June 2016 Green Fire Times by Sun Publishing

News & Views

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S u s t ai n ab l e S o u t h w e s t

Profiles in Innovation A Community of Creatives in Action G reen , T ech and F ilm C areers in N orthern N ew M exico C reative E ducators T ake L earning to the S treets T he R ail R unner L ine : N ew M exico â&#x20AC;&#x2122; s L iving O pen B ook June 2016

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Vol. 8, No. 6 • June 2016 Issue No. 86 Publisher Green Fire Publishing, LLC

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Monique Anair, Judy Herzl, Sharna Langlais, Bonn Macy, Chris Jonas, Jennifer Case Nevárez, Alejandro López, Seth Roffman, Amy Traylor, Veena Vasista, Regina Wheeler

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News & Views

from the

Sustainable Southwest

Winner of the Sustainable Santa Fe Award for Outstanding Educational Project

Contents

The Revealing New Mexican Landscape along the Rail Runner Line . . .. . .. 7 Profiles in Innovation – A Community of Creatives in Action Littleglobe’s Transmedia Team and the City of Dreamers Project. . .. . .. . . 9 Workforce Development for an Innovative Future . . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . 11 Mentoring: Real-Life Learning that Works . . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. 13 Creative Educators Take Learning to the Streets . . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . . 14 Business Profile: Simply Social Media . . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. 17 The Maker Movement: “Learn. Build. Thrive.”. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . 20 Building Foundations, Bridges and Futures: The Arts + Creativity Center. . 21 Stories Are Important . . .. . ... . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. 22 So, What Is Coding, Anyway?. . . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. 23 Startup Santa Fe – Creating an Ecosystem of Entrepreneurship . . .. . .. . . 27 Op-Ed: A Green Economy Is a Fair Economy. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . 28 PNM’s Rate Case . . .. . .. . ... . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. 30 Book Profile: Wild Guide: Passport to New Mexico’s Wilderness . . .. . .. 35 Newsbites . . .. . .. . .. . .. . . . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . 24, 29, 30, 35, 37 What’s Going On. . .. . .. . ... . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. 38

Kurt Young 505.913.0699 Kurt@GreenFireTimes.com

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Circulation: 30,000 copies Printed locally with 100% soy ink on 100% recycled, chlorine-free paper

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c/o The Sun Companies P.O. Box 5588, SF, NM 87502-5588 505.471.5177 • info@greenfiretimes.com © 2016 Green Fire Publishing, LLC Green Fire Times provides useful information for community members, business people, students and visitors—anyone interested in discovering the wealth of opportunities and resources in the Southwest. In support of a more sustainable planet, topics covered range from green businesses, jobs, products, services, entrepreneurship, investing, design, building and energy—to native perspectives on history, arts & culture, ecotourism, education, sustainable agriculture, regional cuisine, water issues and the healing arts. To our publisher, a more sustainable planet also means maximizing environmental as well as personal health by minimizing consumption of meat and alcohol. Green Fire Times is widely distributed throughout northcentral New Mexico as well as to a growing number of New Mexico cities, towns, pueblos and villages. Feedback, announcements, event listings, advertising and article submissions to be considered for publication are welcome.

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The Revealing New Mexican Landscape along the Rail Runner Line New Mexico’s Living Open Book © Seth Roffman

Alejandro López

e w Mexico defies easy understanding or description because, aside from being geographically diverse and immense— the fifth-largest state in the Union— it has an unbroken history going bac k thousands of years. That notwithstanding, New Mexico also possesses a cutting-edge contemporary dimension. It also comprises a complex mosaic of cultures that includes diverse Native American tribal groups— Apache, Navajo, Zuni, Keres, Tiwa,

Vietnamese, Thai, Laotian, Cambodian, Korean, Tibetan, Iberian Spanish, Filipino and other communities. New Mexico’s seven native languages, as well as variants of each, have been spoken on this land for many centuries. Spanish too, has a history of at least 400 years in New Mexico with two contrasting forms spoken—the older Nuevomexicano speech (now in sharp decline) and the relatively recent, predominantly Mexican form, which is heard nearly everywhere.

A new route offers a perhaps more real and challenging picture of New Mexico

Adding to this extraordinar y complexity, New Mexico’s population includes those born here and relative newcomers, highly liberal and staunchly conservative populations, rural and urban residents and, lastly, individuals and groups holding extremes of wealth and others who are abjectly poor and disenfranchised. Rarely do these diverse individuals or groups ever sit across from each other at the same table and attempt to cobble a common

Tewa and Towa. Coexisting with these original communities are the more recent Nuevo Mexicano, Mexicano, Anglo, Jewish, African-American, Sikh, Islamic, Central and South American, East Indian, Chinese, Japanese,

vision for the future or even discuss what New Mexico means to them. For a long time, if one wanted to see a cross-section of the state and experience “the essence” of New Mexico—or at least that of its northern half—it was recommended that one travel along Route 66 from Albuquerque to Gallup or take the High Road from Santa Fe to Taos. Both routes enable the traveler to traverse some spectacular country and visit both Native American and Indo-Hispano villages while never leaving, for very long, the comfort of one’s car or the sense that New Mexico is an idyllic place far from the hubbub of Los Angeles or New York. A new route, however, has opened up in recent years that offers a different and perhaps more real and challenging picture of New Mexico. Cutting through a oncehidden backyard or rather, front yard of our state, the views it affords should leave us all attempting to piece together a new understanding of our region that should

also prompt us to dialogue about the forces that, day by day, shape our reality and determine the quality of our lives. This route is the Rail Runner line that connects Santa Fe to Belen. On the northbound journey f rom Albuquerque to Santa Fe, the traveler boards at the Alvarado Station, downtown. Aside f rom its faux California Mission-style buildings, the terminal could be anywhere in the United States, its grounds inhabited as they are by many homeless and transient people and an almost equal number of police and security guards. As the train begins to travel north, it cuts through the old warehouse district. The Wool Warehouse, where New Mexico’s once-plentiful wool was stored to later be shipped to Eastern states for processing, appears immediately to the west. Soon thereafter, along two or three continuous blocks, graffiti of the boldest and most unshackled kind— art of barrio youth having few other creative outlets—springs into full view. It is nothing less than mesmerizing and serves as a prelude to the grunge that is about to follow. For the next few miles, the traveler can observe

Abandoned buildings northeast of the Pueblo of Santo Domingo

continued on page 8

Factory near Bernalillo

Heaps of discarded industrial materials, Albuquerque

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Buildings on the outskirts of Sandia Pueblo

Unfinished adobe edifice, Bernalillo

Green Fire Times • June 2016

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New Mexican Landscape continued from page 7

Irrigation ditch south of the Pueblo of Santo Domingo

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in total amazement what were once the most hidden parts of the city, particularly the industrial sector. Here, heaps of scrap metal, obsolete machinery and wrecked cars—the detritus of the Industrial Age—reveal the equipment and fabrications that made Albuquerque the colossal energyguzzling city it is. Of course, there are also innumerable garages, lots filled with delivery trucks, heavy machinery, piles of crates, scrap lumber, wire, plastics and a few commercial spaces that sport their wares of flagstone, electrical fixtures, cinder block, gravel, cement, iron and steel.

By the time the trees grow thicker and an occasional open field appears on the northern outskirts of the city, the traveler may feel deeply relieved. And yet, the multitude of humble homes continues throughout this zone, as well, but now populated by children happily playing outside and occasional farm animals ambling about. The old acequia systems begin to appear in this area, as do unexpected palatial mansions of an Italianate style with circular turrets and dark tile roofs, in marked contrast to the haphazard, ordinary architecture of the common folk. continued on page 18

The industrial sector is followed by highly marginal, low-income, re s i d e n t i a l a re a s — t h e b a r r i o s . Everywhere, there are trailer courts, houses in need of repair, unkempt yards and lots full of nonfunctioning vehicles and industrial debris. Every now and then, the traveler sees pockets of neat residences, groomed yards, shiny cars, an athletic field and a community school. In its own way, the mauled-up landscape tells us that something in

contemporary American urban culture causes many people to not care about their surroundings or, by extension, their communities. Could it be the stress and fragmentation of our times, the capitalist ethic of “take what you can, while you can, and the world be damned,” or the constant economic drain imposed on those who are poorest? Could this also be the result of insensitive annihilation of older cultures by those most powerful who have relocated here more recently?

Graffiti artists at work on Albuquerque walls

Green Fire Times • June 2016

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Profiles In Innovation — A Community of Creatives In Action

Littleglobe’s Transmedia Team and the City of Dreamers Project

Chris Jonas and Veena Vasista

“W

hat do you know about Capital High School?” Maya, a high school intern from the City of Dreamers media team, asked a young adult in Santa Fe Plaza. He responded, “It is a high school, and no one likes it there. I’ve never really been around that part of town, so...”

Exploring Santa Fe’s negative perceptions about residents living in the South Side

As Santa Feans, we can choose to acknowledge, dive into and hold dear the complex beauty of our town and the people who live here. To live in Santa Fe, as is the case in many U.S. cities, is an invitation to live amidst and navigate multiple cultures. How we take up this invitation determines how we live together—economically, socially and politically. If we choose to step into the stories of one another, we are choosing to cultivate a form of kinship that potentially breaks down walls, creates bridges and sows seeds for equity and respect.

The driving forces within City of Dreamers are collaboration and the principle that to know a person’s story is to be changed by it. The members of Littleglobe, our nonprofit arts and social-equity home, feel that one of our primary jobs is holding spaces between usual and hardened perspectives and thereby providing a forum for people to ask questions and share their stories. Artistry and creativity offer up a multitude of unique ways to hold this space and to invite one another to bring forward perspectives and personal experiences f rom our daily lives that we might normally find hard to describe and explore. City of Dreamers started, in fall 2014, as a project with a series of afterschool filmmaking i n t e n s i ve s w i t h Capital High School students the Gabriel Martínez and Jacob Tafoya, Littleglobe New Media Arts f r o m Communities in fellows from ¡Youthworks!, interviewing community members

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The Littleglobe Transmedia team interviewing Aaron Stern, president/founder of the Academy for the Love of Learning at the Inspire! Festival of Learning in April. L-R: Aaron Stern, Louis Mortera, Luke Carr, Ash Haywood, Jessica Smyser (from the Academy), Chris Jonas, Jacob Tafoya, Gabriel Martínez

Schools program. Like all Littleglobe projects, it began by bringing together a group of multigenerational collaborators to explore a simple set of creative exercises. In this case, we began with a camera, a black backdrop and a cinema lighting set. The students investigated the wide range of effects using different approaches to lighting one another for the camera. They saw how a brightly lit, close-up face that fills the entire frame creates an overwhelming or menacing image. And how framing the same person low in the frame and dimly lit makes that person appear insignificant and weak. Catalyzed by experimenting with the lights, they discussed how complicated it is to represent s o m e b o d y, the power of storytellers and the importance o f h u m i l i t y, respect and safety in storytelling. From this starting point, Jobani Estrada and Maya Fern, Littleglobe interns from Capital High School’s Communities in Schools Program on a film shoot after a series of weekly intensives on personal narrative writing, peer-to-peer leadership, media literacy and film skills, students began interviewing their peers and school staff. Questions included, “Where do you get your support in life and school?” and, “Why do you wake up in the morning and go to school?” The high school filmmakers were surprised to discover that those they knew from years of associations at the school and whom they assumed were living “normal” lives—in seeming contrast to their own lives—had dreams and struggles similar to their own. As time went by, the project incorporated a wide range of artistic mediums, including radio journalism, spoken word, youth leadership training, project management, public relations and marketing, cross-community interviews, experimental video and audio collage. This provided our collaborating students, continued on page 25

Green Fire Times • June 2016

On Mother’s Day evening, in May 2016, a cast of nearly 50 students, filmmakers, musicians and advocates presented City of Dreamers to a full house in the 830seat Lensic Performing Arts Center. The audience was a broad representation of Santa Fe’s residents, unusual to see in any single city assembly outside of the annual Zozobra celebration. City of Dreamers presented stories from the lives of students and families living in Santa Fe’s South Side. Using film, live interviews and spoken-word performance, students and mentors spoke about their challenges and dreams, explored the current ethos and legal context of immigration, and described Santa Fe’s negative perceptions about Capital High and the residents living in that part of town.

Priscilla, a high school senior, declares in a video, “I am a student from Capital High School. And if they say, “Oh, there?!” I say, “Yeah, there! And it’s awesome, so deal with it!”

New Mexico’s History Is Alive at El Rancho de las Golondrinas

El Rancho de las Golondrinas, “The Ranch of the Swallows,” was founded 300 years ago as a paraje — stopping place — on El Camino Real, the Royal Road to Mexico City. Today, it is a one-of-a-kind destination where the past comes to life and weekend programs are fun for the whole family! open Wednesday– sunday, 10am– 4pm, June 1– o ctober 2, 2016 u p c o m i n g W e e k e n d e v e n ts Herb & Lavender Festival | June 18 & 19 Lavender and herb product vendors along with demonstrations and hands-on activities on all things lavender. Santa Fe Wine Festival | July 2 & 3 Sample delicious New Mexico wines, buy directly from the vintners, and enjoy food, music, and arts and crafts.

