Energy (and Other) Events is a weekly mailing list published most Sundays covering events around the Cambridge, MA and greater
Boston area that catch the editor's eye.
Hubevents http://hubevents.blogspot.com is the web version.
If you wish to subscribe or unsubscribe to Energy (and Other) Events email gmoke@world.std.com
What I Do and Why I Do It: The Story of Energy (and Other) EventsGeo
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Details of these events are available when you scroll past the index
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Index
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August 6 is the anniversary of the Hiroshima atomic bombing, August 9 is the anniversary of the Nagasaki atomic bombing. Please spend a moment to remember those events and what they mean today
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Monday, August 7
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3pm Rapid Development, Real-World Deployment, and Evaluation of Projected Augmented Reality Applications
6pm Clean Energy Reception
6pm 2017 Boston Local Food Festival Zero-Waste Leader Volunteer Training
6:15pm The Social, Economic and Legal Impact of AI and Automation - an Expert Panel
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Tuesday, August 8
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10am Nobody’s Listening
2pm Building a search engine to identify environmental factors in disease and disease-related phenotypes
3pm Lightbox Gallery Talk: Artificial Intelligence in Art and Design
4pm MOVING FROM ISSUES TO ACTION: Training On Community Organizing
6:30pm "Turn it Up": A Interactive Environmental Show
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Wednesday, August 9
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8:30am Cool, Clean, and Warm: Workshop on Clean Heating Solutions and Incentives
10am Turing's Mill
11am Vision technology for cutting edge applications in warehousing and distribution
6pm Robots vs. disease: How microscopes are helping to discover new medicines
6pm Mass Innovation Nights 101
6:30pm No Ban! No Wall! Combat Deportations and Islamophobia
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Thursday, August 10
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8:30am Energy Storage: A Vital Element in a Lower Carbon World
10am Future Of Outbreak Response Symposium
10am Sherlock
3pm Boston's FIRST Food Innovation Startup Tour
6pm Boston Climate Action Network Meeting
6:30pm SUSTAINABILITY COLLABORATIVE WITH BOSTON CLIMATE ACTION NETWORK
7:30pm Refugee Crisis in Europe
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Friday, August 11 - Sunday, August 13
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10th Annual Greenfest
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Friday, August 11
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10am 10th Annual Greenfest EcoForums
10th Annual Greenfest FilmFest
10am Color Rx
12am 10th Annual Greenfest
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Saturday, August 12
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10am 10th Annual Greenfest Forums
10am Hackerspace Health
10th Annual Greenfest FilmFest
10am AI Senses
12am 10th Annual Greenfest
1pm Witness for Peace
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Sunday, August 13
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10am 10th Annual Greenfest Forums
10th Annual Greenfest FilmFest
12am 10th Annual Greenfest
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Monday, August 14
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1:30pm The Equipped Explorer: Virtual Reality as a Medium for Learning
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Tuesday, August 15
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6pm Boston New Technology August 2017 Startup Showcase #BNT80 (21+)
6pm Smart Cities - Transportation
7pm An Eclipse for Everyone
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My rough notes on some of the events I go to and notes on books I’ve read are at:
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Monday, August 7
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Rapid Development, Real-World Deployment, and Evaluation of Projected Augmented Reality Applications
Monday, August 7
3:00pm — 5:00pm
MIT Media Lab, E14 - 633, 75 Amherst Street, Cambridge
Committee: Pattie Maes, Professor of Media Technology, Director, Fluid Interfaces Group, MIT Media Lab
Joseph A. Paradiso, Professor of Media Arts and Sciences, Program in Media Arts and Sciences, Director, Responsive Environments Group, MIT Media Lab
Steven K. Feine, Professor of Computer Science, Director, Computer Graphics and User Interfaces Lab, Dept. of Computer Science, Columbia University
Current interactive projected augmented reality systems are not designed to support rapid development and deployment of applications beyond the confines of research labs. I developed a series of self-contained interactive projector–sensor systems (collectively LuminAR devices) and a web-based software development framework. This novel, tightly integrated approach allows developers who are not versed in computer graphics, vision algorithms, and augmented reality techniques to implement projected AR applications rapidly. In this work, I review several real-world uses of the system for retail presentation, desktop interaction and collaboration applications, manufacturing, and education. The work is evaluated through extensive use of the hardware and software by developers as well as two user studies that specifically explored applications for manufacturing and education. The evaluation methodology focused both on basic interaction and system usability as well as the implications of using augmented interfaces in the specific application domains of education and manufacturing. I also discuss the results of the first large-scale user studies of projected augmented reality rapid application development. Finally, I provide a set of design principles for projected augmented reality applications, and recommendations concerning how to deploy such applications in the real world.
This dissertation work was partially supported by a research grants from Intel, Steelcase and Pearson.
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Clean Energy Reception
Monday, August 7
6:00 PM – 8:00 PM EDT
University of Massachusetts Club, 1 Beacon Street, 32nd Floor, Boston
The Environmental League of Massachusetts and National Wildlife Federation invite you to a Clean Energy Reception for attendees of the National Conference of State Legislatures Legislative Summit.
Join Massachusetts legislative leaders and staff for a “Green Reception” and take in the stunning views of Boston high atop Beacon Hill. Hear brief remarks from leaders from the legislature, industry, and state and national advocacy organizations on cutting edge policies on clean energy, including offshore wind and home energy efficiency, and how states can grow jobs and their own renewable energy industries.
To register for this free reception, RSVP here by August 1.
Cosponsors include:
350 Mass for a Better Future
Acadia Center
Charles River Watershed Association
Clean Water Action
Climate Action Now
Climate Action Now
E2 (Environmental Entrepreneurs)
Environment Massachusetts
Health Care Without Harm
Mass Audubon
Metropolitan Area Planning Council
Project Green Schools
Toxics Action Center Campaigns
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2017 Boston Local Food Festival Zero-Waste Leader Volunteer Training
Monday, August 7
6:00 PM – 8:00 PM EDT
Sustainable Business Network (SBN) of Massachusetts, 99 Bishop Allen Drive, #100, Cambridge
Join the Sustainable Business Network of Massachusetts and Save That Stuff for a quick and fun zero-waste training!
Each year, Save That Stuff leads the charge to help make the Boston Local Food Festival a zero-waste event, meaning that 90% or more of our materials are diverted away from landfills. However, we cannot achieve this ambitious goal without your support!
This training will prepare you to identify the different materials SBN will be supplying for the Boston Local Food Festival, as well as other common disposable vessels and utensils, and how we can most responsibly dispose of those items. Your efforts will help ensure that we trash the least amount possible, that we recycle the most amount possible, and that local farmers receive clean and valuable compost from our event!
Snacks, treats, and refreshments will be provided!
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The Social, Economic and Legal Impact of AI and Automation - an Expert Panel
Monday, August 7
6:15 PM
PwC, 101 Seaport Boulevard, Boston
Artificial Intelligence and Automation is changing the world like an Industrial Revolution!
People are concerned about the effect on jobs, competition and society as a whole.
We have assembled a terrific panel of industry experts who will provide us with a glimpse into the future impact of AI.
To be held at PwC's Seaport Offices in Boston.
