Judy, the letter is great. I hope they print it. Erin, love the photos. Is there a way to let a wide group of people know about the blog? Is it ok to publicize the blog access, or not because it's Annelle's personal code? I would love to get the photos out more widely. They should definitely be sent to WSN, along with Phil's and whoever else has good ones, and perhaps to The Village Voice and The Villager, with captions. Can someone do that? Also Erin has written a wonderful piece. Exploring where we can send it. Let me know about blog because there's good stuff here. At least we shoudl ask Danielle (if its ok with you Annelle?) to let faculty and Deans know to access Blog. Do you all agree?
Excellent! Kathy
Friday, April 25, 2008
Thursday, April 24, 2008
Trip to DEMOCRACY NOW?
This is Annelle again: are people still interested in going to see Amy in action at DEMOCRACY NOW?
We'd have to go early... if you're interested, post, and then Kathy can make a request for our agreed date.
We'd have to go early... if you're interested, post, and then Kathy can make a request for our agreed date.
Letter to Editor
To the editor of Washington Square News, Adam Playford, and the WSN staff,
A reflection on my recent experience with the environmental advocacy initiative, BLACKOUT NYU, an effort to turn off or dim lights in classrooms and offices around NYU on Earth Day, Tuesday, April 22:
In preparing re-used fliers (old paper bags, magazines, and elderly WSN's) to post around campus, I wondered quietly whether my classmates in Gallatin's "Political Journalism" and I were wasting our time. Students in class need to see the board, their notes, and their books; faculty in offices must be able to work. Maybe on some idyllic little college campus where every room has windows BLACKOUT might have stood a chance, but in the notoriously window-less warrens of Stern, Silver, and Steinhardt?
I therefore want to commend NYU students and faculty for their willingness to at least try turning out their lights. Some where more amenable than others, but on the whole people seemed not opposed to the idea. The sentiment I faced most often while going through classrooms with the "Blackout Squad" was not antagonism, but confusion. I can just imagine the comments after we left a room: "Who were those people?/What did they want?/Why is it darker in here? What is the point?" Because although they turned off some of their lights and could still function, or else were able to open the blinds and use natural light, many probably felt the same way I did: how much is this actually helping? A few less pounds of carbon from NYU on Earth Day.
Whoo-pee-doo.
This nagging doubt hovered beneath my smiling determination to flip as many light switches as possible.
Yet then again, what is the alternative? One of the few un-supportive professors put it quite well when he said, "I'm sorry, but I think my students' eyes are more important than..." And he stopped. More important than what? Preventing flooding, food shortages, droughts, and disease around the globe? I hate to sound apocalyptic, but this is hardly journalistic hyperbole. This is what lies at the end of our current path of insatiable petroleum consumption.
At the end of a day talking to people about the project and patrolling classrooms, BLACKOUT NYU taught me not to doubt people. We know what could happen if we don't change the way we use energy. In the face of an entire system of over-consumption the nagging doubt about our own ability to change our course starts with individual empowerment. Reminding people to exert the control that they have, (over their own light switches), flips another switch: the attitude that we can do something about this. Once the empowerment switch has been turned on, the doubt that currently tells us we can't change the patterns of American energy consumption will lose its juice. We can do this. Just flip the switch.
[Thanks to the staff of WSN for publicizing Earth Day events and environmental issues, for your outstanding work in general. And for receiving this letter. Best, Annelle Sheline, Gallatin '08]
A reflection on my recent experience with the environmental advocacy initiative, BLACKOUT NYU, an effort to turn off or dim lights in classrooms and offices around NYU on Earth Day, Tuesday, April 22:
In preparing re-used fliers (old paper bags, magazines, and elderly WSN's) to post around campus, I wondered quietly whether my classmates in Gallatin's "Political Journalism" and I were wasting our time. Students in class need to see the board, their notes, and their books; faculty in offices must be able to work. Maybe on some idyllic little college campus where every room has windows BLACKOUT might have stood a chance, but in the notoriously window-less warrens of Stern, Silver, and Steinhardt?
I therefore want to commend NYU students and faculty for their willingness to at least try turning out their lights. Some where more amenable than others, but on the whole people seemed not opposed to the idea. The sentiment I faced most often while going through classrooms with the "Blackout Squad" was not antagonism, but confusion. I can just imagine the comments after we left a room: "Who were those people?/What did they want?/Why is it darker in here? What is the point?" Because although they turned off some of their lights and could still function, or else were able to open the blinds and use natural light, many probably felt the same way I did: how much is this actually helping? A few less pounds of carbon from NYU on Earth Day.
