National will

I "lifted" the following text directly from the NASA History Office archives. Titled "The Decision to Go to the Moon: President John F. Kennedy's May 25, 1961 Speech before a Joint Session of Congress," it's worth reading today at a time when we face so many challenges.

On May 25, 1961, President John F. Kennedy announced before a special joint session of Congress the dramatic and ambitious goal of sending an American safely to the Moon before the end of the decade. A number of political factors affected Kennedy's decision and the timing of it. In general, Kennedy felt great pressure to have the United States "catch up to and overtake" the Soviet Union in the "space race." Four years after the Sputnik shock of 1957, the cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin had become the first human in space on April 12, 1961, greatly embarrassing the U.S.

While Alan Shepard became the first American in space on May 5, he only flew on a short suborbital flight instead of orbiting the Earth, as Gagarin had done. In addition, the Bay of Pigs fiasco in mid-April put unquantifiable pressure on Kennedy. He wanted to announce a program that the U.S. had a strong chance at achieving before the Soviet Union.

After consulting with Vice President Johnson, NASA Administrator James Webb, and other officials, he concluded that landing an American on the Moon would be a very challenging technological feat, but an area of space exploration in which the U.S. actually had a potential lead. Thus the cold war is the primary contextual lens through which many historians now view Kennedy's speech.

The decision involved much consideration before making it public, as well as enormous human efforts and expenditures to make what became Project Apollo a reality by 1969. Only the construction of the Panama Canal in modern peacetime and the Manhattan Project in war were comparable in scope. NASA's overall human spaceflight efforts were guided by Kennedy's speech; Projects Mercury (at least in its latter stages), Gemini, and Apollo were designed to execute Kennedy's goal. His goal was achieved on July 20, 1969, when Apollo 11 commander Neil Armstrong stepped off the Lunar Module's ladder and onto the Moon's surface.



I thought of this historic speech and all of the accomplishments that followed its vision as I watched the bp oil spill continue to assault the Gulf of Mexico. Whenever I hear people say that alternative energy is "impossible" or "impractical" or "not going to happen" for this reason or that, I think of Kennedy, his leadership and his outrageous vision.

If, as a people, we were willing to sacrifice during the retooling period, our economy could shift to alternative sources of energy development and we could become more green, more fully employed and more secure as a people.

To say that "it can't be done" is to say more about ourselves as a people than about what is technologically possible. A new visionary policy, complete with incentives and tax credits, could spawn an entire new economy that would lead us in a much more sustainable direction.

Kennedy saw this when he looked up at the moon. Growing numbers of us can see it as we watch our devastated Gulf marshes, shores, friends and wildlife.

Sign posted at a bp gas pump. . .photo w/o comment!

Can we connect the dots? Part II

[See yesterday's post, if you haven't already, to make this second part of my post at least marginally sensible!]

Given the creative minds and the vast ingenuity present in the nation, I know someone can connect the dots that mark the presence of a variety of seemingly very different national and international challenges facing us today. 

So, what if. . .

. . .someone had the courage to lead us in a national movement to replace every drop of off-shore and imported oil with new energy, made in America and increasingly renewable as a percentage of the whole, over the next 15-20 years?

. . .national policy awarded tax credits that could be used immediately or held in reserve to be used during a 10-15 year cycle at the point of greatest need from an investors/tax payers perspective in exchange for investment in domestic solar, geo-thermal, natural gas and wind energy?

. . .homeowners who switched to solar panels, designed to produce higher levels of kw hours more efficiently, could receive tax incentives to invest in such efforts?  Or, what if larger solar companies offered home installation on a "rental" basis much like cable TV so that they would be affordable to consumers now?

. . .large, urban skyscrapers and any other sort of business buildings could invest in solar and/or wind energy systems with the understanding that energy cost reduction could repay the financing necessary to invest in such systems through the savings achieved and thanks to tax credits issued to such corporations and to the banks engaged in this community lending?  And, while we're at it, add in the bank's ability to satisfy its CRA requirements in the process.

. . .state and federal taxes placed on oil fuel consumption could be set aside for transmission infrastructure development to harness and deliver electricity produced by solar, wind, geo-thermal sources of alternative, domestic energy? 

. . .public schools, including special focus magnets and charter schools, began to invest in very specific training programs to equip young workers to enter the effort to refit our national energy system in the ways suggested here? 

