Clean Energy Durham Helps Build Local Communities

Check out the recent press we received at a workshop we conducted in Northeast Central Durham.  Kudos to our two volunteer trainers, David Charters and Jim Wisner, for doing such a great job!

Next Bull City Open Streets Coming Up Tomorrow!

Bull City Open Streets invites you to North East Central Durham
June 9th 4-7pm
BIKE, WALK, SKATE, DANCE, and PLAY!

During Bull City Open Streets, Driver Street, from Southgate to Ashe, will be closed to vehicle traffic, and OPEN to all on foot, bike, skate, etc.  There will be a bike rodeo for kids (4-5pm)—they will learn basic bike safety skills.  Check out the Durham police K-9 dogs, and grab a tasty and refreshing bike blended smoothie!  There will also be a zumba class, drumming performance, demonstrations of African dance, and demonstrations of skateboard tricks.  But wait, wait, there’s more…there will be a Kids Zone, where at 5pm we will have a contest for the kids in: jump ropes, hula hoops, dance off, and basketball hoops. Kids can enter a drawing to win a bike!

We hope to see you out tomorrow for some fun!  For more information and a pdf flyer.

Ninna

Matvey Farber: He’s Been Commuting on the Railroad

Old Five Points

Matvey Farber is not your average public transit commuter or even your average commuter—he works in Burlington.

The first time Matvey took the train was a couple of months after he started the job. He did a little research online and found that he could bicycle to Durham’s Amtrak station, have his bicycle hung in the baggage car for free, get off in Burlington and cycle to work. He finds that the reliability and timing in the morning work perfectly.

The way back to Durham takes a bit more thought. Currently there are only three trains a day that run between Burlington and Durham: morning, afternoon, and evening. His employers would probably not be thrilled if he made it a habit of leaving mid-afternoon, and usually Matvey does not want to wait to head home to his family until the evening train leaves Burlington at 7:30pm. Although he sometimes settles for taking the late train, Matvey has also discovered that during good weather he can bicycle home in two hours, thereby taking control over what time he gets home and enjoying the many perks of getting in a nice long distance ride.

The commute back to Durham without a car is a bit of a commitment, so Matvey generally drives his car to Burlington four out of five days a week. However, when your commute is 70 miles round-trip, the energy savings for taking the train one day a week are high. According to Matvey, the bottom line about commuting by train is that it only costs five bucks and he gets to relax and set aside any worries about speeding tickets or getting cut off.

If you would like to learn more about taking the train contact robin@cleanenergydurham.org to be connected with Matvey.

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Jayme Johnson: Bicycle Transportation Trainer

Cleveland Holloway

When Jayme was moving to Durham, she told her realtor that she wanted to buy a house three miles or less from Duke. Her realtor kept coming back with houses farther away and she told her, “You don’t get it!” Jayme had to convey to the realtor that the ability to have an environmentally friendly and pleasant commute was not something that she was willing to think of as an afterthought when committing to buying a house.

Her house hunt landed her in Tuscaloosa-Lakewood, the neighborhood from which she happily commuted by bicycle to Duke University. Last year Jayme made the move from Tuscaloosa-Lakewood to Cleveland Holloway, where she has been very impressed with the liveliness of the neighborhood and continues to enjoy a pleasant commute to Duke by bike.

As a Bicycle Transportation Trainer, Jayme is a resource to the neighborhood. Whether she is working to get kids in helmets, or fixing a flat, Jayme is living according to the values she is teaching to others.

To be connected with Jayme, contact robin@cleanenergydurham.org

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Clean Energy Durham Neighborhood Energy Contagion

The Northeast Central Durham (NECD) Community Outreach Specialists for Clean Energy Durham, Vicki Sneed and Iris Fisher, have NECD neighbors talking to one another about ways to save energy. Vicki and Iris have partnered with their NECD neighbors to host in home workshops and to host one-hour Basic Energy Education (BEE) workshops. The one-hour workshops were a big hit with the NECD community so Clean Energy Durham gave the workshops “premier billing” during the community outreach activities. Clean Energy Durham was very pleased to see that the workshops spiraled into a web of neighbors teaching neighbors.