Speaker list:
Warren Katz – President of Neurala (https://www.linkedin.com/in/warrenkatz/)
Kevin Kroen - Lead Partner in PWC's Financial Services Digital Labor/Robotics Process Automation practice (https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevin-kroen-a5ab223/)
Stephen Lawrence – Head of Quantextual Research Acceleration at State Street Global (https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephenlawrence/)
Bushan Sethi – PwC Financial Services People & Organization Practice Lead (https://www.linkedin.com/in/bhushansethi/)
Stefanie Tellex – Assistant Professor of Robotics and Natural Language Processing at Brown University (https://www.linkedin.com/in/stefanie-tellex-38468818/)
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Tuesday, August 8
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Nobody’s Listening
Tuesday, August 8
10 am-5 pm
Gallery talk 3 pm
Lightbox Gallery, 32 Quincy Street, 5th floor, Cambridge
Nobody's Listening is an artistic multimedia piece that draws on a database of secrets collected through interactive art installations over the past year. The work expresses human secrets through overlapping computer voices and a visual projection. Why do we trust our phones and computers? Where does the physical self end and the digital self begin? The playful installation explores our intimate but dubious relationship to machines, and reflects back our own humanness.
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Building a search engine to identify environmental factors in disease and disease-related phenotypes
Tuesday, August 8
2pm
Northeastern, 177 Huntington Avenue, 11th Floor, Boston
Chirag Patel, Assistant Professor, Department of Biomedical Informatics, Harvard Medical School
In a new era of high-throughput environmental exposure assessment, there is an urgent need for new analytics approaches to drive discovery of new exposures associated with disease and phenotype. This is particularly critical as many burdensome diseases are complex and a combination of both hereditary factors and environmental factors. However, we lack analytic tools and data to discover new exposures to explain missing phenotypic variation in the population. We will present an approach called ‘exposome-wide association studies’ or equivalently ‘environment-wide association studies’ (EWASs) as one way to discover new exposures to drive discovery of new exposures in disease and the missing phenotypic variation in the population.
My long-term research goal is to address problems in human health and disease by developing computational and informatics methods to reason over both genomic and environmental information spanning molecules to populations toward a more precise medicine. The proposed research project involves building big data computational tools to search for interacting environmental and genetic factors using the tools of bioinformatics in a complex and burdensome disease, cardiovascular disease, ultimately enabling me to take a step toward that goal. Currently, I am a tenure-track Assistant Professor position at the Department of Biomedical Informatics at Harvard Medical School. Furthermore, I am an affiliated faculty member at the Center for Assessment Technology and Continuous Health (CATCH) at Massachusetts General Hospital, where I develop large data analytics methods for discovery of new disease biology and adverse events using electronic medical record (EMR)streams and smart phones (Apple ResearchKit GlucoSuccess application).
After my undergraduate work at UC Berkeley, I worked as a software engineer in the biotechnology industry (Applied Biosystems, Inc) for eight years, and attained training in biomedical informatics (PhD and post-doc) at Stanford University.
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Lightbox Gallery Talk: Artificial Intelligence in Art and Design
Tuesday, August 8
3:00pm - 3:30pm
Harvard Art Museums, 32 Quincy Street, Cambridge
Sarah Newman, creative researcher at metaLab (at) Harvard and Rachel Kalmar, data scientist at the Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society, will give today’s gallery talk.
Their project Nobody’s Listening draws on a database of secrets collected through interactive art installations over the past year. The work expresses human secrets through overlapping computer voices and a visual projection. Why do we trust our phones and computers? Where does the physical self end and the digital self begin? The playful installation explores our intimate but dubious relationship to machines and reflects back to us what makes us human.
Free with museums admission. This talk is limited to 15 people and tickets are required. Ten minutes before the talk, tickets will become available at the admissions desk.
Please meet in the Calderwood Courtyard, in front of the digital screens between the shop and the admissions desk. Museums staff will be on hand to collect tickets.
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MOVING FROM ISSUES TO ACTION: Training On Community Organizing
Tuesday, August 8
4:00 PM – 8:00 PM EDT
Mintz Levin, One Financial Center, Boston
Join us for an evening workshop that will provide best practices for organizers to effectively advocate and advance issues that impact the Latino community.
You will learn how to organize at the grassroots and grass tops levels, build alliances with other organizations and advance policy issues at the highest levels. You will learn strategies for addressing social issues such as civil rights, voting rights, education, hate crimes legislation, health care legislation, immigration, and 2020 census.
Our Presenters will discuss why these issues matter to the Latino community, and will map out a process of civic engagement, as well as short and long-term tactics to be most effective. You will learn how to define your cause and vision, create specific goals and metrics, find your allies and targets, build a base, find media coverage, and funding.
SPEAKERS INCLUDE:
Nathalie Rayes, Vice President of Public Affairs, Grupo Salinas. Nathalie Rayes is the VP of Public Affairs for Grupo Salinas (http://www.gruposalinas.com/es) in the U.S., a Mexican conglomerate with US$6 billion in annual sales and 90,000 employees in Mexico, the United States, and Central and South America, and with operations in the broadcasting, retail, banking and financial services, telecommunications and internet. Nathalie is also the Executive Director of Grupo Salinas’ philanthropic arm in the United States, Fundación Azteca America that seeks to improve the quality of life of Latinos by partnering with existing nonprofits to empower, create awareness and motivate change on social and civic issues.
Previously, Nathalie served as Los Angeles Mayor James K. Hahn Deputy Chief of Staff, directing the Mayor’s Office of Intergovernmental Relations, serving as chief liaison to federal, state and regional governments and to the Los Angeles City Council, International Trade, Protocol, Immigrant Affairs, as well as Mayor’s appointments to City commissions and boards. Prior to that, she was Senior Policy Advisor to Los Angeles Councilmember Mike Feuer, heading all aspects of Councilmember’s activities with respect to citywide legislation and ordinances impacting the Fifth Council District. Nathalie also served as a Department of State Fellow in the Economic/Political Section of the United States Embassy in Cairo, Egypt.
Hector E. Sanchez, Chairman, National Hispanic Leadership Agenda. Hector Sanchez is the Executive Director of Labor Council for Latin American Advancement (http://lclaa.org) and the Chair of the National Hispanic Leadership Agenda (https://nationalhispanicleadership.org). In 2012, the U.S. Office of Personnel Management Director John Berry appointed Sanchez as co-chair of the Hispanic Council on Federal Employment to help advice the agency on leading employment practices in the effort to remove barriers to recruiting, hiring, retaining, and advancing Hispanics in the Federal workforce. He is a member of the Kennedy Center’s new Latino Advisory Council, the Vice-Chair of the National Latino Coalition on Climate Change (NLCCC) and a member of the board of directors of the U.S. Labor Education in the Americas Project (USLEAP).
Prior to joining LCLAA, Sanchez was the DC-Mexico Policy Education Director at Global Exchange, the Policy and Community Liaison for the Education Trust, and a professor of US-Mexico Relations at the Autonomous University of the City of Juarez, Mexico. Sanchez holds a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in Political Science from the University of Texas at El Paso.
Zuraya Tapia, Principal, The Raben Group. As a Principal at The Raben Group (https://rabengroup.com), Zuraya brings over ten years of experience in government affairs from both the public and private sector. Zuraya combines substantial experience in public policy and advocacy work in Washington, DC with deep ties to both the Hispanic and Latin American community in DC and in Latin America.
Her time in the House of Representatives and Capitol Hill relationships complement her unique knowledge from off the Hill, stemming from having headed non-profit organizations, coalitions, and time in a Fortune 50 company. Zuraya has built creative alliances to advance a variety of issues, including diversity in the federal government, diversity in corporate America, immigration reform, and international trade.
