• League 101-Everything you should know about the League and more
• Membership-Diversifying and Developing League Membership
• The Energy Study-a high voltage introduction
• Voters Service-finding one's way in Voters Service and League action

Via foot and train, we'll tour select examples of smart growth and transit-oriented development in Mountain View. "Hike" with friends and learn about housing densities, landscaping, parking requirements, heights and how to create spaces that build community and protect the environment.

The public is invited; bring a friend. Refreshments will be served. Introduce yourself to your local elected officials. Express your interests and concerns.

Agenda

5:30 -- Supper and socializing

6:30 -- Call to order by president, Coeta Chambers

Discussion of any old business
Introduction of new president, Sue Graham

7:00 -- Welcome and self-introductions of all attending

Review of program planning priorities and goals
for the year
Input of ideas from those attending

8:00 -- Adjourn

Now that the California Voters FIRST initiative has qualified as Proposition 11 on the November ballot, the League's effort to achieve meaningful redistricting reform in California is entering its most crucial phase. We are expecting a hard-fought electoral battle in the fall, and as the summer winds down, state and local League leaders and volunteers are gearing up for the campaign. What can you do to help? The Prop 11 campaign will be offering volunteer and speakers training in a number of locations from August 13 through the 23rd. View the training schedule flyer.

You can also sign up for redistricting information via email <mailto:redistricting@lwvc.org> .

Visit http://www.yesprop11.org to learn more about the Yes on Prop 11 campaign. Be sure to regularly check the League's redistricting action web page http://lwvc.convio.net/ for practical advice on how to take action in your community and to find materials your local League can use. Ask your friends to join you in working on the campaign, or invite them to a Prop 11 advocacy event, so you can show them how membership in the League leads to hands-on work to safeguard democracy in our communities. Join the League of Women Voters

WHEN: Monday, Sept. 15, 2008, from 10 a.m. to noon

WHERE: Santa Clara Valley Medical Center

751 S. Bascom Avenue
San Jose, California 95128

Meet in the lobby of the Main Hospital.

WHY: To inform ourselves about the services provided by the VMC and the impact of the November bond measure on VMC.

PLEASE: RSVP not later than Thursday, Sept. 11, to Carol Kuiper, 650-941-8190, rkui...@earthlink.net or sooner if you would like to car pool. Let me know if you can drive or need a ride. To car pool, meet at 9 a.m. in the large Hillview Community Center parking lot.

Background: The Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors has placed a bond measure on the November ballot to fund State mandated requirements to retrofit this public hospital, to meet more stringent seismic safety standards by 2013, or face closure of non-compliant buildings.

Ballot Language: Title: Hospital Seismic Safety and Medical Facilities

To prevent state mandated shutdown of one-half of Santa Clara Valley Medical Center's beds; closure of SCVMC's trauma, burn center; and, loss of disaster response, by rebuilding, and improving earthquake safety of the hospital, meeting state seismic laws, and help replace closed medical facilities in downtown San Jose, shall the County of Santa Clara issue $840 million in general obligation bonds with independent citizens' oversight committee, annual audits, and no money for administrators' salaries?

Examples of VMC Services:

SANTA CLARA VALLEY MEDICAL CENTER (SCVMC) is currently the largest provider of care in Santa Clara County, with one in four residents of the County receiving care at SCVMC over a four-year period. SCVMC is one of only two burn-trauma centers north of Los Angeles and is a high level trauma center for both adults and children

In 2007, SCVMC delivered nearly 6,000 babies.

Los Altos Library | 13 S San Antonio Rd | Los Altos, CA 94022 | Phone: (650) 948-7683

6:30 - 7:30 pm MVLA High School Board Candidates Forum

7:30 - 8:30 pm Pros and Cons on the State Propositions

Co-sponsor: American Association of University Women, Los Altos-Mountain View Branch

Mountain View City Council Chambers | 500 Castro Street | Mountain View, CA, 94041

7:00 - 9:00 pm Mountain View City Council Candidates Forum

Co-sponsor: American Association of University Women, Los Altos-Mountain View Branch

Co-sponsor: American Association of University Women, Los Altos-Mountain View Branch

Los Altos Hills Town Council Chambers | 26379 Fremont Rd | Los Altos Hills, CA 94022

7:00 - 8:30 pm Los Altos Hills Town Council Candidates Forum

Co-sponsor: American Association of University Women, Los Altos-Mountain View Branch

Foothills Congregational Church | 461 Orange Avenue | Los Altos, CA 94022

11:30 am-1:00 pm The League Recommends: The League's Positions on the State Propositions

Unitarian Church, Palo Alto | Church of Unitarian Universalist: Palo Alto | 505 E Charleston Rd | Palo Alto, CA 94306 | (650) 494-0541 | http://www.uucpa.org

Sponsored by the League of Women Voters of Palo Alto

2:00 - 2:30 pm Superior Court Judge Seat #8 Runoff Candidates

2:45 - 3:45 pm State Assembly 21st District and State Senate 11th District

Co-sponsor: American Association of University Women, Los Altos-Mountain View Branch

Los Altos Library | 13 S San Antonio Rd | Los Altos, CA 94022 | (650) 948-7683

7:00 - 8:30 pm The League Recommends: The League's Positions on the State Propositions

Co-sponsor: American Association of University Women, Los Altos-Mountain View Branch

Start the new year with a fun soiree at the Kuiper's . Meet and become better acquainted with other League members. .Find out the nitty-gritty about the League of Women Voters from the makers and shakers. Come, enjoy lively conversation over tea and scones and learn more about League

Bring your spouse, children, friends and neighbors. Everyone is welcome to attend.

What: LWVLAMV-sponsored workshop on housing, anticipating required updates in the housing elements of general plans of all Bay Area counties and cities.

