Earth Day Events Galore

Posted on by Sacha Cohen

From dining on local food and organic wine to cleaning up the Anacostia to the Climate Rally on the Mall, there’s something for everyone this week to commemorate the 40th Anniversary of Earth Day on Thursday.

Here are a few more excellent sources for all that’s green and happening this week.

The Natural Capital offers their top picks for celebrating Earth Day with a focus on outdoor activities.

Donna Childress over at We Love DC has pulled together a nearly exhaustive list of Earth Day activities from Green Drinks to the Sweetlife Festival to several green film screenings.

Did we miss something? Feel free to add in the “comments” section.

Reduce, Reuse, Upcycle Art Show

Posted on by Sacha Cohen

Talk about turning trash to treasure. At Kimpton’s Morrison House local artists have repurposed the hotel’s trash to create whimsical works of art.

General Manager Robert Hannigan invited area artists to tour the hotel and look for inspiration in discarded objects ranging from faucets and heating filters to plumbing lines.

The result is a collection of sculptures that are exclusively composed of repurposed materials and pairings of unexpected objects – like hubcaps with plastic lids.

The artists enjoyed being challenged to create art from found objects at the hotel. “The fun in working with reclaimed items is trying out unusual combinations of forms and solving the mysteries of the links between them,” said artist Rosemary Luckett, who will have six pieces on display at the reception.

A reception for the “Reduce, Reuse, Upcycle” exhibit will be held on Earth Day, Thursday, April 22 from 6-8 p.m, at the Morrison House (116 South Alfred Street, Alexandria, VA) and features more than a dozen works created for the event by local environmental artists affiliated with the Torpedo Factory Art Center in Old Town.

After the reception, guests can enjoy a 100-mile candlelight dinner in honor of Earth Day at The Grille at Morrison House . The four course dinner, with ingredients sourced from local farmers within a 100 mile radius is priced at $55 per person (excluding tax and gratuity). Eggs and poultry will be sourced from Path Valley Farms, while guests can enjoy local Virginia beef, pork sourced from Pennsylvania, and freshly caught fish from the Chesapeake and surrounding tributaries.

Gristle Book Party and Climate Lab Turns One

Posted on by Sacha Cohen

Wednesday April 7th

Book Party for Gristle

Moby and Miyun Park, the executive director of the Global Animal Partnership, have brought together 15 contributors in an informative collection that examines how industrial farming is affecting the way we live.

Contributors run the gamut from John Mackey, CEO of Whole Foods, to Lauren Bush, model and co-founder of FEED Projects. There are vegans, vegetarians, and omnivores alike and topics such as big government, parenting, occupational safety, and more.

Cost: Free
When: 6:30-8
Where: Busboys and Poets, 2021 14th St., NW

Win a copy of Gristle!
Follow @GoingGreenDC and tweet “RT and follow for a chance to win a copy of Gristle–the new book from Moby from GoingGreenDC” for a chance to win one of five books.

Five winners will be selected using Random.org by 5pm EST on April 9th, 2010. One entry per person (duplicate entries will be deleted). Winners will be contacted via email after contest has ended.  Book ships via publisher to U.S. addresses only.

Climate Lab’s First Birthday Party

Climate Lab, a DC-based non-profit, has been running a climate change wiki site for one year, providing a platform for collaborating and sharing information on climate related issues. The party will feature a live band, food, drink specials, and birthday cake. Learn more on the group’s Facebook page.

Cost: $10 suggested donation.
When: 6:30-9:30pm
Where: Local 16, 1602 U St., NW

Earth Day-a-Palooza: April’s Best Green Events

Posted on by Sacha Cohen


April 6

Social Media & Green Marketing Panel

Learn how to use social media to drive growth for sustainable products. This lively panel discussion will be moderated by Kate Sheppard of Mother Jones and will take place from 5:30-6:30 followed by a cocktail reception at Helix Lounge featuring drink and food specials.

Panelists include Adam Shake, Jennifer Kaplan, Diane MacEachern, Lynn Miller, and Sacha Cohen.

RSVP to this FREE event!

April 7

Organic Wine Tasting & Local Treats [SOLD OUT!]

The Eco Luxe Life, grassfed media, and GoingGreenDC.net present an organic wine tasting at Weygandt Wines from 6:30-8. The event will also feature local and sustainable treats from Dino, Divine Chocolate, and Firefly Farm. Part of the proceeds will go to the DC Farm to School Network.

