by Laila-Lis Roque The Lehigh Valley has a pressing issue of an increasing amount of wastewater. Citizens don´t know how grand the wastewater issue can become. On average, each person contributes 50–100 gallons of wastewater daily. However, that number continuously increases. If people continue to act in carelessness there will be no safe water to use to shower, wash laundry … [Read more...] about Wasting Water
Focus on Pages
The "Focus On" section provides in-depth information and opinion on many facets of sustainability. (Although these topics may appear quite distinct and separate, it’s important to remember that they are interconnected and interdependent in multiple ways — in general, the 4 basic principles of ecology apply to all complex systems.)
When you select a Focus On… topic, the system will select all the articles and posts in that category with the most recent pages at the top, just under a brief introduction to the topic. (Many articles appear in multiple categories.)
Background & detail information is organized into the main categories listed in the left sidebar.
Voices of the Valley
The Voices of the Valley category includes work by members of the Lehigh Valley community.
You can access Voices of the Valley essays that were published in the Alliance’s Sustainable Lehigh Valley booklet (listed by year published) or via the alphabetic list of authors, which also includes items published online and in Left Turn.
You can also search for individual essays (& other content) by category or tag.
Bicycling in Bethlehem
by Angelys Hernandez, William Rodriguez, & Scott Schaffer This is about our need for a Bike Park: Bethlehem is one of the many known cities in Pennsylvania. The people of Bethlehem, love the environment and beauty of the city. With the culture and popularity of Bethlehem, many want to see us grow into even a better city. One group, and a large one is those who love … [Read more...] about Bicycling in Bethlehem
Safety at Liberty High School
by Hamilton Addyson I go to school at Liberty, and when you congregate a large group of new, inexperienced drivers, many issues (Delete) arise. Car crashes, fender benders, and hitting pedestrians are all things that have happened near or at Liberty High School,. Something needs to be done to make our environment safer, not just to be safer and avoid injuries, but to … [Read more...] about Safety at Liberty High School
Food Waste in Bethlehem
by Eli Zemsky Food waste in our country has devastating lasting effects on the environment and on American communities. Our food supply chain pumps an extreme amount of unneeded food into homes and businesses, then completely mismanages the waste. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimates that up to 40% of the 40 million tons of food produced in America each year … [Read more...] about Food Waste in Bethlehem
Water & Waste
by Asad Harrington What I want to improve is the smell that comes from the water facility in Freemansburg. It’s unbearable, unnecessary and destructive. People can’t even come outside to sit on their porches because the smell is so bad. That’s unfair for homeowners, ruins the value of their homes. It would be hard if they wanted to move and sell their house. It would be hard … [Read more...] about Water & Waste
Let’s talk about water
by Somak Roy The City of Bethlehem’s water comes entirely from surface sources, namely the Wild Creek Reservoir and the Penn Forest Reservoir in a watershed that covers 17 square miles. This primary water supply is located 22 miles north of the City. The Tunkhannock Creek and Monroe County provide a supplemental supply of water to the Penn Forest Reservoir. The … [Read more...] about Let’s talk about water
Let’s Talk Solar
by Emely Rodriguez * The Lehigh Valley has already made changes to create a cleaner, more sustainable future for our community. For example, Allentown installed solar panels on their courthouses in 2010, public transportation buses became hybrid electric buses in 2014, yet there is so much more our community can do. Becoming a more sustainable community starts with … [Read more...] about Let’s Talk Solar
Addressing Climate Change
by Matt Subjin Climate change is one of the biggest issues of our lifetime and there is more we can do as a community and as a city to both reduce its impact, and lower our carbon footprint. Liberals are one of the biggest groups that will support my call to action because they want more action to be taken as a community and government to help stop climate change. … [Read more...] about Addressing Climate Change
Climate Justice
by Audrey Dai Climate justice. These two simple words are probably not as familiar as the now politically infused “climate change”. Instead, these words emphasize how environmental changes are an issue of civil rights, and how these changes will disproportionately affect each of us living on this planet, just some more than others. And this is regardless of your political … [Read more...] about Climate Justice
Is The New York Times Trying to Foster Working Class Consciousness?
by Gary Olson There is only one thing the ruling circles have always wanted — and that’s everything.— Michael Parenti A recent lead editorial in The New York Times reads “Another Way the 2020s Might Be Like the 1930s.” Written by Jamelle Bouie, an African-American millennial (age 33) on the paper’s editorial staff, the piece contains the following opening and closing … [Read more...] about Is The New York Times Trying to Foster Working Class Consciousness?