Where: Mountain View city council chambers,

Admission: Free; parking in garage beneath City Hall

Speakers:

• Don Weden, retired principal planner, Santa Clara County
• Representatives from Mountain View, Los Altos and Los Altos Hills

More than just housing is at stake Although nominally only about housing, these revised housing elements will have impacts on a wide array of other critical issues, including climate change; the social and economic impacts of the end of cheap oil; preparing for a much larger, nondriving senior population; the viability and convenience of transit, etc.

You can influence the outcome Attend this workshop to learn from local experts more about housing element updates and what you can do to help shape the future of your city to be sustainable, diverse, and inclusive.

Since the end of the cold war, the U.S. has emerged as the world's predominant power. However, in the 21st century some rapidly developing countries have become increasingly influential. Who are these "rising powers?" Will their emergence change the global balance of power? How will the U.S. react?

Sponsored by the Los Altos/Mountain View League of Women Voters, The World Affairs Council, and the Los Altos Library.

ALL MEMBERS of the Los Altos/Mountain View League are invited to a brainstorming session Saturday, Feb. 7, to share ideas on what issues facing California and our local communities are most worthy of League focus in 2009-10. The League is a grass roots organization whose members decide together what is important and what to study. Planning the topics that most need League attention is one of our most crucial annual activities.

Instant runoff voting in Santa Clara County and California State Prison reform, two topics under consideration for 2009-2010, are outlined below.

Local issues that the League may also want to address include environmental sustainability, an area where the Los Altos/Mountain View League currently has no portfolio, along with housing, education, transportation and health.

Instant Runoff Voting "In 2005, the five Leagues of Santa Clara County adopted this position: The Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors should be elected using instant runoff voting (IRV) instead of the two-round runoff system.

Voters should be allowed to rank all eligible candidates. Furthermore, to foster transparency and public confidence in the outcome, the Registrar of Voters should make the raw ballot data available to the Public immediately following the election and prior to certification of the results.

"I propose that we take action on this position by actively lobbying the board of supervisors to implement the charter provision that allows the county to use IRV. Using IRV will save the county money and, in this time of tight budgets, that is important."
--Steve Chessin

California State Prison Reform "The California Prison System is now costing more than higher education in the state budget and is expected to keep rising exponentially as overcrowding, recidivism, and sentencing practices are overwhelming the system. We intend to look at the alternatives to the current practices of building more prisons and demanding longer sentences, in order to relieve the system as well as rehabilitate the inmates so that they return to society as productive citizens...and save millions in the state budget."

Rising energy prices, driven by instability in key producing regions such as the Middle East and increasing demand from developing countries, are affecting the global economy. What are the potential consequences of huge wealth transfers to oil-exporting states? Are there any realistic alternative energy scenarios on the horizon?

Sponsored by the Los Altos/Mountain View League of Women Voters, The World Affairs Council, and the Los Altos Library.

Newfound hopes for stability in Iraq have shifted the U.S. military focus back to Afghanistan and Pakistan, one of the most volatile border regions in the world. What impact will this renewed interest have on the two states as well as on U.S. defense strategy?

Sponsored by the Los Altos/Mountain View League of Women Voters, The World Affairs Council, and the Los Altos Library.

Rising global temperatures have created new opportunities in the Arctic for resource extraction and inter-continental transport. How will sovereignty disputes among the five countries that border the Arctic affect its potential development? What impact will this race for the Arctic have on an environment already in serious flux?

Sponsored by the Los Altos/Mountain View League of Women Voters, The World Affairs Council, and the Los Altos Library.

The general public is invited as well.

Egypt has long played an important role in the Arab world while maintaining a strategic relationship with the U.S. With elections scheduled for 2009, how will Egypt deal with serious domestic issues, ranging from Islamic radicalism to food shortages? What factors will influence the path of this regional heavyweight?

Sponsored by the Los Altos/Mountain View League of Women Voters, The World Affairs Council, and the Los Altos Library.

Global prices for food staples have risen dramatically, resulting in protests and unrest around the world. What factors are driving prices up, and can they be tamed? What will the political fallout be for governments that fail to act, and what role can global institutions play?

Sponsored by the Los Altos/Mountain View League of Women Voters, The World Affairs Council, and the Los Altos Library.

As the Universal Declaration of Human Rights celebrates its 60th anniversary, events in the Balkans, Sudan and Myanmar continue to challenge its idealism, while raising new questions about the prospects for humanitarian interventions. Do human rights transcend national borders and customs? Is the definition of human rights changing?

Sponsored by the Los Altos/Mountain View League of Women Voters, The World Affairs Council, and the Los Altos Library.

Since Fidel Castro handed over the presidency of Cuba to his brother, Raśl in early 2008, signs of greater economic openness have led to much speculation. Will Raśl seek to reopen ties with the U.S.? What role will Cuba's American exiles play in shaping a post-Castro Cuba?

Sponsored by the Los Altos/Mountain View League of Women Voters, The World Affairs Council, and the Los Altos Library.

A question and answer session moderated by Ginny Lear of the Leagues of Women Voters of Santa Clara County Committee will follow the presentation.

Sponsored by the Los Altos Library, El Camino Hospital, and the Leagues of Women Voters of Los Altos-Mountain View, Cupertino-Sunnyvale and Southwest Santa Clara Valley. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. Seating is limited to 100.

• Budget
• Education
• Health Care
• Redistricting

As state education funding declines, community colleges face difficult times and difficult decisions. How are our community colleges doing and what issues are they confronting? How do community colleges define their core mission when they can't afford to do everything they once did? What do we want our community colleges' priorities to be?

Everyone has a stake in the success of our community colleges. If you have children who plan to attend a community college, or you need to retrain for a new job or you simply want to take classes for self improvement, come to the forum and participate in the discussion.