A Revolutionary Organization

The Resources, Independence, and Social Ecology (RISE) project is an attempt to address local problems with local solutions that increase community autonomy and empower residents. The project is grounded in a synthesis of three fields of study: social ecology, cradle to cradle design, and logistics.

Social ecology is an interdisciplinary field that seeks to foster healthy community development free from social inequality, economic injustice, and ecological degradation. In the 1960s, social theorist Murray Bookchin developed social ecology as a blueprint for an environmentally sound society free from hierarchy and exploitation. His ideas involve using smaller social, political, economic, and industrial systems–in order to prevent the waste, dehumanization and destruction of large scale political-economic systems.
In 2002, William McDonough and Michael Braungart co-wrote the book Cradle To Cradle–a manifesto calling for a new industrial revolution. The writers argued that it is time to remake how we make things. We must make our industry ecological and apply our vast intelligence and human potential to creating a zero-waste civilization. Our goal should be not mere sustainability, but eco-effective abundance. The technology for this change is available and people (especially the authors) are beginning to realize its potential. Cradle to cradle design is a system for building a waste-free world. Manufacturers from Ford to Herman Miller to Nike are currently using eco-effective design, and seeing dramatic benefits.
Logistics, the management of resources and supply chains, is the heart of almost every organization. Governments manage a nation’s resource distribution, businesses increase productivity with “lean manufacturing”, and giant armies can be crushed if their supply lines are disrupted. In the late 1960s, the Black Panther Party organized successful school breakfast programs, massive grocery giveaways, and free health clinics in communities that were grossly underserved by federal and state governments. Their programs increased community autonomy, health, and pride, and serve as models of how community organizations can bypass inefficient, hierarchical government systems to solve their own problems.
The RISE project is a study how eco-effective logistics can help increase a community’s autonomy, economic welfare, and environmental health. The study will focus on the neighborhood of Bushwick, Brooklyn in New York City and will have three phases. The first will be a survey and analysis of community logistical problems. Some questions are: What type of waste is prevalent in the community? Where does it accumulate? How does it affect the residents? What resources is the community lacking? These questions will be investigated through informal surveys of neighborhood residents, consultation with community groups such as Make the Road New York and the use of city agency data such as the 2001 NYC Waste Characterization Study.
Once an issue has been chosen, the second phase will consider how an eco-effective logistics system could address the problem. This phase will involve speaking with experts in the fields of logistics, eco-effective design, and community organizing, as well as resident and local businesses. On April 8, I plan to attend the Evo Conference on cradle to cradle logistics in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. Metrics for measuring the program’s success will also be developed. The last phase of the study will deal with promotion. Drawing on social marketing theory, a plan will be developed to increase public awareness of the logistical solution and motivate participation in it.
A report summarizing the findings and proposing a course of action will be completed by May 15, 2008.

The Resources, Independence, and Social Ecology (RISE) project is an attempt to address local problems with local solutions that increase community autonomy and empower residents. The project is grounded in a synthesis of three fields of study: social ecology, cradle to cradle design, and logistics.

Social ecology is an interdisciplinary field that seeks to foster healthy community development free from social inequality, economic injustice, and ecological degradation. In the 1960s, social theorist Murray Bookchin developed social ecology as a blueprint for an environmentally sound society free from hierarchy and exploitation. His ideas involve using smaller social, political, economic, and industrial systems–in order to prevent the waste, dehumanization and destruction of large scale political-economic systems.
In 2002, William McDonough and Michael Braungart co-wrote the book Cradle To Cradle–a manifesto calling for a new industrial revolution. The writers argued that it is time to remake how we make things. We must make our industry ecological and apply our vast intelligence and human potential to creating a zero-waste civilization. Our goal should be not mere sustainability, but eco-effective abundance. The technology for this change is available and people (especially the authors) are beginning to realize its potential. Cradle to cradle design is a system for building a waste-free world. Manufacturers from Ford to Herman Miller to Nike are currently using eco-effective design, and seeing dramatic benefits.
Logistics, the management of resources and supply chains, is the heart of almost every organization. Governments manage a nation’s resource distribution, businesses increase productivity with “lean manufacturing”, and giant armies can be crushed if their supply lines are disrupted. In the late 1960s, the Black Panther Party organized successful school breakfast programs, massive grocery giveaways, and free health clinics in communities that were grossly underserved by federal and state governments. Their programs increased community autonomy, health, and pride, and serve as models of how community organizations can bypass inefficient, hierarchical government systems to solve their own problems.
The RISE project is a study how eco-effective logistics can help increase a community’s autonomy, economic welfare, and environmental health. The study will focus on the neighborhood of Bushwick, Brooklyn in New York City and will have three phases. The first will be a survey and analysis of community logistical problems. Some questions are: What type of waste is prevalent in the community? Where does it accumulate? How does it affect the residents? What resources is the community lacking? These questions will be investigated through informal surveys of neighborhood residents, consultation with community groups such as Make the Road New York and the use of city agency data such as the 2001 NYC Waste Characterization Study.
Once an issue has been chosen, the second phase will consider how an eco-effective logistics system could address the problem. This phase will involve speaking with experts in the fields of logistics, eco-effective design, and community organizing, as well as resident and local businesses. On April 8, I plan to attend the Evo Conference on cradle to cradle logistics in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. Metrics for measuring the program’s success will also be developed. The last phase of the study will deal with promotion. Drawing on social marketing theory, a plan will be developed to increase public awareness of the logistical solution and motivate participation in it.
A report summarizing the findings and proposing a course of action will be completed by May 15, 2008.