Project Summary

In a Los Angeles neighborhood, environmentalists and church people unite around the common goal of living greener. As we learn What We Can Do and try out environmental solutions, we're building neighborhood connections and showing other communities how they can do it too.

About me

I'm the co-founder and program director for Environmental Change-Makers. I'm also the author of the environmental novel Legacy, from which we got the idea for the group. I've been involved with community-building before - I also helped found the local homeschool support network, and I spent 7 years leading and mentoring community service projects in California and on the East Coast. By training I'm a CPA, but right now I'm a stay-at-home mom of two. I live within walking distance of our meeting place, but I'm not a church person. Peter is the other co-founder. He provides the site and does a lot of the publicity, getting word of ECM out to other groups and media. He's an Episcopal priest and has years of activist and community-building experience. Other vitally active Change-Makers include Faith, Michael, Patricia and Chris, Melanie, Martha, Jacqueline and Jeri. Eighteen months ago few of us knew each other. The first 4 are members of Peter's parish; the last 4 are not. The first 5 live in the immediate neighborhood. Faith also works in the neighborhood. Martha, Jeri and Michael are active in other environmental organizations. Several of our teen and pre-teen children participate in ECM as well. We have worked together to put on the Oct'06 Earth Care Fair and a wonderful year's worth of meetings. We are currently organizing the Oct'07 Fair, and planning a community garden project. Joanne and Peter are writing the booklet.