It’s Getting Hot In Here

If Portland, OR steps to different beat, Sweden steps to a different drum. For example, McDonald’s in Sweden serves organic milk and beef, recycles 97 percent of all restaurant waste, and powers over half of its 160 stores, as well as the national headquarters, with renewable energy. This puts the largest burger giant’s green wrecking ball squarely through the window of most American burger chains, even Portland, Oregon’s local environmental burger chain, Burgerville.

Given the fertile grounds for environmental change, it’s no wonder that Sweden gave rise to what I see as the latest and greatest environmental advancement: recognizing that the environment does not exist in a void (“oh yes, there are societies and economies!”) and using that knowledge to create metrics regarding true sustainability. Not sustainability as you find it described in a car commercial; rather, sustainability you can capture, put in a vial, and show to your freshman science class.

The bus tour crew was back in Science 101 on Tuesday, July 24th, when we received a 2-hour presentation from Duke Castle, one of the founders of the Oregon Natural Step Network, the largest chapter of the Natural Step in the United States. After showing us how all of the environmental, social, and economic problems humans face are interrelated, he hopped into the Natural Step, which I will attempt to re-describe below.
Continue reading ‘Portland’s Different Drum Beat | The Natural Step’

There once was a Kansan who frowned
He frowned because his oil was browned.
It was leftover grease
The supply never ceased
And into the drain it got downed

Then someone at KU got smart:
“With dependences on oil we’ll part!
we don’t need no soy oil
just bring brown grease to boil
And biodiesel vats we’ll start!”

And so today we got the spiel
About their new biodiesel
Clear as water
But burns way hotter
You can’t deny it’s golden appeal.

~~~~ The Explanation ~~~~
A few days back we met with the University of Kansas Biodiesel Initiative about their up-and-coming biodiesel production. The initiative is unique because of the institutional support and the experimentation they’re planning to do. For more information, check out the KU media write-up.
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Written by Udall Legacy Bus Tour rider Kayanna Warren

I’m a little late in posting this, but hopefully you all will forgive my tardiness.

On June 12th, I and twelve other riders (all in college or recently out) hopped on the first-ever green certified motor coach for a two month journey across the country highlighting people and communities nationwide finding solutions to environmental and Native American issues.

Dubbed the Udall Legacy Bus Tour, we’ll be chugging along until Aug. 4th when we hit Tucson (map of where we’ve been/where we’re going) which is where the the Morris K. Udall Foundation — the organization behind this whole thing – is HQ’ed.   The Bus Tour is the culmination of year long celebration of public service marking the 10th anniversary of the Foundation’s education programs including the undergraduate scholarship , Native American summer internship, and dissertation fellowship programs.   Between now and then I hope to post some of the most interesting initiatives addressing climate change we’re learning about in the communities we’re visiting.

Stories, photos, and video from all our stops are on our blog and website. We’ve got a few weeks left to go, and we’d love any and all feedback !

From Missoula, MT

–Eli Zigas