Recent photos from Alaska...
Various EPA Brownfields / Alaskan consulting jobs planned over the next decade:
Article: Jonesboro Sun; Reporter: Mrs. Karin Hill
Eco-friendly area resident heads to Alaska
By Karin Hill
JONESBORO — A Jonesboro businessman with a penchant for science, adventure and saving the planet is picking up and moving to Alaska, where his new job description should satisfy all three of those interests — and many more.
Len Pipkin, owner of Massanelli’s Cleaners in downtown Jonesboro, moved here from Memphis a few years ago to take over the operation of this decades-old business and soon gained notice for its environmentally friendly processes and chemicals.
Pipkin became involved in both local and statewide endeavors to promote environmental stewardship and renewable energy. Last year he became a key player in the Arkansas Wind Working Group and continued to make contacts with individuals and agencies on a national level, learning more about related issues.
One thing led to another, and he received a unique job offer: to become the Kuskokwim Watershed Council’s Alaskan Brownsfield Coordinator. He starts Friday.
The focus of the program is to collaborate with communities in the Kuskokwim River Watershed — an area covering about 58,000 square miles, larger than the state of Arkansas and the Missouri Bootheel combined. Pipkin will work with communities to inventory potential brownfield sites, foster public participation in cleanup and reuse of contaminated sites, provide relevant training, maintain a watershed-wide record of contaminated sites for the public to access and assist with an environmental assessment of sites.
Brownfields
Brownfields are contaminated sites that could be targeted for cleanup and redevelopment. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, a brownfields site is defined as “real property, the expansion, redevelopment, or reuse of which may be complicated by the presence or potential presence of a hazardous substance, pollutant or contaminant.”
In 2002 Congress passed the Small Business Liability Protection and Brownfields Revitalization Act, which authorized funding for states and tribes to develop response programs to address the assessment, cleanup, and redevelopment of brownfields. Since its passage, the Brownfields Law has presented a number of opportunities for the cleanup and reuse of contaminated lands.
Examples of potential brownfields include old or illegal dumps; oil spills; abandoned or idle structures with lead paint, asbestos or other hazardous materials; old fuel storage areas or former gas stations; and mine-scarred land.
Types of reuse could be community centers, parks, staging areas, transfer sites, habitat restoration, and housing.
But his purpose in Alaska won’t be entirely about helping the environment. Much of it will have to do with economics.
“Within the last 16 months, the two largest gold veins in the history of the North American continent have been located, prepped for mining and now are just waiting for the 36 indigenous tribes to work out their differences regarding the matter,” Pipkin said.
Global impact
With all the economic unrest in the world, countries straying from the gold standard and the U.S. dollar, Pipkin said events unfolding around the gold mines — located within his territory — will be one of his major concerns.
“So, aside from the stated brownfields job requirements, my area and territory covered are tasked with three additional social-anthropological areas to attempt to work a bit of magic: the economy — saving the dollar’s value; energy policy — using what source is indigenous to any particular tract of land. Is it to be federally controlled, or continue to be a matter of privatization — where nothing is apparently getting done due to too many vested interests being involved, equaling a state of ceaseless gridlock, too many ulterior motives being manifested by those with the true power to change things for the better ...; and finally, to liaise between the tribes within the areas in question as mediator ... .”
Pipkin said his territory will become one of the world’s hotspots just from a fiduciary standpoint.
“Ditto for renewable energy, etc.,” he said. “Each of us going, in light of what our particular strengths happen to be, are basically being given carte blanche to go to Alaska — imagine an enormous, frigid petri dish — assume and exert influence where necessary, in hoping to create a sustainable model for the lower 48 to follow.”
According to a Kuskokwim Watershed Council press release on Pipkin’s selection for the job, the coordinator would need “GIS capabilities, grant-writing skills, community outreach experience, conflict resolution skills, watershed-water table analytical abilities, a working knowledge of international fishing regulations and maritime law; an extensive grasp of environmental policy, former Bureau of Indian Affairs experience, the ability to speak Russian, and an individual possessing inroads and contacts where many renewable energy sectors are concerned.”
Pipkin, whose resume includes a wide variety of experiences, had picked up some Russian while serving with the U.S. Marines as they trained foreign troops around the time the Soviet Union broke apart. This took place in Alaska, as did his initial cold-weather training with the Marines.
His cold-weather training and love of adventure will be a necessity.
“With my coverage area being approximately 60,000 square miles, and on any day wearing the multiple hats of the White House’s Council on Environmental Quality, the EPA, the Bureau of Indian affairs, various tribal consortiums, the Army Corps of Engineers, but primarily the Kuskokwin River Watershed Council — I could quite possibly find myself in parts unknown for several weeks on end,” Pipkin said.
Pipkin’s wife, Sandie, will handle the business in Jonesboro for the time being. Once their two young daughters have completed the school year at Valley View, she’ll move with them and Pipkin’s mother to Anchorage on a permanent basis.
Pipkin said they have not yet made any decisions regarding the ownership of Massanelli’s. For the time being, he is concentrating on getting established in his new home and preparing to take on much work.
“Yes, my plate is full indeed,” he said. “That is where my motivation to accept the position arises from being equal parts scientist, academic and adventurous outlaw.”
khill@jonesborosun.com
Off to New Orleans...
http://www.brownfieldsconference.org/en/Index.aspx
http://epa.gov/brownfields/bfconf.htm
http://www.brownfieldstsc.org/
Particular Area of Interest...
http://kuskokwimcouncil.org/home.html
11.11.09
After my last speaking engagement in Little Rock, AR, I walked about the state capitol grounds for a while- and in doing so- ran across certain statuary and inscriptions there-on of interest; with Veteran’s Day approaching, I hurriedly snapped a few pix, and headed back to Jonesboro. Service to one’s country is a multi-faceted, myriad layered and wholly unique experience, for better or worse- to every citizen / soldier, officer / gentleman or young woman whose ever earned their stripes. After a bit of reflection, the photo which follows, was the one monument I felt said more with less (which is a virtue...)!
Thanks to those of you who forwarded well wishes my way, today; the sentiments expressed were heartfelt and genuine- as is my appreciation. On behalf of those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice, though, all I ask of you is at a moment of convenience to remember them: irrespective of party leaning, partisan vitriol or personal affiliations / axes to grind- simply remember them.
Shakespeare proclaimed that: some are born great, some achieve greatness and some have greatness thrust upon them- - the subtle nuances contained within the bard’s quip are yours to discern in this arena of ideas. Again, all I ask is that you... remember…
Days ago, several friends of mine returned from a cross country jaunt through New Zealand - photos below. Beforehand, I christened their trip and sent them forth with a solitary request, "Find for me as much information as humanly possible about several architects while there: Ceceile Bonnifait and William Giesen - as well as - their mind blowing eco creation: The Port - a - Batch - website(s) below pics. This is definately one of the top 5 technological / architectural must haves of the young 21st century: a fully mobile, off - grid, pod - like, ultra chic, self sufficient / sustainable lodging - Bravo, Kiwis'!
http://www.atelierworkshop.com/pab-views.htm
http://www.atelierworkshop.com/maint.htm
http://www.port-a-bach.com/
My Ghouls' This Year: Olivia = Vampiress / Posey = Zebra
2009
10 / 2009 Happy Halloween!
I believe for this year's festivities, I'll take the clan back to our state's truly haunted hotel - The Crescent - built circa 1886; if I survive the weekend - speak to you next week...
http://crescent-hotel.com/bakerstory.htm
Hear Ye! Hear Ye!
Central Arkansas' only
GREEN JOBS FAIR!
Free for students & the public!
Date: Wednesday, October 21
Time: 9-11:30am
Location: Donaghey Student Center, UALR
Email sustainability@ualr.edu or call Nancy Landrum at 569-8850 for additional information!
http://srwqis.tamu.edu/arkansas.aspx
September / October 2009
AHHHHH...
Clean once again; this was one hectic / data collection trip where all business was confined to, or, conducted within, the van / lab itself / plus, one quick flight... this lastest endeavor dealing with toxic runoff into our area's watersheds: whether the final resting place of the H2O be lakes, rivers, aquifers, etc. Concrete pipes from seemingly nowhere, emptying sludge into the lakes within State Parks; agribusiness toxicity from herbicides and pesticides - from cotton, rice, corn and soybean feilds along the way taking on the neons of yellow, green and orange when mixed from flash flooding. This trip originated in NW Indiana, then continued into the southern tip of Illinois, a hard left through western Kentucky - and then, my primary area of focus- following the Mississippi River as it divides Tennessee and Arkansas north to south (basically, from the NE corner of Arkansas, containing Jonesboro, through Helena - West Helena / the Mississippi Delta (much more cotton country here, rather than the rice, soybeans, etc which dominate northern Arkansas). After dropping the materials and samples off to my "moles" in Texas for professional analysis, I hurried home to see the family- then off to take a much needed nap...
If this research provides the facts I am planning to see, coupled with results from my prior work earlier in the year regarding regional bee colonies (CCD) - I may have my 3rd and final Venn Diagram ready to place / overlap the extant two: these are to be the areas (I fear) of confluence / convergence where decades old, military grade, toxic waste is being stored under ground! The Freedom of Information Act has assisted me greatly in clarifying this matter. Also, I can say without fear of recrimination that if my findings do indeed turn out as I foresee them to / bolstered by the work of many more throughout the land: this may become my life's work (a toxic Town Crier). Trust me, folks, had you any idea of the depth and breadth of the literally thousands of utterly toxic dumps and deadly chemicals - directly under our feet- I know with certainty that our citizens would organize and take to the streets...
http://www.epa.gov/
http://www.epa.gov/watertrain/index.htm
The Best of Both Worlds: Hannah and Lola / Miley and Lilly
http://tv.disney.go.com/disneychannel/hannahmontana/
2010 ENERGY STAR Award Applications Now Available
http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=pt_awards.pt_es_awards
Latest award from the Environmental Protection Agency
http://www.epa.gov/
09 / 23 Happy Birthday, Ani - you are not only the voice of our generation, you are, quite simply, my voice; "As Is..."
the most righteous of babes...
xoxo
http://www.righteousbabe.com/
"Despite his apologies, Republicans demanded Jones quit / resign amid "controversy..."
Beg' Pardon?
Regarding this matter, the agent(s) provocateur doth protest too much, methinks; this biased overstep is a true loss for the country, and a rather shameful act on behalf of the chronic gasbags...
Van Jones is a globally recognized, award-winning pioneer in human rights and the clean energy economy. He is a 1993 graduate of the Yale Law School and an attorney.
Van wrote the definitive book on "green jobs": The Green Collar Economy. In 2008 — thanks to a low-cost, viral marketing campaign — his book became an instant New York Times bestseller. It is today being translated into six languages.
As a tireless advocate for disadvantaged people and the environment, Van helped to pass America's first "green job training" legislation: the Green Jobs Act, which George W. Bush signed into law as a part of the 2007 Energy Bill. He is the co-founder of a number of successful non-profit organizations, including the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights and Green For All.
