Observing that people tend to gather in specific places, the organization encourages interested parties to identify locations where people can communicate among themselves and via the Internet with further-away others. This place can be loaned office space, a town hall, a thatched hut, or a neighborhood kitchen. The location may change over time but the sharing of expertise must remain a constant.
One way to start a Community Center, organizers note, is by first teaching local residents how to use a computer, perhaps at night in a high school's computer classrooms. Once trainees begin seeking access to the Internet, their desires can be met via a community center.
Contact Community Connections at Box 367, Moscow, Vermont 05662, USA; phone/fax: (802) 253-5050; e-mail: community_connections@together.org; World Wide Web address: http://world.std.com/~braman/community.html.
SEI is also conducting a new series of spring workshops in warm and sunny Tucson, Arizona. Throughout February and March, instruction will be offered in solar water pumping; solar cooking; passive solar; photovoltaic design and installation; and advanced photovoltaics.
Internationally renowned speakers and professional instructors will teach participants how to design and build state-of-the-art solar homes that are self-reliant, energy-efficient, healthy to live in, and environmentally sensitive. Students will also learn how to design and build solar ovens and solar food dryers, as well as how to use the power of water and wind.
The one-to-two-week workshops are intended for builders, for people interested in careers in solar energy, and for those planning to work in developing countries. The workshops may be taken individually or as part of a comprehensive program.
SEI is a non-profit educational organization that promotes practical uses of renewable energies through education and technical assistance.
For a detailed description of its renewable energy education program, write to Solar Energy International, P.O. Box 715, Carbondale, Colo. 81623-0715; or call (970) 963-8855.