Twenty-nine residents attended either a Clean Energy Durham hands-on workshop hosted by one of their neighbors or a Clean Energy Durham Basic Energy Education workshop. After attending a workshop, eight attendees were so excited about the energy information they learned at the workshop that they branched out and taught fifty-two of their neighbors about saving energy! And that’s not all! Four of these fifty-two people who were taught energy tips by their neighbors went on to teach at least one more neighbor! Clean Energy Durham is excited about this burst of neighborhood energy contagion, all within a six-month period!

Lenora

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Clean Energy Durham in the Durham Voice

Clean Energy Durham’s work in Northeast Central Durham (NECD) was recently featured in the Durham Voice, check it out!

Matt Dudek: Biking Commuter

Matt Dudek lives in Durham’s Cleveland Holloway neighborhood, from which he commutes daily to UNC by a combination of bicycle and bus.  He either takes Triangle Transit from Durham Station or the free Robertson Scholars bus from Duke’s west campus.

Matt first started bicycling regularly as an exchange student in England.  When he returned to the USA he lived in the Boston area and commuted by rail into the city.  After he moved to Durham, the bicycle became his main mode of transportation again.  Matt has not owned a car for seven years, saving him tens of thousands of dollars.

In Cleveland Holloway you see lots of people on or working on bicycles.  Matt  says, “I have kids knocking on my door asking to borrow my tire pump all the time…It is a pretty tight neighborhood group.”  He used to volunteer regularly at the bicycle co-op to help people fix up their bicycles.  Recently, the pressures of finishing graduate school have taken that time away, but keep an eye out for Matt, because he is always glad to give bicycling tips and share his knowledge with a neighbor

Robin

Weekend Energy Warriors

Neighbors install outlet insulators

Residents of Northeast Central Durham started another series of Learn, Do, Teach, Track home energy workshops to ring in the New Year on January 15^th.  Thomas Russell hosted neighbors in his home, where they learned how to fix energy-wasting air leaks.  Thomas’ neighbors were surprised at how easy and inexpensive it was to fix these air leaks, and they were excited about the next workshop.

Thank you, Thomas Russell, for being an energy leader in Northeast Central Durham!

Sa’Maad

More Partnering in Northeast Central Durham

Vicki Sneed joined the staff of Clean Energy Durham in September as the Neighborhood Outreach Specialist for Northeast Central Durham. A resident of that neighborhood, Vicki has a Masters in Social Work from North Carolina Central University and has over 10 years of experience in community outreach in Durham. Vicki is working 15 hours a week with Clean Energy Durham while continuing her administrative work at the downtown Durham YMCA, where she is a Human Resources Specialist.

Vicki’s neighborhood outreach work with Clean Energy Durham is funded through a grant from Piedmont Conservation Council and the Natural Resources Conservation Service, a program of the US Department of Agriculture.  This program was interested in promoting innovative approaches that could serve as a catalyst for additional projects that incorporate energy saving components.  Clean Energy Durham is excited about bringing more partners to its neighborhood outreach program!

NECD Livability Initiative

Clean Energy Durham is partnering with the Northeast Central Durham (NECD) Livability Initiative to enhance two Clean Energy Durham programs.  The Neighborhood Energy Retrofit Program (NERP) will get help from the Multi-functional Community Green Spaces (Open Spaces) committee.  Open Spaces is one of the five sub-committees for the NECD Livability Initiative.  East Durham NERP volunteers Aggie Crews and Melvin Whitley recently met with Constance Stancil, the director of Durham Neighborhood Improvement Services and Lynwood Best, city liaison for the Open Spaces committee.  The city representatives have already assisted the East Durham volunteers with their NERP community outreach, and they have also agreed to work with the volunteers to coordinate an activity that will focus on the housing exterior and contribute to the aesthetic appeal of the neighborhood.  The idea is that the Livability project will enhance the indoor services provided by NERP.  Clean Energy Durham will also work with the Safe and Healthy Environment committee of the Livability Initative to promote the signature Clean Energy Durham low-cost, no-cost hands-on, home energy efficiency workshop.  Clean Energy Durham staff will work with community members to schedule and host workshops and increase the number of NECD residents who increase their energy savings.