Nevada City, CA – Velocity7, Nevada City’s leading marketing communications agency, has launched joidesresolution.org, a major new educational initiative of the Washington, D.C.-based Consortium for Ocean Leadership. The website tells the story of the JOIDES Resolution, a former oil exploration ship now in use as one of the world’s premier tools for scientific climate research. The JOIDES Resolution—or JR, as it is known on board—drills core samples from the ocean floor. Scientists use these cores to study the history of Earth’s climate.

The new website is deeply interactive and integrated with top social networking tools. The site provides teachers with a plethora of classroom resources and activities, and appeals to kids with videos and games. Users can communicate with scientists on board and read frequent updates from scientist and crew member bloggers. Visitors can sign up to receive blog feeds in their RSS reader, or for a monthly email newsletter also designed by Velocity7. In the fall, the Consortium for Ocean Leadership will sponsor two national contests for students through the website. The contests were designed and planned by Velocity7.

“We think we took this site to a whole other level with the integration of social networking tools.” states Velocity7 CEO, Robert Trent. “A teacher might read an interesting blog entry with an embedded YouTube video, and then share that video directly with her teaching buddies on Facebook and Twitter. All that functionality is just a couple of clicks away”

The launch of the website coincides with the relaunch of the ship itself. The JR went to sea on March 5, 2009, after over two years of retrofits to the ship and its science facilities. The ship is operated by the Consortium for Ocean Leadership, a nonprofit organization representing 95 public and private ocean research education institutions, aquaria and industry. Acting of behalf of these leading institutions, Ocean Leadership works to advance research, education and sound ocean policy.

More Sustainability Center News is coming soon…                         

Maybe you’ve heard about the soon-to-be APPLE Sustainability Center, scheduled to open this summer in downtown Nevada City? We plan to post more details soon – but, to help get the ball rolling, please help us out right now by taking this quick (just 5 questions) online survey:Click Here to take survey

Stay tuned for more – and sign up for our announcements emails!

What if there were an easy way for Businesses and individuals in New York City to dispose of all of their E waste?

What if there was a 4th Bin?

New York, NY April 2, 2009 – Valiant Technology in association with
Per Scholas, The Architect’s Newspaper, Metropolis Magazine, Soho Reprographics, Supermetric, and Core 77 has today launched “Design The 4th Bin” a competition aimed at designing the next generation E-waste logo and an E-waste Bin for New York City.

The winning logo is to be released as a public domain/creative commons design, to be as familiar as the möbius strip on every paper and plastic recycling bin.

The winning bin is intended as inspiration for an E-waste collection system in New York City. It aims to help building owners, businesses and residences comply with the new laws going into effect in 2010 restricting the disposal of electronic waste.

For more info visi http://4thbin.org/

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Robert Trent, Director
pr@velocity7.com
Phone: 530.470.9292

Velocity7 Wins Gold Addy Award for Public Service
Nevada City, CA – Nevada City’s premier marketing communications agency has been awarded a Gold ADDY Award by the Sacramento Ad Club. This success at the local level advances Velocity7’s entry into a regional-level competition, and, with success there, to the national level. The ADDY Awards is the world’s largest advertising competition, and is the only creative awards program administered by the advertising industry for the industry.

Velocity7 took home Gold honors for Public Service Campaign in a Single Medium for creating sevenforthesierra.com, an educational website on seven issues and ideas critical to the future of the Sierra Nevada. The website attracted visitors with a seven-month PR campaign highlighting a new concept each month. Visitors were presented with an engaging introduction to the issue, and directed on to further information and resources to take action on the issues that inspired them.

The Seven for the Sierra campaign was inspired by regional efforts to increase the sustainability of Sierra communities. Velocity7 used the campaign to introduce the web-browsing public to leading organizations and individuals working on behalf of the Sierra. Issue pages directed the user to organizations like the Sierra Business Council or South Yuba River Citizens League for further information. Illustrations from renowned field guide author, illustrator, and environmental educator John Muir Laws enlivened every entry.

About Velocity7
Velocity7 provides integrated marketing solutions. Services include marketing communications, web, branding, print, public relations, advertising and media planning. 530.470.9292 www.velocity7.com #####

In 1994, Congress transformed the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday into a national day of community service to celebrate through our actions a man who lived his life in service to others. As a tribute to that legacy and the needs of our nation, Sierra Business Council supports the request of the President-elect and Vice President-elect to help organize community members to join in this effort and to engage Americans in service to local organizations that need assistance now more than ever.

This national day of service will fall on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, January 19, 2009 and, unlike past calls to service, Sierra Business Council is asking members of the Sierra Nevada to join in this day, and to consider a longer commitment of service.  Find an organization or a cause that speaks to you in your town or neighborhood and make an ongoing commitment to support this organization by donating your time, energy, and ideas to make the Sierra Nevada a better place for all of us to live.

Never has it been more important to come together in shared purpose to tackle the common challenges we face. Local non-profits and community groups are a unique and much needed thread in the fabric of our communities. Supporting these groups keeps our communities strong and healthy. Please sign up to volunteer today.

Some interesting organizational ideas being planned in California include: Recreational Trail improvements, community clean-ups, helping the elderly at a retirement home, volunteering at an animal shelter, blood drives, food drives & soup kitchen volunteering, Americorps events, “share your garden” – fresh produce donations to homeless centers, ride share coordinating, etc.

McCamant & Durrett Lecture: Designing and Living a Green Life

Originally published on Yubanet.com

Published on Jan 12, 2009 – 12:05:08 PM

By: Pamela Biery, Velocity7.com

NEVADA CITY Calif. Jan. 12, 2009 – How do you get your electric bill down to zero? Nationally acclaimed and locally based architect Charles Durrett will share this and other tricks of sustainable design, at a slide presentation Wed, Feb 18, 7:00 pm at the Nevada City Veteran’s Hall, 415 North Pine Street. Durrett’s firm was recognized last year by the National Association of Homebuilders for energy efficiency, for its Nevada City Cohousing development.