Before joining Raben, Zuraya was Vice President for Public Affairs at UPS, a unique role that combined a federal government affairs portfolio with an international affairs portfolio of issues. At UPS she took the company’s Public Affairs department in new directions, entering into new partnerships with key Hispanic associations and groups that UPS had not previously explored in order to amplify support for the company’s positions on globalization and border facilitation. She is a regular commentator on CNN en Español, Telemundo, NTN24, and Univision.
Stay tuned for the detailed agenda.
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"Turn it Up": A Interactive Environmental Show
Tuesday, August 8
6:30 PM – 8:00 PM EDT
361 Centre Street, Jamaica Plain
RSVP at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/turn-it-up-a-interactive-environmental-show-tickets-36416057408
Join Hyde Square Task Force and Clean Green Music Machine to see “Turn it Up”, an interactive, high-energy musical production. The show explores how energy is generated and provides children with simple ways they can act to better care for our environment. Written by multiple award-winning writer, Paris Qualles and music by Grammy-winning producer, Jeff Bova, the show is a great opportunity for kids to learn about environmental issues through music.
The show will start at 6:30 pm on the Blessed Sacrament Church Plaza (361 Centre Street) on August 8th. Free ice cream will be provided!
For more information, contact Sarah at sarah@hydesquare.org
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Wednesday, August 9
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Cool, Clean, and Warm: Workshop on Clean Heating Solutions and Incentives
Wednesday, August 9
8:30 AM – 10:00 AM EDT
50 Milk Street, 16th Floor Edison Room, Boston
Cost: $25 – $35
Did you know that in Massachusetts, more greenhouse gas emissions come from heating than from power generation? Most heating is fueled by natural gas, fuel oil, or inefficient electric resistance. Fortunately, there are cleaner alternatives.
Air-source heat pumps (ASHPs) are becoming a common solution. Modern variable refrigerant flow (VRF) heat pumps offer highly efficient heating and cooling while improving comfort for building occupants. Heat pumps typically require 50 to 75% less electricity than electric resistance heaters and can be powered by electricity from renewable sources.
In this workshop hosted by the U.S. Green Building Council of Massachusetts, you will learn from Mitsubishi Electric and the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center (MassCEC) about how VRF can provide superior, zonal comfort while cutting energy use and helping to meet green building standards. MassCEC will also discuss its new VRF incentive program and provide an overview of incentives for ductless mini-splits, geothermal heat pumps, central biomass, and solar thermal.
Speaker: Josh Kessler at MassCEC
Josh Kessler is a program manager at the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center where he oversees a series of incentive programs to support clean heating technologies. He recently spearheaded the design and launch of MassCEC’s VRF rebate program and has now turned his attention to increasing awareness and performance of the technology. Previously, Mr. Kessler worked in the consulting and utilities sectors. He has a BA from Bucknell University and an MBA from Arizona State University.
Speaker: Dan Swanson at Mitsubishi Electric
Dan Swanson is a member of the Mitsubishi Electric commercial sales team in the greater Boston area. He has 7 years in the HVAC industry, and is finishing up his second year with Mitsubishi Electric. Dan’s main focus is Variable Refrigerant Flow technology and supporting Engineers, Architects, and Contractors towards its proper application. Prior to Mitsubishi he spent time as a project manager for both a design firm and mechanical contractor.
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Turing's Mill
Wednesday, August 9
10 am-5 pm
Gallery talk 3 pm
Lightbox Gallery, 32 Quincy Street, 5th floor, Cambridge
Technologies are emerging that prompt a new public dialogue around the nature of cognition, consciousness, and the self. And yet questions underpinning this dialogue have fascinated philosophers throughout history. Is the mind a machine, like a mill or mechanical calculator; or is it spirit or essence, something made of colorless, massless, motionless stuff, transcendent and eternal? Can machines think—and have they been thinking all along? A multi-channel video installation, Turing's Mill is a kind of dossier of evidence for addressing these questions, gathered from found footage, new imagery, and the history of technology.
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Vision technology for cutting edge applications in warehousing and distribution
Wednesday, August 9
11am
webinar
In a free webcast on September 13, David Dechow, Staff Engineer, Intelligent Robotics/Machine Vision, FANUC America Corporation, will outline how the latest machine vision technology is being used to enable the automation of processes in warehousing and distribution.
What You'll Learn:
How machine vision is used in warehousing and distribution
Machine vision components that are being used this setting
The challenges of using these technologies in such a setting
Future automation needs in warehousing and distribution
All webcasts are available on any mobile device including iPads, tablets and phones!
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Robots vs. disease: How microscopes are helping to discover new medicines
Wednesday, August 9
6:00 PM to 7:00 PM
Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, 415 Main Street, Cambridge
Anne E. Carpenter, Director, Imaging Platform, Broad Institute
While scientists are identifying more and more diseases, the pace of discovery for new, life-saving drugs remains astonishingly slow. In this talk, Anne Carpenter, director of the Broad Institute Imaging Platform, will cover how automated microscopes and advanced software may transform the drug discovery pipeline by providing new and more rapid insights into cellular biology.
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Mass Innovation Nights 101
Wednesday, August 9
6pm-8:30pm
MIT, Chang Building (E52), Floor 7, 50 Memorial Drive, Cambridge
Our next event, Mass Innovation Nights 101, will be hosted by MIT Sloan Executive Education and will feature new startups influencing innovation and tackling process improvement. Join us at MIT Sloan on the 7th floor of Building E52 in the Samberg Conference Center for one of the best views in the Boston area and a night of networking and new product showcases. Share the event on social media using #MIN101 and tweet us at @MITSloanExecEd and @MassInno.
Across MIT, some of the world’s most audacious thinkers are launching change. They are the MIT Sloan Executive Education faculty. Their innovations and inventions reverberate throughout boardrooms, classrooms, and living rooms around the globe. Our participants embrace the opportunity to be close to these experts—as well as among them—in order to take advantage of the tools and methods learned to navigate the business challenges they face every day. Our portfolio of 40+ non-degree programs includes courses like Systematic Innovation of Products, Processes, and Services; Marketing Innovation; the Entrepreneurship Development Program; Leadership by Design: Innovation Process and Culture; and more. Save 15% when you enter Referral Code MIN101 on the program application form by 12/31/17. (Some exclusions apply.) Learn more.
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No Ban! No Wall! Combat Deportations and Islamophobia
Wednesday, August 9
6:30pm - 9:00pm
Encuentro 5, 9 Hamilton Place, Boston
COMBAT is hosting a forum for several speakers to discuss the Trump administration's racist deportations and Islamophobia as well as intersectionality in activism. Panel to include: Beto Sanchez, Organizer with Migrant Justice Vermont Nadeem Mazen, two-term Cambridge City Councillor and an open dialogue plus question and answer.
Tables with further information from other organizations will be there!
Sliding-scale entry donation of $5-$30. Money donated will fund the speakers and participating activist groups. Attendees with significant financial strain may contact us at bostoncombat@gmail.com for free admission.
More information at https://www.facebook.com/events/736846619835455/
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Thursday, August 10
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Energy Storage: A Vital Element in a Lower Carbon World
Thursday, August 10
8:30 AM – 10:00 AM EDT
50 Milk Street, 5th Floor, Windrose Room, Boston
Cost: $50 – $65
Whether the reason is Energy Independence, National Security or Climate Change, reducing our use of Carbon will be critical to our society’s future. One critically important aspect about fossil fuels is that they are not just forms of energy, they are forms of “stored” energy. If we are going to reduce our dependence on them by using renewable energy like Wind or Solar, which are forms of pure energy, we will also have to replace the storage aspect of them. Energy Storage on both the Grid side and Building side of the meter will be covered along with their respective applications.
