Occupy Corning Rally

Centerway Square, Corning at 11:00 AM, Sat., Nov. 12.

Occupy Elmira Rally

Elmira Courthouse, Elmira, 12:00 PM, Sun., Nov. 13

Next Steuben Greens Meeting

Nov. 21, 2011. Location TBA

The Steuben Greens meet on the 3rd Monday of the month by conference call or in person. For info about the next meeting, email info@steubengreens.org

Join the Steuben Greens on Facebook

Don't want to see the Conhocton look like the Colorado River above? Join the Green Party in calling for a ban on hydrofracking in NYS.

Current Projects of the Steuben Greens

Regional Calendar

Consensus

The Steuben Greens and most other Green groups use consensus process for our meetings.

Green Party News

Occupy Corning Rally, Sat. Nov. 12

The Steuben Greens support the Occupy Wall Street movement and will participate in the Occupy Corning Solidarity Rally in Centerway Square, Corning at 11:00 AM on Sat., Nov. 12. Click here to read our statement in support of the Occupy movement.

Members will also attend a Corning Community College Roundtable on Occupy Wall Street: Democracy, Economic Inequality, and the Role of Social Protest, , Thurs., Nov. 10, 12:15 – 1:15 PM, Triangle Lounge, CC Campus, Corning

Occupy Elmira Rally, Sun. Nov. 13

We support the Occupy Elmira Rally, Sunday, November 13, 12:00pm - 3:00pm in front of the Elmira Court House, Elmira. Sign-up to attend on the rally's Facebook page. The Facebook page states, "Be a part of a nationwide mass demonstration against inequality and corporate influence on politics. Greedy and selfish people have tarnished our country's image and has ultimately lead to our current financial crisis. While the wealthy enjoy life without need or want, the working class struggle to get by. Times need to change, and these peaceful protests are ushering that change in all throughout the world. Not only in America, but all over the world. Be a part of something bigger."

Joe Duffy for Hornell City Council

The Steuben Greens have endorsed Joe Duffy's campaign for 10 Ward Alderman in the City of Hornell and and the Green Party of New York State has nominated Joe for this position on the 2011 ballot. Read the good coverage of Joe's race in the Nov. 2, Hornell Tribune, Carbone, Duffy running for 10th ward alderman position.

Cecile Lawrence for Tioga County legislature

Cecile Lawrence, who visited Steuben County last year during her Green Party campaign for US Senate, is running this year for Tioga County legislature. Click here to read Cecile's press release about why she is running.

Area Greens Host GP-US Annual Meeting at NY Green Fest 2011

This summer's NY Green Fest was held in conjunction with the annual national meeting of the Green Party of the United States. Both events were held Aug. 5-7, 2011, at Alfred University in Alfred, NY. NY Green Fest was organized by the Allegany and Steuben County Green parties. Steuben Greens Darin Robbins and Joe Duffy spoke at the event. Darin spoke on Courting the Anarchist Vote: Finding the Common Denominator of Autonomy, and Joe spoke at the press conference of Green candidates.

The Green Fest program included more than 30 workshops on politics, energy, media and ecology, four forums and great music on our solar stage. Many of these programs are not available on videos posted on the Green Fest website. Presenters included Elizabeth May, Canada's first elected Green Party member of Parliament, David Korten, author of Corporations will Rule the World and co-founder of YES! Magazine, Tina Clarke from the Transition Towns Movement, David Cobb, 2004 Green nominee for President, Virginia Rasmussen from the Program for Corporations Law and Democracy (POCLAD), Gay Nicholson from Sustainable Tompkins, and Richard Grossman from Frack Free Catskills.

NY State Green Party Wins 2010 Victory, Reclaims Ballot Line

The more than 58,000 votes cast for Howie Hawkins and Gloria Mattera have secured the Green Party a ballot line for the next four years. Support for all the Green candidates was strong. Unofficial figures show Comptroller candidate Julia Willebrand receiving almost 98,000 votes, and US Senate candidates Colia Clarke and Cecile Lawrence receiving about 40,000 and 34,000 votes respectively. Each of our candidates came in third in their races..

