The day before the inauguration...

We went to pick up our tickets at Susan Davis's office and it was so cool to actually walk the halls of the House of Representative's office building- marble floors, wood-paneled walls, big old double hung windows...you know I love old buildings! One of the security guards was chatting with us and asked where we were from. He said that we missed Arnold by a few minutes! We hung out in her office for a little reception, chatted with her for a bit, and got our tickets!

When we got back outside the streets were milling with people everywhere. We decided to walk to see where our tickets would be located for the ceremony. We found MSNBC taping and decided that if they were there, then CNN would be too so we went looking for our fav, Anderson Cooper. In our quest, we walked the entire length of the National Mall starting from the Capital Building and going all the way to the Lincoln Memorial! Paying homage to our forefathers...but never finding our "Silver Fox."

Next we took the Metro to Union Station to eat and shop. After being in the cold for so long and walking so darn far, a full tummy of food just made us oh so sleepy. Although we had free VIP tickets to see the rapper Common, we decided to go home and rest for the big event in the morning.

We got home and turned on CNN...and saw our man, Anderson Cooper, broadcasting from the steps of Capitol Building- where we had begun our search for him hours earlier. C'est la vie!

Inaugural Concert at Lincoln Memorial

Went there with my sister and friend, Alison. People- a sea of people all walking in the same direction as if they were being pulled by some unknown force. All with such a great energy and positive vibe. Excitement filling the air. My heart felt so full.

You know that you're spoiled when Stevie Wonder comes out to play and you're like, "Him again???" Haha! Somehow seeing him 1 mile away isn't same as watching from the 2nd row- call me crazy! ;)

The concert was hard to see because there were so many people. The speakers weren't very loud either. We decided to walk and see the White House. Then we went home and watched the concert on TV with a hot meal and jammies on...

Washington, DC

So this is off the topic of being "green", but I feel the need to journal my experiences while I am in DC for the inauguration...
- Had an Iraqi cab driver take me to the airport when I left San Diego and we discussed the inauguration. He said that he hoped Obama would make things better.
- Flew to Philly with a short stopover in Chicago (Obama's homestate) and landed to the most gorgeous blanket of snow as far as the eye could see. Lake Michgan was frozen solid the entire span across to Canada (not a normal occurance- global weirding anyone?).
- Landed in Philly where Obama and Biden would soon be boarding their train for their slow ride to Washington.
- We were chosen to be seat fillers at the BET Honors show- the last 2 chosen! We were able to sit in the 2nd row (Terrence Howard's seats!!) for most of the show because he was a presenter and didn't come to sit down until near the end of the show. We were surrounded by celebs- Cicely Tyson, Magic Johnson, Angela Bassett, Queen Latifah, Mary J. Blige...saw Stevie Wonder, Neyo, Anita Baker, Alvin Ailey Dance Theatre, and other perform. Saw Samuel L. Jackson, Whitney Houston, Diddy, Terrence Howard, and others present. When Terrence came to sit in his seats, he looked me straight in the eye and said, "Thank you," in his hot, scratchy voice. I almost melted, he's so good looking! A highlight was when Anita Baker sang the U2 song "One." I almost cried and had chills up and down my spine- AMAZING!!! It was an outstanding celebration of black achievement, Martin Luther King, and Obama. What a way to begin the inauguration weekend!! Watch it on BET February 9th and look for us! We'll be easy to spot since we were the ONLY white girls there... :)

Global "Weirding"

Ok so why is it 80 degrees in January? It's beautiful and I love the break from the cold, but come on! A poor, confused little birdy was chirping outside this morning at 6am. I wanted to find him and tell him to go back to bed, that the groundhog hasn't even looked for his shadow yet!

In Thomas Friedman's newest book, Hot, Flat, and Crowded, he has a chapter called "Global Weirding." A bird chirping at 6 am in January is just that- weird! It's just one of the many signs that climate change is real and is rapidly progressing way faster than anyone could ever imagine. What does more rapid climate change mean? Hotter summers, colder winters, no fall or spring, floods, droughts, stronger and more dangerous hurricanes, and ridiculous amounts of wildfires. Sound familiar?

