Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable

Harvey Broome hiding in a buckeye tree on the way to Hughes Ridge, July 25, 1931.  Albert “Dutch” Roth

KNOXVILLE — The latest round of Conversation on Tap features members of the local Harvey Broome group of the Sierra Club discussing its efforts to address climate change.

It’s set for 7 p.m. Dec. 13 at Albright Brewing Company, 2924 Sutherland Ave. Proceeds from the event will benefit Discover Life in America, a crucial science partner with Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

Join Harvey Broome group vice-chairman Jerry Thornton and others to learn more about the local chapter of the Sierra Club and its efforts to address climate change.

Named after a Smokies advocate and Wilderness Society founder, the Harvey Broome chapter of the Sierra Club has been fighting to preserve wild places; create clean, safe communities; and encourage recycling and clean energy since 1972. 

Photograph from the Albert “Dutch” Ross Photograph Collection at the University of Tennessee Libraries

Albert Gordon "Dutch" Roth, born September 20, 1890 in Knoxville, Tennessee, is recognized as one of the most prolific early photographers of the Great Smoky Mountains' Greenbrier and Mount Le Conte sections. An early member of the Smoky Mountains Hiking Club, his photographs document club hikes and activities, including the construction of the clubhouse at Greenbrier.

What began in 1913 as a diversion soon developed into a serious avocation as Roth perfected his penchant for photography while avidly hiking the unexplored regions near his home. He worked primarily with a Kodak Autographic 122 camera, and, often carrying a heavy tripod, would climb twenty to thirty feet up a tree or venture hundreds of yards off the trail to capture the landscape images for which he was later noted.

2023 Mountain Commerce Challenge is almost finished

Knoxville — Legacy Parks Foundation will wrap up another great year of the Mountain Commerce Challenge on Saturday, December 9 with the 17^th Tour de Lights bike ride and celebration. The free and family-friendly holiday bike ride is presented by Visit Knoxville and Bike Walk Knoxville. Riders will meet 4 p.m. at the Outdoor Knoxville Adventure Center to decorate their bikes before heading to Mary Costa Plaza for the festivities.

Meanwhile, spectators and costume contestants will already enjoy themselves at a more leisurely pace at Holiday Market & Expo, which opens 3:30 p.m. on Mary Costa Plaza by the Knoxville Civic Coliseum.

The glamorous 5-mile pedal parade will circle through East Knoxville neighborhoods to culminate coming down Gay Street.

Courtesy of Bike Walk Knoxville

Those who bring their ‘Challenge Checklist’ showing 75 miles completed will receive a special patch to commemorate all of the great hiking, biking and paddling accomplished this year!

Everyone who registers for the Tour de Lights or the Costume Contest will receive a commemorative T-shirt and be entered for some exciting ‘door prizes.’

Mountain Commerce Challenge 

The Mountain Commerce Challenge is named for Mountain Commerce Bank (MCB), which sponsored this challenge for its third year with a $15,000 donation to the Legacy Parks Foundation. The locally-owned community bank was founded 1910 in Erwin, where it acquired the former Erwin National Bank. MCB is 5-star rated by Bauer Financial and nationally ranks among the top 50 community banks.

Community banks are a cornerstone of community economic resilience because they invest customer deposits in the regional economy. That is particularly important for businesses that depend on regional natural resources and a local workforce with extensive experience and a deep understanding of local conditions.

KNOXVILLE — Members of the Knox County Growth Policy Coordinating Committee will hold their second (but first official) public meeting on Monday, Nov. 27 to hear from the public and consider amendments to the Growth Policy Plan that dates back to 2000. The meeting will take place at 5 p.m. in the Main Assembly Room of the City County Building. (This meeting was previously scheduled for Nov. 16.)

The committee’s first of two meetings required by Tennessee State Law to change a growth policy plan had initially been announced for Oct. 24. However, when it became known that the announcement had not been published with due notice in a local newspaper to met the letter of the law, the Oct. 24 gathering was relabeled as a public information meeting only, and its agenda limited to merely provide an introductory presentation about the Advance Knox process and its proposals, with an opportunity for brief citizen statements.

The Tennessee Valley states (TN, AL, MS) are among the most irresponsible in their languid pondering about climate change mitigation.  Illustration from the 5^th National Climate Assessment

Urgent investments in local solutions are needed now more than ever as climate impacts grow across the South

The 5^th National Climate Assessment, released this week by the U.S. Government, reports on the current climate trends, impacts and solutions across the country. It underscores the urgency and opportunities for meaningful climate action.

This year, it includes a chapter highlighting how climate is impacting our Southeastern landscape and communities, plus what trends we can expect in the years ahead. 

The report substantiates what we’ve been witnessing on the ground: Extreme heatwaves are already more common, sea level rise is encroaching into coastal communities and throughout the region, we’re seeing more flooding from increasingly unpredictable, volatile storms. According to the report, the country now sees a billion-dollar weather disaster every three weeks on average. In the 1980s, that average was every four months.