Denver Biodiesel/U-turn
Submitted by lmanriquez on Wed, 04/18/2007 - 01:50.
Last updated on Mon, 06/09/2008 - 13:36.
Vital Stats
03/18/2006
The Problem
Denver Biodiesel is a membership run biodiesel distribution and education cooperative opened in March of 2006, though organizational and outreach work began in 2004. We believe that both the mindset and material conditions of an individual affect how they act. We believe an understanding of sustainability is best achieved by education of both the body and the mind.
Thus we,
Provide biodiesel, a renewable fuel alternative to our coop members and teach people how to make their own biodiesel. When the noxious smoke from their vehicle is replaced by the faint smell of french fries they appreciate first hand the benefits of renewable technologies, and understand in a palpable physical way that alternatives are possible.
Biodiesel acts as a starting point on the path to sustainability. We aim to build on this immediate physical understanding by expanding the scope of alternatives. We offer educational workshops and classes to build a critical awareness of ecological sustainability. We work with high school students to make issues of sustainability more meaningful and to contextualize what is being taught in the classroom.
All coop members must contribute to the running of the coop, which facilitates an increased awareness of the importance of biodiesel among membership, as well as enhancing a sense of belonging to a larger movement for sustainability.
Denver Biodiesel is the only biodiesel coop operating in the Denver metro area. We work to develop coalitions with nearby coops with similar goals, including Front Range Biofuels in Littleton, Boulder Biodiesel in Boulder, and the Roaring Fork Biodiesel Cooperative in Carbondale. These coalitions help maintain a grassroots, accessible presence in the world of renewable energy.
U-Turn will take over and extend the educational and coalition-building work done by Denver Biodiesel, allowing the coop to focus on fuel distribution while U-Turn can focus fully on sustainability education. As a non-profit U-Turn will be able to apply for grant and foundation funding that was inaccessible to Denver Biodiesel as a for-profit
Thus we,
Provide biodiesel, a renewable fuel alternative to our coop members and teach people how to make their own biodiesel. When the noxious smoke from their vehicle is replaced by the faint smell of french fries they appreciate first hand the benefits of renewable technologies, and understand in a palpable physical way that alternatives are possible.
Biodiesel acts as a starting point on the path to sustainability. We aim to build on this immediate physical understanding by expanding the scope of alternatives. We offer educational workshops and classes to build a critical awareness of ecological sustainability. We work with high school students to make issues of sustainability more meaningful and to contextualize what is being taught in the classroom.
All coop members must contribute to the running of the coop, which facilitates an increased awareness of the importance of biodiesel among membership, as well as enhancing a sense of belonging to a larger movement for sustainability.
Denver Biodiesel is the only biodiesel coop operating in the Denver metro area. We work to develop coalitions with nearby coops with similar goals, including Front Range Biofuels in Littleton, Boulder Biodiesel in Boulder, and the Roaring Fork Biodiesel Cooperative in Carbondale. These coalitions help maintain a grassroots, accessible presence in the world of renewable energy.
U-Turn will take over and extend the educational and coalition-building work done by Denver Biodiesel, allowing the coop to focus on fuel distribution while U-Turn can focus fully on sustainability education. As a non-profit U-Turn will be able to apply for grant and foundation funding that was inaccessible to Denver Biodiesel as a for-profit
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The Colorado Non-Profit Development Center has accepted a project proposal from Denver Biodiesel.
The new project is named U-Turn and will focus on education about sustainability for high school and college age students.
Luis Manriquez, the director of Denver Biodiesel will become the Director of U-turn and several coop members have come forward to take over the running of Denver Biodiesel.
Denver Biodiesel has also moved to a new location and begun collecting and processing waste vegetable oil for vehicles modified to run it in addition to the biodiesel they carry.
-Luis
U-Turn is going to be having a new class to build electric bicycles and teach people about how they are an important piece of sustainable transportation.
The class is a collaboration between:
Optibike: a builder of electric bikes who has generously donated time and parts
Derailler Bike Collective: a free bike repair and education shop
The Denver Free School: a free education program
Regis University
Denver University
PS-1: a Denver charter school