We are individuals, organizations, small businesses, and farmers concerned about the welfare of the Greater Lehigh Valley. We have come together as the Alliance for Sustainable Communities – Lehigh Valley, to work on sustaining and enhancing the quality of life in this area. We have developed a broadly inclusive set of interrelated principles in which diverse people and organizations can find their place. We believe that by uniting people and organizations the Alliance enhances the single-issue efforts of individual organizations to gain the effectiveness needed to establish community priorities in the face of powerful resistance to change.

Approaches

The Alliance shares and publicizes information from individuals and organizations that want the exposure, if it is in accord with Alliance values and purposes—hence this Directory, our Earth Days Calendars, and our online calendars

The Alliance carries out Community Dialogues (public meetings) on a wide variety of topics and discusses a broad range of issues on this website.

The Alliance endorses, if consensus is reached, projects initiated by others and works on behalf of these projects.

The Alliance may initiate projects, these being carried out by the Alliance Steering Committee, independent working groups or as part of coalitions.

Vision – We envision a sustainable, democratic, regenerative society, based upon enduring wisdom and careful stewardship, a future characterized by a self-healing environment, honorable and ethical behavior, self-determination, and secure freedoms for a diverse people.

Mission – The Alliance is dedicated to working for community sustainability, including wholistic approaches to the environment, social justice, health, participatory democracy, and local economies. We are committed to active, collaborative approaches to achieving long-term positive outcomes.

Goals – To create more equitable and livable communities, our members work to:

• Protect the natural environment on which our communities depend;
• Protect and extend fundamental rights and opportunities throughout the range of human diversity;
• Promote broad, meaningful participation in decision-making to advance community interests, and ensure that communities can assert their rights as a higher priority than those corporations claim for themselves;
• Foster strong local economies that provide secure and fulfilling livelihoods; foster enjoyable community life; work in harmony with nature; and strengthen the viability of independent local businesses and farms;
• Encourage people to produce and consume food that is whole and locally-grown in ways that sustain and rebuild soil, water, wildlife, vegetation, and the lives of all of us; and
• Promote discussion, education, and understanding of ways to maximize the health of individuals and communities

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Steering Committee – The steering committee meets every Tuesday, from noon to 2pm, at Morning Star Center, to plan and coordinate Alliance actions and involvements. The meetings are open to all. We invite your participation. Current Steering Committee members:Martin Boksenbaum, Peter Crownfield, Steve Hoog, Philip Jones, and Joris Rosse.

Working Groups – Alliance activities are often carried out by independent working groups, which currently include:The Big Picture, Calendar Committee, Campus Sustainability, Community-Food Connections, Directory Committee, E.House Group, Land Use, Media Action, Permaculture, Sustainable Energy Center, Website.

Alliance Office – While we have been meeting at Morning Star Center since our beginnings, in 2008 we began renting office space there. We hold Steering Committee meetings there, some of our working groups meet there, and we deal with organizational matters there as well. Our new phone number is 484-851-3910. Visit us!

Non-Profit Status – In 2004 we became a non-profit corporation under Pennsylvania Non-Profit Corporation Law. In 2008 we filed for 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, application pending.