Green wave hits Brighton

Posted by: Katie

Don’t worry, it’s not an environmental disaster! No, a new green festival ‘Green Wave’ - billed as ‘The Eco Family Fun Weekend’ - is headed for Brighton on Saturday 5 and Sunday 6 July.

You’ll be able to experience all the fun of the green fair in the beautiful setting of Preston Park with eight different interactive Zones, from the Earth Zone - where you might find wormeries, composting ideas and a mini eco farm - to the Energy Zone, for products harnessing sustainable energy, ranging from mobile phones to solar powered cars, and an Energy Play Area or eco circus for children. (click on the image to the right to see the flyer full size)

The emphasis is very much on our favourite watchwords: biodiversity, eco-friendly, Fairtrade, homemade, locally produced, low carbon footprint, recycled and sustainable!

Take a stand!

If you are a Sussex-based ethical business, charity or NGO there is still time for you to take a stand at the fair. Charities and NGOs are eligible for free stands, and there may even be a few free stands available for small ethical businesses that add value or pure fun to the event!

If you are interested in this opportunity, do get in touch with the organisers:

Frank Jay on 01273 323 200 or 07721 633 233 or at frank@neweraassociates.co.uk

Or Jacqui on 01273 323 200 or 07740 201194 or at jac.cuff@talktalk.net

Or simply download the Green Wave booking form and return it to them.

It should be a fantastic event!

Take care,

Katie
Ethical Weddings

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Redditch Green Fair

Posted by: Kate

Well it has certainly been a busy few months for me with green event season now in full swing. We began our GreenFinder summer tour at U.K Aware which was a fantastic exhibition for green consumers followed by Sheffield green city days and Camden green fair.

This weekend sees the third annual Redditch green fair take place on Saturday so for those of you in the West Midlands area please show your support and come and see what the event has to offer. It is organised by the Redditch Alliance of Greens who always put a great deal of time and effort into the show and they have confirmed that there will be over 26 stalls taking part this year. For more details about the event please visit the Reddditch green fair website. For those of you interested in getting out and about and visiting green fairs and shows in your local area this summer check out our green event listings.

Kate

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Event - From Oil Dependency to Local Resilience

Posted by: Vicky

This meeting has been organised by Transition Nottingham which is part of a network of pioneering communities working to reduce our impact on the climate and increase our resilience to the effects of Peak Oil.

SPEAKER: Rob Hopkins, Architect of the Transition movement, co-founder of the Transition Network and and Transition Totnes.

Date: Tuesday 27th May 2008 5.45 - 6.45pm
Venue: BioCity, Pennyfoot Street, Nottingham, NG1 1GF

Please download the event flyer for further information as well as www.transitionnottingham.org.uk

Please note this meeting is aimed at a business, professional and academic audience. It is additional to another event being organised by Transition Nottingham aimed a broader audience on the same evening, also with Rob Hopkins. The second event will be at the Nottingham Mechanics, North Sherwood St. at 7.30pm

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Nottingham Green Festival this Sunday!

Posted by: Vicky

If you’re in Nottingham this weekend come along to the Green Festival in the Arboretum.

There will be music, games, crafts, demonstrations and lots and lots of green businesses and organisations. Jez and I will be there with our Make Hay ethical e-media and Green Hosting stall and we’ll also publicise GGG of course!

This event is part of Nottingham’s Greenweeks to celebrate sustainability. It opens at 11.30am and finishes at 6pm on 25th May at the Arboretum on Waverley Street in Nottingham.

View Larger Map

If you’re around, come and say hello. It would be lovely to meet you.

For more details visit the Greenweeks website - www.greenweeks.org

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Brighton World Fair Trade Day event - Sat 10 May

Posted by: Katie

We are really excited about our World Fair Trade Day event this Saturday 10 May!