Van is the recipient of many awards and honors, including: the Reebok International Human Rights Award; the World Economic Forum's Young Global Leader designation; the prestigious, international Ashoka Fellowship; and many more. Van was included in the Ebony Magazine "Power 150" list of most influential African Americans for 2009. In 2008, Essence magazine named him one of the 25 most inspiring/influential African Americans. TIME Magazine named him an environmental hero in 2008. In 2009, TIME named him one of the 100 most influential people in the world.
In March 2009, Van went to work as the special advisor for green jobs at the White House Council for Environmental Quality...
http://www.whitehouse.gov/administration/eop/ceq/
Our regional - ASU farmers' market - is officially up and running for the '09 / '10 season: please support your local growers / friends / economy; the simplicities and complexities that a flourishing, successful market are illustrative of, are the very mother's milk of sustainability. Remember, the next derriere saved, could very well be your own...
And as is inevitably the case, ceaseless gratitude and awe to:
My Oracle, Seer and Sybil Regarding all things Organic - Karen
Hello, to the Gillow family: Henri, Karen, Matthius, Hannah and Eureka- of Stockholm. Congratulations on Sweden recently assuming the esteemed role of Presidency of the European Union 2009 / 2010; I have often wondered how dramatically different my life, in all imaginable ways, would have varied from the one I now live- had I returned to Sweden with you after Henri's diplomatic stay in the U. S. It's a very surreal, mental exercise. We are all a work in progress turned toward a horizon beyond– some community, some commitment, some justice, some vision, some future– known chiefly through the emblems and signs which pull upon our hopes; reaching into every step of our interpretive journeys; shaping us as surely and mysteriously as the moon pulls the tides. You instilled that into me, and quite a bit of what you predicted, did indeed, manifest. Whatever potential you ever saw in me f i n a l l y did rise to the occasion(s)- it just took about 25 years to do so! I will be in Copenhagen this December; dinner is on me!
http://www.se2009.eu/en/
http://www.se2009.eu/en/the_presidency/work_programme/climate
My spring / summer 2009 Apiary Sciences' apprenticeship is at an end: attempting to formulate further ideas on the myriad causes and possible cures for the agricultural malady known as CCD (Colony Collapse Disorder); the known vectors (mites) responsible for the colony's demise, possible pesticides at fault- and why, interestingly enough- the southeast / midsouth is statistically immune to the collapses seen elsewhere, were the genesis of my primary inquiries; the subject(s) have been observed in their indigenous habitat, statistical data collected, analysis checked and re-checked: hypothesis forthcoming...
http://riley.nal.usda.gov/nal_display/index.php?info_center=8&tax_level=2&tax_subject=10&want_id=1322&topic_id=1006&placement_default=0
http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/jul2009/2009-07-29-094.asp
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/04/090414084627.htm
Woodstock: 40 Years Since the Seeds Were Planted!
Ok, so, here is my quite short but truly sweet anniversary tribute to Woodstock-- perhaps the greatest music event of all time. On August 15, 1969 (but a mere 5 to 6 weeks before my birth) the first notes rang out at the music festival that struck a "chord" around the world: Woodstock. It's now been 40 years since some of the finest musicians of that time, of anytime, performed for a crowd nearly half a million strong, and many of the ideas, philosophies, and dreams that grew from those fields in Bethel, New York (on Max's farm) are still paving the way(s) today. More than just a concert, the event became a stand against an unjust war and utter irrationality; a peaceful revolution and a cultural forum for ideas and positive global change-- including today's environmental movement, women's rights, sustainability and community. It also sparked the likes of festivals dedicated to making a difference, including Coachella and Bonnaro. So enjoy the weekend full of documentaries and retrospectives-- and remember, if nothing else, to keep the dream alive in your daily actions; and if your vocation allows-- DREAM BIG; because when our self-awareness enables the realization to dawn on you that our mortality is a fait' acompli: dreams die, we die, unless we see the opportunities for change, to whatever degree our means allow, contained within the sacred seconds of life-- every second...
And in the humble opinion of this former Marine (please, spare me the hate mail and death threats you anonymous miscreants relish in forwarding)-- without question, the utter lunacy of the times was captured, brilliantly, by none other that Country Joe; and to this day-- never has a generation of complete chicken-hawks, rigid ideologues and the pitifully brain-washed received their comeuppance so cleverly. There's a reserved suite, in Rock and Roll Heaven, for Joe over this one lyric alone:
"Well, come on mothers throughout the land,
Pack your boys off to Vietnam.
Come on fathers, don't hesitate,
Send 'em off before it's too late.
Be the first one on your block
To have your boy come home in a box..."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LBdeCxJmcAo
Unabashedly Brazen... AMEN!
A few photos of my girls on their first trip to Hot Springs, Arkansas (national state park)...
http://www.hotsprings.org/
http://www.arkansas.com/state-federal-parks/national-federal-parks/hot-springs.aspx
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hot_Springs_National_Park
***Recent vote of succor from Vice President Biden, following our introduction in Little Rock, AR- earlier this spring- and subsequent communique via written correspondence; requesting that I remain active in governmental / environmental affairs, continue to renew his confidence by way of my advocacy, and expressing thanks for my staunch well wishes and ceaseless support***
- - Smokin' Joe, my man!
One of my true, intellectual heroes, Dr. Michio Kaku; a theoretical physicist without peer.
http://mkaku.org/
About the Author:
Dr. Michio Kaku is a theoretical physicist, best-selling author, and popularizer of science. He’s the co-founder of string field theory (a branch of string theory), and continues Einstein’s search to unite the four fundamental forces of nature into one unified theory.
He has appeared on television (Discovery, BBC, ABC, Science Channel, and CNN to name a few), written for popular science publications like Discover, Wired, and New Scientist, been featured in documentaries like Me & Isaac Newton, and hosted many of his own including BBC’s recent series on Time.
Michio continues Einstein’s search for a “Theory of Everything,” seeking to unify the four fundamental forces of the universe—the strong force, the weak force, gravity and electromagnetism.
He holds the Henry Semat Chair and Professorship in theoretical physics at the City College of New York, where he has taught for over 25 years. He has also been a visiting professor at the Institute for Advanced Study at Princeton, as well as New York University.
About the Book:
Physics of the Impossible is a fascinating exploration of the science of the impossible—from death rays and force fields to invisibility cloaks—revealing to what extent such technologies might be achievable decades or millennia into the future.
(review) From Publisher's Weekly:
In this latest effort to popularize the sciences, City University of New York professor and media star [Michio] Kaku ponders topics that many people regard as impossible, ranging from psychokinesis and telepathy to time travel and teleportation. His Class I impossibilities include force fields, telepathy and antiuniverses, which don’t violate the known laws of science and may become realities in the next century. Those in Class II await realization farther in the future and include faster-than-light travel and discovery of parallel universes. Kaku discusses only perpetual motion machines and precognition in Class III, things that aren’t possible according to our current understanding of science. He explains how what many consider to be flights of fancy are being made tangible by recent scientific discoveries ranging from rudimentary advances in teleportation to the creation of small quantities of antimatter and transmissions faster than the speed of light. Science and science fiction buffs can easily follow Kaku’s explanations as he shows that in the wonderful worlds of science, impossible things are happening every day.
100 Coal Plants Prevented or Abandoned:
Movement Sparks Shift to Cleaner Energy and Over 400 Million Fewer Tons of CO2
http://action.sierraclub.org/site/MessageViewer?em_id=115741.0
http://www.sierraclub.org/coal/100plants/
Outstanding press Release!
Cheers from the 2010 Senate campaign trail...
http://www.blancheforsenate.com/
Never too early to employ best practices: zero emissions, zero footprint- "scootering" through town- summer, 2009...
Cosmos (1980) was by far and away my favorite television program as a boy; I found this on the computer yesterday and almost fainted: to this day, I quite frankly believe that a more simple, though devastatingly effective, visual metaphor has never been employed.
Sagan was a master at his craft and is missed terribly...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g2qezQzfgIY
The Cosmic Calendar!
AQUANET THEATER: PIPKIN-STYLE...
Rockband - summer '09 - acoustic rehersals in Memphis: perfecting our harmonies, tightening the posts and mastering our new synthesyzer; here, Olivia and I are performimg an Aerosmith bootleg copy of "Pink" from 1997 / with the human beatbox...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x5p9IgEVM90
Recent, spring 2009 / green issue, cover shot; article below...
http://lincoln.senate.gov/newsroom/2009-7-2-1.cfm
Pres Release: An additional 97k for A. State from the U.S. Department of Commerce's Economic Development Administration. The money will fund the third year of a three-year University Center program at Arkansas State University. The program focuses on providing technical assistance and research and development tools to help increase productivity, spur innovation and entrepreneurship, and increase long-term economic regional competitiveness
(See you folks, Saturday, 1:00 pm, July 4th, for a taste of southern "Americana" at its best: the 104th Annual Portia, Arkansas Picnic...)
Senator Lincoln and Representative Berry will be on hand, to razzle and dazzle the NEA crowd in their own, inimitable styles:
Saturday, July 4 Piggott, Corning, Portia, Jonesboro, Caraway (regional sched)...
9:00 AM Lincoln will participate in Piggott’s 82nd Annual Fourth of July Parade.
12:00 PM Lincoln will speak at the Corning Courthouse as part of Corning’s 65th Annual Homecoming Parade and Picnic.
1:30 PM Lincoln will attend the 104th Portia Picnic.
3:00 PM Lincoln will attend “Fourth in the Forrest” at Craighead Forrest Park in Jonesboro.
4:30 PM Lincoln will deliver a speech at Caraway’s annual Fourth of July picnic.
Nothing Gold Can Stay
Nature’s first green is gold,
Her hardest hue to hold.
Her early leaf’s a flower;
But only so an hour.
Then leaf subsides to leaf,
So Eden sank to grief,
So dawn goes down to day
Nothing gold can stay... --R. Frost Olivia, the youngest of my two daughters, turns 5
today - 06.22.2009 - and the photos below are from
just a few of the festivities - after spending the
weekend - in Memphis - at my parent's house; we swam,
rode our bikes; Olivia received her latest drumming
lessons - to my chagrin, her favorite artist
(Jimi Hendrix) has been wrongfully, very wrongfully usurped by,
dare I utter the words(?)(Lipps Inc. / disco era tunes);
Posey continues to amaze on the pc with her stellar skills- she's writing code( at 6 );
and of course, cake, ice cream, presents, fun, frivolity, sugar highs, etc... Stay gold, my angels, please, stay gold! 
"Your descendants shall gather your fruits."
— Virgil
 
"In the Zone": Preparing my Commentary to be Delivered in Denmark...
http://www.visitcopenhagen.com/
2009 pdf / eco schedule: The Road to Copenhagen...
http://www.sealthedeal2009.org/Road-to-Copenhagen-Calender.pdf
Maps...
http://unfccc.int/secretariat/map_and_directories/items/2748.php
"The ultimate test of man's conscience may be his willingness to sacrifice something
today for future generations whose words of thanks will not be heard."