"This is the best showing ever for statewide Green Party candidates. It is the culmination of months of hard work on the part of many party members, and the candidates themselves. Voters are fed up with Democrats and Republicans taking their votes for granted, and are open to hearing ideas from a party not beholden to Wall St. and special interests. Howie Hawkins campaigned tirelessly to promote the idea of a Green New Deal, funded by progressive taxation on the wealthy, and using the stock transfer tax we already collect to fill the budget gap. Voters who heard the message understood that Howie's platform made sense, and that it's the austerity plans of Cuomo and Paladino that are nonsense," said Peter LaVenia, co-chair of the NY State Green Party.

"This is a building block for the future. We are going to use this victory to elect Greens statewide, starting at the local level and moving on up to the state," stated Eric Jones, co-chair of the NYS Green Party.

Howie Hawkins on the Economics of Hydrofracking

Howie Hawkins, the 2010 Green Party candidate for governor of New York spoke at Pollywogg Holler in Allegany County on August. 8, 2010, about hydrofracking and his campaign.

Greens at the EPA Hearing in Binghamton

Susan Donderewicz from the Steuben Greens at the anti-drilling rally outside the EPA hearings in Binghamton on Sept. 15, 2010, with Green gubernatorial candidate Howie Hawkins and hydrofracking activists from across the state. Photos by Joe Armstrong.

Green Party Candidates Call for Ban on Hydrofracking

"We're for a ban on hydrofracking because there are better options for energy. What this really does is privatize the cost and socialize the risk," said Howie Hawkins, Green Party Candidate for Governor said in Vestal on June 30. Cecile Lawrence, Green Party candidate for US Senate, said organizing for a ban on hydrofracking is a key issue for her campaign. Click for link to WICZ Video.

Greens Nominate Hawkins, Mattera, Clark, Lawrence and Willebrand

Syracuse labor activist Howie Hawkins was nominated for Governor and Gloria Mattera, a long time peace activist from Brooklyn, was nominated for Lt. Governor at the Green Party state convention in Albany May 15, 2010. Colia Clark was nominated for the US Senate seat presently held by Chuck Schumer. Cecile Lawrence was picked to fill out the Senate seat previously held by Hillary Clinton. Julia Willebrand from Manhattan, who received amost 118,000 votes for Comptroller four years ago, was chosen to run for comptroller again. Videos of the nominating speeches of the candidates are at www.gpnys.org.

Steuben Greens support Gas Drilling Moratorium Legislation

The Steuben County Green Party has issued a memorandum in support of the Englebright (A10490)/Addabbo (S7592) bill that would establish a moratorium on conducting hydraulic fracturing for the extraction of natural gas or oil in New York State until 120 days after the EPA finalizes a report on the effects of hydraulic fracturing on groundwater and freshwater supplies. Click here to read our memorandum.

Steuben Greens on YouTube

Meet members of the Steuben Greens on YouTube talking about politics and the Green Party. Recorded at our April 28, 2010 meeting in Bath.

Susan Donderewicz from Savona on the Paralysis of Convenience
Darin Robbins from Corning on Why I'm Voting Green in 2010
Charles Rola from Savona on My Hopes for Our Country
Mark Quinby from Bath on Politics
Joseph Duffy from Hornell on Why I Joined the Green Party

Steuben County Green Party Joins Call for Gas Drilling Ban

Signs at DEC Hearing in Corning, Nov. 18, 2009. Photo by Eric Wenzel, Corning Leader.

Acting on our concerns about the extensive environmental and health damages that are likely to be caused by drilling gas wells in the Marcellus Shale if horizontal drilling and high pressure hydrofracturing are allowed in New York State, the Steuben County Green Party adopted a resolution November 16, 2009, calling on the state legislature to adopt a ban on permitting gas wells that use these techniques. In so doing, the party joins the Green Party of New York and 70 other groups across New York State calling for such a ban.

The resolution lists the reasons why the party is calling for a ban:

Because of our concerns that environmental and health damages lasting long beyond our lifetimes will extend across New York State if gas drilling is permitted using horizontal drilling and high pressure hydrofracturing,

Because damaging economic consequences to residential and commercial property values, tourism, agriculture, forestry, wineries, colleges and universities will result from damaging health effects,

Because the infrastructure costs of building and repairing roads, water treatment facilities, and other public services needed by the gas drilling industry will exceed the economic benefit to local communities,

Because New York State has no laws restricting industrial scale water withdrawals from our rivers, lakes and aquifers,

Because the citizens of New York are not protected from the toxic effects of oil and gas drilling by Federal and New York State environmental laws that apply to other industries,

Because the subsidies granted to oil and gas drilling promote the use of fossil fuels and undermine the development of conservation, efficiency, and renewable energy sources, and

Because the global warming effects of the methane in natural gas are many times greater than the global warming effects of carbon dioxide,

Be it resolved that the Steuben County Green Party calls on the New York State legislature to adopt a ban on permitting gas wells that use horizontal drilling and hydro-fracturing to release gas from tight sand and shale formations.

