project leader
Nada K
location
52 North Broadway
Upstate NY (Westchester County, New York)
latest update rss
Volunteer Opportunity - WESPAC Fundraising Dinner on April 26!

the project

PROJECT DESCRIPTION

 

“Half an action is no action at all…

There is no way to undo the harm that hydrofracking will cause.”

              --Oren Lyons, Faithkeeper of the Onondaga Nation

 

WESPAC members Scott Halfmann and Tracy Basile took a course in nonprofit filmmaking at the Jacob Burns Film Center’s Media Arts Lab. The result is “The Unfractured Future,” a short video about the natural gas extraction process known as hydraulic fracturing (or “fracking”) that threatens our water and our future.

You can watch it at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pdwCKzqVRdQ

In New York State this method of deep horizontal drilling that uses massive amounts of water and toxic chemicals has yet to begin, but time is running out. New York is currently in the final phase of review of a draft Supplemental Generic Environmental Impact Statement (dSGEIS) which could lead to hydraulic fracturing for natural gas throughout much of the state.

Our video tells a side of the story rarely heard in mainstream media. It includes indigenous perspectives, giving voice to the powerful words of Oren Lyons, faithkeeper of the Onondaga Nation; Professor Robin Kimmerer, a member of the Potawatomi Nation and an ecologist at SUNY-ESF (Environmental Sciences and Forestry); and Tiokasin Ghosthorse, a Lakota radio show host and journalist in New York City. It cuts through layers of policy and politics, making the complicated simple and clear: New Yorkers can lead the nation in banning fracking.   

Members of the Haudenosaunee (made up of the Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, Seneca and Tuscarora Nations) Environmental Task Force (HETF) are very concerned about hydrofracking in New York State. HETF often speaks out to native and non-native audiences on the issue of hydrofracking. The perspective of this group composed of environmental leaders from the Six Nations on the kind of relationship they have with the natural world is enlightening.

We seek to host an educational one-day forum and festival in the summer 2012 at a local farm in Westchester County. This effort would be a Saturday all-day event and would bring together the local food movement with the anti-fracking movement, as well as reach many Lower Hudson Valley residents whose concern about hydrofracking and interest in building a green economy is growing. It would showcase local food booths selling artisanal cheeses, breads, vegetables, local honey, maple syrup, etc. and feature speakers, such as those in our film, include film screenings of related videos, and have live music featuring the band Ghosthorse, whose music plays throughout our film.

the steps

We already have a team of Pace students helping us plan a community forum in Pleasantville on April 10th that will bring together all the local anti-fracking forces and help build for this farm festival.

Community Gathering in Support of Safe Energy Alternatives for New York and a State-Wide Ban on Fracking

 

12:30pm to 1pm - people will interact with each other, browse the literature tables of various environmental organizations in our county (Westchester for Change, Citizens Campaign for the Environment, Grassroots Environmental Education, The Landkeeper are all confirmed - several others are invited and we are waiting for confirmation), mix and greet and networking

 

1pm to 2pm - introductions of who is in the room, presentations on the impact of hydraulic fracturing by Susan Van Dolsen (Westchester for Change) and Ellen Weininger (Grassroots Environmental Education).  We are also inviting Dr. Lisa DiCaprio (Associate Director of Curriculum, Clinical Associate Professor of Social Sciences, Paul McGhee Division at
New York University, School of Continuing and Professional Studies) to map out renewable energy potential for us in NY State.

2pm to 2:30pm - facilitated discussion on how we can all better coordinate our work and become more effective in our efforts to ban fracking and support renewables.

why we're doing it

We are doing this to protect hundreds of species of plant and animal life as well as the quality of human life from the tremendous damage that fracking creates in the natural world.  We want to ban fracking in New York State and beyond.  As Indigenous elders have told us, we are responsible for leaving a planet that is healthy for at least the next seven generations.

budget

We would like to invite the elders that are featured in the film to come to the festival and we would like the indigenous musicians to attend as well. We need travel money, honoraria, rental fees and funding for publicity as well. $200 per person x 5 people = $1000 Indigenous band = $500 Postcard mailing and printing costs = $400 Food and refreshments at festival = $200 Facility rental = $500 Guest speaker travel costs = $400 project total = $3,000 3% third party credit card processing fee = $90 5% fiscal sponsorship fee = $150 ioby materials and labor = $35 Total to raise = $3,125

updates

Volunteer Opportunity - WESPAC Fundraising Dinner on April 26!

 

On April 26th, 2012, WESPAC Foundation will host our Annual Fundraising Dinner at the Ethical Culture Society in White Plains. If you're interested in volunteering, be sure to email us at wespacfoundation@gmail.com.

The Keynote Address will be delivered by WBAI radio host Esther Armah.  WESPAC will honor four individuals for their work in Westchester County, including Rachel Estroff (Westchester for Change), Maggie Goff (Occupy and Palestine Solidarity), Cora Miles (Anti-Racist Alliance) and Gary Shaw (Indian Point Safe Energy Coalition).

photos

This is where photos will go once we build flickr integration

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