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Enviroscribe: Iowa Environmental News 
   
Iowans plan climate change events Saturday 
Posted: 22 Sep 2011 01:06 PM PDT
Iowa towns plan walks and other events to highlight concerns about climate change. Here’s the full release:
 
ACROSS THE STATE, IOWANS JOIN WORLDWIDE MOVING PLANET RALLY THIS WEEKEND TO SUPPORT CLIMATE ACTION
 
Iowans across the state are joining the worldwide Moving Planet rally on Saturday, September 24, or Sunday, September 25, to support action to address climate change.  From Independence to Des Moines, Lamoni to Dubuque, and Grundy Center to Davenport, Iowans from rural areas, small towns, and big cities will be participating.  In total, there are at least eleven Moving Planet events in Iowa, a sign of the growing grassroots support for action to address climate change, move to sustainable, renewable energy sources, and help communities protect themselves from growing climate volatility in the future.
 
Moving Planet is a single day to move beyond fossil fuels. Moving Planet will have events in more than 170 countries, ranging from short walks to marathons and a 350-hour bike ride that began last week. In Iowa, events will be held in Ames, Cedar Falls, Cedar Rapids, Davenport, Des Moines, Dubuque, Grundy Center, Independence, Iowa City, Lamoni, West Des Moines, and other communities. For more details, see below, or visit www.moving-planet.org.
 
 
 
Moving Planet is being organized by 350.org. “350″ stands for 350 parts per million (ppm), what many scientists consider to be the safe upper limit of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. We are currently at 392 ppm.
 
 
 
 
 
* * * * *
 
 
 
MOVING PLANET EVENTS IN IOWA
 
(all events are Saturday, September 24, unless otherwise noted)
 
 
 
Ames – Walk at Ada Hayden Heritage Park (5205 Grand in Ames) beginning at 9 a.m. (Coordinator: Ellen Johnsen)
 
 
 
Cedar Falls – The Cedar Falls municipal utility is hosting an energy and environmental fair from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at One Utility Parkway, and students at the University of Northern Iowa will collect recyclables from tailgaters before the UNI Panther football game from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. (Coordinator: Eric O’Brien)
 
 
 
Cedar Rapids – Bike ride from Tait Cummins Park in southwest Cedar Rapids (adjacent to coal plant) beginning at 1:00 p.m. to Water Tower Condominium Green Roof and to Prairiewoods (the home of Linn County’s largest photovoltaic array) in Hiawatha where there will be an environmental fair, renewable energy tour, and speakers, concluding with a group photograph at 3:50 p.m. (Coordinators: Emy Sautter and Rob Hogg)
 
 
 
Davenport – Walk beginning at 10:00 a.m. from Schwiebert Park in Rock Island across the Centennial Bridge to Davenport to a rally at the city bus terminal (Coordinator: Kristen Bergren)
 
 
 
Des Moines – Bike rally convening at 11:00 a.m. at the First Street Bridge (by Mullet’s and accessible by bike trail); riding a route in the downtown vicinity that highlights energy-efficient buildings, renewable energy projects, and public transit; and winding up back at Mullet’s for a celebration of community and a call for climate action (Coordinators: Steve Falck and Hilary Williams)
 
 
 
Dubuque – Bike ride and walk beginning at 10:00 a.m. at Prescott School, touring the Historic Millwork District, passing a coal plant being decommissioned next year, passing the Municipal Service Center where the second largest photovoltaic array in Iowa will be installed later this year, and finishing at the northwest corner of Miller-Riverview Park. (Coordinator: Raki Giannakourus)
 
 
 
Grundy Center – Walk around the Grundy County Court House in Grundy Center beginning at 9:00 a.m. (Coordinator: Bobby Jo Paige)
 
 
 
Independence – Rally on Sunday, September 25, at 3:30 p.m., starting at the Independence School Administration Building where a solar panel was recently installed, followed by a walk and bike ride on the local trail. (Coordinator: Wendy VanDeWalle)
 
 
 
Iowa City – Bike ride and walk on Sunday, September 25, leaving from the Pentacrest at 1:30 p.m. to Lower City Park for a program and environmental fair that runs from 2:00 to 6:00 p.m. which will feature former Iowa football star Tim Dwight. (Coordinators: Giselle Bruskewitz and Ryan Gourley)
 
 
 
Lamoni – Walk, pedal, or skate to a better future beginning at 10 a.m. at the corner of Cherry Street and College Avenue in Lamoni. (Coordinator: Jen Abraham).
 
 
 
West Des Moines – Junior high school students will be meeting at 1415 Grand Av
enue in West Des Moines at 11 a.m. 
Iowa Agriculture Secretary Bill Northey elected president of national association 
Posted: 22 Sep 2011 11:51 AM PDT
Bill Northey, Iowa’s agriculture secretary, has elected president of a national association of ag secretaries. Here’s the full release:
 
NORTHEY ELECTED PRESIDENT OF NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF STATE DEPARTMENTS OF AGRICULTURE
 
DES MOINES – Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey has been elected to serve as President of the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture (NASDA) for 2011/12. The election took place at the organization’s recent annual meeting in Salt Lake City, Utah.
 
As President, Northey will host NASDA members in Des Moines September 12-17, 2012.
 
“I’m excited for this opportunity and appreciate the support of NASDA members,” Northey said. “As negotiations pick up on the next farm bill and discussions continue on a variety of other important public policy areas, I am committed to providing a unified voice for the organization and working with NASDA members to highlight the important role of state departments of agriculture.”
NASDA is a nonprofit, nonpartisan association that represents the commissioners, secretaries, and directors of the state departments of agriculture in all fifty states and four U.S. territories. As regulators of significant aspects of our nation’s agriculture industry, NASDA members are actively involved in ensuring the safety of an abundant food supply, protection of animal and plant health, stewardship of our environment, and promoting the vitality of our rural communities.
 
The last Iowan to serve as NASDA President was Secretary Robert Lounsberry in 1981-82.
 
Other changes in organization’s leadership include the selection of Commissioner Steve Troxler of North Carolina as NASDA First Vice President, Commissioner Scott Soares of Massachusetts to serve as Second Vice president, and Chairman Russell Kokubun of Hawaii as Secretary-Treasurer.
 
Other members elected to NASDA’s Board of Directors include the presidents of the four NASDA regions: Secretary Chuck Ross of Vermont representing the Northeastern region (NEASDA); Commissioner Hugh Weathers of South Carolina from the Southern region (SASDA); Director Joe Kelsay of Indiana representing the Midwestern region (MASDA); and Director Jason Fearneyhough of Wyoming representing the Western region (WASDA).
Ed Kee, the Delaware Secretary of Agriculture, will serve as the at-large representative on the board and Utah Commissioner of Agriculture Leonard Blackham remains on the board as immediate past president.
 
Northey, a corn and soybean farmer from Spirit Lake, is serving his second term as Secretary of Agriculture. His priorities as Secretary of Agriculture are promoting the use of science and new technologies to better care for our air, soil and water, and reaching out to tell the story of Iowa agriculture.
 
  
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