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Home My WebLink About10-14-14 Sustainability Letter from Wren Kilian with attachmentsDATE: 10/14/14 FROM: Wren Kilian TO: Bozeman City Commission Dear City Commissioners, I would like to thank you for your service to our city, and for your positive work for our community. I also thank you for your time and consideration in reading this letter and at last week's meeting. I have many recommendations to our city that need to be acted upon to improve the status quo. We may have doubled our recycling rate with the single stream, but we are putting whole houses in the landﬁll with tons of salvageable material each such as a couple tons of 100 year old timbers, and clear ﬁr trim from the two homes donated to the co-op in good faith by an elderly woman only to have them end up in the landﬁll. We send tons of yard and food waste to the landﬁll (sept. 30 is last day for compost pickup) while in Washington,residents are ﬁned for doing such things. People come here from all over the U.S. and world, and are appalled at what we throw away. Recycling bins are few and far between, and our state is close to last in the nation in recycling. We teach our kids in the schools to eat off of and with plastic, using it once for ﬁfteen minutes (something made from oil which took 70 million years to create) and throwing it away. We have only 5% of the worlds population, yet consume more resources and produce more trash than any other country. Net zero is possible and it creates jobs and healthy communities. States like South Dakota are at over 60 % recycling, San Francisco is close to 90% , and Humboldt County is well over 90%. Why do we call ourselves "the last best place" , but we could be doing so much more to keep it that way for the long term? If you ever rode your bike across Montana you would be appalled at the roadside trash, that will all ﬁnd its way to the rivers and sea. You might be one of the 20-25 % of those who don't litter, who use reusable bags , and who recycle, but we really need to educate and motivate the other 75% or the millions of animals that are dying each year from plastic pollution, and the 5, thousands of miles across, gyres in our oceans with 6 times more plastic than plankton are going to become an unsolvable problem very quickly. Please see the Valley of the Flowers Project Facebook page and website ( valleyoftheﬂowersproject.org), and come to the ﬁlm screening of "Bag It! Is Your Life Too Plastic?" at the Bozeman Public Library at 6:30 p.m. this Friday, October 18th to learn how you can help our area become more sustainable. There are many who are pulling together in this community to try to ﬁnd positive solutions to the problems of our times. A collaborative effort between businesses, local government, the university, and local non proﬁts and other community building groups can really transform our area and create a model for sustainability that will spread like wildﬂowers across our nation. When people are made aware and are given an easy choice , they will do the right thing. Sincerely, Wren Kilian VALLEY OF THE FLOWERS PROJECT Sustainability Supporter App Living, Locally, Sustainably A digital hub for sustannabmty conscious clients to easily locate and patronize businesses with a ~ike minded lower impact approach. Will also allow businesses to network and learn by example how transitioning to sustainable practices can be money saving and morale boosting .. Promoting strong healthy communities by carrying local productsD using Energy Star appliances and programmable thermostats, recycling and composting, and utilizing renewable energy~ are a few examples of how being sustainable can be a arketing tool to customers who want to spend their money where their ethics are respected and reinforced. BENEFITS INCLUDE: -a sustainability supporter sticker to proudly display -readily found by customers, "app with a mapn ~~~~" -networking with successful sustainable businesses -free seminars (1/15-What is a B-Corp?) step towards sustainability is a step towards a more positive future PROUDLY Keeping the Best in the Last Best Place September ~7, 2014 Vaf!e of the F!owers Project Letter of Support Dear The VaHey of the Flowers Project is an initiative sponsored by the 501 c3 non profit Community Outdoor Recreation Association (C.O.R.A.) with a. miss1on to help communities become sustainable( net z:ero), healthy, creathte, vtbrant places to live through innovative programs which educate and empower indjviduals and foster and deepen our connection to the natural world. Our first campaign is a positive and community buHding way of reducing/eliminating singie-use bag consumption called 1'Bring Your Own Bag and Make Change tor Good". Many stores give a $.05 or $.10 refund to customers who use their own bags. This program will create a computer tany allowing customers to donate their nickel or dime (or penny} refund into a community grant f'und A different grant recipient/participating organization with a specific project will receive the monthly tota.l grant: monies from al! participating stores. A. simultaneous marketing campaign will raise awareness about the tremendous environmental damage single use products are causing as weU as promoting the work of the current grant recipient. As a mother, grandmother, and community member concerned about the legacy we are leaving for future