Held next week in Indore, India on October 31 through November 2, 2011, the Symposium is organized by Professor Suresh Billore, PhD, DSc of GREEN TAKNIKI – Restoring Nature – the International Symposium on Green Technology and held under the auspices of the World Green Infrastructure Network (WGIN) and is co-hosted by the Mayor of Indore.
This prestigious greenroof symposium is the first of its kind in India!
“Green Technology is the foremost tool to repair urbanization damage in bringing back shift in cliumate change, cool building, biodiversity, energy conservation, flood management, noise-dust-toxic gas reduction, food and water production and creation of new markets for green goods and services.” ~ International Green Technology Symposium
Twenty international and national speakers will be presenting on a variety of subjects. WGIN President Professor Manfred Köhler of Germany will be in attendance, along with Hitesh Doshi of Canada, and Paul Kephart, Dhiru Thadani, and Dr. Karen Weber of Earth Our Only Home, Foundation for a Green Future, and Boston GreenFest of the U.S, among other notables – see the Speakers page here.
Aramis and I would have loved to have participated, but there’s just too much going on here now. The day tour on November 2 and 4-day post-conference tour option are going to be awesome, and we will sorely miss it! If you are going, please take lots of photos and keep us posted!
Organized by Dr. Karen Weber and The Foundation for a Green Future, Inc., it’s the region’s largest environmental and multicultural festival. Boston GreenFest celebrates the many ways we can create a better world by greening our lives and our communities.
Boston GreenFest 2011 HOURS:
Thursday, August 18: 5 pm – 9:30 pm: Performers & Food - Bill McKibben will be your EcoMC! Friday, August 19: noon – 9:30 pm: Exhibitors/Food/Vendors/Performers Saturday, August 20: 11 am – 8 pm: Exhibitors/Food/Vendors/Performers
The EcoParty continues every night at the Hard Rock Café presented by Afrodesiacity!
The website says to stop by the EcoKids area for Radio Disney, TryOutToys and FIRST Lego Robots and that MassBike will run a Valet Bike Parking Service all day Friday & Saturday at the City Hall steps.
2011 HIGHLIGHTS:
- Native American Drum Ceremony – Green Fireworks and Light Show – Transportation Tomorrow Today! – Over 200 Exhibitors – 200 Live Performances – GreenSouleStage – Great Escape with Alexanderia! – NOCHE LATINA – EcoSalsa Fashion Show – Jambalaya and Samba Dancers – YMAA Kung Fu Demonstration – NESA Gymnastic Presentation – Tap Off with Boston Tap Company – Green Entrepreneur Small Biz Forum – EcoCafé, EcoGallery, EcoBazaar – GreenFilmFest – EcoFashion Pop-Up Shop – One Gallon ChallengeTM – EcoTimeTrail – BPS EcoPhoto Contest – EcoPoetry with Seitu – Boston GreenFest Quilt – Fun for Kids!
“The Foundation for a Green Future, Inc. is dedicated to ensuring a green future for our planet and is proud to host this event. We must teach, support and model sustainable ways to live for ourselves and our children. Green roofs are an important part of the solution. This festival will go beyond our roofs. It will get to the core of GREEN SOLUTIONS for our entire Boston Community.”
These are the EcoThemes for 2011:
• Green Roofs, Green Cities• EcoDesign and Green Buildings• Sustainable Business & Investing• College Impact• Communications• Our Food & Farms• Water• Energy• GreenTech,CleanTech• Our Community• Green Homes• Green Lifestyles• Transportation• Walk & Bike• Health & Wellness• Healthy Minds & Spirit• Fitness & Recreation• EcoFashion & Shows• International Perspectives• Green Perspectives• EcoKids
Speaking of “EcoThemes,” don’t miss one of our contributing editors, George Irwin – The Green Wall Editor – of Green Living Technologies International (GLTi), who will be speaking about greenroofs and walls. His lecture is part of an interactive hands on demonstration of an authentic 800 sf greenroof installed on the Boston City Hall plaza as part of the weekend display.
The set up is part of an AIA lecture series by GLTi and they are offering AIA credit hours at no cost to attendees. Visit the GLTi booth to learn all about vegetative roofs and living walls, and to pick up a free copy of Greenroofs.com’s Greenroofs & Walls of the World™ 2011 Calendar (limited number)!
If you live in the Boston area, you’ll find lots of music, fun, and learning activities here for the whole family, and get to participate in a really clean and green environment. Visit Boston GreenFest 2011 for more info.
A dear greenroof colleague of ours, Dr. Karen L. Weber is the Executive Director of the Foundation for a Green Future and Coordinator of Boston GreenFest, now in its 4th year. Based in Boston, Massachusetts, the Foundation for a Green Future runs programs to educate school children and communities about the importance of bringing nature back into our cities.
“We are a group of dedicated Board members and volunteers who are working hard to make the Foundation for a Green Future, Inc. a driving force for environmental awareness and for bringing nature back into our urban spaces. Originating from five continents, we span industry, academia, community organizing, energy, and small business.” ~ Foundation for a Green Future, Inc.
