This will be my last post using this website - Weebly was great to start out with but there are too many limitations on what you can do. Take a look at www.RyanHarb.org from now for future updates.

Thanks for reading,
Ryan

Ken and I delivered our presentation on Wednesday - it went great. Here is a link to our slides: https://udrive.oit.umass.edu/rharb/Vancouver%20On%20Sustainability%20Presentation%202010.ppt

We took a tour today around the University of British Columbia. Wow is all I can say! Such a beautiful campus, and they are doing some very impressive green initiatives. The new green building they just built is incredible. They have great signage in their dining and retail operations which I was very impressed with.

I will post pictures soon.

I'm writing tonight from Vancouver, British Columbia. It has been a nice couple of days for me. The days are spent attending various sessions having to do with sustainability. I must have seen about 25 different speakers in the past 48 hours! Almost all the presentations are very academic, some very boring but some very interesting. 

Some of the highlights / striking points for me from the conference itself:
"We need to be thinking about the 4 (not 3) pillars of sustainability: economic, social, environmental and cultural
Cultural sustainability is dealing more with the shift in mindsets – the individual and collective conscious. We must learn how to better understand and communicate with one another in order to truly make this happen.
Using the right language or you can effectively kill a project! 

This is also the case with using the word gardens. Many people have a different interpretation and idea of what a garden is, based on their cultural and past experiences. It can actually be controversial to use that word! I haven't found that to be true based on personal experience, but others have. A much safer word to use is landscape. Permaculture gardens can be called ecological landscapes instead.

At nights I have been going out to dinner with a small group from the conference. None of us knew each other, but I wrote a big sign and taped it up at the conference noteboard saying "Anyone who wants to meet for dinner come to the four seasons hotel lobby at 6:30pm!'" A lot of people showed up and it ended up being 6 of us walking around Vancouver and settling on a nice Greek restaurant in the city. We had a lot of laughs together and it seemed like our group had known each other for quite a while, yet we had only just met. It's a very good feeling when you feel that group cohesiveness right away and can just be yourself. 

Tonight there were 4 of us that went out and had another nice dinner and very interesting conversations. I feel like I learned more from that experience than I did from most of the sessions! We spoke a lot about the universities we work/study at, the trends we are noticing in academia, the conflicts between growth (which all universities are experiencing) and sustainability, the differences between schools that are Research I, II, comprehensive… I learned about SUNY Plattsburgh and how professors at these schools teach about 4 – 5 classes per semester, compared to 1 – 2 classes at UMass. The job of professors at UMass Amherst is to spend more time doing research and less time teaching classes. Whereas one of the most important things at Research II or III schools is the evaluations that students turn in at the end of each semester. All I've really known is the UMass model since I've been there for 8 years. I wonder how I would like having to teach 4 – 5 classes each semester? That's a lot!


 

Travel days are long days! Waking up at 7:00am to pack, driving to the airport, flight #1, layover - extra long with delay, flight #2, arrive in Vancouver around 2:00am EST! I'm in the Toronto airport now waiting to board the second flight. I am feeling pretty sleepy right now!

The reason for my travel, like most of my travels the past year, is for a conference. My boss - Ken Toong - and I will be presenting at the 8th International Conference on Environmental, Cultural, Economic and Social Sustainability. There will be about 300 attendees - all academicians from all over the world - speaking on a wide-range of topics. I'll add more to this blog entry when I get to the conference. I'm very excited to speak there and feel

_Another job posting to share! This one looks totally awesome - the person will be working at GCC and will be helping to implement a permaculture garden. Permaculturists please be advised - more jobs like this within academia will be popping up like this in the near future! Application deadline is January 16, 2012.
Technical Assistant II Location: Greenfield, Massachusetts 01301 Date: 12/30/2011 Job Type: Employee Job Status: Full Time Greenfield Community College Job Details Greenfield Community College is the center of higher education in Franklin County. Located near the multicultural, academically rich areas of Amherst and Northampton, we actively encourage your personal growth and professional development.  Be a part of preparing our students to lead fulfilling, rewarding lives by working at GCC.

Technical Assistant II
(Laboratory/Greenhouse Technician)

Full-time, AFSCME Unit position
Support faculty by preparing materials and setting up and organizing equipment used in the teaching of lab sciences; organize and maintain the teaching and growing environment in the zero net energy greenhouse including overseeing the use of energy control systems; plan, organize and maintain outdoor lab botanical/permaculture gardens.  Hours will include varied work shifts, such as weekends, holidays, and night hours as needed. Requires HS diploma/GED; one year of experience in a commercial and/or academic greenhouse; and one year of horticultural experience with outside plantings, including transplanting, fertilizing, watering, weed and pest control. Degree in science related field and 3 years’ experience preferred.




Requirements Greenfield Community College requires that all cover letters and resumes be submitted online at: http://web.gcc.mass.edu/offices/hr/apply. Applications must be submitted via our online application system by January 16th, 2012. Additional applications may be considered until the position is filled.

Greenfield Community College is proud to value diversity in our community of faculty, staff, and students, and is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer.