As Heidi Cullen, a climate expert for the Weather Channel said, " It used to be that an unseasonably warm day in the middle of winter felt like a gift. But now it feels like we are paying for it."

Read Friedman's book! Frightening, but eyeopening...

Carbon Offsets

So I just purchased my "carbon offset" for my flight back east through http://www.terrapass.com/!! They have a cool calculator to help you determine your carbon footprint for your household energy use, driving, or air travel. It calculates your carbon output and tells you how much to pay to help sponsor clean energy projects.

They have 3 types that they support- clean energy such as wind or water power, farm power, and landfill gas capture. Now, methane gases from landfills contribute 21 times the greenhouse gases as CO2, but I do NOT agree with landfill gas capture at all. The reason methane is coming from landfills is because compostable materials are decomposing, thus producing these gases. If everyone composted their own organic waste and/or vermicomposted it, we would not have nearly the amount of methane gas coming out of landfills. Which is where I, Wormy Wendy, come in. People need to be educated on the importance of composting so that these materials DO NOT end up in landfills at all. Especially since our landfills are rapidly running out of room as I type.

The great things about Terrapass is that you can build your own offset portfolio and decide where your offsets will go. I opted out on contributing to landfill gas capture projects. The calculator determined that for flying 4,725 miles, it emits 1,320 lbs. of CO2. I opted for all of my offset contribution to fund "Clean Energy" projects. And the best part? It only cost me $11!

Snail Mail Guilt

I carried a lot of guilt when printing and addressing 30 letters to Gore and Oprah. There I was, boasting of my "green" ways and then wastefully mailing paper letters that used up oil to be transported to Chicago and Nashville... However, I hand wrote a "P.S." at the bottom asking them to recycle all my letters. Does that make it okay? Gore doesn't have a published email or I would have innundated him with emails- very annoying and spammish. Letters were the way to go... hopefully he gets them before he heads off to D.C. like the rest of us 2 million peeps.

DC or bust!!!

So in an attempt to make the most of our trip to the inauguration, I have written a letter to Al Gore asking to be invited to his "Green Inaugural Ball":

January 7, 2009

To the Honorable Mr. Gore,

I hope to make this letter short, but sweet. I am a 32 year old, single mother and first grade teacher in San Diego, California. I am also a big fan of all the environmental work that you do. I have been working hard to get the school where I teach to “Go Green” through the Go Green Initiative. I am proud to say that I have made great strides at my school implementing a recycling program and will soon be starting a vermicomposting program as well. I feel that schools are uncharted territory in the “green movement” and that there really needs to be more focused attention on requiring that all schools go green in the near future.

I am writing to you because I am coming to Washington, D.C. with my sister next weekend for President Elect Obama’s inauguration. My sister, 30 years old, is also an avid environmentalist, having done conservation work with orphaned lions in Africa. We both are full of enthusiasm and ideas for all things green. We would love to be invited to the Green Inaugural Ball that you will be hosting. I know that it is a long shot, but it doesn’t hurt to ask, right? We are both well-spoken, attractive young women and would be over-joyed at the opportunity to possibly meet you and network amongst the top “greenies” in the country.

If my letter hasn’t convinced you, I would enjoy talking to you more about why you should invite us. We are traveling so far and want to soak up all that this momentous inauguration has to offer. Thank you for your time!

Sincerely,

Wendy Berlin
http://www.wormywendy.com/

***Wish me luck!!!! Ms. Berlin Goes To Washington!!!

Be The Change

Make a pledge to be of service to your community and country this year. Sign up at:
http://www.bethechangeaction.org/pledge/actions

I did and am excited to continue to give back through my composting volunteer work, worm binning, and other environmental lifestyle choices!

Can the market sustain recycling?

