York City and immersed herself in the

excitement of the Harlem Renaissance. It wasn’t long before she was participating actively in a variety of

organizations to help people secure their rights and enhance their economic opportunities. All of this led

eventually to her assuming a leadership position in the National Association for the Advancement of

Colored People (NAACP) – the preeminent Black advocacy group in the United States since its founding in

1909. As Director of Branches for the NAACP, Baker was especially effective in maintaining contact with

the Association’s grassroots membership and pushed hard for education and training programs to prepare

rank and file people from throughout the South for leadership roles. In the 1950s, Baker was the first

Executive Director of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) – the organization that grew

out of the Montgomery Bus Boycott and supported Dr. Martin Luther King’s efforts to combat racism. In

1960, she left the SCLC to launch the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) – the group

set up to sustain the student protest movement that began so dramatically on February 1, 1960, when

four Black students from the Agricultural and Technical College of North Carolina staged a sit-in at a

segregated Woolworth’s lunch counter in downtown Greensboro to protest racial discrimination.

Throughout all of this work, Baker stressed the value of learning, growth, and the development of

grassroots leadership. She saw herself primarily as an adult educator and a cultivator of untapped

leadership. Every cause, in her view, simmered with opportunities for education. Taking the time to think

through the issues, to cast off worn out assumptions, and to plan reflectively for the long term mattered

most to her. She maintained that social action yielded valuable learning when sufficient time was set aside

for reflection and dialogue.

She held steadfastly to her belief that leaders are at their best when supporting ordinary people to lead

themselves. She believed in leadership, but she particularly believed that the most effective leaders are

self-effacing people, more interested in developing leadership in others than in getting recognition for their

individual achievements. When asked by an interviewer to explain how you organize people, she said

matter of factly that you don’t start with what you think. You start with what they think. She continued,“You start where the people are. Identification with people…If you talk down to people, they can sense it.

They can feel it. And they know whether you are talking with them, or talking at them, or talking aboutthem” (Cantarow &O’Malley, p. 70, 72). She affirmed repeatedly that leaders are teachers and must

create opportunities for people to learn from each other and to reflect on the best ways to take action

collectively. She maintained that leading and learning are part of the same process and that no successful

movement can be continued without leaders who are intent on learning from those around them. Leaders

were critical to Ella Baker, not as solitary individuals who bask in the reflected glory of group action, but as

solid and selfless collaborators in the enduring struggle for social justice. When she was first organizing the

group that became SNCC, Baker hesitated to be overly directive. She observed, “those who had worked

closely with me knew that I believed very firmly in the right of the people who were under the heel to be

the ones to decide what action they were going to take to get from under their oppression” (Cantarow &

O’Malley, p. 84). She did not seek credit or even much compensation for what she did, but she received

enormous gratification from witnessing people, who enjoyed little notice from others, grow into leaders

owing to her support. As Barbara Ransby (2003) shows in her magisterial new biography, Ella Baker’s

approach to leadership was “democratic and reciprocal.” She saw leaders as teachers and as learners in

which learning is “based on a fluid and interactive relationship between student and teacher,” (p. 359)

and leading is seen as an ever-shifting bond that holds leaders and followers together.

The kind of leader Baker strived to be can be inferred from her comments on working with the NAACP

branches. She observed:

If you feel you are part of them and they are part of you, you don’t say “I’m-a-part-of-you.”

What you really do is you point out something. Especially the lower-class people, the people

who’d felt the heel of oppression, see they knew what you were talking about when youspoke about police brutality. They knew what you were speaking about when you talkedabout working at a job, doing the same work, and getting a differential in pay. And if your

sense of being a part of them got over to them, they appreciated that. Somebody would get

the point. Somebody would come out and say,“I’m gon’ join that darn organization.”

(Cantarow & O’Malley, p. 72)

Baker as Servant and Transformer

Baker’s goal of identifying with the people, of learning about their goals and desires and building from

there, recalls Greenleaf’s (1977) notion of servant leadership, Burns’s (1978) theory of transforming

leadership, and Freire’s (1973) dialogic approach to education and transformation. While working for the

NAACP, Baker strived to be a servant-first. If her leadership did not help those served to grow as persons,

then it lacked any real value. In line with Greenleaf’s claim that servant leaders are superb listeners,

Baker practiced the discipline of listening assiduously and seemed to concur with Greenleaf that listening

could powerfully build “strength in other people” (p. 17). But she also followed Burns in that she put the

utmost effort into practicing leadership as a reciprocal process, into realizing goals that were “mutually

held by both leaders and followers” (p. 425). She also invested great effort in the teaching function of

leadership and the role she might play in transforming a seemingly ordinary action into something

momentous that brought “end-values, such as liberty, justice, and equality” (p. 426) to the forefront. In

these ways, she also followed Freire closely as Ransby (2003) has so brilliantly demonstrated. According to

Ransby (2003), the SNCC-inspired Freedom Schools, that led to huge increases in the registration of Black

voters in the early 1960s, carried the imprint of Baker’s philosophy and practice of leadership. First, like

Freire, Baker contended that to lead is to teach, not to “transfer knowledge but to create the possibility for

the production or construction of knowledge” among learners and followers (p.328). Second, for Baker,

teaching and learning were mutual, part of the same continuum, in which willingness “to listen across

boundaries of difference” counts most of all (p. 328). Third, teaching, like leading, is not a top-down,

didactic process. It is above all, an occasion to help learners [and followers] “begin to question” (p. 329).

Ella Baker respected people in the classic sense. She strove to acknowledge and appreciate them in all

their complexity and fullness. She did not make assumptions about the people she endeavored to lead,

but actively sought to find out all she could about them. She then used what she learned to facilitateopportunities for learning and taking action that reflected their beliefs. Baker grew famous among therank and file membership of the NAACP as the leader who seemed to know and understand each branch’sspecial situation and the unique challenges that each branch leader faced.

Transformational leaders do not so much orate and lecture, as they create opportunities for people tolearn together, to become, as Burns (1978) points out, “joint seekers of truth and of mutualactualization” (p. 449). Baker noted that her work as activist and leader did not stress imparting newtheories or drawing complex pictures of social relations. She focused her efforts instead on helping peopleto more clearly “see their own ideas” (Ransby, p. 363). She did this, as Bob Moses (2001) has pointed outby quietly working “in out-of-the-way places” and then by really “digging into [life in] local communities”(p. 4). She did this as well the many times she delivered speeches that helped people to see theuniversality of the Civil Rights struggle.

Baker was unusually wide-awake to the people and the events swirling around her. Listening closely,observing keenly, speaking concisely, seeing discerningly, she picked up on things other people missed. She was famous among the SNCC membership for holding individual side conversations with quieterparticipants (often women) while group deliberations were going on, and then interrupting the discussionto announce to those assembled that someone she had just spoken to held a powerful idea that needed tobe heard. Dallard (1990) reports that Baker would sit down next to a particularly reticent participant,quietly draw that person out, and then grab the attention of the rest of the group by shouting: “Look,here’s somebody with something to say about that” (p. 84). She was also the one inclined to locate areasof agreement or consensus in the midst of what appeared to be sharp conflict. During a meeting of SNCCwhen a bitter argument broke out between the partisans of direct action and civil disobedience and thosecommitted to advancing the goal of increasing voter registration, Baker stepped in with unusual directnessto show how both goals could be pursued simultaneously. Reflecting on this occasion, Baker noted: “Inever intervened…if I could avoid it. Most of the youngsters had been trained…to follow adults….I felt theyought to have a chance to learn to think things through and to make the decisions. But this was a pointat which I did have something to say” (Dallard, p. 86).

Baker as Bridge-Builder

In 1958, Baker reluctantly accepted the title of “Temporary Executive Director” of the Southern ChristianLeadership Conference - the civil rights organization that Martin Luther King created to capitalize on thesuccess of the Montgomery Bus Boycott. When she stepped down from this position almost 3 years later,her title still included the word “temporary.” When her male successor took over, he was immediatelygranted the full title of “Executive Director.” As a strong-willed, intellectual female in an organizationlargely staffed by males, Baker rarely got the recognition that her male colleagues enjoyed. Yet few of hermale counterparts knew grassroots leaders as well as she.Few were as comfortable as Baker relating tothe SCLC’s broad range of constituents. She was equally effective with highly educated organizers or poor,illiterate farmers.

Baker can be viewed as a classic “bridge leader” - a term coined by Belinda Robnett (1997) in her study ofAfrican American female activists. She often did the important behind the scenes work that helped to builda movement or organization, while others, usually male, got the credit. Baker’s supporters and closeassociates, though, understood how transforming her leadership was. They recognized how dedicated shewas and how authentically she believed in people’s potential. Like few other leaders in the Civil RightsMovement she built trust and commitment from the ground up, making possible many of the dramaticaccomplishments we associate with more famous activists.

Empowering SNCC and Group-Centered Leadership

In April of 1960, with her tenure at SCLC coming to an end, Baker welcomed over 200 student protestersfrom 19 states to Raleigh, North Carolina to propose an organization to coordinate and support theemerging student protest movement. Inspired by the four Black students from Greensboro who stunnedthe nation by “sitting-in” at a segregated lunch counter, hundreds of young protesters from throughoutthe South followed the lead of the Greensboro students. Many of these students were hauled off to jail fordisturbing the public peace and for defying laws promoting segregation. Their patience and forbearance inthe face of white resistance and hate was inspiring. Baker admired the students’ initiative and identified

closely with their courageous struggle. She quietly created an atmosphere at the conference that wouldallow the students to share their experiences freely, to learn from each other, and to build a foundationfor a new student movement. Baker knew that the students’ actions were momentous, but feared thatanxious adult leaders, like King, might slow their progress by urging caution. In organizing the Raleighmeeting, Baker hoped to provide a forum for discussion and learning that would remain student-centeredand would allow the students to explore the creation of their own, independent organization.

In fact it is instructive, at this point, to take note of the contrasting leadership styles of Baker and MartinLuther King. There is no question, of course, about King’s greatness as a leader, but there is reason tobelieve that his strong, charismatic, almost mythic style of leadership sometimes did as much harm to theprogress of the Civil Rights Movement as it did good (Payne, pp. 400-402;; Ransby, p. 188). For one thing,the hero worship that King inspired sometimes had the effect of disempowering people. It made themthink that they could not achieve great goals on their own, that without his talent for striking oratory andhis capacity for trenchant analysis, no real gains would be made. The founder of the Highlander FolkSchool, Myles Horton (1990), has noted that King’s leadership was so strong and charismatic that it ofteninhibited others. He once told King: “You are so much the powerful leader that it’s hard for people whowork with you to have a role they can grow in” (p. 127). Horton urged King to cultivate new leaders, buthe never seemed able to do this, as the SCLC depended so heavily on burnishing King’s powerful image.Furthermore, the tendency of the media to focus all of their attention on King – a practice encouraged bySCLC administrators – meant that many deserving activists got little or no credit for their efforts. BobMoses recalled conversing with Ella Baker’s successor at SCLC, Wyatt T Walker, about the need for manyleaders in the movement. Moses believed it was a huge mistake not to encourage multiple leaders.Walker, who was representative of the all-male leadership allied with King, ended the exchange abruptlyby declaring, “We all need to get behind one leader” (p. 28).