A good friend of mine, Lisa DePiano, who has been working with a permaculture demonstration site called Montview Neighborhood Farm for 6 years, has an important message to share. I'm posting this because I feel it's important for people to know about, and have the opportunity to comment on town/city issues such as this. I've called the numbers listed below, and I hope that you will, too! Here is Lisa's request:

---

Dear Friends of Montview Neighborhood Farm,

On January 12th, the City of Northampton plans to delegate decision-making power over public conservation land, home to Montview Neighborhood Farm, to a private, member-only organization. This act could mean dramatic changes to the 6-year-old neighborhood food project. Meadow City Conservation Coalition and the Conservation Commission have negotiated this arrangement with no public input. There is growing community concern that this deal would not be in the best interest of the public. Will you join me at the Conservation Commission Meeting on January 12th at 5pm to ask the Commission to postpone the decision and schedule a pubic hearing.

‪The land in question has been home to Montview Neighborhood Farm for the past six years. In that time, volunteers have transformed the space into a vibrant permaculture-based food forest, community-tended annual vegetable garden, and sustainable education site. Fruit trees, berry bushes, perennial vegetables, honey bees, a flock of laying hens, and a community compost program are all being cultivated on the 3-acre site, which also boasts a protected wetland. ‬Montview Neighborhood Farm is admired throughout the North East for its exemplary application of permaculture principles on public land.

If you care about Montview Neighborhood Farm and want a say in its future, please come to the January 12th meeting and ask the City to put the brakes on this proposal. 

Here are the Details:

What: Conservation Commission Meeting
When: January 12, 5 pm
Where: City Hall, 210 Main St. In the hearing room on the second floor
Why: Show your support and give public comment. The public comment period is first on the agenda so please arrive early if possible.

Our message is simple: The Conservation Commission must delay a vote on the transfer of Montview Conservation Land to the Meadow City Conservation Coalition and schedule a public hearing on the matter. 

If you are unable to come to the meeting please call our public officials and ask them to delay the vote and to schedule a public hearing. 

Sarah LaValley (413) 587-1263
Conservation, Preservation and Land Use Planner
-Conservation Commission, CPA and Historical Commission

Wayne Feiden  (413) 587-1265
Director of Planning and Development 

Mayor David Narkewicz 413 587-1249

I hope to see you on the 12th. 

Sincerely,
Lisa DePiano

UMass Amherst Permaculture has won a NASPA Excellence Award. This is great news and adds a great deal of recognition to the amazing work that we are doing. Thanks to everyone who has been involved in making this possible. A few people wrote it but thousands of you are helping to make this permaculture initiative into an incredible example of how communities and social networks can create ecologically sound demonstration sites that result in local, fresh food and sustainability education for countless individuals!

You can read the award recognition letter here:

_Hey everyone,

I don't know very much about this company, but I was forwarded this job announcement and am sharing it for those who are interested! Here is a link to the pdf job description. Enjoy!

http://www.umasspermaculture.com/wp-content/uploads/GreenerU-Sustainability-Program-Manager-2011.pdf

Here is a job description for a new position at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. Please share it with anyone you know who might be a good fit.

Sustainability Communications & Marketing Manager

As a member of the UMass Amherst University Relations team, the manager will lead communication and marketing (C&M) efforts to advance the University’s reputation as a global leader in sustainability. The manager will be responsible for implementation of the UMass Amherst Green Visibility Campaign, a three-year effort to establish the university as a national leader in sustainable-related teaching, research and campus life.

Required Qualifications:  Master’s degree with two years experience in communications and marketing and three years experience directly related to issues of sustainability; or B.A. with seven years C&M experience and five years experience related to issues of sustainability, such as energy efficiency strategies or behavior change campaign techniques; experience applying marketing principles, concepts, strategies and best practices; strong written and interpersonal communication skills, including presentation and group facilitation skills; record of successfully applying concepts and principles of digital media and social media strategies, metrics and tactics; ability to creatively apply tools to reach communication and marketing goals; technical skills in computer applications for web publishing; ability to communicate with, motivate and support diverse working groups; ability to work efficiently and effectively in a team structure with other professionals and vendors.  Preferred Qualifications:  Experience in a higher education environment, launching and managing marketing or promotional campaigns, and with Drupal.

The manager is a term position, for a period of three years, with the possibility of extension.

Hiring salary range: $47,400 - $60,000; normal starting salary range: $47,400 - $53,700. 

The priority application deadline is January 3, 2012. However, applications will be accepted beyond that date until the position is filled. Please submit a letter of interest, resume and the names and contact information of three professional references to Search #R43131, Employment Office, 167 Whitmore Administration Building, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA 01003-8170.

The University of Massachusetts is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer.  Women and members of minority groups are encouraged to apply.

UMass Permaculture was featured on Real Green TV, a nationally syndicated show this past weekend. There has been so much going on I failed to tell people this beforehand! I'm bummed about this, because it was a great opportunity to get more press about the amazing project we're undertaking here at UMass. One of these days we're going to get picked up by a big name talk show host....I feel it!

But the point is, we're doing amazing work and it's getting out there to more people via TV, newspaper, magazine, blogs and other forms of social media. Plus word of mouth for sure.

Here is the website for Real Green TV... I'll post a link to the video when I have it!

http://www.realgreentv.net/This-Week-TV.shtml