The talk will cover how Energy Storage, in general, is a critical element of the future Grid and Net Zero building and the different type of storage and applications focusing on Thermal Storage since it is the low hanging fruit considering cost, life, and energy. All types of storage are needed and understanding their different strengths is important.
More about the speaker Mark MacCracken, CEO of Calmac
Mark M. MacCracken is the CEO of CALMAC Corp., which is the largest manufacturer of Thermal Energy Storage equipment in the world, with over 4,000 installations in over 50 countries.
In his over 40 years with the firm, MacCracken has been involved in all aspects of the company including, R&D, contracts, patents, manufacturing, marketing, and finance. He was the Principal Investigator on research projects with Oak Ridge National Labs, NASA and National Renewable Energy Research Lab. In his continual support of energy efficiency, he is regularly in contact with the DOE, EPA, EPRI and electric utilities across the country and around the world.
MacCracken has his BS in Mechanical Engineering, has three U.S. Patents and is a licensed Professional Engineer in the state of New Jersey and a LEED Fellow.
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Future Of Outbreak Response Symposium
Thursday, August 10
10:00am to 5:00pm
Broad Institute, 415 Main Street, Cambridge
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Sherlock
Thursday, August 10
10 am-5 pm
Lightbox Gallery, 32 Quincy Street, 5th floor, Cambridge
Chatbots are curious, sometimes helpful, and sometimes mystifying “creatures.” The subject of this installation is a chatbot named Sherlock, touted to be among the most advanced, intelligent AIs on the planet. So why would it want to talk to humans? This interactive installation will invite visitors to chat with Sherlock, a chatbot unlike one they’ve ever met.
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Boston's FIRST Food Innovation Startup Tour
Thursday, August 10
3:00 PM – 6:00 PM EDT
CIC Boston, 15th Floor, 50 Milk Street, Boston
Cost: $35
Perhaps you're making a move to Boston to launch your new food venture? Or maybe you've been working here a while but you've never engaged in the food community? Or you simply see the flaws in our food system and want to know what solutions are at the forefront of sustainable change?
Join Branchfood for an immersive walking tour of Boston's food startup ecosystem. Meet leaders in the food innovation community, discover emerging companies disrupting the food system, and talk directly with fellow entrepreneurs.
With Boston's 1st Food Innovation Startup Tour, Branchfood aims to set your bearings and empower you to make the most of the Boston food startup ecosystem.
Featuring:
Branchfood
Branchfood seeks to promote food entrepreneurship and support the community of founders launching and scaling transformative businesses as the largest community of food innovators in New England. By uniting the community of entrepreneurs, mentors, advisors, investors, industry professionals, and mission driven organizations passionate about food, Branchfood aspires to create a sustainable food system.
Spotlight: Lauren Abda, Founder and CEO
Lauren's work is focused on connecting the community of food innovators and also aggregating resources for food entrepreneurs to help their businesses launch and grow in Boston. Prior to Branchfood, she consulted for foodtech companies in Boston and San Francisco and worked as an analyst for a venture capital firm focused on early stage foodtech investment.
Red's Best @ The Fish Pier
You probably know your dentist and your accountant but you may not know your fishermen even though they feed you. Meet Red’s Best, a Boston based seafood wholesaler, who aggregates catch directly from over 1,000 small, independent New England fishing boats annually. Their mission is to sustain the livelihoods of American fishermen and their families while sustaining fisheries for harvest.
Spotlight: Jared Auerbach, CEO & Owner
Throughout his nine years experience in the seafood industry, Jared has held positions in every aspect of the supply chain including three years as a commercial fisherman in Alaska and New England. He started Red’s Best in 2008 and has grown it from scratch.
Freight Farms
Freight Farms addresses the needs of the changing food landscape by providing the physical and digital tools to create local produce ecosystems on a global scale. With the right tools, infrastructure, and support anyone can become a freight farmer, regardless of their background or geographic location.
Spotlight: Caroline Katsiroubas, Director of Marketing
Caroline began as a Community Manager at Freight Farms and became the Director of Marketing after 4 years, further supporting the company's mission to change the global food system. Prior to rising up the ladder at Freight Farms, Caroline served Community Outreach Intern for the National Park Service and as a Project Assistant at the Environmental Health Fund.
Clover Food Lab
Clover Food Lab is a fast casual chain founded and run in Boston. The company seeks to decrease the ecological footprint of the food industry by offering a simple menu that changes day to day and with the seasons based on what is available from local farmers and includes a large mix of organic ingredients. Despite Clover Food Lab's focus on local, sustainable and vegetarian food, the restaurant consciously avoids branding it's food as such in order to appeal to a wider audience.
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Boston Climate Action Network Meeting
Thursday, August 10
6:00 PM – 8:00 PM EDT
First Baptist Church, 633 Centre Street, Jamaica Plain
We're working towards fighting climate change through improved energy policy and education at the local level in Boston. The BCAN Action Team meeting is a great way to get directly involved in the effort to combat climate change in the era of Trump. We gather twice per month on the 2nd and 4th Thursday from 6-8pm at First Baptist Church in Jamaica Plain.
Come meet the Communications Team, the Arts Team, and other dedicated climate campaigners to learn how you can help us plan outreach for the Community Choice Energy campaign.
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SUSTAINABILITY COLLABORATIVE WITH BOSTON CLIMATE ACTION NETWORK
Thursday, August 10
6:30 PM - 7:30 PM
Venture Cafe at Cambridge Innovation Center, 5th floor, 1 Broadway, Cambridge
RENEWABLES FOR ALL IN BOSTON Presented by Alice Tilton, Boston Climate Action Network
Cities across the country are cutting their carbon emissions and making renewable power available to all electric ratepayers through Community Choice Energy (CCE). We’ll look at CCE’s equity and emissions impacts in Boston and discuss the intersection of political action and consumer action in combating climate change.
The Boston Climate Action Network is a climate justice organization that works to broaden the constituency for a green economy and frame climate concerns to resonate with Boston residents‰۪ daily lives. Through popular education, creative communications, and a unified messaging strategy, BostonCAN works to unify diverse constituencies behind a clean energy vision relevant to broad sectors of society.
Learn more at:
The Sustainability Collaborative was spurred as an outgrowth of the Sustainability unConference and aims to provide an ongoing platform for collaboration, connections, and solutions generation. Rotating sustainability advocates are given the chance to facilitate group discussion around central sustainability themes ranging from hunger alleviation to impact investing. The goal is to raise awareness within the innovation community while strengthening the social impact ecosystem.
Hosted monthly as part of The Venture Cafe Foundation’s Cafe Night at Kendall gathering at CIC Cambridge.
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Refugee Crisis in Europe
Thursday, August 10
7:30 PM – 9:00 PM EDT
Beacon Hill Friends House, 8 Chestnut Street, Boston
A German Quaker and three other visitors from Germany will speak about the refugee crisis in Europe. Topics covered will include Germany’s postwar experience of integrating over ten million German refugees, Angela Merkel's current policies, and the varied responses from the German populace to the arrival of over a million refugees in the past few years.
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Friday, August 11 - Sunday, August 13
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10th Annual Greenfest
Friday, August 11 - Sunday, August 13
Boston City Hall Plaza, 1 City Hall Square, Boston
Welcome to the region's largest multicultural environmental music and art festival!
A few things going on at this FREE event?