E.D. Nixon, who effectively and courageously provided the impetus for the Montgomery Bus Boycott, wasone grassroots leader who was completely overshadowed by King. Nixon’s resentment over this slightpersisted for many years (Branch, p. 190). Baker, on the other hand, wanted ordinary people to besupported for achieving their own goals and to receive appropriate credit for their accomplishments. Theydidn’t need a savior to put an end to oppression. All they needed, Baker averred, “was themselves, oneanother, and the will to persevere” (Ransby, p. 188). A whole different view of leadership was neededaccording to Ella Baker, one that didn’t depend on a charismatic guru. Baker’s view was that the group, ifsufficiently cohesive and collaborative, could more efficiently and effectively assume the leadership role.Baker observed: “Instead of the leader as a person who was supposed to be a magic man, you coulddevelop individuals who were bound together by a concept that benefited the larger number of individualsand provided an opportunity for them to grow into being responsible for carrying out a program” (Ransby,p. 188).

When Baker spoke at the conclusion of the student gathering in Raleigh, she touched on a number ofthese themes. First, she made it clear that the sit-ins symbolized something much more than the right ofblack people to be served at a segregated lunch counter. The daring actions of these courageous blackcollege students were not just part of a struggle for their own emancipation or that of their race. Theywere part of a movement to uphold human freedom that held “moral implications…for the whole world”(Forman, p. 218). What they accomplished and how they responded under pressure could inspire freedomlovers across the globe to rise up against their oppressors. Second, because the struggle was so universaland so urgent, she noted, a democratic, group-centered focus must be maintained. By de-emphasizing theleadership of charismatic individuals, the goal of expanding the sphere of human liberty could be guided bymany voices and not detoured by power grabs. For Baker, true leadership occurs when the individual isstretched to his or her highest potential “for the benefit of the group” (Forman, p. 218). She linked thispoint to a third observation that the students would remain adamantly independent of adult control and oftraditional top-down ways of running organizations. Spurred on by Baker, they wanted the group as awhole to provide the necessary leadership to advance their cause. Finally, Baker concluded that althoughthe conference in Raleigh had been a great triumph, the future success of the student movementdepended on the willingness of its leaders to embrace adult education. She called for training in non-violence, group dynamics, and ways to creatively redirect the rage engendered by racism towardmeaningful and lasting social change.

At the October, 1960 gathering of SNCC, a follow-up to their April meeting, the student leaders exhibiteda new found confidence in their ability to shape the organization’s future course. With the recognition and

support of numerous other activist groups, SNCC now emerged as a less vulnerable and more permanenthuman rights group. What must have greatly pleased Ella Baker was SNCC’s ongoing commitment togroup-centered leadership. Resisting the temptation to create a hierarchical structure and eager tosupport rather than to control local organizations, the members of SNCC continued to believe that theycould do their best work by nurturing local leadership and by keeping lines of communication open for thebenefit of all. Over time tensions would emerge over the true mission of SNCC, but there was never anydoubt throughout most of its history that one of its most important functions was to help local communitygroups “determine their own direction” (Carson, p. 30). As Payne (1995) has noted, the key to SNCC’sinfluence and legacy was “the respect it had for people regardless of their status and the ways in whichthat respect empowered those people to make the contributions they had in them” (p. 185). Fewdissented from the belief that without Ella Baker’s leadership and vision it would have been impossible tosustain this enduring purpose.

Although Baker was self-effacing and often quiet, the vision she projected was radical. She reminded thestudents frequently that they needed to “learn to think in radical terms.” Baker used “the term radical inits original meaning – getting down to and understanding the root cause. “It means,” she asserted,“facing a system that does not lend itself to your needs and devising means by which you change thatsystem” (Moses & Robb, p. 3). Baker was respected as a leader who believed in the Civil Rights Movement,but who, in a larger sense, used the Movement as an opportunity to radically alter an unjust system.

Leader as Teacher/Leader as Learner

Even as SNCC began to exert a major influence on the Civil Rights Movement, the need for searching andextensive discussions about its mission and structure remained strong. For at least the first two years ofits existence, years in which Ella Baker continued to play an active role, SNCC gathered periodically torevisit and to explore their collective purposes. The “marathon meetings” that inevitably ensued alwaysincluded Baker’s quiet and unobtrusive presence. She rarely contributed a view of her own, butparticipated most often as a listener and occasionally as a questioner. Comparing her to Nelson Mandela,Grant (1998) explained that Baker listened closely and actively to every person and would occasionallyrefer to a previous speaker’s words to lend them added credibility and weight. She regularly paraphrasedand synthesized what others had said, and taught the young people in SNCC “that everyone hadsomething to give, thus helping them learn to respect each other” (p. 137).

Baker also participated by questioning students with a masterful Socratic persistence. She would not tellthem what to do, but she would interrogate participants repeatedly about purpose and mission. As MaryKing (1987), an early SNCC volunteer, noted, “Again and again, she would force us to articulate ourassumptions” (p. 60). Mary King sometimes felt intimidated by Baker’s methods, but she came to seethat her questioning was a strategy to combat dogmatism. Only through persistent and sharply wordedquestioning, Mary King learned, could the temptation to adopt a single, doctrinaire approach be avoided.She attributed to Baker one of the most important lessons of her life. “There are many legitimate andeffective avenues for social change and there is no single right way” (Payne, p. 97).

Baker’s approach to leading, which was inseparable from her approach to teaching and learning, stemmedfrom her belief that the students must have control over their own decision making. This was especiallytrue of the SNCC students, who believed that overbearing adults would only hamper efforts to keep themovement energized. But they would listen to those rare adults who treated them as equals and whoregarded the students as responsible thinkers and doers. This was exactly Ella Baker’s view, which is whythe students prized her leadership. As Bob Moses said recalling Ella Baker’s legacy for SNCC:

It was Ella more than anyone else who gave us the space to operate in. As long as she wassitting there in the meetings, no one else could dare come in and say I think you should dothis or that, because no one could pull rank on her. Her stature was such that there wasn’tanyone from the NAACP to Dr. King who could get by her. I think that the actual course ofthe SNCC movement is a testimony to the fact that the students were left free to develop ontheir own. That was her real contribution. (Dallard, pp. 84-5)

Joanne Grant (1998) pointed out that, although Baker spurned the profession of teaching as a vocationalaspiration, her chief role with SNCC turned out to be as teacher. She wanted to develop new leaders andthere was no way to do this except through some form of instruction. Of course, Baker employed avariety of forms to support and guide the students – listening, affirming, questioning, and, only rarely,

asserting. But these were all aspects of her teaching role. Baker was a fount of wisdom and experience

for the students of SNCC. As time went on, her ability to teach, facilitate, and redirect the students

toward more productive, generous, and humane goals grew into legend. It was out of such encounters

that her reputation as Fundi developed.

Baker’s Developmental Leadership

Throughout her life, but especially as “founding mother” of SNCC, Baker espoused and practiced a

philosophy of what Payne (1995) and Belenky, Bond, and Weinstock (1997) have called developmental

leadership. It left little room for charismatic, top-down influence. Despite the many opportunities she had

to further her fame, she stayed behind the scenes, supporting and nurturing her fellow activists and

organizers, never seeking recognition for herself. Baker embraced a highly collaborative approach to

leadership in which individuals did not take credit or accept responsibility for their actions alone, but

instead alternated between leader and follower for the sake of the general welfare. She discouraged

leaders who thirsted for acclaim, who were animated by glory and power, urging them instead to revel in

the accomplishment of collective goals. Yet, Baker was also the first to defend anyone possessing the

courage to take a principled stand against the group when doing so for the group’s sake. Defiance can be

admirable when selfless, she seemed to say, but destructive when carried out merely for self-

aggrandizement.

Baker’s (1972) notion of group-centered, developmental leadership stressed learning, interdependence,

and self-sufficiency. Traditional leadership makes followers dependent on leaders, stripping followers of the

resources to learn from their experiences and to make decisions for themselves. Developmental leadership

assumes each person is indispensable, all group members are potential leaders and learners, and, as Baker

herself has affirmed, such leaders “cannot look for salvation anywhere but to themselves” (p. 347). Self-

sufficiency was her goal for everyone, which also meant that people must be free to make mistakes, to

choose a misguided course of action and to learn from its consequences. Such circumstances were

necessary to allow civil rights workers to grow as learners and leaders. At a time when large, consolidated

organizations were the norm, Baker believed that people must take control over their own lives by acting

within relatively small organizational environments. Organizations must be small enough, Baker assumed,

for people to get to know one another by name, to get to know one another as persons. Payne (1995) has

noted that Baker “envisioned small groups of people working together but also retaining contact in some

form with other such groups, so that coordinated action would be possible wherever large groups really

were necessary” (p. 369). Only then, she believed, could the nurturing of both individual and collective

growth occur.

Baker (1972) insisted that “what is needed is the development of people who are interested not in being

leaders as much as in developing leadership among other people” (352). Witnessing young people emerge

as leaders—in part as a result of her specific efforts—gave her life meaning and purpose. Seeing them

furthermore develop the values and principles upon which real democracy is based fueled her hope. These

were truly the things she lived for. In an interview with historian Gerda Lerner she said:

Every time I see a young person who has come through the system to a stage where he

could profit from the system and identify with it, but who identifies more with the struggle of

black people who have not had his chance, every time I find such a person I take new hope.

I feel a new life as a result of it. (Baker, 1972, p. 352)

Conclusion – Leading as Teaching, Learning, Transforming and Developing

There is no question that Ella Baker met the multiple tests of transformational leadership that Burns

(1978) delineates in his groundbreaking book - Leadership. This is particularly remarkable, as shesuccessfully exercised leadership in multiple settings decades before Burns put forward his theory. Yet,

leaders like Baker, females who did much of the behind-the-scenes work that made possible the

accomplishments of more high-profile leaders, usually male, receive virtually no attention in Burns’s book.

Ella Baker was a leader who formed long-term relationships with her co-workers and who worked

constantly to redistribute power by helping people to emerge as leaders themselves. As a self-actualized

person, Baker was not threatened by others seeking to come forward as leaders. Like other

transformational leaders, Baker exhorted her followers to express their commitments to justice and

equality openly and passionately, and to allow these commitments to carry them forward toward assertive

action. She reminded civil rights workers that their struggle was a struggle for freedom loving peopleeverywhere. Furthermore, Baker was a towering example of dignity and decency herself. She embodiedthe principles she espoused and inspired others to do the same.

