Come to the Earth Democracy Conference at the Democracy Convention, August 7-11, in Madison

National and international policies based on neoliberal economics, corporate globalization, and "free" trade which aim to commodify, privatize and profit from almost every aspect of nature are destroying local communities and cultures, and the ecosystems on which all life depends. Earth Democracy is juxtaposed to this system and is grounded in the inherent rights of living beings and Mother Earth.

The Earth Democracy Conference will be one of several tracks at this year's Democracy Convention, to be held August 7 through 11 at Madison College, Madison Wisconsin. Earth Democracy  builds on the declaration adopted by the Ecojustice People's Movement Assembly at the 2010 US Social Forum which states: "We support the conclusion that only by 'living well', in harmony with each other and with Mother Earth, rather than 'living better,' based on an economic system of unlimited growth, dominance and exploitation, will the people of this planet not only survive but thrive."

The Earth Democracy Conference will bring together people who are working on the frontlines of the ecojustice movement to:

• democratize the electric grid and finance local renewable energy
• expose the corporatization of the "green" economy agenda
• recognize water as a fundamental right of people and nature
• combat global warming through creative action
• overcome corporate influence on school curricula and pursue earth-friendly curricula

Sessions include (full descriptions coming soon!): 
Thursday, August 8th- Sunday, August 11th
Awakening the Dreamer Symposium with The Pachamama Alliance Community

Action Tool Kit for Earth Democracy with Randa Solick and Ellen Murtha, Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom

Guardianship of Future Generations & Rights and Responsibilities of Present Generations/Writing Earth Rights into Law with Carolyn Raffensperger, Science and Environmental Health Network and Linda Sheehan, Earth Law Center Energy

Injustice & Environmental Racism: How Dirty Energy Impacts Communities with Mike Ewall Energy Justice Network

Teaching Earth Democracy with Erica Krug, Dan Walkner, and Susan Friess, Madison Public School Teachers

Powering up for People, Peace and the Planet: Re-envisioning the Climate Movement: Building Resistance, Collaboration, Transformation with Victor Wallis, writer on ecology and politics, Sherri Mitchell, Land Peace Foundation (Maine), Stephanie Kimball, 350.org-Madison, and Jill Stein

The Climate of Justice: Asserting our Human, Civil and Earth Rights with Lauren Regan, Civil Liberties Defense Center, Sherri Mitchell, and Jill Stein

Activist Training: Know Your Rights with Lauren Regan

Big Extraction/Big Pollution/Bigger Resistance with representatives from frontline Indigenous and local communities fighting the XL and Enbridge pipelines, sand pits, Penokee Hills Taconite Mine, Rio Tinto Eagle Mine and high capacity water pumping and David Cobb on community rights vs. corporate rights

Re-Envisioning the Climate Movement: Building Resistance, Collaboration, Transformation with Victor Wallis, Sherri Mitchell, and Jill Stein

Water for Life: Local Ordinances to Protect Water, Springs and Rivers with Jane Goddard Center for Earth Jurisprudence and Linda Sheehan

Contours of an Ecologically Sound Economy with Chris Wallace, writer on the ecological crisis and the commons, Rachel Smolker Biofuelwatch, and Mike Ewall

Stop the World’s Largest Trade Agreement’s Harm to the Earth, Agriculture and Food Systems with Jim Goodman, Family Farm Defenders, George Naylor, National Family Farm Coalition and others to be announced

Next Stage: Building the Movement for People, Peace and the Planet – From #Fearless Summer to Fearless All Year Round – dynamic group participant discussion

Alliance for Democracy, Green Action, and the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom thare the principal conveners of the Earth Democracy Conference. Contact Nancy Price at nancytprice39@gmail.com for more info.

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Do a little solar celebrating!

Good news from Oregonians for Renewable Energy Progress--the state's Solar Pilot Program will continue, thanks to passage of House Bill 2893. The bill adds 2.5 megawatts capacity to the program and extends it another year.