Greg Valerio of Cred Jewellery is going to be telling us all about the process of seeking Fair Trade certification for gold and diamonds. So if you’re on the lookout for an ethical engagement or wedding ring, are confused about conflict diamonds and focused on Fair Trade, it really is a must.

The event takes place this Saturday 10 May at The Friends Meeting House, Ship Street, Brighton.

If you happen to be in Brighton on Saturday and can tear yourself away from the beach for an hour or two, we’d love to see you there…!

Midday – 2pm – fair trade stalls and information stands

2-3pm – speaker event – ‘Fair Trade that glitters’ - raising awareness of the social and environmental issues surrounding gold and diamonds (going beyond conflict or blood diamonds) and the route towards fair trade certification that Greg Valerio of Cred Jewellery has been spearheading.

Greg will be talking about his experiences to date and what future he sees for fair trade gold and diamonds. A Q&A session will follow the presentation.

3-4.30pm – chance to chat to local ethical businesses

4.30pm – late! – chat some more in The Cricketers pub over the road (The Cricketers, Black Lion Street, BN1 1ND)

The event is free but donations to cover costs will be gratefully accepted.

You are very welcome to come along to all or any part of this day-long event.

Hope to see you there!

Katie & Jamie
www.ethicalweddings.com

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Climate Change Charity Art Auction

Posted by: Vicky

For all green art enthusiasts, this is the event for you!

A charity art auction, ‘Art Aid: Embrace‘ will be taking place on Saturday 21st June to raise money to support poor communities in Africa, Asia and Latin America adapt to climate change.

The work of around 50 artists from the East Midlands will be displayed in the View from the Top gallery in Nottingham from Wednesday 18th June until the reception and auction on Saturday 21st June.

The many artworks available are:
Painting and Drawing
Mixed Media
Original Printmaking
Ceramics and Sculpture
Photography
Signed Print

So there’s something for all art lovers out there!

If you’d like an evening of culture, treat yourself to a beautiful piece of art and help raise money for those affected by climate change then pop along to the website www.art-aid.org to find out more.

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Event - Turning up the HEAT

Posted by: Vicky

Can big business really save the planet?

Turning up the HEAT is a series of free interactive and virtual debates on climate change and corporate power organised by the World Development Movement.

You can turn up in person to the events in London (8th May), Cardiff (10th May) and Manchester (13th May) or you can watch and participate online - by watching the live webcasts and pre-recorded videos both before and after the events.

Panel speakers include: Rt. Hon Brian Wilson Flying Matters; Caroline Lucas MEP Green Party; Ricardo Navarro CESTA, El Salvador and many more.

For more information and to register please go to: www.wdm.org.uk/heat

Information provided by Rachel Tavernor

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Happy Earth Day!

Posted by: Arcadia

“On April 22, 1970, Earth Day was held, one of the most remarkable happenings in the history of democracy…” American Heritage magazine, October 1993

Did you know that today is actually the 38th anniversary of Earth Day? I have to admit I didn’t know that either. Senator Gaylord Nelson, the founder of Earth Day actually had this idea seven years prior to its official celebration. He knew then how important it was to bring attention to the demise of our environment. He had this idea in 1962 on how to bring environmental issues to the fore front; so he persuaded President Kennedy to take a five day, eleven state conservation tour in September 1963. The tour was not as successful as he had hoped in bringing national attention to the environment but it did plant the seed to what would become Earth Day!

“At a conference in Seattle in September 1969, I announced that in the spring of 1970 there would be a nationwide grassroots demonstration on behalf of the environment and invited everyone to participate. The wire services carried the story from coast to coast. The response was electric. It took off like gangbusters. Telegrams, letters, and telephone inquiries poured in from all across the country. The American people finally had a forum to express its concern about what was happening to the land, rivers, lakes, and air - and they did so with spectacular exuberance……….” -Senator Gaylord Nelson (www.earthday.enironlink.org)

Today, because of this one day 38 years ago, when millions of Americans decided to act, we now have laws protecting our most precious resource, our Planet! We have the Clean Air Act, the Endangered Species Act, the Safe Drinking Water Act, the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, the Federal Land Policy and Management Act, and so many others that help us live in a healthy environment.

