Archive for environmental education
The 2011 Isle of Wight Festival will be the greenest yet
Posted by: | CommentsIt is getting very near to officially being summer and for music lovers around the world that means the beginning of the summer festival season for concerts ranging from rock to jazz and folk to blues. I don’t get to attend music festivals as often as I used to but I still look at the festival lineups of numerous artists over 2 or 3 days and find myself thinking if only. One of the oldest and most famed rock festivals began on the Isle of Wight off of the southern coast of England in 1968 and although the original edition only lasted 3 summers it took its place in history as being the location of many famous performances at the end of the 1960′s.
Happily the ‘Isle of Wight Festival’ was resurrected back in 2002 and has been an annual occurrence ever since featuring some of the biggest names in rock and indie music playing for audiences in excess of 65,000 who make the journey to the island. Even better news it has quickly gathered steam as an environmentally conscious festival winning awards for its green credentials and the 2011 event this month is the biggest eco-festival yet at the location.
Beginning in 2004 the organizers looked to make the 3 day event as carbon neutral as possible resulting in awards in 2009 and 2010. This years event introduces new features and a ten-point program under the terms of their ecofest. While being very conscious of reducing the impact of the event it has also become a gathering place for environmental education and conservation work. Although there are numerous music festivals in the UK each year the Isle of Wight Festival is the only one to earn the new British standard for responsible event management. A spokesman for the Eco Action Partnership who work as consultants with the festival said:
“We love getting awards and being recognised for the efforts to make the Isle of Wight Festival a leader in environmental and sustainable best practice but the thing we are really proud of is the surprising and significant success of our Let it Bee campaign.”
The Let it Bee Campaign is unique to the island and raises awareness of the global demise of bee populations in recent years. The campaign has launched the ‘Field of Hope’ a large bee reserve on the island which has now recorded 100 different types of bees. The Field of Hope studies bee behaviour and pollination methods while looking at the impact of environment on the colonies. While we tend to focus on carbon emissions and recycling the concerns about the impact of a continued decline in bee population is perhaps even more grave than we’d like to think.
In addition the festival has numerous green initiatives and exhibits including a wide-scale recycling program, a solar powered garden stage, information booths and a festival wide bike ride event to tour special locations near to the event itself. You can learn more about the festival, the bands appearing this year and the many eco-initiatives by visiting the official website.
Tags: bee decline, bee population, conservation work, Eco Action Partnership, eco credentials, eco friendly gifts, eco-festival, eco-friendly events, ecofestival, environmental education, famous rock festivals, isle of wight festival, isle of wight lineup, let it bee, planet forward, Recycling, responsible event management, rock festival, solar power, solar power stage, stainless steel water bottles, summer music festival, sustainable awardsGreen Gazette (Issue 33) Eco Scout and the One Can of Trash Family
Posted by: | CommentsWelcome back to the Green Gazette, I’ll get back on track today with some shorter stories that may capture your thoughts as I’ve been running a bit long winded during my last few posts.

Cynthia Onorevole
Here’s a feel good story that makes you realise that good habits learned early can raise the awareness of a child to such a point that they excel in helping out others. In this circumstance Cynthia Onorevole of Rockaway Township, New Jersey has earned the highest accolade afforded within the Girl Scouts – The Gold Award, the pinnacle award for any Scout. Cynthia’s achievements had a very distinct eco-flavour attached which is encouraging (and I think reflects the changing overall awareness amongst those younger than myself about the environment). Cynthia earned the award by conducting a two-week long eco camp for students from 4th to 8th grade. Her curriculum included hands-on activities, such as making bird feeders, recyled materials being transformed into art, painting flower pots, and planting flowers. She also conducted daily included informational and Q/A sessions to provide the students with facts and strategies for protecting the environment in their daily lives. Her personal interest was sparked when she became a scout at the age of 5 and her dedication to all things environmental ever since led to her creating the eco-camp. She is currently at Junior College and hopes to join the EPA when schooling is complete. I hope she makes it as that sort of passion should be matched by a profession that suits it perfectly. Cynthia had this to say:
“My main goal was to raise awareness and provide information about environmental issues for students in grades four through eight,” said Onorevole. “I love working with children and making a positive impact on the environment. This was an excellent opportunity to utilize my knowledge in an effective and valuable way.”
Onto a very different topic, can a relationship flourish when one partner is very eco focused work if the other is more of a bystander? (for want of a better word). Of course it can and this article in the San Francisco Chronicle spotlights a couple who face that question every day, better still they’ve been doing it for 18 years and look set to continue. My sentiment? Better that half a couple are active and concerned with the environment than neither. A green lifestyle doesn’t need to be force fed to someone, hopefully awareness and education will create the same results with time and dedication.

One trashcan of waste for the entire year!
Finally a story that is really humbling, however I don’t know that matching the achievements of this family is a goal so much as evaluating some of the practices you have in your household. From the Daily Mail in England comes a story about a family who completed 2009 with an eco-plan that reduced their waste to one trash can for the entire year!! The full article makes for a great read but they were inspired to cease using plastic bags under any circumstances but also implemented the following which caused the amazing results of almost zero waste for an entire year:
- Growing as much of their own food as possible
- Using only reusable bags when they shop
- Composting whenever possible
- Ensuring 99% of all that they purchased could be recycled
They have created their own website which highlights their methods - myzerowaste.com – and this year they plan to reduce their waste to even less. I’m not sure if my predominant feeling is inspiration or guilt!
Tags: art from recycled material, composting, eco awareness, Eco-Camp, eco-romance, environmental education, environmentally friendly, EPA, Girl Scout Gold Award, Girl Scouts, myzerowaste.com, one trash can of waste per year, planet forward, Recycling, reusable bags, reusable products
There was lots of action on the main stage. John Bell, host of the successful television series World’s Greenest Homes, conducted several ‘know how’ sessions on eco-renovations and greening your home. Van Jones, environmental advocate, author of The Green Collar Economy, and former Special Advisor for Green Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation to President Obama, delivered the keynote address to discuss today’s environmental challenges. Speakers also included actors Colin Firth and Amy Smart, as well as popular Canadian and multiple Olympic Medalist, Clara Hughes. There was a huge line up to get an autograph after Clara spoke, and we tracked down one of her handlers to give her one of our stainless steel bottles. Visitors to main stage even had the opportunity to hear the Toronto mayoral candidates’ environmental platforms. Even Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty worked the crowd.
Planet Forward’s exhibit was located next to the Kids Zone and it was a busy weekend. Just like our experience last year at the Green Living Show, our 