3 Stages with Live Music and Dance Performances (from more than 20 countries!)
Showcase of Green Innovation and Exhibits: Robots - Cars - Bikes
An Eco-Fashion Show Featuring Local Designers
Community-wide Art Pieces and Exhibitions
Free Fitness Classes: Yoga - Zumba - BollyX
Green Film Festival - World Documentaries
GreenFest Talks from inspiring leaders and innovators
Discussion EcoForums
International Youth Summit on Environmental Problems
Delicious Local Food Emproium and International Cuisines
Wine & Beer Garden
A Domino Tournament!
EcoKid Events: Pony Rides - Petting Zoo - Art - STEM Projects
and much, MUCH more.
Boston GreenFest is a community classroom. It allows everyone to learn and explore together. Come join us and wake up the innovator that is inside us all.
Join us for a celebration of life and possibility, providing you with ideas and interactive experiences that can shape your life and the global future.
Turn off your AC and TVs, call your friends and neighbors, connect with your community and come explore Boston GreenFest!
Our theme this year is #PositiveSolidarity!
Visit our website for more details and full schedule: http://www.bostongreenfest.org/
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Friday, August 11
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10th Annual Greenfest EcoForums
Friday, August 11
10am
Faneuil Hall, Boston
10am Transportation Tomorrow Today
1:30pm Water and Resilience
4pm Designing Our Future
More information at http://www.bostongreenfest.org/
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10th Annual Greenfest FilmFest
Friday, August 11
Boston City Hall Atrium, Boston
More information at http://www.bostongreenfest.org/
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Color Rx
Friday, August 11
10-4 pm
Gallery talk 3 pm
Lightbox Gallery, 32 Quincy Street, 5th floor, Cambridge
Color is ephemeral and complex. Its history, its substance, and its context link inextricably to our perceptions and experience. Color Rx uses a computer algorithm to diagnose a viewer’s subjective inputs and “prescribe a color” in response. The piece is grounded in questions about trust in or benefit from “smart” systems, often in contexts where the algorithms are opaque -- even when the output is very concrete (and in this case, colorful). In what ways is this system smart? Is it also intuitive, or even wise? The installation contends with the meaning we ascribe to perceptions and experiences, especially when such experiences are designed for individual consumption. While many algorithmic forms of diagnosis can be shallow, the benefits can be deep. Drawing on historical information from the Forbes Pigment Collection, citations to scholarly texts, and the artist’s personal store of knowledge and intuition in the field, this piece explores the line between belief and truth, projection and reality, color and illusion.
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10th Annual Greenfest
Friday, August 11
12am
City Hall Plaza, Boston
More information at http://www.bostongreenfest.org/
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Saturday, August 12
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10th Annual Greenfest Forums
Saturday, August 12
10am
Faneuil Hall, Boston
More information at http://www.bostongreenfest.org/
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Hackerspace Health
Saturday, August 12
10:00 AM – 4:00 PM EDT
Cambridge Innovation Center (CIC), 1 Broadway, 4th Floor, Katmandu conference room, Cambridge
You got individual/team projects to work on? - Join our Hackerspace Health!
If you have a meetup account,
Hackerspace Health is a workspace where people with common interests, often in computers, machining, technology, science, digital art or electronic art, meet, socialize and collaborate. In general, hackerspace health functions as center for peer learning and knowledge sharing, in the form of workshops, presentations, and lectures.
You don’t have to have an idea to hack on! You DON'T have to know computer programming, you can inspire others through your vision. You can hack for the whole day (10 am to 4 pm) or join anytime.
You also have access to a 3D printer at our facility for building a hardware prototypes.
We will be meeting at the Cambridge Innovation Center every Saturday from 10 am to 4 pm on the FOURTH FLOOR, KATMANDU conference room.
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10th Annual Greenfest FilmFest
Saturday, August 12
Boston City Hall Atrium, Boston
More information at http://www.bostongreenfest.org/
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AI Senses
Saturday/Sunday, August 12-13, 10 am-5 pm
Gallery talk Saturday, August 12, 3 pm
Lightbox Gallery, 32 Quincy Street, 5th floor, Cambridge
In current times, “machine learning” and “artificial intelligence” are buzzwords. But they are more than that—they influence our behaviors and understandings of the technologies they describe and the world they make. A lack of understanding of how these systems operate on their own terms is dangerous. How can we live and interact with this alien species, which we set forth into the world, if we know it through interfaces constructed to make the machine feel closer to the world we already know? This project visualizes sensor data that our cell phones and personal computers collect and digest on our behalf, to help us understand how these machines experience the world.
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10th Annual Greenfest
Saturday, August 12
12am
City Hall Plaza, Boston
More information at http://www.bostongreenfest.org/
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Witness for Peace
Saturday, August 12
1:00 - 4:00
encuentro5, 9a Hamilton Place, Boston
We are happy to announce that Witness for Peace New England, with the support of the National office, has been rejuvenating our regional organizing and programming efforts! Many of you have partnered with us for decades and have remained involved over the past few years, even as our regional presence has been very limited. Thank you for your commitment and involvement- we?re eager to work together in rebuilding the WFP New England region! Working to change unjust US policies and accompanying struggles for justice is going to take all of us, and we are thankful for your dedication.
We would like to invite you to join us for a half-day, participation-rich retreat to discuss Witness for Peace New England’s regional organizing, programming and long-term planning strategies.
More information at https://www.facebook.com/events/1896313200623103
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Sunday, August 13
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10th Annual Greenfest Forums
Sunday, August 13
10am
Faneuil Hall, Boston
More information at http://www.bostongreenfest.org/
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10th Annual Greenfest FilmFest
Sunday, August 13
Boston City Hall Atrium, Boston
More information at http://www.bostongreenfest.org/
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10th Annual Greenfest
Sunday, August 13
12am
City Hall Plaza, Boston
More information at http://www.bostongreenfest.org/
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Monday, August 14
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The Equipped Explorer: Virtual Reality as a Medium for Learning
Monday, August 14
1:30pm — 3:30pm
MIT Media Lab, E15 - 050 (Bartos), 20 Ames Street, Cambridge
Committee: Pattie Maes, Professor of Media Arts and Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Christopher M. Schmandt, Principal Research Scientist, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Albrecht Schmidt, Professor of Human-Computer Interaction, University of Stuttgart
What opportunities does virtual reality offer to improve the way we learn? In this thesis, I investigate the ways that constructivist approaches, in particular exploratory and experiential learning, can be uniquely supported by immersive virtual worlds. Against the background of these learning theories, I introduce a design framework that centers around defining a medium of virtuality that is fundamentally social, and uses capture of movement and interaction as a key means for creating interactive scenarios and narrative. Within the world conjured by this medium, the Equipped Explorer learns, reviews, creates and communicates using tools that I propose and classify according to a taxonomy. A series of prototypes and design explorations are used as proofs of concept for aspects of the design framework. Experimental studies are used to investigate foundational questions concerning the learning benefits of using VR over 2D interactive media, and the viability of social interaction and collaboration in VR. I reflect on the implications of this framework and my experimental results to extrapolate how they might impact the future classroom and the practice of learning and discovery more broadly. Finally, I discuss what kinds of research might be needed to maximize that impact moving forward.
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Tuesday, August 15
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Boston New Technology August 2017 Startup Showcase #BNT80 (21+)
Tuesday, August 15
6:00 PM to 8:30 PM
LogMeIn, 333 Summer Street, Boston
Cost: $10
This event is 21+. Show security your valid photo identification at the door. Enter the lobby and come to our check-in table. Type the first few letters of your first or last name on the screen and tap your name to print your name tag.