. . .such educational programs involved actual hands on training focused in inner city communities both in terms of installation and service of new technologies and recruitment and training for the newly equipped labor force?

. . .public incentives to our major research universities drove forward the technical advancement of alternative energy production processes and hardware? 

. . .work returned to our urban neighborhoods because that's what we intended to be an outcome?

. . .students had a real reason to stay in school in view of the living wage jobs that awaited them at the end of their training both for non-college/trade students and college graduates?

. . .the need for urban employment training and real jobs intersected our national need for new sources of clean, renewable energy and connected with our growing need to disconnect from so much foreign oil and from oil markets controlled by those who seek us harm? 

Surely there is a way.  I know that in every crisis, like the one unfolding each morning before our eyes in the Gulf of Mexico, there is an opportunity to strike out in a new direction.  If someone could just connect the dots, mobilize national will and provide authentic leadership, we might create new hope for millions and a higher quality of life for everyone. 

We need a national strategy for the renewal of the American economy for folks at or near the bottom of the economic ladder.  What if we came together up and down that ladder to solve two enormous national problems that resulted in a stronger, more diverse economy, a cleaner environment and a more united and secure nation and world? 

No doubt, what I'm suggesting will take a comprehensive, large scale effort and an even larger national commitment.  I'm not sure we can decide not to do something on such a scale, not if we want to ensure the health and future of the nation. 

Maybe it's just me, but I can't seem to get those dots out of my mind. 

Ideas?
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On a related note, here's just one encouraging quote from a Dallas Morning News report: on the alternative energy conference held here in Dallas this past weekend: 

"A study released this week by the Perryman Group suggests the CREZ project would create 41,000 jobs and $30.6 billion in economic activity when completed. The new wind power would cut carbon dioxide emissions 16 percent, cut nitrous oxide emissions 12 percent and save 17 billion gallons of water a year that would cool other power plants."


Click here to the entire report.

CDM to New Orleans???

Central Dallas Ministries and our great partners from building communityWORKSHOP are applying for $1.47 million from the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) during the current 'National Direct' competition for AmeriCorps programs.

The legal applicant is CDM and we are considered a new program, CNCS has set aside 15% of funds for new applicants.

The $1.47 million in federal funds will be matched with $750,000 in local funds and will support 193 AmeriCorps members in Dallas and 135 members in New Orleans!

In Dallas, the grant will support the CDM food distribution expansion and building communityWORKSHOP's Dolphin Heights project.

Few realize that our Dallas service area as defined by congressional districts is the 2nd hungriest in Texas and 29th nationally?   Our metro area remains one of the most affluent in the U. S.  Amazingly, in a recent survey, 26% of residents said yes, they had been unable to obtain needed food at least once in the last 12 months.

The state of Louisiana ranks 5th in the nation in hungry residents and New Orleans stands at 8th among 100 major metro areas.

If we are successful, under this grant, The Feeding America food bank of New Orleans will place 35 AmeriCorps members throughout their 23 parish area to increase capacity at local food pantries, 20% of whom rely solely on volunteers. 

Also, our grant will support the Tulane City Center at Tulane University (I'm proud to say I am Class of 1986!) to bring their GREENbuild program to scale, a program that works to build sustainble housing in the city.  A properally weatherized home can save a poor family $850 in energy costs annually.  This inner city effort will recieve 5 year round and 70 summer AmeriCorps members.

We are anxiously awaiting word about the outcome of our grant proposal.  CDM could be expanding to New Orleans!  Exciting prospect!

The promise of "green jobs"

The report below comes from Bread for the World Institute, a somewhat surprising source.  What you'll find is a bit more encouraging than some of what I've read in recent days about "green jobs" and economic renewal. 

Let me encourage you to open the link below to the entire report.  The analysis of jobs created in the emerging "green sector" is very interesting. 

As always, I'd love to hear your thoughts.  Solar power has become a focus in our world here at CDM. 

Greening the Recovery

If it were ever really true that what’s good for the environment is bad for business and vice versa, the tradeoff has swiftly become an anachronism, largely because of the pressing need to address climate change. Climate change will be a huge challenge—and a tremendous economic opportunity. It’s possible to battle climate change and create jobs at the same time.

Greening the economy means different things to different people, but in this report we’re referring to a transformation of the nation’s energy infrastructure, from carbon-intensive fossil fuels to clean, renewable forms of energy such as solar, wind, and geothermal. We also include stepping up investments in cost-effective energy efficiency, such as weatherizing homes and office buildings.