Earth Day isn’t just about going out and hugging a tree, it’s the one day to pause and recognize that our very existence depends on how we manage and maintain our surroundings; and to ignore it is to do so at our own peril for now and generations to come.

I’ve always liked the reason why the company Seventh Generation chose that as its name: The company derives its name from the Great Law of the Iroquois that states, “In our every deliberation, we must consider the impact of our decisions on the next seven generations.” This is something to think about on day like today.

I hope you enjoy your day today as there are so many celebrations happening all over. *Fun Fact:  Today is also the birthday of Julius Sterling Morton, founder of Arbor Day (the national tree planting holiday)!

Here’s a small timeline of just how far we’ve come in such a short amount of time:

In the 1970s 20 million people gathered to celebrate the first Earth Day.

In the 1980s Congress declares the public’s right to know when toxic chemicals are released in the air, land, and sea.

In the 1990s the EPA (environmental protection agency) issues tough new air quality standards for smog and soot, an action that would improve the air quality for 125 million Americans.

In the 2000s school buses across the country are retrofitted through the Clean School Bus USA program removing 200,000 lbs. of particulates over the next 10 years.

”Earth Day worked because of the spontaneous response at the grassroots level. We had neither the time nor resources to organize 20 million demonstrators and the thousands of schools and local communities that participated. That was the remarkable thing about Earth Day. It organized itself.” Senator Gaylord Nelson.

Happy Earth Day!

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U.K Aware Special Offer

Posted by: Kate

After months and months of planning the U.K Aware Greener Living Expo will take place at the Barbican in central London on the weekend of May 10th & 11th. It is set to be one of the biggest events of its kind and I for one have already been caught up with the excitement of it all.

U.K AWARE are delighted to be able to offer all Green Girls Globals visitors an exclusive two-for- one ticket offer. Simply visit www.ukaware.com and enter the code ‘SUB241’ to obtain your discount. The weekend will be a melting pot of world class speakers and ground-breaking exhibitors, environmentalists, business and innovative design. LONDON AWARE 08 promises hundreds of exciting green products for you to see, touch, feel, taste and smell, and with their 2-for-1 tickets you can bring along your family and friends!

I am going to be setting up my GreenFinder showcase stall there and can’t wait to see whats on offer. I’ve already chosen which speakers I’m planning to go and see and must confess that Trevor Bayliss the inventor of the wind up radio is top of my list.

See you all there!!!!

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Planning a hand-made, eco wedding

Posted by: Vicky

As mine and Jez’s big day approaches and most of the preparations in place I thought I would steal a little time to reflect and share my experience in planning our eco and ethical wedding.

Right from the start we wanted our wedding to reflect our everyday values and beliefs, how we live and work. Although we didn’t tell anyone until the summer, our plans started last spring, looking for all of the main wedding necessities - a place to have the ceremony, a place to celebrate and someone to provide food.

Ceremonies & Celebrations

Finding a place to have the ceremony was easy, neither of us wanted to get married in church and the cost of using a hotel or other licenced venue ruled that out immediately. So, register office it was to be. We didn’t choose the one in Nottingham city as it isn’t very pretty and would be further for our families to travel so we chose one in a nearby town which has a walled garden and is just as easy to get to via public transport.

Party Venue
Looking for a place to celebrate and a caterer went hand in hand because of course the venue needed the facilities to prepare and serve food and the caterer had to be happy working in the chosen venue. It took me a little while to catch on to the idea of having a celebration in a village hall, I don’t know why but I think I originally got the idea from an Ethical Weddings blog post. I had spend days and days scouring the internet for a suitable place in Nottinghamshire, again hotels were just too expensive and many places wanted to provide their own food but I was determined to find an ethical caterer of our own.

