The Loma Prietan - November/December 2009

Well, hello again. I'd like to pass along a shot of real good news regarding funding for the Chapter. Just recently we landed two grants: one from the Silicon Valley Community Foundation for $75,000, and one from the Thomberg Family Foundation for $15,000. Both grants are for a program we call Building Climate- Friendly Communities, the essence of which is building grassroots momentum through our Cool Cities Teams to promote transit-oriented development within our region and thereby considerably cut private automobile use (a huge percentage of our greenhouse gas releases).

One of the primary focus points is the vision that we can turn El Camino Real into a 'Grand Boulevard,' with shops and stores at ground level, housing situated above the shops, mixed offices/housing, and open spaces interspersed throughout. With dense enough development, the shops will be able to survive, local transit will be effective and efficient, and people will be encouraged to stay out of their cars and walk or bike around their neighborhoods. We, and others, believe this can be one of the most effective ways to curb greenhouse gases.

Kickoff Event on November 14

The kickoff event for this effort will be on Saturday, November 14 at 9:00 am, in the Menlo Park City Council Chambers. See lomaprietaglobalwarming.sierraclub.org/events.php for more details. We encourage everyone who might be interested to stop on by; this will be a great way to make a difference for your environment.

Among other reasons, the Chapter applied for the grants because the Sierra Club itself, partly as a result of the economy, has seen some significant decreases in its traditional sources of funding. That has meant that the Chapter in turn has seen a decrease in the funding it receives from the Club.

Although the Chapter has tightened its belt, reducing discretionary spending and staff hours, we have taken steps to improve our own fundraising ability, so as not to be so reliant on the national Club. Our Major Donor program, for example, is starting to connect; and although fewer people seem to be in a position to give, those that can seem to be chipping in more. We believe that once the economy picks up, our donors will also step up. And, of course, we continue to look for grants.

One other note on our fundraising: we will be doing a year-end appeal around the end of November, and could use the support of everyone. We still need to raise some more funds to fully fund the Building Climate-Friendly Communities effort as well as to support our ongoing conservation activities. We appreciate any amount, no matter how small.