OREP, which for several years was a project of Alliance for Democracy, is about to "leave the nest" and become an independent not for profit group. We are delighted to see the campaign thrive, grow, and take this next step, and we'll continue to bring you news of their accomplishments, and work with them to protect gains in Oregon and expand the idea of feed-in tariffs to other states.

Check out OREP's latest newsletter here. And if you're in the Portland area, please join OREP at the Lucky Labrador, 1945 NW Quimby St., Portland, on Thursday June 6 from 5:30 to 7:00 PM for an informal happy hour. Raise a glass to renewable energy and a sustainable future!

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Getting past fossil fuels on "Populist Dialogues"

The latest edition of "Populist Dialogues" features Dan Serres of Columbia Waterkeeper and Judy Barnes who heads up Alliance for Democracy's sponsored project, Oregonians for Renewable Energy Policy.You can watch the show on Blip.tv here, or right in this post.



The first half of the show features Dan's perpectives on the problems of fossil fuels. Then Judy discusses renewable energy solutions that will help us keep old hydrocarbons in the ground. She focuses on what renewable energy advocates are now calling Clean Energy Contracts, formerly known as Feed-in Tariffs.

Populist Dialogues programs are also available on the show's YouTube channel, and are easy to comment on, and share online.Watch it, "like it," and share it with friends on social media, or in your hometown by rebroadcasting it on your local community cable station.

Sharing "Populist Dialogues" on community cable isn't difficult! Requirements vary between stations but are usually quite simple. Your station can download shows for free at PEGMedia (instructions are here), but we can also send shows on dvd or via filesharing. Email the office for more information at afd //at// thealliancefordemocracy.org.

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Populist Dialogues focuses on energy and environment, plus more resources for the September 22 Global Frackdown

Alliance for Democracy's Portland chapter produces the interview show "Populist Dialogues," hosted by AfD co-chair David Delk, and featuring activists, writers, and educators on an incredible variety of policy topics.

Here are a few of the shows they've done in the past year on energy and environment. If you're thinking of actions that can continue past the Global Frackdown, why not share these with your city through your community cable television station? They're available for rebroadcast free through PEGMedia, or you can request dvds to share at meetings by contacting the Alliance for Democracy office.

There are more video and print resources on fracking at the end of this post, so keep scrolling down!

Solutions to Jobs/Climate Crisis
David Delk interviews Dave King, Portland Jobs with Justice, and Ted Gleichman with Oregon Sierra Club LNG subcommittee on the dual problems of the jobs crisis and the climate crisis. Looks at how the solution to one should be the solution to the other and what some of those solutions are. First broadcast June 3, 2012




There's a coal train comin'! 
David interviews Laura Stevens of the Sierra Clubs campaign to stop using coal and opposing the building of coal export terminals in Oregon and Washington. First broadcast May 13, 2012


Community Based, Rights Based Organizing
Paul Cienfuegos, founder of Democracy Unlimited of Humboldt County in California, says that we need to cease being stuck in single issue campaigns and look at how we challenge corporate power. Democratically-instituted rights-based ordinances have challenged the corporate "right" to pollute or extract resources in Maine, New Hampshire, and Pennsylvania. Here's how they work. First broadcast 1-1-12

 


How do Feed-In Tariff work to rapidly jump start production of renewable energy and produce good paying jobs?


David talks with Judy Barnes, co-founder of Oregonian for Renewable Energy Policy, on the use of Feed-In Tariffs to address the global climate crisis by quickly jump starting the production of renewable energy sources and good paying green jobs at the same time. First broadcast on 5-22-11




And from other groups, elsewhere online: 
In this “Viewpoint” web exclusive, Josh Fox, environmental activist and director of “Gasland,” talks about fracking and his new “emergency film,” The Sky is Pink about the impact of fracking on NY state, where Gov. Andrew Cuomo is considering allowing fracking in just a few counties.

 “Hydraulic Fracturing and Water Resources: Separating the Frack from the Fiction” by the Pacific Institute, Oakland, CA, is an excellent source for detailed information, charts and maps on the threat of natural gas fracking to our fresh water resources and health.

