EARTH DAY IN LINCOLN . . . 2009 is the 40th anniversary of Earth Day. Coalition for the Environment and Earth Day (CEED) will host “A Time for Action,” Lincoln’s Earth Day Celebration, on Sunday, April 19, 2009.  The next planning meeting is Tuesday, February 17, 5:30pm, at the Community Foundation Building, South 15 & N Streets, 5th floor conference room.  Join one of the Committees listed in meeting notes here, and get involved.  For more information, e-mail Eva Sohl, esohl [at] nlcv [dot] org or phone 402.438.9341.

LEARN ABOUT WILDERNESS PARK TRAILS . . . Tuesday, February 17, 2009, 7:00 to 9:00pm, Friends of Wilderness Park will present a discussion of the complex system of hiker, biker and horse trails throughout the park’s 1,475 acres. The panel will include Jim Craig and Beth Thacker, members of The Great Plains Trails Network, and Rosina Paolini, the Mayor’s Environmental Task Force for Transportation member. The free, public discussion will be at the Lefler Middle School library, 1100 South 48th Street, Lincoln.

SPRING 2009 WATER SEMINAR SERIES . . . Michael Hochella, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, will present “Environmental Nanogeoscience” at the Kremer Memorial Lecture, Wednesday, February 18, 2009, 3:30 to 4:30pm, UN-L east campus Hardin Hall first floor auditorium, on the northeast corner of 33rd & Holdrege, Lincoln. The lecture is free and open to the public. For more information, click here, or phone 402.472.3305.

CELEBRATING DARWIN’S LEGACY . . . George F. Engelmann, professor of geography and geology, University of Nebraska at Omaha, will present “The Fossil Record and the Fact of Evolution,” at the Paul A. Olson Seminar in Great Plains Studies, Wednesday, February 18, 2009, 3:30pm at the Great Plains Art Museum, 1155 Q Street, Hewit Place, Lincoln. Sponsored by the Center for Great Plains Studies, the lecture is free and open to the public.

LINCOLN PEACE VIGILS . . . Join weekly peace vigils at the Federal Building, 15th and O streets in Lincoln, every Wednesday from 5:00 to 6:00pm. Contact Mark at 402-499-6672 or e-mail mark [at] weddleton [dot] com for more information.

OMAHA PEOPLE’S FILM FESTIVAL . . . There is a People’s Film Festival every Wednesday evening, 7:00pm, at McFoster’s Natural Kind Cafe, 38th and Harney in Omaha. The event is always free and open to the public. Food and drink is available. A lively discussion follows each showing. This week’s film is The Battle for Whiteclay.  For more information, click here.  The People’s Film Festival – Expanding Political Consciousness Since 2004.

“BIRTHING A NEW POLITICS” . . . The next Lincoln Bioneers Community  meeting is Thursday, February 19, 2009, 7:00 to 8:30pm at the Meadowlark Coffee & Espresso, 1624 South Street. There will be a free showing of a 30-minute Van Jones dvd, “Toward a Green Growth Alliance: Birthing a New Politics,” followed by a community conversation.

Hitchcock Nature Center Day Hike . . . Saturday, Feburary 21, 2009, 9:00am to 11:00am, hike a 1,003 acre preserve located in the heart of Loess Hills. Stay for an optional extra hike and lunch. The Hitchcock Nature Center, acquired by Pottawattamie County in 1991, harbors some of the largest remaining prairie remnants in Iowa and provides refuge for plants and animals found nowhere else in the state. For details, directions, what to bring, and to rsvp, contact Ronda Nelson, pinoakrd [at] msn [dot] com. Day phone: 402-829-1545. Home phone: 712-566-2919. Include your first and last name, phone number, and email so you can be notified in case of cancellation.

LINCOLN ELECTRIC SYSTEM SUSTAINABLE ENERGY PROGRAM . . . LES customers may offset the cost of making homes and businesses more energy efficient by applying for incentive payments to replace existing heating and cooling systems with more efficient pumps. Under the program, insulation, caulking materials, and pre-season cooling maintenance also may be subsidized. Click here for details of the program, application forms, terms and conditions.

CENTRAL NEBRASKA PEACE WORKERS MONTHLY MEETING . . . This month’s regular CNPW meeting is Sunday, February 22, 2009, 3:00pm, at Trinity United Methodist Church, 511 North Elm Street, Grand Island, Nebraska. Greens and all peace workers welcome. For more information, contact Mena Sprague, mine71 [at] hughes [dot] net.

LEARN MORE: CUBA AND LINCOLN . . . The Lincoln Unitarian Church Winter Lecture Series will focus on “Cuba from Slavery to Sanction and Beyond,” 7:00 to 9:00pm each Sunday through March 8, 2009. Sunday, February 22, a Canadian State Department representative will contrast Canada’s normal relationships with Cuban and US policies. The church is located at 6300 A Street. Lectures are free and open to the public. For more information, phone Dick or Karen Dienstbier, 402.489.7545 or e-mail rdien [at] neb [dot] rr [dot] com.

2009 NEBRASKA SUMMIT ON ENTREPRENEURSHIP . . . There is no registration fee for the 2009 Summit on Entrepreneurship, Friday, February 27, 2009, 8:30am to 3:00pm at The Cornhusker Marriott Hotel, 333 South 13th Street, Lincoln. Pre-registration is required, and seating is limited. For more information, and to register online, click here.  The registration deadline is Monday, February 23, 2009.

We are no longer the alternative; we are the imperative. –Rosa Clemente