— Gaylord Nelson
former governor of Wisconsin, co-founder of Earth Day
http://www.sealthedeal2009.org/
Seal the Deal Signatory:
RECENT SIGNATURES Number of signatures: 1700
6/14/2009 len pipkin (united states of america)
6/14/2009 klaus albrecht (germany)
6/14/2009 robert posch (germany)
6/14/2009 jenny riecke (germany)
6/14/2009 viivi erkkilä (finland)
6/14/2009 johan eriksson (sweden)
6/14/2009 leslie korb (united states of america)
6/14/2009 simon haagen (germany)
6/14/2009 sandra marbes (germany)
6/14/2009 grit jaster (germany)
6/14/2009 gisa jaster (germany)
6/14/2009 tom jaster (germany)
6/14/2009 gerd jaster (germany)
6/14/2009 alison dunn (United Kingdom)
6/14/2009 ingrid schäper-bunk (germany)
6/14/2009 henrik schollmeier (germany)
6/14/2009 janine heinsch (germany)
6/14/2009 gesine wieder (germany)
6/14/2009 george garcia (germany)
6/14/2009 wilhelm erhard (germany)
6/14/2009 tobias melle (germany)
6/14/2009 carina sperk (germany)
6/14/2009 katja zeltner (germany)
6/14/2009 abhishek shrestha (nepal)
6/14/2009 stephanie ng (singapore)
6/14/2009 jana bunk (germany)
6/14/2009 stephan kauschka (germany)
6/14/2009 hary prinz (austria)
6/14/2009 axel (germany)
6/14/2009 david vigar (United Kingdom)
6/14/2009 martine-nicole rojina (germany)
6/14/2009 dorothee deller (germany)
6/14/2009 christoph kandlbinder (germany)
6/14/2009 climate-lie co2-lie (germany)
6/14/2009 konstanze aydi (germany)
6/14/2009 nicole schwalm (germany)
6/14/2009 uta fasold (germany)
6/14/2009 birgit dünwald (germany)
6/14/2009 stefan janzik (germany)
6/14/2009 karin ebert (germany)
This week, 06.15.09., 1SKY regional reps will be holding meetings at the congressional office of Rep. Marion Berry / District 1 - Jonesboro, regarding the state's continued usage and increased percentage / allotment of coal within Arkansas' energy portfolio; the Representative is a fine, fine man - yet, the ceaseless portrayal of coal as being a "clean" renewable source is both a misnomer and oxymoronic...
108 E Huntington
Jonesboro, AR 72401
(870) 972-4600
(800) 866-2701
(870) 972-4605 FAX
http://www.house.gov/berry/
http://www.house.gov/melancon/BlueDogs/
American Wind Energy Association
*drop by and stock up on the latest industry tidbits*
http://www.awea3.org/source/Orders/index.cfm?Section=Store
http://www.awea.org/about/mission.html
http://www.awea.org/policy/
http://chfindustries.com/ob-green-gorilla.html
My two recent academic grads, Olivia from pre-k to k / and Posey from k to first grade are, both, quite ecstatic to say the very least- not only are they one year closer to making their own, unique environmental marks upon the earth (Olivia as an agricultural phenom / Organic Farmer, the elder as a Rural Veterinarian)- but they were quite pleased as one of their grad gifts arrived via ups: the "Green Gorilla" bed accessories have finally been placed in their respective rooms...
***BeeKeeping update: some days you're the dog, still others, you're the fire hydrant: this particular afternoon I was most assuredly the latter: oh, I'd say a handful of direct stings adjacent to the eye, upon the face and neck, as well as, several more critters which had to be sent to that much poeticized "hive in the sky", after the little ladies invaded my ear canal- getting a bit too up close and personal / even for me- rendered it so...
Several words of advice to any of those sitting on the apiary sciences fence regarding current / future eco employment- only venture into this wonderfully unique and mysterious profession unless you possess equal parts steely nerves and an absurdly high pain threshhold...
I am certain there were many great causes to champion, on behalf of invertebrates the globe over, to have occupied my time this summer- - I just had, via an answered prayer- - coupled with serendipity so genuine it could not be ignored: an opportunity to sit at the feet of a living legend. Thank you, Clyde...
OY VEY!
Sustainability- at times- is one of the most difficult issues on our proverbial plate(s) to precisely articulate; when you surpass the seemingly mundane financial, statistical and fiduciary bottom lines (proper due diligence)- its imperative to take the myriad discussions into areas where some find shelter and belonging (a more spiritual connectedness), while still others consider the process nothing more than faddish esoterics (the staid, overly-stiff, sedate bunch): to the former I say, prepare to be validated / have a religious experience; to the latter- inhale, exhale; loosen your tie; and come stand by me...
Eternal thanks to "The Champ" for forwarding this gem my way!
http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=2539741
http://www.savannahnow.com/node/718093
http://www.cityofchicago.org/city/webportal/portalContentItemAction.do?contenTypeName=COC_EDITORIAL&contentOID=536912065&topChannelName=HomePage
http://rooftopgardens.ca/en/about
After entirely too much procrastination; over-zealous planning; beautiful theories in abundance; damnable facts which unraveled each and every aforementioned theory; etc. and so on- the time is nigh: the rooftop garden on my business downtown is at hand. Next week, the implementation of my flawed(?) plan goes into action: a cooling layer for the dog days of summer / herbs and fall crops to be reaped later in the year...
http://www.gothamgirlsrollerderby.com/month/index.php?girl=donnamatrix
FYI: Advice was sought after and inspiration gathered for the rooftop experiement- literally culled- from the entirety of North America; especially from a brash, ass - kicking, roller derby diva with a green thumb, a heart of gold and an iron fist: NYC's very own...
"Donna Matrix"...
I'll be in West Memphis, and Osceola, AR this weekend assisting Senator Lincoln in any way deemed necessary; join us there to discuss issues (attention to schedule, please). Time permitting, follow the provided link to read, sign and support her latest proposals and initiatives for Arkansans...
MEDIA ADVISORY
June 10, 2009
Contact: Katie Laning Niebaum, Leah Vest
(202) 224-4843
Senator Blanche Lincoln’s Schedule for June 12-13:
Arkansas’s Senior Senator to Address Delta Council, Meet with Community Leaders in West Memphis, Attend Deviled Egg Day in Osceola
Washington – This week, U.S. Senator Blanche Lincoln will address agricultural producers and economic development advocates at the annual Delta Council event, meet with a local police chief and elected officials from East Arkansas, and travel to Osceola to attend Mississippi County’s Deviled Egg Day. The following is Lincoln’s schedule for June 12-13:
Friday, June 12
10:30 AM: Lincoln will serve as the keynote speaker for the 74th annual Delta Council meeting in Cleveland, Miss. Lincoln is a senior member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, and serves as Chair of the Subcommittee on Rural Revitalization, Conservation, Forestry and Credit. She has served on the Agriculture Committee since entering the Senate in 1999 and played a key role in the 2008 farm bill debate. Lincoln, a native of Helena, Ark., hails from a seventh-generation Arkansas farm family. Delta State University, Bologna Performing Arts Center, Cleveland, Miss.
2:30 PM: Lincoln will meet with Madison Police Chief Jonathan Parks. Chief Parks was Lincoln’s nominee to attend the Criminal Justice Institute’s Rural Executive Management Institute (REMI) held last month in Reno, NV. REMI provides law enforcement officials from rural areas the opportunity to receive training they might not otherwise have access to due to restrictive budgets. West Memphis City Hall, 205 South Redding Street.
3:30 PM: Lincoln will discuss local issues with elected officials, including State Senator Jack Crumbly; Mayor Leroy Wright, Sr. of Anthonyville; Mayor James Sharp of Crawfordville; Mayor Paul Green of Earle; Mayor Hayward Shaw, Jr. of Edmondson; Mayor Na’eem Omari of Gilmore; Mayor Betty Callahan of Horseshoe Lake; Mayor Plez Lucas of Jeanette; Mayor Kirby Massey of Sunset; Mayor Franklin Lockhart, Sr. of Turrell; and West Memphis City Council members. West Memphis City Hall, 205 South Redding Street.
Saturday, June 13
10:30 AM: Lincoln will attend Mississippi County’s annual Deviled Egg Day held on the Osceola Courthouse lawn.
One of my former Middle School students, asked me to assist- in a gratis consulting role- on not only laying the underpinnings of a regional "Teens Turning Green" chapter, but to also advise the student organizers on making their prom's footprint as relatively minuscule as humanely possible. The entire endeavor was a hoot, and so very worth the time and effort expended...
http://www.teensturninggreen.org/
http://projectgreenprom.com/
http://www.hbo.com/trueblood/
As I am prone to do occasionally, I break protocol- from using this page as a purely environmental / familial informational site- and throw in a bit of pop culture / guilty pleasure: the 2nd season of HBO's original series "True Blood" premieres this weekend; the first season is on DVD / BR at this juncture; the link provided to HBO has episodic synopsis as well as the ability to view said episodes upon your PC / MAC. Whatever you do, get abreast, immediately, with Mr. Ball's latest masterpiece; hope to see you in the bayou...
My apologies for the recent sabbatical, of late, from the website- I have been in Memphis- for the better part of 2 months, getting my former residence up to code / inspection status for its new occupant; yes, the midtown bungalow has finally been purchased! Bittersweet? Oui; but hallelujah nevertheless...
The Sierra Club Hiring in Arkansas / throughout the southeast: Great people, great organization - best of luck on your job searches...
http://www.sierraclub.org/
A nifty poster - making / toolkit is now at greenforall.org
http://www.greenforall.org/earth-day-2009
My initial foray into the beekeeping / Apiary Sciences field ( a spring / summer 2009 internship / apprenticeship ) with Mr. Clyde Gray and Jim Daniels...
Dear Len,
John Fetterman looks more like he belongs on the Pittsburgh
Steelers offensive line than who he really is -- a
Harvard-educated mayor of a struggling western Pennsylvania
steel town.
In Braddock, PA, the hats are hard, just like the economic
times. Once called the jewel of the Monongahela, this factory
town has seen better days.
That's why Mayor Fetterman is a champion for another kind of cap
-- a carbon cap. Because John Fetterman knows that capping
carbon will put the citizens of his endangered town back to
work.
We want all of America to meet John Fetterman and hear his
story...
About: Mayor John Fetterman
Your role has never been more crucial -- or more greatly
appreciated.
Thank you for your continued support and invaluable activism.
Sincerely,
David Yarnold
President, Environmental Defense Action Fund
YES!!! My kind of Mayor... lp
Recent Cover Story in Occasions Magazine - April, 2009
April 2009
Cover Story
Story by Susan O'Connor, Photos by Dero Sanford
Len Pipkin is a man on a “green” mission. In the past several years he has not only worked to implement environmentally friendly practices into his business, Massanelli’s Cleaners and Laundry, but has traveled countless miles across the U.S. educating himself about green issues, most specifically renewable energy.
A Memphis native and educator himself with a master’s degree in exceptional student education from Barry University in Miami, Pipkin now is educating others about sustainable energy — all on a volunteer basis.
