May 23
“In its 10th year in Seattle the Green Festival celebrated 1 million attendees and all that is good and green. Green Festival is the largest sustainability-focused event in the U.S. and folks learned about everything from GMO’s and organics to solar and urban composting options. People also came out to hear from well-known sustainability experts including Dennis Kucinich, Ed Humes, and Zoe Weil.”
VIEW PHOTOS: 2011 Green Festival via Mohini Patel Glanz – Seattle Weekly
May 23
“The sun disappeared and it was back to another rainy day in Seattle. Which made it a perfect day to enjoy some indoor activity such as the 4th annual Seattle Green Festival! This year the festival moved to a new venue, inside Qwest Field Event Center.
I’ve been volunteering and attending the festival since its first year. I’m so happy to be able to participate again this year. What a great event to be able to meet so many people who care about the environment.”
“Do you live for the weekend? Beyond being a loyal TGIFer, are you a TGIS&S (Thank God It’s Saturday and Sunday) kind of person — lazy as the Fremont Troll?
This pullout is for you. Here’s a weekend-by-weekend, stick-it-on-the-fridge, Best Bets edition of Summer Guide.
(Check Summer Guide’s monthly calendars for details on dates and times.)
May 21-22 weekend
You know all those elderly, burnt-out-hippie rock stars who are the big draw at little casinos? If their essence was boiled down and cast on the wind (OK, it’s a stretch, but stay with us here) it would settle like a fine mist on The Ave in Seattle’s University District and up would pop the University District StreetFair. It’s considered the kickoff of Seattle’s summer festival season, with the street cred to back that up: 42 years as a purveyor of macramé plant hangers, bangly earrings, henna tattoos and painted faces, along with more fire eaters, meat-cleaver jugglers, pan-pipe bands and hula-hooping guitar pickers than you’ll find anywhere this side of Eugene.www.udistrictchamber.org/StreetFair.
And don’t forget: Horned helmets and clog dancing atViking Fest in Poulsbo; tips for eating a Douglas fir (maybe?) at the Seattle Green Festival; and nautical, San Juan-y fun at Anacortes Waterfront Festival.”
A weekend-by-weekend guide to summer fun around Seattle via Brian Cantwell – Seattle Times
“Charles Earnest attended early Green Festivals when he lived in San Francisco. After moving home to Bellevue six years ago, the marketing professional and Microsoft contractor served as a catalyst for bringing the nation’s premier sustainability event to the Pacific Northwest.
Now in its fourth year in Seattle, the Green Festival will be held in a new location at Qwest Event Center, May 21-22. It features some 300 eco-friendly exhibitors and 125 speakers, many of whom hail from the Puget Sound region.
“Frankly, we have all sorts of sustainable events, but nothing of this scale,” said Earnest, who serves as a host committee member and volunteer. “As a promotion, however, the goal is to get new people in the door – to attract people who have never before stepped in a green event.”’
Locals get down with the Green Festival via Leslee Jaquette – Bellevue KOMO
“This year the Green Festival will be held at the Qwest Event Center next weekend, May 21-22. For more information, check out the online program guide.”
Green Festival Seattle at Qwest Event Center via Jack Olmstead – Seattle Pi Blogs
“Families visiting the Green Kids Zone at Green Festival Chicago 2011 on Saturday, May 14 and Sunday, May 15 can enjoy a variety of physical, creative, and educational play activities, as well as lively entertainment presented on stage. On Saturday, this area was bustling with happy children doing everything from making newspaper shark fins at the Discover the Depths table to singing along with The Chicago School of Blues on stage. When taking a break from learning about the eco-friendly products on display at the rest of the festival, families can stop by the Green Kids Zone to learn about the natural world in the following fun and playful ways.”
Educational, eco-friendly fun at Green Kids Zone at Green Festival Chicago 2011 via Renee Carver – Chicago Children’s Toys Examiner
May 21-22, Qwest Event Center (800 Occidental Avenue S., Seattle): The Green Festival. Billed as “the nation’s premier sustainability event,” this wide-ranging extravaganza of alternative, well, everything features a long and variegated list of guest speakers, exhibitors, arts, crafts and musicians. And it won’t cost you much green: between $5 and $25, depending on how, when and where you pay. Be there or be Republican.