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Profiles In Innovation — A Community of Creatives In Action

Workforce Development for an Innovative Future Highlighting Green, Tech and Film Careers in Northern New Mexico Jennifer Nevárez

any young New Mexicans are unaware of the vast array of opportunities for meaningful, rewarding work right in their own state. With support f rom the McCune Charitable Foundation, this month the first “Career Ac ademy ” is offering students from 11 schools the opportunity to explore hands-on

open computing jobs and only 120 computer science graduates. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, the computer systems design industry— and related services—is among the state economy’s largest and fastest sources of employment growth. The new college board exam in computer science notes that computer science is the “New Literacy,” and “whether it’s 3-D animation, engineering, music, app development, medicine, visual design, robotics or political analysis, computer science is the engine that powers the technology, productivity and innovation that drive the world. Computer science experience has become an imperative for today ’s students and the workforce of tomorrow.”

As the film industry has blossomed in the state, Cultivating real-life skills. Jonah Singh and Alaxay Zinchenko use technology as a part of the mentorship program at the New Mexico Film Office—a division of Monte del Sol Charter School. the state’s Economic activities and meet professionals from Development Department—was three innovative industries identified established to facilitate and promote by Startup Santa Fe as growing in on-location filming and film-industry northern New Mexico: green, tech jobs. The New Mexico Tourism office and film. reported more than 205 productions since 2003, and it is estimated that the industry According to the UNM Center for generated more than $1.5 billion in Sustainability, New Mexico’s cleaneconomic impact in just four years. Many energy sector grew by 118 percent in students are surprised to learn that those 10 years, while jobs in energy efficiency who graduate in film are eligible for the grew by 184 percent and jobs in state to pay half of the first 1,040 hours of environmentally friendly production their initial employment in the industry. grew by 99 percent. Careers are also available in water conservation, Looking for creative ways to connect pollution mitigation, sustainable students with career opportunities they forestry, biofuels, geothermal energy, may have never imagined possible, the recycling, sustainability and efficiency Community Learning Network (CLN), assessment, electric vehicles, green a Santa Fe-based nonprofit dedicated to construction, and renewable energy “building stronger communities through including solar and wind energy. real-life learning,” launched the New Mexico Career Profiles project. Designed Computer and information-technology to link students with people who have enterprises are also taking off. According successful careers in leading New Mexico to code.org and the latest studies industries, this collaborative takes a of labor-market data assessment, multifaceted approach and includes northern New Mexico had 1,541

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both online and offline opportunities for exploration and engagement. Career “MeetUps” provide informal s c h o o l a n d c om mu n i t y e ve n t s through which students can meet people engaged in viable careers. “Career Bootcamps” offer hands-on introductions to skills and regional industries, while “Career Academies” offer longer immersive experiences with more time for experiential learning and intergenerational exchange. The

The computer systems design industry is among the state economy’s largest and fastest sources of employment growth. “Online Library” hosts a growing list of industry-related resources, including educational pathways, training opportunities, and relevant organizations, conferences and events. The “Video Bank” features a collection of short, informal interviews with New Mexico employees and employers— some conducted and edited by students, offering a personal look into the daily life and work of community members from a wide range of professions. Local students are invited to participate in the process of creating careerprofile videos, including selecting and interviewing professionals, filming and

editing footage, and posting them for public access. The community is also invited to submit career profiles for possible inclusion. If you would like to submit a career-profile video interview to the New Mexico Careers Video Bank, send a short—2-to-5 minutes—edited version of an informal career interview made by smart phone or tablet to info@ communitylearningnetwork.org Guiding questions to address when creating a video: 1. Who are you, and what do you do? 2. How did you get started? 3. W hat kinds of things do you do in a day? 4. What do you like about your work? 5. Can you show us where you work? 6. W hat would you tell young people about life? To learn more or get involved, visit nmcareers.org, check new information and video postings, or follow the New Mexico Career Profiles blog titled “Life Matters. i Jennifer Case Nevárez is the lead educator and director of the local nonprof it Community L e a r n i n g Network. A lifelong advocate of real-life learning, she also coordinates Southwest Experiential Education for visiting and local student groups and the “Love Where We Live” Youth Ambassadors program.

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Events in EVENTS INJune MAY

9 – 9:30 June 4 May 6:00 Masonic Family Steering Commi ee (Private) NMCC Chef and Shaker Challenge May 11 5:30 - 7:30 June 11 12:00 – 3:00 Santa Fe Prep Davis Scholarship Awards Private Graduation Party (Private) JuneMay 12 12 6:00-9:00 3:00 – 5:00 Santa Fe High School Choir Not Just for Birds! FundConcert Raiser May 13 June 17 4:00 – 10:00 New Mexico Historic Preservation Division Private Wedding Reception Awards (Sánchez/Márquez) May 20 10:30 AM June 4:00 –Graduation 11:00 Academy 18 at Larragoite Private May Wedding 27 6:00Reception PM Santa Fe(Mulligan/Barnett) School for the Arts and Sciences June 25Graduation 7:30 – 9:30 May 28 7:00-9 PM Delphia Concert Heath SUN Concert Series: Melanie Sa a View our new webpage santafesco ishrite.org for calendar and information.

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Profiles In Innovation — A Community of Creatives In Action

Mentoring: Real-Life Learning that Works from Monte del Sol Charter School Judy Herzl

assion is something both parents and educators alike tend to encourage because it’s well known we do best learning something that excites us. But what happens when a student has a passion that is not something normally part of a school’s curriculum? Sometimes, the student is fortunate to be able to pursue it outside school, independently, or as a team sport or other extracurricular activity.

an organization that works on issues of human rights and immigration. “The bond they forged with their mentor was extraordinary. They were on fire and spoke at the state Legislature. I have no doubt that they will take everything from this mentorship and apply it to life itself as they take their next steps,” says Program Director Giselle Piburn. Monte del Sol’s “Head Learner,” Robert Jessen, says, “The school constantly hears from its graduates and their parents about the impact the program has had on their lives. For instance, Josh Bohoskey, who graduated in 2006, did film mentorships and now works in film and TV in New York City on shows like Saturday Night Live. One boy did a mentorship in beekeeping. His whole family got involved. He is still doing it today.”

W hat if it is something like glassblowing, which requires safety and other training to be able to handle the hot glass? Or rock climbing, which requires lots of training, expensive gear, a climbing partner and access to climbing areas often an hour or more away? Mentorships offer a unique learning environment.

Student aerialists perform at spring Festival of Learning showcase

This is where the educational value of the mentorship program at Monte del Sol Charter School in Santa Fe becomes evident. Every year, students at the school learn to identify areas of curiosity, interest and passion and are then matched with adults who work in that area. Over the course of 16 years, the program has had

over 1,000 volunteer mentors and has made over 2,000 mentorship matches. In the 2015–16 school year, 120 mentors—with expertise ranging f rom blacksmithing to emceeing to barrel racing to mathematics to ballet—have given of their time, meeting with their protégés for a minimum of two hours every week.

Sadie and Christine working on chalk drawings

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This cornerstone of the school’s curriculum educates students through handson, real-life experiences. Mentorships offer a unique learning environment precisely because they begin with an interest or passion born from the student that they share in a one-on-one relationship. They learn because they feel connected to someone who cares about them and their progress, that is, someone who also sees and fosters their potential to make a significant contribution out in the world with their skills and knowledge. The student benefits from that person, who demonstrates a genuine willingness to believe in him or her and invest time in

individualized attention creating social capital. Students who have done mentorships in aerial fabrics (acrobatics) or rock climbing, as well as baking or auto mechanics, find that there is a level of physical difficulty, precision and focus far higher than they could have imagined. As a result of their commitment to their mentorship and their mentor’s commitment to them, they are able to master disciplines in ways that may have otherwise eluded them. Students identify areas of curiosity, interest and passion and are matched with adults who work in that area. Some students deliberately choose mentorships that take them out of their comfort zone. Reflecting on his experience, one student who decided to do a mentorship in partnered Latin dance said, “My desire was to relieve myself from the weight of not being able to dance. And now, in a new world [for him], I can use my new skills to diversify the way I communicate with people.” How else does it change lives? This year, two girls did mentorships in social justice with Somos un Pueblo Unido,

Students agree. Senior Amadeo Hughes, who did a mentorship in video editing with videographer Matt Schultze says, “Through moments that proved themselves to be stressful, where everything just didn’t seem to be working, I can speak for a lot of others when I say that my experience included the extensive, unconditional support that my mentor provided whenever necessary.” He added, “When a mentor is proud of your work, that’s a great feeling.”

Students identify areas of curiosity, interest and passion and are matched with adults who work in that area.

Senior Lauren Liberty, who did two mentorships this year—one in aerial fabrics with Alex Díaz from Wise Fool and another in piano with musician Criss Jay—echoes this. “There is a mutual understanding that this is something that both of you are passionate about, which creates an automatic connection. It’s a much more intimate teaching because the mentor can really help you and address what’s continued on page 35

Green Fire Times • June 2016

Profiles In Innovation — A Community of Creatives In Action

Creative Educators Take Learning to the Streets By Youth Ambassadors from Tierra Encantada Charter School, 2016 We kept personal journals and field notes and made thank-you cards and letters. We spent one afternoon hiking in Hyde Park with our guide, Joshua Sage, and realized there are lots of trails and places to hike or just be in nature all around Santa Fe! We learned that you don’t need technology all the time, and you can have fun outside in nature. It is peaceful and beautiful there and very relaxing.

We are a group of up-and-coming Youth Ambassadors f rom Santa Fe, New Mexico. After an interesting couple of weeks exploring our community and finding locations that we enjoyed, we are inspired to teach the world how to love where they live. We never knew about all the great places our city has to offer. We take our communities for granted. It’s time to admire the world we live in. – Caitlin Scott

uring the spring intensive at Tierra Encantada Charter School, we spent every day learning about where we live by going places, meeting people and doing things as part of the Community Learning Network’s “Love Where We Live” Youth Ambassadors training program. What makes a good ambassador? We brainstormed and developed our own Top 10 Rules for Ambassador Etiquette. We used photo editing and cartoon apps to create a slideshow to teach the next class of Youth Ambassadors. The slideshow is on our website: www.lovewherewelive.info

We began documenting the hidden beauty and unique personality of where we live.

We l ea r n ed a b o u t Ne ti q u et t e. According to Virginia Shea, author of the book Netiquette, “It’s network etiquette—the etiquette of cyberspace.” We studied digital citizenship and digital literacy and discussed Internet safety and privacy. We also learned about Twitter Rules of Engagement and blogging; we created avatars and emails; plus, we experimented with file sharing and digital collaboration through Google Classroom. After a brief introduction to Street Etiquette, we studied photojournalism and learned about the 10 elements of photography, including the “Rule of Thirds, Balancing Elements, Leading Lines, Viewpoint, Symmetry, Patterns, Depth, Framing, Cropping and Experimentation.” Then, we took to

Photo by Tierra Encantada Charter School student Miquella Martínez

the streets with a new lens, a camera lens, and began documenting the hidden beauty and unique personality of where we live. It was fun, and thanks to a visit from social media professionals in the community, we posted some of our best images to the popular social-media site, Simply Santa Fe, as well as to Instagram. We also developed media teams with specific roles and responsibilities such as location manager, producer, editor, cameraperson and interviewer. We learned some of the basics of video filming and editing. We even studied iMovie tutorials on YouTube. We did research, learned how to introduce ourselves, and wrote interview questions. We learned about consent forms and media release forms. Then, we explored our neighborhood and interviewed people using smart phones and tablets. We gathered stories, information and photos. We created videos and slideshows to share what we learned and show what there is to love about where we live. We walked around our neighborhood. We explored the Railyard and interviewed local farmers and vendors at the farmers’ market. We learned about our local economy and good food. We interviewed the manager at the popular restaurant, Tomasita’s, and the general manager of the Jean Cocteau Cinema. We explored REI’s adventure gear, and, at the Violet Crown Cinema, we peeked into the projection rooms. We also met Mona at the visitor’s center and discovered you can actually rent bikes next door at EcoMotive. We talked to some police officers on bikes, too. We learned you can pay

Green Fire Times • June 2016

parking tickets at the Market Station City Offices and were invited upstairs to the Santa Fe Metropolitan Planning office for a focus group on youth mobility with transportation planners and consultants. We studied local transportation and used maps, tablets and smart phones to chart our route and schedule for taking the public bus. Thankfully, we arrived right on time to volunteer at the Food Depot, on Siler Road, and had a great time volunteering and helping out.We learned there are many people who do not have enough to eat in New Mexico.

One of the highlights of our project was the Santa Fe Humane Society and Animal Shelter. They provide a great community service by helping people take care of their pets and finding homes for animals in need. We particularly loved volunteering to hold the new puppies! We completed our program with a “Celebration of Learning” and Youth Ambassador certificates, signed by the mayor. And we got business cards! We also ate lunch at the new, locally owned BadAss Sandwich Company downtown. We are grateful to the owner for letting us create our own specialty hotdog, permanently named after Tierra Encantada and our mascot, the alacrán, or scorpion. We learned so much about where we live; Santa Fe is an amazing place! Just saying hello and talking with people we did not know in our own community gave us a lot more confidence. We made a website to share what we learned and hope you will take a look. We will also be available to participate in community events, activities, projects and outreach, so if you need a guest speaker or student representative, please contact us at info@communitylearningnetwork.org

A selfie with the mayor

We visited the Capitol building and toured the Capitol Foundation Art Collection, which some people say is one of the best-kept secrets in Santa Fe. We met the mayor, too—and took a selfie with him! We toured City Hall to learn about our community government. A few of us even got to sit in the city councilors’ chairs. We visited the New Mexico History Museum and the Palace of the Governors and, of course, explored the historic Plaza.

