The Bicycle City. Trailer from Greg Sucharew on Vimeo.

What happens to an impoverished developing nation town when you flood it with 20,000 bicycles? You lift three times that number of people out of poverty. Pedals for Progress and founder David Schweidenback have been shipping used American bicycles to Rivas, Nicaragua for the last two decades and the transformation has been incredible.

Help Fund Our Film:
http://www.indiegogo.com/The-Bicycle-City-Film

http://thebicyclecityfilm.com/

So I wasn’t sure what to expect in response to my curiosities about the new Connective Corridor plan taking place around the Syracuse University campus, and what I got was pretty cool and a heavy dose of awesome!

The City of Syracuse, namely Stephen (City Arborist) and Owen (Deputy Director, Bureau of Planning & Sustainability) basically gang tackled my questions going way above and beyond the call of duty and making me a very happy – and well informed – camper. A big thanks goes out to those gentlemen and also to Robbi Farschman, Director of the Connective Corridor project, for getting the ball rolling.

In addition to the interview questions we also shared a few emails and phone calls. This project is in very good hands and I’m glad I’ll still be here to see its completion.

Please read on for the answers to the interview questions:

1. Is there a map of where all the trees being cut down are?

No

1. What types (species) of trees will be cut down?

Honey locust, London plan, Crab apple, Littleleaf linden and Caller pear

1. When were these trees originally planted?

They were planted at varied times throughout the late 70s. They’re all between 30-40 years old.

1. Are there any plans for use of the cut down trees?

No.  There are untapped opportunities to utilize urban wood but one of the main barriers is the pieces of metal that get hammered into the first 10-20 feet over the years.  Millers don’t want to risk breaking their saws.  That said Zeke Leonard, a professor in SUs VPA program, is working with Greg Michels at Jubilee Homes and Jessi Lyons at Cornell Cooperative Extension to make use of some trees taken down at an urban farm off of Bellevue.  Zeke is working with a miller down in Jamesville and at SUs workshop to make some tables.

1. When will the new trees be planted?

Construction is supposed to begin this year.  Trees are typically (preferably) planted at the end of the construction process.  So it depends on how well construction goes.  The first step, obviously, is to remove the existing trees by the end of March. After that we have to wait until several phases of construction (tearing up and regarding and paving the road) are complete before we can plant the new trees. The overall plan is to be substantially complete by the end of this year. When the construction has been completed to a point where we can plant the trees, we need to have the weather cooperate. If it’s too cold we just can’t plant the trees. Ideally we’ll have them all planted by the end of this year but if, due to cold or construction setbacks, we can’t plant them this year, the absolute latest they’ll be planted would be May of 2012.

1. How big will the newly planted trees be?

I believe 2.5 to 3″ caliper (that is the diameter of tree 6″ off the ground).  They will be about 12 to 16′ tall.

1. What types (species) of trees will be planted?

The new trees to be planted will include Goldenrain, English Oak, Black Locust, Coffee Tree, Ginko, and Serviceberry.

1. Is there a map of where the new trees will go?

There is but it can’t be released as it hasn’t been released for contractors to bid on. Once the City awards the bids, all the plans will be available for public review. This will likely be late May for University Avenue and late June or early July for East Genesee Street. (Syracuse City Hall: 233 East Washington Street Syracuse, NY 13202 (315) 448-8005)

1. Whose responsibility will it be to care for the new trees?

The city has full responsibility for those trees that are to be cut down and the upkeep of the newly planted trees. There may be some kickoff-type events where community organizations will be participate, but those are strictly ceremonial purposes.

The tree maintenance strategy is entirely the city’s responsibility. Around Forman Park there will be some community influence, but in the greater scope of things, the trees are the city’s responsibility.

1. When will this project be finished?

Early 2012 spring at the latest. We’re aiming for a fully operable complete project by the end of this 2011. The tree planting is the last thing done and the temperature has to be fairly warm to plant.