“We have to take ownership of where we are — whether we are responsible for it or not,” said the exceedingly articulate former U.S. Marine. “We must set a course of where we want to go and do whatever is necessary to make it happen.”
Pipkin’s mission started with Massanelli’s and has evolved from there.
“We have, and continue to use, a natural petroleum solvent,” Pipkin said. “The solvent is gentle without sacrificing its cleaning capabilities, making it superior for our clothes and safer for the environment. Green will slowly be incorporated into every facet of Massanelli’s Cleaners, which is leading the small business community in awareness and commitment to the environment.”
Massanelli’s uses this biodegradable solvent as opposed to perchloroethylene, a potential carcinogen used by many dry cleaners nationwide.
Other examples of the business’ green bent are: painting with low VOC materials; using low-energy light bulbs exclusively via a green procurement arrangement with all vendors; recycling hangers to a much greater degree; giving customers reusable delivery bags; and offering the choice of degradable poly bags or no bags on cleaned garments.
But much more interesting than green dry cleaning is Pipkin’s true passion: working in every way possible to make a difference in the world around him through action and education.
“It is just a right and worthy cause, whether I’m able see the results in my lifetime or not,” he said of his efforts. “My kids and grandkids and the community will reap the benefits.”
Last year was a blur of travel for Pipkin, including the following “green” itineraries:
• July 2008 — Leadership program at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Golden, Colo. Sessions covered topics such as renewable utility applications, biofuels and transportation and energy efficient building applications, as well as in-depth review of future energy markets and analysis tools for renewable energy and energy efficiency applications.
• September 2008 — Green Jobs Now rally in Little Rock, a networking fair that offered students at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock an opportunity to investigate employment opportunities offered by sustainable companies that are part of the growing movement to curb greenhouse gas emissions, eliminate toxins and protect natural systems.
• November 2008 — Green Festival in Washington, D.C., a joint project of the Global Exchange and Green America that celebrated what is working throughout this country for people, business and the environment.
Pipkin also attended the Net Impact North America Conference in Philadelphia, a symposium that featured speakers on such topics as corporate social responsibility, energy and the environment, international development, social impact finance and social entrepreneurship.
Also in November, in an effort to help procure international institutions willing to partner with institutions of higher learning in Arkansas, Pipkin attended the U.S-European Union workshop in Atlanta, securing one of approximately 300 lay seats at the conference.
“In an increasingly globalized economy, science and technology careers extend beyond national boundaries,” he explained. “Universities and research institutes worldwide are addressing these developments by setting up exchange programs, double and/or joint degrees and foreign campuses. Several EU-U.S. co-operation ventures promote the training and mobility of researchers and are likely to be further developed.
• February 2009 — meeting with Sen. Blanche Lincoln in Washington, D.C., to “lobby for our state’s fair share of the stimulus/reinvestment package.”
• March 2009 — Pipkin was invited to speak to business students and staff at UALR concerning “ethical, scrupulous, environmentally friendly business practices and philosophies, the state of renewable energy sectors within Arkansas and a basic, extemporaneous discussion on what trends I see, what opportunities should manifest and where I would position myself as an entrepreneur ahead of the ‘green’ boom to be arriving within our state over the next 12 to 24 months, then logically taking the trends five years, 10 years, 20 years, etc.”
Chair of Arkansas’ Renewable Energy Division environmental education and outreach committee, Pipkin feels strongly about his cause, and points to serious consequences for future generations if we fail to live responsibly today.
“Folks, if we truly desire for our children and grandchildren to live in a tangible, actualized 21st century community, it’s incumbent upon those in seats imbued with decision-making authority to make it so. This isn’t rocket science — it’s a self-fulfilling prophecy. One ending is auspicious, indeed; the other having irrevocable and irreversible outcomes.”
Lecturing at UALR: March / 2009
Ladies and Gents: Thank you so very much for the kindness, attentiveness and interest afforded me this morning. Please know that in spite of my rambling, unorthodox, unpolished presentation skills, I tried my best to make the commentary properly hopeful - tried to illustrate an alternative way of operating an industry which I find to be, although experimental, more fully alive and durable. Geography, history, leadership, party affiliations, economic systems and advantages that we traditionally tend to base the concept of success upon are marginal at best; illusory at their worst. Community relationships, the cohesion amongst citizens are the benchmarks by which to measure the genuine well-being of any given area: choosing to be accountable, creating contexts of hospitality and possibility, these are the actions that bring the gifts of those on the margins to the center; this is power; through community, your caring for one another brings forth what is desired. That's the essence and impetus behind my lecturing at UALR today, I care about you. Some people go days, weeks, months, years, at times, longer, never having someone convey that they care for them. If that's the case with anyone I encountered today, that's tragic, but, more importantly, at an end. Never forget the "bridge generation" analogy; know that I arise daily and toil for outcomes I very well may not live to see fully realized - for you. Peace, love and understanding create community; creation implies action: Get Active - Tag, You're It... lp
"It's time to take a stand,
Brothers and sisters join hands..."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TcU57tAKzng
Please join me in Little Rock, AR, this weekend - March 14th - for Senator Lincoln's Re-Election Kickoff Celebration!
Governor Beebe
Senator Lincoln
Vice President Biden
Joe Biden to visit Arkansas for Lincoln fundraiser...
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) - Vice President Joe Biden will visit Arkansas in March to appear at a re-election kickoff event for U.S. Sen. Blanche Lincoln.
Lincoln's re-election campaign says Biden will come to Little Rock on March 14 for an event at the Peabody Hotel.
Lincoln, D-Ark., will be seeking her third term as a senator in the 2010 election. No one from either the Democratic or Republican party has so far announced plans to contest her re-election.
http://www.peabodylittlerock.com/
Thanks again, Len, for speaking out so aggressively, logically, passionately and persuasively against the critical environmental problems of our times; best of luck in Little Rock.
Laurie David,
Founder; www.stopglobalwarming.org
Upcoming Itinerary, for Little Rock, AR; March - 2009
Wednesday, March 18th, 11 a.m. to approx 12:15 p.m. College of Business Lecture; followed by an over-arching presentation to faculty and staff on the current state of Renewable Energy (specifically wind energy, wind - farm siting and financing) within AR...
Len Pipkin will speak to Dr. Landrum's: MGMT 4385 "Special Topics in Management - Sustainable Business" students on the following topics:
*The EPA
*Sustainability in four specific areas: government, outreach within the educational continuum, the local business community and nurturing stakeholder worth / creation of an engaged citizenry
*Natural advantage
*Organic growth
*Symbiosis
*Risk - Aversion
*Inter - Generational Equity
*Bio - Mimicary
Swaggerty Creek Clean Up / Restoration: Sat, March 14th
Ecological Conservation Organization
120 S. Cross St.
Little Rock, AR 72201
Swaggerty Creek, running through Crump Park on W 33rd St., Little Rock, AR, is a small tributary of Fourche Creek. ECO restored the creek to a more natural state, several years back, that encourages bio-diversity and natural habitat to indigenous species.
Unfortunately, like most restored natural areas, maintenance is a continuing, though very necessary, reality.
A request for help in removal of ragweed and trash in the restoration area has been issued to all environmentally minded folk.
Appropriate attire (such as jeans, long sleeve shirts, gloves, and outdoor shoes or boots) is essential. Also very helpful would be industrial garbage bags (for trash collection), machetes (yes!), and hip waders (for litter in the water); the latter two making for one hell of a fashion statement - ha ha...
Our meeting place will be in the Crump Park parking lot at 9 a.m.; clean up will continue through 5 p.m. If you can make it anytime within the given time parameter - it would be greatly appreciated - unless you arrive at, say, at 4:45 p.m.; in that instance, remember, some on hand will have... machetes'!!!
A lunch break will take place around noon. Hope to see both old friends and new acquaintances there!
Follow link and ask for Mr. Ben Thesing with any inquiries.
http://www.ecoconservation.org/
http://www.juhlwind.com/
http://www.tradewindenergy.com/
http://www.deere.com/en_US/deerecom/usa_canada.html
Headed to Woodstock, Minnesota, Kansas City, Missouri and Des Moines, Iowa - all - within the next 10 days, or so (?):
Major announcement(s), keep your fingers crossed, upon my return: stay tuned for details...
"The future is today": MLK, JR.
http://www.emagazine.com/view/?4502
02.19.2009 -- Mayor Perrin Reads Jonesboro's "Sesquicentennial
Proclamation" upon the steps of City Hall...
http://www.jonesborosun.com/archived_story.php?ID=37031
the "Star Spangled Banner" was performed, a Capella, by Raven Goodrich of our Regional Chamber of Commerce: Bravo!!!
http://www.jonesborochamber.org/view/527
At Recent Gathering in Arkansas: Len and Josh
Letter to the Editor
Jonesboro Sun, Friday, February 6th, 2009
"Turning point now..."
It has happened before. When we look back at great turning points, the movements within the storied arc of history within Western civilization, to include our very own national narrative as well, we see that each was driven by a unique confluence of events: a society ripe for change; a new generation ready to drive that change; the emergence of one or a few local, state, and national leaders to articulate needs and set agendas; and in many instances, technological or economic shifts that made innovative action a possibility.
From the European Enlightenment: The Power of Technology; The Industrial Revolution: Economic Creativity; The American Revolution: The Spark of a Powerful Issue; The Abolition of Slavery: A Spiritual Awakening; The Progressive Movement: Social Reform Reshaping Politics; The Freedom Movements of the Twentieth Century: The People Rising up. It can, and is, happening again now in the form of a Sustainability Revolution.
A new day has dawned, a doorway has presented itself before us; all we must simply, though bravely, do is place our irrevocable trust in one another and cross the threshold together into a blindingly bright unknown: one completely rife with untapped environmental stewardship opportunities coupled with a dynamic, robust, economic growth where sustainability proves to be a win-win scenario for all involved stakeholders; diverse facets coexisting in a symbiotic, synergistic union heretofore unrealized throughout Arkansas.
Wind energy, solar power, fuels manufactured from vegetative waste byproducts, industry becoming operational from geothermal heat drawn from the earth’s very core, mankind’s garbage fueling modes of mass transit-public transportation; no longer science fiction, rather reality, these technologies exist and are headed to our great state far more quickly than most can comprehend.
Sight vs. vision is the concept to keep uppermost in mind within the coming years. Indeed, this long-term, incremental implementation, visionary approach will be the first step to making the rearrangement of Jonesboro so. Few of us can scarcely imagine the worlds in which our grandparents and parents came of age within; conversely, imagine the world in which our children and grandchildren will come of age. We are but one brief generation in the long, inexorable march of time. Their hopes and dreams are not ours to either preclude or eradicate through short-sightedness.
The future is now. With gratitude toward those who preceded us, and with blessings toward those to follow, join me in walking the path to the next phase in our societal evolution — arm and arm.