It is in fact striking how closely Baker paralleled the expectations Burns held for transformational leaders.She lived the idea that leadership is collective. She was one of the leading advocates of group-centeredleadership, of the idea that the strongest, most effective leadership is something held in common by thegroup and is best carried out by the group itself. She heartily endorsed the notion that leadership isdissensual and went out of her way to foster discussions among leaders and followers that included heavydoses of constructive disagreement and creative conflict. She affirmed that the clash of differences, whencarefully controlled and constructively expressed, enhances learning and stimulates group growth. Shealso believed that leadership is causative. It can make a difference, change people’s minds, and get themto think and act more generously for the good of the whole. Similarly, she practiced morally purposefulleadership by supporting people to pursue those goals that would help them flourish as human beings.These things included most notably – opportunities to learn, opportunities to lead, and opportunities tochange a system that undermined human dignity. Finally, Baker’s leadership was elevating. It gave peoplenew hope that they had the ability and the power collectively to renew the world.

While Burns’s theory of transformational leadership explains a great deal about the influence Bakerexercised, Payne’s (1995) and Belenky, Bond, and Weinstock’s (1997) theory of developmental leadershipalso casts light on the some of the contributions made by this American Fundi. Transformationalleadership, despite its many insights, may put too much emphasis on the individual leader. Ella Baker’sgenius was in using leadership to decenter leaders, to redistribute power from one person to manypersons and, in so doing, to help people gain the resources, acquire the learning, and develop theconfidence to go out and support the development of others in their own communities.

Baker was a strong presence wherever she went. She was respected and even revered by many. But thesource of her leadership had nothing to do with the sort of mystical aloofness or charismatic distance weassociate with more traditional leaders. Her leadership focused on relationships, on getting to know peopleon a first name basis, and on finding out directly from them what they cared about most. But, like anygreat teacher, her desire to know people through conversation and active listening and close observationof their actions was not a good in itself. It was the means by which she attempted to develop their latentabilities and help them to see that their individual and collective empowerment were within their owncontrol.

As Barbara Ransby has so eloquently pointed out, Baker was also a practitioner of dialogic teaching andlearning as espoused by Paulo Freire. Both “viewed education as a collective and creative enterpriserequiring collaboration and exchange at every stage (2003, p. 362).” Both believed in the power of simplehumility and close listening, embracing the wise notion that “silence in the context of communication isfundamental” (2003, p. 362). Ransby also quotes organizer Prathia Hall, a protégé of Baker’s, who recallssitting on the porches of the poor people whom she sought to register to vote in rural Georgia. “We’d sitand we’d listen, and we’d listen to the person talk about survival and talk about families…I think some ofthe most important lessons I learned were on the porches of people who couldn’t read or write theirnames” (2003, p. 362). One can’t help thinking that Ella Baker and Paulo Freire, too, would have beenvery proud of how Prathia Hall nurtured relationships with the Black people of rural Georgia and learnedfrom their experiences.

In an influential essay about building a foundation for a strong, democratic society, Benjamin Barber(1998) concurs with Baker that it is not strong leaders, but strong organizational members that are mostneeded. Leaders are at their best as facilitators, moderators, and head-listeners. Leaders who arescrupulous listeners work to ensure that everyone has a chance to contribute something valuable to thegroup. For the leader, to lead through listening means “not to scan an adversary’s position for weaknessesor potential trade-offs, (p. 108)” but to support each participant in empathizing with all others, “todiscover in the babble of voices a consensus that is audible only to the scrupulous auditor (p. 108).” Theeffective facilitator as leader “wishes to transform all the He’s and She’s who come into the meeting withtheir own interests into a single We with a common interest (p. 108).” Such a leader “will insist thatevery [participant] be heard, but by that [the leader] will mean not only that all can speak but that allmust listen” (p. 108).

According to Howard Gardner (1995), leaders tell a recurring story that reveals the identity of the leader,

underscores group goals, and highlights the values that the group both espouses and enacts. Such storieshelp the group to understand “who they are, where they come from, and where they are headed” (p. 43).Furthermore, the values embedded in the story that the leader conveys are embodied or lived by thatleader on a daily basis.

The story Ella Baker related was one of ordinary people working together for social change to further racialjustice and enhance human dignity. As a leader, she remained offstage doing all she could to supportothers in assuming leadership roles. Rarely making decisions herself, she worked quietly to createenvironments for people to take charge of their own lives and to make choices that shaped how theywould live together. She prized freedom and fairness and respect and strived to model these ideals in allof her interactions with others. Perhaps most of all she esteemed continuous learning and deepenedunderstanding as the twin bases for authentic transformation.

In a statement to her followers that parallels almost exactly Gardner’s claims about the leader’s story, EllaBaker succinctly put forward her own leadership narrative. It also brings us full circle, because it remindsus in no uncertain terms how Ella Baker fulfilled her role as the Fundi of the Civil Rights Movement. Sheencouraged her followers to foment radical change, but only after cultivating a thorough understanding ofthe tragedies and triumphs and trials of the past:

In order for us as poor and oppressed people to become a part of a society that ismeaningful, the system under which we now exist has to be radically changed. That iseasier said than done. But one of the things that has to be faced is…to find out who we are,where we have come from and where we are going…I am saying as you must say, too, thatin order to see where we are going, we not only must remember where we have been, butwe must understand where we have been. (Quoted in Moses and Cobb, p. 3)

References

Baker, E. (1972). Developing Community Leadership. In G. Lerner, (Ed.), Black women in white America:A documentary history. New York: Vintage.

Barber, B. (1998). A passion for democracy. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.

Belenky, M., Bond, L., & Weinstock, J. (1997). A tradition that has no name. New York: Basic Books.

Branch, T. (1988). Parting the waters: America in the King years, 1954-1963. New York: Simon andSchuster.

Burns, J.M. (1978). Leadership. New York: Harper and Row.

Cantarow, E. & O’Malley, S.G. (1980). Ella Baker: Organizing for civil rights. In E. Cantorow (Ed.), Movingthe mountain: Women working for social change (p. 52-93). Old Westbury, NY: The Feminist Press.

Carson, C. (1981). In struggle: SNCC and the black awakening of the 1960s. Cambridge, MA: HarvardUniversity Press.

Dallard, S. (1990). Ella Baker: A leader behind the scenes. New York: Silver Burdett Press.

Forman, J. (1972). The making of black revolutionaries. New York: Macmillan.

Freire, P. (1973). Pedagogy of the oppressed. New York: Seabury Press.

Gardner, H. (1995). Leading minds. New York: Basic Books.

Grant, J. (Producer/Writer/Director). (1981). Fundi: The story of Ella Baker. (Motion Picture). (Availablefrom First Run Icarus Films, 32 Court St., 21st Floor, Brooklyn, NY 11201)

Grant, J. (1998). Ella Baker: Freedom bound. New York: John Wiley.

Greenleaf, R. (1977). Servant leadership. Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press.

King, M. (1987). Freedom song. New York: William Morrow.

Moses, R.P. & Cobb, C.E. (2001). Radical equations: Math literacy and civil rights. Boston: Beacon Press.

Payne, C. (1995). I’ve got the light of freedom: The organizing tradition and the Mississippi freedomstruggle. Berkeley: University of California Press.

Ransby, B. (2003). Ella Baker and the Black freedom movement: A radical democratic vision. Chapel Hill:University of North Carolina Press.

Robnett, B. (1997). How long? How long?: African American women in the struggle for civil rights. NewYork: Oxford University Press.

Copyright: Advancing Women in Leadership holds the copyright to each article;; however, any article may be reproducedwithout permission, for educational purposes only, provided that the full and accurate bibliographic citation and the followingcredit line is cited: Copyright (year) by the Advancing Women in Leadership, Advancing Women Website,www.advancingwomen.com;; reproduced with permission from the publisher. Any article cited as a reference in any other formshould also report the same such citation, following APA or other style manual guidelines for citing electronic publications.

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19 Aug 2013 5:50 PM

Movements without leaders: What to make of change on anoverheating planetBy Bill McKibben

Cross-posted from TomDispatch

350.orgMcKibben speaks to the crowd at theWalk for Our Grandchildren fromCamp David to D.C.

The history we grow up with shapes our sense of reality — it’s hard to shake. If you were young during thefight against Nazism, war seems a different, more virtuous animal than if you came of age during Vietnam. I was born in 1960, and so the first great political character of my life was Martin Luther King, Jr. I had ashadowy, child’s sense of him when he was still alive, and then a mythic one as his legend grew; after all,he had a national holiday. As a result, I think, I imagined that he set the template for how great movementsworked. They had a leader, capital L.

As time went on, I learned enough about the civil rights movement to know it was much more than Dr.King. There were other great figures, from Ella Baker and Medgar Evers to Bob Moses, Fannie LouHamer, and Malcolm X, and there were tens of thousands more whom history doesn’t remember but whodeserve great credit. And yet one’s early sense is hard to dislodge: The civil rights movement had his faceon it; Gandhi carried the fight against empire; Susan B. Anthony, the battle for suffrage.

Which is why it’s a little disconcerting to look around and realize that most of the movements of themoment — even highly successful ones like the fight for gay marriage or immigrants’ rights — don’t reallyhave easily discernible leaders. I know that there are highly capable people who have worked overtime fordecades to make these movements succeed, and that they are well known to those within the struggle, butthere aren’t particular people that the public at large identifies as the face of the fight. The world haschanged in this way, and for the better.

It’s true, too, in the battle where I’ve spent most of my life: The fight to slow climate change and hence givethe planet some margin for survival. We actually had a charismatic leader in Al Gore, but he was almost theexception that proved the rule. For one thing, a politician makes a problematic leader for a grassrootsmovement because boldness is hard when you still envision higher office; for another, even as he won theNobel Prize for his remarkable work in spreading climate science, the other side used every trick and every

dollar at their disposal to bring him down. He remains a vital figure in the rest of the world (partly becausethere he is perceived less as a politician than as a prophet), but at home his power to shape the fight hasbeen diminished.

That doesn’t mean, however, that the movement is diminished. In fact, it’s never been stronger. In the lastfew years, it has blocked the construction of dozens of coal-fired power plants, fought the oil industry to adraw on the Keystone pipeline, convinced a wide swath of American institutions to divest themselves oftheir fossil fuel stocks, and challenged practices like mountaintop-removal coal mining and fracking fornatural gas. It may not be winning the way gay marriage has won, but the movement itself continues togrow quickly, and it’s starting to claim some victories.

That’s not despite its lack of clearly identifiable leaders, I think. It’s because of it.

A movement for a new planet

We live in a different world from that of the civil rights movement. Save perhaps for the spectacle ofpresidential elections, there’s no way for individual human beings to draw the same kind of focused andsustained attention they did back then. At the moment, you could make the three evening newscasts and thecover of Time (not Newsweek, alas) and still not connect with most people. Our focus is fragmented andsegmented, which may be a boon or a problem, but mostly it’s just a fact. Our attention is dispersed.

