UC Merced Campus Earns Leed CertificationUC

Merced’s Long Range Development Plan earns recognition for green design and construction; Logistical Support/Safety Facility achieves LEED Gold certification

MERCED, Calif. — The University of California, Merced, recently earned what they consider to be the most prestigious of a growing list of awards for its Long Range Development Plan, while the campus had its seventh building certified “Gold” by the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program.

UC Merced’s commitment to sustainability can be seen throughout the campus, which now has eight buildings LEED certified silver or better, and in its ambitious goal to achieve zero net energy use, contribute zero waste to landfills and produce zero net greenhouse gas emissions by 2020 — known as the Triple Zero Commitment.

“At UC Merced, we’re attempting to set new standards for energy efficiency and environmental stewardship in our building design and construction,” said Thomas Lollini, FAIA, campus architect and associate vice chancellor for Principal Planning, Design and Construction. “These latest achievements show that we are on our way toward not just meeting those standards, but exceeding them.”

Development Plan Among ‘Top Ten Green Projects’

UC Merced’s grand plan for campus design and construction — the 2009 Long Range Development Plan (LRDP) — continues to be lauded by industry organizations. The latest recognition is the LRDP’s inclusion in the Top Ten Green Projects list compiled each year by the American Institute of Architects’ Committee on the Environment. The award, given to the leading examples of sustainable architecture and green design solutions, will be formally announced at a convention in May in Washington, D.C.

The plan, which has been honored several times for its commitment to sustainability, earned high praise from the AIA judges for its ambitious goals, the many successes already achieved toward those goals, and UC Merced staff’s diligent monitoring of the campus’ performance in areas of sustainability.

“This is a profound example of taking the long view of the built environment, setting out an early plan, identifying benchmarks, designing and building a campus, seeing if you are meeting your benchmarks, and continuous improvement until hopefully you reach the goals of zero energy and zero waste for 10,000 students in 2020,” wrote one juror. “It’s an astonishing ambition, and they are on track.”

According to principal planner Richard Cummings, UC Merced’s Physical Planning, Design and Construction team was assisted in developing the 2009 plan by a consultant team that included Bruce Race, FAIA, FAICP, RACESTUDIO; Cliff Lowe Associates; A. Plescia & Co.; Shabnam Barati, Impact Sciences; Paul Heath, Business Place Strategies; STANTEC; Fehr & Peers; and Douglas Jamieson.

Another Campus Building Strikes Gold

The campus’ Logistical Support/Safety Facility (LSSF) is the latest UC Merced building to achieve LEED Gold certification. The facility, which encompasses two metal buildings joined by a loading dock, houses the departments of material management, mail services; environmental health and safety; facility management; and transportation services.

Construction of the LSSF featured a number of sustainability-related achievements. Around 77 percent of the construction waste was diverted from landfills and was ground up for reuse by farmers and nurseries; potable water use in the facility was reduced by 48 percent via the installation of waterless or low-flow urinals, lavatories and sinks; and 24 percent of the materials used in construction were made from recycled content.

All of those factors contributed to the high LEED ranking. The facility was also the first UC Merced construction project to achieve several new LEED credits: a renewable energy credit, thanks to the campus’ 1-megawatt solar array constructed in 2009; an alternative fuels credit, for offering a 20 percent discount on parking permits for drivers of fuel-efficient vehicles; and an “Innovation and Design” credit, which the LSSF earned for its Green Cleaning Plan.

“Achieving LEED Gold on a metal building here on campus goes to show our high commitment to sustainability,” said Mark Maxwell, UC Merced’s assistant director of construction and sustainability.

UC Merced’s standards for sustainability are only increasing, Maxwell said. Four completed projects are all expected to achieve LEED Gold certification or better: the Dining Expansion (platinum), the Early Childhood Education Center (gold), Housing 3 (platinum) and the Social Science and Management Building (platinum). And the campus is pursuing LEED Platinum for each of its four newest construction projects: Housing 4; the Student Activity and Athletic Center; Science and Engineering Building 2; and the Student Services Building.

