As Alternatives produces more resources electronically -- videos, DVDs and audio CDs, you have the opportunity to get the message of simpler living on stations in your community.
1. Contact your local cable company about carrying our two videos “Break Forth into Joy!” and “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” on the community access channel. This is normally free. Then help the cable company promote the broadcasts when they are set, to attract more viewers, by including a blurb in your church newsletter or letter(s) to the editor(s) of your community newspaper(s).
You or we will provide VHS tape or a DVD.
2. Contact your commercial and public, secular and religious radio stations about carrying our audio programming. You can help by trying to find “underwriters” or “sponsors.” Look at this list of programs!
“Break Forth into Joy!” (45 minutes or four segments: 15-10-10-10)
“Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” (18 minutes)
“Carols with Justice” (15 vocals)
“Living Simply and Loving It” (5 - approximately 14 minute segments)
“Whose Birthday Is It, Anyway?” 2004 (6 - 28 minute programs)
“More-wth-Less Christmas” 2004 (30 - 90 second segments)
A demo of the latter two programs comes on “Whose Birthday” 2004 audio CD.

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Needed! A few volunteers. Work from home. If you are retired or have the time, Alternatives needs a few volunteers for several hours each week to make contact with lots of folks by phone (or email in some cases). We can match one of our numerous projects to you preferences. If you’ve been looking for a way to help the voluntary simplicity movement, this could well be it. Sorry, no paid openings now.

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Alternatives is a founding member of Simplicity Forum, an international umbrella organization of non-profits, authors, academics and others, all promoting voluntary simplicity. The forum’s newest playful, action-oriented campaign is

Do Not STUFFocate™
Simplify Household
Using Recycled Materials
Visit www.UndamagedGoods.com

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Overcoming the “continuity” problem
of “Unplug” Workshop

If you as a workshop leader want to present “Unplug the Christmas Machine” Workshop on four consecutive weeks instead of one four-hour workshop, you have the “continuity” problem”– not everybody’s going to show up for all the sessions.
Since the workshop builds carefully step-by-step, the solution is our new “Unplug” audio CD. If Ralph knows he’s going to miss session 2, he can borrow the CD from the leader and listen to the appropriate session on the CD and do that session in the Participants Manual before coming back for session 3. Likewise, if something comes up suddenly and Sally misses session 3, she can borrow the CD and catch up before session 4 the following week.
The Unplug audio CD is available 1) with Participant’s Manual for $12, 2) with the book for $20, 3) with the Leader’s Guide for $20, or 4) with the book and Leader’s Guide for $30. Add $5 for binder and tabs for Leader’s Guide.