Connective Corridor Lumber-jacking

Tree love is a hereditary trait in my family or, at least, it was nurtured in me. As living beings, it actually might be a part of everyone’s DNA. At any rate, I have pretty vivid memories of my parents getting angry when they heard of some development going up at the sake of acre of timber. They also weren’t too pleased when they saw some homeowner unjustifiably chopping down a tree.

That thinking stuck with me, and made me stop and look and ponder the sign to the left.

I always question these types of signs. They strike that all important emotional chord in us (heck, a soon to be executed tree apparently wrote the language on the sign) with promises of a better tomorrow. They also seem to be too good to be true, misguided and inaccurate. This is a marketing program on some level and I am suspect of it.

I wanted to do a little more digging.

Find out the details.

Paint a clearer picture of what’s really going on.

Good thing there’s an email address to contact someone about all the questions swirling around upstairs.

In coming up with the list of questions, I erred at first. I made it too personal, as if the person reading the email was directly responsible for the project and tree execution. They were laden with  ‘Do you…’ and ‘What will you…’ clauses and sounded a little too adversarial so I rewrote them in a more neutral manner. I also rewrote negative questions like ‘Are there any plans for use of the cut down trees or will they just be brought to the city dump?’ to read: ‘Are there any plans for use of the cut down trees?’. I just want some answers and tried to be skillful in acquiring them.

My final list of questions looked like this:

1. Is there a map of where all the trees being cut down are?
2. What types (species) of trees will be cut down?
3. When were these trees originally planted?
4. Are there any plans for use of the cut down trees?
5. When will the new trees be planted?
6. How big will the newly planted trees be?
7. What types (species) of trees will be planted?
8. Is there a map of where the new trees will go?
9. Whose responsibility will it be to care for the new trees?
10. When will this project be finished?

The email was sent off and we’ll see where it goes. This entry/post really grew so after some thought and high-level approval, I reworked the piece and will be posting part two next week (if not before).

In completely unrelated news, I think the City of Syracuse logo needs some updating (top left of sign).

You MUST click on this image to see it in full. Love me some IIB!

The True Size Of Africa

From The American University’s (my undergrad university) ListServ:

Urban Teacher Center is an innovative teacher preparation program that supports dedicated individuals to become outstanding teachers. Our applicants make a four-year commitment, including a one-year residency followed by a three-year teaching commitment. Our residency year is based on the medical model:  residents complete a structured clinical experience in an urban elementary or K-8 school. Residents also engage in a rigorous Master’s of Education program. We are looking for candidates who do NOT have any background in education.

We are reaching out to campus and advisor leaders who may be able to share our work with colleagues and students, and who can help us grow an applicant pool for our year one cohort. We are looking for individuals who have completed their undergraduate degree by June, 2010; who have a minimum 2.75 GPA, and who have demonstrated leadership potential. Applicants should have a high degree of interest in public service, and in dedicating themselves to improving conditions for urban youth.

UTC is unique for several reasons. First, our residents work together in teams of 4-6, and are placed as teacher teams as well – a direct response to the isolation we see so many of our best teachers facing. Second, our residents receive superb preparation in conditions that mirror the conditions they’ll face as teachers. Third, our teachers are expected to improve student performance. UTC is the first program in the nation that will link a teacher’s ability to improve student learning with program completion.

To learn more, please go to our website:  www.urbanteachercenter.org. attached is a one-page flier for distribution. Feel free to also reach out to us directly with any questions at this address. Our final deadline is April 16. Thank you for helping us identify strong candidates who want to make a real difference for children who need and deserve the best teachers in the nation.

My cool sister Heidi was one of the 50 artists who participated in the recent ’69 Meters Art Installation’ along Montague Street in Brooklyn. It’s a massive knitting/art/beautification project and I’ve never seen or heard of anything like this. It got some pretty significant coverage in both the NY Times and the NY Daily News.

Pictures >>>

http://www.blublu.org/
The new short film by Blu: an ambiguous animation painted on public walls.
Made in Buenos Aires and in Baden (fantoche)

music by Andrea Martignoni
produced by Mercurio Film
assistant: Sibe

Lagos

According to BusinessWeek, Lagos gets the crown.