Sustainable Communities BA at Dominican University of California

Jon deLeeuw and Kara Ceriello are the owners of Not-A-Number cards and gifts, a PSCC merchant located in Wallingford on 45th.  As if running a busy, community-minded business didn't keep Jon and Kara busy enough, they are both involved in several prominent groups around Wallingford including WallinfordSaves, the Wallingford Chamber of Commerce and the Wallingford Community Council.

 

Read below to find out about how our featured Change Makers, Jon and Kara, are improving the quality of life in and around Wallingford.

 

 

Kara Ceriello:

 

1) What are you passionate about and why?

 

I've always been very passionate about the state of the planet, since I was 5 and first noticed black smoke coming from vehicles!  I used to make faces and a thumbs-down to the drivers, wanting to speak out somehow.  Then the commercial with the crying Indian looking at all the pollution got me, and I remember planting trees at my grade school during the first Earth Day and finding it really meaningful.  Ever since, I've considered myself an environmental activist, and in recent years a political rabble-rouser as well.

2) If there is one thing that people should get more involved in what should it be?

 

Their community, in some way!  Each person can recycle, or bike, or pick up trash on the sidewalk.  And we can also greet our neighbors, get involved with our community councils, write a letter to the editor, run for office!  I consider all of the above just a few ways in which any of us can/should get involved.

3) With which activities, organizations and/or businesses are you involved?

 

We opened our political gift shop Not A Number Cards & Gifts 2.5 years ago, and pretty much live there! We also exhibit at events like the Green Festivals and NW Biodiesel Forum, and still rep the ShakeLight flashlight that my best friend from high school invented (shakelight.com); I've been a Wallingford Chamber president for over two years now; still a Green (I used to be state party chair, ran for state legislature once, and have not always been happy with my own party!), I'm involved with the Green Party of Seattle and other local political issues/events; been vice president of No Spray Zone for several years, fighting pesticides.

 

Not just as Chamber president, but as active community members, we (and Not A Number) like to help support and promote other independent businesses, and non-profits by donating to their fundraisers, etc.  And we formed the Not A Number Kid's Club, which has gone to parks and maintained plantings.

4) How do you spend your time when you are not acting as a local change maker?

 

Time? There's available time?  :~)   I do like to read books, and watch the Stewart, Colbert and Olbermann shows.  And movies once in a blue moon.

5) What is your favorite thing about living in Seattle?

 

Having lived in CO, MI, NY, NJ, and CA, I can truthfully say that I just LOVE living here.  When it's nice out, it's so beautiful, and it's a wonderful thing to have mountains, water, and greenery around all the time.  But we've got to keep the skies blue and the water drinkable!

6) What do you wish you knew more about? Why?

 

I wish I could read minds sometimes, so that I could learn why some people respond well to ideas around making things better in our communities, and some don't!  But I'll still work on 'em anyway.

 

 

 

Jon deLeeuw:

 

1) What are you passionate about and why?

Being involved in our community and promoting better neighborhoods because I believe that a strong sense of place and identity helps people become knowledgeable of issues outside their own, which leads to a better world in general.

Local groups, whether its groups working on sustainability or volunteering to help at a local food bank. It's at the local level that one can make change that helps foster a greater sense of community. There was a recent Utne article which talked about a study in the UK which showed that increasing ones "trust" in a neighborhood could have the effect of raising one's happiness equivalent to doubling one's salary. I'm not sure how "trust" was defined or measured, but I think the conclusion has some merit. I co-own and operate a small local card and gift store. I also founded and currently run a group called WallingfordSaves, which sought to build a network of co-operating local business. The idea is that a receipt from one participating business can be presented for discounts and or rewards at another participating business. Since I firmly believe that a rising tide floats all boats, I believe that helping promote my fellow local businesses helps promote my own. I've been the liaison between the Wallingford Chamber of Commerce and the Wallingford Community Council for several months, and I was just elected as Vice-President of the Wallingford Community Council.
What, I run my own business, do I have any free time? I grew up here, so I have strong local ties with lots of family living in the area. I also really like having watched Seattle grow from a smaller city to being more world class.

6) What do you wish you knew more about? Why?

The nature of the universe because I've always been curious about how the mind affects the universe, and how the mind interprets the world.

 

 

 

 

 

 

David Burger and Larry Nussbaum of Stewardship Partners are experts on sustainable resource management and have implemented restoration projects throughout the Puget Sound area.

 

 

 

An interview with David Burger:

 

What are you passionate about and why?

My passion for preserving the environment of the northwest comes from my grandparents who were both professors at the University of Washington and naturalists that gave me the opportunity to spend summers at their cabin on Shaw Island in the San Juan Islands.  These summer experiences started when I was only a year old and connected me to the natural environment and gave me an appreciation and respect for this area.

 

If there is one thing that people should get more involved in what should it be?
People should get involved in their local communities to make changes in their daily routines that can have a cumulative impact on the environment.  

How do you spend your time when you are not acting as a local change maker?
I enjoy spending time with my wife and two beautiful daughters at our cabin on Shaw Island and playing music.

What is your favorite thing about living in Seattle?
Being close to family, friends and like minded people.

 

 

 

 

An interview with Larry Nussbaum:

What are you passionate about and why? 

Local sustainable food issues because the food we eat is our most visceral connection to the natural world and has a direct impact on maintaining in-tact landscapes, viable ecosystems, and healthy people, both locally and around the globe.  

If there is one thing that people should get more involved in what should it be? 

I think the important thing is to be generous with ourselves and respectful of our neighbors, family, co-workers, and people from communities that we don’t normally interact with.  The way we treat each other is a direct reflection of how we treat the world. The little lifestyle choices to reduce our impact are the easy part. 

 

How do you spend your time when you are not acting as a local change 

maker? 

I enjoy exploring Puget Sound on my sailboat, urban biking, and telemark skiing.  Also love documentary films.  

 

What is your favorite thing about living in Seattle? 

Besides the obvious - it is so beautiful here! - I think Seattle is one of the best food towns in the world with a great mix of cultures and access to some of the most productive farmland and sustainable fisheries.  Local organic produce, fresh seafood, wheat and bread, artisanal cheeses, seasonal fruits, and top wines and beer from local grapes and hops make for the dream 100 mile diet (ok, 300 miles).  We even have great options for sustainably produced chocolate and coffee.  

 

What do you wish you knew more about? Why? 

The conditions in which imported products (such as clothes, wood, food ingredients, etc) are produced and specifically which are the best choices.