If you missed Manayunk's Eco-Arts Festival last September, or even if you were there, here's your chance to step up your game this year and be a star of the show. Well, one of the stars, anyway. OK, a featured supporting player.
The annual celebration (this is the second - last year it drew 30,000 attendees) brings together eco-minded artists, green businesses and environmentally-oriented community groups for a free event on Main Street, sharing resources and education about green and healthy living.
A press release promises that
This year’s event promised to be bigger, better, and greener with several exciting developments in the works! As always, there will be vegan and vegetarian dining options, on-site recycling and composting, and easy accessibility from public transit (with plenty of parking available as well).
It's no secret that part of the idea is showcasing Manayunk as an eco-friendly community, as the release continues:
A hub for sustainable, eco-conscious living, Manayunk has the feel of a small, riverside town, just outside the bustling city. The area features dozens of locally owned and operated businesses, restaurants dedicated to sustainability, new LEED certified residences, a heavily trafficked towpath, and a convenient waterfront location.
OK, that's all fine and good, but here's the real scoop: They're putting out "a call to eco-inventors/innovators who may be able to showcase at our event for free."
Does it run on air, does it run on sunlight, does it run on water? Is it made from recycled auto parts or entirely of rotary phones? Contact mvidauri@manayunk.org to see if your eco-project is a fit to showcase at our festival. No idea is too crazy!
Wanting to know exactly "how crazy" is not "too crazy," I talked to Jane R. Lipton, Executive Director of the Manayunk Development Corporation, who went into more specifics:
We’re looking for interesting exhibits for our show. Scientific types who are working on green technology, DIY’ers who have interesting inventions or whirligigs that they would like to show off. I would love to find someone who would be interested in building me a human powered “spin art” machine for us to have fun with at the festival.
Human-powered spin art! How hard can that be? Come on folks, if Philly has the young, fresh talent to create cool technology like the West Philly Hybrid X Car, someone out there oughta be able to work this out and bring it to reality before September. You can learn more about the festival and how to be a vendor or sponsor at this link.
See you in September!
The experts at Philadelphia's Energy Coordinating Agency answer your energy questions in our regular feature Stay Warm, Stay Green. Send in your question or questions to energy@phillynews.com.
Look for Jenice Armstrong to supply tips on green living as well as occasional columns on the subject of Green. She also blogs at Hey Jen.
Becky Batcha stays tuned for the here-and-now practical side of conservation, alternative energy, organic foods, etc. - stuff you can do at home now. Plus odds and ends.
Laurie Conrad recycles from her ever-growing e-mailbag to pass along the latest travel deals, fashion statements, household strategies, gadgets, cool local events and other nuggets of interest to those who appreciate a clean, green world.
Vance Lehmkuhl looks at topics like eco-conscious eating, public transportation and fuel-efficient driving from his perspective as a vegetarian, a daily SEPTA bus rider and a hybrid driver, as well as noting the occasional wacky trend or product. Contact Vance with your 'green' news.
Ronnie Polaneczky sees the green movement through the eyes of her 12-year-old daughter, who calls her on every scrap of paper or glass bottle that Ronnie neglects to toss into the house recycling bins. Ronnie will blog about new or unexpected ways to go green. She also blogs at So, What Happened Was...
Sandra Shea and the DN editorial board opine on any green-related legislation or policy. And we'll pass along some of the opeds on the subject that people send us.
Jonathan Takiff will be blogging mainly about consumer electronics - those things that we love to use and that suck too much energy. He'll spotlight green-conscious gizmos made in a responsible fashion, both in terms of materials used and the energy it takes to run them.
Signe Wilkinson draws the comic strip Family Tree, which follows the Tree family as they try to live green in the face of nattering neighbors, plastic-wrapped consumer products, and the primal teenage urge to spend vast quantities of money on hair care products of dubious organic quality.
In addition to these updates from our newsroom bloggers, watch for an occasional feature, Dumpster Diver Dispatches, from Philadelphia's original "green" community of artists, the Dumpster Divers. You'll learn about creative ways to reuse and recycle while you reduce, and about the artists who are making little masterpieces from what others throw out.
Sept. 17: A head start on cold season
Oct. 8: Help with fuel bills
Oct. 29: Last-minute ways to winterize
Nov. 19: Budgeting for the big bite
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