Since our inception in 1977 ASPI has been dedicated to
education and awareness around environmental issues, appropriate technology,
and informed personal choices. There are five initiatives to this effort:
-
Small Town Demonstration Center - Mt. Vernon, KY. This center
incorporates our office building and features solar energy systems (solar
photovoltaics, net metering, and solar water heating), rainwater harvesting,
organic and pollinator gardens, and attached passive solar greenhouse.
- Rockcastle River Demonstration Center - Livingston, KY. Located
in a rural context, the center includes working demonstrations of low-cost
cordwood housing, solar applications, cisterns, organic gardens, and natural
waste treatment technologies. The site also includes the Mary
E. Fritsch Nature Center, and the Michael Francis Zalla nature
trail.
- Appropriate Technology Library. Our library is located at our
Mt. Vernon site and contains 6,000+ volumes and periodicals on green building,
renewable energy, waste management, organic gardening, natural resource
management, and environmental science.
- Appalachian Service Learning Program. ASPI hosts volunteers who
desire to know more about the Appalachian experience. Groups and individuals
provide service to the local community through citizen water monitoring,
karst education, biological habitat assessment, and cleanup of local rivers
and streams.
- The Appalachian Simple Lifestyle
Calendar, an ASPI hallmark for more than thirty years, provides
an opportunity to raise awareness about how personal responsibility and
choice have an impact on developing sustainable lifestyles and communities.
The calendar gives practical suggestions of what individuals, families and
other groups can do to promote environmental justice and sensitivity.