May be a busy month, liberally speaking via Matthew Thuney – Seattle Liberal Examiner
Excerpted from: Taking Aim at Mutant Capitalism via Nic Halverson – Mindful Metropolis
John Perkins, author of the New York Times bestseller, Confessions of an Economic Hit Man, talks about his most recent book and how to create a more equitable and ethical economy
Are you starting to see more companies—one’s that honor true cost accounting—emerge through the Green Festivals?
It really gives me great hope when I see things like the Green Festival, where there’s a very strong vetting of the products that are sold there and we’re looking at companies that really are producing clothes, food, shoes and appliances in a much more socially and environmentally responsible way. And I have to say that I don’t think any of these companies are perfect at this point, but we’re moving in that direction. At places like the Green Festival, you have this huge market place where so many things are for sale that are all being [produced] in the most advanced socially and environmentally responsible ways that we know today. That gives me great hope and its always pushing the envelope. So every year these companies ought to get better at what they do and over time, perhaps, we’ll be approaching perfection and maybe someday we might even reach it. But in the meantime, what we all ought to do is support companies that have made a commitment to being socially and environmentally responsible.
It sounds like communities that foster social and environmental stewardship really motivate you to speak at and participate in the Green Festivals.
Absolutely. I’ve been speaking at the Green Festivals for many years now and I’m speaking at all of them this next year. The last couple of years Amy Goodman and I have been the only ones who have spoken at all of them. People sometimes ask me, ‘how can you afford to do that [every year] as so things don’t get tedious at the Green Festivals?’ And my response is, ‘How can I afford not to? I have a three-and-a-half-year-old grandson and I want to make a better world for him and all his brothers and sisters on the planet.’ So, how can I afford not to do it? We can teach a lot of people and support a very, very good cause. And the organizations behind the Green Festival are all very committed and dedicated to creating a more environmentally and socially responsible planet.
Organic Food Club, Inc., dba Taste-A-Thon has over 35 years experience in the organic and natural food industry. We have strived to gain exposure in the desirable and highly targeted Green and sustainable market by providing the public with the opportunity to “taste before they buy” (our motto) at mass-marketed events, schools and farmer’s markets.
The Taste-A-Thon concept has been a lively and popular attraction for over twenty-three years. We are proud of the fact that our booths are consistently busy with people waiting to taste and sample our foods throughout the day. Taste-A-Thons are located in cities where retail merchants sell the products we sample. In addition, by handing out product information and coupons, this is a powerful way to increase the retailer’s customer base.
Recently, we have implemented www.OrganicFoodClub.com, an Amazon (online) Store, conveniently organized for an easy accessible shopping experience. One click and you can select over 30 alphabetized categories, ranging from baby products to sweeteners and syrups, including dips & spreads, snack bars, energy beverages and gluten free cookies, etc. Amazon’s healthy organic product pricing is practically impossible to match due to their massive economies of scale. We urge you to check our low prices and compare to where you buy your healthy organic products now.
Our involvement in the Green Festivals began in 2007 in San Francisco, CA, and we have since participated each year. This month at the Chicago Green Festival, we will be sampling products from the following companies:
Our newest company, Taste Marketing, Inc. dba Organic Produce Box has created a fundraising opportunity for schools, organizations, businesses, or an individual. This program makes it possible to conveniently purchase certified organic produce that is affordable and fresher than store bought. We are currently looking for new pickup locations for a minimum of 25 people / families to order these boxes. Please visit www.organicproducebox.com for more information, or contact 773-331-0260. Stop by the Taste-A-Thon booth.
Finally, we have aligned our efforts with community action/non-profit organizations such as Farm Aid and the Organic Farming Research Foundation. It is through their generous donations that we continue to create fundraising campaigns which set us apart from any other consumer direct marketing company. We are extremely pleased with our donation concept, as it has raised thousands of dollars over the last several years.
For more information contact:
Ed Kugler, Taste-a-thon Founder
Apr 27
On May 21 and 22 Project of Green America and Global Exchange will host theSeattle Green Festival at Qwest Field Event Center. The Green Festival is an excellent event to attend if you and your family are trying to live a more “green” lifestyle. The Green Festival aims to teach people about the most authentic environmental and socially responsible way to live.