HomeMy WebLinkAboutSCMinutes_2014_05_09Sustainability Council
May 9, 2014
A meeting of the Sustainability Council was held at 8:30 a.m. on Friday, May 9, 2014 at
Brookings City & County Government Center with the following members present: Norma Nusz
Chandler, Ben Kleinjan, Alvaro Garcia, Bob McGrath, Jane Hegland, Trisha Jackson, Betty Beer,
Mike Lockrem and Holly Tilton Byrne. Absent: Ryan Carda, Paul Peterson and. Others present
included: Shari Thornes and Laurie Carruthers.
Chair Nusz Chandler called the meeting to order at 8:31 a.m. A motion was made by Beer,
seconded by Garcia to approve the agenda. All present voted yes; motion carried. A motion
was made by McGrath, seconded by Beer, to approve March 14, 2014 minutes. All present
voted yes; motion carried.
Welcome new member Mike Lockrem. Lockrem introduced himself and provided background
on his former positions and current position as SDSU Director of Marketing & Communications.
Schedule next meeting. June 5, 2014 at 8:30 a.m.
Event Wrap-up Reports.
a. B-cycle demonstration – The representatives from B-cycle arrived on April 30 for
GreenFest week on campus and brought a station for a demo. The weather did not
cooperate, but there was good traffic including Mayor Reed, President Chicoine and
SDSU Student Senate President Caleb Finck. The Brookings Register also featured the
demo in an article on April 29. Garcia asked all the members to vote for Brookings on
the B-cycle website and share the link with friends. Garcia also reminded everyone that
B-cycle will be back for the Bike & Kite Festival on June 21 & 22, 2014. Beer advised
about a ‘small town’ bike sharing program where the station is on each bike and
participants can find the bikes through GPS. Engage Brookings is a tool the
Sustainability Council can use to poll the community about interest in a bike sharing
program. Thornes reminded everyone that a financial plan needs to be in place before
contacting sponsors.
b. Earth Day/GreenFest – Tilton Byrne advised that the Saturday event at Habitat ReStore
had a fantastic turn-out. The exhibitors were very engaging and there was good traffic
throughout the day. However, everyone left at 2pm for the Great 48 event downtown.
This worked well for the event overall. Maybe next year, the event should not be so
long. On Sunday approximately 60 people attended, and Bob Yapp had a good
following. Many Sustainability Council members were also present. Every year there
has been a decline in numbers of GreenFest attendees, and we are seeing the same
dedicated faces. In reviewing all the events, it may be beneficial to coordinate a one-
day event with Habitat ReStore that has both adult and a family oriented focus.
Planning events for 2 separate days took a huge amount of time and energy, conducted
solely by two people. If the Sustainability Council is going to participate in organizing an
event, there should be more buy-in from all the members. The indicator project may
identify a different way to touch the community through outreach.
c. Plain Green Speaker Cori Burbach’s presentation – Hegland reported that Cori Burbach
had a whirlwind tour of Brookings and was able to meet with the Provost, Mayor,
Sustainability Council and many people in between. She estimated 60 attendees at the
evening presentation which was a good turnout considering all the events that evening.
Burbach kept the line of communication open to any questions we may have and also
encourages us to attend the Dubuque Conference in October. Carruthers reminded
members about Cori’s advice to not make recommendations
Indicator Project Update. Nusz Chandler advised the Indicator Project is being reviewed for
grammatical errors by the English Department. Kleinjan is revising other portions of the
project. Once all the revisions are complete, Nusz Chandler will incorporate all the changes.
Carruthers reminisced the discussion with Burbach about the Indicator Project and the
recommendation to provide red flags, not recommendations. Kleinjan reminded the council
that this project will be an educational tool; the council could spend a great amount of time
interpreting the information. However, the focus now is to provide the report to the City
Council for the July 15 Meeting. The council can review the project in 2-3 years to update the
data and provide the future indicators. Tilton Byrne made the recommendation that the
indicator project be submitted to the City Council with an Executive Summary of guiding
principles.
2014 Community Common Read Project with the Human Rights Committee. Each
Sustainability Council Member was given The Good Food Revolution by Will Allen, which was
chosen as the 2014 Community/Campus Common Read Book. Each member was tasked with
reading the book before the next meeting on June 5. The author, Will Allen, will be at SDSU on
October 27 for a presentation. The Human Rights Committee has promoted several
Community/Campus Common Read Books. Since the book identifies with human rights and
sustainability, the Human Rights Committee wants to join promotional efforts with the
Sustainability Council. Tilton Byrne, Lockrem and McGrath agreed to form a subcommittee.
Public Education Campaign Poster Reveal/Advertising Plan. The council discussed several
options for promotions including: the Brookings Register, Town & Country Shopper, billboards,
local businesses, Landfill and BMU advertising, SDSU channel in hotels, Farmer’s Market table,
BATA bus, movie theater, Jacks games and Facebook ads. Lockrem will provide an advertising
plan for the next meeting.
Announcements/Correspondence/Communications/Calendar
• June 21 & 22, 2014 – Bike & Kite Festival at Fishback Soccer Complex
• September 12, 2014 – Plain Green Conference
• October 7 & 8, 2014 – Growing Sustainable Communities Dubuque Conference
• Membership: Members’ terms were staggered with one, two and three terms when the
Council was created on September 15, 2011. Terms for Hegland and McGrath expire on
12/31/14. All are eligible for a full three year term.
• Future topics: Bike racks for BATA buses, bike patrol, East Brookings industry traffic
concerns, Plain Green 2015 Indicator Project, legislative issues.
Draft June Agenda: Indicator Project analysis, GreenFest Art Project update, Kite Festival
activities, recommendation for the city to hire a sustainability coordinator, budget review.
Adjourn. A motion was made by Kleinjan, seconded by McGrath, to adjourn. All present voted
yes; motion carried. Meeting adjourned 10:05 a.m.
Submitted by Laurie Carruthers