When we started 350.org five years ago, we dimly recognized this new planetary architecture. Instead oftrying to draw everyone to a central place — the Mall in Washington, D.C. — for a protest, we staged 24hours of rallies around the planet: 5,200 demonstrations in 181 countries, what CNN called “the mostwidespread of day of political action in the planet’s history.” And we’ve gone on to do more of the same —about 20,000 demonstrations in every country but North Korea.

Part of me, though, continued to imagine that a real movement looked like the ones I’d grown up watching— or maybe some part of me wanted the glory of being a leader. In any event, I’ve spent the last few yearsin constant motion around the country and the Earth. I’d come to think of myself as a “leader,” and indeedmy forthcoming book, Oil and Honey: The Education of an Unlikely Activist, reflects on that growing senseof identity.

However, in recent months — and it’s the curse of an author that sometimes you change your mind afteryour book is in type — I’ve come to like the idea of capital-L leaders less and less. It seems to me to missthe particular promise of this moment: that we could conceive of, and pursue, movements in new ways.

For environmentalists, we have a useful analogy close at hand. We’re struggling to replace a brittle, top-heavy energy system, where a few huge power plants provide our electricity, with a dispersed andlightweight grid, where 10 million solar arrays on 10 million rooftops are linked together. The engineers callthis “distributed generation,” and it comes with a myriad of benefits. It’s not as prone to catastrophic failure,for one. And it can make use of dispersed energy, instead of relying on a few pools of concentrated fuel.The same principle, it seems to me, applies to movements.

In the last few weeks, for instance, 350.org helped support a nationwide series of rallies called SummerHeat. We didn’t organize them ourselves. We knew great environmental justice groups all over the country,and we knew we could highlight their work, while making links between, say, standing up to a toxicChevron refinery in Richmond, Calif., and standing up to the challenge of climate change.

From the shores of Lake Huron and Lake Michigan, where a tar-sands pipeline is proposed, to theColumbia River at Vancouver, Wash., where a big oil port is planned; from Utah’s Colorado Plateau,where the first U.S. tar-sands mine has been proposed, to the coal-fired power plant at Brayton Point on the

Massachusetts coast and the fracking wells of rural Ohio, Summer Heat demonstrated the local depth andglobal reach of this emerging fossil fuel resistance. I’ve had the pleasure of going to talk at all these placesand more besides, but I wasn’t crucial to any of them. I was, at best, a pollinator, not a queen bee.

Or consider a slightly older fight. In 2012, the Boston Globe magazine put a picture of me on its coverunder the headline: “The Man Who Crushed the Keystone Pipeline.” I’ve got an all-too-healthy ego, buteven I knew that it was over the top. I’d played a role in the fight, writing the letter that asked people tocome to Washington to resist the pipeline, but it was effective because I’d gotten a dozen friends to sign itwith me. And I’d been one of 1,253 people who went to jail in what was the largest civil disobedienceaction in this country in years. It was their combined witness that got the ball rolling. And once it wasrolling, the Keystone campaign became the exact model for the sort of loosely linked, well-distributedpower system I’ve been describing.

The big environmental groups played key roles, supplying lots of data and information, while keeping trackof straying members of Congress. Among them were the Natural Resources Defense Council, Friends ofthe Earth, the League of Conservation Voters, and the National Wildlife Federation, none spending timelooking for credit, all pitching in. The Sierra Club played a crucial role in pulling together the biggestclimate rally yet, last February’s convergence on the Mall in Washington.

Organizations and individuals on the ground were no less crucial: The indigenous groups in Alberta andelsewhere that started the fight against the pipeline which was to bring Canadian tar sands to the U.S. GulfCoast graciously welcomed the rest of us, without complaining about how late we were. Then there werethe ranchers and farmers of Nebraska, who roused a whole stadium of football fans at a Cornhuskers gameto boo a pipeline commercial; the scientists who wrote letters, the religious leaders who conducted prayervigils. And don’t forget the bloggers who helped make sense of it all for us. One upstart website even wona Pulitzer Prize for its coverage of the struggle.

Non-experts quickly educated themselves on the subject, becoming specialists in the corruption of the StateDepartment process that was to okay the building of that pipeline or in the chemical composition of thebitumen that would flow through it. CREDO (half an activist organization, half a cell phone company), aswell as Rainforest Action Network and The Other 98%, signed up 75,000 people pledged to civildisobedience if the pipeline were to get presidential approval.

And then there was the Hip Hop Caucus, whose head Lennox Yearwood has roused one big crowd afteranother, and the labor unions — nurses and transit workers, for instance — who have had the courage tostand up to the pipeline workers’ union which would benefit from the small number of jobs to be created ifKeystone were built. Then there are groups of Kids Against KXL, and even a recent grandparents’ marchfrom Camp David to the White House. Some of the most effective resistance has come from groups likeRising Tide and the Tarsands Blockade in Texas, which have organized epic tree-sitting protests to slowconstruction of the southern portion of the pipeline.

The Indigenous Environmental Network has been every bit as effective in demonstrating to banks the follyof investing in Albertan tar sands production. First Nations people and British Columbians have evenblocked a proposed pipeline that would take those same tar sands to the Pacific Ocean for shipping to Asia,just as inspired activists have kept the particularly carbon-dirty oil out of the European Union.

We don’t know if we’ll win the northern half of the Keystone fight or not, although President Obama’srecent pledge to decide whether it should be built — his is the ultimate decision — based on how muchcarbon dioxide it could put into the atmosphere means that he has no good-faith way of approving it.However, it’s already clear that this kind of full-spectrum resistance has the ability to take on the hugebundles of cash that are the energy industry’s sole argument.

What the elders said

This sprawling campaign exemplifies the only kind of movement that will ever be able to stand up to the

power of the energy giants, the richest industry the planet has ever known. In fact, any movement that

hopes to head off the worst future depredations of climate change will have to get much, much larger,

incorporating among other obvious allies those in the human rights and social justice arenas.

The cause couldn’t be more compelling. There’s never been a clearer threat to survival, or to justice, than

the rapid rise in the planet’s temperature caused by and for the profit of a microscopic percentage of its

citizens. Conversely, there can be no real answer to our climate woes that doesn’t address the insane

inequalities and concentrations of power that are helping to drive us toward this disaster.

That’s why it’s such good news when people like Naomi Klein and Desmond Tutu join the climate

struggle. When they take part, it becomes ever clearer that what’s underway is not, in the end, an

environmental battle at all, but an all-encompassing fight over power, hunger, and the future of humanity on

this planet.

Expansion by geography is similarly a must for this movement. Recently, in Istanbul, 350.org and its allies

trained 500 young people from 135 countries as climate-change organizers, and each of them is now

organizing conferences and campaigns in their home countries.

This sort of planet-wide expansion suggests that the value of particular national leaders is going to be

limited at best. That doesn’t mean, of course, that some people won’t have more purchase than others in

such a movement. Sometimes such standing comes from living in the communities most immediately and

directly affected by climate change or fossil fuel depredation. When, for instance, the big climate rally

finally did happen on the Mall this winter, the 50,000 in attendance may have been most affected by the

words of Crystal Lameman, a young member of the Beaver Lake Cree Nation whose traditional territory

has been poisoned by tar sands mining.

Sometimes it comes from charisma: Van Jones may be the most articulate and engaging environmental

advocate ever. Sometimes it comes from getting things right for a long time: Jim Hansen, the greatest

climate scientist, gets respect even from those who disagree with him about, say, nuclear power. Sometimes

it comes from organizing ability: Jane Kleeb who did such work in the hard soil of Nebraska, or Clayton

Thomas-Muller who has indefatigably (though no one is beyond fatigue) organized native North America.

Sometimes it comes from sacrifice: Tim DeChristopher went to jail for two years for civil disobedience, and

so most of us are going to listen to what he might have to say.

Sometimes it comes from dogged work on solutions: Wahleah Johns and Billy Parish figured out how to

build solar farms on Navajo land and crowdfund solar panels on community centers. Sometimes truly

unlikely figures emerge: investor Jeremy Grantham, or Tom Steyer, a Forbes 400 billionaire who quit his

job running a giant hedge fund, sold his fossil fuel stocks, and put his money and connections effectively to

work fighting Keystone and bedeviling climate-denying politicians (even Democrats!). We have

organizational leaders like Mike Brune of the Sierra Club or Frances Beinecke of NRDC, or folks like

Kenny Bruno or Tzeporah Berman who have helped knit together large coalitions; religious leaders like Jim

Antal, who led the drive to convince the United Church of Christ to divest from fossil fuels; regional leaders

like Mike Tidwell in the Chesapeake or Cherri Foytlin in the Gulf or K.C. Golden in Puget Sound.

Yet figures like these aren’t exactly “leaders” in the way we’ve normally imagined. They are not charting

the path for the movement to take. To use an analogy from the Internet age, it’s more as if they were well-

regarded critics on Amazon.com review pages; or to use a more traditional image, as if they were elders,

even if not in a strictly chronological sense. Elders don’t tell you what you must do, they say what they

must say. A few of these elders are, like me, writers; many of them have a gift for condensing and

crystallizing the complex. When Jim Hansen calls the Alberta tar sands the “biggest carbon bomb on thecontinent,” it resonates.

When you have that standing, you don’t end up leading a movement, but you do end up with people givingyour ideas a special hearing, people who already assume that you’re not going to waste their energy on apointless task. So when Naomi Klein and I hatched a plan for a fossil fuel divestment campaign last year,people paid serious attention, especially when Desmond Tutu lent his sonorous voice to the cause.

These elders-of-all-ages also play a sorting-out role in backing the ideas of others or downplaying those thatseem less useful. There are days when I feel like the most useful work I’ve done is to spread a few goodKickstarter proposals via Twitter or write a blurb for a fine new book. Conversely, I was speaking inWashington recently to a group of grandparents who had just finished a seven-day climate march fromCamp David. A young man demanded to know why I wasn’t backing sabotage of oil company equipment,which he insisted was the only way the industry could be damaged by our movement. I explained that Ibelieved in nonviolent action, that we were doing genuine financial damage to the pipeline companies byslowing their construction schedules and inflating their carrying costs, and that in my estimation wreckingbulldozers would play into their hands.

But maybe he was right. I don’t actually know, which is why it’s a good thing that no one, myself included,is the boss of the movement. Remember those solar panels: The power to change these days is remarkablywell distributed, leaving plenty of room for serendipity and revitalization. In fact, many movements hadbreakthroughs when they decided their elders were simply wrong. Dr. King didn’t like the idea of theFreedom Summer campaign at first, and yet it proved powerfully decisive.

The coming of the leaderless movement

We may not need capital-L Leaders, but we certainly need small-l leaders by the tens of thousands. Youcould say that, instead of a leaderless movement, we need a leader-full one. We see such leaders regularly at350.org. When I wrote earlier that we “staged” 5,200 rallies around the globe, I wasn’t completely accurate.It was more like throwing a potluck dinner. We set the date and the theme, but everywhere other peoplefigured out what dishes to bring.

The thousands of images that accumulated in the Flickr account of that day’s events were astonishing. Mostof the people doing the work didn’t look like environmentalists were supposed to. They were largely poor,black, brown, Asian, and young, because that’s what the world mostly is.