Come learn about 6 innovative and exciting technology products and network with 100+ attendees from the Boston/Cambridge startup community! This event is 21+, due to alcohol being served. Valid photo identification is required. Buy your ticket now and save 50% - price rises to $20 on August 8th.
Each presenter gets 5 minutes for a product overview & demonstration and 5 minutes for Q&A.
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Smart Cities - Transportation
Tuesday, August 15
6:00 PM to 8:30 PM
CDM Smith, 75 State Street, Suite 701, Boston
Welcome to our first of a series of events focusing on Smart Cities - this one covers Transportation. The next generation of smart vehicles, including autonomous ones, requires wholly new infrastructure and a new approach to urban planning. Innovators who are startup founders, urban planners, infrastructure builders, and policy makers will share their observations on how to support the movement of people, fleets, and goods in a smart city. Stay tuned for more updates!
Agenda:
6:00-6:30pm Mix & Mingle with food & refreshments
6:30-7:30pm Presentations from corporates and startups panel members (~5 minutes each), followed by Q&A
7:30-8:30pm Organizer announcement + 30 sec shout-outs, followed by networking
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An Eclipse for Everyone
Tuesday, August 15
7:00 PM – 8:00 PM EDT
Boston Public Library, 700 Boylston Street, Johnson Building, Central Library, Boston
On August 21, 2017, millions of Americans will witness the first total solar eclipse to cross the continental United States in 99 years. As in all total solar eclipses, the Moon will block the Sun, revealing the Sun’s outer atmosphere in an incredible spectacle.
Join us for a conversation with Sky and Telescope’s Janine Myszka as we learn what we’ll be able to see in the Boston area, why the total eclipse is happening now, and how to safely view the eclipse. We’ll also share a preview of NOVA’s upcoming Eclipse Over America film and will be giving away special NOVA eclipse glasses!
Speaker bio: Janine Myszka recently joined the team at Sky & Telescope as their Digital Content Strategist. She earned a B.S. in Astronomy & Astrophysics from Villanova University and an MSc in Science Communication from Imperial College London. Before moving to Boston from Orlando, FL this spring, she blew things up on stage for a living, helped guests peer through telescopes, organized activities for the Venus transit and Planet Palooza, and created hands-on workshops for visitors to the Orlando Science Center. She has a deep and abiding love for puns and cats, and recently experienced the wonders of goat yoga (which doesn’t actually have to do anything with her qualifications as an eclipse expert, she just wanted to tell you that). She’s excited to see the partial solar eclipse on August 21st and thinks you should be too!
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Upcoming Events
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Wednesday, August 16
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Boston Sustainability Breakfast
Wednesday, August 16
7:30 AM – 8:30 AM EDT
Pret A Manger, 101 Arch Street, Boston
Join us every month for Net Impact Boston's informal breakfast meetup of sustainability professionals for networking, discussion and moral support. It's important to remind ourselves that we are not the only ones out there in the business world trying to do good! Feel free to drop by any time between 7:30 and 8:30 am.
For our June sustainability breakfast, we'll be co-hosting with WISE (Women Investing for a Sustainable Economy) as we continue the discussion from our May 24th event - No Food to Waste.
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City Sprouts Summer Garden Expos
Wednesday, August 16
10am
Rindge Avenue Upper School or Putnam Avenue Upper School
Want to see firsthand the difference that school gardens make for young people? This summer is your chance! Take a tour of a school garden led by middle schoolers who have spent the summer learning not only how to grow and cook their own food but also how to help their communities.
We're hosting expos at Cambridge Upper Schools in July & August. All expos run from 10-11am.
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Community Self Defense Workshop 8/16
Wednesday, August 16
5:30 PM – 7:00 PM EDT
Copley Plaza Great Lawn, Boston
At Healthworks Fitness, we encourage all women to lead with their best self: through physical/mental strength and the ability to handle any situation. Please join us for a complimentary self defense class in partnership with IMPACT to give you the tools and training to stand up against violence.
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ProfDev: Socially Responsible Investing
Wednesday, August 16
6:00 PM to 8:30 PM
The NonProfit Center, 89 South Street, Boston
We will be on the second floor in the large conference room.
Cost: $15.76 /per person
Uncertain how to work towards a secure financial future while living out your values? Join Socializing for Justice for a ProfDev on Socially Responsible Investing on Wednesday, August 16, 6:00 - 8:30 PM.
Fee: $15 advance/$30 door
Limited space - register ahead of time by RSVPing yes.
Credit cards accepted online and at the door (if space available).
Newcomers always welcomed!
How do we manage our savings to best sustain ourselves and support our vision of a more just economy? Whether you’re investing now, informing yourself for the future, or organizing a divestment or financial campaign, this is a chance to learn investment basics and discuss all those questions with a local progressive activist and finance professional. No prior knowledge expected: we'll start with basic terms and concepts, and also cover political choices and investment strategies. Participants gain a more intuitive sense of how to use investments and ideas about how to research and choose between different financial tools without checking your politics at the door.
ABOUT OUR PRESENTER
Joby Gelbspan is a lifelong progressive activist who has dedicated her career to "translating finance for activists." She holds a Master's in Accounting and an MBA, with financial and management experience ranging from non-profit organizations to the investment management industry. She has served on several nonprofit Boards and as CFO and Financial Consultant for grassroots, progressive organizations. She currently coordinates strategic corporate and financial research to support Corporate Accountability International's grassroots campaigns challenging the World Bank and some of the world's largest corporations to halt their abusive practices.
SCHEDULE
6:00-6:30 Socializing - bring your own dinner
6:30-8:30 Training and Q&A
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Ghost of the Innocent Man: A True Story of Trial and Redemption
Wednesday, August 16
7:00 PM
Harvard Book Store, 1256 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge
Harvard Book Store and Mass Humanities welcome local debut author BENJAMIN RACHLIN for a discussion of his new book, Ghost of the Innocent Man: A True Story of Trial and Redemption.
About Ghost of the Innocent Man
During the last two decades, more than two thousand American citizens have been wrongfully convicted. Ghost of the Innocent Man brings us one of the most dramatic of those cases and provides the clearest picture yet of the national scourge of wrongful conviction and of the opportunity for meaningful reform.
When the final gavel clapped in a rural southern courtroom in the summer of 1988, Willie J. Grimes, a gentle spirit with no record of violence, was shocked and devastated to be convicted of first-degree rape and sentenced to life imprisonment. Here is the story of this everyman and his extraordinary quarter-century-long journey to freedom, told in breathtaking and sympathetic detail, from the botched evidence and suspect testimony that led to his incarceration to the tireless efforts to prove his innocence and the identity of the true perpetrator. These were spearheaded by his relentless champion, Christine Mumma, a cofounder of North Carolina's Innocence Inquiry Commission. That commission—unprecedented at its inception in 2006—remains a model organization unlike any other in the country, and one now responsible for a growing number of exonerations.
With meticulous, prismatic research and pulse-quickening prose, Benjamin Rachlin presents one man's tragedy and triumph. The jarring and unsettling truth is that the story of Willie J. Grimes, for all its outrage, dignity, and grace, is not a unique travesty. But through the harrowing and suspenseful account of one life, told from the inside, we experience the full horror of wrongful conviction on a national scale. Ghost of the Innocent Man is both rare and essential, a masterwork of empathy. The book offers a profound reckoning not only with the shortcomings of our criminal justice system but also with its possibilities for redemption.