Len Pipkin
Jonesboro
Jonesboro's Chamber of Commerce Gathering at the Peabody, in Little Rock, AR 02 / 2009
Len and Ann
On the Hill with Senator Lincoln (D-AR), Lobbying for Equitable, Renewable Energy Appropriations
I just wanted to let everyone know that my visit with Senator Blanche Lincoln (D-Arkansas) has been finalized:
Thursday, February 5th at 10am.
If you go to her website lincoln.senate.gov you will see that she recently co-sponsored the "Rural Revitalization Act of 2009"; taken in conjunction with the upcoming stimulus package, I hope to return to Jonesboro with concrete answers as to how this will affect our city, county and state; what criteria were used in the prioritizing and allocation of funds and when said monies could realistically be expected to arrive in our citizenry's hands...
Also, I am hoping to obtain answers to questions regarding renewable energy and sustainability: those germane to tax incentives for investors within these myriad sectors, the creation of a renewable energy portfolio for our city / state, the need for strategically positioned sustainability officers throughout Arkansas and the functions that would fall under said individual(s) purview's, green job corps implementation, the prospect of expanding our mass transit system, carbon sequestration methods / progress within existing coal plants and the time-tables regarding funds being appropriated for immediate infrastructure needs.
If anyone should desire to speak with me while I am in D.C. meeting with the Senator, members of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee, as well as, members of the Department of Agriculture - do not hesitate in contacting me via my blackberry; I plan on leaving for the nation's capitol by the close of business 02.02.09...
Posey and Olivia
Photo Flashback:
Spring 2008; Father and Daughters at the Lake...
I hope to see everyone in D.C. - February 4th - 6th...
Media / Graphic arts ad created for local publication...
Len Pipkin: Presidential Climate Action Project Signatory, "A Letter to the Next President..."
Photovoltaic Field Work at NREL
Dear Len,
Thank you for telling Congress to support a moratorium on new coal power
plants. Your letter will help draw Congress' attention to the Tennessee
Coal Sludge Spill and the need to prevent similar disasters in the future
by abandoning dirty coal and embracing clean energy once and for all.
Thanks again,
Gillian Caldwell
Campaign Director, 1Sky
The following letter was delivered, personally, to Arkansas’ Governor Beebe, December 9, 2008; the press conference / hearing was conducted in the State Capitol Building’s (see photo below) former Supreme Court Room. By proxy, I was the northeastern Arkansas delegate to speak on the record for those in opposition to the SWEPCO “clean coal plant” in production in southwestern Arkansas; esteemed members were in the chamber from the Sierra Club, the Audubon Society, the medical community; respected biologists and economists as well as members of the Governor’s own Climate Initiative personnel were, all, equally persuasive and passionate …
Actions and deeds at this juncture are truly beginning to disagree with Mr. Beebe’s own written word(s); contradictions abound; and a total abrogation of decision making powers which, legislatively, do indeed fall under his direct purview - are becoming an all too commonplace occurrence. I fear that, ultimately, the quite honorable Governor may - inadvertently - be “hoisted by his own petard…”
Congratulatons, Matt!
Ward 2, Position 2
My #1 Arkansas green - girl / peep: April Ambrose…
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Chief Sustainability Officer, ecoIntegration – Our mission is to consult with businesses to increase their triple bottom line of people, profits, and planet through environmentally-responsible and sustainable business practices. Our menu of services includes: Sustainability Outsourcing, Sustainable Design Support, Carbon Assessment, LEED Certification, and Commissioning.
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Chair, Little Rock Sustainability Commission – We are a Mayoral appointed Commission tasked with giving sustainability recommendations to the Mayor and city.
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Founder/ Chair, Arkansas Earth Day - Growing awareness and action through annual festival and community initiatives.
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Member, Advocacy Committee, U.S. Green Building Council - Arkansas Chapter – Developing and implementing green building advocacy agenda for our state legislature.
And issues:
Steps Taken to be GreenAR:
2nd hand – Thrift stores, trading with friends, garage sales, bazaars.
Local foods – Friends’ gardens, CSA’s, local stores.
Simplicity – Learning what I need and purging what I don’t.
Focus on individual health – Exercise, good foods, vitamins, first aid and preventative consideration.
Sharing – Donating my time to teach classes, train new workers, write articles, guide projects, help where needed.
Recycling – I consciously recycle all items leaving my home and as a result produce little landfill trash. I love finding unique ways to utilize thrown away materials.
Support – I make an effort to put my dollars to what I want to see in the world. This means I try and support businesses, individuals, and experiences that feed me and that I want to see continue in my community.
Spirit – My life is a meld of spirit and nature and body. My continued growth is dependent on my spiritual nature.
Place – I have recognized my place of greatest influence and power and opportunity is here in Arkansas, where my roots are. I love visiting other places, especially to learn new ways I can help solve Arkansas’ issues.
Water – I filter all of my water including a chlorine filter on my shower. I use low-flow aerators and shower heads.
Re-use – I love my Klean Kanteen stainless steel water bottle and my stainless steel coffee and tea cup! They go with me everywhere!
Transport – I drive a compact car that runs on diesel. I fill up with biodiesel from the pump when possible.
Hard-to-Take Steps:
Driving – I’m addicted to jumping into my Jetta and jetting. I work miles from my home. I drive to meetings, grocery, laundry, entertainment, everything.
Reduction of eating on the go – It seems my schedule keeps me running through meals and catching food on the go. This causes an increase in the waste I produce away from home and often results in less healthy choices.
Finding healing time – I find that often my personal health is the last on my list. I don’t make time for exercise, art, good meals, vitamins, or time out of the city in the woods, while I continue to pile on the stress.
Future Steps to be GreenAR:
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Buying from Arkansas Sustainability Network’s Local Food Club
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Setting up a disaster kit with water, solar, food, first-aid, etc.
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Writing about green issues for local publications
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Eating and cooking at home
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Making healthier decisions and habits
Favorite AR Produce: Armstead Mountain Farm – Sue and Rusty Nuffer have known me since birth and are thus close family. Their farming is so essential to so many lives, and it is consistently the best I’ve ever tasted!
Favorite AR Group: While I’m always partial to Arkansas Earth Day, I also appreciate the work that the Arkansas Earth Institute is doing to reach people where they are.
Favorite AR Business: Again, I’m partial here to ecoIntegration whose innovative business structure and tactics are on the cutting edge of the crosshairs of business reformation and green implementation
If You Can Do One Thing to Make the Natural State Even More Natural, What Would You Do? Permanently protect all of our water supplies, sources, and watersheds to ensure its cleanliness, abundance, and diverse use. Water is our greatest treasure! We cannot live without it.
Latest "letter to the editor" regarding more environmental progress throughout Arkansas; the NO NEW COAL movement, here, is garnering deserved merit...
Jonesboro Sun
Saturday, December 6, 2008
Letters To The Editor
Saving the planet
I would like to proffer the editors of The Sun much praise for reporting The Associated Press story on Tuesday, regarding the coal-fire plant permit being placed into an indefinite moratorium as it pertains to the proposed site in southwestern Arkansas. According to information gleaned from the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality Web site, the permit review has been officially halted at this juncture.
The key to structuring a global economy that can sustain fiscal progress is the creation of an honest market. We need to begin insisting on knowing the ecological truth behind business decisions and their long-term effects. Lest any of us forget, myriad economic systems of the past have collapsed due to the engineers of that era being precluded from telling the underpinning, economic truth; likewise, capitalism itself will eventuate in ruination, as well, if today’s architects do not allow for transparency or expect full disclosure regarding their actions inherent ecological truth being made manifest.
Big-Coal has thrived, to date, because the bona fide cost of air pollution, acid rain, miner’s safety, mountain devastation and the ubiquitous, global warming are invisible collateral damage affecting all. I assure you there will never be a surtax on our electric bills which itemizes the deleterious effects these antediluvian facilities have on their surrounding communities and its inhabitants: increased asthma attacks in children, upper respiratory conditions in the aged, deforestation, destruction of natural habitats, all, empirically linked to the unrestricted (CO2) carbon emissions belched into the atmosphere from these complexes.
I wonder if many of us fully grasp the depth and breadth of what a kilowatt, indeed, costs in human currency?
Len Pipkin
Jonesboro
Happy Thanksgiving, from all at Massanelli's and the Arkansas Wind Working Group...
--Len Pipkin
With all the stellar news, of late, regarding Arkansas being thrust into the forefront of the renewable energy industry- fiscal year 2009- I thought it to be quite serendipitous to have stumbled upon this little gem a while back; you never know what one may find while meandering through Indiana!
http://www.midamericawindmillmuseum.org/index.php
Welcome to the Mid-America Windmill Museum
Harnessing the Power of the Wind
The Mid-America Windmill Museum’s goal is to provide a museum to collect, display, preserve and tell the story of wind power from its origination through the American windmill to the present day. Our purpose is to collect, preserve, exhibit, educate, and build awareness.
Through video presentations, guided tours, exhibits, interactive displays, photographs, and a museum library, volunteers will provide visitors the opportunity to learn about the history of windmills and wind power as they reflect the changes in technology and society.
Windmills are unique machines designed to direct the wind’s energy to perform work. They are engineering marvels that were both functional and gracefully attractive. The American windmill was designed with the thought in mind to be self-governing and require little attention other than lubrication. To preserve the various types of this extraordinary machine that accelerated the development of the heartland and the Great Plains is a responsibility that must be assumed for the benefit of future generations. It is a vital part of American history.
The Kendallville Windmill Museum and Historical Society has been organized as the one official organization for the purpose of restoring, preserving and perpetuating the American windmill. The Mid-America Windmill Museum owes it existence to the foresight and planning of C. Russell Baker. Born into a family of windmillers, he has a strong desire to preserve the historical knowledge of that period of American history. In his words, “The Kendallville Windmill Museum is projected as a cultural center and it is hoped the Museum will reflect the interest of windmillers throughout the Midwest.”
It is fitting that Kendallville have a windmill museum, since Flint & Walling Company was a major windmill manufacturer. In addition, there were ten other well known manufacturers within a 100-mile radius as well as some twenty other lesser known companies. No other place in the country had such a concentration of windmill manufacturers. Since there were so many different windmill manufacturers within the tri-state area, it was decided to name the newest Northeastern Indiana cultural tourist attraction the “Mid-America Windmill Museum” which allowed the museum to encompass a greater area of interest and include the other windmill companies that existed in this area.
EU / US Scientific Exchange Conference Attendee - Atlanta, GA; November 2008
http://www.dlpe.gatech.edu/EUUS-Workshop/
A recent photo of big papi and his two fair maidens!
November 2008
The following links will take you to the works of NYC's preeminent concert photographer, Kathryn Yu; a young lady with a palpable zest for life and was, quite obviously, vaccinated at birth with the famed phonograph needle- and luckily for her many ardent devotees- is ever at the ready with an eye to the aperture. Promise to never lose your swagger, dear heart, for there are many rockers- near and far- living vicariously through you...
http://kathrynyu.com/
http://flickr.com/photos/kathryn/
What follows is a recent "Letter to the Editor" I penned in regard to an impending up or down vote - 11.04.2008 - that will decide J.E.T.S. - our local mass transit system's - future: continuation / sustainable expansion vs. its demise / disintegration...