“Green jobs” may sound like something altogether new, but they are mostly jobs that already exist with new skills added to the mix. A green roofer is like any other roofer, except that he has been trained to build roofs that are energy efficient. A manufacturer of solar cells is a green manufacturer in the sense that she is producing parts for the clean energy industry, but she is still a manufacturer.

Improvements in the nation’s infrastructure can yield significant productivity gains throughout the economy. Energy savings is just one reason that this is a wise investment. Because infrastructure projects are labor-intensive, they produce many more jobs than investments in most other sectors of the economy.1 Proponents of a greener economy believe that clean energy and energy efficiency can engage a sizeable share of the U.S. workforce for at least a generation.2 For each job that is created in the clean energy sector, there are additional jobs created by indirect and induced effects. “Indirect” effects come from industries that supply intermediate goods to clean energy producers. “Induced” effects refer to the sectors that produce goods and services that workers in the new clean energy sector buy with their own incomes. The total number of jobs created depends on the scale of public and private investment.

here.

Green jobs needing push

Central Dallas Ministries and the Central Dallas Community Development Corporation continue to work on a solar power project in an effort to bring energy costs down for low-income households while at the same time creating new jobs for inner city workers who are unemployed or underemployed.  I suppose that is why reports like the one below from Steven Greenhouse grab by attention every time. 

Elusive Goal of Greening U.S. Energy
By STEVEN GREENHOUSE (The New York Times, December 3, 2009)

The Great Green Hope for lifting America’s economy is not looking so robust.

President Obama, both during his campaign and in his first year in office, has promoted the promise of new jobs in cutting-edge, nonpolluting industries, and such green jobs will be a major issue at his jobs “summit” meeting Thursday.

But, increasingly, skeptics who point to the need for more jobs are wondering why he is not doing more to create green jobs faster.

Growth in clean energy industries and in green jobs has been considerably slower and bumpier than anticipated, industry experts say.

To read more click here.

So, what do you think?

Jobs and a future

We're making progress on our plan to install solar panels on 100 homes occupied by very low-income folks in South Dallas.  It appears that all of the players needed to make it happen are lining up!  More on that to follow.

Regarding new jobs and the new frontiers of energy technology, I found this piece by Bob Herbert encouraging.  Let me know what you think.

Signs of Hope
By BOB HERBERT
Published: November 23, 2009

I came to Detroit and its environs, the seat of America’s glorious industrial past, to see if I could get a glimpse of the future. Is the economic, social and physical deterioration that has caused so much misery in the Motor City a sign of what’s in store for larger and larger segments of the United States?

Or are there new industries waiting in the wings — some of them right here in the Detroit metropolitan area — with new jobs and bright new prospects for whole new generations of American dreamers?

I found real reason to hope when a gentleman named Stan Ovshinsky took me on a tour of a remarkably quiet and pristine manufacturing plant in Auburn Hills, which is about 30 miles north of Detroit and is home to Chrysler’s headquarters. What is being produced in the plant is potentially revolutionary. A machine about the length of a football field runs 24 hours a day, seven days a week, turning out mile after mile after mile of thin, flexible solar energy material, from which solar panels can be sliced and shaped.

You want new industry in the United States, with astonishing technological advances, new mass production techniques and jobs, jobs, jobs? Try energy.

Read on here.

Green is now!

The New York Times published an extremely interesting story about non-profit organizations and the arriving "green" economy.  In many ways, non-profits are leading the charge with groundbreaking moves. 

Here's a taste of the story:

Nonprofit Groups Spin Off Green Ventures
by Sally Ryan
October 28, 2009

Sweet Beginnings, a line of urban honey and natural body care products, is part of a growing trend among small businesses: for-profit ventures spun off by nonprofit groups that teach skills for green jobs. Mario Casasnovas was on the green roof of the Bronx County Building a couple of weeks ago, remembering the flowers there in the summer and offering some tips about handling the sedum that is the main plant on the roof.

“The roots from the clover,” a weed, “tend to wrap around the roots of a sedum,” he said, nine floors above the Grand Concourse, near Yankee Stadium. “You’ve got to be careful not to pull out the sedum with the clover.”