Often the best insights are going to come from below: from people, that is, whose life experience meansthey understand how power works not because they exercise it but because they are subjected to it. That’swhy frontline communities in places where global warming’s devastation is already increasingly obviousoften produce such powerful ideas and initiatives. We need to stop thinking of them as on the margins, sincethey are quite literally on the cutting edge.

We live in an age in which creative ideas can spring up just about anywhere and then, thanks to new formsof communication, spread remarkably quickly. This is in itself nothing new. In the civil rights era, forinstance, largely spontaneous sit-in campaigns by southern college students in 1960 reshuffled the decklocally and nationally, spreading like wildfire in the course of days and opening up new opportunities.

More recently, in the immigration rights campaign, it was four “Dreamers” walking from Florida toWashington, D.C., who helped reopen a stale, deadlocked debate. When Lieutenant Dan Choi chainedhimself to the White House fence, that helped usher the gay rights movement into a new phase.

But Dan Choi doesn’t have to be Dan Choi forever, and Tim DeChristopher doesn’t have to keep going to

jail over government oil and gas leases. There are plenty of others who will arise in new moments, which isa good thing, since the physics of climate change means that the movement has to win some criticalvictories in the next few years but also last for generations. Think of each of these “leaders” as theequivalent of a pace line for a bike race: one moment someone is out front breaking the wind, only to peelaway to the back of the line to rest for a while. In movement terms, when that happens you not only preventburnout, you also get regular infusions of new ideas.

The ultimate in leaderlessness was, of course, the Occupy movement that swept the U.S. (and other areas ofthe world) in 2011-2012. It, in turn, took cues from the Arab Spring, which absorbed some of its tricks fromthe Serbian organizers at Otpor, who exported many of the features of their campaign against SlobodanMilosevic in the 1990s around the planet.

Occupy was exciting, in part, because of its deep sense of democracy and democratic practice. Those of uswho are used to New England town meetings recognized its Athenian flavor. But town meetings usuallyoccur one day a year. Not that many people had the stomach for the endless discussions of the Occupymoment and, in many cases, the crowds began to dwindle even without police repression — only to surgeback when there was a clear and present task (Occupy Sandy, say, in the months after that superstorm hitthe East coast).

All around the Occupy movement, smart people have been grappling with the problem of democracy inaction. As the occupations wore on, its many leaders were often engaged as facilitators, trying to create aspace that was both radically democratic and dramatically effective. It proved a hard balancing act, even if aremarkably necessary one.

How to save the Earth

Communities (and a movement is a community) will probably always have some kind of hierarchy, even ifit’s an informal and shifting one. But the promise of this moment is a radically flattened version ofhierarchy, with far more room for people to pop up and propose, encourage, support, drift for a while, thenplunge back into the flow. That kind of trajectory catches what we’ll need in a time of increased climatestress — communities that place a premium on resiliency and adaptability, dramatically decentralized butdeeply linked.

And it’s already happening. The Summer Heat campaign ended in Richmond, Calif., where Chevron runs arefinery with casual disregard for the local residents. When a section of it exploded last year, authorities senta text message essentially requesting that people not breathe. As a result, a coalition of local environmentaljustice activists has waged an increasingly spirited fight against the plant.

Like the other oil giants, Chevron shows the same casual disregard for people around the world. Thecompany is, typically enough, suing journalists in an attempt to continue to cover up the horrors it’sresponsible for in an oil patch of jungle in Ecuador. And of course, Chevron and the other big oilcompanies have shown a similar recklessness when it comes to our home planet. Their reserves of oil andgas are already so large that, by themselves, they could take us several percent of the way past the two-degree-C temperature rise that the world has pledged to prevent, which would bring on the worstdepredations of global warming — and yet they are now on the hunt in a major way for the next round of“unconventional” fossil fuels to burn.

In addition, as the 2012 election campaign was winding down, Chevron gave the largest corporatecampaign donation in the post-Citizens United era. It came two weeks before the last election, and wasclearly meant to insure that the House of Representatives would stay in the hands of climate deniers, andthat nothing would shake the status quo.

And so our movement — global, national, and most of all local. Released from a paddy wagon after the

Richmond protest, standing in a long line of handcuffees waiting to be booked, I saw lots of elders,

doubtless focused on different parts of the Chevron equation. Among them were Gopal Dayaneni, of the

Movement Generation Justice and Ecology Project, who dreams of frontline communities leading in the

construction of a just new world, and Bay Area native activist Pennie Opal Plant, who has spent her whole

life in Richmond and dreams, I suspect, of kids who can breathe more easily in far less polluted air.

I continue to hope for local, national, and global action, and for things like a carbon tax-and-dividend

scheme that would play a role in making just transitions easier. Such differing, overlapping dreams are

anything but at odds. They all make up part of the same larger story, complementary and complimentary to

it. These are people I trust and follow; we have visions that point in the same general direction; and we have

exactly the same enemies who have no vision at all, save profiting from the suffering of the planet.

I’m sure much of this thinking is old news to people who have been building movements for years. I

haven’t. I found myself, or maybe stuck myself, at the front of a movement almost by happenstance, and

these thoughts reflect that experience.

What I do sense, however, is that it’s our job to rally a movement in the coming years big enough to stand

up to all that money, to profits of a sort never before seen on this planet. Such a movement will need to

stretch from California to Ecuador — to, in fact, every place with a thermometer; it will need to engage not

just Chevron but every other fossil fuel company; it will need to prevent pipelines from being built and

encourage windmills to be built in their place; it needs to remake the world in record time.

That won’t happen thanks to a paramount leader, or even dozens of them. It can only happen with a spread-

out and yet thoroughly interconnected movement, a new kind of engaged citizenry. Rooftop by rooftop,

we’re aiming for a different world, one that runs on the renewable power that people produce themselves in

their communities in small but significant batches. The movement that will get us to such a new world must

run on that kind of power too.

Bill McKibben is founder of 350.org and Schumann Distinguished Professor at Middlebury College in Vermont. He was

recently honored with the Gandhi Peace Award for his work coordinating the civil disobedience actions around the

Keystone XL pipeline in June 2011. He serves on Grist's Board of Directors.

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THE TYRANNY of STRUCTURELESSNESS

by Jo Freeman aka Joreen

The earliest version of this article was given as a talk at a conferencecalled by the Southern Female Rights Union, held in Beulah, Mississippi inMay 1970. It was written up for Notes from the Third Year (1971), but theeditors did not use it. It was then submitted to several movementpublications, but only one asked permission to publish it;; others did sowithout permission. The first official place of publication was in Vol. 2,No. 1 of The Second Wave (1972). This early version in movementpublications was authored by Joreen. Different versions were published inthe Berkeley Journal of Sociology, Vol. 17, 1972-73, pp. 151-165, and Ms.magazine, July 1973, pp. 76-78, 86-89, authored by Jo Freeman. Thispiece spread all over the world. Numerous people have edited, reprinted,cut, and translated "Tyranny" for magazines, books and web sites, usuallywithout the permission or knowledge of the author. The version below isa blend of the three cited here.

During the years in which the women's liberation movement has beentaking shape, a great emphasis has been placed on what are calledleaderless, structureless groups as the main -- if not sole --organizational form of the movement. The source of this idea was anatural reaction against the over-structured society in which most of usfound ourselves, and the inevitable control this gave others over ourlives, and the continual elitism of the Left and similar groups amongthose who were supposedly fighting this overstructuredness.The idea of "structurelessness," however, has moved from a healthy

counter to those tendencies to becoming a goddess in its own right. Theidea is as little examined as the term is much used, but it has become anintrinsic and unquestioned part of women's liberation ideology. For theearly development of the movement this did not much matter. It earlydefined its main goal, and its main method, as consciousness-raising, andthe "structureless" rap group was an excellent means to this end. Thelooseness and informality of it encouraged participation in discussion, andits often supportive atmosphere elicited personal insight. If nothing moreconcrete than personal insight ever resulted from these groups, that didnot much matter, because their purpose did not really extend beyondthis.

The basic problems didn't appear until individual rap groups exhaustedthe virtues of consciousness-raising and decided they wanted to dosomething more specific. At this point they usually foundered becausemost groups were unwilling to change their structure when they changedtheir tasks. Women had thoroughly accepted the idea of"structurelessness" without realizing the limitations of its uses. Peoplewould try to use the "structureless" group and the informal conference forpurposes for which they were unsuitable out of a blind belief that no othermeans could possibly be anything but oppressive.

If the movement is to grow beyond these elementary stages of

development, it will have to disabuse itself of some of its prejudices

about organization and structure. There is nothing inherently bad about

either of these. They can be and often are misused, but to reject them

out of hand because they are misused is to deny ourselves the necessary

tools to further development. We need to understand why

"structurelessness" does not work.

FORMAL AND INFORMAL STRUCTURES

Contrary to what we would like to believe, there is no such thing as a

structureless group. Any group of people of whatever nature that comes

together for any length of time for any purpose will inevitably structure

itself in some fashion. The structure may be flexible;; it may vary over

time;; it may evenly or unevenly distribute tasks, power and resources

over the members of the group. But it will be formed regardless of the

abilities, personalities, or intentions of the people involved. The very fact

that we are individuals, with different talents, predispositions, and

backgrounds makes this inevitable. Only if we refused to relate or

interact on any basis whatsoever could we approximate structurelessness

-- and that is not the nature of a human group.

This means that to strive for a structureless group is as useful, and as

deceptive, as to aim at an "objective" news story, "value-free" social

science, or a "free" economy. A "laissez faire" group is about as realistic

as a "laissez faire" society;; the idea becomes a smokescreen for the

strong or the lucky to establish unquestioned hegemony over others. This

hegemony can be so easily established because the idea of

"structurelessness" does not prevent the formation of informal structures,

only formal ones. Similarly "laissez faire" philosophy did not prevent the

economically powerful from establishing control over wages, prices, and

distribution of goods;; it only prevented the government from doing so.

Thus structurelessness becomes a way of masking power, and within the

women's movement is usually most strongly advocated by those who are

the most powerful (whether they are conscious of their power or not). As

long as the structure of the group is informal, the rules of how decisions

are made are known only to a few and awareness of power is limited to

those who know the rules. Those who do not know the rules and are not

chosen for initiation must remain in confusion, or suffer from paranoid

delusions that something is happening of which they are not quite aware.

For everyone to have the opportunity to be involved in a given group

and to participate in its activities the structure must be explicit, not

implicit. The rules of decision-making must be open and available to

everyone, and this can happen only if they are formalized. This is not to

say that formalization of a structure of a group will destroy the informal

structure. It usually doesn't. But it does hinder the informal structure

from having predominant control and make available some means of

attacking it if the people involved are not at least responsible to the

needs of the group at large. "Structurelessness" is organizationally

impossible. We cannot decide whether to have a structured or

structureless group, only whether or not to have a formally structured

one. Therefore the word will not be used any longer except to refer to the

idea it represents. Unstructured will refer to those groups which have not

been deliberately structured in a particular manner. Structured will refer

to those which have. A Structured group always has formal structure, and

may also have an informal, or covert, structure. It is this informal

structure, particularly in Unstructured groups, which forms the basis forelites.

