November Change for Good Partner: Southern Oregon Climate Action Now
November Change for Good Partner: Southern Oregon Climate Action Now
November's Change for Good Partner is
Southern Oregon Climate Action Now
Southern Oregon Climate Action Now is a grassroots, volunteer, non-profit organization of area residents who care about climate change and have joined forces to take bold action against it. Through volunteer projects, they focus on reducing the impacts of Global Warming across Southern Oregon.
SOCAN recognizes that science-based understanding, paired with actions that can be taken both individually and collectively, will help us achieve meaningful greenhouse gas emissions reductions and achieve necessary community climate goals. From their inauguration in 2012, SOCAN has focused on science and the application of scientific understanding to promoting solutions to the problem.
Their energetic volunteers are currently engaged in 22 projects across five program areas:
Education, Government, Natural Resources, Transportation, and Community Engagement.
Of particular note, SOCAN's Ashland Climate Action Project works to stimulate progress on the city's Climate and Energy Action Plan. This project works to ensure that climate action is a top priority in Ashland and incorporated into all city planning and decision-making. Through education and outreach they inform and engage residents to work together to reduce our community’s climate impact and support achievement of the goals of Ashland’s Climate and Energy Action Plan (CEAP). This project compliments and supports the work of the Ashland Climate Policy Commission, the Conservation and Climate Outreach Commission, and the Transportation Commission.
Learn more about Ashland Climate Action Project
Additionally, SOCAN’s Master Climate Protector – A Primer for Action is a science based 10-week course that is offered annually - covers climate change science and the impacts on key sectors of energy, transportation, agriculture, water and others. Within each sector is a focus on global and local impacts, personal and collective mitigating actions and measurements on how to reduce your greenhouse gas footprint.
Learn more about the Master Climate Protector Program
SOCAN also is engaged in and promotes statewide action to address climate change and offers assistance to teachers and makes presentations at schools and for other civic organizations. The Next Generation Science Standards, adopted by Oregon, explicitly include the expectation that students will understand climate science, but many teachers need the support to do so. SOCAN supports teachers in their efforts to find and develop curricula to meet these standards and provide professional development opportunities where they can collaborate with other teachers and practice teaching about these topics.
Learn more about Climate in the Classroom
To sign up for monthly SOCAN emails, get involved in a project, or learn more about SOCAN
The AFC Gives committee focuses on ways that the Co-op community can support local organizations and groups doing important work in the Rogue Valley.
2020 was the first year of Change for Good, a register round-up program to benefit a slate of ten organizations, voted on by Co-op owners, through the cumulative donations of shoppers choosing to round-up their shopping total to the nearest dollar.
From one cent to 99 cents, it all adds up to feeling good about supporting the community.
More Co-op News
Meet class instructor, Joette Calabrese
This class instructor profile is connected to the February 27 free lecture, "You, Too, Can Beat the Flu!"
On an early Kolkata (Calcutta) morning, thick crowds gather outside the gates of the hospital while officials yell out "Brain tumor, kidney failure, cancer patients form a line here!” Hopeful patients, family members and caregivers arrange themselves by disease symptom.
What to do with all this citrus?!
So you grabbed a few too many extra oranges and grapefruits and lemons (and some finger limes, and some satsumas…), and rather than watch them go bad, we want to provide you with some ideas on how to reduce waste. You’ll also get to enjoy citrus in a lot of new ways!
There are many guides and recipes across the internet (like this one by our friends at Grow Forage Cook Ferment), so here are a few ideas to get your creative and citrus juices flowing.
Update from the General Manager: "Food for Paradise" campaign
Ashland Food Co-op's General Manager, Emile Amarotico, ends 2018 on a very uplifting note with a report back on the "Food for Paradise" donation campaign. Watch the video below, or read on for an extended written update.
Hello, this is Emile Amarotico, the general manager of Ashland Food Co-op with an update on the Co-op’s Food for Paradise initiative.
5 Fresh Ways to Save at the Co-op
We’ve all been there: your bank account is looking thin after a month of celebrations, but you’ve made a New Year’s resolution to save up for a big purchase later in the year
Now’s the time to make some changes to your spending - but that doesn’t mean you have to skimp on quality goods at the Ashland Food Co-op.
These are some lesser known ways to save at the Co-op. Think of them like ordering off the secret menu.
Savings Level: $
Board Report: How "Food For Paradise" Got Started
By Mira Wonderwheel, Board of Directors
4 Ways to Reduce Your Food Waste
It’s the New Year, our favorite time for goal-setting, making positive resolutions, and shifting our impact. One of the Co-op’s goals is to become a Zero Waste facility. Our staff works to divert as much food waste as we can - and we hope our member-owners will join us in this goal too.
2019 Community Grant Applications
The funding cycle for the 2019 Co-op Community Grants for nonprofit organizations begins in February.
Meet Cooking Class Instructor Charlie Douglass
Many talented local chefs share their expertise in the Co-op Kitchen. Charlie Douglass is no exception. As the former Master Chocolatier at Harry and David, Charlie knows a thing or two about chocolate and candy making.
Tell us how your love of cooking and food began.
Meet Cooking Class Instructor Tiazza Rose
Tell us how your love of cooking and food began.
Give the Gift of Wellness
Finding the perfect gift for a friend or loved one is an art. This winter, we carefully selected these assortments for those who love some good self-care, are working in partnership with their gut health, or for those making efforts to reduce their pain. Each of these gift ideas will help you make your loved ones feel extra special and extra healthful.
Give the Gift of Good Food
During the month of November, Co-op shoppers can nourish their own families and help fight hunger in the Rogue Valley. We’ve teamed up once again with Smart Chicken® for the Smart Giving Holiday Challenge.
Here’s how it works.
-
For every 10 pounds of Smart Chicken® you purchase from the Meat Department or the Deli, Smart Chicken® will donate one pound of chicken to a local non profit
We're All Turtles
By Dean Williamson, Board of Director
My grandmother loved to talk. Oh, could she talk! And she had one expression that I’ve always really liked. “If you come across a turtle on top of a fence post, you can be pretty sure it didn’t get there by itself.”
The Power of Principle Seven
By Emile Amarotico, General Manager
As we approach the holidays, I’d like to invoke the spirit of the Seventh Cooperative Principle: Concern for Community. The International Cooperative Alliance defines Principle Seven as when “cooperatives work for the sustainable development of their communities through policies approved by their members.”
So how does that work? How does Ashland Food Co-op demonstrate concern for community?
The Co-op is Certified Organic! What does that mean?
By Barry Haynes, Store Manager
Did you know that the Ashland Food Co-op is the only Certified Organic Retailer in southern Oregon. Well, that’s great! But what does that actually mean?
Love Local with the Local Guy
Throughout September, we will be celebrating all things local. And no one loves local or is more local than our Temporary Demo Coordinator, Brighton Litjens. He was basically raised at the Co-op, has a strong passion for local farmers and producers and loves delighting shoppers with delicious samples and great deals. Who better to tell us about loving local than the "Local Guy" himself?
Tell us a bit about yourself.