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2000 SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES AWARD Call for Nominations Nominations are now being received for this year's Sustainable Communities Award - an award of recognition given by Ecology Action Centre's Environment and Development Committee. Each year an award is given to a Nova Scotian community or community-centred organization that demonstrates leadership and commitment to the environment socio-economic development of their community. The award is based on the following criteria: demonstration of ecologically-appropriate development, efforts to improve economic self-reliance, increased community control over their local resources, and an ability to build a community culture. The communities of Sambro and Bear River, and the community organizations, Mi'Kmaq Fish and Wildlife Commission and Clean Annapolis River Project are past recipients of the Sustainable Communities Award. These winners exemplify respect for the relationship between environmental, economic, social and cultural considerations within a vision of a healthy community. If you live in or know of a community engaging in local environmentally-appropriate socio-economic development projects please nominate it. Eligibility This award is open to any Nova Scotian community or community-oriented organization. Individuals and business enterprises are not eligible. Anyone may nominate a candidate. Self-nominations are welcomed. See the Sustainable Communities Award description of past award winners for the range of possibilities in candidates. Information Requested. Please submit a 2-4 page letter including the following: ú Name of nominated community or organization ú Community contact information, including contact person ú Description of community's incorporation of environmental priorities into development, such as reducing energy consumption, re-using waste, or ecosystem planning ú Description of innovative/alternative approaches to development problems ú Description of steps taken to create a cooperative community culture ú Description of tangible results, such as improved environmental conditions Submit nominations to: Ecology Action Centre Attn: Cheryl Benjamin 1568 Argyle Street, Suite 31 Halifax N.S. B3J 2B3 telephone 429-2202 / fax 422 6410 Deadline: March 31, 2000 The Ecology Action Centre's Environment and Development Committee SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES AWARD The Environment and Development Committee is part of Nova Scotia's Ecology Action Centre, the province's oldest environmental organization. Since 1987, the Committee has been working through research, education and advocacy, to support sustainable communities locally and world-wide. The Committee highlights connections between the environment and the economy, and between the North and the South ('developed' and 'under-developed' nations), focusing attention on the challenge of creating an economy which fits sustainably within the ecosystem, and which works for people and their communities, rather than the other way around. The Sustainable Communities Award is presented annually by the Environment and Development Committee to a community or community-centred organization in Nova Scotia that has shown leadership and commitment to the principles of sustainability, recognizing the need for environmental, economic, social and cultural well-being within a vision of a healthy community. The award winners illustrate how people in communities can work together to take greater control of their economic future and ensure a quality environment through a local economy that serves local needs, provides sustainable jobs and promotes fairness. The award winners have demonstrated success in: ú ensuring economic activity is ecologically appropriate and resources are sustainably used ú improving economic self-reliance through community-based development ú building community spirit and a community culture along with economic development In addition, the Environment and Development Committee looks for demonstrations that innovative/alternative approaches are being tried, and tangible results are being obtained. Past award winners (and finalists) have included the communities of Bear River, Sambro, Cheticamp, Johnstown, and Cow Bay, and the following community-based organizations: the Southwest Nova Fixed Gear Association, the Clean Annapolis River Project and the Mi'Kmaq Fish and Wildlife Commission. 1999 Sustainable Communities Award Winner: The Mi'Kmaq Fish and Wildlife Commission The Mi'Kmaq Fish and Wildlife Commission was formed by the Assembly of Nova Scotia Chiefs to coordinate and facilitate the use and management of natural resources, such as fish, forests and wildlife, by Mi'Kmaq people in Nova Scotia. the MFWC seeks to "improve management of food resources for the benefit of communities today and for Mi'Kmaq in generations to come". This is carried out through province-wide and community-level activities, guided by Mi'Kmaq tradition, culture and respect for nature. The MFWC, and community-level bodies connected with it, has an impressive range of accomplishments over a relatively short time period. These include: ú community development of harvesting plans for resources such as eels, moose and trees. ú enhancing the sense of responsibility for conservation among Mi'Kmaq harvesters. ú incorporation of ecosystem-based thinking within the fabric of resource management. ú implementation of training programs, such as a program to improve harvesting and safety practices among Mi'Kmaq fishermen. ú studies of traditional ecological knowledge - the knowledge of the natural world accumulated over time by harvesters and communities - among the Mi'Kmaq in Guysborough County. ú participatory research involving Mi'Kmaq harvesters and communities, as well as joint work with non-native organizations, such as an upcoming study on Bay of Fundy lobster resources. ú public education, including a newsletter to all Mi'Kmaq households and participation in public meetings, strengthening support for the Commission's efforts and for traditional Mi'Kmaq concepts of resource management. 1998 Sustainable Communities Award Winner: Sambro Sambro, a community on Nova Scotia's Atlantic coast near Halifax, has a strong historical base in the fishery, having been among the province's major fishing centres. While hard hit by the collapse of the groundfish fishery, Sambro has displayed remarkable community spirit both in its approach to maximizing the benefits it receives from very limited fishery resources, and in its efforts to diversify the local economy: ú In 1995, Sambro pioneered local-level management in the groundfish fishery, as the first location to institute a 'community quota', a share of the available harvest that local fishermen manage themselves. This approach has proven so successful that it has now expanded to the full fixed-gear inshore fishery on the Scotian Shelf and in the Bay of Fundy. Fishermen in Sambro credit the approach with having stabilized, and essentially saved, their local fishery. ú Sambro has demonstrated a strong cooperative approach, in which fishers share the available resources, fish processors join forces, rather than compete destructively, and those in the fishery support, through the Fishermen and Scientists Research Society, cooperative efforts to bring fishers together with scientists to learn more about the fish and ocean conditions. ú Sambro has worked hard to diversify the local economy, through environmentally appropriate aquaculture and efforts to develop a local beach as a tourist attraction, while protecting the coastal environment at the site from excessive damage and preserving the historical Sambro lighthouse. -*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*- The preceding message was posted on the Sustainable Maritimes mailing list (sust-mar). http://www.chebucto.ns.ca/lists/sust-mar -*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*- Sponsors: Chebucto Community Net http://www.chebucto.ns.ca Sierra Club - Chebucto Group http://www.sierraclub.ca Volunteer listowner: Paul Falvo sust-mar-owner@chebucto.ns.ca
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