Food & Sustainability course in Salem

Menu for the Future – Northwest Earth Institute's newest course! Sessions of this food and sustainability discussion course are being offered in Salem by co-sponsors AmeriCorps and Garten Services Inc. Now registering for the following Winter 2009 Sessions: · Tuesdays, beginning January 13th, 6:30 to 8PM @ Tea Party Bookshop. · Saturdays, beginning January 17th, 9:30 to 11AM @ Marion-Polk Food Share. Enrollment is limited! To register, call Melissa at 503-566-4159. Course registration and participation is free, however, there is a refundable $20 workbook deposit. Additional course offerings TBD. These course offerings are a part of a not-for-profit AmeriCorps Community Action Project. This project is still looking for course sponsors to cover associated costs. Please show your support and send this message to those who might be interested in sponsoring and/or participating. Thanks! See additional discussion course information @ http://www.nwei.org Menu for the Future is a 7-session course exploring the connection between food and sustainability. Discussion course goals are to: explore food systems and their impacts on culture and society, consider your role in creating and supporting sustainable food systems, and to gain insight into agricultural and individual practices that promote personal and ecological well-being.

More on health and driving ourselves into the grave

WaPo has a story today about the health consequences of places like Salem and Oregon having massively funded bureaucracies dedicated to the vision of more roadways and "roadway performance standards" that drive even more road construction projects in a perfect spiral of futility:

New research illustrates the health benefits of regular biking, walking or taking public transportation to work, school or shopping. Researchers found a link between "active transportation" and less obesity in 17 industrialized countries across Europe, North America and Australia.

"Countries with the highest levels of active transportation generally had the lowest obesity rates," authors David Bassett of the University of Tennessee and John Pucher of Rutgers University conclude.

Americans, with the highest rate of obesity, were the least likely to walk, cycle or take mass transit, according to the study in a recent issue of the Journal of Physical Activity and Health. The study relied on each country's own travel and health data.