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October 10, 2010 - PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release
For More Information contact:
or telephone 805.548.0597

POPULAR BIG SUR CHEF ROBIN BURNSIDE TO BE FEATURED AT
CENTRAL COAST BIONEERS CONFERENCE

San Luis Obispo, CA – October 7, 2010 – Robin Burnside, long-time Big Sur resident, chef, and author, will introduce and facilitate audience discussion of the feature documentary film “FRESH” at the Central Coast Bioneers Moving Image Festival, part of the three-day Central Coast Bioneers Conference in San Luis Obispo on Saturday evening, October 16, at 7:30 pm in CalPoly’s Chumash Auditorium. “FRESH” by ana Sofia joanes, one of eleven films featured at the Festival, profiles the farmers, thinkers, and business people across the nation who are at the forefront of re-inventing food production in America. With a strong commitment to sustainability, they are changing how farms are run, how the land is cared for, and how food is distributed. Forging healthier, sustainable alternatives, they offer a practical – and hopeful - vision for a future of our food and our planet. Among several main characters, FRESH features urban farmer and activist, Will Allen, the recipient of MacArthur’s 2008 Genius Award; sustainable farmer and entrepreneur, Joel Salatin, made famous by Michael Pollan’s book, The Omnivore’s Dilemma; and supermarket owner, David Ball, challenging a Wal-Mart dominated economy.

During her 40 year culinary career, Ms. Burnside has been associated with many of the most notable eateries of the region, including as co-owner and Chef of the Carmel Café, as owner and chef at Café Amphora at Nepenthe in Big Sur, and as one of the chefs behind meals offered at the Esalen Institute. She continues in professional food service as a consultant, private chef and caterer for many special and headliner events. Ms. Burnside lives on the Big Sur Coast, where she and her family have been practicing a sustainable lifestyle for 17 years.

She will be signing copies of her new book “The Homesteader’s Kitchen: Recipes from Farm to Table” at the Central Coast Bioneers Conference, Sunday afternoon, October 17. “The Homesteader’s Kitchen” features over 100 recipes for everything from beverages to salads, breakfasts to soups, breads to grilled meats. Vegetarian and vegan alternatives are also included. Burnside offers tips on choosing the finest quality, fresh ingredients along with cooking hints and suggestions to help create meals for optimal health and dining satisfaction.

The Central Coast Bioneers Conference will take place from October 15-17 at the Performing Arts Center complex at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo For a complete list of speakers, workshop and events, and to register for the conference, go to www.centralcoastbioneers.org.

September 24, 2010 - PRESS RELEASE - Click here for a downloadable version (PDF)
For Immediate Release
For More Information contact:
or telephone 805.548.0597

NEW FREE YOUTH PROGRAM ON WILDLIFE ADDED TO
CENTRAL COAST BIONEERS LINEUP

San Luis Obispo, CA – September 23, 2010 – Wildlife habitat specialist David N. Lee of DNL Environmental will present a workshop entitled “Where the Wild Thing Are – Enhancing Wildlife Habitat on Your Land” at the Central Coast Bioneers Conference, Saturday afternoon, October 16. Lee’s program, which will be free to the public, will provide tips to families on how to create natural, sustainable wildlife habitat in their backyards, focusing on ways to maintain landscape without toxic chemicals or fertilizers and improve soil and water quality. With a background in Conservation Biology, Lee has conducted biological surveys and directed habitat restoration on numerous construction projects in Southern and Central California. He focuses on helping landowners restore wildlife habitat, improve water quality and comply with local, state and federal regulations.

The program joins six other youth-oriented offerings at the Central Coast Bioneers Conference, including using virtual reality games to increase democratic participation, girls, nature and rights of passage, home-scale permaculture, motivation for a sustainable future, transforming the landscape with family farms, and sustainable vocations.

The Central Coast Bioneers Conference will take place from October 15-17 at the Performing Arts Center complex at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo For a complete list of speakers, workshop and events, and to register for the conference, go to www.centralcoastbioneers.org.

August 24, 2010 - PRESS RELEASE - Click here for a downloadable version (PDF)
For Immediate Release
For More Information contact:
or telephone 805.548.0597

BIONEERS PRE-CONFERENCE FIELD TRIP TO FEATURE:
TOUR OF LEED-REGISTERED OAK GLEN PAVILION

San Luis Obispo, CA – August 23, 2010 – Sustainable design pioneers Ken Haggard and Polly Cooper will lead a tour of the Oak Glen Pavilion, a U.S. Green Building Council LEED registered building on Friday afternoon, October 15 in conjunction with the Central Coast Bioneers Conference. The two and a half hour tour will depart from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo.

The Oak Glen Pavilion, located on the grounds of the San Luis Obispo Botanical Garden, features passive solar design for natural ventilation, heating and cooling, straw bale construction, green, nontoxic materials and finishes, and a state-of-the art wastewater treatment system. Haggard and Cooper, the architects of the building, will be joined by construction manager Richard Beller to discuss the siting, design, construction and development of the Pavilion and its sustainable features. Following the talk, participants will be taken on a docent-led tour of the Botanical Garden itself. The tour is limited to 25 participants and will include time for questions and answers with those responsible for the design and construction of one of the County’s signature sustainable public buildings.

