Ride Green Build Green Bicycle Trip
.png)
Planning is fully underway for this summer's Ride Green Build Green (RGBG) bicycle trip. From July 25th to August 25th, 20 bicyclists will make the 1,000+ mile journey from Seattle to San Francisco to raise funds and awareness for affordable green housing.Prior to the ride, each participant is raising a minimum of $2000 each to support LEED certification for a home built by Habitat for Humanity of East King County. Fundraising will include benefit concerts, T-shirt sales, and donation solicitations. All donations will be tax deductible through Habitat for Humanity. Riders also plan every aspect of the trip, including the route, nightly stop locations, work days at affordable housing sites, community forums, and bicycle and gear procurement.
Along the way, riders will also have opportunities to visit sites and organizations devoted to affordable and green housing and thus gain a greater understanding of the different methods, techniques, and plans for making both affordable and sustainable buildings and housing. Stops might include housing for the homeless, green affordable-housing projects, self-built green homes, and meetings with advocacy organizations to learn about their work.
Among scheduled stops: Olympia Habitat for Humanity (7/26), Cowlitz County Habitat for Humanity (7/28), and Olson Woods Community Partners for Affordable Housing (7/30).
RGBG believes that some of the biggest impacts we have on the environment lie within the structures we build to accommodate our lives. Buildings in the US account for:
- 40% of total annual US energy
- 25% of water use
- 20-30% of municipal solid waste stream
- 30-40% of wood and materials use
- 25% of greenhouse gas emissions
RGBG is seeking financial and volunteer assistance and additional riders. Please visit the RGBG website for more information.
Volunteer: Seattle Works
Noelle and I met for a beer at Victory Lounge (formerly The Lobo) last Saturday afternoon with an intention to talk about snowboarding. However, we spent our time talking about Noelle's volunteer experience with Seattle Works.Seattle Works is non-profit which coordinates volunteers to work on long-term and short-term projects, ranging from education and learning, environment/green spaces, health and wellness, and connected communities. There are several projects you can sign-up for when you volunteer, so you have a lot of freedom to pick something to work on which will be the most fun for you, as well as doing something for the community.
Through Seattle Works, Noelle has not only helped clean-up Seattle, but she has also gone to New Orleans, LA., twice to help rebuild homes and schools, and she has another trip planned this winter. Noelle published a blog about her experiences and feelings concerning the situation created by Hurricane Katrina, and it is definitely worth reading.
I asked Noelle how she got involved with Seattle Works. She told me she was looking to volunteer somewhere, and she liked how she was not obligated to give up all of her free time with Seattle Works. Noelle explained:
It's really low commitment. You only have to go one Saturday morning a month.
Seems to me like Noelle is being modest about her commitment to volunteerism, after receiving Seattle Works Volunteer of the Year 2007 award.
Her stories have inspired me to do something, too, and I'm sure I'll be volunteering with Seattle Works very soon.
If you are interested in volunteering, please visit the Seattle Works website.