“Scientists Tell Senate Panel: Climate Change Is Here and Disaster Costs Will Be Huge”

 “Common Sense: Banning Fracking at the Local Level” Go to the Fracking Action Center for:  “How Much Do You Know About Fracking?,” “Why Ban Fracking?,” “Hazards to Drinking Water Aren’t the Only Reasons,” “Ready to Ban Fracking?,” “Your Efforts to Grow the Movement are WORKING,” and much more.

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OREP's monthly webinar focuses on feed-in tariffs in Germany

If you're interested in building the social and political supports for locally-produced renewable energy, check out the audio recording of Oregonians for Renewable Energy Policy's January Conference Call, now available on OREP's website at the Webinars page.

Guest speakers Rep. Jules Bailey, a state senator representing southeast Portland, (D-OR, district 42) and Jeff Bissonnette, organizing director for the Citizens's Utility Board of Oregon, shared their experiences from their recent Climate & Energy Study Tour to Germany.

OREP secured places for Bailey and Bissonnette to participate in the study tour this past December. The tour was sponsored by the American Council on Germany, and it enabled participants to learn directly from German government officials, business leaders and researchers about Germany's successful climate/energy policies. Jules and Jeff generously agreed to share their impressions, a portion of what they learned firsthand during their intensive study tour and answer audience questions.

If you have questions after listening to the audio, please feel free to contact either of our speakers directly:
Jules Bailey
rep.julesbailey@state.or.us
503-986-1442

Jeff Bissonnette
jeff@oregoncub.org
503-516-1636

The OREP team thanks everyone who participated in this well-attended conference call.

Oregonians for Renewable Energy Policy (OREP) is a sponsored project of the Alliance for Democracy. OREP promotes Feed-In Tariff policies that produce good economic, environmental and social outcomes at reasonable costs. To request a speaker, host an Energy Future House Party or volunteer, call Judy at 503-232-1911. To support the work of Oregonians for Renewable Energy Policy, you can make a donation through Alliance for Democracy here.

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OREP Action Bulletin out now

The Oregonians for Renewable Energy Policy (OREP) Action Bulletin is online here. Check it out! Highlights include upcoming events, links to online video on feed-in tariffs, frequently-asked questions to bring you up to speed on equitable and localized development of solar power. OREP is a sponsored project of Alliance for Democracy.

Did you know...
Last month, OREP was invited to join the Steering Committee for Alliance for Renewable Energy... That OREP's outreach to Occupy Portland activists added feed-in tariffs to the Solutions Work Group's discussion... that OREP is now a member of the NW Energy Coalition, an alliance of more than 100 environmental, civic, and human service organizations, progressive utilities, and businesses in Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana, Alaska and British Columbia. NWEC promotes development of renewable energy, energy conservation, consumer protection, low-income energy assistance, and fish and wildlife restoration.

For more information, see the OREP website, www.oregonrenewables.com.

Check out OREP organizer Judy Barnes on the Alliance for Democracy show, "Populist Dialogues":

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Oregonians for Renewable Energy Policy: What's a feed-in tariff?

What's a feed-in tariff and why is it so important for development of alternative, renewable energy? Judy Barnes of Oregonians for Renewable Energy Policy (OREP) explains it as "a piggy bank on your roof"--a guaranteed predetermined fixed price for each kilowatt hour of alternative energy you produce for a fixed amount of time, usually 20 years. OREP concentrates on developing solar power in Oregon, confident that by growing the current state feed-in tariff program, they can develop widespread solar capacity in the state. In this video, Judy gives a quick overview of feed-in tariffs and how they've worked. For instance, in Germany, feed-in tariffs have produced not just clean energy but 370,000 jobs, while lowering overall costs for solar power. Ontario's feed-in tariff program is new, but has already created 43,000 jobs, produced 5,000 megawatts of renewable energy, and has put the province on track to close all its coal-fired plants by 2014. Watch to learn more about organizing in Oregon to achieve these same successes.

The video was filmed at the international Moving Planet event in Portland, Oregon, on September 24, and was produced by Jim Lockhart, www.PhilosopherSeed.org. OREP is sponsored by Alliance for Democracy, and works closely with AfD's Portland, OR, chapter.