Ethical Caterer
Luckily after the great realisation that a village hall would be just right for us, I narrowed it down to two possibilities, visited them both and chose one immediately, a charity run hall not far from the register office. In-between times I was glued to my computer searching for a suitable caterer and in Nottinghamshire that isn’t easy. I think in total I found 3 caterers that could provide local, organic and fair trade food but when I called Cate from C8TER I need look no further. Right from the start Cate reassured me with her friendly, professional and flexible approach and her attention to detail. She’s knowledgable about sourcing local and organic food and after sampling her cooking I’m really looking forward to the meal on the day!

Dressing Up

Luckily, finding a dress happened quite quickly, although I expected it to be difficult. In fact initially I didn’t see myself with a traditional wedding dress and thought I would buy a pretty organic cotton dress or something similar. However, wedding fever soon took over and I got carried away with the idea of having a bridal gown. At this point I can’t say too much as Jez hasn’t seen the dress and I don’t want to give anything away.

Oxfam Bridal
Once I knew I was going to get a wedding dress I also knew where I wanted to buy it - Oxfam Bridal. So, last July my mum and I excitedly set off to Leicester where the nearest Oxfam Bridal store is. Unfortuntaly I didn’t find the dress for me on that first trip but I was heartened and encouraged by how nicely they had set up that separate part of the shop and the variety of gowns. The next nearest Oxfam Bridal shop is in Bradford and that shopping trip was the ultimate in making the most of public transport - All tied in with a business meeting and a visit to see some friends I managed to get from Bradford train station to the Oxfam store, pick a dress, try it on, buy it and get back on the train all in about 30 minutes! I was so pleased that I’d found something that was just right and was really impressed with the choice and facilities in the Oxfam shop. The staff there were excited and fussy which made it even more special.

I realise that for some people the thought of buying their bridal gown from a charity shop sounds terrible but its probably the single item that I’m most pleased with and I’m so happy that I did manage to find it at Oxfam.

Bouquets and Posies
I had a mixed experience trying to find a suitable florist for my bouquet. Initially I was going plant some tulip bulbs in the garden, ask our families to do the same and make my own bunch of flowers nearer to the time. Then I came to my senses and realised I know absolutely nothing about keeping or arranging flowers once they’ve been plucked from the ground and decided to seek professional advice.

I spoke to a few different florists, some of whom were sympathetic to the idea of having a green and ethical wedding and others who just looked baffled when I asked about locally sourced flowers. I’m not picky, I think all flowers are beautiful and so I wasn’t going to dictate exactly the type of flower I wanted as long as it was grown as nearby as possible and were roughly in the colours I wanted. I chose a florist called The Rose Bower in the end because they were the most helpful and were willing to find out what seasonal, locally grown flowers would be available at this time of year before I’d even decided to use them. I can’t wait to see mine and Beth’s (my bridesmaid, niece & guest GGG editor) tulip bouquets when I go to collect them on the morning and they will have only travelled from the next county, Lincolnshire.

Invitations & Decorations

After organising the food and venues the rest of the planning was quite easy. I love making things and wanted something individual, so I decided from the start that I would make the invitations, menus, favours, name places and decorations myself.

Bunting!
The village hall is quite typical in that it really needs a lick of paint and looks quite grubby in daylight but I like a challenge and so last September Jez, his mum, my parents and I went off armed with notepads and tape measures to figure out how we could transform it into a beautiful place to celebrate. From then on I spent months finding large pieces of fabric and sheets to drape around the room, some from charity shops and some from ebay. I also bought some pink, yellow, green and white cotton to make my own bunting. I have metres and metres of the stuff and my friends at our craft group, Stitched Up, found it quite amusing that this cotton bunting never seemed to end!

I love bunting, it always seems to cheer me up. I’ve even had a small piece hanging up in the house for a few weeks.