We inhabit a world of infinite possibilities and workable solutions; enough of the dogma which has atrophied an entire generation's thought process, already...
To use a cinematic cliche, lets move beyond a "red pill / blue pill" state of mind; as Naomi Klein once stated - "Politics hates a vacuum. If it isn't filled with hope, someone will fill it with fear." Amen, sister...
We are in dire need of a return to the belief in the greater good; determined spirits; and faith in our varied missions!
http://www.jonesborosun.com/letters.php
Friday, October 31, 2008
Don’t let JETS die
[Last] week I received a “Jets for Jonesboro; Yes to Public Transportation” fact sheet in the mail. Upon reading the flyer, I must admit to being astounded in learning that a “NO” vote on Nov. 4 would subsequently result in the program’s discontinuation. This letter is an urgent plea to all stakeholders not to let this civic indecency occur.
While true, sustainable transportation is often considered a metropolitan issue, a city such as our own — one poised on the very threshold of becoming a regional beacon of environmental economics — would be exhibiting an utter lack of vision in opposing not just the program’s viability but its aggressive growth as well.
What is needed at this unique moment in time are strategies garnering wide support across local communities, practical agendas alleviating clogged roadways and conserving our finite natural resources, all the while promoting and enacting fairness and social justice. Now is the time to use our political sway to exhibit demonstrable agility in decision-making, policy creation, partnership formations with area leaders and visionary implementation of public infrastructure. Once enough positive, ecologically sane trends converge, they will begin to organically reinforce one another.
One responsibility we all have is choice, choices that can and will directly affect the lives of our children and their decedents alike. Yet another responsibility we shoulder is to do all within our power to ensure the future we leave to the aforementioned progeny is a new era worthy of the curiosity, eagerness, inquisitiveness, aptitudes, skills and intelligence they will surely possess; this is accomplished at the ballot box — via votes that challenge our elected officials to genuinely address our collective concerns.
What any individual can do is limited without a team approach; optimum outcomes need shared goodwill. Call now upon the proverbial “better angels of our nature,” as we stand and claim ownership of our very lives and those of future lineages while vigorously debating the implementation of policy that will either bear later, though imminent, fruit or produce crops that will needlessly, though surely, die upon a withering vine.
Len Pipkin
Jonesboro
Months, and
Months, and...
Months, and...
Months of tireless effort paying off!!!
Maker of turbines settling in Jonesboro!!!
By DAVID SMITH: Arkansas Democrat Gazette
Posted on Saturday, October 25, 2008
Arkansas is quickly becoming a player in the nation’s growing wind-turbine industry.
Nordex USA Inc., part of a German company that makes wind turbines for use around the world, said Friday that it plans to locate its $ 100 million U. S. manufacturing facility in Jonesboro.
The plant will employ 700 people at an average wage of $ 17 an hour, Nordex said.
Arkansas already is hosting LM Glasfiber of Lunderskov, Denmark, which said last year that it would invest $ 150 million for facilities to build wind-turbine blades at the Little Rock Port and hire up to 1, 500 workers. The 130-acre site also has become the company’s U. S. headquarters.
And earlier this month, Polymarin Composites, a Dutch wind-turbine-blade manufacturer, said it and one of its suppliers, Wind Water Technology, plan to spend $ 16 million to renovate an empty distribution center in south Little Rock as their manufacturing site and create about 830 jobs over the next four years.
Combined, the four companies plan to invest more than $ 260 million and hire about 3, 000 workers.
The United States added nearly 1, 400 megawatts of new wind-energy capacity during the second quarter of 2008, providing enough electricity to power more than 400, 000 houses, according to a report released this week by the American Wind Energy Association.
Wind power accounted for more than one-third of the new U. S. electric-generating capacity installed in 2007, and the industry is projected to grow at a 45 percent pace for the second straight year, Randall Swisher, the association’s executive director, told The Associated Press on Wednesday.
Nordex AG is based near Hamburg, Germany, and has established a U. S. headquarters in Chicago. It has offices and subsidiaries in 18 countries and employs 2, 000 people internationally. In international markets, LM Glasfiber is a supplier for Nordex.
In Jonesboro, Nordex will make every part of a wind turbine except the tower. Nordex expects to be producing the wind turbines by 2010.
Nordex chose Jonesboro after originally considering 35 sites in the United States, said Ralf Sigrist, president of Nordex USA.
Selling points for Jonesboro included its central location, access to two railroad lines and a four-lane highway, and availability of training programs via Arkansas State University and other northeast Arkansas educational institutions, Sigrist said.
Nordex’s plant, which will be on 187 acres in the Craighead Technology Park, is a “key pillar in our international strategy,” Thomas Richterich, Nordex AG’s chief executive officer, said in a prepared statement.
“It will enable us to serve the U. S., one of the fastest growing markets for wind energy, and come closer to our objective of generating 20 percent of our revenues in the U. S.,” Richterich said.
Arkansas has been actively courting wind-energy companies, said Scott Hardin, a spokesman for the Arkansas Economic Development Commission.
“Wind energy is one of the sectors that we’re putting a lot of marketing and recruitment efforts behind right now,” Hardin said. “We’ve done that for a variety of reasons. No. 1 is location. We’re surrounded by six of the top 20 states for wind energy, and what’s widely considered to be one of the biggest untapped energy markets in the world, which is Texas.” The other states are Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri, Iowa and Illinois.
Clustering companies in one industry can be beneficial to a state, said Kathy Deck, director of the Center for Business and Economic Research at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville.
“When you cluster companies together like this, the main benefit you see is a trained work force that has a variety of options,” Deck said. “So a company sees a work force that is already ready and available and has the knowledge about what to do. That makes it very conducive to put the like kinds of industries or other parts of a supply chain in a similar place. Clustering can be a very good economic development strategy.” A $ 17-an-hour salary equals about $ 35, 300 a year, near the national per capita income of $ 36, 300. Arkansas business and economic development leaders have set a goal to raise the state’s per capita income, currently about $ 27, 900 a year, to the national level. The state hopes to accomplish that, in part, by attracting high-paying knowledge-based businesses.
But manufacturing is the worst performing sector of the Arkansas economy. Arkansas has lost more than 64, 000 jobs in manufacturing since 1995 and almost 5, 000 in the past 12 months.
Rheem Air Conditioning Products in Fort Smith said on Tuesday that it would lay off 185 workers, or 15 percent of its labor force. Last month, Whirlpool Corp. said it would lay off 700 workers from its Fort Smith plant in November. Other plants in Bentonville, Clinton, Conway, Maumelle, Pine Bluff and Warren have announced this year that they will lay off more than 1, 400 people.
“An economic developer’s job is not just to attract knowledge-based industries,” Deck said. “They want to work to provide good jobs for as many Arkansans as they can. So they’re working at recruiting a variety of companies. A win is a win, and you don’t turn up your nose at it.” Ironically, with the emergence of four wind-energy plants in the state, there is not a sustainable supply of wind sufficient to make Arkansas a likely user of wind power.
“The state of Arkansas is not within the main wind regions where there’s a lot to be expected in terms of wind farms operating,” Sigrist said.
Officials are expecting more wind-related suppliers to follow Nordex to northeast Arkansas.
“Because Nordex will utilize many different suppliers, it’s my understanding that Jonesboro and our region have an opportunity to try to attract suppliers to the area to service the wind industry,” said Mark Young, president of the Jonesboro Regional Chamber of Commerce.
Nordex’s decision to locate in Jonesboro was the second major economic development announcement for the city this month. Last week, Nice-Pak Products Inc. of Orangeburg, N. Y., said it would hire 300 people and invest $ 40 million to build a plant to make premoistened wipes.
"Nordex to open wind turbine plant in Arkansas"
By Joshua Boak
Tribune reporter
10:35 AM CDT, October 24, 2008
Wind turbine maker Nordex AG announced plans Friday to open a $100 million factory in Jonesboro, Ark., with production starting in 2010.
The German Nordex, which recently selected Chicago as its North American headquarters, is making an aggressive move into the United States.
The company intends for 20 percent of its revenue to come from America. It generated worldwide revenue of roughly $1 billion last year, with sales primarily in Europe and China.
The new factory would manufacture every part of the turbine other than the tower.
jboak@tribune.com
Copyright © 2008, Chicago Tribune
Here are a few snap-shots / local news reports from the "NO NEW COAL" rally held in Little Rock over the weekend...
http://www.fox16.com/mostpopular/story.aspx?content_id=422417d3-8a31-4a80-9114-58284e107799
http://sierraclub.typepad.com/scrapbook/2008/10/arkansas-rallies-against-coal.html
http://www.katv.com/news/stories/1008/562555.html
Len with James Burke
Event Poster
On a much lighter note, raw-food goddess, Ani Phyo, will appear on television with the balding rapscallion / star of the Travel Channel's hit series "Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern":
Tuesday, October 14 - 2008!
http://www.travelchannel.com/TV_Shows/Bizarre_Foods
http://www.andrewzimmern.com/
Saturday, October 18th at 1 p.m., on the State Capitol steps in Little Rock, concerned citizens will be holding
a rally to show our stiff opposition to the proposed coal-fired power plant scheduled for / in
Hempstead County. After a recent decision by the Governors Commission on
Global Warming to halt construction on this plant, it is imperative we show
Governor Beebe that he has the public support to move forward with the
recommendation of his own commission and stop this plant.
PLEASE JOIN US!!!
Check out this article and web site for more information:
http://www.nwanews.com/adg/News/238400/
http://www.coal-is-dirty.com/
National Green Jobs Now Photo-stream on Flickr
http://www.flickr.com/photos/29107673@N04/
Latest news clipping / coverage, from the Jonesboro Sun, regarding our environmental initiatives...
Article by the inimitable - Karin Hill:
Business owner thinking green in Northeast Ark.
http://www.jonesborosun.com/archived_story.php?ID=35101
October 8, 2008
JONESBORO — When Jonesboro business owner Len Pipkin attended a conference on wind energy in Little Rock this summer, he returned with a new title: co-chair for environmental education and outreach for the Arkansas Wind Working Group.
The new position — which includes travels to conferences and grassroots activities around the state and throughout the country — is something he’s happy to fit in his busy schedule as owner of Massanelli’s Cleaners.
He’s already leveraged his role to attend the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Golden, Colo., in July and the Green Jobs Now rally in Little Rock last month.
Not only does he want to learn as much as he can about renewable energy and “green” technology and industries, Pipkin wants to bring his experiences to Northeast Arkansas and help pave the way for a whole new way of doing business. In addition to making his own business as eco-friendly as possible, he has several initiatives planned for this area in the near future, including an ambitious collaboration designed to attract green industries to the region.
“The only concrete event I am working diligently on at the moment should occur toward the latter part of the fourth quarter 2008,” Pipkin said. “I’ll only leak a bare minimum at this time: It’s going to involve members of both the United Steelworkers association and the Sierra Club, aka the blue-green alliance, at which time I hope to unveil a program that would create Jonesboro’s very own Green Jobs Corps.”
