Tag Archive for 'Global ARC Journey'

Journey of the Global ARC 2010: Mid-Journey Update!

carla published on August 13, 2010 in celebrity and transportation. 1 Comment Tags: , .

Dearest SuperForest,

The photograph above shows SuperForester Keith Pezzoli and his bike next to the incredible SolTrekker! Yup. The Global ARC Journey started (back on July 15th). And yup, I’ve failed to write consistent update posts about it, despite a steady influx of exciting happenings.

When I last left you, the Global ARC team and myself had just returned from Occidental College in Los Angeles after a successful meeting with one of the brightest minds in sustainability planning in urban settings and after we had just secured our transportation vehicle, The SolTrekker. Since then, Dr. Pezzoli and the Global ARC team travelled all the way up to Vancouver, made their way down Washington, and ended up in Portland where Janice met up with them. They then picked up the SolTrekker, and continued their journey south. During this time, they’ve toured the Spanish Bank Creek Restoration Project in British Columbia, learned about fish farming in Bellingham, Washington, visited farms in Portland, and have met and interviewed a wide range of activists and leaders across the northern west coast. Not to mention, the actual biking that has been going on throughout the entire trip, a portion of which, you can experience in this next video!

Back at the base, SuperForesters Maureen and I have been focusing our attention on arranging the stops here at the southern west coast and putting together a celebratory event that will be held at the end of the journey. To say the least, things have been a bit hectic, but in ways that seem almost celestial in nature, it seems like everything is coming together wonderfully. The Global ARC team is currently in the bay area of California where they will meet up with SuperForester Jon to attend a Cafe Gratitude Workshop and tour the Blend Apparel workshop! Stay tuned, more videos and exciting adventures to come! And yes, probably more last minute changes that’ll probably make it really difficult for me to continuously update you guys on what’s going on, but luckily, there are plenty of ways you can keep yourself informed.

To keep yourself updated on what’s going on with the Global ARC, you can visit their website, follow their Journey on their Google Map, or subscribe to their YouTube Channel!

Love,
Carla

Global ARC Journey Update (7/2/10): Bridging and Bonding

carla published on July 2, 2010 in technology, transportation and zeitgeist. 4 Comments Tags: , , , , , .

Hello, SuperForest!

I write to you after several long days filled with hope, excitement, and anticipation. The Global ARC Journey is only a few days away, and as I began to dip my toes into this brand new experience of helping to plan such a wonderful event, panic was beginning to settle in.

We didn’t have a support vehicle.

Understandably, this was a major issue of concern. The participants would be traveling 2,000 miles. Camera equipment and other basic necessities (food, water, etc.) needed to be hauled (and kept from overheating), and as time was winding down, it seemed as if our options were becoming more and more limited. That is, until yesterday. SuperForesters Keith, Janice, Maureen, and myself visited Los Angeles to meet with Professor Bob Gottlieb at Occidental College to learn of his suggestions on who to connect with and particularly, how he’d be able to get involved. On the drive back toward San Diego, we received a phone call that would solve our support vehicle dilemma.

SuperForest, I’d like you to meet what will be the home/vehicle for the 2010 Global ARC journey.

It’s called the SolTrekker, and it’s 100% fossil-fuel free motorhome complete with a biodiesel engine, solar panels, a waterless toilet, a rainwater catchment system, and sustainable materials on the inside. It’s almost too much to take in all at once, and honestly, when I was first introduced to this vehicle, I almost immediately disregarded it thinking it was something in the “too good to be true” category of transportation options. Alas, in a series of opportunities that seemed almost celestial (thanks to SuperForester Janice and the rest of the Global ARC team), it looks like we’ve got this little beauty rented! Ty, the man you saw in the video, was incredibly in tune with our mission and as all of the correspondences were occurring, it was incredible to feel like everything was falling into place. And upon reflection, it seems the first few weeks of planning this Global ARC journey have demonstrated to me one thing, and that is the power of community.

From the very beginning, Maureen and I have been busy phoning and emailing contacts in order to make this Global ARC journey the success we know it will be. We had a meeting with Mel and Vallie and we are crossing our fingers that they’ll be able to give us a hand with the final stop in San Diego (and maybe even a concert as part of a spectacular Global ARC/SuperForest grand finale event), SuperForester Jon will be getting involved up in the bay area, SuperForester Anyes and Heather have already offered (and have begun) to help out in Vancouver, and Patricia has even offered contacts in Seattle.