The “Love Where We Live” Youth Ambassador’s project was a great experience. Our success was especially driven by our teachers at Tierra Encantada, Alicia Benavídez and Alle Kirkland. They trusted us and gave us the support and encouragement we needed to grow, learn, share, explore—and express ourselves. Tierra Encantada Charter School in Santa Fe is designed to empower students as citizen scholars. The school offers a dual-language environment and rigorous learning curriculum to prepare students for postsecondary success. i

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Images that Inspire from the Youth Ambassadors

Top (l-r): The Old Santa Fe Southern at the Santa Fe Railyard by Amador Gonzales While shooting a photo of a mural on the back of Jean Cocteau Cinema, I turned around and found that the parallel lines of the two trains created an interesting shot. Blue Sky at the Santa Fe Railyard by Marisol Muñoz The Railyard water tower and train tracks rest underneath a beautiful blue New Mexico sky. Coral Dreams By Caitlin Scott This tree caught my eye because of how well it contrasted with the sky. You can see the sunshine in between the little fibers of the leaves. It’s always nice to go outside and see many variations of plants in one area. In Full Bloom by Aspen Benavídez This apricot tree is in my front yard in Santa Fe. The lighting is my favorite aspect of this photo. I love how delicate the blossoms are. Bottom (l-r): Stream at Hyde Park by María Rosales I thought the stream looked beautiful. I decided to take the picture from this angle because you can see how the water flows and splashes on the rocks. The 2016 Youth Ambassadors from Tierra Encantada Charter School are Vanessa Ávila, Aspen Benavídez, Miquella Baros, Sean C de Baca, Cinthia Enrique, Amador Gonzales, Yasmine Griego, Amber Irizarry, Angel Irogoyen, Ashley López, Barbara Márquez, Briana Martínez, Miquella Martínez, Pamela Martínez, Marisol Muñoz, Jasmine Romero, María Rosales, Sarah Santiago-Hun, Caitlin Scott, Josselyn Tarango, José Torres, Nahomy Trejo, Aaliyah Vásquez and Erin Wood.

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Different Perspective of the Cathedral by Barbara Márquez Exploring downtown Santa Fe, sun shining, trees are growing...summer is coming. Radiant Colors in the Sun by Sean C de Baca This picture was taken at the Santa Fe Farmers’ Market. I love how the colors pop out with each other. I was looking at all the flowers and this one stood out the most to me. The Color of Santa Fe Skies by Ashley López I took this picture in front of a store called EcoMotive. You can rent a bicycle for a day. The sky behind the building was the same color as the turquoise bicycles, and I thought it kind of looked like we were in Paris, France. Future Reflections by Miquella Baros The reflection of the roof at the Roundhouse (state capitol) looked like a 3-D effect. I like how the reflection showed different shades of the same color and reflected in a certain angle. This picture made me think of homeless kids who have less than kids like me and my brother have, so I look at the picture as a symbol of strength and wisdom. Alacranes on Wheels by Miquela Martínez We were able to take some of our trips around Santa Fe on this bus. Other times, we figured out the route and timing and took public transit. Did you know the public bus is free for kids? We also walked all over town to explore. Walking is free too, for everyone! To support the Youth Ambassadors project or learn more about “Love Where We Live,” visit www. communitylearningnetwork.org or contact director Jennifer Nevárez at 505.699.1503 or casenevarez@ yahoo.com

Green Fire Times • June 2016

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Profiles In Innovation — A Community of Creatives In Action

Business Profile: Simply Social Media

imply Social Media (SSM) is a Santa Fe-based socialmedia strategy company that creates opportunities and campaigns to connect local businesses and organizations with new markets. SSM also engages with and promotes local communities through two Instagram accounts: @SimplySantaFeNM and @TravelNewMexico. The company’s owners, Caitlin E. Jenkins and Amy Tischler, are particularly interested in the possibilities that exist when virtual communities are connected in real life.

The power of technology and social media

Having met through Instagram, Jenkins and Tischler see themselves as living proof of the power of technology and social media. By searching through similar local hashtags they found each other’s Instagram accounts and, after several online conversations, decided to meet in person. Ideas came pouring out, and in December 2014 they launched their first Instagram project: @simplysantafenm, based on their mutual love of photography and all things local. 14,800 people all over the world now follow the account. It spotlights local businesses, organizations, events, landscapes and everyday Santa Fe beauty through featured photos using the hashtag #simplysantafe. The photographers are always credited.

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SSM produces promotional events and activities for clients to increase brand-name recognition and build community. One such activity is InstaMeet, a collaborative experience that uses social media to bring the virtual community together in real life. After brainstorming with a client, Jenkins and Tischler facilitate an experience that’s not often publicly available, such as a behind-the-scenes access to a business, organization or event. Social-media influencers from Santa Fe and beyond are directed to the event location to create buzz and move people

Amy Tischler

from interacting with just their smartphones to interacting with e ac h o t h e r i n person. Fo r e x a m p l e , there are InstaMeets in the works with the Santa Fe Opera this summer that coincide with social-media previews during final dress rehearsals. Participants will have the opportunity to tour and photograph the backstage and grounds areas and will be treated to a conversation with conductors and directors. Instagrammers will also have an opportunity to photograph an actual performance, something that before last year was strictly off-

Caitlin E. Jenkins

limits. You can see images from last year’s InstaMeets by searching for the hashtag #SFOInstaMeet. SSM’s @travelnewmexico Instagram account documents New Mexico road trips by giving guest Instagrammers a chance to “take over” the account, during which time they can share their unique road-trip experiences through imagery and stories. Started while on a road trip a little over a year ago, the account now has more than 18,300 followers, a very engaged and supportive community. This project was inspired by two facts: There are so many amazing places to visit in New Mexico, and no one person or organization could possibl y document them all. Jenkins and Tischler recently returned from a road trip through the southwestern part of the state. They drove 1,300 miles and walked 26 miles in seven days, during which time they hosted four events and toured cities, universities and backcountry, as well as national and state historic parks and monuments, all the while taking photographs and making connections. They were excited about being able to take a platform where people connect virtually and bring them together in real life. By checking out the hashtag #hbdTravelNM, you can see images created during their epic road trip. i

Green Fire Times • June 2016

New Mexican Landscape continued from page 8

As the train leaves Albuquerque behind, more open pastures, cows and horses can be seen. Formidable views of the Sandia Mountains loom in the distance. On the horizon, too, are imposing smokestacks of a lone factory and glimpses of the steady line of vehicular traffic on I-25. The train quickly makes its way through an area of cottonwood bosque that signals its proximity to the Río Grande. Soon, the Rail Runner courses by Sandia Pueblo. Its neat pueblo architecture, the silhouette of a mission church against the magnificent Sandías and its profusion of earthen ovens provide the first really beautiful and coherent example of human habitation thus far on the journey. It is not long before the traveler enters Bernalillo, which suffers from some of the same social stresses as Albuquerque, although not as much. One gets the sense that people here are somehow happier and less frayed than those in Albuquerque. The journey through Algodones is nothing short of spectacular, given the nearby presence of bold, black volcanic mesas that outline the sky. Shortly thereafter, the train whizzes by San Felipe Pueblo, where the Río Grande runs astonishingly close to a line of pueblo homes, but the people living there seem to have grown accustomed to this. As one approaches Santo Domingo Pueblo, the train runs parallel to a large ditch brimming with water, but the fields are conspicuously fallow or planted only in alfalfa, no longer resplendent in corn or vegetables as they traditionally were. Nor do the corrals, just outside of the old pueblo, house many animals as they once did. Nevertheless, the enormous circular drum of the kiva, sitting in the center of

the village, emanates an air of profound spirituality and enduring tradition, as does a whitewashed Catholic church.The regimented parallel lines of new, modern government housing notwithstanding, this pueblo also projects great cultural and architectural integrity.

Santo Domingo Pueblo projects great cultural and architectural integrity.

Almost immediately after Santo Domingo, the train veers sharply to the east and passes under I-25. From that point on, the traveler is treated to an uphill ride through the pristine and rugged mountainous landscape southeast of La Bajada. From a window seat, the traveler sees up-close the multicolored bands of clay and other sediments that have built up over eons. At this point, it is also possible to appreciate the splendor of the Manzano Mountains to the southeast. This is the classical Southwestern landscape visitors to New Mexico have come to expect. But it does not last long because soon the train descends into Santa Fe. Unlike I-25, which steers clear of the New Mexico State Penitentiary, the Rail Runner comes within full view of the facility that is overwhelmingly populated with the poor and members of New Mexico’s original communities. Unlike Albuquerque, the outskirts of Santa Fe boast solid middle- and upper-middleclass residential areas. The closer one gets to the city’s center, the more affluent it becomes, except for a few pockets where individuals and families have apparently chosen to live off the grid as much as

Green Fire Times • June 2016

possible. This is evidenced by more of a do-it-yourself lifestyle with numerous solar panels, watercatchment barrels and small workshop buildings for the artist or craftsman.

Newly restored trading post across from a Rail Runner stop

Near its final destination, in a span where the train glides next to a wall that separates the tracks from a residential area, the traveler sees a series of murals, no doubt created by groups of carefully organized children from local schools or community centers. All of the murals are neat and feature the kind of iconography that fills tourist brochures—corrals with horses, chile ristras, multi-storied adobe pueblos and quaint villages. Although a most commendable job of community organization and mobilization, the murals nevertheless feel like an effort to perpetuate the myth that New Mexico is the Southwest equivalent of the “Peaceable Kingdom,” as depicted in Edward Hicks’ famous painting. By omitting almost any reference to New Mexico’s complex modern landscape, rife with social and economic contradictions and disparities of almost a Third World magnitude, there is a tacit agreement that they do not exist, let alone abound. What would those murals look like if schoolchildren from all of New Mexico’s diverse communities were to ride the Rail Runner and, over many miles, scrutinize the landscape and take notes in an effort to read what it has to say about New

Mexico’s history and current state of health and vitality? What would it look like if, upon reaching their destination, they got off and, after discussing critically with one another their impressions and understandings, they painted to their hearts’ content all that they had seen and what the future could be? Might they be inspired to reflect a vision for a more viable and vibrant New Mexico predicated on ecological responsibility, community and economic health, cooperative models of living, respect and social justice, and begin working toward it? Given that our present generation has not been able to make much of a dent in the 33 percent of children living in poverty in New Mexico statistics reported in this year’s Kids Count report compiled by the Annie E. Casey Foundation of Baltimore (as opposed to 22 percent nationally), perhaps hope lies in today’s children who choose not to avert their eyes from our state’s realities. i Alejandro López is a northern New Mexico writer, photographer and educator who specializes in curriculum development and experiential education. alej@cybermesa.com

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The Pueblo of Santo Domingo, as seen from the Rail Runner. (Permission to use this photo was obtained from Governor Daniel Coriz.)

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Green Fire Times • June 2016

The Maker Movement: “Learn. Build. Thrive.” From NMCareers.org • photos by Jenifer Case Nevárez

n June 2014, President Obama launched the Nation of Makers initiative, an “allhands-on-deck call to make sure more students, entrepreneurs and Americans of all backgrounds have access to a new class of technologies such as 3D printers, laser cutters and desktop machine tools that are enabling more Americans to design, build and manufacture just about anything.” The “maker movement” leverages digital technologies to remake manufacturing and job skills while simultaneously reconnecting us to our roots in creative problem-solving. “We’ve seen the maker movement have true economic impact in communities around the country,” said Santa Fe Mayor Javier M. Gonzales. “We know a maker-space is one of the key ingredients in fostering a positive entrepreneurial environment,

A 3-D printer

manifesting creative business opportunities and keeping pace with developing technologies.” As so many of us are aware, Santa Fe has a strong creative force running through it. With a world-famous arts enclave and world-class scientific institutions, the region is home to generations of some of the most creative artists, craftspeople and writers in the world, as well as innovators and scientists.

There are maker-spaces in Albuquerque, Santa Fe, Taos and Las Vegas, New Mexico.

Other maker-spaces in New Mexico include FUSE at the STEMulus Center at Central New Mexico Community College in Albuquerque, QueLab in Albuquerque, Tech Toolbox in Taos and the Parachute Factory in Las Vegas.

Last spring, Mayor Gonzales met with local business leaders for a strategy session and pledged to have a community maker-space in Santa Fe within a year. “We found the right people to make that happen, the right deliverables to ask for, and now we’re making it real,” he said. Most of us have interesting things in the garage (if we have a garage). From power tools to old clothes and books, but the new maker-space in Santa Fe is much better than a garage full of old tools. From laser cutters to welders, it has all kinds of tools to help your creative spirit soar. Typical shop tools and soldering stations are available, as well as 3D printers, sewing machines and basic equipment for working with fabric; plus computers with software for modeling and design.

Maggie Farrel and Liz Neely in the generative design class at MAKE Santa Fe

Green Fire Times • June 2016

a gym, but with power ful tools instead of exercise equipment, and skilled craftspeople instead of personal trainers,” said Zane Fischer, the local coordinatorat-large. The o r g a n i z a t i o n’s board is diverse and local. MAKE S a n t a F e i s Zeven Polzin, lead interactivity developer at Meow Wolf, working eager to support in the maker space Santa Fe studio entrepreneurs, tinkerers and the creatively spirited with a fully stocked studio where it is okay to experiment and collaborate. The workspace is open to all members of the community. Memberships provide full access to the shops and equipment, invitations to events, meetings and workshops, plus inclusion in a members’ directory. Use of complex equipment, however, requires completion of a paid orientation. Membership for individuals or students costs $65 a month, but scholarships can be requested. Family memberships are available for two parents and up to three children under 19 for $100 per month. Small, private, personal workspaces are also available for rent for $200 per month.