Mr. Casasnovas, an employee of SmartRoofs L.L.C., was doing routine maintenance on the vegetative roof, which his company installed in June 2003. The company, based in the Bronx, is one of the few green roofers in the New York metropolitan area. But what makes SmartRoofs even more unusual is that it is part of a tiny but growing trend among small businesses: for-profit ventures spun off by nonprofit groups that teach the job skills necessary to join the nascent green economy.

SmartRoofs was developed by the nonprofit group Sustainable South Bronx, which also runs the Bronx Environmental Stewardship Training, one of the country’s first efforts to train people for green-collar jobs. The program now trains more than 60 low-income workers each year, using funds from a variety of sources, mostly outside government.

Only a handful of these small businesses exist across the country. “These social enterprises are early adopters of green industry,” Phaedra Ellis-Lamkins, chief executive of Green for All, a national organization working to create green economic opportunities in disadvantaged communities, said via e-mail. “These ventures are paving the way for mainstream business to integrate the concept of green jobs into everyday practices.”

Read the entire report by clicking here.

Reactions?
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Climate impact on humans

The Global Humanitarian Forum's most recent report, "Climate Change responsible for 300,000 deaths a year," outlines the impact of climate change on human life.

The report is way beyond sobering. We have so many reasons to come together in community, both locally, nationally and around the world. Certainly, this report provides additional motivation of the most pressing sort.

Here are summary points to get your thoughts flowing:

--First ever report exclusively focused on the global human impact of climate change calculates more than 300 million people are seriously affected by climate change at a total economic cost of $125 billion per year

--Report projects that by 2030, worldwide deaths will reach almost 500,000 per year; people affected by climate change annually expected to rise to over 600 million and the total annual economic cost increase to around $300 billion

--To avert worst possible outcomes, climate change adaptation efforts need to be scaled up by a factor of 100 in developing countries, which account for 99% of casualties due to climate change

The full report goes on. . .

London 29 May – Kofi A. Annan, President of the Global Humanitarian Forum, today introduced a major new report into the human impact of climate change. The ‘Human Impact Report: Climate Change – The Anatomy of a Silent Crisis’ is the first ever comprehensive report looking at the human impact of climate change.

The report was issued immediately prior to official preparatory talks in Bonn for a new UN international climate agreement to succeed the Kyoto Protocol, which expires in 2012. These talks will culminate at the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen in December 2009. The report was reviewed by leading international experts, including Rajendra Pachauri of the IPCC, Jeffrey Sachs of Columbia University, and Barbara Stocking of Oxfam.

The report estimates that climate change today accounts for over 300,000 deaths throughout the world each year, the equivalent of an Indian Ocean Tsunami every single year. By 2030, the annual death toll from climate change will reach half a million people a year.

To read the entire report click here.

At Central Dallas Ministries, we are working right now on developing a job training program to go along with a possible business venture to bring solar power to low-income communities here in Dallas at a price point that makes sense.

Reactions to the need?
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Update on Re:Vision Dallas

You may recall my earlier report here (December 8, 2008) on the efforts of John Greenan, Brent Brown and our team at the Central Dallas Community Development Corporation to see an entire city block behind the Dallas City Hall redeveloped in a totally green, mixed-use and sustainable manner.

Working with Re:Vision, we created an architectural competition to come up with a winning design for the development.

Well, get this. One hundred seventy-five (175) architectural firms registered for the Re:Vision Dallas competition, and one hundred (100) firms from fourteen countries submitted entries. I find that to be an amazing outcome!

Here's the link to the winning designs.

You can find more detailed information here.

And, then, check out the video below that gets at the basic concept in community re-design and development.

Exciting stuff!

And, for one more report on the effort, take a quick look here.

Van Jones and Green Jobs

I've referenced Van Jones here in past posts. Now Jones has joined the Obama Administration as Special Advisor for Green Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation at the White House Council on Environmental Quality.

Great pick, at least in my view.

Green jobs could play a huge role in renewing inner city America.

Take a look at the May 2009 issue of Sojourners. Great issue. Needed emphasis.

At Central Dallas Ministries we are trying to gear up for green jobs training.

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Opinion needed: How would you feel about a meeting involving T. Boone Pickens and Van Jones in a lively conversation about alternative sources of energy, green jobs and urban renewal? Both of these very powerful leaders have an interest in all of these issues. We might be able to attract the pair to a future event at CDM. What do you think?