RSVP/Tickets ($15 in advance/$20 at the door)

April 17

The Green Rush

Live Green invites you to an action-packed, fun-filled scavenger hunt adventure from 2:30-5:30 where you race against the clock to explore DC’s most eco-friendly spots. The Green Rush will kick-off at the Green in the Circle Festival in Dupont Circle with entertainment, speakers, and lots of green exhibitors.

Details:

Start: Dupont Circle’s Green in the Circle Festival; Registration open from 1:00 pm – 2:30 pm

End: The Reef, after party and awards from 5:30 pm – 8:00 pm

Registration: $25 per person, $20 for Live Green members and includes admission to after party and free give-aways during the Green Rush. Register online.

April 22

Green Hours

All three Busboys & Poets locations will be hosting Green Hours on Earth Day 2010, April 22nd, from 5PM to midnight. Stop by to celebrate Earth Day’s 40th Anniversary with special eco-cocktails (delicious and environmentally-friendly!) featuring sustainable spirits from VeeV and Leopold Bros.

2021 14th St NW, Washington, DC 20009

4251 South Campbell Ave, Arlington, VA 22206

1025 5th Street NW, Washington, DC 20001

More “Green Hours”

April 25th

Climate Rally on the National Mall

Earth Day Network and partner organizations will organize a massive climate rally on The National Mall to demand Congress enacts climate and clean energy legislation in 2010.

When: 11:00 am to 7:00 pm

Where: National Mall

Food and Sustainability at Arlington Reads

Posted on by Sacha Cohen

This year, the Arlington Public Library’s Arlington Reads 2010 program is all about food and sustainability and will feature appearances by urban farmer/author Novella Carpenter and literary legend, poet, and farmer Wendell Berry.

Events include:

Sunday April 11, 3 p.m.
Shirlington Branch Library, 4200 Campbell Ave., Arlington
Panel Discussion: Eating Local
A panel of area farmers and naturalists will look at simple ways to eats foods that are safer, healthier and geared to the bounty of each season. It’s all part of the sustainable, consumer-supported agriculture movement that has built a following in groceries and restaurants around Arlington. Moderator: Samuel Fromartz, author of Organic Inc. Panel: Hiu Newcomb, co-founder of Potomac Vegetable Farms (an organic/eco-ganic CSA and active in area farmers markets); Matt Szechenyi, owner of Briar’s Farmstead (pasture raised beef, pork, chicken and turkey); Rob Miller, owner, Distillery Lane Ciderworks: (heirloom apples for cider-making and eating); Chris O’Brien, beer activist, author of Fermenting Revolution.

Saturday, April 17, 2 p.m.
Arlington Central Library Auditorium, 1015 N. Quincy St., Arlington
Film Screening: “A Community of Gardeners” (2010)
A work-in-progress screening of “A Community of Gardeners,” produced by local filmmaker Cintia Cabib. The documentary explores the vital role of seven community gardens in D.C., not only as sources of fresh, nutritious food, but as outdoor classrooms, places of healing, centers of social interaction, and oases of beauty and calm in inner-city neighborhoods. The screening will be followed by a Q&A with Cabib.

Thursday, April 29, 7 p.m.
Arlington Central Library Auditorium, 1015 N. Quincy St.
Author Talk: Novella Carpenter, Farm City: The Education of An Urban Farmer
Novella Carpenter has restaged the American agrarian dream in an abandoned Oakland, CA, lot, raising fruits, vegetables, bees, and even pigs and goats in a neighborhood known as “GhostTown.” Her critically acclaimed Farm City—featured on “best book lists” from Oprah to the New York Times—spreads the gospel of home-grown food and the empowerment it brings.

Tuesday, May 4, 7 p.m.
Arlington Central Library Auditorium, 1015 N. Quincy St.
Featured Author Talk: A Conversation with Wendell Berry
In a rare public appearance, literary legend, essayist, poet and Kentucky farmer Wendell Berry visits Arlington Public Library to discuss his life’s work and vision of people honoring and reconnecting with the soil. It was Berry who declared “eating is an agricultural act,” inspiring today’s movement toward safer, healthier, locally produced meals and sustainable living. Berry’s classic novel The Memory of Old Jack is this year’s Arlington Reads featured title.