“MAKE Santa Fe” is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit community workspace where people can make, repair, invent or create anything they can dream. “It’s like

This year, “National Week of Making” is June 17-23. The National Maker Faire is June 18-19 in Washington, D.C. This spring, the U.S. Department of Education also launched the “Career Technical Educ ation (CTE) Makeover Challenge” on the East Coast to encourage high schools to offer maker-spaces for students. Educators, MAKE Santa Fe studio administrators and parents, as well as business and government, are invited to make and support the Maker’s Promise, which is “a pledge for K-12 leaders to support their students by dedicating a space for making, designating a champion for making, and displaying the results of making, noting that “participating schools will then have access to a suite of resources to enable them to empower students to be makers of things, not just consumers. i NMCareers.org is highlighting MAKE Santa Fe as a regional asset for innovation and inspiration. To learn more, visit https://makesantafe.org/ or just stop by and make something! The organization is located at 1352 Rufina Circle, at the popular new Meow Wolf, in midtown Santa Fe. Current hours: Wednesday-Sunday, 12-8 p.m. 505.395.5858, build@makesantafe.org

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Building Foundations, Bridges and Futures The Arts + Creativity Center is coming to midtown Santa Fe Sharna Langlais

anta Fe has been designated a “UNESCO Creative City.” The Atlantic magazine considers Santa Fe the “Most Artistic City in America.” The Bureau of Business and Economic Research has reported that Santa Fe’s arts and creative industries contribute more than $1.1 billion annually to the local economy.

In 2005, when an economicdevelopment study recommended a focus on “creative industries,” Creative Santa Fe (CrSF) was founded. Now an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, CrSF is “committed to strengthening the creative economy of the city by identifying key issues and opportunities, bringing community members together for dialogue and catalyzing ideas into action.”

CrSF is now poised for a whole new chapter of “innovation in action” through development of the Arts + Creativity Center. The midtown complex is intended to provide affordable live-work space for creatives. It will include more than 50 residential units and at least 10 market-rate units with flexible floor plans and high energy efficiency. The vision features community buildings and meeting spaces, micro-retail, outdoor mercado, small performance venues, plus a computer lab and grant-writing library. On March 30, Santa Fe’s City Council voted to donate the 5-acre, Siler Road Public Works Yard for the Arts + Creativity Center. A planning process was launched in April. The timeline includes “Architectural Design and Outreach” through September 2016 and “Shared Resources and Programming Outreach” through April 2017. Construction will take place in the winter of 2017-2018, in time for a summer opening.

With the high cost of housing and commercial L-R: Daniel Werwath, COO of NM Interfaith Housing; Bill spaces pushing the Miller, board chair of Creative Santa Fe and Cyndi Conn, workforce and talented Creative Santa Fe’s executive director

Santa Fe Youth Culture Passport

The City of Santa Fe Arts Commission, in conjunction with the New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs, has a special offer for all students this summer. The Summer Youth Cultural Passport is a downloadable booklet that features free admission to museums, tickets for performances and other free happenings for kids, through Sept. 3. Students can bring the passport to cultural events and collect stickers for each venue. After receiving five stickers, the student can claim a prize at the Community Gallery inside the Convention Center, at 201 W. Marcy Street. Prizes include family memberships to museums, tickets for performances and more. To download your booklet, visit www.santafenm.gov/ santa_fe_youth_cultural_passport

The City of Santa Fe’s Public Works yard on Siler Road with the planned Arts + Creativity Center outlined

youth out of the city, CrSF is counting on this proven national model to attract and retain young people while helping revitalize a semi-industrial neighborhood. i

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P articipating O rganizations : Adobe Rose Theater, AMP Productions, Aspen Santa Fe Ballet, Axle Contemporary, Center for Contemporary Arts, CURRENTS Santa Fe/Parallel Studios, Georgia O’Keeffe Museum, Santa Fe Indian Market, Lensic Performing Arts Center, Make Santa Fe, Meow Wolf, Museum of Indian Arts and Culture, Museum of International Folk Art, Santa Fe International Folk Art Market, New Mexico History Museum, New Mexico Museum of Art, Palace of the Governors, Performance Santa Fe, El Rancho de las Golondrinas, Randall Davey Audubon Center, Santa Fe Botanical Gardens, Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival, Santa Fe Children's Museum, Santa Fe Desert Chorale, Santa Fe Independent Film Festival, Santa Fe Opera, Santa Fe Performing Arts, Santa Fe Playhouse, Santa Fe Pro Música, Santa Fe Symphony and Chorus, Santa Fe Teen Arts/Warehouse 21, SITE Santa Fe, Spanish Colonial Arts Society, Spanish Market, Teatro Paraguas, Theaterwork, Theatre Grottesco, Wheelwright Museum, Wise Fool New Mexico.

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Green Fire Times • June 2016

Stories Are Important

Monique Anair

y job is to help people tell stories. That sounds really easy and fun, and most days it is. But most of us don’t want to simply share our story; we want our story to influence people and the decisions they make. We want our story to have integrity and truth, and we want to stand out from the crowd. What we want is to be heard.

I have boiled down the definition of effective storytelling to this formula: Emotion + Information = Revolution. Great examples of this include the socialm e d i a re v o l u t i o n that exploded in Egypt, the popular documentary Black Fish, or the powerful media campaign Santa Fe Community College ecojournalism class on a field trip launched in Bristol Bay, Alaska, to block the Pebble Mine. If we want to change the future, we have to tell effective stories that engage people to react and act. Part of the media revolution is the accessibility to media recordings on our smart phones. High-resolution images can be captured on our mobile devices, edited and uploaded to the Internet in a matter of minutes. Information can be immediate.

However, human capacities force us to process information at a much slower pace. We can receive stories via FaceBook or Instagram, and we may have an immediate, deeply felt reaction: anger over images of children suffering in a detention center for no other reason than they were born in a different country; sadness over polar bears drowning as the polar ice caps melt; or If we want to change the compassion for a young nurse bandaging a future, we have to tell soldier from an enemy country. After that immediate reaction, we effective stories that engage must live with the knowledge of these emotions, and we people to react and act. must make a decision about what we might do to engage in these people’s stories. True stories might inspire actions such as these: A Santa Fe woman unites area churches to create backpacks filled with toys, notebooks and books to be given to children in detention centers in Artesia, New Mexico; a young man joins Polar Bear International and is inspired to obtain his law degree and become a lobbyist; and a local family creates a scholarship fund to aid newly trained U.S. doctors and nurses to work with Doctors Without Borders. My job is to help people tell stories that will change the way we think about our communities, our future and ourselves. It is an amazing job, and I absolutely love what I do. Monique M. Anair, M.A., is an assistant professor of film production and media studies at Santa Fe Community College. She teaches Media and the Environment, the Wireless Global Story Project, Women Make Media, and Cinematography. She worked as a camerawoman in Boston and Los Angeles before moving to Santa Fe in 1999. You can read more about her at http://moniquesfccfilm.blogspot.com/ For more about SFCC’s film programs, call 505.428.1738, or visit www.facebook.com/ groups/25143409466/?fref=ts www.sfcc.edu/programs/film

New Mexico Filmmakers Showcase July 8–9 at the National Hispanic Cultural Center New Mexico is fast becoming a hub for filming. Large-budget and indie productions alike are seeking out the state’s diverse, natural beauty. New Mexico boasts unbeatable vistas, more than 300 days of sunshine a year, a highly trained crew base and an attractive, film tax incentive of up to 30 percent. In a recently published annual report from MovieMaker magazine, two New Mexican cities topped the Best Places to Live and Work as a Filmmaker list. For large cities, Albuquerque ranked fifth in the country; for smaller cities, Santa Fe ranked third. That’s impressive, considering the competition. The New Mexico Film Office (NMFO) doesn’t just embrace the larger productions; we also value the contributions of in-state filmmakers. The NMFO hosts the New Mexico Filmmakers Showcase, an annual event featuring a wide range of creative talent from around the state. The event comprises seven creative categories for submission: drama, horror, scifi/fantasy, comedy, documentary, animation and music videos. There is no charge to submit an entry. This year, the entry deadline is June 3. For guidelines and an application, visit filmfreeway.com/festival/2016NewMexicoFilmmakersShowcase The showcase’s opening night is Friday, July 8, 6 p.m., at the Bank of America Theater, located at the National Hispanic Cultural Center, 1701 4th St. SW, in Albuquerque. The free event is open to the public. Attendees can meet the filmmakers as they receive awards for “Best of Film” in each category, followed by a screening of the winning films. A reception will follow. The following afternoon, the top three films in each category will be screened. For details, contact Belle Allen, NMFO state outreach coordinator: 505.476.5671 or belle.allen@nmfilm.com

Green Fire Times • June 2016

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So, What is Coding, Anyway? Amy Traylor Coding is a skill that lets you tell computers what to do. Through coding, you can tell computers to do all kinds of things. Through coding, you can make a website, find a job, build a career, work in many industries, start a software business, build an app, launch a video game, or just understand technology. — NMCodeWorks.org

oding is what makes it possible for us to create computer software, apps and websites. Your browser, your operating system, the apps on your phone, Facebook… they ’re all made with code. — codeconquest.com

Why learn coding?

Computer programming, or coding, is now considered a vital digitalliteracy skill for the next generation. Fortunately, opportunities for coding are taking root in New Mexico. The Community Learning Network is spearheading a regional collaborative initiative in Santa Fe to bring coding to communities and youth through MeetUps, bootcamps and accelerator trainings, as well as online resources and links. The first “creative coding” camp takes place in June. Creative coding is a good way for novices to experiment with the skill set and challenges of computer literacy. While creative coding doesn’t skimp on the concepts or syntax, it offers a friendlier forum of experimentation for beginners. Instead of writing code to query databases or build webpages, students write code to make objects and design functions that, for example, can make images dance across the screen. They can have fun making digital art and installations, taking apart a video and putting it back together, or programming their own musical instruments to perform. Experimenting with creative coding is also a stepping-stone to developing

professional coders who can apply the skill to research, computations, data science, health, modeling, image/pattern recognition, new media and business. Creative coding uses the same code and procedural learning used to write any other program. Participants learn Processing, a coding language built from Java and developed by Casey Reas and Ben Fry in 2001 at the MIT Media Lab. It was originally designed to fill a need for a programming language that catered to artists, architects and other noncomputer science majors. It was easier to learn and faster to work with.

Coders will have the opportunity for many careers, including careers in areas previously unimagined.

Learning to code can be a life-altering experience. Every time you run code, it’s like a little miracle happens. Coding is important because it offers students something that is completely new and yet rapidly growing in demand and highly applicable to the changing shape of our world and information sharing in our new economy. Learning to code provides the ultimate freedom to create your own tools, decide exactly what you want to do and make it happen, rather than relying on others. Code provides the shortest pathway to innovation. Mathematicians are now writing new

algorithms that actually produce highresolution images f rom satellite i m a g e r y Matthew Fernández, a programmer and UNM graduate in computer created f rom engineering, works in game development and technology. Many websites are available to learn composites of multiple low-resolution coding on your own, including Khan source images. With code you can push Academy, MOOC and Kadenze.com. the boundaries of what is currently You can learn more about the basics possible. and find other online and offline Through creative coding, even students resources, including access to new and who do not want to grow up to be even subsidized regional educational artists get a digital toolkit to create code opportunities for full-stack training they can use for personal pursuits. They at www.nmcodeworks.org. If you leave school understanding that coding are interested in attending a creative can be something you do for yourself coding bootcamp or applying to join a or for a career, and it is a tool you can regional, 8-week, software-developer use to solve a myriad of problems. accelerator-training course, you can They leave with a fearlessness to tackle join the mailing list and register at the unknown and even reshape it www.nmcodeworks.org i through pushing the code, breaking it Amy Traylor, an award-winning artist and and fixing it again. They may become technologist, teaches creative technology and doctors who write code to track new media art at Del Norte High School patients’ symptoms, accountants who in Albuquerque, write code to develop new investment New Mexico. algorithms, or machinists who write She will be a featured educator and use code on a daily basis to push at the upcoming forward industry. The industry website Career Academy Quartz (qz.com) recently reported and future that 62 percent of software developers Creative Coding are applying their skills in arenas far Bootcamps in beyond Internet companies, including Santa Fe, through NMCodeWorks. areas such as finance, consulting, health org care, retail, manufacturing and other industries. Of those surveyed, twothirds were self-taught.

