Go Car-Free Today!

Today is Car-Free Day around the world! Not sure how to get involved? Take part in one of the many events in your area by joining others for a scheduled group walk or bike ride. If you can’t do that, take on your own effort! Ride a bike or take the bus to work, and try to avoid using your car. Take the time to think about how often you drive when you might not need to, and let today help you go car-free more often in the future!

Upcoming Green Events: September

by Miranda Hitchcock

In addition to providing Members with discounts on sustainable goods and services, the Co-op has a commitment to educating our community. We will be posting “green” events in the area regularly to allow you to attend and learn! If you know of a great green event coming up, please email miranda.hitchcock@gmail.com.

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Webinar on “Community Solar”- Tuesday, September 21st, 2:00- 3:15pm.

Many area residents aren’t good candidates for solar photovoltaics due to shaded roofs and other considerations. But these utility ratepayers aren’t totally out of luck! This webinar highlights the ability to participate in community solar programs where multiple customers invest in a system located elsewhere.
This event is free, but you must pre-register. For information: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/92870764

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GridWise Global Forum- Tuesday-Thursday, September 21^st-23^rd at Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center, Washington, D.C.

The GridWise Alliance and U.S. Department of Energy are teaming up to talk about the national electric grid. Talks will touch on the current state of the grid as well as possibilities and realities for smart grid systems and how to take the next steps.
For more information and registration: www.gridwiseglobalforum.org

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Car Free Day- Wednesday, September 22^nd

In the D.C. Metro area, make a pledge to go car-free (or car-lite) for a day! Ride your bike, walk, or take public transit. Pledge online to win prizes!
For more information and to pledge: http://www.carfreemetrodc.com/

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Sierra Club Monthly Meeting- Wednesday, September 29^th 6:30 pm at 408 C St. NE, Washington, D.C.

The Sierra Club’s September meeting will discuss the October Energy forum, the Climate Action Plan, and the WIN weatherization grants.
For more information, contact Larry Martin: lmartindc@gmail.com

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Community Energy Meeting- Wednesday, September 29^th 7:00- 9:00pm at 4825 Cordell Ave, Bethesda, MD 20814

Join Bethesda Green and Repower at Home for an evening dedicated to understanding our energy usage. Learn simple tips for how to greatly reduce your energy and your bills!
For more information and to RSVP: http://repowerathome.com/events/95

Miranda Hitchcock is the Implementation Manager for the Maryland Energy & Sustainability Co-op.

I Want to Ride My Bicycle…!

by Miranda Hitchcock

I am, admittedly, not a big fan of “exercise.” I don’t like going to the gym, and get bored easily on equipment like elliptical machines. After awful shin splints and stress fractures in high school track I can’t run, and most of my fitness plans begin with the word, “tomorrow.” But recently I had an epiphany: my housemate has a bicycle. My office is close by. Parking is expensive.

And voila! Suddenly I’m a bicycle commuter, riding a bike to work every day that I can. This is good exercise (although the ride is short) but somehow it escapes the negative feeling I usually get with that word. My ride has a purpose and a destination- it takes me to and from my office, and I feel a sense of achievement with each ride that I never got on a stationary bike where you end, literally, where you start. My riding saves me money, since I don’t have to fill a meter with quarters (up to $8/day even without the expensive, likely parking tickets in Bethesda). Riding to work brings a feeling of “goodness” and “greenness,” since I’m not contributing to the belching of pollution and greenhouse gases into the atmosphere from cars.

I get the exhilaration of passing cars as they wait in traffic while I zip by along the sidewalks. As these mornings get a little cooler I get the refreshing wake-up call of the wind to get me ready for work without the coffee and the caffeine. More than anything, I get a few minutes of sanity-improving un-connectedness. A product of my generation, I spend most of my time connected to technology. I’m listening to my iPod, playing on my smartphone, watching TV, surfing the internet… all day, most days. But for the time I spend biking to and from work I have only the physical world around me, and I’m convinced that these few minutes greatly improve my mood and my ability to remain sane throughout a busy workday. All of these factors sum up an important point about sustainability that people often miss- it’s about more than just the environment! Sustainability is about treating our environment well so that it can continue to provide for us in the future. It’s also about treating our bodies and our minds (and our bank accounts!) so that they can provide for us in the future. So while riding a bike to work may not “save the earth,” it has sustainable benefits in many aspects of life.

I don’t know that I will ever take up biking as “exercise,” but I’m certainly glad that I have the ability to bike to work. It’s good for the environment, good for my bank account, good for my health, and good for my mental well-being. That’s a lot of “good!” So until it gets too cold and dreary to ride (and let’s face it, I like “cold and dreary” even less than “exercise”), you’ll see me relatively-slowly but happily bicycling to work. Maybe sometime I’ll catch you doing the same!

Miranda Hitchcock is the Implementation Manager for the Maryland Energy & Sustainability Co-op.