generations, I am hopeful that this work will be a catatyst for our town and world to pick up the pace towards becoming more sustainable. Valley of the Flowers Project plans to collaborate with universities, schools, and city officials as well as businesses, groups, and organizations. Our website is www.valleyoftheflowersproject.org, and you can also follow and like us on Facebook. Funding wi!! be in place by 1/15, and our area wm be a mode! which wm spread like wildftowers across the planet. Please use the form below to sign on as a supporter of the Valley of the Flowers Project, and together we will make a difference. Thank you . Wren __ YES! I ,and/or my organization, ,support the work of the Valley of the Flowers Project to create a more sustainable America and world for future generations, to build community and foster our connection to nature. NAME. TITLE: ________ _ ADDRESS : CITY,STATE,ZIP ____ _ PHONE NUMBER: FAX: ______ _ EMAIL: _________________________ _ _ please add me to the Valley of the Flowers Project list serve/sustainability supporter app __please send me a sticker to display and proudly show my support _please use our logo on your website and flyers that list us as a supporter _we would like to be a participating store/organization in the BYOB and Make Change program Please return to· Wren Kilian, 304 S 9th, Bozeman, MT, 59715 wrenrainbow@yahoo.com r I I 9/24/14 Dear store owner, I have recently learned of a woman, Wren Kilian, who has started a non-proﬁt to increase awareness and action in our area in the sustainability arena and is seeking support for a voluntary single use bag reduction program called "Bring Your Own Bag and Make Change for Good". This program uses the principle of "attracting more bees with honey than with vinegar" as the bans and taxes get a negative response from many customers. I really think this idea would reduce bag use, and the community would really get behind the good it's doing for the environment as well as the community. Please be a change maker and try something that could really catch on and make a big difference. It seems like you have so much to gain, and not any risk at all in trying this program out for a trial run. The Valley the Flowers Project already has three local stores signed up to participate, including the Rocky Mountain Toy Company, but a grocery store would be a boon. Thank you for your time and consideration, and I hope to see Wren announcing soon that your store has joined in to support the Valley of the Flowers Project's sustainability campaign. Sincerely, September 17, 2014 Valley of the Flowers Project Letter of Support Dear , The Valley of the Flowers Project is an initiative sponsored by the 501c3 non proﬁt Community Outdoor Recreation Association (C.O.R.A.) with a mission to help communities become sustainable(net zero), healthy, creative, vibrant places to live through innovative programs which educate and empower individuals and foster and deepen our connection to the natural world. Our ﬁrst campaign is a positive and community building way of reducing/eliminating single-use bag consumption called "Bring Your Own Bag and Make Change for Good". Many stores give a $.05 or $.10 refund to customers who use their own bags. This program will create a computer tally allowing customers to donate their nickel or dime (or penny) refund into a community grant fund. A different grant recipient with a speciﬁc project will receive the monthly total grant monies from all participating stores. A simultaneous marketing campaign will raise awareness about the tremendous environmental damage single use products are causing as well as promoting the work of the current grant recipient. As a mother, grandmother, and community member concerned about the legacy we are leaving for future generations, I am hopeful that this work will be a catalyst for our town and world to pick up the pace towards becoming more sustainable. Valley of the Flowers Project plans to collaborate with universities, schools, and city ofﬁcials as well as businesses, groups, and organizations. Our website is www.valleyoftheﬂowersproject.org, and you can also follow and like us on Facebook. Funding will be in place by 1/15, and our area will be a model which will spread like wildﬂowers across the planet. Please use the form below to sign on as a supporter of the Valley of the Flowers Project, and together we will make a difference. Thank you, Wren _____YES! I ,and/or my organization,___________________________________________________,support the work of the Valley of the Flowers Project to create a more sustainable America and world for future generations, to build community and foster our connection to nature. NAME:_______________________________________TITLE:___________________ ADDRESS:__________________________________CITY,STATE,ZIP_____________ PHONE NUMBER:________________________________FAX:__________________ E MAIL:_______________________________________________________________ ___ please add me to the Valley of the Flowers Project list serve/sustainability supporter app ___please send me a sticker to display and proudly show my support ___please use our logo on your website and ﬂyers that list us as a supporter ___we would like to be a participating store/organization in the BYOB and Make Change program Please return to: Wren Kilian, 304 S. 9th, Bozeman, MT, 59715 wrenrainbow@yahoo.com I '-=-~1