Student Commentary Creative coding is fun! We have done a lot this year, and I’ve enjoyed all of it. My favorite is where you use someone’s face and draw little pictures with pixels and it re-creates the face. Coding is hard and can be stressful, but when you finish, it always gives you a sense of satisfaction. Coding takes a lot of time and patience. You can’t just give up or get mad when you can’t get something the way you want; you have to keep playing with it until it’s what you are looking for. Sometimes, you may even have to look things up to understand what you are trying to do. It takes me forever because I like my work to be perfect, but in code there isn’t actually a “perfect” piece of work. All of it is great, as long as you like the way it looks. The cool thing is that your code, no matter how simple or complex, will still be great and could end up in a museum. I would suggest that everyone try coding. It’s an amazing way to express yourself through art. — Addie Raymer, Del Norte High School student

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Green Fire Times • June 2016

The term “Internet of Things” (IoT) describes the rapidly expanding network of machines and appliances, medical and environmental monitors, vehicles, and even homes that use connectivity to collect and exchange information. VIZZIA Technologies is a Santa Febased provider of technology solutions for healthcare organizations. VIZZIA’s IoT project began in 2015 when the company received funding from the Venture Acceleration Fund, an award administered by the Española-based Regional Development Corporation. VIZZIA is now partnering with the UNM School of Engineering to launch the IoT Laboratory and the beginning of a unique curriculum. The Lab prepares students for high-tech job opportunities through real-world and hands-on education by testing various types of sensor systems and their performance in various applications. “New sensor systems are being developed at a fast pace all around the world,” explained Andrew L Halasz, VIZZIA’s president and CEO. “It is estimated that there will be 20 billion sensors in operation by 2020. Having an active testing program ensures we will know the best systems to deploy for our clients while also providing a tremendous learning environment for students. By creating a pipeline of well-educated IoT graduates, along with active real-world involvement from companies like VIZZIA, and additional support and incentives from state and local governments, we believe we can attract other high-tech companies to New Mexico and spawn new entrepreneurs in one of the highest-growth technology sectors for many years to come.” For more info, visit www.vizziatech.com

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Littleglobe's Transmedia Team 9

community members and storytellers a broad range of tools and outlets for revealing and framing different perspectives. The resulting combination of artistic perspectives came together at the Lensic, creating a complex mosaic depicting how we relate to each other and to ourselves. Interviews across Santa Fe conducted by the youth media team revealed what appeared to be deeply held negative notions of the south side of town and its residents and the fundamental inaccuracy about this predisposition. The youth producers who assembled the project’s short films and audio pieces chose to share, without comment, the perspectives they documented, allowing them to stand on their own. This invited the Lensic audience to consider City of Dreamers from their personal perspective and as the beginning of a conversation rather than a set of solutions. The City of Dreamers project touches on issues and differing perspectives that are by no means new to Santa Fe. Dialogues about documentation, immigration, education, identity, stereotypes and inequity take place every day, although apparently only within closed circles of like-minded people. We hope that the City of Dreamers can function as a prompt for more public and nuanced conversations about these topics. This work is an experimental way of opening up spaces to redefine our relationships to each other and to humanize social, economic and political policy making. By nature, the policy-making process simplifies the complexity of a community into patterns, trends, a statistically determined set of needs and strategies to address those needs. In contrast, artistically led storytelling reflects the complexity that is natural within all towns, neighborhoods, families and institutions. It provides a frame in which diverse perspectives are recognized as an asset that create a rich and evolving world. To use creative exchange as a means to engage complex and

contentious topics in our world not only expands perspectives and understanding; it can create empathy where it is rare to experience and can complement the top-down nature Michael Lorenzo López and Littleglobe film interns from of policy making and Capital High School’s Communities in Schools Program institutional culture. on a film shoot The City Different, as some Santa Feans like to think of it, is also the city divided. The young media makers and Littleglobe mentors are inviting us to break down divisions within our city by starting with the idea that Santa Fe is unified by our dreams, our shared pride and the complex beauty of our town. See Littleglobe’s first feature documentary film, broadcast 2013–14 and newly rebroadcast fall 2015 to spring 2016 throughout the PBS system, as part of the CPB American Graduate Program. www.ourtimeisnowmovie.org, www.littleglobe.org i Chris Jonas, Littleglobe’s executive director, is a filmmaker, composer, performer, producer and co-founding artist team member. He has produced two PBS feature documentaries and directs media and community-engagement projects across New Mexico. Veena Vasista, Littleglobe’s board president, is originally from Chicago. Her work has focused on mainstreaming human rights into social policy. Since 2010, she has worked as a freelance writer, facilitator and mediator. She is a trustee of the newly founded London-based education charity, Journey to Justice.

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Green Fire Times • June 2016

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Swallowtail on honeysuckle ÂŠ Anna Christine Hansen

James H. Auerbach, MD and Staff support Green Fire Times in its efforts to bring about a better world by focusing on the people, enterprises and initiatives that are transforming New Mexico into a diverse and sustainable economy. Some of the topics Green fire times showcases: Green: Building, Products, Services, Entrepreneurship, Investing and Jobs; Renewable Energy, Sustainable Agriculture, Regional Cuisine, Ecotourism, Climate Adaptation, Natural Resource Stewardship, Arts & Culture, Health & Wellness, Regional History, Community Development, Educational Opportunities James H. Auerbach, MD provides dermatology services in Santa Fe, NM (Sorry, we are no longer accepting new clients.)

Green Fire Times â&#x20AC;˘ June 2016

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Startup Santa Fe — Creating an Ecosystem of Entrepreneurship

Bonn Macy

tartup Santa Fe, “Your Hub for All Things Startup,” is a publicprivate partnership with the city of Santa Fe and Creative Santa Fe to provide access to entrepreneurial resources online and throughout New Mexico. If you have a great new idea, Startup Santa Fe can help you to learn how to move it forward and connect you with people who can help make it happen. Through its website, Startup Santa Fe continuously delivers information about startups and innovation news across New Mexico and related events across the region. The initiative also produces networking and discussion groups that bring the community together, as well as local workshops, seminars and talks.

Santa Fe is ripe for cultivating innovative, “new economy” businesses, including a successful technology industry.

Entrepreneurs founded Startup Santa Fe, so they know what aspiring entrepreneurs are going through. Their aim is to offer assistance and resources that can provide the edge needed to turn ideas into realities. Adeo Ressi has helped launch more than 1,650 companies through the Founder Institute, which is considered the largest entrepreneur training and startup incubator in the world. Ressi believes

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the creative and entrepreneurial spirit of Santa Fe makes it ripe for cultivating innovative, “new economy” businesses, including a successful technology industry. In accord with that thinking, the New Mexico State Investment Council approved a new funding program in January of this year called the New Mexico Catalyst Fund. The purpose of the new fund is to release $20 million for startup support to microfunds that have to match the allocations, thereby more than doubling the investment. The program is being managed by Sun Mountain Capital in Santa Fe. Paul Singh a world-famous, startup venture capitalist aware of the creative potential of northern New Mexico, stopped by on his recent Results Junkies North American Tech Tour. Considered to be a successful serial entrepreneur and seed-stage investor, Singh included Santa Fe as one of 29 cities he will visit across America this year. He spoke on “Building Entrepreneurship in Santa Fe” at a community forum with Santa Fe Mayor Javier Gonzales and led a discussion on how to build a successful and vibrant startup community. Singh and the other investors joining him on the tour also scheduled “Office Hours” to meet with local startup teams, listen to funding pitches from regional innovators and provide individualized consultations with startups and entrepreneurs. As part of supporting the spirit of entrepreneurship, Startup Santa Fe facilitates local Startup Meet Ups and a regular Open Coffee Club. You can visit its online calendar for updates on all scheduled events or join the mailing list to receive updates and invitations. L o c a l startups and startup support

The team from ArtGeek, Jane and Michael, consulting with Paul Singh during Startup Santa Fe events and “Open Office Hours” on the North American TechTour

services are invited to become members and register online to join the Resource Navigator list and Locations Map. The growing list includes startups, incubators, accelerators, accountants and tax services, business associations, business support groups, educational institutions, finance and funding resources, networking links, legal help and a few coffee shops with Wi-Fi. Their Facebook and Twitter feeds are a constant source of inspiring information, and the website includes valuable educational links and tips, including helpful online articles like “10 Rules for a Great Startup Idea: It’s a Universe of Opportunities, Choose Wisely.”

Networking, discussion groups, workshops, seminars and talks bring the community together. In tandem with the efforts of Startup Santa Fe, the first SFid accelerator class recently presented demos at the New Mexico History Museum. The demos showcased the work of several teams over three months as they moved through the business mentoring and lean-startup process, thanks to the investor-funded and SFid curriculum designed to help accelerate “highgrowth, scalable companies led by dynamic entrepreneurs that understand how to lead, while accepting coaching.” The teams included 4D, LLC, makers of a true 360x180 holographic display technolog y ; ConvoBox, a data-

gathering technology for companies to create an anonymous suggestion box; HoneyMoon Brewery, committed to brewing beer differently; Patrick’s Fine Sodas; ZummitLabs, working on a new way of social shopping; and Wyrd, developing technology for social content aggregation with content creator compensation. This concerted effort is supported by the City of Santa Fe, the Santa Fe Community Foundation, Startup Santa Fe, the Santa Fe Business Incubator, Creative Santa Fe, the Regional Development Corporation and many others including private philanthropists committed to improving the economic opportunities in our region. As Santa Fe Mayor Javier Gonzales noted, “ We’re in the middle of tremendous innovation in Santa Fe, and a local accelerator helps our entrepreneurs meet needs and access the resources to take this economy to new heights.” For more information, visit www. startupsantafe.com i Bonn Macy, codirector of Startup Santa Fe, is a former global management consultant, economist and energ y-industr y expert now spending his time supporting local entrepreneurs and guiding his own startups in the pharmaceutical and health sectors. bonn@startupsantafe.com

Green Fire Times • June 2016

Op-Ed: A Green Economy Is a Fair Economy Creating employment opportunities and economic hope in New Mexico and beyond with renewable energy Regina Wheeler

ith global temperatures revising the record books, droughts and wildfires threatening homes and food production, and people across the nation and world demanding urgent climate action, there’s no longer any doubt: We need to transition to renewable energy (RE). Moving from polluting fossil fuels to clean solar and wind is essential for adequately reducing greenhouse gas emissions and saving the planet from catastrophic warming. But, when it comes to the case for renewables, the environment is only part of the equation. Moving to a green economy is not only a way to contribute to the cleanliness and sustainability of our planet; it can also create career opportunities, reduce unemployment and lay the foundations for a more inclusive and equitable economy. In New Mexico, we’re already seeing the economic advantages of the renewable revolution. Start with jobs. At a time when unemployment is still painfully high in our state, the solar industry alone has created at least 1,900 high-quality jobs. These new solar opportunities support families across the state, and the income they

Facts on the New Mexico Solar Industry From the Solar Energy Industries Association

• Th ere are currently more than 102 solar companies at work throughout the value chain in New Mexico, employing 1,900 people. • In 2015, New Mexico installed 41 MW of solar electric capacity, ranking it 17th nationally. • The 365 MW of solar energy currently installed in New Mexico ranks the state 12th in the country in installed solar capacity. That is enough solar energy installed to power 83,000 homes. • In 2015, $86 million was invested on solar installations. • Installed solar photovoltaic system prices in the U.S. have dropped steadily – by 6 percent from last year and 48 percent from 2010.

Notable Installations in New Mexico

• C imarrón Solar Facility was completed in 2010 by developer First Solar. This photovoltaic project has the capacity to generate 30 MW of electricity – enough to power over 6,900 homes. • Several large retailers in New Mexico have gone solar, including Costco, Walmart and Intel. U.S. Foods has installed one of the largest corporate photovoltaic systems in the state with 426 kW of solar capacity at its location in Albuquerque. • At 50 MW, Macho Springs Solar Project in Deming is among the largest solar installations in New Mexico. Completed in 2014 by First Solar, this photovoltaic project has enough electric capacity to power more than 11,400 homes.

Solar Companies in New Mexico

New Mexico solar companies provide a wide variety of solar products and services ranging from solar system installations to the manufacturing of components used in photovoltaic panels. These companies can be broken down across the following categories: 13 manufacturers, 10 manufacturing facilities, 55 contractor/installers, seven project developers, nine distributors and 18 engaged in other solar activities, including financing, engineering and legal support.

How much do solar panels cost in New Mexico?

Solar panel costs have fallen significantly in the last five years. Installing solar panels can now be one of the best investments you can make for your home.There are also now a lot of products on the market utilizing sophisticated financing vehicles to make solar panels affordable. Solar incentives are offered at the utility, county, state and federal levels. These can take various forms including solar tax credits, up-front solar rebates, premium feed-in tariffs (net metering) or solar production incentives.

Green Fire Times • June 2016

generate feeds back into local economies, creating additional, new employment opportunities in other industries, from healthcare to food services. Across the country, the number of solar jobs has doubled over the last five years, and there are now more Americans working in solar than in oil and gas.

Climate change is an urgent crisis, but it also presents an important opportunity.

