Elizabeth Dry, Executive Director of the Promise of Peace Community Garden, shows us that you don't lead from position, but from vision. A public school educator for almost 30 years, Elizabeth now educates students, community leaders and executives on the power of the garden as a teaching tool. "By cultivating a spirit of ownership in families both poor and affluent, this garden teaches children and adults to cherish the earth and to see those who help tend it as part of their community," says Elizabeth.  Established in 2009, Elizabeth's project has garnered significant media attention as a proactive, hands-on way to improve our environment while fostering community, improving health, supporting local vendors, and preventing crime.  It's sustainable development in a nutshell.

At a recent EcoTuesday Dallas event at Times Ten Cellars, Elizabeth shared inspiration for ecopreneurs and other participants.   Her advice, which stems from her experience in conceiving the idea and subsequently being awarded a funding grant from the City of Dallas, is simple but profound. "Work as hard is you can on your plan," she told us, "but remain flexible enough to step back and let your project take its own course.  I've seen miracles unfold in my garden.  Don't be so controlling that you crowd out the opportunity for magic to happen."  Relationships are flourishing along with their first spring harvest, proving the success of Elizabeth's formula for sustainable development.  As far as I can tell, the secret to Elizabeth's success is, "Let others build it and they will come."  If people support that which they help to create, you expand your influence when you make a place for others to participate in your mission.

Dallas-area residents can support this remarkable community garden project by participating in an unprecedented dining experience on Thursday, May 13 at 6:00 PM.  If "local" is the new organic, then the 100-Mile Dinner is the hottest ticket in town.  Everything on the menu right down to the salt is to be sourced from within a 100-mile radius of Dallas. The stellar lineup of chefs such as such as Graham Dodds of Bolsa and Sheena Croft of Hannah's are preparing a five-course dinner of high-quality eco-cuisine.  The 100 Mile Dinner will run from 6:00 to 10:00 PM at the newly refurbished White Rock Filter Building with a view of beautiful White Rock Lake.  Reggae music by Aton and raffles (prizes include a chance to drive a Smart car for a weekend) will make this event one to remember. 

Tickets are $100 apiece and can be purchased at Times Ten Cellars and Downing Hill.  Proceeds go toward the Promise of Peace mission to decrease the dropout rate at Woodrow Wilson High School as well as to reduce the teenage pregnancy rate and gang involvement in East Dallas.  Funds raised will help pay for POP summer camps for kids, where they'll learn photography, healthy lifestyles, art, and take a field trip to a local farm.  For more details visit www.promiseofpeace.us or email Elizabeth directly at ejdry54@yahoo.com.

Last week's EcoTuesday - the second one in Dallas - was a hit.  The same crew came back, this time bringing friends.  The wine flowed, the group gelled and the speaker inspired.  We couldn't have asked for more.  Our guest speaker was Rob Ganger, Founder and CEO of Pollinator Media Group.

What a thrill it was for Karen and me looking around the room last Tuesday during Dallas' first ever EcoTuesday event.  A mixture of entrepreneurs, executives, neighbors and all-around eco-enthusiasts, our group numbering over 30 people happily networked, talked and laughed the evening away at Times Ten Cellars.  Trading stories while swapping business cards, we opened wtih introductions and closed with new friendships. 

After five years of studying sustainability and how best to address the critical issues of our time, I've reached a singular conclusion.  The best way for any of us to change the world is to devote ourselves to bettering a little piece of it.  But in 2005, trying to pinpoint my piece proved more challenging than expected.  Was it may neighborhood? Was it my friends?  Was it my school or was it my church?  No, it turned out to be none of the above.

That little piece of the world I needed to change was me.  Only after addressing that did everything else fall into place.  Since embarking on this journey, I've made green friends, started a green business, built a green home and written a green book.  But one thing was still missing: a way to bring it all together.  Enter EcoTuesday.  Now I'm taking the most important step of all: forging a green community.

Having done volunteer work in one capacity or another since college, I've always found myself contributing the same skills.  Call it volunteer coordinator, newcomer's committee, welcome wagon, you name it.  While the title would vary, my role remained the same: the "hostess with the mostest."  Today I'm thrilled that I get to channel this natural inclination for connecting people into a community where (finally) my interests converge: green business, entrepreneurship, PR, networking, speaking, and of course socializing.

Fortunately for Karen and me, building communities in the 21st century is easier than ever before.  With EcoTuesday, we have an instant set of tools to pull people together.  I'm excited to have the means to introduce my friends and a place to mingle on a monthly basis.  I'm already imagining the synergy when I introduce the alternative energy consultant and the geothermal entrepreneur to the green builder.  This is just one of the many chains I look forward to creating amongst like minds.

Still, for others, creating community is more difficult than it used to be.  As the slackened economy forces businesses to fold, many are faced with searching for new jobs.  Others have grown weary of the grind and are looking for more meaningful work.    With such circumstances, more people are seeking a point of entry to a green career path.  I'm gratified to use EcoTuesday as a way to introduce such people to green business owners and sustainable companies in the area. 

If we each use our EcoTuesday membership to make new friends and connect with others like us, and we continue to connect on a national level, together we can form one of the large sustainability-oriented communities in America.  That's a "little piece" of the world with the capacity to ignite sweeping change.