Greenfest Philly is Sept. 7

COMMUNITY NEWS

In early 2006 a group of individuals hanging out in a South Philadelphia row home were trying to figure out how to help the people of Philadelphia make their lives a bit greener. The group was looking for a way to make the environment something everyone in Philadelphia could connect to no matter what their opinions of the environment. "We need to meet people where they are" was the idea the collective - which would become the Urban Green Partnership - kept coming back to as it searched for ways to educate as many people as possible about the environmental issues facing the city and the Delaware valley. In March of 2006 the idea of hosting a green street party was hatched and 6 months later the South Street Green Festival was held. Over 6500 attendees and 40 vendors showed up just to see what the crazy bunch of South Philly folks were up to.

Then-City Councilman Michael Nutter, State Representative Babette Josephs, City Controller Alan Butkovits, and Niche Recycling President and RecycleNOW Chair Maurice Sampson were just a few of the speakers that turned out in the first year to show their support for the environment and their passion for making Philadelphia the Next Great City. Working with RecycleNOW, the festival helped collect over 2000 signatures in support of increasing the citywide incentivized recycling program. The 1 day festival went so well that the Urban Green Partnership decided to do it again in 2007.

And what a difference a year makes! In 2007 GreenFest Philly grew to 4 blocks, 130 vendors and was attended by over 14,000 green-loving people. Again the Urban Green Partnership teamed up with another local organization, the Delaware Valley Green Building Council, to highlight the need for more green building and show Philadelphia how to move in a greener direction. The festival was also able to work with the city and become part of Green Plan Philadelphia.

The theme for this year's GreenFest is water. With all of the news surrounding the drought in Atlanta over the past year, the GreenFest Philly team really wanted to highlight some of the local water issues. For starters, a large part of Pennsylvania also experienced drought conditions; Philadelphia County for example is currently under a drought watch. GreenFest Philly has joined forces with the Pennsylvania DEP, the Philadelphia Water Department, and local organizations to help educate people about local water issues and how each of us can make a difference.

This year's highlights include:

• 100 Mile Organic Vegan Pastry Contest - new this year, we will bring together local pastry chefs to create an organic pastry with ingredients that come from within 100 miles of Philadelphia.

• Eco-Poetry Slam

• Environmental Films and Water Quality Symposium

• Eco Exchange Fashion Show and Clothing Swap

• Kid's Activities

• Live Music

• Recycling & Compost Stations

• Water-Filling Stations

• Bike Valet

• Used Sneaker Recycling

At the end of the day getting green is everyone's job and the Urban Green Partnership is here to help the city and its residents in any way it can.

Will we see you on Sunday, September 7th, 11 a.m. - 6 p.m. at 2nd & South Streets for GreenFest Philly 2008? We sure hope so!

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