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What you can do to protect renewable energy development in Oregon

Thanks to strong citizen advocacy and progressive political leadership, Oregon is deservedly known as a national leader in the response to climate change and the transition away from fossil fuels for electricity generation.

All that is now at risk due to proposed state budget cuts, cuts that will drastically impact Oregon's Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency funding. But with your help, we can stop these short-sighted cuts to our renewable energy programs.

Oregonians for Renewable Energy Policy (OREP) is working to preserve this funding. Join with OREP's efforts from now through the end of the legislative session in mid-June to continue Oregon's progress toward a sustainable energy future. And support OREP today with a donation, to keep its advocacy strong.

How bad are the cuts? The Tax Credit Subcommittee of Ways and Means and Senate and House leadership want to put a $10 million cap on all types of tax credits. They plan to:

• Cut the available Residential Energy Tax Credit by 97%, from $34 million to $1 million.
• Cut the Business Energy Tax Credit more than 99% (from $300 million for renewables alone in 2009-11 to $2 million to cover both renewables and conservation in 2011-13).

To find out more, read "BETC Facing Massive Cutbacks" here.

Our elected officials need to hear from us NOW!

Short term savings on renewable energy tax credits will cost Oregonians and their economy more in the long term:

• more for oil--including the costs of military actions to secure overseas supplies
• more for public health damaged by air pollution and climate change
• more for climate-related damage to our environment, agriculture, fishing, and forests
• more job loss in our growing green jobs sector

It's time to let your legislators know that support for clean energy is a priority, not a luxury. Fossil fuel is not our future, and the "innovative" extractive projects now underway, like the Alberta Tar Sands, create far more pollution, corruption, and destruction.

OREP has long advocated for a more stable and cost-effective financing method for renewable energy and conservation programs. They still do. It is the same funding tool Germany so successfully used to become the world’s leader in solar energy and is the reason why it can now confidently declare it will shut all its nuclear plants by 2022. Ontario, Canada is also using the guaranteed pricing structure tool (aka feed-in tariff) to shut down all its coal plants by 2014. Use of this policy tool has also created hundreds of thousands of good jobs.

Maintaining a reasonable level of maintenance funding until we have an alternative in place will preserve our prior investment. So severely de-funding the programs that built Oregon’s reputation sends the wrong message to Oregon’s citizens, to our children and the entire nation, who look to Oregon for leadership.

Responsible leadership requires a measured transition to a more stable financing mechanism while not losing our prior public investment.


What you can do!

• Write letters and follow up with phone calls to your state senator and representative asking them to preserve Oregon's commitment to a clean energy future. Also contact House Co-Speakers Arnie Roblan and Bruce Hanna, Senate President Peter Courtney, Senate Majority Leader Diane Rosenbaum and Minority Leader Ted Ferrioli. Address: 900 Court St. NE, Salem, OR 97301 PH: 503-986-1000.
• Call Governor Kitzhaber and ask him to play an active role in the State Legislature to retain Oregon's leadership position on clean energy (Comment line: 503-378-4582 )
• Become a Facebook friend to OREP and share these action items with your network
• Support OREP’s work with as generous a donation as you can. OREP’s groundbreaking work on the state’s Feed-In Tariff program has led to real progress in development of local, small-scale solar electric production—“democratizing the grid” to ensure a cleaner, and fairer, energy future. For more information on OREP, please visit their website, OregonRenewables.com

Only the voice of Oregon's citizens demanding responsible leadership will preserve our clean energy future. Please take action now to keep Oregon's renewable energy programs a model for the nation, and to preserve our environment, our economy, and our public health.

Thank you,
Nancy Price, AfD Co-chair
David e. Delk, AfD Co-chair

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OREP offers Energy Future House Parties

If you're an Oregon resident and concerned about energy, OREP (Oregonians for Renewable Energy Policy) can teach you and your neighbors about the role feed-in tariffs play in promoting sustainability and climate protection.