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Thursday, August 17
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City Sprouts Summer Garden Expos
Thursday, August 17
10am
Cambridge Street Upper School or Vassal Lane Upper School
Want to see firsthand the difference that school gardens make for young people? This summer is your chance! Take a tour of a school garden led by middle schoolers who have spent the summer learning not only how to grow and cook their own food but also how to help their communities.
We're hosting expos at Cambridge Upper Schools in July & August. All expos run from 10-11am.
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Thesis Defense: The Role of Wavenumber One and Two in the Development of Sudden Stratospheric Warmings
Thursday, August 17, 2017 at 11:00am to 12:00pm
MIT, Building 54-915, 21 Ames Street, Cambridge
A public presentation of the thesis will be given by the candidate, Andreas Miller
CHAIR OF DEFENSE:
Prof. Paul O'Gorman, MIT, EAPS
THESIS COMMITTEE:
Prof. R. Alan Plumb, MIT, EAPS, Advisor
Prof. John Marshall, MIT, EAPS
Professor Thomas Birner, Colorado State University
Copies of the thesis may be obtained from the EAPS Education Office (54-912). All interested faculty, staff and students are invited to attend.
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Saturday, August 19
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MA Pirate Party Surveillance Cameras Mapping
Saturday, August 19
12 am
Parkman Bandstand, Boston Common, Boston
The Massachusetts Pirate Party activists have mapped surveillance cameras in many cities and towns, but downtown Boston remains little explored. To fix that, our surveillance camera mapping picnic will be Saturday, August 19th. We will meet near the Parkman Bandstand on Boston Common starting at noon.
The schedule is:
noon-1pm: food and training;
1pm-2:30pm: map cameras;
2:30pm-3:30pm: come back and debrief.
We will show you how to map cameras using Open Street Map (OSM) software on your smart phone or on a paper map for later entry into OSM. We have tested
some mobile phone OSM software and will provide How To guides.
We plan to have these events in other cities before the Winter comes, so contact us at info@masspirates.org if you want to set one up in your community. To find out where people have mapped cameras so far, check out
We would appreciate it if you told us if you plan to attend:
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Sunday, August 20
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SWAPFEST
Sunday, August 20
9:00a–2:00p
MIT, Albany Street Garage and Lots, Cambridge
MIT's monthly Hi Tech, Computer, Electronics and Ham Radio Fleamarket.
Buy Sell or Swap all things nerdly.
Held the third Sunday of each month April thru October.
Rain or Shine covered space is available for all sellers.
In the Albany St Garage and adjacent lot.
On Albany St between Mass Ave and Main St, Cambridge.
$6 Buyers admission from 9AM to 2PM.
Free for MIT and Harvard Undergraduates with current ID
Web site: www.swapfest.us
Open to: the general public
Cost: $6
This event occurs on the 3rd Sunday of every month through October 15, 2017.
Sponsor(s): MIT Radio Society, Electronic Research Society, MIT, UHF Repeater Assn. W1XM, MIT
For more information, contact: Mitchell Berger
617-253-3776
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Monday, August 21
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Observing the Solar Eclipse
Monday, August 21
1:30pm to 3:30pm
MIT, Kresge Oval, across from 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge
View with us at MIT!
The viewing session at MIT is open to the MIT community and to the public. Sponsored by the Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences at MIT, it will be held on the Kresge Oval, outside the MIT Student Center at 77 Mass. Ave. - http://whereis.mit.edu/?go=G8
Note: the eclipse will be partial as seen from the Boston area, and will be ongoing during this entire time. There is no one time when the eclipse will be “best”, so feel free to drop by anytime during 1:30 to 3:30pm. The eclipse will progress somewhat slowly. We will have eclipse glasses to use at the event, plus specially filtered telescopes to give you close-up views of the sun.
It has been nearly a century since a total solar eclipse traversed coast-to-coast across the USA. Everyone in North America will have a view of the Moon blocking at least part of the Sun (Partial Eclipse). But the spectacle of a lifetime is seeing the sun totally eclipsed by the moon. The narrow “path of totality” will stretch from Salem (Oregon) to Lincoln (Nebraska) to St. Louis (Missouri) to Charleston (South Carolina) on the east coast, the moon takes its first bite out of the sun at 1:28 p.m. eastern daylight time (EDT).
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Opportunity
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Greenfest Looking for Volunteers
10th Annual Boston GreenFest will be at Boston City Hall Plaza, August 11-13, 2017. It is the largest multicultural environmental music festival in the region featuring lots of local and international exhibits, performances, films, food, fashion and forums. Our goal is to educate and empower people to create a more sustainable, healthier world. We are actively building an interconnected, ever expanding network throughout our neighborhoods, city and region. From business to nonprofit, neighborhood association to academic institution, Boston GreenFest spans age, culture and industry. Celebrating our 10th anniversary, Boston GreenFest is excited to bring this wonderful free three-day festival to Boston City Hall Plaza as it is transformed into a fun interactive community classroom.
We are looking for volunteers to help throughout the weekend.
Please visit: http://www.bostongreenfest.org/
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New Climate CoLab Contests:
Adaptation
Buildings
Carbon Pricing
Energy Supply
Land Use Change
Shifting Attitudes & Behaviors
Transportation
More information at https://www.climatecolab.org/
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Discounted Solar for Somerville
As part of the State’s Solarize Mass program, local volunteers and the City of Somerville recently launched the Solarize Somerville campaign to make it easier and cheaper for residents and small businesses to install solar panels.
The program, which is offering information and guidance, free site consultations, and solar panel discounts through November, has set an ambitious goal to inspire at least 200 property owners to sign up for solar —and each of those private solar installations will also benefit the community directly. For every 400 kW in signed private contracts through the program, the program’s solar vendor SolarFlair will donate a system of up to 5 kW for a public or community purpose. All are invited to the program kickoff at a Meet the Installer event on Tuesday, July 26 at 6-7:30 p.m., 167 Holland St. Additional events on topics such as solar basics, financing, and solar for multifamily homes will be announced.
Unique to the program is its neighbor-to-neighbor approach: trained resident volunteers and a designated volunteer Solar Coach are available essentially as mentors. They can, for example, walk anyone through the process, provide general loan program and tax incentive information, and share their own solar experiences. The campaign’s webpage and blog offers useful information, tips, and a link to websites where you can estimate the solar potential of your home and roughly calculate how much solar could save you on your energy bills at www.somervillema.gov/sustainaville/solarize.
Somerville is one of the most urban communities ever to participate in Solarize Mass, which makes the neighbor-to-neighbor approach especially helpful due to some of the unique challenges here such as multi-family houses with more than one owner. Winter Hill resident Mary Mangan, the program’s volunteer Solar Coach, went through that process and is ready to share helpful tips.
"I'm excited to work with our eager volunteers to help our neighbors understand the benefits of solar power. As a co-owner of a two-family home with solar, I can also offer some insights about how that process went for us," said Mangan.
Also key to the program is the selection of a designated vendor, which allows the program to offer reduced cost installation through bulk purchasing. Through a competitive process, SolarFlair, based in Ashland, MA, was selected. They were also the selected installer for the communities of Arlington, Hopkinton, Mendon, Brookline, Carlisle-Chelmsford, Newton, and Quincy.
"We're excited to be the selected installer for Solarize Somerville, and look forward to speaking with any home or business owners that are interested in reducing their electric bills while also making a great investment," said Matt Arner, the owner and President of SolarFlair.
Quick facts:
Solar systems can be purchased outright (with a payback of about 4-5 years). The Mass Solar Loan program offers rates of 3.25% or less.
Or, for no money down owners can choose a power purchase agreement (PPA), where the system is owned and maintained by a third party, and residents buy back the electricity at a discounted price.