It’s amazing to see the insane amount of power and potency that lies within this very community we have created. Because this community of people like Ty and Anyes is exactly what’s making this journey possible. And now that I think of it, is exactly the type of community we’re celebrating. All of my gratitude goes out to those who have stepped up and offered to help us (and to those that will do so in the future).

We’ve accomplished great things in the past, dear friends, and I’m sure this is one we’ll all be able to celebrate together.

With love,

Carla

Carla’s Journal (6/16/10): SuperForest and the Global ARC Journey 2010. Ready, Set, Go!

carla published on June 16, 2010 in celebrity, superforest journal and transportation. 7 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , .

Good Morning, SuperForest!

We’ve mentioned several times how so much of what goes on behind the scenes here at SuperForest fails to be mentioned up on the blog, we’ve also mentioned several times that we would work to improve this nasty habit of ours and time and time again have failed to do that. But upon further reflection, perhaps it’s not a failure. Perhaps the incredible stories of what goes on behind the scenes just need some time to ferment and process before reaching your eyes. Perhaps, they themselves know the best time to present themselves to you. In the case of our behind the scenes workings with The Global ARC, that time has come.

Very frequently, SuperForest comes across groups and organizations that are very much in tune with the message and themes of our website, but every once in a while that connection is so strong, that in a process that seems almost cosmic and magnetic, partnerships are formed. It happened with SuperForester Jon of Blend Apparel, it happened with SuperForester Vallie and Mel of the Feeding the Soul Foundation, and it most definitely happened with the Pezzoli Family and The Global ARC. We’ve mentioned the Pezzolis a few times here on the site, but a formal introduction has been about six months overdue.

I had the pleasure of having Dr. Keith Pezzoli as my professor in several Urban Studies and Planning classes that I took at UCSD. Now, I’ve had several jaw-droppingly amazing professors during my time there but few compare to this one for his enthusiasm and dedication to the environment, to regional planning, and to his students was something that made attending his classes not only engaging, but fun (yes, fun). Another thing Dr. Pezzoli showed a lot of enthusiasm towards was what he called the Global ARC (or the Global Action Research Center) which is an organization he and his wife Janice were starting to “share, grow and scale up sustainability solutions” in order to eradicate some of the biggest problems we face on both a local and global scale. As such, this organization is building a sustainability database, an Open Access digital library, and what they are calling the “Journeys of the Global ARC” (bike tours meant to showcase some of these sustainable solutions). I was sitting in class as he was explaining his vision of bridging grassroots organizations to academic research performed at universities and I kept thinking to myself, “This is so SuperForest.”

A few months later, SuperForester Jackson and I met with Janice and Keith as a means of introducing ourselves to each other and a few weeks after that, we were meeting their son Chris, their dog Morgan, and were having dinner at their house discussing both SuperForest and Global ARC plans and how we could help each other out.

Since then, this friendship and partnership has only grown, and most recently, SuperForest has been working the the Global ARC to help plan their first Global ARC Journey. Starting on July 15th, The Global ARC organization is going to embark on a 2000 mile long bicycle journey from Vancouver, Canada down the west coast of the United States to San Diego, California. Along the way, they’ll be stopping at several key locations to learn first hand from organizations and institutions about the actions they’re taking to better this planet (community gardens, universities, etc.). It’s going to be epic and SuperForest has been helping organize it all. Specifically, SuperForester Maureen and I are going to be in charge of organizing both the stops in Los Angeles and San Diego.

Goodness, it’s even more intimidating to read that back in writing.
You see, SuperForesters Maureen and I have never planned anything like this before.
Nothing even close to this.

And as I write this, I’m filled with an incredible sense of anticipation, nervousness, and excitement. These are all signs that SuperForest is expanding its horizons and is stepping out into an opportunity full of growth and learning. I have little doubt this is going to be amazing. SuperForesters Maureen and I will be sharing much more about the Global ARC, this west coast journey, our Southern California stops, and we’ll most definitely be reaching out to you guys for help because if there’s anything I’ve learned from here on SuperForest, it’s the incredible power of community and how together, we SuperForesters can accomplish the most daunting of tasks…like planning major bike tours.

Journey starts on July 15th. Let’s do this thing.

Yours in adventure,
Carla