Monday Mailing
Year 21 • Issue 01 08 September 2014 1. ODOT Seeking Comments on Long-Range Plan for Bike and Pedestrian Projects Statewide 2. More Free Books! 3. Registration Open for Oregon Main Street Conference 4. New Resources from Natural Hazards Center 5. 2014 Hop Harvest Festival – Rogue Farms 6. Oregon Forestry Board may Increase Tree Buffers Along Salmon Streams, First Time Since 1994 7. Some Oregon Wild Places in Limbo as Wilderness Act Turns 50 8. The Most Unusual Strike This Year Shows Why it Pays to Treat Employees Well 9. University of Oregon Grads Plot the Future of Rural Health Care 10. World’s Largest Dam Removal Unleashes U.S. River After Century of Electric Production 11. Funding Opportunities 1. ODOT Seeking Comments on Long-Range Plan for Bike and Pedestrian Projects Statewide The Oregon Department of Transportation wants to know where the state should make investments in bike and pedestrian projects and is holding a series of meetings to gather comments, including one in Portland on Sept. 24. Quote of the Week: “Like water, be gentle and strong. Be gentle enough to follow the natural paths of the earth, and strong enough to rise up and reshape the world.” ~Brenda Peterson
It's part of an update to the state's Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan.
Oregon Fast Fact: Oregon's state flag pictures a beaver on its reverse side. It is the only state flag to carry two separate designs.
The lineup:
Setting safety priorities is among the issues addressed at the meetings. ODOT is hoping to gauge what matters most to people, including such things as street crossings, security and enforcement. ODOT wants you to RSVP to attend the meetings by using Eventbrite.
Sept. 16: 1 p.m.-3:30 p.m. in Medford at the Santo Community Center, 701 N. Columbus Ave. Sept. 17: 9 a.m.-11:30 a.m. in Eugene at the Eugene Library, 100 W. 10th Ave. Sept. 23: 2 p.m. -4:30 p.m. in La Grande at ODOT Region 5, 3012 Island Ave. Sept. 24: 2:30 p.m.-5 p.m. in Portland, ODOT Region 1, 123 NW Flanders St. If you can't make one of the meetings, you can also go online to answer questions or make comments.
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2. More Free Books! In case you haven’t discovered it yet, IDRC (International Development Research Centre – Canada) has a bunch of books free for download or to read online. For more information, click here. 3. Registration Open for Oregon Main Street Conference Registration is now open for the 2014 Oregon Main Street Conference, October 1-3, 2014, in lovely, downtown McMinnville. Please register to reserve your space! Remember, attendance is free for communities participating in the Oregon Main Street Network and to Certified Local Government communities. Please remember to share this information with your board and committee members, local officials, your community partners, downtown business and property owners, and others interested in downtown revitalization. About the Conference: Get ready to be inspired! Make new connections and get new tools to keep your downtown vibrant and competitive in today’s market. The 2014 Oregon Main Street Conference will offer proven ideas and strategies for preservation-based revitalization that is relevant to rural, mid-sized, and urban communities. This conference is a great way to look at the “big picture” of downtown revitalization by discovering fresh ideas and learning numerous ways to turn your historic downtown or neighborhood commercial district into a bustling center of activity. Sessions cover a variety of topics for both beginners and those with experience. The format includes walking tours, lectures, and networking time. Join us for this very special, one-of-a-kind conference! For more information (and registration), click here. 4. New Resources from Natural Hazards Center
Nature Toolbox
For scientists building on the latest in research, the right tool can make all the difference. These days, those tools are more likely to be found on the digital front, which is why the journal Nature has created a digital toolbox. The toolbox will collect Nature articles on software and Web sites that make it easier for scientists to do their job in one handy location and—even better—let users weigh in on what works and what doesn’t. TsunamiEvac Northwest Northwesterners can now stay ahead of tsunamis, thanks to this app for iPhone or iPad. The tool allows folks along the Oregon or Washington coast to map their location for tsunami threat, plan evacuation routes, and find the latest information on impending tsunami hazards fast. Whether you live there or are just visiting, it’s a good app to have. Natural Disaster Mitigation Video Know the difference between natural disaster mitigation and natural hazard mitigation? You will after you watch this video—and you’ll also understand why it’s an important concept. Created by Western Washington University’s Resilience Institute, this 20-minute presentation will provide a good background in disaster research for general audiences. 5. 2014 Hop Harvest Festival – Rogue Farms Independence, OR – Join us to celebrate the end of the 2014 Rogue Farms Big Wave Hop Harvest on September 14th. After four weeks of picking, stripping, sorting, separating, kilning, cooling, and bailing our 7 varieties of Rogue Farms hops, we now get to relax and join the company of friends for a few hours, until our next crop is ready to harvest. Page 2 of 6
