Small World Food

Signs of Sustainability

It’s a CSA, but different! Small World Food offers the widest variety of local, organic food in Rochester with crazy flexibility — No more worries about missing a week or whether you’re actually going to eat everything in your CSA box. With their CSA Share Debit Card, you’ll get exactly what you want, exactly when you want it, and can choose from multiple local farmers to support every week. In addition to produce, they offer jam, honey, maple syrup, juice, pasture raised meat & eggs, granola, dairy products, fermented veggies and MORE (including these spooky loaves of bread 👻 )! Wowwwieeee! Visit their Facebook page to keep up with these amazing folks.

Loaves & Fishes of Tompkins County

Signs of Sustainability

A place for free meals, hospitality, companionship and advocacy for those in need, regardless of their faith, beliefs, or circumstances. Want to give? Loaves & Fishes is still accepting food donations and volunteers with increased safety protocols. Want to receive? In response to COVID-19, free fresh meals will be packaged to-go and served outside in front of St. John’s Episcopal Church, 210 N. Cayuga St.

BIPOC Farmer Training Program and Job Openings at Groundswell

News

Groundswell, Center for Local Food & Farming in Ithaca, has announced a Farmer Training Program for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color that will launch this coming Spring. Visit their website to learn more about this program and how to apply. Deadline is December 15th! In addition, they are looking to hire a Bookkeeper (Deadline: November 29th) and Communications Intern (Deadline: January 18th). They are also looking to fill some Leadership Committee seats. Don’t want to be behind a desk? Check out their on-farm volunteer opportunities. You can find all of these listings on their Employment page.

Incentives Available for Home Weatherization Through Dec. 31

News

Through the end of the year, NYSERDA is offering increased incentives for income-eligible households to insulate homes, seal air leaks, and replace inefficient equipment. There are also generous rebates and grants for installing high-efficiency heat pumps that provide heating and cooling, and which can replace furnaces and boilers that burn fossil fuels, as well as affordable options for going solar.

Volunteers Needed for Carbon Neutrality Project

Calls to Action

The Ithaca Carbon Neutrality team (part of Cornell University’s Sustainable Design program), is attempting to make recommendations to the City of Ithaca that will help us reach carbon neutrality by 2030. For a project on thermal decay, they are using temperature sensors to collect data from volunteers’ homes and provide an analysis of how well-insulated these homes are, compared to other homes of the same size. Ideally, this analysis will help tailor retrofit recommendations to the city and the homeowners themselves. Fill out this form to have your home be part of the project!

Sign Petition to Demand Anti-Racist Action by Cornell

Calls to Action

Indigenous students at Cornell have launched a campaign to respond to Cornell’s founding and history, which, “profits from acts of colonial violence and Indigenous erasure”, their petition states. Their demands include increased funding for Indigenous faculty and the Indigenous Studies program, a land acknowledgement before campus events, a mandatory introductory course on Indigenous Studies for all students, and more – Read and Sign the petition here to support them!

‘Gather’: A Film on Food Sovereignty

News

Filmmaker, Sanjay Rawal, tells the stories of Native Americans and their food systems. Given all the problems of our current American food system, Rawal explains how we can use Indigenous knowledge and values to grow an abundance of healthy food that helps meet our needs in a way that is respecting of the Earth, and…

Ithaca Area Mobilization Campaign to Prevent an Election Coup

Calls to Action

President Trump has publicly stated that he may not accept or respect a loss in this presidential election. We have reason to prepare for the worst case scenario. Help protect democracy by pledging to non-violently protest if President Trump attempts a coup. Read the pledge from Choose Democracy to learn more and sign the Ithaca-area pledge with as little as your name via Google form. Visit isthisacoup.com for a play-by-play of recent actions by Trump and the US government surrounding threats to American democracy.

Cornell Professor Awarded NYSERDA Grant to help NYS go Solar

News

Cornell Professor, Max Zhang, recieved a $200,000 grant, “aimed at determining efficient solar farm array configurations to avoid land-use conflicts or spoiling precious agricultural space”. More specifically, he plans to focus on 10 different land sites in New York State, to measure the viability of agrovoltaics – using land for both agriculture and solar arrays. Zhang’s research will provide scientific insight to policymakers as they make blueprints for the energy transition of the century. Read more about this story in the Cornell Chronicle.

Watershed rules & regulations approved by Auburn, Owasco officials

News

Auburn City Council and Owasco Town Board both approved new rules and regulations to protect the Owasco Lake Watershed at a special joint meeting this past Thursday. The meeting was to continue the work started in 2017 to update enforceable regulations – the first time since 1984. Public opinion seems to be split between environmentalists, and farmers wary of profit loss due to accommodations that are now required. Read the full article to learn more.

New Documentary on Local Farmers

News

The Martins and Oechsners have led the way on organic grain growing in the Northeast – and are proving what systems thinking can do to survive climate disruption. Our Farmers in Flux: Adapting to Climate Change is a new documentary on how local farmers like them are adapting to climate change, made by a dear friend of Sustainable Tompkins, Shira Evergreen, and produced by the Tracy Mitrano campaign. The 23-minute documentary gives a behind the scenes look at the priceless work they do, and features tons of stunning birds-eye view drone footage of the Finger Lakes. Bravo, Shira!

Iron Flamingo Brewery

Signs of Sustainability

Iron Flamingo Brewery in Corning, NY supports local businesses by allowing food to be ordered in from other restaurants 😱, and sourcing their hops and malt from local farmers. They earn extra points from us by proudly using solar power for the brewing process! 👍 Visit their Events page to see what food trucks will be there this week, and head over to enjoy 16 brews on tap and a rockin’ beergarden! You can also head over to their website to browse their beer menu and learn more about them.