Unlike many industries that simply ship wealth away to Wall Street or faraway investors, New Mexico’s solar industry tends to keep income local. That’s because many of our solar firms are local businesses. Some—like SunPower by Positive Energy Solar—are actually employee-owned businesses and certified “B-Corps”: enterprises that share profits with workers and support broader social missions to enhance the environment and contribute to community development. Regardless of the shape that green industry takes, the growth of renewables means opportunity. It means new workforce-training programs and lifelong career prospects for young people or folks transitioning into new lines of work. For homeowners across the state and the nation, the growth of solar means other economic advantages like more predictable electricity prices and increased property values. The environmental and economic cases for a renewable transition are crystal clear. Nonetheless, we still have our work cut out for us. We need to preserve the policies that enable people to generate their own power, such as state solar tax credits and net-metering laws that allow people to sell energy to the grid at a fair price. These laws level the playing field between renewables and older fossil fuels that receive massive government subsidies. Without action this year, the popular and cost-effective state tax credits will expire. We also need to pave the way for “community solar,” that is, shared arrays that serve multiple buildings and make it possible for renters to access the

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benefits of clean and affordable energy. While this approach should be common sense, outdated rules prevent New Mexicans from taking advantage of such opportunities. We also need to set ambitious targets for RE. While some states— California, Oregon, Hawaii and Vermont—have taken action to eliminate coal or drastically increase their renewable portfolios, New Mexico is falling behind. We currently get just 4 percent of our electricity from solar despite the fact that we receive enough sunlight to meet all our energy needs. Santa Fe’s proposed Verde Fund—an idea for expanding RE championed by Mayor Javier Gonzales—is an important and exciting local-level step, but we also need state-level leadership. This means that we need to elect people who understand the environmental and the economic case for green energy to the Public Regulation Commission, the Statehouse and the Governor’s Mansion. This crucial election year coincides with a moment of truth on climate change and a moment of urgent need on unemployment and the economy. In addition to installing RE, increasing household energy and water efficiency and spreading the word about green energy’s potential, there’s another simple, straightforward and effective action that each and every New Mexican can take: demand that election candidates champion clean power. Climate change is an urgent crisis, but it also presents an important opportunity: By going green, we can build a more prosperous and equitable economy. i Regina Wheeler, a seasoned executive manager, is the CEO and an employee-owner of SunPower by Positive Energy Solar.

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Duke Energy’s First Solar Farm in New Mexico The renewables division of Duke Energy, which operates wind farms and 43 solar farms in 13 states, has begun construction on the Caprock Solar Project near Tucumcari, New Mexico. The 25-megawatt installation to be completed later this year will provide power to the Western Farmers Electric Cooperative under a 25-year agreement. More than 103,000 solar panels, manufactured in China, will generate enough energy for about 5,000 homes. Duke Energy is a Fortune 125 company headquartered in North Carolina.

New Mexico Silent on Clean Power Plan Progress New Mexico is the sixth-fastest-warming state in the country, according to the Union of Concerned Scientists. The Clean Power Plan (CPP) is the Obama administration’s attempt to cut U.S. emissions of greenhouse gases and benefit communities that may be affected by pollution. But with the Supreme Court’s February ruling to stay the plan’s implementation pending the outcome of a lawsuit before the U.S. Court of Appeals, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has been unable to meet its timeline for requiring states to complete their carbon-cutting plans. Twenty states suspended public meetings while others have continued planning. Conservation Voters New Mexico Education Fund, Juntos program, is working to organize Latino families in Albuquerque. Juntos’ young activists have canvassed the South Valley, Westgate and the International District. More than three-quarters of people surveyed have said that they don’t want their electricity to contribute to air pollution or climate change. More than 60 percent voiced “strong concerns” about Albuquerque’s air quality. After holding eight initial public meetings, as well as separate meetings with energy-industry representatives and environmental advocates since the stay, the New Mexico Environment Department has been mum on addressing climate change and whether it is continuing to work on a state plan. Similarly, the City of Albuquerque has been silent on the issue and has not planned additional public meetings. New Mexico Attorney General Hector Balderas, however, who joined a coalition of 17 state attorneys general supporting the plan, said, “We will continue to pursue the most affordable, cleanest energy available, while protecting New Mexicans, our economy and our environment. The CPP will lead to significantly reduced emissions of climate-changing air pollution.”

Green Fire Times • June 2016

Peabody Energy Files for Bankruptcy New Mexico is the 12th largest U.S. source of coal

PRC Acknowledges Discrepancies, Reopens PNM’s Rate Case

In April, the world’s largest, privately owned coal company, Peabody Energy, declared bankruptcy, citing massive losses and the failure to sell its mines in Colorado and New Mexico. The filing comes as the coal industry is collapsing, spurred by declining demand, rising production costs and competition from cheaper, abundant natural gas and from renewable energy. Alpha, Arch and Patriot Coal have all gone under recently. Peabody has obtained debtor-in-possession financing and believes it has sufficient liquidity to continue to operate.

New Mexico’s largest utility wants to raise the rates for its 500,000 customers. Public Service Company of New Mexico (PNM) proposes to increase the residential, fixed customer fee from $60.00/year to $157.68/year, an increase of 163 percent. On May 18, the New Mexico Public Regulation Commission (PRC) ruled 5-0 to reopen the record in PNM’s $123.5 million rate case because of “significant discrepancies by PNM.”

Peabody Energy produces more than 180 million tons of coal annually from mines in Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Wyoming and the Midwest. When burned, this coal produces more than 330 million metric tons of carbon dioxide every year, more than 5 percent of all U.S. greenhouse gas emissions. There is growing controversy over Peabody’s failure to guarantee cleanup of its operations. Congress has allowed coal producers to offer corporate IOUs or “self-bonds.” The bankruptcy apparently means that “self-bonding” is no longer applicable. According to a congressional estimate, Colorado stands to shoulder $26 million in cleanup costs, New Mexico, $300 million and Wyoming, $800 million. Left untreated, these sites can create long-lingering problems including polluted drinking water. In New Mexico, Peabody’s operations include El Segundo and the adjacent, currently idled Lee Ranch mine near Crownpoint, which employ 265 workers. The Segundo coal mine is the largest in the state, producing more than 8.5 million tons annually. The Navajo Nation and many communities depend on the coal industry for jobs and tax revenues. Regulators in Ohio, Georgia and Florida have approved high electric rates to keep coal-fired power plants operating. In western New York state, communities, environmental groups and the area labor federation forged a coalition to address the problems. A recently passed state budget provides financial relief to schools and local governments. Federal support is also needed.

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In cross-examination at the rate case hearing, Mariel Nanasi, an attorney and executive director of renewable-energy advocacy group New Energy Economy (NEE), challenged PNM’s witness regarding the actual cost of the 64 megawatts (MW) of nuclear energy PNM is seeking to include in the rate case. PNM had originally stated that the cost of the nuclear energy from Palo Verde, in Arizona, was $1,596/kW and subsequently recalculated a “more accurate” price of $1,306/kW. “That difference, over the life of the asset, amounts to about a $100 million burden for ratepayers,” said Nanasi. Her cross-examination also revealed that PNM had not done a financial analysis comparing any alternatives before purchasing the nuclear asset and that PNM’s board did not know the nuclear asset’s purchase price before agreeing to acquire it. The scope of the new hearing, commencing on June 22, will be limited to information regarding the cost of the nuclear asset. Other interveners in the case are the state Attorney General’s Office, the water utility that serves New Mexico’s largest metropolitan area, industry advocates and environmentalists.

Even if PNM doesn’t take the coal, ratepayers have to pay.

PNM’s board briefing of Dec. 3, 2013, states: “Purchasing the other three [Palo Verde] Unit 2 leases will increase the rate base, allowing shareholders to earn a return on the assets.” Not stated in the briefing is any discussion of risk that ratepayers would realize by the acquisition of the nuclear-powered Palo Verde Unit 2, including cost and liability risk, decommissioning risk and spent-fuel disposal costs. “This will lock New Mexico in to the most expensive and dangerous source of energy for decades,” says Nanasi, who is also not reticent about mentioning that the nuclear power generation required will consume about 7 billion gallons of water—through 2033—and will not create any jobs in New Mexico. “Solar,” Nanasi says, “is cheaper, healthier, and would create many jobs locally.” A $580 Million Take-or-Pay Coal Contract at the Four Corners Power Plant In December 2013, PNM also signed a $580 million coal contract to supply its interest in the Four Corners Power plant, located on the Navajo Nation. It is a take-or-pay contract, meaning that, even if PNM doesn’t take the coal, ratepayers have to pay. The contract will increase costs in 2016 by 40 percent, in 2017 by 53 percent, and through the 15-year life of the contract by 128.5 percent. The total projected amount of the coal fuel cost between 2016 and 2031 at the Four Corners plant is $579.59 million, according to NEE. Nanasi is among those who say that it is not prudent or reasonable to be reinvesting in coal for such a long time. El Paso Electric Company, another utility that has a stake in the Four Corners coal plant, has decided to abandon its 108 MW shares as of July 1, 2016, “to avoid future increased costs, risks and liability of coal-fired generation.” El Paso Electric did a financial analysis and made the determination that coal is a risky investment. NEE alleges “PNM did no financial evaluation, and that puts ratepayers at risk, especially given the decline in coal markets.”

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legal push part of broader effort to safeguard greater chaco

In a bid to protect New Mexico’s water, air and climate, last month a national coalition of environmental groups filed a federal lawsuit challenging the Obama administration’s plan to allow fracking in the Santa Fe National Forest (SFNF). The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and U.S. Forest Service auctioned more than 20,000 acres of oil and gas leases on SFNF land in 2015. That lease sale, which facilitates fracking of New Mexico’s Mancos Shale, was sanctioned by the 2003 Farmington resource management plan (RMP) that the BLM has admitted is obsolete. The agency is currently writing an amendment to the plan to reflect modern fracking technologies. Yet, that hasn’t stopped use of the plan to authorize oil and gas activity on previously undeveloped areas near wildlife habitats and watersheds on the remote and steep west side of the Jémez Mountains north of Cuba, in the San Pedro Parks Wilderness and the Greater Chaco region. The groups filing suit include the San Juan Citizens Alliance, Diné Citizens Against Ruining Our Environment, Amigos Bravos, WildEarth Guardians, and the Sierra Club. “Instead of being ripped up for short term profits, the headwaters found in the Santa Fe National Forest should be maintained, so they continue to provide water for wildlife, agriculture, and families,” said Rachel Conn, projects director for Amigos Bravos. Horizontal wells have double the surface impact (5.2 acres) of vertical wells (2 acres) and emit over 250 percent more air pollution, including toxic volatile organic compounds, methane and other greenhouse gases. Horizontal wells also require five to 10 times more water. Horizontal drilling and multistage fracking use hundreds of thousands of gallons of highly pressurized water and toxic chemicals, including known carcinogens, to shatter underground geology. If a wellbore’s integrity is otherwise compromised, these chemicals can contaminate groundwater and put the future water supply for downstream communities and ecosystems at risk.

New Wilderness Areas Proposed A comprehensive, bipartisan energy and public-lands package was recently passed by the U.S. Senate. It includes provisions to grow New Mexico’s technology and energy sectors, as well as a bill that Democratic Sens. Martin Heinrich and Tom Udall introduced to establish two new wilderness areas comprising 21,420 acres—the Cerro del Yuta (Ute Mountain) Wilderness and the Río San Antonio Wilderness. Both are draws for locals and tourists. For many years, a broad coalition of northern New Mexicans has worked to conserve these areas within the Río Grande del Norte National Monument, northwest of Taos. Ester García, president of the San Antonio del Río Colorado Land Grant in Questa, said the wilderness designation would “safeguard precious water that is vital to our well-being. Waters that flow to our acequias are protected by the wildest lands within the national monument.” The roadless areas also provide important habitat for elk, mule deer, black bears, golden eagles and American pronghorn. Within the wilderness area, 1,280 acres are state Trust Lands. New Mexico Land Commissioner Aubrey Dunn, a Republican, is opposed to the bill’s passage because it would result in an “undue environmental burden” and make the areas off-limits to oil and gas development, mining, timber and grazing leases. Pre-existing traditional land uses would be allowed to continue. An updated report by the National Park Service shows 1.7 million people visited national parks in New Mexico in 2015. They spent $97.5 million in the state, which supported 1,528 jobs and cumulatively benefited the state economy by $118.6 million. That is a 9.8 percent increase in spending and a 7 percent rise in visits over 2014.

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New Mexico Wilderness Alliance Releases Comprehensive Guide to the State’s Wildlands Veteran and novice outdoor adventurers alike will find something to love in the latest publication from the New Mexico Wilderness Alliance. Wild Guide: Passport to New Mexico’s Wilderness is an unrivaled resource for anyone interested in the Land of Enchantment’s special wild places. Part hiking guide and part reference book, the Wild Guide offers a lifetime of inspiration for hikes, weekend camping trips, desert wanderings and backpack adventures. It also is packed full of history, color maps and stunning images from some of New Mexico’s best photographers. New Mexico Wilderness Alliance Executive Director Mark Allison said, “I hope that this guide will provide the inspiration to get outside with friends and family to discover the magnificent beauty of New Mexico’s wilderness for years to come.” The Wild Guide is the only book that features each of the state’s designated wilderness areas and wilderness study areas, as well as other public lands treasures such as the Río Grande del Norte and Organ Mountains–Desert Peaks national monuments. The book replaces the Wilderness Alliance’s annual Wild Guide publication, a 2013 finalist for guidebooks and travel in the Southwest Book Design and Production Awards, and is an update of the out-of-print New Mexico Wilderness Areas: The Complete Guide by noted Albuquerque author Bob Julyan. Readers of the Wild Guide: Passport to New Mexico Wilderness will find out where these special places are and unlock their secrets: • “ These are do-it-yourself wildlands—there are no designated trails, but simply following an arroyo or a ridge is sure to lead to something interesting.” • F rom the top (of this peak) in the wilderness, you can see mountains and mesas stretching for miles in all directions, every view untarnished by roads or other human intrusions.” • Th is (area is) designated to protect caves containing fossil resources that offer a glimpse into animals found in New Mexico in the recent past.” • Th is region has New Mexico’s greatest wilderness array, containing not only the state’s firstand third-largest wilderness but also its greatest ecological diversity.” The 255-page Wild Guide is priced at $19.95 and can be purchased online at www.nmwild. org and in stores across the state. The New Mexico Wilderness Alliance is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, grassroots organization dedicated to the protection, restoration and continued enjoyment of New Mexico’s wildlands and wilderness areas. An important part of the Wilderness Alliance’s work is connecting people to wild public lands such as those featured in the new book.