Feed-in tariffs are guaranteed payments per kilowatt hour for electricity produced by a renewable resource. In Oregon's case, it's home-based solar power. Feed-in tariffs have become the world's most widely used mechanism to inexpensively and quickly promote renewable energy generation capacity. They also "democratize the grid" by enabling small-scale production by homeowners, farmers, coops and First Nations to participate on an equal footing with large commercial developers.

Contact Judi at judy@oregonrenewables.com to find out about hosting an "Energy Future House Party," and learn more about how OREP has helped institute and improve Oregon's feed-in tariff program. A speaker from OREP will give a presentation and answer questions about costs and benefits, including their substantial job creation potential.

In April, Oregon Governor John Kitzhaber announced his intention to start development of a ten-year energy plan for the state. OREP hopes to play an active role in that process through the promotion of a robust feed-in tariff program, and encourage wide public involvement as well.

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OREP Policy Digest online!

Oregonians for Renewable Energy Policy (OREP) has launched an online newsletter, OREP Policy Digest. OREP promotes feed-in tariff policies in order to expand local production of renewable energy. Feed-in tariffs are in use in more than 60 countries, and are responsible for 75% of the world’s solar energy and 45% of its wind.

The first issue focuses on global, national and state developments including use of feed-in tariffs in Italy and the UK, an ambitious program in Ontario that will create 70,000 jobs and cost taxpayers the equivalent of "a donut a month," a "how-to" on Oregon's program, and frequently asked questions.

You can learn more about OREP, and subscribe to the newsletter, at their website. You can also donate to OREP to support the growth of renewable energy in Oregon through Alliance for Democracy here.

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More on Oregon's feed-in tariff program

Here's a more detailed look at how Oregon's new feed-in tariff program is working for one participating family. The pilot program is designed to encourage local production of solar power, and is backed by AfD partner organization Oregonians for Renewable Energy Policy (OREP).

by Richard Read. Posted September 1 on The Oregonian
Like almost all Oregonians, Jeff Ramp has paid utility bills for years to power his home, which sits on an onion farm near Salem.

But within a few weeks, Ramp will start receiving monthly checks from Portland General Electric Co. instead. The utility will pay him a premium for solar energy he produces and consumes. The checks will keep coming for 15 years and could exceed $600 a month, ultimately more than repaying his investment.

Ramp, 61, is the first PGE customer to generate electricity under a pilot program in which utilities pay homeowners for power produced from solar panels. The program, also available to Pacific Power customers, proved so popular when it launched July 1 that available spots ran out in 15 minutes. The next chance to apply is Oct. 1.

"I've been wanting to do this for years, but it never made economical sense," Ramp said. "I like to take advantage of what nature will give you."

Directed by the Legislature, Oregon's Public Utility Commission launched the solar program in such a hurry that Ramp and other early adapters had to wait while installers and utility workers refined details.

PGE managers overcame a glitch in insurance requirements. An electrician returned to Ramp's house and rewired a meter after the utility developed specifications. The fixes will smooth the way for the next round.

Solar advocates say a far more significant barrier is posed by an obscure federal regulation, interpreted by state officials as preventing homeowners from selling to utilities any power beyond what they consume. Because of the regulation, Oregon and other states have stopped short of an approach that has boosted solar power in Europe and Canada's Ontario province, where homeowners sell their surplus electricity to power companies.

Under Oregon's pilot program, revenue from surplus electricity is donated to Oregon Heat, a low-income energy-assistance organization. A spokeswoman for the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, which presides over the U.S. energy system, declined to comment Wednesday on the sell-back prohibition.

National Solar Inc.'s Kim Berhorst, who helped design Ramp's system and managed the project, is pleased to see Oregon's pilot program move forward. She hopes residents of Oregon and other states will eventually be allowed to sell excess solar power to utilities, using a so-called feed-in tariff system.

"This is a first step toward trying to craft a true feed-in tariff for the state of Oregon," Berhorst said. "That's the only way for the United States to catch up with people in Europe and Ontario."

Berhorst said she discovered while working on Ramp's system that insurance companies would not allow residential customers to add liability coverage for PGE to their homeowners' policies. PGE amended its contract language to waive the provision.