Sign the Ban Petition

To sign the petition calling for a ban on hydrofracking in New York State, go to http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/NY-Statewide-Ban-On-Natural-Gas-Drilling

Recent Events

2009 Election Results

Green Party candidates in New York had some of their best results ever this year. Mary Jo Long who won re-election to a seat on the Town Board of Afton in Chenango County. Lynne Serpe, Howie Hawkins and Joe Duffy had excellent showings in their races for NYC Council, Syracuse City Council and Mayor of the City of Hornell. They won 44%, 41% and 34% of the vote in their respective races. Click here for non-offical returns for all NYS Green Party Candidates.

Reconsidering the Property Tax, Thurs., June 18, Bath

A public forum considering whether taxes based on property are the best way to raise public money was held Thursday, June 18. The forum is one of a series of public programs on the local economy sponsored by the Steuben County Green Party. This year’s program, entitled “How Property Tax Has Shaped Our Economy (and look at the shape we’re in)," was introduced by Susan Donderewicz, a Green Party member from Savona. We discussed problems inherent in the property tax and alternatives to it. Click here to read the text of Susan's remarks.

Presentation on Living Green

Suzanne Miller from Hornell spoke about simple green lifestyle changes you can make at the May 2009 meeting of the Steuben County Green Party. in Hornell. She described simple lifestyle changes you can make to reduce your carbon foot print.

Presentation on Humanitarian Mission to Gaza by Local Doctor

On March 16, 2009, the Steuben Greens and the Hornell Alfred Unitarian Universalist Society sponsored a presentation in Hornell by Dr. Ismail Mehr about his recent humanitarian mission to Gaza. Dr. Mehr led a team of 9 physicians and 2 non-medical personnel on a ten day medical mission to Gaza in February 2009. Dr. Mehr is an anesthesiologist at St. James Mercy Hospital in Hornell. The trip was sponsored by the Islamic Medical Association of North America. It was the first US medical mission to Gaza this year. Photo from the Buffalo News. For more information about Dr. Mehr's trip, visit www.ammgaza.com

Showing of Rural Impact

On Nov. 5, 2008, the Steuben Greens joined with the Bath Peace and Justice Group to sponsor a showing of a documentary film on the impacts of horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing in Colorado by Two Cent Films and Crestone Media. The documentary features Dr. Theo Colborn, an environmental health analyst who has studied the chemicals used by drilling companies in their drilling and hydraulic fracturing fluids. Dr. Colborn's website, http://www.endocrinedisruption.com/, gives the results of her studies of the health effects of the products and chemicals used in drilling, fracturing (frac'ing, or stimulation), recovery and delivery of natural gas. She has analyzed chemicals used by gas drilling companies in Colorado, Montana, New Mexico, Washington and Wyoming. Her research provides a glimpse at the patterns of possible health hazards for those living in proximity to gas development.

Building Bath’s Local Economy

On Thursday, May 29, 2008, the Steuben Greens sponsored a panel discussion on grassroots strategies for building Bath’s local economy. Three Green Party members from the Bath-Corning area, Susan Donderewicz, Darin Robbins and Rachel Treichler, discussed how developing a more community-based, decentralized local economy could change Bath. The speakers looked at Bath’s economy today and showed how a micro-lending program, a local currency, local food production, promotion of local businesses, removing regulatory barriers and alternative healthcare, schooling and transportation systems could create more sustainable ways to live in Bath as the world economy changes.

Citizen Power Alliance

The Steuben Greens have joined the Citizen Power Alliance. The Citizen Power Alliance is a coalition of independent groups organized to promote sound energy and environmental policy. The mission of CPA is to hold public officials and regulators accountable, while seeking the protection of the public interest. The group belives that ecological preservation requires fiscal responsibility and viable technological solutions.

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