THE NATURE OF ELITISM

"Elitist" is probably the most abused word in the women's liberationmovement. It is used as frequently, and for the same reasons, as "pinko"was used in the fifties. It is rarely used correctly. Within the movement itcommonly refers to individuals, though the personal characteristics andactivities of those to whom it is directed may differ widely: An individual,as an individual can never be an elitist, because the only properapplication of the term "elite" is to groups. Any individual, regardless ofhow well-known that person may be, can never be an elite.Correctly, an elite refers to a small group of people who have power

over a larger group of which they are part, usually without directresponsibility to that larger group, and often without their knowledge orconsent. A person becomes an elitist by being part of, or advocating therule by, such a small group, whether or not that individual is well knownor not known at all. Notoriety is not a definition of an elitist. The mostinsidious elites are usually run by people not known to the larger public atall. Intelligent elitists are usually smart enough not to allow themselvesto become well known;; when they become known, they are watched, andthe mask over their power is no longer firmly lodged.Elites are not conspiracies. Very seldom does a small group of people

get together and deliberately try to take over a larger group for its ownends. Elites are nothing more, and nothing less, than groups of friendswho also happen to participate in the same political activities. They wouldprobably maintain their friendship whether or not they were involved inpolitical activities;; they would probably be involved in political activitieswhether or not they maintained their friendships. It is the coincidence ofthese two phenomena which creates elites in any group and makes themso difficult to break.These friendship groups function as networks of communication outside

any regular channels for such communication that may have been set upby a group. If no channels are set up, they function as the only networksof communication. Because people are friends, because they usuallyshare the same values and orientations, because they talk to each othersocially and consult with each other when common decisions have to bemade, the people involved in these networks have more power in thegroup than those who don't. And it is a rare group that does not establishsome informal networks of communication through the friends that aremade in it.Some groups, depending on their size, may have more than one such

informal communications network. Networks may even overlap. Whenonly one such network exists, it is the elite of an otherwise Unstructuredgroup, whether the participants in it want to be elitists or not. If it is theonly such network in a Structured group it may or may not be an elitedepending on its composition and the nature of the formal Structure. Ifthere are two or more such networks of friends, they may compete forpower within the group, thus forming factions, or one may deliberatelyopt out of the competition, leaving the other as the elite. In a Structuredgroup, two or more such friendship networks usually compete with eachother for formal power. This is often the healthiest situation, as the othermembers are in a position to arbitrate between the two competitors forpower and thus to make demands on those to whom they give theirtemporary allegiance.The inevitably elitist and exclusive nature of informal communication

networks of friends is neither a new phenomenon characteristic of the

women's movement nor a phenomenon new to women. Such informal

relationships have excluded women for centuries from participating in

integrated groups of which they were a part. In any profession or

organization these networks have created the "locker room" mentality

and the "old school" ties which have effectively prevented women as a

group (as well as some men individually) from having equal access to the

sources of power or social reward. Much of the energy of past women's

movements has been directed to having the structures of decision-making

and the selection processes formalized so that the exclusion of women

could be confronted directly. As we well know, these efforts have not

prevented the informal male-only networks from discriminating against

women, but they have made it more difficult.

Because elites are informal does not mean they are invisible. At any

small group meeting anyone with a sharp eye and an acute ear can tell

who is influencing whom. The members of a friendship group will relate

more to each other than to other people. They listen more attentively,

and interrupt less;; they repeat each other's points and give in amiably;;

they tend to ignore or grapple with the "outs" whose approval is not

necessary for making a decision. But it is necessary for the "outs" to stay

on good terms with the "ins." Of course the lines are not as sharp as I

have drawn them. They are nuances of interaction, not prewritten scripts.

But they are discernible, and they do have their effect. Once one knows

with whom it is important to check before a decision is made, and whose

approval is the stamp of acceptance, one knows who is running things.

Since movement groups have made no concrete decisions about who

shall exercise power within them, many different criteria are used around

the country. Most criteria are along the lines of traditional female

characteristics. For instance, in the early days of the movement,

marriage was usually a prerequisite for participation in the informal elite.

As women have been traditionally taught, married women relate

primarily to each other, and look upon single women as too threatening

to have as close friends. In many cities, this criterion was further refined

to include only those women married to New Left men. This standard had

more than tradition behind it, however, because New Left men often had

access to resources needed by the movement -- such as mailing lists,

printing presses, contacts, and information -- and women were used to

getting what they needed through men rather than independently. As the

movement has charged through time, marriage has become a less

universal criterion for effective participation, but all informal elites

establish standards by which only women who possess certain material or

personal characteristics may join. They frequently include: middle-class

background (despite all the rhetoric about relating to the working class);;

being married;; not being married but living with someone;; being or

pretending to be a lesbian;; being between the ages of twenty and thirty;;

being college educated or at least having some college background;; being

"hip";; not being too "hip";; holding a certain political line or identification

as a "radical";; having children or at least liking them;; not having

children;; having certain "feminine" personality characteristics such as

being "nice";; dressing right (whether in the traditional style or the

antitraditional style);; etc. There are also some characteristics which will

almost always tag one as a "deviant" who should not be related to. They

include: being too old;; working full time, particularly if one is actively

committed to a "career";; not being "nice";; and being avowedly single

(i.e., neither actively heterosexual nor homosexual).

Other criteria could be included, but they all have common themes. The

characteristics prerequisite for participating in the informal elites of the

movement, and thus for exercising power, concern one's background,personality, or allocation of time. They do not include one's competence,dedication to feminism, talents, or potential contribution to themovement. The former are the criteria one usually uses in determiningone's friends. The latter are what any movement or organization has touse if it is going to be politically effective.The criteria of participation may differ from group to group, but the

means of becoming a member of the informal elite if one meets thosecriteria art pretty much the same. The only main difference depends onwhether one is in a group from the beginning, or joins it after it hasbegun. If involved from the beginning it is important to have as many ofone's personal friends as possible also join. If no one knows anyone elsevery well, then one must deliberately form friendships with a selectnumber and establish the informal interaction patterns crucial to thecreation of an informal structure. Once the informal patterns are formedthey act to maintain themselves, and one of the most successful tactics ofmaintenance is to continuously recruit new people who "fit in." One joinssuch an elite much the same way one pledges a sorority. If perceived asa potential addition, one is "rushed" by the members of the informalstructure and eventually either dropped or initiated. If the sorority is notpolitically aware enough to actively engage in this process itself it can bestarted by the outsider pretty much the same way one joins any privateclub. Find a sponsor, i.e., pick some member of the elite who appears tobe well respected within it, and actively cultivate that person's friendship.Eventually, she will most likely bring you into the inner circle.

All of these procedures take time. So if one works full time or has asimilar major commitment, it is usually impossible to join simply becausethere are not enough hours left to go to all the meetings and cultivate thepersonal relationship necessary to have a voice in the decision-making.That is why formal structures of decision making are a boon to theoverworked person. Having an established process for decision-makingensures that everyone can participate in it to some extent.Although this dissection of the process of elite formation within small

groups has been critical in perspective, it is not made in the belief thatthese informal structures are inevitably bad -- merely inevitable. Allgroups create informal structures as a result of interaction patternsamong the members of the group. Such informal structures can do veryuseful things But only Unstructured groups are totally governed by them.When informal elites are combined with a myth of "structurelessness,"there can be no attempt to put limits on the use of power. It becomescapricious.This has two potentially negative consequences of which we should be

aware. The first is that the informal structure of decision-making will bemuch like a sorority -- one in which people listen to others because theylike them and not because they say significant things. As long as themovement does not do significant things this does not much matter. But ifits development is not to be arrested at this preliminary stage, it willhave to alter this trend. The second is that informal structures have noobligation to be responsible to the group at large. Their power was notgiven to them;; it cannot be taken away. Their influence is not based onwhat they do for the group;; therefore they cannot be directly influencedby the group. This does not necessarily make informal structuresirresponsible. Those who are concerned with maintaining their influencewill usually try to be responsible. The group simply cannot compel suchresponsibility;; it is dependent on the interests of the elite.

THE "STAR" SYSTEM

The idea of "structurelessness" has created the "star" system. We livein a society which expects political groups to make decisions and to selectpeople to articulate those decisions to the public at large. The press andthe public do not know how to listen seriously to individual women aswomen;; they want to know how the group feels. Only three techniqueshave ever been developed for establishing mass group opinion: the voteor referendum, the public opinion survey questionnaire, and the selectionof group spokespeople at an appropriate meeting. The women's liberationmovement has used none of these to communicate with the public.Neither the movement as a whole nor most of the multitudinous groupswithin it have established a means of explaining their position on variousissues. But the public is conditioned to look for spokespeople.While it has consciously not chosen spokespeople, the movement has

thrown up many women who have caught the public eye for varyingreasons. These women represent no particular group or establishedopinion;; they know this and usually say so. But because there are noofficial spokespeople nor any decision-making body that the press canquery when it wants to know the movement's position on a subject, thesewomen are perceived as the spokespeople. Thus, whether they want to ornot, whether the movement likes it or not, women of public note are putin the role of spokespeople by default.This is one main source of the ire that is often felt toward the women

who are labeled "stars." Because they were not selected by the women inthe movement to represent the movement's views, they are resentedwhen the press presumes that they speak for the movement. But as longas the movement does not select its own spokeswomen, such women willbe placed in that role by the press and the public, regardless of their owndesires.This has several negative consequences for both the movement and the

women labeled "stars." First, because the movement didn't put them inthe role of spokesperson, the movement cannot remove them. The pressput them there and only the press can choose not to listen. The press willcontinue to look to "stars" as spokeswomen as long as it has no officialalternatives to go to for authoritative statements from the movement.The movement has no control in the selection of its representatives to thepublic as long as it believes that it should have no representatives at all.Second, women put in this position often find themselves viciouslyattacked by their sisters. This achieves nothing for the movement and ispainfully destructive to the individuals involved. Such attacks only resultin either the woman leaving the movement entirely-often bitterlyalienated -- or in her ceasing to feel responsible to her "sisters." She maymaintain some loyalty to the movement, vaguely defined, but she is nolonger susceptible to pressures from other women in it. One cannot feelresponsible to people who have been the source of such pain withoutbeing a masochist, and these women are usually too strong to bow to thatkind of personal pressure. Thus the backlash to the "star" system ineffect encourages the very kind of individualistic nonresponsibility thatthe movement condemns. By purging a sister as a "star," the movementloses whatever control it may have had over the person who thenbecomes free to commit all of the individualistic sins of which she hasbeen accused.

