GCC Vision for the Banning Lewis Ranch

A large group of GCC members gathered to create a vision for what the Banning Lewis Ranch might look like many years from now and how the City of Colorado Springs should write local standards for the development of oil and gas exploration and production.

According to the Colorado School for Public Health, most of the risks to human health comes from activities above ground.  The risks associated with fracking exist but those risks may not become evident for many years.

Additionally, turning this native land into an industrial zone will certainly lower property values and create a blighted area for many years.

Despite our leaders being told that water and air quality are protected, the actual rules allow massive quantities of benzene, ethylbenzene, toluene, xylene, methane, butane and many other chemicals to be released on a continuous basis.  Virtually every single device could release 15-20 tons of these chemicals each year.

Please read our vision and recommendations and SHOW UP at the May 24th public hearing at the City Administration Building, 30 S. Nevada, Room 102 (lower level).   6-8 pm

Heather Bushby Kelly

Second Green City Sponsor: Heather Bushby Kelly
An Intellectual Titan Says Sustainability is Just Plain Smart!

What does local business woman Heather Bushby Kelly share with actress Geena Davis ("Thelma and Louise"), prolific science fiction writer Isaac Asimov, and - believe it or not - actor James Woods? All have scored in the top two percent of the population on approved intelligence tests, making them candidates for The Mensa Society. That society is not a country club where membership can be bought; you either have it or you don’t: a high IQ. Davis, Asimov and Woods are members of the society, among a throng of other individuals – famous or not. Kelly has achieved all the ranking and tests for acceptance in the group, but needs to finish some paperwork -when she has time.

Long before she created Vantage Business Solutions, LLC In Colorado Springs and the online resource Colorado Sustainability Record, Kelly was a “Jersey” girl, with the big “Jersey hair and everything,” she admits.  She was the epitome of contradictions; while she was attempting to be a rebel and enjoyed shocking people at Hackettstown High School, she was also heavily involved in community service, home economics, and horticulture. Her actions led to various awards with 4-H, FFA (Future Farmers of America) and membership in the National Honor Society, and her academics earned her the distinction as a New Jersey Distinguished Scholar and the only girl among the three National Merit Scholar Semi-finalists in her high school class.

But it was Kelly’s involvement with the youth organization 4-H that truly impacted her values and goals and framed her talents. 4-H stands for Head, Heart, Hands, Health, and offers programs from youth leadership and citizenship to environmental science and plant and animal sciences. She learned “a good life is framed by how you holistically use all four, not just for your own success, but for that of your community and world as well.”

Not content to focus on just English at Montclair State University in Upper Montclair, N.J., she quickly honed in on computer science and software engineering. But Kelly’s passion transcended into helping small businesses succeed. Eventually she moved westward and worked on a master’s in public administration from the University of Colorado/Denver until she decided to take a break to focus on raising her daughter. “I wasn’t interested in politics as much as non-profit work,” she says. “Plus, I like small businesses and supporting local owners.” So when she decided it was time to finish her Masters, she chose an MBA in operations management from Regis University and graduated with honors.

While at Regis, she was reconnected with systems thinking, which as she explains, “rolls right into sustainability.” Kelly says sustainability is essential to small businesses. “There’s always a connection to nature there, but the larger concept of sustainability is how systems work internally and with one another. By understanding the system(s) they are working in, businesses can cut costs and attract more revenue in ways that support their ability to be successful and strengthen the community.”

“I love working with small businesses,” she says with a smile. “They have a scrappy attitude. No one cares about a job description or roles of responsibility. There’s an excitement there – a ‘let’s get going’ attitude.”

Kelly says sustainability is essential to small businesses. She’s been learning it since the sixth-grade and understanding soil conservation. “There’s always a connection to nature there, but the larger concept of sustainability is how systems work within one another.”

She hopes her new endeavor: "The Colorado Sustainability Record" will become a regional repository of sustainability related information that makes sustainable actions fun and easy. Her plans include articles, directories, mobile applications, and most importantly partnerships. Kelly says, “There are so many great efforts going on, but we can be so much more when we work together. I am excited to see so many people interested in the wellbeing of the region.”

“SUSTAINABILITY IS ABOUT BUILDING COMMUNITY... SHARING A VISION FOR THE FUTURE
WHICH IS ROOTED IN TODAY. FOR BUSINESSES, ESPECIALLY SMALLER BUSINESSES,
SUSTAINABILITY CAN KEEP YOU IN BUSINESS AND NOT PUT YOU OUT OF IT."

About the Sponsor: Heather Bushby Kelly began her writing career while in college, with her column Boot to the Head. An irreverent look at “what’s ridiculous,” the column was written in the spirit of radio host and DJ Dr. Demento.

In addition to being President/Partner of Vantage Solutions, LLC, Kelly is a business counselor and educator with the Colorado Springs Small Business Development Center, a member of the Chamber and EDC Small Business Advisory Council, and the new Co-Chair of the Green Cities Coalition.

Curiously I asked Heather if she had ever taken a Myers-Briggs personality test and she smiled and said “yes”. 

Of the different personality types, she’s considered an Introverted Intuitive Thinking Judging (INTJ) type, or one who is known as the "Systems Builders" of all the types, which combine imagination and reliability. They are described as having “tremendous value and need for systems and organization, combined with their natural insightfulness, (INTJs) makes them excellent scientists. An INTJ scientist gives a gift to society by putting their ideas into a useful form for others to follow."

Hmm… there just may be something to this test.

For more information, or to contact Heather Bushby Kelly, call (719) 358-8986; or visit the Colorado Sustainability Record at www.coloradosustainabilityrecord.com