More on-site renewable energy is critical to reducing carbon emissions. It also saves money for residents.
Tax incentives for solar installations include:
Federal Tax Credit: A 30 percent federal Investment Tax Credit (ITC) is available for qualified residential and commercial projects
Massachusetts Personal Income Tax Credit: The lesser of 15% of the total cost of the solar electric system or $1,000, for qualified clean energy projects
Five-year Modified Accelerated Cost Recovery System (MACRS): Business owners can depreciate solar electric systems over a five-year schedule
For more information or to sign up for a free site consultation:
Visit the Solarize Somerville webpage at www.somervillema.gov/sustainaville/solarize for
Helpful information and FAQs
To contact a volunteer or Solar Coach Mary Mangan to discuss solar options and incentives
To set up an appointment for a free site consultation directly with SolarFlair
To find out about events
To volunteer for Solarize Somerville
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Where is the best yogurt on the planet made? Somerville, of course!
Join the Somerville Yogurt Making Cooperative and get a weekly quart of the most thick, creamy, rich and tart yogurt in the world. Members share the responsibility for making yogurt in our kitchen located just outside of Davis Sq. in FirstChurch. No previous yogurt making experience is necessary.
For more information checkout.
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Free solar electricity analysis for MA residents
Solar map of Cambridge, MA
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Sunny Cambridge has just launched! Sunny Cambridge is the city-wide initiative that makes it easy for all types of residents to get solar power for their homes. Cambridge has lined up local solar installers through the EnergySage Solar Marketplace, which helps you request, receive, and compare solar quotes 100% online with support available every step of the way.
The City of Cambridge is working on many levels to reduce energy use and GHG emissions to make the city more sustainable. As a semifinalist in the nationwide competition for the $5 million Georgetown University Energy Prize, Cambridge Energy Alliance is encouraging residents to take actions to save energy, save money, and protect the environment. Get involved by signing up for a no-cost home energy assessment at the Cambridge Energy Alliance home page (www.cambridgeenergyalliance.org/winit)
and going solar at http://www.sunnycambridge.org
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"Greening Our Grid" Report Released April 24, 2017
MAPC is excited to announce the release of “Greening Our Grid,” a fact sheet and a case study detailing MAPC’s strategy to use municipal aggregation to help build new renewable energy in New England.
“Greening Our Grid” highlights MAPC's work with the City of Melrose as a case study for MAPC's innovative green municipal aggregation strategy. Melrose recently completed its first year of implementation. The city’s results demonstrate that economic and environmental goals can be met simultaneously, and provide a compelling example for others to follow.
The case study and fact sheet further describe the renewable energy strategy overall, why it can have a real impact on our electricity grid, and MAPC’s program to help other municipalities follow Melrose's lead. Arlington, Brookline, Gloucester, Hamilton, Millis, Somerville, Sudbury, and Winchester are poised to roll out their green aggregations within the year.
MAPC believes that municipal aggregation offers an opportunity for communities to leverage the collective buying power of their residents and businesses to transform our electric grid to cleaner sources of energy, while also providing cost savings and price stability for electricity. The fact sheet and case study will be useful tools for cities and towns that are exploring green municipal aggregation, as well as for those that already have active aggregation programs.
Check out “Greening Our Grid” today at http://www.mapc.org/greening-our-grid, and contact Patrick Roche, MAPC Clean Energy Coordinator, at proche@mapc.org for more information about MAPC's program.
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Cambridge Climate Change Game
Extending our work on face-to-face games, the MIT Science Impact Collaborative has developed a digital game on the health impacts of climate change that you can play alone on your computer or on your mobile phone. The game should take about 10-20 minutes. We would appreciate it if you could play the game at your convenience.
Play the game at http://www.doublecoconut.com/climate/
Any and all feedback on the game should be directed to Ella Kim at ella@mit.edu.
Thank you for your time and consideration!
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Sustainable Business Network Local Green Guide
SBN is excited to announce the soft launch of its new Local Green Guide, Massachusetts' premier Green Business Directory!
To view the directory please visit: http://www.localgreenguide.org
To find out how how your business can be listed on the website or for sponsorship opportunities please contact Adritha at adritha@sbnboston.org
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Boston Food System
"The Boston Food System [listserv] provides a forum to post announcements of events, employment opportunities, internships, programs, lectures, and other activities as well as related articles or other publications of a non-commercial nature covering the area's food system - food, nutrition, farming, education, etc. - that take place or focus on or around Greater Boston (broadly delineated)."
The Boston area is one of the most active nationwide in terms of food system activities - projects, services, and events connected to food, farming, nutrition - and often connected to education, public health, environment, arts, social services and other arenas. Hundreds of organizations and enterprises cover our area, but what is going on week-to-week is not always well publicized.
Hence, the new Boston Food System listserv, as the place to let everyone know about these activities. Specifically:
Use of the BFS list will begin soon, once we get a decent base of subscribers. Clarification of what is appropriate to announce and other posting guidelines will be provided as well.
It's easy to subscribe right now at https://elist.tufts.edu/wws/subscribe/bfs
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The Boston Network for International Development (BNID) maintains a website (BNID.org) that serves as a clearing-house for information on organizations, events, and jobs related to international development in the Boston area. BNID has played an important auxiliary role in fostering international development activities in the Boston area, as witnessed by the expanding content of the site and a significant growth in the number of users.
The website contains:
A calendar of Boston area events and volunteer opportunities related to International Development - http://www.bnid.org/events
A jobs board that includes both internships and full time positions related to International Development that is updated daily - http://www.bnid.org/jobs
A directory and descriptions of more than 250 Boston-area organizations - http://www.bnid.org/organizations
Also, please sign up for our weekly newsletter (we promise only one email per week) to get the most up-to-date information on new job and internship opportunities -www.bnid.org/sign-up
The website is completely free for students and our goal is to help connect students who are interested in international development with many of the worthwhile organizations in the area.
Please feel free to email our organization at info@bnid.org if you have any questions!
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Boston Maker Spaces - 41 (up from 27 in 2016) and counting: https://www.google.com/maps/d/viewer?mid=zGHnt9r2pQx8.kfw9evrHsKjA&hl=en
Solidarity Network Economy: https://ussolidarityeconomy.wordpress.com
Bostonsmart.com's Guide to Boston: http://www.bostonsmarts.com/BostonGuide/
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Links to events at over 50 colleges and universities at Hubevents: http://hubevents.blogspot.com
Thanks to
Fred Hapgood's Selected Lectures on Science and Engineering in the Boston Area: http://www.BostonScienceLectures.com
MIT Events: http://calendar.mit.edu
MIT Energy Club: http://mitenergyclub.org/
Harvard Events: http://news.harvard.edu/gazette/harvard-events/events-calendar/
Harvard Environment: http://environment.harvard.edu/events/calendar/
Sustainability at Harvard: http://green.harvard.edu/events
Meetup: http://www.meetup.com/
Eventbrite: http://www.eventbrite.com/
Microsoft NERD Center: http://microsoftcambridge.com/Events/
Startup and Entrepreneurial Events: http://www.greenhornconnect.com/events/
Cambridge Civic Journal: http://www.rwinters.com
Cambridge Happenings: http://cambridgehappenings.org
Cambridge Community Calendar: https://www.cctvcambridge.org/calendar
Take Action MA: http://takeactionma.com
If you have an event you would like to see here, the submission deadline is 11 AM on Sundays, as Energy (and Other) Events is sent out Sunday afternoons.
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