by Allen Hibner
May 4, 2020
Al Hibner Managing the AV Presentation Equipment During the Fall 2018 Project Drawdown 4-Session "Getting into Action" Course held at Spiritus Christi Church in downtown Rochester, NY
In August of 2018, I agreed to assist the conveners of an upcoming Project Drawdown 4-Session “Getting into Action” (GIA) course by providing all of the AV presentation equipment needed to conduct the course and running it for them. It was my original intention to simply “audit” the course and not to participate in it. Just to make the IT portion of it easier for all of my friends involved. Instead, I found myself being drawn deeper and deeper into the course’s message; finding one or more of Project Drawdown’s 80 current solutions to climate change that resonated with me and then envisioning and adopting a personal project to undertake well beyond the duration of the four sessions.
One of the course’s inspirational leaders, Sue Staropoli, happened to mention to me that in an earlier GIA course, one participant, who also lived in Penfield as I do, had been interested in pursuing the implementation of a Community Choice Aggregation program in our town. Knowing that there was another person interested, my project was almost instantly born. It dawned on me; if not me, who would get this going? If not now, when would it happen? Why not do this?
Al Hibner photographed with Tim McGowan, Sue Staropoli and Paul Kane; conveners of the September 2018 Project Drawdown Getting into Action Course that inspired me to start the PenfieldCCA Residents’ Committee.
On October 23rd, 2018, I invited this person along with another interested participant of a Project Drawdown Introduction course I had delivered in Penfield earlier that summer, to the founding meeting of the PenfieldCCA Residents’ Committee (see screen shot below). Now, some 18 months later, the Town Board of Penfield is just a couple weeks away from voting on the enabling law that will formally begin the process to implement a CCA program in our town; a program that will be able to provide 100% clean, carbon free and renewable electricity to the over 36,000 residents of Penfield. Project Drawdown, Getting into Action and the inspirational leaders of the Pachamama Alliance of the Rochester Area were instrumental in helping to make that happen. For that, I and the residents of the Town of Penfield thank them…
PHOTO ABOVE: October 23rd, 2018 – Screen shot from the very first meeting (held by Zoom) of the PenfieldCCA Residents’ Committee with it’s original three founding members listening to Sue Hughes-Smith from Roctricity talk to us about what a CCA program is.
PHOTO BELOW: the PenfieldCCA Residents’ Committee hard at work at one of its monthly meetings.
Upcoming Drawdown Programs
We can reverse global warming. The first step is learning that it is possible. In these programs, you'll discover a solutions-oriented approach, one with a sense of opportunity, possibility, and hope for the future. Visit our website to see all our local upcoming programs.
Our programs are ON in an interactive, online format (using Zoom)
Our team is heartened by the realization that, in spite of the pandemic, the Rochester community is connecting, caring for one another and communicating in new and inspired ways. Meanwhile the air above our cities is clearing, animals and people are breathing deeply, and evidence of spring is everywhere.
Encourage your friends and family to visit our website to see program descriptions. You can find dates and times on the program registration page and sign-up for an "Introduction to Drawdown" or the four-session “Getting into Action” course. Keep the momentum going! Together we can reverse global warming! GAME ON!!
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