ECOLOGIA’s Work:
Bridging the Global-Local Gap

    ECOLOGIA’s programs bring international perspectives and resources to local sustainable development projects, and bring locally based ‘on the ground’ experience back to the world of international decision making.
   Our programs combine a practical focus on local projects with direct involvement in international policy-making arenas. We believe that local leaders create the best, most sustainable long-term solutions to problems, and that this local experience should shape the development of national and international decisions.
   ECOLOGIA works by creating direct people-to-people connections. By linking individuals to one another, we foster the emergence of a global civil society — a worldwide network of individuals and organizations sharing common interests, information and resources.
   With staff, colleagues, and partners around the globe, ECOLOGIA is building global connections to create civil society and support sustainable development initiatives.

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"Building Global Connections
to Create Civil Society
and Support Environmental, Social and Economic Sustainability"

"One World One Dream"

August 2008: The Rabbit King and Queen of Sichuan Province Bring their Corporate Social Responsibility Mission to Vermont


Ren Xuping and Zhang Shuping visited Vermont to share goals and strategies for social responsibility and sustainable development. Photos show them at Ben & Jerry's Factory Tour, and at NRG Systems - Earth Turbines in Hinesburg.For more information, click here.

September 2008: The global concensus-based ISO Working Group on Social Responsibility meets in Santiago, Chile for its 6th Plenary Session. The goal is to create realistic and useful guidance for any organization, on how to improve its environmental, social and economic impacts during its daily operations. ECOLOGIA is sending two Expert Delegates: Carolyn Schmidt and Sergey Dayman. Key issues to be negotiated include how a business should draw its "sphere of influence" (what are its responsibilities to its partners in the supply chain and value chain?), and "picking and choosing" (can an organization legitimately claim to be using the standard if it selects only some subjects to report on, and ignores others?) For more information, click here.

China Earthquake Relief
Loans for Village Rebuilding

Qili Village, Sichuan Province, May 29: The first rebuilding loan money is distributed to families. Because ECOLOGIA has an existing program here, we were able to contact residents and get this first installment to them quickly. Thank you to our donors for their prompt response at this crucial time.

Updates from earthquake zone, May 29

ECOLOGIA's base of operations in China is Chengdu, Sichuan Province. Our project site is in the mountains west of Chengdu. We currently have a micro-finance project in this mountainous region and are using this on-the-ground capacity to deliver post emergency relief aid to earthquake survivors. They need support for rebuilding and repairing damaged homes and village infrastructure.

Our goal is to encourage villagers to engage in reconstruction that will be more earthquake resistant and also more environmentally friendly. We will try to avoid some of the problems of post-Katrina and post-tsunami construction where people rebuilt the same kinds of inappropriate dwellings. In addition, we will use this opportunity to seed the creation of community funds. Reconstruction and repair loans will be repaid to the community trust fund that will then be used to promote environmentally and socially sustainable development.

To contribute, or for more information, click here. ECOLOGIA is a 501(c)3 registered charitable organization with twelve years of experience with grassroots projects in China.

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ECOLOGIA works with innovative leaders in dynamic, fluid situations - often before trends are dominant or even clear to others.

Sustainable Development in China

In China, ECOLOGIA works with our partners to promote sustainable development - long-term solutions to social, economic and environmental problems.

Qili Village, Sichuan Province, March 2008 - Du Heng, Program Director for ECOLOGIA, discusses the micro-finance program we are conducting in rural areas, with our partner the Sichuan Xuping Rabbit Raising Company.

Addressing Health and Safety Problems in China's Supply Chain

ECOLOGIA Briefing Papers, September 2007