August 9, 2010 - PRESS RELEASE - Click here for a downloadable version (PDF)
For Immediate Release
For More Information contact:
or telephone 805.548.0597

DIRECTOR AND STAR OF “A SEA CHANGE” TO SPEAK AT CENTRAL COAST BIONEERS CONFERENCE

San Luis Obispo, CA – August 9, 2010 – Director Barbara Ettinger and star Sven Huseby, of the documentary “A Sea Change” will be on hand October 16 to discuss their film and for Q & A at the Moving Image Festival, part of the Central Coast Bioneers Conference, to be held October 15-17 at the Performing Arts Center Complex at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo.

“A Sea Change” focuses on a grandfather’s quest to learn more about the rising acidity of the world’s oceans after reading Elizabeth Kolbert’s “The Darkening Sea.” The film chronicles his journey to Alaska, California, Washington and Norway to speak with oceanographers, marine biologists, climatologists, and artists about the causes and what can be done and what the future may hold for his grandson.

A short documentary by local filmmakers Terry Lilley and Sue Sloan, “California Central Coast Kelp Forest,” most of it shot in the waters of the Pacific Ocean off Shell Beach, will be shown with “A Sea Change” at the Moving Image Festival. The conference also includes as one of its 18 workshops, a panel of three leading experts and activists on the Human Impact on Marine Life: The Problems and The Solutions, which will address issues ranging from the sustainability of commercial fishing and the protection of marine mammals, to the danger posed by plastic debris and to means to protect the health of the ocean ecosystem, including the role of marine sanctuaries. For a complete list of the eight films to be screened at the Festival, for details on other speakers and events, and to register for the conference, go to www.centralcoastbioneers.org.

July 6, 2010 - PRESS RELEASE - Click here for a downloadable version (PDF)
For Immediate Release
For More Information contact:
or telephone 805.548.0597

Santa Cruz Surfer/Activist Scheduled to Screen Film and Appear at Central Coast Bioneers Conference in San Luis Obispo Wins Major Environmental Award

Kyle Thiermann, a 20 year old surfer/activist based in Santa Cruz, whose film Claim Your Change has been selected for screening at the Central Coast Bioneers Moving Image Festival on October 16, 2010, has been awarded a Blue Frontier/Peter Benchley Award. The award was presented to Kyle at the Third Annual Blue Frontier / Peter Benchley Awards held at the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco on June 25. The Benchley Awards are designed to celebrate the legacy of ‘Jaws’ Author, writer, filmmaker and marine conservationist Peter Benchley and are intended to acknowledge outstanding achievement leading to the protection of our coasts and ocean and the communities that depend on them.

Kyle’s film arose from his work with local fishermen in Chile to oppose a new coal-fired power plant. This acclaimed short film focuses on the multi-national funding of environment-threatening projects and advocates a simple but powerful solution. Kyle’s efforts and his film have been credited with convincing depositors to transfer $100 Million from large banks to community-based banks.

The film will be screened at the Central Coast Bioneers’ Moving Image Festival, a part of the annual Central Coast Bioneers Conference to be held at CalPoly in San Luis Obispo on October 15-17, 2010. Kyle is scheduled to be present at the screening.

For more information, including screening dates and times for Kyle’s film, please see the Conference website at www.ecologistics.org/centralcoastbioneers

August 7, 2010 - PRESS RELEASE - Click here for a downloadable version (PDF)

THE BIONEERS ARE COMING TO THE CENTRAL COAST

Inaugural Event To Be Held at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo October 15-17

San Luis Obispo, CA – August 2, 2010 - San Luis Obispo, California will host the first Central Coast Bioneers Conference this fall. Bioneers is a nonprofit educational organization, formed in 1990, that highlights breakthrough solutions for restoring people and planet. This inaugural satellite conference will take place October 15-17, 2010 at the Performing Arts Center Complex at Cal Poly State University, San Luis Obispo. The conference is a blend of local, regional and international speakers, experiential programs, films, music, art, exhibitors, and food.

A few highlights from this year’s 16 workshops include democratic participation through virtual games, local and sustainable food supplies, human impact on marine life, the ecology of leadership, home scale permaculture, and transforming the economy with rural farms. These presentations, along with many others, will take place throughout the two and a half day event.

The Moving Image Festival on Saturday night, October 16, will feature documentaries such as “Flow” an award-winning film which examines the world water crisis; “Fresh” an official selection of several film festivals last year, which looks at modern food systems; and the newly-released “Carbon Nation,” which confronts the balance of tackling climate change while boosting the national economy. The conference will also feature shorts by local filmmakers.

Beaming in live from the International Bioneers Conference in San Rafael, California, will be iconic figures such as prominent anthropologist Jane Goodall and Dr. James Hansen, Director of the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies.

Ecologistics, Inc., a San Luis Obispo-based non-profit corporation, is the organizer and host of Central Coast Bioneers Conference for the Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo and Monterey region.