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Information provided by UC Merced

California heads Towards Debating an Instate Immigration Reform

SACRAMENTO, CA — “Since 2007, California’s agricultural industry has experienced the highest agricultural sales recorded to date and continues to lead the nation in agricultural cash,” explains Section 2 of Assembly Bill (AB) 1544. The bill highlights that California’s agricultural sales ranged between 36 billion dollars up to more than 38 billion since 2007. Continue reading »

Stockton Cinco de Mayo Parade 2012 Gears Up

APPLICATION

San Joaquin County — The Coalition of Mexican-American Organizations (known for its acronym in Spanish COMA) announced that the 2012 Cinco de Mayo Parade will be held May 6^th at 11:00 a.m. at Stockton’s downtown. Continue reading »

Farm workers continue Chavez Legacy

By Dennis Rocha

Sacramento, CA — Only two days away from celebrating the 85th anniversary of civil rights activist Cesar Chavez’s birthday, dozens of farm workers and supporters along the United Farm Workers Union (UFW) continued the legacy of Chavez on Thursday, March 29 at the State Capitol, as they lobbied for a union-sponsored bill that will promote fair treatment to all farmworkers.

Assembly Member Luis Alejo (D-Salinas) and the UFW, showed his support towards the heat regulation.

The Farm Worker Safety Act of 2012 Assembly Bill (AB) 2346 will ensure that water, shade and breaks are provided to farmworkers and will rigorously penalize noncompliance by making growers and farm labor contractors accountable for heat-related illness. “In 2005, the state passed a law that gives farmworkers the right to have access to drinking water, shade and breaks,” said Erica Lomeli, UFW Civic Participation and Policy Director. However, he explained that although we have these laws, the state fails to enforce them.  

“It is absolutely abhorrent to think that in this day and age, farm workers are not regularly provided with shade and water,” said author of the bill Assemblywoman Betsy Butler, (D-Los Angeles) in a press release. “AB 2346 will move California’s heat-illness prevention law from being merely well-intentioned to effective in saving lives.”

The Farm Worker Safety Act will cost nothing to Californians says Lomeli

“Next month the temperatures will be twice as hot as they are now… we have to save the lives of the farm workers, there cannot be a number seventeen,”—according to the Union at least 16 farm workers have died since 2005.

62-year old Antonio Albarengua from Mendota, California was among the nearly 100 farmworkers from throughout the Central Valley who gathered to share with assembly members the story of what is like the everyday life of a farm worker.

“I have worked in the fields for a very long time, in different crops. We are the ones that strengthen our communities, all the fruit that we harvest goes to the tables of many families,” said Albarengua.

UFW members in Sacramento

Assembly Members Ricardo Lara (D-Bell Gardens) and Luis Alejo (D-Salinas) and other assembly members showed their support towards the heat regulation.

“My family`s story started while working in the fields of the Central Valley,” said Assembly Member Lara, as he related his life to the many farmworkers.

“I represent Gilroy, Watsonville, Salinas, Hollister, areas where there are many farmworkers,” said Assembly Member Alejo.  “There are 23 Latinos legislators in California, in November we can reach up to 30, we are gradually achieving the dream of Cesar and the Farm Worker Union, of not only achieving better working conditions in the fields but also the day when children of farmers become the leaders in the medical, education, business and law fields.”

Minority students across America face Harsher Discipline

Minority students across America face harsher discipline, have less access to rigorous high school curricula, and are more often taught by lower-paid and less experienced teachers, according to the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR). Continue reading »

tonight: Meeting for Benjamin Holt Drive Resurfacing Project

(Stockton, CA)—Members of the public are invited to a public meeting on Thursday, March 29, 2012, to learn about the upcoming Benjamin Holt Drive Resurfacing Project. The meeting will be held from 6:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. at Lincoln Elementary School Multi-Use Room, 818 West Lincoln Road, Stockton.

Engineers from the San Joaquin County Public Works Department will make a brief presentation and also provide exhibits explaining how the street will look and function after it is resurfaced and restriped.

Benjamin Holt Drive will be resurfaced from Plymouth Road to Gettysburg Place. New pavement striping will be included to create two traveling lanes and one center lane to allow left-turns into driveways within the existing roadway. The center turn lane is expected to decrease the likelihood of collisions and increase safety for motorists and bicyclists.

Residents will still have parking in front of their homes.

For more information: Send e-mail to Hotline or call the Project Hotline at (209) 464-4350

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information provided by buethecommunications

The Chicano Latino Youth Leadership Project’s (CLYLP) “San Joaquin Valley Institute”

The Chicano Latino Youth Leadership Project’s (CLYLP) “San Joaquin Valley Institute”

In an effort to serve more students across the state and building on the leadership development training program developed for the CLYLP’s summer program, the CLYLP Board of Directors launched two regional leadership institutes in the San Joaquin Valley and Los Angeles area. The institutes are guided by the same mission and vision as the CLYLP and further increase the capacity of the organization to reach deserving students in a local and regional context.

