Im investigating the possibility of launching a broad-based green resource guide for my community, as a way for the general public to find out about the growing plethora of vendors, contractors, shops, agencies, etc. that provide sustainable products and services in our area. Ideally, this guide would cover the entire gamut of the local environmental arena, e.g., vendors of renewable energy systems, green architects and builders, carpooling and flex-car programs, area recyclers, hazardous material collection events, sustainable garden dealers and contractors, local farmers markets and organic farmers, sources of sustainable wood products, lenders that offer energy-efficient home mortgagesyou get the idea. I envision this as a quarterly (or maybe biannual) publication created in hard copy -- like one of those free periodicals you see in grocery stores, libraries, and coffee shops -- as well as online. (No, I dont want to kill trees with a printed version, but I think it has to catch the publics eye in order to get noticed. And a web presence doesnt do this as effectively.) Id love to know about other similar hard-copy publications that exist in other communities, including the following:
How do you distribute your green resource guide as a stand-alone publication distributed to stores/libraries or piggy-backed onto an already existing publication, like part of a local newspaper that already has a fixed distribution network?
Is it targeted mainly to homeowners or also to small businesses?
And did you do any front-end evaluation (like focus groups) to learn what your audience needed?
How is your guide funded by private donors, as part of an existing non-profit agency, as a city or county service, or other?
Is it partially supported by advertising and if so, do you have criteria for what kind of ads youll accept?
How often do you update your guide?
What are the staffing needs?
Have you studied its impact and use?
In fact, are there any studies that analyze whether green resource guides are effective tools to stimulate sustainable behaviors in the general public?
Thanks for any help and advice you can give!
Liz Forrestal
Interpretive Planning & Development
8 Aberdeen Place
St. Louis, MO
63105 314-726-1168
[email protected]
Seeking Models for Community Green Resource Guide
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Liz,
FYI,the Clean Air Partnership has published a guide in hard copy, a few times in the past few years. For more info, see http://www.cleanairpartnership.org/caeg.php?p=2005
Regards,
Kevin Devitt
Toronto, Canada
Hi everyone,
As a former Austinite, I used the Austin, Texas Environmental Directory a lot-it incorporates environmental information, where to connect with environmentally sensitive businesses, and how to get involved in environmental organizations. Here's the Web link: http://environmentaldirectory.info/Austin/ Also, are you familiar with Coop America's Green Pages? It's a national directory, and you have to go through a screening process to be listed. You can access it online at http://coopamerica.org/pubs/greenpages/
Aloha,
Debbie
Debbie Gowensmith
Community Conservation Network 2
12 Merchant Street, Suite 200
Honolulu, Hawaii 96813
+1-808-528-3700 (phone)
+1-808-528-3701 (fax)
Hi Liz,
I live in Portland, OR, and we're one of the 3 areas served by the publisher of the ReDirect Guide (the Healthy and Sustainable Lifestyle Directory.) In Portland, you can get copies of this in many different businesses in town and they're available at all kinds of green/sustainable community events as well. The link to the website is below. If you read their 'about us' page you'll see their philosophy/ mission statement, etc. I keep one of these directories in my house all the time, and pretty much all of my friends do too. It's a great tool for making thoughtful decisions in purchasing and in obtaining all kinds of services. We're lucky enough to live in an area where consiousness is high on these issues and there are tons of businesses that meet the standards the publishers set for green living and sustainability - so our directory is quite large and has lots of options. Good luck.
http://www.redirectguide.com/AllAboutUs.htm
Regards,
Jeminie Shell