Pipkin said a green jobs corps would come about gradually and would start with screening a select group of people and training them through collaboration with some of Jonesboro’s existing industries. They would transition into paid internships and ultimately be marketed as a “green” work force.
“Gradually you build a relatively high percentage of people in a geographic area that bringing those green companies into this area would necessitate,” he said.
Similar work
Other cities around the United States are working on similar efforts. One that Pipkin is using as a template is the Oakland Green Jobs Corps in California.
Pipkin’s new role has made him a bridge between those interested in such efforts and institutions that are seriously working toward them. One of his duties is visiting several universities around Arkansas to review what they provide in this field.
“These visits will be to assess curricula options available, taking an overview of degree programs as they relate directly to renewable energy, researching certifications offered, numbering community outreach programs available to students through both paid and unpaid scholarships with a Leadership, Academics and Operations scorecard to grade each school upon in hand,” he said.
Festival, conference
He will also attend the Washington D.C., Green Festival Nov. 8-9 and the Net Impact North America Conference in Philadelphia the following week. All this will culminate in a workshop on international cooperation and U.S.-EU ventures in research Nov. 17-18 in Atlanta.
“I petitioned for and received one of only approximately 300 lay seats available worldwide,” Pipkin said. “It’s one of the genuine first steps in making the solutions to our myriad environmental problems global in scope. It’s going to be a breathtaking gathering of world dignitaries; I am so very thrilled and honored to be attending.”
He’s still working on helping to implement a program called KidWind in local schools and has plans for other events in Jonesboro. But in the meantime he said he wants to encourage people to get involved in whatever way they can.
“Ask yourself the questions, ‘What do you really desire from life? What kind of life and what type of society do you want to bequeath to future generations?’” he said. “These are not issues we can simply leave to the whimsical vagaries of chance, to the decisions of political leaders, to the most readily seen, progressive social policies. Quite to the contrary: To purposefully address the issues of today and pursue the solutions of tomorrow, one must be and remain vigilantly aware. The task of building a truly sustainable society is not a game of solitaire. This game we play as a team.”
khill@jonesborosun.com
Valley View Elementary: Go Blazers!
Ms. Reesa’s Kindergarten Class
Agenda:
Parent Occupation Presentation Provided by:
Len Pipkin (Posey’s father), and his associate, Justin Yates...
Organization: Massanelli’s Fire / Water, Recovery and Restoration...
Contents: National Fire Prevention Week Documents; Student - Family / Homework; Thanks You Letters for our Local Fire Professionals to be mailed as a Class Project...
Visual Aids: Home / Report Displays; Rescue Displays; Restoration Displays (to be donated to the classroom’s toy chest); Photographs of the Entire Restoration Process...
Tangible Aids: Various Supplies Used on a Daily Basis in Carrying Out Our Duties...
T-Shirts for ALL!
Massanelli's: Blogger's Sustainable & Responsible Business of the Week
By: Nancy Landrum, Ph.D.
http://sustainablebusinessdesign.blogspot.com/
http://sustainablebusinessdesign.blogspot.com/2008/09/massanellis-cleaners-sustainable.html
Updated Information Regarding This Weekend's "Green Jobs Networking Event"
Little Rock, AR / University of Arkansas at Little Rock Campus
http://events.greenjobsnow.com/greenforall/events/show/5941
UALR College of Business
http://www.ualr.edu/cob/
***photos to be posted after the gathering, both here, and at greenjobsnow.com***
(organizers, speakers, sponsors, exhibitors below)
Simply wonderful event; an equal mix of green business owners, corporate
representatives, community activists and organizers, engaged / forward
thinking students and members of the local citizenry were on hand.
Intellectual curiosity, expertise, talent, initiative, tolerance,
steadfastness of personal beliefs and passion were palpable. It was a
visible, tangible sign that we are not waiting for leadership to bring
about change, we, in fact, are the leaders of this movement: a movement to
take our country back. That government of the people, by the people, and
for the people - from this moment on - is to indeed promote the general
welfare of all stakeholders regarding income, education, housing,
health care and justice. These will be made manifest via the environmental
efforts of those in attendance at the GREEN JOBS NOW gathering in Little
Rock; those whose acts and deeds are, daily, defining what it truly means
to be human(e): report / photo on disc, from event, taken by Len Pipkin...
23 September - 2008
A Green Jobs Networking Fair from 2 to 4 p.m. Friday, Sept. 26, offers UALR students an opportunity to investigate opportunities offered by sustainable companies for employment in “green jobs.”
The event in the UALR Reynolds Business Center atrium begins with a discussion by Mark A. Robertson of Mesa Landscape Architects Inc. on “green collar” jobs and sustainability companies who are part of the growing movement to curb greenhouse-gas emissions, eliminate toxins, and protect natural systems.
Representatives of 15 local businesses and organizations offering green or sustainability employment, internships, and volunteer opportunities also will be available to network with students and graduates.
Participants looking for employment or internship opportunities in organizations committed to preserving and enhancing environmental quality are encouraged to bring their resumes. Refreshments will be served.
The event is sponsored by UALR’s College of Business, the Black Business Student Association, Net Impact, and Massanelli’s Cleaning. For more information or to RSVP, contact Nancy Landrum at 501.569.8850.
M5
Live in Dallas, TX - September 6th, 2008
Concert Review: Maroon 5 and Counting Crows at Superpages.com Center
by Brenna Rushing, Source: Pegasus News
The grassy lawn felt like one of many summer night ingredients, along with clear skies and comfortable temperatures. People of all ages settled into the Superpages.com Center on Saturday night to enjoy not only the prime setting, but the Counting Crows and Maroon 5 on stage.
As night fell, more people filled the seats and the lawn, proving that the Maroon 5 and Counting Crows performances were long overdue in Dallas. If the show didn’t sell out, only sparing bits of lawn were available.
Maroon 5 was undoubtedly the hit of the night. The second their stage lit up with a blindingly brilliant light show, everyone, including all of the women swooning over Adam Lavine, jumped to their feet in excitement. They kicked it off with "Harder to Breathe," leading the way for every one of their radio hits.
It was unexpected that Lavine wasn’t spotlighted as the main attraction onstage. He came out simultaneously with the band at the beginning, and the lights were never only on him. Despite the fact that his look is going the way of the modern rockstar, (full sleeve tattoo, tight v-neck shirt, skinny jeans), the staging emphasis was fairly evenly spread about the band members, foregoing qualms of any accompanying rockstar ego.
M5's set list was well-balanced, jumping from their first album to the newest one entitled It Won’t Be Soon Before Long. Lavine sang the beginning of "Won’t Go Home Without You" a capella, creating a silent awe over the audience. Aside from that, they sang every song exactly like the radio version.
At the end of their set, Lavine threw his guitar on the stage, potentially doing some real damage. But instead of walking away in glory, he picked it up and selected a lucky fan in the crowd to give it to.
Len and Sandie; Rebekah and Cory
*** A very lucky fan, indeed, who had front row, center seat; that would be me. Thank you to Adam, Jimmy V, and the rest of the group members and road / event crew for making September 6th, 2008, one of the greatest nights of my life...
Green Jobs Networking Event
Little Rock, AR
September 26, 2008 02:00PM to 04:00PM
Event Description:
2-2:30 - speaker on "green jobs" and "sustainability" 2:30-4:00 - networking with local businesses and organizations offering "green" or "sustainability" employment, internship, and/or volunteer opportunities
Event Type: Service Nation Events
Location:
2801 South University Avenue
Directions:
Reynolds Business Building, corner of South University Avenue and 28th Street (across from Jack Stephens Center)
Len / 1Sky : Faces of climate change
Len's Recent Tour of the "National Renewable Energy Laboratory", Golden, Colorado; July 2008...
http://www.nrel.gov/
http://www.nrel.gov/learning/re_wind.html
http://www.nrel.gov/learning/
with Media Relations mentor, Ivilina Thornton...
At the Entrance to the Facility; Golden, Colorado
"Committee Chair; Environmental Education and Outreach;
Renewable Energy Division; State of Arkansas; U.S. Department of Energy..."
Len Pipkin to Attend / Present at the Following Health-Care Consortium...
359 Dirksen Senate Office Building, Washington D.C. 20510
Phone (202) 224-4843 Fax (202) 228-1371
|
Lincoln to Host Small Business Healthcare Roundtable in Jonesboro
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: June 25, 2008
Contact: Katie Laning (202)224-4843
Washington – Tuesday, July 1, 2008, U.S. Senator Blanche Lincoln will host a “Small Business Healthcare Roundtable” in Jonesboro. The roundtable discussion will feature small business owners and self-employed individuals who will discuss the challenges they face in providing healthcare for themselves and their employees...
U.S. Senator Blanche Lincoln’s “Small Business Healthcare Roundtable”
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Jonesboro Roundtable
10:00 AM
Arkansas State University
Dean B. Ellis Library
Conference Room, 8th Floor
108 Cooley Drive
State University, Arkansas
http://lincoln.senate.gov/index.cfm
http://www.opencongress.org/bill/110-s2795/text
|
Recent Media Mentions: Jonesboro Sun / talkbusiness.net; Article by Karin Hill
Dry cleaner: Business becoming eco-friendly
http://www.jonesborosun.com/archived_story.php?ID=33640
http://www.talkbusiness.net/Weblogs/WeblogItemDetail.aspx?WebLogItemID=c6ffafe0-15aa-472a-929b-c65bad2834cc&WeblogID=2c1ca2ae-06e6-4883-9e3a-554f31d9db55
We were so honored to award yet another college scholarship to such an outstanding / very deserving academic recipient at this year's PIA AR conference - Ms. Anna Minor of Searcy - via the "RANDY HENRY MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP" program.
Congratulations, my dear...
June, 2008 - Branson, MO
Ahh... The first, heady aroma of visionary, 21st century thought wafting through the Arkansan air; please join me in attending the inaugural, charter gathering of our state's "Wind Working Group" meeting - June 26th, 2008 - U of A / Division of Agriculture / Little Rock...
http://www.arkansasrenewableenergy.org/wind/awwg_mtg_062608.html
http://www.arkansasrenewableenergy.org/index.htm
http://arkansasedc.com/business_development/energy/files/PDF/AEO_overview.pdf
All at Massanelli's send their sincerest and most heartfelt condolences to our friends', colleagues' and mentors'- David and Diane Caldwell / their family members- over the recent loss of beloved granddaughter- Molly Kate Duncan- to pediatric cancer...
http://www.stategazette.com/story/1431675.html
Born: Thursday, September 14th, 2006
Passed Away: Thursday, May 22, 2008
Services Were Held At: Johnson-Williams Funeral Home, Newbern, TN
The family requests that any memorials be directed to: St. Jude Children's Research Hospital 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN 38015-1942...
Jenny, I am still in absolute awe of the wisdom, soulfulness, depth of maturity, inner-beauty, poise and aplomb with which you comported yourself throughout the duration of Molly's illness; I will be in Nashville, this July 18th - 20th, volunteering and walking on your behalf through The Compassionate Friends Network...