Regional leadership institute participants are housed in a college/university campus in the local region for a three-day intensive leadership training program focusing on the four C’s: Community, Culture, College and Careers. Similar to the Sacramento based summer program, institute participants learn the importance of civic engagement and participate in mock City council session and connect with regional leaders and organizations.

The San Joaquín Valley Institute (SJVI) was established in 1999 by a CLYLP board member to serve high school seniors and juniors in the Central Valley. In 2005, the SJVI became an official program of the CLYLP and was extended from a one-day to a three-day institute. The three day conference is held at Fresno Pacific University in Fresno, California

The institute is designed to:

Inspire students’ educational and professional potential through individual and small group interactions with educational, business, political and community leaders.

Encourage their pursuit of post secondary educational opportunities;
Motivate them to better the San Joaquin Valley Chicano/Latino Community through public service;Instill the importance of cultural and family values.

Some activities during the three-day institute are:
Full 2010 Program Details Mock City Council Hearings at Fresno City Hall: Students learn about the local government process through active participation in mock hearings and interactions with elected city and county leaders.

Higher Education Workshops: Students learn about financial aid, college/university options, A-G requirements, college admission essays and timelines.

Career Panel: Students hear from successful political, business and community leaders.

SJVI Dates: June 22-24, 2012

APPLICATION DEADLINE: Your completed application (including all forms) must be postmarked by April 2, 2012.

If you need more information, please contact the CLYLP by:
(1) Via e-mail at sjvi@clylp.org
(2) Forwarding letters of inquiry to the following address:
Chicano/Latino Youth Leadership Project, Inc.
P.O. Box 161566
Sacramento, CA 95816 ____________________________________________________________________                   Information courtesy of Chicano Latino Youth Leadership Project

Boxer Calls on Wireless Industry to Protect Smartphone Users From Theft and Violence

Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) today called on the CTIA, the wireless industry association, to move promptly to deploy protections for smartphone users as violent thefts of such devices have increased nationwide.

The industry association, on behalf of the major U.S. wireless companies, is in discussions with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) about developing the necessary protections for American consumers. Yet in a recent NBC News report, a CTIA spokesperson suggested that such solutions should not be implemented in the U.S. until they are adopted in other parts of the world, including Mexico, Central and South America, China and Africa.

In her letter, Senator Boxer wrote, “The U.S. is a leader in developing mobile phone technology and there is absolutely no reason we should wait for other nations to act when the safety and security of our citizens is threatened.”

The full text of the letter appears below:

March 23, 2012

Steve Largent, President & CEO

CTIA, The Wireless Association

1400 16th St. NW

Suite 600

Washington, D.C. 20036

Dear Mr. Largent:

I write to bring to your attention an alarming NBC News report that highlights the growing epidemic of smartphone thefts nationwide. As the report points out, not only has theft of smartphones become a multimillion-dollar business, but the physical safety of smartphone owners is being threatened.

Recently, the Major Cities Chiefs Association, which includes police chiefs from nearly seventy cities nationwide including several in California, adopted a resolution outlining measures that would help deter crime and protect the public. The association noted that the technology exists in the United Kingdom and Australia to disable handsets remotely, thus reducing the ability of thieves and black-market purchasers to use stolen smartphones. Also, the association called for the development of a stolen phone tracking database to assist law enforcement and providers in recovering and disabling stolen smartphones.

My understanding is that through the CTIA, the major U.S. wireless companies are currently engaged in talks with the FCC about deploying, across platforms, measures to address these thefts. However, I was discouraged to hear a CTIA representative tell NBC News that solutions should not be implemented in the U.S. until such solutions are adopted and implemented in other parts of the world, including Mexico, Central and South America, China and Africa. The U.S. is a leader in developing mobile phone technology and there is absolutely no reason we should wait for other nations to act when the safety and security of our citizens is threatened.

All parties involved should come to a prompt resolution that affords the necessary protection for American consumers. Additionally, I encourage CTIA and the FCC to include input from members of our law enforcement community and device manufacturers in developing these plans.

Thank you for your attention to this matter.