Will Recycling in the U.S. become another casualty of the Economy?
By: Jill Buck (Go Green Intiative CEO)

Recycling is economically possible because there is a market for recyclable goods. However, a good deal of that market demand comes from Asia, and with the recent global economic downturn, recycling markets have become incredibly volatile and unpredictable, causing instability in our domestic recycling efforts. Recyclers are stockpiling recyclable materials in hopes of an upturn in the market, but if that doesn't occur, how long before our recyclables end up in landfills? Even if you are an eco-Grinch who maliciously throws your cans and bottles in your garbage just to be a pill, the fact is that our landfills simply cannot hold the recyclables that will go into them ifthe market for these commodities evaporates. And that's every taxpayers problem.
The more we throw away, the more space we take up in landfills. When a landfill becomes a "landfull", taxpayers have to build a new one. The less we throw away, the longer our landfills will last. The amount of taxpayer money we save by extending the longevity of our landfills is an important community benefit.In addition, because there are people who purchase recyclables, thatalso means that somebody gets paid to collect those recyclables. In many cases, that ‘somebody' is your local waste hauler, and the money collected on recyclables can be used to offset your garbage rate.Catchin' my drift? Recycling can be very beneficial to communities and individual taxpayers...but ONLY if there is somebody buying the material. And right now, we can't be sure Asian markets will hold.

From: the Go Green Initiative blog

Sheesh- what a Catch 22!!!! :(

Environmental resources and links

The below resources are listed in order by general information, general education - resources, games and contests/grants and then in country order (starting with the United States). These links are informational in nature and their inclusion is not meant as an endorsement by the Go Green Initiative Assocation.

General Information

• www.epa.gov - U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
• www.blm.gov/education/index.html - Bureau of Land Management
• www.nrc-recycle.org - National Recycling Coalition
• www.audubon.org - National Audubon Society
• www.ciwmb.ca.gov - California Integrated Waste Management Board
• www.afandpa.org - American Forest and Paper Association
• www.seiinc.org - Strategic Energy Innovations
• www.eren.doe.gov - U.S. Department of Energy
• www.rebuild.org - Rebuild America
• www.eia.doe.gov/kids (for kids who are interested in Energy information)

General Educational Resources

• www.epa.gov/region09/enviroed/material.html - Classroom material
• www.daviseducenter.org/EERGuide.html - Click on "Activity and Curriculum Guides and Kits"
• www.audubon.org - Click on "Audubon & You" then "Education"
• www.ase.org/greenschools/ - A project of the Alliance to Save Energy
• www.energyquest.ca.gov/index.html
• www.ase.org/greenschools/
• www.energy.gov/school/index.html
• www.need.org/ - National Energy Education Development
• www.nef1.org/programs.html - National Energy Foundation
• The U.S. Department of Energy publishes a resource book: "Energy Education Resources: Kindergarten through 12th Grade" lists 163 resources. It can be acquired from the Energy Information Administration, National Energy Information Center, U.S. Department ofEnergy, Forrestal Building, EL-30, Washington DC 20585.
• www.ourearth.org - Promotes environmental education and awareness
• www.doi.gov/subject.html - Department of the Interior – Index, Hasseveral different sections that have environmental information and each DOI region has an environmental education section.

Environmental Education Online Games
• www.kidsfootprint.org - all ages
• http://sustainability.publicradio.org/consumerconsequences/ - 4th –12th grade
• http://www.bbc.co.uk/sn/hottopics/climatechange/climate_challenge/ -targeted at adults
• www.operationclimatecontrol.co.uk/content/ - targeted at teens
• www.energyquest.ca.gov/ - K – 5th Environmental Contests and Grants
• www.volvoadventure.org - UNEP International Environmental Award forYoung People

"Green" Holidays
• www.arborday.org/ - Arbor Day
• www.nrc-recycle.org/americarecycles.aspx - America Recycles Day
• www.earthday.net/ - Earth Day

Go Green Radio
• www.modavox.com/voiceamerica/ - Go Green Radio, Fridays at 9 am PST/12pm EST, VoiceAmerica online network

taken from http://www.gogreenintiative.org/