Whoo-pee-doo.
This nagging doubt hovered beneath my smiling determination to flip as many light switches as possible.
Yet then again, what is the alternative? One of the few un-supportive professors put it quite well when he said, "I'm sorry, but I think my students' eyes are more important than..." And he stopped. More important than what? Preventing flooding, food shortages, droughts, and disease around the globe? I hate to sound apocalyptic, but this is hardly journalistic hyperbole. This is what lies at the end of our current path of insatiable petroleum consumption.
At the end of a day talking to people about the project and patrolling classrooms, BLACKOUT NYU taught me not to doubt people. We know what could happen if we don't change the way we use energy. In the face of an entire system of over-consumption the nagging doubt about our own ability to change our course starts with individual empowerment. Reminding people to exert the control that they have, (over their own light switches), flips another switch: the attitude that we can do something about this. Once the empowerment switch has been turned on, the doubt that currently tells us we can't change the patterns of American energy consumption will lose its juice. We can do this. Just flip the switch.
[Thanks to the staff of WSN for publicizing Earth Day events and environmental issues, for your outstanding work in general. And for receiving this letter. Best, Annelle Sheline, Gallatin '08]
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Global Warming Legislation
On Earth Day 2008, the House of Representatives was presented
with a plan for real action on Global Warming. Chairman Henry
Waxman, Chairman Ed Markey, and Representative Jay Inslee
introduced their Principles for Global Warming Legislation, a
roadmap to produce a comprehensive program for the U.S. to
reduce global warming emissions.
Now is the time to join me and Earthjustice and let your
representative know that you support taking real, effective, and
practical action to curb global warming.
Take action at the link below:
http://action.earthjustice.org/campaign/waxman_0408?rk=d1_dQe61w60FW
with a plan for real action on Global Warming. Chairman Henry
Waxman, Chairman Ed Markey, and Representative Jay Inslee
introduced their Principles for Global Warming Legislation, a
roadmap to produce a comprehensive program for the U.S. to
reduce global warming emissions.
Now is the time to join me and Earthjustice and let your
representative know that you support taking real, effective, and
practical action to curb global warming.
Take action at the link below:
http://action.earthjustice.org/campaign/waxman_0408?rk=d1_dQe61w60FW
from Kathy YOU ARE AWESOME!!!
Hey all: What a great job! I'm so proud of each and all of you, singularly and collaboratively!! What a great, interesting day. Can't wait to hear what you all think, what you learned, what worked, what didn't, etc. tomorrow!!
Phil thanks for posting the photos. Wonderful except the angry looking professor!!
Can we get them out on NYU sites with captions? Does anyone know?
And if you get to writing anything, post on blog and let's think about getting Letters To The Editor to the NY Times and WSN and columns. Tell WSN you will write it for them. I think for NYT it's: Letters@nytimes.com and oped@nytimes.com. Newsday is also good about printing opeds, and has a student page. ALso why not try The Villager and The Village Voice.
if you do a column let's try to get it around -- there are many other online options -- Huffington, CommonDreams, Tompaine.com, Nation.com etc. If you don't get to it before, bring to class. Write what happened, the substance, and hook it with perception of student inactivism and how this is wrong, and how important it is to make visible these activities. Perhaps we should also send a thank you to Gallatin professors for being so supportive and is there a way to post a more general letter to NYU community?
Write now before you forget the specifics and the feel of it.
Congratulations on great work. Kathy
Phil thanks for posting the photos. Wonderful except the angry looking professor!!
Can we get them out on NYU sites with captions? Does anyone know?
And if you get to writing anything, post on blog and let's think about getting Letters To The Editor to the NY Times and WSN and columns. Tell WSN you will write it for them. I think for NYT it's: Letters@nytimes.com and oped@nytimes.com. Newsday is also good about printing opeds, and has a student page. ALso why not try The Villager and The Village Voice.
if you do a column let's try to get it around -- there are many other online options -- Huffington, CommonDreams, Tompaine.com, Nation.com etc. If you don't get to it before, bring to class. Write what happened, the substance, and hook it with perception of student inactivism and how this is wrong, and how important it is to make visible these activities. Perhaps we should also send a thank you to Gallatin professors for being so supportive and is there a way to post a more general letter to NYU community?
Write now before you forget the specifics and the feel of it.
Congratulations on great work. Kathy
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
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