This week's flooding was devastating for families in Western Washington, and people all over the Puget Sound region are working to bring relief to people in need. In the months and years to come, it is important that we to continue think long-term about how, by building a sustainable, prosperous, one-planet Seattle, we can protect the future of our region and the entire planet.

This week in our local blog, we recognized several groups who are indeed working to strengthen community, spread educational resources, or just make the city a more vibrant, beautiful and safe place to live. Here are the most recent headlines from Worldchanging Seattle:

Flooding: How You Can Help
If you are able to give money to help the farmers and families in need, you can do so through one of the organizations listed here.

Mark Your Calenders: January
Enrich your January with lectures, films, networking and more. No matter what your year's goals are, here's a list of events to start 2009 off right.

Seattle to the World: Free Sheep Foundation
Transient art gallery The Free Sheep Foundation is helping to reinvent dead spaces into something beautiful … even if just for a fleeting moment.

A Wiki Approach to Writing and Publishing Free Textbooks
Students at the University of Washington are working with an innovative organization called the Global Text Project to make education resources accessible to all.

Seattle to the World: The Vera Project
The multifaceted VERA Project serves families and youth alike, creating a platform for turning today's young people into tomorrow's impassioned, skilled and experienced champions of urban culture.

Are you here in Seattle? We'd like to hear from you! Check out the local blog and leave comments, or contact editor[at]Worldchanging[dot]com if you have ideas or would like to write.

Photo: Flooding on the Chehalis River, January 8, 2009. Credit: flickr/adriannadane, Creative Commons license.

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