In Central Oregon, homeowner George Jameson got his solar system running Aug. 11 with minimal problems, apparently becoming the first person in the state to connect under the pilot program. Jameson, 66, a retiree from the computer industry, said the only hitch was Pacific Power's refusal to tell him what day -- let alone what time -- its technician would arrive to install meters.

"They eventually showed up," Jameson said, "and, luckily, we were here."

Jameson and his wife, Deanna, spent just over $20,000 on their system, installed by Bend's Sunlight Solar Energy. The Crooked River Ranch residents are eligible for a 30 percent federal tax credit. But like all participants in Oregon's pilot program, they're ineligible for state tax credits and cash incentives.

Oregon residents can still qualify for those local perks, and the federal credit, if they install solar systems without applying to receive utility checks.

The Jamesons expect checks averaging about $185 a month, meaning they'll break even in about nine years -- profiting during the remainder of their 15-year contract with Pacific Power. George Jameson marvels over an idiosyncrasy of the system that encourages him to burn more energy in order to receive bigger payments. He's not likely to do so, given his interest in conservation.

In Brooks, Ramp expects a payback in roughly the same time period as Jameson. Ramp spent $63,000 on his 9,900-watt system, which uses U.S.-made panels and electrical inverters manufactured by Bend's PV Powered Inc.

Payback times may be somewhat longer for future applicants. That's because the Public Utility Commission could decide during a Sept. 21 public hearing in Salem to reduce payment amounts by 10 percent, as requested by PGE and Pacific Power, due to the program's popularity.

Also -- perhaps predictably, during tight budgetary times -- state and federal officials have decided homeowners must pay income tax on the utility payments they receive.

The determination doesn't faze Jameson. "If you're going to tax me on the revenue that comes from that solar system," he said, "I can depreciate that asset."

How to apply: Utility customers can apply to enter the next round of Oregon's solar pilot program starting at 8 a.m. Oct. 1. They'd better be prompt. When the program opened July 1, applicants snapped up available spots in 15 minutes. Successful applicants can proceed to install solar panels and receive monthly checks at premium rates for power they produce and use themselves.

Pacific Power customers can apply online for the company's Solar Incentive Program. Portland General Electric customers can apply for PGE's Solar Payment Option. Applicants must come prepared with detailed information concerning their proposed project.

Idaho's Power customers in Oregon are also eligible, starting at the same hour. They can apply for the utility's Oregon Solar Photovoltaic Pilot Program.

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Good news on OREP!

Portland's Alliance for Democracy is excited that, in part because of our efforts and the efforts of the AfD sponsored program, Oregonians for Renewable Energy Policies (OREP), Oregon is now the first state to have a statewide Feed-In Tariff program.

Alliance for Democracy's sponsored advocacy group, Oregonians for Renewable Energy Policy, has been involved in this effort to "democratize the grid" for the past year and a half, first working with the Oregon legislature and then with the Public Utility Commission (PUC). 

In the media, The Oregonian noted the involvement of OREP in the process and included our Judy Barnes with a quote in the front page article announcing the program beginning. An AfD supporter and a key activist working with Judy, Mark Pengilly, was quoted in the next day's business page article, which noted that by day two all of the program, all of the openings for phase 1 had been filled.

Our efforts have been to develop a program which would allow average people to develop renewable energy on our rooftops and in our neighborhoods where the energy will be used instead of on large remote sites requiring the building of additional expensive grid capacity. Up to this point, those big projects have benefited large multinational corporations while leaving the average Joe outside looking in.  Now we can get be involved in our own clean energy future. 

While we are happy that the program is up and running, much more needs to be done to make it truly a real feed-in tariff program.  Judy and Mark and Teddy and the rest of us here at Alliance for Democracy, Portland are going to continue working on this until the state of Oregon gets it completely right. 

Please visit the Oregonians for Renewable Energy Policy website for more details on this project. And watch the video below, with Jim Lockhart interviewing Judy Barnes on the topic of feed-in tariffs.  This interview was conducted before the Oregon PUC rules were released and before the release of the program to the public. If you'd like more information, please email Judy at jbarnes@hevanet.com.

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