Take Care!
http://www.compassionatefriends.org/
http://www.compassionatefriends.org/2008_National_Conference/2008_Conference_Intro.htm
http://www.compassionatefriends.org/2008_National_Conference/Walk_Event.htm
Our 2008 Restoration Newsletter / Flyer...
http://www.massanelliscleaners.com/view/75
Massanelli's to begin underwriting, supporting KASU / Public Radio
http://www.kasu.org/index.php
My Cherubic Lasses - Spring, 2008
Olivia (L), Posey (R)... are Maroon 5 fanatics; luckily for the entire clan, M5 will be co-headlining an '08 tour, this summer, with the Counting Crows. Look for me at the shows throughout the mid-south; I'll be the proud papa, front row- with a daughter on each shoulder- - waiving these bears around wildly!
http://www.maroon5.com/
http://www.countingcrows.com/
We are so very blessed to reside, simultaneously, within a literal and metaphorical
garden of many delights to be enjoyed by both the lay and scientific minded among
us. At Massanelli's, cutting edge industry technology is that most elegant of
bridges between the two worlds... Nothing is more powerful than an idea whose time has come. The idea, here, being a call to consciousness combining spirituality and ecological sanity; the time being now...
*** Recent Awards Ceremony ***
http://www.jonesborosun.com/archivedstory.php?ID=32670&Search=pipkin
"Earth / Arbor Day" article by Karin Hill: Jonesboro Sun
As Browning said of the Emperor Justinian's digest of ancient Roman Laws, the poets there:
"Made precise,
what simply sparkled in mankind's eyes before,
twitched in their brow or quivered on their lips,
waited the speech they called but would not come."
This writer, orator, teacher, advocate, naturalist, chef, renaissance woman- - elevates and invigorates; lifts horizons; softens hardened hearts; lightens gloom- - helping many to see the essentials of life more clearly... Eternal Thanks, Karen
Regional "Earth Day / Arbor Day" scheduled for Saturday, April 19th, 2008...
http://www.k8-8k.com/
Massanelli's Cleaners and Laundry to Attend 2008 Chamber's Business Expo!
http://www.jonesborochamber.com/view/580
April 10th, 2008: The East Arkansas Planning and Development District / Arkansas Urban Forestry Council
To Host Jonesboro Workshop...
http://www.eapdd.com/index_flash.htm
http://www.arkansastrees.org/index.html
http://www.localendar.com/public/aufc
Forbes Special Report
Best Places For Business and Careers
#46 Jonesboro AR
http://www.forbes.com/2008/03/19/best-business-cities-biz-bestplaces08-cx_kb_0319places_land.html
http://www.forbes.com/lists/2008/5/bestplaces08_Jonesboro-AR_6153.html
Sleep Challenged? Me, Too...
Follow the Link Below
http://www.sleepfoundation.org/site/c.huIXKjM0IxF/b.2417141/k.C60C/Welcome.htm
Add your voice to thousands calling for a Farm Bill that rewards, rather than rejects farmers, ranchers and forest landowers, when they offer to share the costs of a healthy environment.
http://www.edf.org/page.cfm?tagID=118
http://www.edf.org/page.cfm?tagID=1555
Massanelli's Cleaners and Laundry Initiates "Employee Wellness" Program / Contest
http://www.milliondollarbody.com/
Fantastic news for my fellow honorably-discharged Marines, Sailors, Soldiers and Airmen...
Small Business Aid for Veterans / Atlmire (D-PA)
Congress is getting closer to passing legislation that would help
veterans and reservists who own small businesses. The bill would
create a $50,000 no-collateral, small-business loan for reservists
and vets. In addition, it would add four new veteran-business
outreach centers and create an interagency federal task force on
small-business issues. The compromise bill passed the Senate in
mid-December before passing the House recently with modest changes.
Now, the bill heads back to the Senate. The chief sponsor of the
House version of the bill, Rep. Jason Altmire (D-PA) said the
programs in place are helpful, but he believes "more can still be done."
http://www.jasonaltmire.com/default.asp
Massanelli's to enter 2008 Dell Computer / ICSB innovative, small business technology challange!
http://www.dell.com/content/topics/topic.aspx/global/shared/bizportal/sbaward/en/index?c=us&cs=04&l=en&s=bsd
Congrats, not only to my home-town, Memphis, TN, but the general mid-south region as well; wonderful
opportunities currently exist for those entrepreneurs up to facing the daunting, small business challange...
http://www.entrepreneur.com/slideshow/164656.html
Future of the Downtown Forum and the Foundation of Arts:
Great Article on / Video of Amanda Drennon - Associate Executive Director
http://www.kait8.com/Global/story.asp?S=7191253
www.jonesborofoa.com.
Hell Hath Frozen Over; Details Below...
Len Pipkin Registered to Run the 2008 Little Rock Marathon!!!
http://www.littlerockmarathon.com/index.cfm
http://www.littlerockmarathon.com/EventsRaceInfo/Marathon.cfm
The Pipkin Sisters Have "Officially" Started School in Arkansas:
http://www.ridgefieldchristian.org/
Next Stop - Brown University / Providence, Rhode Island...
Ivy League Bound!!!
http://www.brown.edu/
Brown’s Mission
The mission of Brown University is to serve the community, the nation, and the world by discovering, communicating, and preserving knowledge and understanding in a spirit of free inquiry, and by educating and preparing students to discharge the offices of life with usefulness and reputation. We do this through a partnership of students and teachers in a unified community known as a university-college.
http://www.visitrhodeisland.com/
Olivia (pre-k3); Posey (pre-k4)...
Why Brown?
Brown students value the University’s open curriculum and the freedom they have to shape their own academic program.
By crafting your own curriculum with the guidance and assistance of your advisors and teachers, you will be challenged to define liberal education for yourself. You will be encouraged to explore widely across the disciplines. In doing so you will learn the powers and limits of different ways of knowing.
Brown students and faculty are typically innovative, creative, and intellectually restless, never satisfied with the conventional way of doing things, always eager to cross boundaries and to experiment with new approaches to solving problems.
Belonging to such a community is a stimulating experience that will help you learn and grow. Instead of trying to inculcate a single, common tradition of values and beliefs, Brown’s curriculum encourages the exploration of different ways of thinking, judging, and imagining. The goal of such a curriculum is to create cosmopolitan citizens who revel in and are eager to contribute to a world of multiplicity and change.
One of the most important goals of a liberal education at Brown is to develop active learners who take responsibility for their own education. You will have extraordinary independence here and an array of intellectual and creative opportunities. Deans, faculty, and the many groups of peer advisors stand ready to help you make wise choices and find your way. To be an individual, you will find, requires a community, because we all have the power to help and enrich each other.
Brown values diversity — our differences enable us to learn from one another and to open up possibilities for creativity and discovery that would be missing in a homogeneous world.
Brown Medical School and Graduate School attract physicians, researchers, teachers, students, and significant research programs and funding. Brown, the third largest employer in the Providence area, also helps to develop new businesses, and research opportunities, through its partnerships statewide.
Brown welcomes you to a very special city and state. Providence is a “Renaissance” city of arts and cross-culturalism. It is the capital of Rhode Island, which was the first of the thirteen colonies to declare independence. Rhode Island has historically fostered a strong spirit of independence among its citizenry – the majestic State House is topped with a statue of “the Independent Man.” Brown is proud to claim four of the state’s top office-holders as alumni. Governor Donald Carcieri ’65, Attorney General Patrick Lynch ’87, Providence Mayor David Cicilline ’83, and Senator Lincoln Chaffee ’75.
Brown works closely with leaders of Providence’s public education system and human service agencies to leverage the resources of the University’s centers and programs in support of our city residents.
Brown actively promotes public service opportunities at colleges across the country, and is a founding member of a consortium of private colleges and hospitals that works on behalf of Providence children.
“What the student wants is a monk’s cell, well lit and heated, with a corner from which they can look at the stars.”
— Le Corbusier (1887-1965)
Life on the Brown campus leads to lifelong friendships. Brown will provide the room — nicer than the monk’s cell Le Corbusier envisioned — the light, and the heat. How you look at the stars is up to you...
Len Pipkin to Discuss Small Business Financing Options / Personal Anecdotes
DATE: Thursday, October 11 / TIME: 9 a.m. – Noon
PLACE: East Arkansas Planning & Development District Meeting Room
2905 King Street / Jonesboro, AR
REGISTRATION: $30 per person
This seminar will explain how and where to get financing for prospective
and existing businesses. Credit requirements, places to go for funding
and the Small Business Administration’s loan guaranty program will be
presented...
TO REGISTER:
Call 870-972-3517
Fax 870-972-3678
On-line www.deltaced.astate.edu/asbdc.htm
Discount Registration for ASU Faculty, Staff, and Students.
Newsletter Excerpt / September - 2007: "Massanelli's Carbon Footprint"
http://www.massanelliscleaners.com/view/60
Massanelli's Cleaners and Laundry is pleased to be sponsoring the
"Randy Henry Memorial Scholarship"
at this years (PIAA) Professional Insurance
Agents of Arkansas Conference in Fayetteville, AR- July 25th through the 27th (Booth #32).
Please join us at the appointed time- luncheon/dinner- for the
presentation of the $1,000.00 check to the very deserving academic
recipient; your attendance and support will be greatly appreciated...
http://www.piaar.com/convention.htm
http://www.piaar.com/scholarship.htm
Len and Sandie extend their sincerest congratulations to friend and colleague:
Mr. Brett Overman - one of Arkansas', 2007, "Top 40 under 40" executives!
http://arkansasbusiness.com/people_ab_40U.asp?id=632
http://www.arkansasbusiness.com/
Congratulations to Professor Christy Valentine!
ASU's new Director of Development - January, 2007
http://asunews.astate.edu/DevelopmentDir07.htm
Massanelli's Cleaners and Laundry
Celebrates 33 Years as a Chamber of Commerce Member - November, 2006
http://www.jonesborochamber.com/files/pdfs/november%2006.pdf
Massanelli's CPA, Linda Harvey, "Make-A-Wish Foundation" Star
Jonesboro Sun - August, 2006
https://www.jonesborosun.com/archived_story.php?ID=23123
http://www.jonescpa.com/index.htm
Jonesboro Sun - March, 2006
"A Perfect Match That Was Meant To Be"
Entrepreneur Magazine: "Top Cities for Growth 2006"
Jonesboro Ranked # 13
http://www.entrepreneur.com/bestcities/region/small.html
Massanelli’s Supports ASU Alumni
10% Discount on Services as of January, 2006
http://www.astatealumni.org/view.php/id/93
Massanelli’s to Change Owners - December, 2005
http://www.kait8.com/Global/story.asp?s=4215620
"Quick Thinking Averts Disaster" says Jonesboro Fire Department
Kait8 - May, 2003
http://www.kait8.com/Global/story.asp?s=1281080
Massanelli's 1964 Open House after February, 1963 Fire
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