Advocacy Project: Healthy People?THOMAS

Objectives:
Increase use of alternative modes of transportation to reduce motor vehicle emissions
and improve the nation's air quality.
This objective monitors how people commute in the following ways:
Trips made by bicycle
Trips made by walking
Trips made by transit
People that telecommute

Emerging Issues:
The amount of air pollutants released from motor vehicles have been greatly reduced. Yet, the amounts can still be further reduced if the amount of miles traveled in motor vehicles are reduced and the type of motor vehicle, such as SUV or mini-vans, that typically produce more emissions, are not used.

Opportunities & Challenges:
EPA targets three major air pollutants which include nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide and mercury. The EPA also aim to reduce the amount smog, acid rain, poor visibility, and nitrogen and mercury deposits. The EPA is looking to clean up the air quality by using new and cleaner pollution control strategies. One way to control the output of pollution is by controlling the amount of motor vehicles being used. Therefore, they are promoting using alternate forms of transportation.

H.R. 3271 Green Routes to Work Act (Introduced to House Committees)

Title: To provide tax breaks and incentives for businesses to provide green transportation alternatives such as providing tax free transit passes to employees, giving a tax credit to businesses who provide a commuter van to employees and allow for employees to be reimbursed for bicycles or transit passes used to commute to and from work. This bill also calls for the removal of barriers for cyclist commuters.

Sponsors: Rep. Earl Blumenauer

Latest Major Action: July 21, 2009 referred to House committee

Recommendation: Vote Yes for H.R 3271 Green Routes to Work Act

My Representatives: Jim Oberstar

Eco-Chic Lifestyle Change Week 1: My Smart Goal

My Goal:

I will ride the bus to and from the UMD campus three times per week.

Why is my goal eco-chic?

By taking the bus 3 times per week I will be saving gas and therefore saving the environment. I can cut down on my dependency on the non-renewable resource oil. I will also cut down on the air pollution caused by driving my car. I will also no longer contributing as much to the greenhouse gases that are trapped in our environment and contributing to global warming.

Why I chose this behavior and why is this important to me?

I chose to change my driving habits because I believe I am being extremely wasteful driving my car. I live right on the bus route, so I literally have to walk less than a block to the bus stop. I have been telling myself that I am going to take the bus more all year, but I have yet to take action. Therefore, I think setting this SMART goal for class is the perfect opportunity to give me the necessary push. Because of my busy schedule, I am not able to take the bus everyday but I have figured out that I should be able to ride the bus 3 days without impeding on my current schedule. Not only would taking the bus be beneficial to the environment but it would also benefit my pocket book. I believe I could save a lot of money on gas especially since as students we can ride the bus for free.

Blogged for the Eco-Chic Lifestyle Change Week 1 hosted by Amy@Amy in the Rain.

Share and Voice: Food and Water Watch

I have found this really interesting website while I was looking up information about bottled water. Since we watched the movie "Tapped" I have been really bent out of shape over what theses bottled water companies are doing in order to make a profit.

I ran across the website Food and Water Watch during my search.

This website is agency located in Washington D.C that is dedicated to make sure food and water products are safe, environmentally friendly (sustainable) and accessible to all. This website offers a lot of good informational articles about food produced in the U.S, fish and water, including bottled water. Besides the great articles on this site, what I found really neat is the provide many different ways you can take action and get involved. Most ways involve contacting law makers and advocating for safe products, which in my opinion is a basic human right. No one should have to worry about whether their water is safe, or AFFORDABLE! Food and water are needs and basic human rights that should not be allowed to be taken away from us so corporations can make a profit. I encourage everyone to check out this website whether it is take action or read some of the great articles.

Advocacy Project: My political Representatives

I have found my political representatives of my hometown, Duluth, MN, and have listed their information below:

President:

Barack Obama~ Democrat
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest
Washington DC, 20500

Congress Representatives:

U.S Senate

Al Franken~ Democrat
320 HART SENATE OFFICE BUILDING
WASHINGTON DC 20510
(202) 224-5641

Amy Klobuchar~Democrat
320 HART SENATE OFFICE BUILDING
WASHINGTON DC 20510
(202) 224-5641

U.S House

James Oberstar 8th district~Democrat
2365 Rayburn HOB
Washington, D.C. 20515
(202) 225-6211

Governor

Tim Pawlenty~ Republican
Office of the Governor
130 State Capitol
75 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
St. Paul, MN 55155
Telephone: (651) 296-3391

Minnesota Senate

Yvonne Prettner-Solon- 7th district~Democrat
75 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
Capitol Building, Room G-9
St. Paul, MN 55155-1606
651.296.4188

Minnesota House of Representatives

Mary Murphy~Democrat
343 State Office Building
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
Saint Paul, Minnesota 55155
651-296-2676 or 800-890-5428

County Board Representative

Peg Sweeney
5th District Commissioner
Room 208
100 N. 5th Avenue West
Duluth, MN 55802
(218) 726-2450

Mayor

Don Ness
City Hall
411 West First Street
Duluth, MN, 55802