2009 Schedule
March 12. "Focus on Local Government"
This inaugural event featured a panel discussion with local government representatives from La Plata County, the City of Durango, the Town of Bayfield, the Town of Ignacio, and the Southern Ute Indian Tribe. The presenters provided updates on sustainability-related initiatives by their respective governments. The panel discussion was followed by an open community dialogue focused on ways that governments, community organizations, and individuals can communicate and collaborate to foster common sustainability goals.
May 14. "Focus on Green Jobs"
This second in our series of community sustainability dialogues explored the potential for "green jobs" in La Plata County and what this new buzzword means for Southwest Colorado. The discussion focused on potential green jobs in the energy, food, waste, and manufacturing sectors and discussed local policies that can support green economic development, along with funding opportunities associated with the state and federal budget process. The dialogue drew on a series of presentations over the previous month focused on the new green economy and aimed to outline a policy platform and grassroots projects for generating green jobs in our region.
July 9. "La Plata County Comprehensive Plan"
This third in our series of community sustainability dialogues focused on the La Plata County Comprehensive Plan. The event featured background presentations by the Sustainability Alliance and County Long-range Planner Jason Meininger on a wide variety of issues that will affect the future of the County and its residents. The dialogue included break-out conversations to suggest sustainability measures and a broader discussion about continued engagement of the sustainability community in the Comp Plan process. For more information on the plan, see http://laplatacountyplan.com/.
September 10. "Taking Control of Our Local Food System"
This fourth in our series of community sustainability dialogues explored how we can take ownership and control of our local food system. The current upwelling of support for localizing our food system, for higher quality, sustainably produced, more nutritious food, for fair prices for producers, and for access to good food for all, calls for a reordering of priorities in our food system—essentially taking ownership and control starting on the local level. Participants discussed what local “ownership” might look like and how we can achieve it. An immediate outcome of this discussion was providing input on local food goals to the County’s Comprehensive Planning process. Event Summary
November 12. "Local Living Economies"
Following on the heels of a visit to Durango by Michelle Long, Executive Director for the Business Alliance for Local Living Economies (BALLE) and co-founder of the group Sustainable Connections in Bellingham, WA, November's LPSD will focus on policy innovations to support the development of a thriving local living economy that can allow La Plata County to become more self-reliant. Event Summary