Durrett, age 53, is best known for his work relating sustainability to sociability. He argues that highly sociable neighborhoods are also more environmentally sustainable and he has authored two popular audience books interpreting Danish neighborhood patterns. He and his wife and partner, Kathryn McCamant introduced the “cohousing” model to the United States, a cross between eco-village and custom neighborhood.

According to Durrett, when it comes to carbon footprint, solar panels are nice but are really just the finishing touch, after lifestyle and building design. “Half of the country’s energy is used for heating, cooling, and lighting buildings, and much of it is unnecessary.” He says that his own home’s electric bill for all of 2008 was a negative $83.34, and he has only a single kilowatt of solar electric generation.

Durrett will also discuss ways to live green beyond saving energy. He will show examples of social neighborhoods that embody a green lifestyle, as well as projects which reduce toxicity, reduce lumber in framing, use recycled and reclaimed building materials, retain water on-site and effectively steward the land.

Admission is $5.00. To reserve a place or for more information, call Nisanda at 530-478-1970, or email info@cohousingpartners.com.

WHO: Charles Durrett – architect & author
WHAT: Designing and Living a Green Life
WHEN: Wednesday, Feb. 18, 7:00 pm
WHERE: Nevada City Veterans’ Hall 415 No. Pine St.
FEE: $5.00
For further event information, contact: Nisanda, 530-478-1970

Charles Durrett is the winner of the 2001 United Nations Human Habitat award, among others. McCamant & Durrett also designed the LEED certified Unitarian Universalist Church of Fresno, California, the first LEED building in California’s South Central Valley.

Its cool how doing the right thing pays off.  By joining the ranks of the Sacramento Sustainable Business group we accomplished a great deal.  First off, we reduced the amount of water, chemicals, electricity, and gas we use here at the V7 office.  We also increased our recycling and imporved systems to save even more  and use even less.

Secondary benefits include free business directory listings, such as the Sacramento Business Journal , and multiple mentions in the local newspaper.  We joined the Sacramento Sustainable Business group over a year ago, and still today we are reaping the benefits.  The Roseville Press Tribune just published our name in a recent article. This helps bring us up in search engines and helps reach our target audience.

So the lesson learned?  Do the right thing.

November 24, 2008

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Pamela Biery
info@velocity7.com
Phone: 530.470.9292

SEVEN FOR THE SIERRA:
Back to the Land with SB375 in Mind
NEVADA CITY, CA – Velocity7, a marketing communications firm in the Sierra Nevada created a mini-site with information on how Sierra Nevada residents can take daily action to preserve, conserve and learn more about the place they live. This month focuses on land use.

How we cultivate, develop and relate to land shapes Sierra Nevada communities, our daily habits and our quality of life. Yes, nature and open space are important, but taking a closer look at sustainability in the design of our communities is a powerful source for change as well. This idea was reinforced last month when Governor Schwarzenegger signed Senate Bill 375. The anti-sprawl bill, by Democratic Sen. Darrell Steinberg of Sacramento, asks California communities to consider climate change development impacts in regional planning, with specific emphasis on car travel reduction.

SB 375 requires the California Air Resources Board to set regional targets by September 2010 for reducing greenhouse-gas emissions.

“This is the first bill in the United States to align housing policy, transportation funding and climate policy,” said Tom Adams, President of the California League of Conservation Voters. “The bill does this by promoting development patterns that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by increasing housing choices, reducing commute distances and reducing congestion.”

“By reducing sprawl, SB 375 will give Californians the choice not to drive so much and help meet our AB 32 greenhouse gas reduction targets,” said Ann Notthoff, the California Advocacy Director of the Natural Resources Defense Council.

Agreement on SB 375 comes after months of negotiations with cities, counties, major homebuilders, environmentalists, affordable housing advocates, transportation officials, community groups and others.

Architects McCamant & Durrett (MDA) dedicate a significant amount of their architectural practice to green solutions for community planning, including cohousing. “This bill supports the work that planners and architects have been doing in designing, sustainable communities on infill sites with many options for walking, biking or using public transit to stores and other daily needs. It validates
the premise of higher density housing improving quality of life.” comments Katie McCamant (MDA won silver in the “2008 Energy Value Housing Award,” awarded by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), for Nevada City Cohousing.)

Sustainable building is not just about materials, its about revitalizing Sierra Nevada towns into healthy and diverse thriving communities where kids can ride their bikes to school and residents can walk to meet their daily needs. There isn’t one solution, but rather a series of land-use prerogatives that allow towns and residents to become less car-dependent.

One aspect to land use is the need for a dramatic shift in community planning. “We often see very powerful community designs, with large sections dedicated to creating on-site infrastructure, allowing residents to walk, shop and play without driving. These visionary plans can get reduced to mere housing developments. We need to be better prepared to embrace something new in housing, which is really something old—like villages—to change how we use our land.” states Chuck Durrett, MDA partner.

“With the disappearance of cheap fuel, the interest in environmental sustainability is expanding again beyond green technology in the narrow sense to the encompassing role community design plays in determining our environmental impact,” says Congress for the New Urbanism (CNU) CEO John Norquist.

Learn more about land use and how to avoid sprawl by visiting www.sevenforthesierra.com . Add a Seven for the Sierra link to your site by calling 530.470.9292 .

For details on cohousing and community planning visit www.mccamantdurrett.com and www.cnu.org .

About Velocity7

Velocity7 provides integrated marketing communication solutions. Learn more about their services and nationally recognized clients by visiting: www.velocity7.com or calling 530.470.9292 .

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