Dear Friends,
If you haven't heard... I'm working on a project to help restaurants in NYC become more environmentally sustainable. It will be a non-profit that will help restaurants save money on utility bills, throw less in the garbage, and use more healthy, local, organic food.
The idea came to me because I work in a restaurant while I was pursuing my dream to become a journalist. I realized my passion for environmental stewardship, my communication skills as a journalist and my experience as a bartender and server could be combined into one effort that could do a lot of good.
So why do I need your help now? Well I'm working on a grant that would provide $90,000 over two years to get my project, The Sustainable Restaurant Corps (SRC), off the ground. But one of the criteria the funders are looking for is how well I can raise money and how much support I can gather for the cause. So I started a Peerbacker campaign-- similar to Kickstarter but for causes-- and now I just need folks like you to contribute $10, $15. It's your way of voting to support my effort to make restaurants more sustainable. So here's where to go.
For those of you who I've met with about the project, thank you for your time. And for those of you who have contributed already I am so grateful. It really means a lot to me that you took that little bit of time to sign up and pledge some of your hard earned money.
It was only a few months ago that I came up with this idea but it has really energized me. I've gotten a lot of wonderful feedback and met with organizations like NRDC and The Environmental Defense Fund about possible collaborations.
If you didn't know-- restaurants use five times more energy per square foot than other commercial real estate. In New York City, approximately 120 tons of food from restaurants goes in the landfill each day. By working with restaurants one on one, the SRC will help reduce carbon emissions, save water and divert more recycling and composting from the dump. Then we'll give restaurants a rating based on the good work they do and make the rating available to all the web sites you go to when you can't decide where to eat. That way even the people who don't care about the environment will see how sustainable our restaurants are.
Your $10 or $15 means a lot because it's not about how much you give. It's that you give at all. So please don't put it off. My grant is due the 9th which means there's only a few days for you to vote in favor of sustainable restaurants.
Why are sustainable restaurants important to you? For those of you who work in restaurants, you know how much garbage goes out the door each day... how many faucets run and run... how hot the kitchen gets and for that matter the dining room if the AC goes out. That's all energy and using less of it will make the planet a little cooler.
For those who visit restaurants and enjoy the experience... wouldn't it be nice to know that the food you are being served is as good as it can be for the farmers that grow it, for the fisheries where it's caught, and for atmosphere we all depend on. Wouldn't it be nice to know highly toxic chemicals aren't being used around the food you are being served.
Please donate now. It is so heartwarming to see more names go up on the list of donors. I truly don't care how much you give and I won't even know until the end of the campaign. But the fact you took the time will really mean a lot and help keep me going when times get tough. And I'm sure they will. So one final time.
Thanks so much and I look forward to seeing your name on my roster of good friends.
Cheers,
Christine Black