Rogue Farms Hop Harvest Festival begins at 12pm with a toast to a nearly 70,000lb hop harvest. Join us on a tour of Rogue Farms at 12pm, 2pm, or 4pm. Games including barley sack races, cornhole, bung toss and more throughout the day. Enjoy live music by The Bluzotix from 2-5pm and visit with local artisans. There is no cost to attend this event. Rogue Farms is located at the following address: Rogue Farms 3590 Wigrich Rd. Independence, OR 97351 6. Forestry Board may Increase Tree Buffers Along Salmon Streams, First Time Since 1994 Oregon's state Board of Forestry is working on balancing a healthy timber industry with healthy salmon runs. On Wednesday, the board votes on taking the next step in developing rules governing how many trees must be left standing along streams to keep the water shaded and cool enough for salmon to survive. It would be the first change to the riparian protections of the Oregon Forest Practices Act since 1994. The question was raised by a 2011 study that found temperatures were getting warmer in salmon streams on state-regulated timberlands in the Coast Range. The Department of Forestry is recommending the board go forward with analyzing the different logging prescriptions that would be needed to meet the cool water protection standards for smalland medium-sized streams with salmon, steelhead and bull trout, and their economic impact. A final decision is months away and will take into account whether the changes create too much of a hardship on the timber industry. To access the full story, click here. 7. Some Oregon Wild Places in Limbo as Wilderness Act Turns 50 September 3rd marks the 50th anniversary of the signing of Wilderness Act, the federal law that created the National Wilderness Preservation System. Today, Oregon has about 2.5 million acres of protected wilderness, and while that may seem like a substantial number, it represents far less protected acreage than in neighboring states. Only Congress can designate wilderness areas, and as the law turns 50, at least three Oregon wilderness bills are stalled in Capitol Hill gridlock. Dan Morse, conservation director at the Oregon Natural Desert Association (ONDA), says he isn't discouraged with the current congressional inaction on wilderness. To access the full story, click here. 8. The Most Unusual Strike This Year Shows Why it Pays to Treat Employees Well Here’s one way to think about whether you’re treating your staff well: Ask yourself, would they stick their necks out for you?
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This summer, CEO Arthur T. Demoulas got his rewards for being a good boss who paid his 25,000 employees well and treated them like they mattered. Over the last two months, workers at every level of Market Basket, a New England grocery store chain, walked off their jobs and risked their employment--some going without pay, others picketing in front of stores--when the board of the family-run company ousted the beloved CEO in June. With everyone from warehouse stockers to store managers on strike, shelves at the 71 Market Basket locations were soon empty. Customers couldn’t shop there even if they wanted to (and many didn’t, siding with the workers in a boycott). “We just witnessed something remarkable about the power of workers and customers, and the importance of being a benevolent CEO when too often big business trumps all,” wrote Boston Globe columnist Shirley Leung last week at the conclusion of the two-month-long saga that captured the entire region’s attention. To access the full story, click here. 9. University of Oregon Grads Plot the Future of Rural Health Care While many college graduates spent their summer looking for entry-level work, two recent graduates of the University of Oregon — Oliver Alexander, 22, and Orion Falvey, 24 — were getting ready to open their own business. The duo are co-founders of Orchid Health, which opened its first clinic in the rural town of Oakridge, Ore. this August. The pair came up with the concept in the summer of 2012 when the University of Oregon’s Lundquist College of Business sent out an e-mail to students encouraging them to compete in the Social Business Challenge, where participants were asked to come up with a business that could solve social problems profitably. The pair looked into various concepts and eventually settled on the idea that creating a management company that provided affordable health care in rural areas had the potential to be successful. To access the full story, click here. 10. World’s Largest Dam Removal Unleashes U.S. River After Century of Electric Production In Asia, Africa, and South America, large hydroelectric dams are still being built, as they once were in the United States, to power economic development, with the added argument now that the electricity they provide is free of greenhouse gas emissions. But while the U.S. still benefits from the large dams it built in the 20th century, there's a growing recognition that in some cases, at least, dambuilding went too far—and the Elwha River is a symbol of that. The removal of the Glines Canyon Dam and the Elwha Dam, a smaller downstream dam, began in late 2011. Three years later, salmon are migrating past the former dam sites, trees and shrubs are sprouting in the drained reservoir beds, and sediment once trapped behind the dams is rebuilding beaches at the Elwha's outlet to the sea. For many, the recovery is the realization of what once seemed a far-fetched fantasy. To access the full story, click here.