POLITICAL IMPOTENCE

Unstructured groups may be very effective in getting women to talk

about their lives;; they aren't very good for getting things done. It is whenpeople get tired of "just talking" and want to do something more that thegroups flounder, unless they change the nature of their operation.Occasionally, the developed informal structure of the group coincides withan available need that the group can fill in such a way as to give theappearance that an Unstructured group "works." That is, the group hasfortuitously developed precisely the kind of structure best suited forengaging in a particular project. While working in this kind of group is a very heady experience, it is

also rare and very hard to replicate. There are almost inevitably fourconditions found in such a group;;

1) It is task oriented. Its function is very narrow and very specific, likeputting on a conference or putting out a newspaper. It is the task thatbasically structures the group. The task determines what needs to bedone and when it needs to be done. It provides a guide by which peoplecan judge their actions and make plans for future activity.2) It is relatively small and homogeneous. Homogeneity is necessary to

insure that participants have a "common language" for interaction. Peoplefrom widely different backgrounds may provide richness to aconsciousness-raising group where each can learn from the others'experience, but too great a diversity among members of a task-orientedgroup means only that they continually misunderstand each other. Suchdiverse people interpret words and actions differently. They havedifferent expectations about each other's behavior and judge the resultsaccording to different criteria. If everyone knows everyone else wellenough to understand the nuances, these can be accommodated. Usually,they only lead to confusion and endless hours spent straightening outconflicts no one ever thought would arise.3) There is a high degree of communication. Information must be

passed on to everyone, opinions checked, work divided up, andparticipation assured in the relevant decisions. This is only possible if thegroup is small and people practically live together for the most crucialphases of the task. Needless to say, the number of interactions necessaryto involve everybody increases geometrically with the number ofparticipants. This inevitably limits group participants to about five, orexcludes some from some of the decisions. Successful groups can be aslarge as 10 or 15, but only when they are in fact composed of severalsmaller subgroups which perform specific parts of the task, and whosemembers overlap with each other so that knowledge of what the differentsubgroups are doing can be passed around easily.4) There is a low degree of skill specialization. Not everyone has to be

able to do everything, but everything must be able to be done by morethan one person. Thus no one is indispensable. To a certain extent,people become interchangeable parts.

While these conditions can occur serendipitously in small groups, this isnot possible in large ones. Consequently, because the larger movement inmost cities is as unstructured as individual rap groups, it is not too muchmore effective than the separate groups at specific tasks. The informalstructure is rarely together enough or in touch enough with the people tobe able to operate effectively. So the movement generates much motionand few results. Unfortunately, the consequences of all this motion arenot as innocuous as the results' and their victim is the movement itself.Some groups have formed themselves into local action projects if they

do not involve many people and work on a small scale. But this formrestricts movement activity to the local level;; it cannot be done on the

regional or national. Also, to function well the groups must usually pare

themselves down to that informal group of friends who were running

things in the first place. This excludes many women from participating.

As long as the only way women can participate in the movement is

through membership in a small group, the nongregarious are at a distinct

disadvantage. As long as friendship groups are the main means of

organizational activity, elitism becomes institutionalized.

For those groups which cannot find a local project to which to devote

themselves, the mere act of staying together becomes the reason for

their staying together. When a group has no specific task (and

consciousness raising is a task), the people in it turn their energies to

controlling others in the group. This is not done so much out of a

malicious desire to manipulate others (though sometimes it is) as out of a

lack of anything better to do with their talents. Able people with time on

their hands and a need to justify their coming together put their efforts

into personal control, and spend their time criticizing the personalities of

the other members in the group. Infighting and personal power games

rule the day. When a group is involved in a task, people learn to get

along with others as they are and to subsume personal dislikes for the

sake of the larger goal. There are limits placed on the compulsion to

remold every person in our image of what they should be.

The end of consciousness-raising leaves people with no place to go, and

the lack of structure leaves them with no way of getting there. The

women the movement either turn in on themselves and their sisters or

seek other alternatives of action. There are few that are available. Some

women just "do their own thing." This can lead to a great deal of

individual creativity, much of which is useful for the movement, but it is

not a viable alternative for most women and certainly does not foster a

spirit of cooperative group effort. Other women drift out of the movement

entirely because they don't want to develop an individual project and they

have found no way of discovering, joining, or starting group projects that

interest them.

Many turn to other political organizations to give them the kind of

structured, effective activity that they have not been able to find in the

women's movement. Those political organizations which see women's

liberation as only one of many issues to which women should devote their

time thus find the movement a vast recruiting ground for new members.

There is no need for such organizations to "infiltrate" (though this is not

precluded). The desire for meaningful political activity generated in

women by their becoming part of the women's liberation movement is

sufficient to make them eager to join other organizations when the

movement itself provides no outlets for their new ideas and energies.

Those women who join other political organizations while remaining

within the women's liberation movement, or who join women's liberation

while remaining in other political organizations, in turn become the

framework for new informal structures. These friendship networks are

based upon their common nonfeminist politics rather than the

characteristics discussed earlier, but operate in much the same way.

Because these women share common values, ideas, and political

orientations, they too become informal, unplanned, unselected,

unresponsible elites -- whether they intend to be so or not.

These new informal elites are often perceived as threats by the old

informal elites previously developed within different movement groups.

This is a correct perception. Such politically oriented networks are rarely

willing to be merely "sororities" as many of the old ones were, and want

to proselytize their political as well as their feminist ideas. This is only

natural, but its implications for women's liberation have never been

adequately discussed. The old elites are rarely willing to bring such

differences of opinion out into the open because it would involve exposing

the nature of the informal structure of the group.

Many of these informal elites have been hiding under the banner of

"anti-elitism" and "structurelessness." To effectively counter the

competition from another informal structure, they would have to become

"public," and this possibility is fraught with many dangerous implications.

Thus, to maintain its own power, it is easier to rationalize the exclusion

of the members of the other informal structure by such means as "red-

baiting," "reformist-baiting," "lesbian-baiting," or "straight-baiting." The

only other alternative is to formally structure the group in such a way

that the original power structure is institutionalized. This is not always

possible. If the informal elites have been well structured and have

exercised a fair amount of power in the past, such a task is feasible.

These groups have a history of being somewhat politically effective in the

past, as the tightness of the informal structure has proven an adequate

substitute for a formal structure. Becoming Structured does not alter their

operation much, though the institutionalization of the power structure

does open it to formal challenge. It is those groups which are in greatest

need of structure that are often least capable of creating it. Their

informal structures have not been too well formed and adherence to the

ideology of "structurelessness" makes them reluctant to change tactics.

The more Unstructured a group is, the more lacking it is in informal

structures, and the more it adheres to an ideology of "structurelessness,"

the more vulnerable it is to being taken over by a group of political

comrades.

Since the movement at large is just as Unstructured as most of its

constituent groups, it is similarly susceptible to indirect influence. But the

phenomenon manifests itself differently. On a local level most groups can

operate autonomously;; but the only groups that can organize a national

activity are nationally organized groups. Thus, it is often the Structured

feminist organizations that provide national direction for feminist

activities, and this direction is determined by the priorities of those

organizations. Such groups as NOW, WEAL, and some leftist women's

caucuses are simply the only organizations capable of mounting a

national campaign. The multitude of Unstructured women's liberation

groups can choose to support or not support the national campaigns, but

are incapable of mounting their own. Thus their members become the

troops under the leadership of the Structured organizations. The avowedly

Unstructured groups have no way of drawing upon the movement's vast

resources to support its priorities. It doesn't even have a way of deciding

what they are.

The more unstructured a movement it, the less control it has over the

directions in which it develops and the political actions in which it

engages. This does not mean that its ideas do not spread. Given a certain

amount of interest by the media and the appropriateness of social

conditions, the ideas will still be diffused widely. But diffusion of ideas

does not mean they are implemented;; it only means they are talked

about. Insofar as they can be applied individually they may be acted on;;

insofar as they require coordinated political power to be implemented,

they will not be.

As long as the women's liberation movement stays dedicated to a form

of organization which stresses small, inactive discussion groups among

friends, the worst problems of Unstructuredness will not be felt. But this

style of organization has its limits;; it is politically inefficacious, exclusive,

and discriminatory against those women who are not or cannot be tied

into the friendship networks. Those who do not fit into what already

exists because of class, race, occupation, education, parental or marital

status, personality, etc., will inevitably be discouraged from trying to

participate. Those who do fit in will develop vested interests in

maintaining things as they are.

The informal groups' vested interests will be sustained by the informal

structures which exist, and the movement will have no way of

determining who shall exercise power within it. If the movement

continues deliberately to not select who shall exercise power, it does not

thereby abolish power. All it does is abdicate the right to demand that

those who do exercise power and influence be responsible for it. If the

movement continues to keep power as diffuse as possible because it

knows it cannot demand responsibility from those who have it, it does

prevent any group or person from totally dominating. But it

simultaneously insures that the movement is as ineffective as possible.

Some middle ground between domination and ineffectiveness can and

must be found.

These problems are coming to a head at this time because the nature

of the movement is necessarily changing. Consciousness-raising as the

main function of the women's liberation movement is becoming obsolete.

Due to the intense press publicity of the last two years and the numerous

overground books and articles now being circulated, women's liberation

has become a household word. Its issues are discussed and informal rap

groups are formed by people who have no explicit connection with any

movement group. The movement must go on to other tasks. It now needs

to establish its priorities, articulate its goals, and pursue its objectives in

a coordinated fashion. To do this it must get organized -- locally,

regionally, and nationally.

PRINCIPLES OF DEMOCRATIC STRUCTURING

Once the movement no longer clings tenaciously to the ideology of

"structurelessness," it is free to develop those forms of organization best

suited to its healthy functioning. This does not mean that we should go to

the other extreme and blindly imitate the traditional forms of

organization. But neither should we blindly reject them all. Some of the

traditional techniques will prove useful, albeit not perfect;; some will give

us insights into what we should and should not do to obtain certain ends

with minimal costs to the individuals in the movement. Mostly, we will

have to experiment with different kinds of structuring and develop a

variety of techniques to use for different situations. The Lot System is

one such idea which has emerged from the movement. It is not applicable

to all situations, but is useful in some. Other ideas for structuring are

needed. But before we can proceed to experiment intelligently, we must

accept the idea that there is nothing inherently bad about structure itself -

- only its excess use.

While engaging in this trial-and-error process, there are some

principles we can keep in mind that are essential to democratic

structuring and are also politically effective:

1) Delegation of specific authority to specific individuals for specific

tasks by democratic procedures. Letting people assume jobs or tasks only

by default means they are not dependably done. If people are selected to

do a task, preferably after expressing an interest or willingness to do it,

they have made a commitment which cannot so easily be ignored.

2) Requiring all those to whom authority has been delegated to be

responsible to those who selected them. This is how the group has control

over people in positions of authority. Individuals may exercise power, but

it is the group that has ultimate say over how the power is exercised.

3) Distribution of authority among as many people as is reasonably

possible. This prevents monopoly of power and requires those in positions

of authority to consult with many others in the process of exercising it. It

also gives many people the opportunity to have responsibility for specific

tasks and thereby to learn different skills.