RSVP
Because the venue is near to a maypole (which I used to run around and around when I was little) we’ve ended up with a maypole theme and the spring colours lemon, pink and green. So, I was very lucky when I asked my graphic designer friend if she could design me a motif for invites, menus etc using that theme. What she came up with was beautiful and I just what I wanted. I bought all of the recycled card, paper and envelopes I needed from Eco Craft who delivered it very quickly.

We asked our guests to RSVP via a website we’d built. The website also provides details of transport, directions, local hotels and so on to save from using up any more paper than necessary.

Tables, Favours & Name Cards
Aside from card for invites and menus I bought some lovely recycled paper which has confetti embedded in it. From this I made little origami boxes (which I talked about in my ‘Origami Genius!’ post) and will put in each of them a bulb from my Dad’s garden - these are our guests’ favours.

The name places are hand made, natural fruit lollipops with no artificial colours or flavours from sweetstall.com and I have added little labels to each one for our guests with a little picture. Jez and I have a house rabbit so our labels have loved-up bunnies on them, ahhhh. The others have butterflies, hearts and flowers.

Also, to decorate the tables we painted some plant pots white and decorated them with our colours and theme and soon I will be planting in them primroses or another spring flower which have been grown by a gardener just a few miles down the road.

The day before the wedding myself, Jez and an army of sisters and nieces and my mum and dad will spend the day putting all of these decorations together, hopefully creating a lovely room for eating, drinking and dancing.

Cake, Wine & Water

One of the nicest things about planning a wedding is that people really want to help and be involved. Jez’s mum is brilliant at making and decorating cakes and there was no question that she would be making ours. We decided to go for a traditional fruit cake (with organic ingredients) as well as Fairtrade chocolate cupcakes. Jez’s mum and I spent a lovely weekend making all of the little white sugar flowers for the main cake and hearts and butterflies for the cupcakes.

Guests will will take home slices of cake in pretty white recycled card boxes from The Tiny Box Company. Rachel at The Tiny Box Company was so obliging, helping me to choose the right size box and keep within my budget - This was the very last thing I bought and so I didn’t want to spend too much. It was a very speedy delivery too so I didn’t need to worry about any last minute hitches.

The bubbly and wine is all organic and Fairtrade and one of the types we have chosen is an English wine from Pennard Organic Vineyard.

I’m also extremely happy that we even managed to find eco friendly bottled water thanks to our Green Guy Gareth’s post ‘Bottled Water: Environmental Disaster?‘ . In that article Gareth mentions Belu Water, a carbon neutral company whose profits go towards clean water projects. So, I contacted Belu who very helpfully found me a local supplier, Lee & Fletcher, who delivered the water to my door in just a couple of days!

I Do!

The rings are the last thing I’m going to talk about although I’m sure I must have forgotten something. I’ll probably give an update afterwards anyway so I can show pictures of the decorated venue and my dress, which won’t be a secret by then.

Looking for rings was quite a strange experience. We wanted to get antique or second hand rings because that is the greenest option available - I always work on that principle and used it throughout the wedding planning. I guess we were a little niaive thinking that we’d be able to pop into one of the many antique shops in Nottinghamshire, pick up two gold wedding bands and be on our way. Apparently this isn’t the case.

After going into a few shops, looking at every other type of antique ring but finding no wedding rings one lady told me that they just don’t sell them because people are too superstitious to buy them. She said that if a wedding band was brought to the shop it just got sent for scrap! What a waste! I was so disappointed. However, the internet is a fantastic thing and after a quick search I not only found John Clive Jewellers but two perfect second hand rings in exactly the right size!

When I look back I’m proud of what we’ve achieved. Not everything is 100% green, we’re having a fancy car to take us to the register office and a disco in the evening but all-in-all I think we’ve done really well.

I’ll be in touch again at the end of April to let you know how it all went!

Filed under Families, Gardening, Recycling, Events, Love & Relationships, Fair Trade, Food | Comments (9)