Real-Life Learning continued from page

going wrong or what’s right because there’s time. In a class of 25 there is not time for each individual.” The program celebrates mentorship each spring with an all-school, three-day Festival of Learning, showcasing the diverse range of learning through mentorship. The program culminates as each student’s learning and experience is enthusiastically shared before audiences of their peers, parents, mentors and teachers, planting seeds of curiosity and interest for future mentorships in the younger students and enriching the entire school community’s appreciation for what they have learned. For more information about the mentorship program at Monte del Sol or to volunteer to become a mentor, contact Giselle Piburn at 505.982.5225, Ext. 115, or gpiburn@montedelsol.org i

Citizen Groups Challenge Fracking in The Santa Fe National Forest

Judy Herzl is assistant director of the mentorship program at Monte del Sol. She is also a marketing partner for individuals, organizations and authors. connectthedotsmarketing@gmail.com

Green Fire Times • June 2016

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NEWSBITEs 20th Annual Sheep Is Life Celebration june 12–19, diné college, tsailé, arizona – navajo nation

Sheep Life Celebration is 0th AnnualThe Sheep is LifeisCelebration an annual public event focused on Sunday-Sunday, June 12th-19th, 2016 Diné College, Tsailé, Navajoculture. Nation It is the place Navajo sheep toforbe for those sheep, wool, s Life is a gathering all those who lovewho sheep,love wool, fiber d the diverse cultures thatarts haveand maintained these lifeways for fiber the diverse cultures that ds of years. Everyone is welcomed. Bring weaving tools, spindles, havetomaintained these traditions for wool, art, and creativity share. Co-sponsored with Diné College Land Grant Office. thousands of years.

Diné Be' Iiná, Inc.

The Navajo Lifeway

Sheep is Life activities include: Navajo Lifeway and Fiber Arts Workshops Youth Activites Seminars on Sheep and Cultures Sheep to Loom Demonstrations Juried Navajo Fiber Arts Show and Sale Celebration Banquet Fleece Shows, Sheep Shows, Vendors, and more.

Activities at the celebration include seminars on the Navajo lifeway, Navajo-Churro sheep and fiber arts. There will be sheep-to-loom demonstrations, sheep and fleece The Sun put down all the wild animals, and activities when the sheep shows, a juried fiber-arts show and sale, youth and a celebration banquet. placed, this is what was In addition, workshops will be offeredwere in traditional sheepherding, sheep production said: and grazing management. “Their faces will be dawn their eyes will be rock crystal, their Diné be’ Iiná (the Navajo Lifeway), a ears nonprofit organization, will be plants, their wool willcosponsors the event white fog.” with Diné College and the Land Grantbeoffice. DBI’s mission is to restore the balance

from the Navajoand fiber artists and between Diné culture, life and land. DBI serves-- shepherds Blessingway Ceremony educates the community and the public about the importance of Diné sheep culture. DBI works with other organizations to conserve the traditional Navajo-Churro sheep breed, provides technical assistance to help shepherds and weavers gain economic self-sufficiency and markets value-added sheep and wool products.

be’ Iiná’s activities provide leadership, economic development, port for traditional lifeways of Diné shepherds and fiber artists.

DBI features Navajo-Churroand products made by Diné shepherds and For more information: 505.406.7428, info@navajolifeway.org www.navajolifeway.org fiber artists from sheep sustainably raised in the Navajo Nation.

Western Coalition of Arid States 505.406.7428 or info@navajolifeway.org Conference: June 22–24 in Santa Fe www.navajolifeway.org minimizing water resources through recharge, reuse and recycle Contact Aretta Begay, Project Director

The 2016 annual WESTCAS conference will focus on practices members can employ to stretch and increase their water supplies. The program will look at this challenge from the legislative side to on-the-ground practitioners.

U.S. Bureau of Reclamation Commissioner Estevan López will welcome the attendees. Ryan Flynn, Secretary of the New Mexico Environment Department, will present a keynote address on “Getting Serious about Investing in Water Infrastructure.” Other presentations include “Efforts to Develop a Sustainable Colorado River,” by Bill Hasencamp, manager of Colorado River Resources, District of Southern California; “Metro Wastewater Reclamation District’s Integrated Plan,” by Lisa E. Hollander, governmental affairs officer, Denver Metro Wastewater Reclamation District; “A Tribal Perspective on the Aamodt Settlement and Pojoaque Basin Regional Water System Project,” by former Governor of the Pueblo of Tesuque Charlie Dorame; “Aquifer Recharge and Beneficial Reuse in El Paso, Texas,” by Scott Reinert, Water Resources manager, El Paso Water Utilities; and “Optimizing Reuse to Head Off Climate Change,” by Bill Schneider, City of Santa Fe. Attendees will enjoy hosted lunches with speakers including Director Emeritus Siegfried Hecker, Ph.D., Los Alamos National Laboratory; and William DeBuys, author of The Great Aridness—Climate Change and the Future of the American Southwest. Attendees also will have an opportunity to visit the Santa Fe Watershed and the Buckman Direct Diversion facility.

collaborative agencies currently include Casa de Salud, La Plazita Institute, South Valley Economic Development Corporation and Centro Sávila. “The extraordinary commitment of the W.K. Kellogg Foundation to EleValle since our beginning means more opportunities for our Pathways participants to succeed and more opportunities for the navigators who serve them to broaden their own professional skills,” said EleValle director, Sam Sokolove. “This grant will also allow EleValle to conduct intensive evaluations to more effectively address the barriers South Valley residents face in living healthier lives and will help us engage more partners in our work.” EleValle is a project of SINC (Social Impact through the Nonprofit Community; formerly the Río Grande Community Development Corporation). Tim Nisly, chief executive officer of SINC, believes that EleValle represents a unique collaborative model in Albuquerque’s nonprofit sector based on the shared commitment of its partners to community health. “This investment from the Kellogg Foundation will enhance the lives of the South Valley residents the EleValle network serves,” said Nisly. “SINC is proud to play a continuing role in EleValle’s development and success.” For more information about EleValle or its partner agencies, call Sokolove at 505.306.7853, or visit www.elevalle.org

UNM Awarded $1.5 million to Study Environmental Conditions in Disadvantaged Communities

The University of New Mexico is one of five universities selected to establish centers for excellence that will focus on environmental health disparities. The UNM College of Pharmacy has been awarded a $1.5 million grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), on top of $3.5 million awarded last fall by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), to launch its Center for Native American Health Equity Research. The additional $1.5 million will help support investigations on how contact with metal mixtures from abandoned mines affects rural Native American populations through exposures in drinking water and other local resources that are part of their traditional lifestyle and culture. The two federal agencies are providing more than $25 million to the universities of New Mexico, Arizona and Southern California, along with Harvard University and Johns Hopkins University, to conduct multidisciplinary research with local communities on how to improve environmental conditions for vulnerable populations. Environmental health problems are more likely to occur in communities that have ongoing exposure to multiple sources of pollution. The centers will focus on understanding the relationships between biological, chemical, environmental and social factors. “For the first time, researchers will address—across multiple tribes—disparities in social determinants of health, and tribal cultural and traditional practices,” said Johnnye Lewis, Ph.D., director of the UNM College of Pharmacy’s Community Environmental Health (EH) program. “Our UNM center will be developing evidence-based risk reduction and prevention strategies to reduce the effects of environmental disparities on Native American health.”

For registration fees and a full agenda, visit westcas.org, call 770.424.9468 or email westcas@mindspring.com

Lewis and UNM Associate Professor Melissa Gonzales, Ph.D., are leading the Native EH Equity research team, which includes community members, scientists and tribal staff from the Navajo Nation, Crow Nation and Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, with support from Pacific Northwest Coast tribes.

EleValle Awarded Major Grant from W.K. Kellogg Foundation

New Art & Farmers’ Market at Ohkay Owingeh Pueblo

EleValle, a group of agencies working collaboratively to improve the health and well-being of Albuquerque’s South Valley residents, has been awarded a three-year grant of $1,080,000 from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. Formed in 2008 through funding provided by the University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center Office for Community Health, for the Pathways to a Healthy Bernalillo County program, EleValle network promotores, or navigators, guide and connect vulnerable, underserved residents to health and social services. EleValle’s

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Erykah Vigil and Jovanna Archuleta have been working for months to organize a local arts and farmers’ market for the Eight Northern Indian Pueblos Council. ENIPC has received grant funding for advertising and marketing for the market through the Regional Development Corporation. Virgil Vigil of Tesuque Pueblo has created a new logo. The market will be set up in the arbor area behind ENIPC’s offices (and the Ohkay Casino) at Ohkay Owingeh Pueblo, 327 Eagle Drive, just north of Española. Opening day is July 9 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. The market will be held on consecutive Saturdays through Oct. 8. In addition to fresh local produce, once a month there will be cooking demonstrations and each Saturday there will be live entertainment. For additional information, call 505.747.1593 or visit www.enipcmarket.com

Green Fire Times • June 2016

What's Going On! Events / Announcements June 23, 9 am start Santolina Master Plan Hearings City/County Government Building 1 Civic Plaza NW 6/23: Environment and Open Space; 7/21: Conclusion

ALBUQUERQUE

June 4, 10 am–2 pm Intl. District Health Fair Texas St. SE (btwn. Central Ave. and Zuni Rd.)

Celebrating the community and health. Parking and shuttle services available at the Caravan East, 7605 Central NE. www.face book.com/IDhealthfair

June 7, 7–8:30 pm Residential Rainwater Harvesting Meadowlark Senior Center Río Rancho

Gardening with the Masters lecture. Free and open to the public. SandovalMasterGardeners.org

June 8, 8–10 am Branding, Marketing and Public Relations Sandoval Economic Alliance, 1201 Río Rancho Blvd., Río Rancho

Educational workshop by Tom Garrity for local business owners. Light breakfast and course materials provided. $39. 7/13: NM Incentive Programs for Your Business. Peeroriented roundtables meet every 2nd Weds. through 11/9. Presented by the SEA and the Dynamic Growth Business Resource Center. 505.238.3004, http://dgbrc.com/loca tions/sandoval-economic-alliance/

June 11, 10 am–12 pm ABQ Citizen’s Climate Lobby

Learn how this group is working for climate change solutions that bridge the partisan divide, such as a carbon fee/dividend that gives revenue back to households. Meets on the 2nd Sat. of every month. Location: lisas.ccl@gmail. com, www.facebook.com/ccl.newmexico

June 15, 10 am–2 pm Sen. Michael Padilla Job Fair Harrison Middle School 3912 Isleta SW 4 annual. 505.977.6247 th

June 16, 11:30 am–1 pm Taking the Wheel Hotel Andaluz, 125 Second St. NW

“Getting ABQ from Here to There.” Urban Land Institute luncheon. Speakers: national branding expert Steve McKee and urban planner Aaron Sussman. 505.242.9090, http://newmexico.uli.org/event/

June 25 Festival Chispa Natl. Hispanic Cultural Center

All-day campus-wide music, arts & culture event. Free educational and interactive programming. Evening ticketed multi-artist lineup headed by Grammy nominee Ceci Bastida. $22/$27. 505.724.4771, nhccnm. org, www.FestivalChispa.org

June 25, 11 am–7 pm NM Fermentation Festival Gutiérrez-Hubbell House 6029 Isleta SW

Educational event celebrating all things fermented. Workshops, demos, product vendors, kids' activities, food trucks. $5/$15. Presented by Edible SF, ABQ, Taos with the Hubbell House Alliance. http://nmfermentationfest.com

June 27, 7:15 am start Kids Count Conference ABQ Marriott Pyramid 5151 San Francisco Rd. NE

“Equity Matters: Impacts on Child Well-Being.” Keynote speaker: Author Jimmy Santiago Baca. Guest speaker: Patrick McCarthy, president of the Annie E. Casey Foundation. Youth Spirit Awards. $75. 505.244.9505, ext. 12, lbachman@nmvoices.org

June 28, 6–7:30 pm NM Solar Energy Assn. Meeting REI, 1550 Mercantile NE

Concerned citizens learn how to transition toward a more sustainable lifestyle. ABQ Chapter meets fourth Tues. every other month. J.desjardins@hotmail.com

June 29 NM Food and Ag Policy Council Statewide Meeting Location TBA

Public meeting. 505.473.1004, info@farm totablenm.org

Aug. 30–Sept. 1 Wind Turbine Blade Workshop Embassy Suites Hotel

Biannual workshop presented by Sandia National Laboratories Wind Energy Technologies Dept. sandia.eom@public.govdelivery. com

SANTA FE

Through June 18, Tues.–Sat. Flashing on the Sixties El Museo Cultural, 555 Camino de la Familia

“A Trip Back to the Garden.” Photographs by Lisa Law plus memorabilia. www. elmuseocultural.org

Through March 5, 2017 Lowriders, Hoppers and Hot Rods NM History Museum, 113 Lincoln Ave.

Car Culture of Northern NM. 505.476.5019, www.nmhistorymuseum.org

June 3, Aug. 5, 10 am–1 pm Free Legal Clinics

First Judicial Court, 225 Montezuma Ave. For low-income New Mexicans. First Friday every other month. Attorneys provide free legal advice on civil matters only (no family or criminal law) on a first-come, first-served basis limited to the first 25 people. Bring relevant paperwork. NM Legal Aid’s Volunteer Attorney Program. 505.814.5033, ajab@nmlegalaid.org

June 4, 9 am–12 pm National Trails Day Dale Ball Trails, Sierra del Norte Trailhead off Hyde Park Rd.