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What? No Corvettes???

I'm green, okay?

I get it about alternative energy sources.

Really, I do.

I get it.

Hey, I'm as patriotic as the next guy.

I've been advocating for green job training for underemployed and unemployed inner city workers. If you've been here, you've read what I've written.

But, I've got my limits here!


Today I read a prediction that soon GM, if it survives, will stop manufacturing the Corvette.

Tell me it ain't true!

What will America be without the 'Vette?

This is more than I can imagine right now.

What do you think?





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Van Jones is worth hearing

If you care about jobs creation. . .

Or, the environment. . .

Or, national energy independence. . .

Or, the renewal of urban, inner city communities. . .

Or, re-energizing our national economy in a sustainable manner. . .

Then, you need to hear Van Jones.

Go here to see what he says!

Reactions appreciated.

By the way, we hope Mr. Jones will join us in Dallas in the not too distant future for a conversation. We'll keep you posted.

By the way-2, Mr. Jones' book, The Green Collar Economy: How One Solution Can Fix Our Two Biggest Problems, will be the subject of our Urban Engagement Book Club next week, Thursday, March 5, noon until 1:15 p.m. at the Highland Park United Methodist Church. Join us!

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Our new President calls for sacrifice

The current economic crisis has us worried.

Its impact on the poor and on the inner city could be devastating beyond what we can imagine.

Frankly, it is beyond amazing that all of this has happened to our nation. We are now reaping a harvest prompted by greed, selfishness and unimaginable lack of concern for the whole that is our national community.

On Thursday, President-Elect Barack Obama made a major speech on his vision for economic recovery.

He didn't pull punches. He told us the remedy would be hard, a real national challenge. He called for putting good ideas ahead of the tired, worn partisan battles of the past.

He didn't blame. He led.

He spoke the hard truth about the depth of the current calamity.

He spoke of building a "green" infrastructure for the creation of a new national economy. He turned our attention to the education of our children, our future workforce. He ruled out "earmarks." He spoke of comprehensive economic systems change relative to regulation reform.

I've talked to a number of people who were most impressed by his words, both Democrats and Republicans.

The speech is worth your time. You can listen to our new president by dropping in here.

I talked to a dear friend who had heard the speech. He has been a long-time Republican and a successful business leader. He was excited by what Senator Obama had to say.

We all need to prepare for sacrifice. We all need to pull together. We need to return to a basic principle that we've come to cherish in inner city Dallas: we think first of "us" rather than "I." I heard him say that we must "look out for one another." Sounded just like home to me.

I'll pray for him in church today, as I did for President Bush so often.

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Green Collar Jobs

I'm making way through Van Jones' compelling book, Green Collar Jobs: How One Solution Can Fix Our Two Biggest Problems (Harper One, 2008).

His thinking and vision are beyond sound.

You can get a feel for Jones and his argument here.

I hope we can get him to Dallas soon. I'll keep you posted.

Thoughts?
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Speaking of "Green"

If you haven't tuned in on T. Boone Pickens' website, www.Pickensplan.com, you need to! Interesting stuff from a guy who is usually out ahead of the curve in terms of development and what's coming next.

I found one of his recent "mini-lectures" particularly engaging.

Take a look at it here and tell me what you think.

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T. Boone Pickens, Al Gore and "Green Collar" Jobs

Have you seen T. Boone Pickens on television promoting his plan to make the United States energy independent via wind power and natural gas?

Click on the title line above to go to his blog and read more of his plan.

Sunday one of his commercial spots played right before Meet the Press aired with Al Gore as the featured guest. Gore believes we can be completely energy independent in ten years.

Fascinating conversation.

One thing I know for sure. Something is up when Boone Pickens and Al Gore are in agreement!

All week I've been thinking about the potential opportunity for my low-income, struggling friends here in inner city Dallas.

What if we could bring together a plan in our city for the development of a whole new industry that demanded the creation of thousands of "green collar" jobs?

By that I mean new jobs in the energy production and conservation business that no longer depend on fossil fuels. You know: solar panels, retro-fitting public buildings, installation, manufacturing, maintenance, landscaping, water management, etc. Training our neighbors to work in this arena could radically alter the state of urban America.

There is no doubt in my mind that we are on the verge of a new day in this nation when it comes to energy. I just don't want the poor to be bypassed in the amazing revolution that appears to be upon us.

We're working on it.

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