Sincerely,

Barbara Boxer

United States Senator

CC: Julius Genachowski, Chairman, Federal Communications Commission

Community Meeting for Benjamin Holt Drive Resurfacing Project

(Stockton, CA)—Members of the public are invited to a public meeting on Thursday, March 29, 2012, to learn about the upcoming Benjamin Holt Drive Resurfacing Project. The meeting will be held from 6:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. at Lincoln Elementary School Multi-Use Room, 818 West Lincoln Road, Stockton.

Engineers from the San Joaquin County Public Works Department will make a brief presentation and also provide exhibits explaining how the street will look and function after it is resurfaced and restriped.

Benjamin Holt Drive will be resurfaced from Plymouth Road to Gettysburg Place. New pavement striping will be included to create two traveling lanes and one center lane to allow left-turns into driveways within the existing roadway. The center turn lane is expected to decrease the likelihood of collisions and increase safety for motorists and bicyclists.

Residents will still have parking in front of their homes.

For more information: Send e-mail to Hotline or call the Project Hotline at (209) 464-4350

—

information provided to bw

#159 Edition 3.19-3.25

#159 Edition 3.19-3.25

A new edition was released today. This edition includes an interviews, a political page, business page, sports, and more!

To view this edition visit: http://issuu.com/bilingualweekly/docs/159?mode=window&backgroundColor=%23222222

Bilingual Weekly Newspapers are hyperlocal to San Joaquin County and are published once a week.

Apollo Nights 2012

STOCKTON, CA – Friday, March 30 2012 the Bob Hope Theatre will open its doors for the 2012 Apollo Nights from 6:00 PM until 9:00 PM. Continue reading »

Women’s Center Welcomes Filmmaker and Activist Nancy Schwartzman

STOCKTON – The Women’s Center will host its 32^nd Annual Luncheon on Wednesday, March 28, 2012 at the Stockton Civic Auditorium. This year, the Center will host Nancy Schwartzman as the event’s keynote speaker.

 Recently named one of the “10 Filmmakers to Watch in 2011” by Independent Magazine, Nancy’s work explores the intersection of sexuality, new media, and the complexities of modern relationships. She is the director and producer of the documentary films The Line (Media Education Foundation, 2009) and xoxosms (May 2011).  Continue reading »

Audio books for Military personnel

Boots N Books with Charterhouse for Families. Photo by Mayra Barrios

Connect parents in service and their children

Charterhouse Center for Families in partnership with Karl Ross Post 16 launched its Boots-N-Books campaign.  Boots-N-Books is a program that brings military families together through literacy and books.  The kick-off campaign was on Wednesday, March 7th at the Greater Stockton Chamber of Commerce. Continue reading »

‘Librotraficante’ Smuggles Banned Latino Lit Back into Arizona

The recent ruling in Arizona that banned ethnic studies in the state is causing Latino writers to take action since Latino literature was included in that notorious decision. Next week, a caravan leaves Houston heading to Tucson, organized by a new group calling themselves Librotraficante, to bring banned Latino literature back to Arizona. While this video explains the mission of Librotraficante, this video reveals the behind-the-scenes logistics of a trip that should not have to be made in the first place.

Boots N Books Campaign Kick Off

STOCKTON, CA – On Wednesday March 7th Charterhouse Center for Families (Charterhouse) in partnership with Karl Ross Post 16 will kick-off Boots-N-Books —a campaign that supplies recordable children’s books to military families so that children can hear parents read bedtime stories while they are away on active duty.

“Boots-N-Books is a campaign to strengthen families, encourage literacy and support our Active Duty,” said Candy Vargas, Marketing Coordinator for Charterhouse Center for Families. Charterhouse Center for Families will supply books with electronic readers allowing children to always have their parents read the story.

“Sargent Miguel Loza of the US Army was in our program and had a first hand experience with the recordable children’s book,” explianed Mikey Kamienski, Executive Director of Chaterhouse. “As he departed to serve in the military we have seen the benefits and positive impact the book has had on the family.”

“In California there is an estimated 30,000 military men and women who return from war each year,”said Vargas.

“The recordable childrens books are the perfect gift from a parent to his/her children,” explained Gerardo Garcia, former Marine Corp and he is now a teacher. “The tangible aspect of the book, along side with the story and the original audio of a parent is a priceless gift to any child,”added Garcia.

Charterhouse will be hosting events throughout the community to inform the community about the Boots-N-Books campaign. Charter house supports families with literacy and education for parents with a goal to improve our community’s quality of life. for more information about Boots-N-Books or the services offered at Charterhouse visit www.charterhousecenter.org or call (209)476.1106.