May 1st Meeting: Richard Conlin on Food Security
Seattle City Council President Richard Conlin will be speaking on the topic of Food System Sustainability and Security at the May 1st meeting of Seattle Peak Oil Awareness, at the Phinney Neighborhood Center (6532 Phinney Ave. N., Seattle). Meeting begins at 7:00 PM, guest speaker presentation begins at 8:00 PM.
The Seattle City Council is currently considering a Local Food Action Initiative. The Local Food Action Initiative is a series of actions meant to promote local and regional food sustainability and security. The intent is to improve our local food system and in doing so, advance the City of Seattle’s interrelated goals of race and social justice, environmental sustainability, economic development, and emergency preparedness. The initiative is detailed in Resolution 31019. The resolution is to be voted on by the Seattle City Council in April or May 2008.
Richard Conlin was first elected to the Seattle City Council in November 1997. In his first term, he chaired the Council’s Neighborhoods, Sustainability, and Community Development Committee. The successful completion of the Neighborhood Planning Program was a key step in Seattle’s implementation of Washington’s Growth Management Act. In his second term, Conlin served as Chair of the Council’s Transportation Committee. He worked on implementing the region’s plan for improved transit, developing new funding sources for transportation maintenance and neighborhood transportation improvements, and supporting pedestrian and bicycle improvements to reduce dependence on the automobile. In his third term, Conlin is chairing the Environment, Emergency Management, and Utilities Committee. His work includes a major reshaping of Seattle’s approach to solid waste and recycling (“Zero Waste Strategy”) and developing sustainable infrastructure policies. He has been selected by his colleagues to serve as Council President for 2008-2009.
Richard was one of the co-founders of Sustainable Seattle, an organization that publishes the “Indicators of Sustainable Community,” and promotes actions that further Seattle’s progress towards long-term cultural, economic, environmental, and social health. He is a member and former Chair of the Community and Regional Development Panel for the CityFutures program of the National League of Cities. Conlin also serves as a member of the Sound Transit Board of Directors and as Seattle’s representative on the Growth Management Planning Council of King County. He also represents Seattle on the regional committee overseeing salmon recovery in the Duwamish-Green River Cedar River ecosystem.