4) Rotation of tasks among individuals. Responsibilities which are held

too long by one person, formally or informally, come to be seen as that

person's "property" and are not easily relinquished or controlled by the

group. Conversely, if tasks are rotated too frequently the individual does

not have time to learn her job well and acquire the sense of satisfaction

of doing a good job.

5) Allocation of tasks along rational criteria. Selecting someone for a

position because they are liked by the group or giving them hard work

because they are disliked serves neither the group nor the person in the

long run. Ability, interest, and responsibility have got to be the major

concerns in such selection. People should be given an opportunity to learn

skills they do not have, but this is best done through some sort of

"apprenticeship" program rather than the "sink or swim" method. Having

a responsibility one can't handle well is demoralizing. Conversely, being

blacklisted from doing what one can do well does not encourage one to

develop one's skills. Women have been punished for being competent

throughout most of human history;; the movement does not need to

repeat this process.

6) Diffusion of information to everyone as frequently as possible.

Information is power. Access to information enhances one's power. When

an informal network spreads new ideas and information among

themselves outside the group, they are already engaged in the process of

forming an opinion -- without the group participating. The more one

knows about how things work and what is happening, the more politically

effective one can be.

7) Equal access to resources needed by the group. This is not always

perfectly possible, but should be striven for. A member who maintains a

monopoly over a needed resource (like a printing press owned by a

husband, or a darkroom) can unduly influence the use of that resource.

Skills and information are also resources. Members' skills can be

equitably available only when members are willing to teach what they

know to others.

When these principles are applied, they insure that whatever structures

are developed by different movement groups will be controlled by and

responsible to the group. The group of people in positions of authority will

be diffuse, flexible, open, and temporary. They will not be in such an

easy position to institutionalize their power because ultimate decisions

will be made by the group at large. The group will have the power to

determine who shall exercise authority within it.

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TARA ISABELLA BURTON JAN 22 2014, 11:54 AM ET

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Earlier this month, more than 700,000 students submitted the CommonApplication for college admissions. They sent along academic transcripts andSAT scores, along with attestations of athletic or artistic success and—largelyuniform—bodies of evidence speaking to more nebulously-definedcharacteristics: qualities like—to quote the Harvard admissions website—“maturity, character, leadership, self-confidence, warmth of personality,sense of humor, energy, concern for others and grace under pressure.”

Why are American colleges so interested in leadership? On the Harvardadmissions website quoted above, leadership is listed third: just after two more

Why Are American Colleges ObsessedWith 'Leadership'?What's wrong with being a follower? Or a lone wolf?

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self-evident qualities. So too the Yale website, which quotes former Yalepresident Kingman Brewster's assessment that “We have to make the hunchyjudgment as to whether or not with Yale’s help the candidate is likely to be aleader in whatever he [or she] ends up doing.” Our goals remain the sametoday” before going on to stress that “We are looking for students we can helpto become the leaders of their generation in whatever they wish to pursue.”

The language of Princeton dean Janet Lavin Rapeleye in The New York Times isstrikingly similar: “We look for qualities that will help [students] becomeleaders in their fields and in their communities.” (So too Princeton'sadmissions website, which lists leadership prominently in its section onextracurriculars: “We look for students who make a difference in their schoolsand communities, so tell us about your leadership activities, interests, specialskills and other extracurricular involvements.”) In his study The Gatekeepers,Jacques Steinberg describes how the admissions officers at Wesleyan scoredthe “personal” section of an applicant's portfolio: “A 9 [out of 9] atWesleyan...someone 'sure to “have significant impact on campus in leadershiproles”; a 7 or 6 would be assigned to someone who was “likely to be a leader insome areas, contributor to many.”

Leadership alone rarely makes or breaks anapplication, says Emmi Harward, director ofcollege counseling at The Bishop's School in LaJolla, California and the Executive Director of theAssociation College Counselors in IndependentSchools. But, she says, “Not only does leadershipdistinguish a student in a competitive applicantpool from other students ([compare] a studentbody president to someone who has spent fouryears just going home and doing their homework)but also serves to foreshadow the impact thestudent could make on the college/university

campus, and the potential impact they could make once they graduate.”

It's possible, of course, to understand “leadership,” as conceived in the collegeadmissions process, as a broad church of qualities: encompassing a whole hostof attributes desirable in bright, motivated teenagers. But its rhetoricalprevalence bears investigating. The tacit assumption is that leadership, like“maturity” or “concern for others,” needs no qualification or explanation; it isnot only de facto desirable, but indeed essential. To be a “contributor,” to useWesleyan's parlance, to a chess club is to be merely average; to be president ofthat chess club, by contrast, is to display some intangible merit.

But such an assumption is hardly universal. To be a natural leader, after all, (oreven, to use Harvard's list of desirable qualities, a “self-confident leader”), is toeschew other potential roles: that of a “natural follower,” a “natural teamplayer,” a “natural lone wolf.” And each of these, in other cultural contexts,might be seen as equally, if not more desirable. As Lan Liu, author of Beyondthe American Model, puts it in a piece for the Harvard Business Review,“Leadership is culture-specific. Unfortunately, this theme has been undulyovershadowed by the bias, which is often an American one, toward the pursuitof a universal model of leadership.”

Rather, there is something quintessentially American about the systemadvocated by former Dean of Arts and Sciences at Tufts University Robert J.Sternberg in his book College Admissions for the 21st Century: a system inwhich “students should be admitted to college on the basis of their potential forfuture leadership and active citizenship, at whatever level of society.” WhileSternberg makes sure to tell us that he defines leadership “not in the sense of

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The implicit messagebehind the rhetoric ofleadership is thatlearning for learning'ssake is not enough.

achieving a level of authority, but rather as making a positive, meaningful, andhopefully enduring difference to the world at some level,” his assumption isthat those worthy of admission at elite colleges are not simply good scholars, oreven good workers, but rather those who will take initiative, those who will bepioneers in their fields, those who will—implicitly—manage those others whoare not.

It is no surprise that Sternberg's book often runs into the language of business:he writes of how “talking to a high-level executive at a major investment bank, Imentioned our desire to enhance admissions at Tufts University. Hisresponse....was that tests like the SAT and the ACT, as well as college grades,predicted quite well who would be good analysts...What they did not predict aswell was who would be able to take the next step—who would have the capacityto envision where various markets are going.” Sternberg then goes on todiscuss his fund-raising efforts, which involved meeting “some of the mostsuccessful alumni of Tufts, as measured not only by their financial resources(and, hence, giving capacity) but also by the contributions they have made tosociety.” While Sternberg's caveats are doubtless made in good faith, theparameters he sets up implicitly reward “leadership” as conceived, quitestraightforwardly, as managerial: artists and doctoral students in thehumanities, no matter how “successful” in their fields, do not tend tocongregate at fund-raising appeals.

William Deresiewicz, in The American Scholar,may be too cynical when he writes, “That is exactlywhat places like Yale mean when they talk abouttraining leaders. Educating people who make a bigname for themselves in the world, people withimpressive titles, people the university can bragabout. People who make it to the top. People whocan climb the greasy pole of whatever hierarchythey decide to attach themselves to.” But it's

certainly true that the kind of qualities we think about when we think about“leadership” do lend themselves naturally to hierarchical ascent.

By contrast, at my English alma mater, Oxford, the ideal student is not a leaderbut a lone wolf, something reinforced at every point in the undergraduateprocess. Tuition takes the form of one-on-one “tutorials” with professors. Theadmissions process consists of interview by mock-tutorial with one'sprospective future tutors, who also make admissions decisions. Once on thecourse itself, students are assessed entirely on their capacity for independentresearch. There are no classroom grades but merely marks on end-of-courseexaminations, anonymously graded. “Leadership”, and the qualities it is meantto entail, hardly enters into the equation. What is valued is not the contributionI make “to the world” at large, nor even the contribution I make to the life ofthe campus or to my fellow students. Rather, it’s the quality of the work I do onthe course (which is to say, the level of my marks) and, as I make my waytowards a doctorate, the contribution I make to my tiny, somewhat esotericfield.

Yet such insularity seems at odds with the rhetoric of the American educationalinstitution. To be a “lone wolf,” to simply “go home and do their homework,” isto neglect, in some sense, a vital component of the educational experience.Harward and Sternberg alike stress the importance of “impact.” A desirablestudent is expected to do more than merely learn effectively, to further thetransmission of knowledge from professor to student. They're expected to gofurther: to take an active role in the classroom, as Harward notes, “contributingideas that sparked discussion or encouraging a quieter member of the class tooffer up their thoughts.”

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It would be a stretch to accuse several of America's best educationalinstitutions of anti-intellectualism. But the implicit message behind therhetoric of leadership in the American college admissions is thatintellectualism alone is not enough, even for an academic institution. Simplylearning for learning's sake is not enough. In this paradigm, there is somethingsuspect—even selfish—about a “lone wolf” prospective student that stores upknowledge, like a dragon hoarding treasure. For all that is made of theAmerican tradition of “rugged individualism,” American culture is lesswelcoming to those who neither lead nor follow but simply opt out altogether.

There is much to be said for the benefits of valuingthis kind of leadership among students. A case canbe made that the pure-academics approach of manycontinental and European universities, whichencourages and rewards independence, also fostersa degree of isolation. Students are not encouraged,at any institutional level to collaborate, to gainmanagerial skills, to learn to follow or lead. Andthe valuation and fostering of leadership can beespecially vital for groups of people who have nothistorically had the opportunity so to do – manywomen's colleges, for example, highlight the value

of seeing women in leadership positions on campus.

But it's worth investigating the assumption that to be a “good leader” and to bea “desirable student” are the same thing. In valorizing “leadership” as a quality,we risk overlooking other—less obvious—qualities, something Harwardconcedes could use more discussion. “We do need good followers, and I thinkthat aspect of leadership is something that we should talk about more,” shesays. “What good is any leader if they alienate those around them or don'tempower them to lead themselves? And does the focus on leadership imply thata student who embraces the life of the mind and a specific intellectual interestto the fullest isn't leading in some equally compelling way?” Certainly, it'sworth asking if assumptions about “leadership,” culturally-specific andquintessentially American as they are, penalize candidates from differentcultural backgrounds, where leadership—particularly among adolescents—might take different forms, or be discouraged altogether.

College admissions has come a long way in recognizing how candidates fromdifferent backgrounds and different levels of opportunity might presentthemselves differently. At its best, the holistic admissions process allowsadmissions officers to assess test scores and grades in context. But so too it’sworth looking at the context of the personal qualities admissions officers value.Do we need a graduating class full of leaders? Or should schools actively seekout diversity in interpersonal approaches—as they do in everything else?

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TARA ISABELLA BURTON is a Clarendon Scholar at Trinity College, Oxford, where she is

working on a doctorate in theology and literature. She has written for Los Angeles Review ofBooks, Guernica, Salon, and The New Statesman.

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