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11. Funding Opportunities America's Farmers Grow Communities Project Through the program, farmers can direct a $2,500 award to a local non-profit organization that’s important to them and their community. Geographic coverage: Available in 40 states. Application Deadline: Nov 30, 2014 Community Facility Loans Loans to help create and improve essential community facilities in the rural West. Geographic coverage: Available in 13 western states. See program website for details. Application Deadline: Applications accepted on an ongoing basis Sponsor: Rural Community Assistance Corporation (Western RCAC) Environmental Infrastructure Loans Loans to finance water and waste facility projects in the rural West. Geographic coverage: Available in 13 western states. See program website for details. Application Deadline: Applications accepted on an ongoing basis Sponsor: Rural Community Assistance Corporation (Western RCAC) Ford Family Foundation Grants Offers grants to small, rural communities for community development; technical assistance; critical needs; and programs that offer increased access to health or dental services, youth development, or child abuse prevention. Geographic coverage: Oregon and Siskiyou County, California Application Deadline: Applications accepted on an ongoing basis Sponsor: Ford Family Foundation Georgia-Pacific Foundation Grants Grants for organizations projects that focus on education, the environment, community enhancement, affordable housing, arts and culture, and entrepreneurship. Geographic coverage: Offered in 28 states in areas where Georgia-Pacific does business. Application Deadline: Oct 31, 2014 Sponsor: Georgia Pacific Foundation May and Stanley Smith Charitable Trust Grant program Grants for projects that offer assistance to foster youth, elder populations, veterans, and people with disabilities. Geographic coverage: Available in 14 Western states. Application Deadline: Applications accepted on an ongoing basis Sponsor: May and Stanley Smith Charitable Trust Oregon Community Grant Program Offers grants to programs in Oregon that address health and well-being of vulnerable populations; educational opportunities and achievement; arts and culture; or community livability, environment, and citizen engagement. Geographic coverage: Oregon Application Deadline: Applications accepted on an ongoing basis Sponsor: Oregon Community Foundation
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Oregon Partnership State Loan Repayment Program Offers matching funds for loan repayment for primary care providers who serve in Health Professional Shortage Areas of Oregon. Geographic coverage: Oregon Application Deadline: Applications accepted on an ongoing basis Sponsor: Oregon Office of Rural Health Organizing Grants Offers grants to organize the foundations of what will become multi-year partnerships within communities that want to increase their ability to lead, influence, and cooperate in efforts that will improve health for their children and families. Geographic coverage: Oregon and Southwest Washington Letter of Intent (Required): Oct 3, 2014 Application Deadline: Oct 10, 2014 Sponsor: Northwest Health Foundation Plum Creek Foundation Grants Offers grants in 18 states to human service organizations; hospitals and medical programs, including funds for equipment; youth-serving organizations; community development projects; arts and culture projects; civic service organizations; and educational institutions. Geographic coverage: Available in areas of company operations in 18 states. Application Deadline: Applications accepted on an ongoing basis Sponsor: Plum Creek Foundation Rural Community Assistance Corporation Housing Loans Offers loans to create, improve, or expand the supply of affordable housing for communities in the rural West. Geographic coverage: Available in 13 western states. See program website for details. Application Deadline: Applications accepted on an ongoing basis Sponsor: Rural Community Assistance Corporation (Western RCAC) Sunderland Foundation Grants Supports capital improvement projects in the areas of higher education, churches, youth serving agencies, health facilities, community buildings, museums, civic projects, and housing projects. Geographic coverage: Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, Arkansas, Iowa, Idaho, Oregon, Washington, Utah, and Montana. Application Deadline: Applications accepted on an ongoing basis Sponsor: Sunderland Foundation Wells Fargo Corporate Giving Programs Funding for nonprofit organizations in the areas of community development, education, human services, arts and culture, civic responsibility, and environmental consciousness. Geographic coverage: Available in 40 States. Application Deadline: Applications accepted on an ongoing basis Sponsor: Wells Fargo Free customized funding searches are available. Phone 1-800-270-1898 or email info@raconline.org for help finding potential funders for your project.
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