Community hike. Free. 505.989.7019, tim@ sfct.org

June 4, 9 am–12 pm Setting Yourself Up for Publishing Success Everyday Center for Spiritual Living 1519 Fifth St.

With IngramSpark director Robin Cutler. $35/$45. Presented by the NM Book Assn. Reservations: admin@nmbook.org, http:// www.nmbookassociation.org

El Rancho de las Golandrinas 334 Los Pinos Rd., La Ciénega

Sheep shearing, wool dying, spinning and weaving. Fiber arts marketplace, wagon rides, bread baking, crafts. 505.471.2261, www.golandrinas.org

June 5, 10 am–4 pm Natural Building and Earthen Plasters Ampersand Sustainable Learning Center, Cerrillos, NM

Get hands-on with finish plasters and/or clay paints. Details/RSVP: ampersandproject.org

June 6, Evening Cynthia Sharf Unity Church of Santa Fe

Sharf is director of strategic communication and a speechwriter on climate change for UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon. Details: unitedchurchsf@gmail.com

June 10–26 Currents 2016 International New Media Show El Museo Cultural/Railyard Plaza/ local venues

6/10, 6 pm–midnight, opening night. Outdoor video, sonic art, multimedia concert. Exhibits, film screenings, workshops, performances. Also events in ABQ, Hobbs, Las Cruces, Magdalena, Roswell and Taos. Schedule and prices: www.currentsnewmedia.org

June 11, 9 am Learning as a Practice Workshop Academy for the Love of Learning, Seton Village

Led by founder Aaron Stern and faculty member Marianne Murray. $50. 505.995.1869, https://aloveoflearning.org

June 4, 10 am–12 pm Trees to Plant in NM Railyard Park community room behind Site SF

June 11, 10 am–1 pm Take a Kid Mountain Biking Day La Tierra Trails, La Cuchara Trailhead

June 4, 12–5 pm Reuseapalooza Railyard Park

June 11, 10 am–12 pm SF Citizens' Climate Lobby La Montañita Co-op Community Rm., 913 W. Alameda

With Robert Wood, certified arborist. Free.

Reunity Resources’ pop-up carnival features upcycled art vendors, interactive carnival games, live music, on-site Trashion Show and local food trucks. Composting and fun-filled resourcefulness for all ages. 505.695.1005, Juliana@reunityresources. com

June 4-5, 10 am–4 pm Spring Festival & Fiber Arts Fair

Off of Cam. de los Montoyas at end of Unity Way. 505.989.7019, tim@sfct.org www.sffts.org

Learn how this group is working for climatechange solutions that bridge the partisan divide, such as a carbon fee/dividend that gives revenue back to households. www.face book.com/ccl.newmexico

June 11-12 Endurance Ride SF National Forest

Benefits nonprofit Listening Horse Thera-

Flashing on the Sixties

Green Fire Times • June 2016

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peutic Riding Program, which serves most disabled participants free of charge. $110/$90/$50. 505.670.3577, laurie@listen inghorse.org, www.listeninghorse.org

June 12 submission deadline Capture Water Conservation Instagram Photo Contest

City of SF Water Conservation Office–sponsored competition. Submission guidelines: follow the Instagram account @savewater santafe.com and post images. 505.955.4225, savewatersantafe.com

June 14, 7 pm Breaking Big Money’s Grip on New Mexico and America Jean Cocteau Cinema

Author reading and panel discussion with SF author Bruce Berlin, Heather Ferguson of Common Cause NM and State Rep. Carl Trujillo. Moderated by SFCC Professor Stephen Martínez. $10 or $24.95 for admission and book. https://breakingbigmoneysgrip. com, www.jeancocteaucinema.com

June 15, 6–7:30 pm NM Solar Energy Assn. Meeting Amenergy Office, 1202 Parkway Dr.

Meets 3rd Weds. every month. The mission of the Santa Fe Sustainable Everything Advocates, an NMSEA Chapter, is to make living sustainably the accepted norm. claudia@solarlogicllc.com

June 16, 9 am–4:30 pm Mayordomo Commissioner Conf. SFCC (Jémez Rm.), 6401 Richards Ave.

4th annual statewide conference. Topics include acequia governance, El Agua Es Vida: El Movimiento de las Acequias, Organizing to protect acequias. Registration: $10. RSVP: 505.995.9644, communications@lasacequias.org

June 18, 10 am–4 pm Rain Harvesting and Greywater Systems Ampersand Sustainable Learning Center, Cerrillos, NM

Learn basic elements of rain collection systems, NM greywater code. Details/RSVP: ampersandproject.org

June 18, 6 pm–12 am FantaSe Fest DeVargas Park www.creativesantafe.org

June 19, 2 pm Santa Fe Concert Band Federal Building Lawn

Annual Father’s Day concert. Free. Sfcb1865@gmail.com, www.santafeconcert band.org

June 22–24 Western Coalition of Arid States Conference Inn at Loretto, 211 Old SF Trail

Annual conference of water and wastewater service providers who advocate for water resources in the Southwest. 2016 theme: “Maximizing Water Resources through Recharge, Reuse and Recycle.” Presentations, panel discussions, hands-on work, receptions and field trips. Registration fees and agenda: www.westcas.org

June 24, 10:15 am NM Acequia Commission Meeting NM State Archives and Records Center, 1205 Camino Carlos Rey

Agendas: 505.603.2879 or www.nmacequia commission.state.nm.us, info: 505.603.2879, molinodelasisla@gmail.com

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June 25, 10 am–12 pm National Pollinator Week Celebration Railyard Park Community Room behind Site SF

Learn about the plight of native bees and how you can help create habitat for them to flourish. See the park’s new large-scale Native Bee House. Free.

June 25 Author Stephen Dinan Collected Works, 202 Galisteo

Sacred America, Sacred World book launch. A practical vision of national unity. 6/26: Community conversation at Unity Santa Fe. www.sacredamerica.net

June 26, 10 am–4 pm Arid Land Restoration Ampersand Sustainable Learning Center, Cerrillos, NM

Learn to distinguish storm water flow areas that nourish the land from those that dehydrate and create erosion. Tour ecological restoration projects. Details/RSVP: ampersandproject.org

July 6, 7 pm The Evolution of Native Cinema NM History Museum, 113 Lincoln Ave.

Honoring Wes Studi, Chris Eyre, Gary Farmer and others. ($75). 5:30 pm: Private reception at Sherwood Gallery ($125). Tickets: 505.820.0552, silverbulletproductions.com

Through July Community Workshop Series Railyard Park Community Room behind Site SF

Learn relevant gardening techniques from a team of experts. All ages welcome. Free. 505.316.3596, Jason@railyardpark.org, www. railyardpark.org/programs/

Sundays, 10 am-4 pm Railyard Artisan Market Farmers’ Market Pavilion, 1607 Paseo de Peralta

Local artists, textiles, jewelry, ceramics, live music. 505.983.4098, Francesca@santafe farmersmarket.com, artmarketsantafe.com

1st and 3rd Tuesdays, 5:30-7 pm Design Lab for Sustainable Neighborhoods Higher Education Center 1950 Siringo Rd., Rm. 139

Affordable living in SF? Join in to design and build mixed-use Santa Fe infill. Topics examples: Flexible 350 micro-units, clusters with shared facilities, cooperative ownership. Info/RSVP: http:// bit.ly/1ibd3LN

Tues. & Sats., 7 am-1 pm SF Farmers’ Market 1607 Paseo de Peralta (& Guadalupe)

Northern NM farmers & ranchers offer fresh greenhouse tomatoes, greens, root veggies, cheese, teas, herbs, spices, honey, baked goods, body care products and much more. www.santafefarmersmarket.com

Sundays, 11 am Journey Santa Fe Conversations Collected Works, 202 Galisteo

6/5: Steven Robert Allen, dir. of public policy for the ACLU on ending solitary confinement in NM (with Holly Beaumont); 6/12: Alice Loy on Creative Startups and Entrepreneurships; 6/19: Sandy Buffet with Denise Fort on the Centennial Celebration of the National Parks System; 6/26: Poetry with James McGrath and Elizabeth Raby; 7/3: Mariel Nanasi of New Energy Economy. Moderators: Alan Webber, Bill Dupuy. Free. www.journeysantafe.com

Santa Fe Recycling

Make 2016 the year to reduce, reuse and recycle as much as you can. City residential curbside customers can recycle at no additional cost and drop by 1142 Siler Road, Building A, to pick up free recycling bins. For more information, visit http://www.santafenm.gov/ trash_and_recycling or call 505.955.2200 (city); 505.992.3010 (county); 505.424.1850 (SF Solid Waste Management Agency).

HERE & THERE June 10, 10 am–1 pm Nonprofit Funding and Resources NMHU, Las Vegas, NM

Working with the Santa Fe Community Foundation. Learn about funding support and the application process from SFCF staff. Free. 505.988.9715, amclaughlin@santafecf.org

Sustainable Growth Management Plan for SF County

June 11, 9:30 am Pecos River Spring Cleanup

TAOS

June 12–19 Sheep Is Life Celebration Diné College, Tsailé, Navajo Nation

Hard copies $70, CDs $2. Contact Melissa Holmes, 505.995.2717 or msholmes@santafe county.org. The SGMP is also available on the county website: www.santafecounty.org/ growth_management/sgmp and can be reviewed at SF Public libraries and the County Administrative Building, 102 Grant Ave.

July 1-17 Storytellers: Teaching Heritage through Song and Story Millicent Rogers Museum 1503 Millicent Rogers Rd.

Textiles, paintings, traditional ceramic storytellers. By museum admission: $10/discounts. 575.758.2462, www.millicentrogers.com

June 2–4 Taos Poetry Festival Various locations

Readings, workshops, classes, salons. All events free for students. 919.949.2113, www. taospoetry.com

June 3–5 Music on the Mesa Taos Mesa Brewing

Many performers including Shawn Colvin and Steve Earle on 6/5. Two outdoor stages and an indoor stage. Bring low-back chairs and blankets. www.taosmusiconthemesa.com

July 11-14 Integrative Medicine Professionals Symposium Sagebrush Inn

7th Biennial symposium on integrative health featuring many distinguished speakers and local practitioners. Presented by the UNM School of Medicine’s Section of Integrative Medicine, Continuing Medical Education & Professional Development, Arizona Center for Integrative Medicine and Gaples Institute for Integrative Cardiology. 505.272.3942, http://som.unm.edu/cme

Third Weds. Monthly Taos Entrepreneurial Network Taos County Courthouse Mural Room, Taos Plaza

Networking, presentations and discussion. Free.

Through Sept. 11 Mabel Dodge Lujan & Company Harwood Museum of Art 238 Ledoux St.

“American Moderns and the West,” an exhibit detailing Lujan’s impact on the art, writings and activism of 20th-century modernists Dorothy Brett, D.H. Lawrence, Marsden Hartley and others. Closed Mondays. 575.758.9826, Harwoodmuseum.org

Ongoing Holy Cross Hospital Health Support HCH Community Wellness Center (lower entrance), 1397 Weimer Rd.

575.751.8909, mariam@taoshospital.com, TaosHealth.com

Meet at the Upper Pecos Watershed Association office, 78 S. Main St. for coffee and supplies. Free bbq picnic afterward at the Jamie Koch Pavillion. Info/RSVP: 505.757.3600, upwa@pecoswatershed.org

20th annual gathering for all who love sheep, wool, fiber arts and the cultures that have maintained these lifeways. Sponsored by Diné College and the Land Grant Office. Workshops, youth activities, seminars, demonstrations, juried fiber arts show and sale, banquet, more. 505.406.7428, info@navajo lifeway.org, www.navajolifeway.org

June 17 Sign-up Deadline Joint Chiefs’ Landscape Initiative

Natural Resources Conservation Service initiative to help conserve, maintain and improve natural resources and environment. Available to eligible NM agricultural producers. 505.761.4400, www.nm.nrcs.usda.gov

June 19–25 Earth-Honoring Faith: Climate Justice Ghost Ranch Conference Center

Promotes interfaith efforts on common earth issues. 505.685.1019, sarah@GhostRanch.org

June 25, 7 am–12 pm Garlic Harvest Festival Sostenga Farm, Northern NM College, 1027 N. Railroad Ave., Española, NM

9th annual. Remedios and braiding garlic workshops. Free

July 11–13 ASES Solar Conference Intercontinental Hotel San Francisco, CA

For solar enthusiasts and professionals. Plenary sessions and forums on the advancement of renewable energy in the U.S. Held in conjunction with the Intersolar North America trade show. 303.443.3130, www. ases.org/solar-2016/

Wednesdays, 10 am Green Hour Hikes Los Alamos Nature Center Los Alamos, NM

Kid-centered hikes. Free. Losalamosnature.org

Weds., 6-8 pm Gallup Solar Community Meetings 113 E. Logan Ave., Gallup, NM

The nonprofit Gallup Solar hosts educational presentations and potential solutions for all things solar. Questions, ideas and expertise are welcome. 505.728.9246, gallup solar@gmail.com, www.gallupsolar.org

Friday to Wed. Closed Thursdays Pajarito Environmental Education Center 2600 Canyon Rd., Los Alamos, NM 505.662.0460, www.peecnature.org

Green Fire Times • June 2016

Green Fire Times â&#x20AC;˘ June 2016