Boston GreenFest is their annual festival at Boston City Hall and takes place at the end of August. The largest multicultural environmental festival in the region, Boston GreenFest 2011 will have various new special features including a GreenSoul Stage, Green Entrepreneurs Small Business Forum, EcoQuest, Eco Salsa Fashion Show and an eco-friendly firework display. They’ll also launch a GreenKiosk Contest and a Mini GreenPlaza Challenge. This year Boston GreenFest will be held on August 18-20 – don’t miss it!
I’m delighted to say that early last month, Karen received a prestigious award given by New England Women in Energy and Environment – the NEWIEE Achievement Award. This was to honor Dr. Weber’s work at the Foundation and Boston GreenFest in educating the public about greening our urban spaces and our lives, particularly with regard to greenroofs and sustainable practices.
“Founded in Boston in 2008 by a group of eminently accomplished women in the sector, NEWIEE harnesses the passion, intelligence and leadership experience of New England women to promote and encourage public interest in the energy and the environment sectors. Comprised of members across the public and private sectors, as well as various age groups, NEWIEE is also a stimulating forum for networking, sharing of expertise and information and mentoring.” ~ New England Women in Energy and Environment
Dr. Weber was introduced by Massport’s Sustainability Officer, Jacki Wilkins, and presented the award by NEWIEE president, Judy Chang. Dr. Weber’s acceptance speech reminded gala guests that greenroofs are not an option. Read more here. Referring to greenroofs, Karen said:
“They are a way that we can give back to the planet to help cool things down, reduce CO2, improve our hydrologic cycle and stormwater management while making our living spaces more beautiful and building a true green economy.” ~ Karen Weber
Boston City Councilor Rob Consalvo was also in attendance, and later in the week, he bestowed another honor upon Karen offered by the City of Boston for her work on Boston GreenFest.
Congratulations! I also want to send her belated but heartfelt wishes for a great Mother’s Day last Sunday (and to all of us who are lucky to be called Moms).
In addition to everything else she does for her community, the environment, and to promote greenroofs, Karen and her husband, Edwin Salamanca, are the proud parents of triplets!
There should be an award for that, too, I’m sure you’d agree, Way to go, Karen!
As we continue to ring in 2010 we hope you enjoyed warm holidays with family and friends and celebrated the New Year with renewed hope for the future. Can you believe we’ve entered a new decade? Shall we call it 2K10, Twenty Ten, or just good old fashioned 2,010? In any case, we’re finally out of the 0’s, now we’re into the 10’s.
Our world economy has been through a lot in the past few years, yet with a promising light hovering just over the horizon. Although development overall has declined, there is continued desire for green buildings from both the public and private sector, and in general our greenroof & greenwall industry has weathered quite nicely. Many of us are taking time to reflect on this passage of time and make New Year’s resolutions (another topic altogether!), and I was thinking of how far we have come since the German experience entered our architectural radar and into our collective consciousness in the 1990’s. Literally thousands of vegetated roofs and walls have been constructed since then in every continent except for Antarctica, with ever growing support from forward thinking multidisciplinary professionals: designers, government officials, organizations, companies, universities, students and other advocates looking to make Earth a little more sustainable.
Sadly, one of those special, innovative people passed away last November 27, the indomitable architect Malcolm Wells. Regarded as “the father of modern earth-sheltered architecture,” he was a staunch advocate of living architecture, known for his way ahead-of-the-times underground earth designs with living roofs starting in the 1960’s, see just one example below. He leaves a legacy of what he referred to as gentle architecture, design that would, in his own words, “leave the land no worse than you found it.”
The visionary Malcolm Wells' design for an eco-gas station, from MalcolmWells.com.
Many inspirational people and organizations have contributed to our current market, and I want to highlight just a few success stories from the past year, personal and global. So in my review, here are my favorite 2009 Top 10 Milestones and Accomplishments for both Greenroofs.com as a company and our international community as a whole:
10) In 2009 Greenroofs.com celebrated 10 years of being in business! We’ve seen a lot of progress and change for the good here as well as across the greenroof world. The fledgling Greenroofs.com – “exploring the ecology of organic greenroof architecture” started out as 60+ pages in 1999 as the result of an independent research study I did at the University of Georgia.
By 2003 we changed our format and grew into Greenroofs.com – “the international greenroof industry’s resource and online information portal,” and contained 600+ pages at the end of 2009 (not counting the hundreds of .php pages from The Greenroof Directory or The Greenroof Projects Database). At present, each month Greenroofs.com receives more than 160,000 unique visits and about 400,000 page views, and we’ve also expanded our presence in social marketing, too, so now you can stay connected with us on: Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, eNewsletter (our monthly eNewsletter consists of 10,000 opt-in subscribers) & YouTube, as well as our Blog.
9) The proliferation of living architecture is greatly spreading and permeating into the areas of design, policy, research and education through numerousworld conferences, congresses, expos, trainings, tours, and other events. For example, the World Green Infrastructure Network (WGIN) – formerly the World Green Roof Infrastructure Network (WGRIN) - held its first CitiesAlive! World Green Roof Congress in Toronto, Canada, with the second scheduled for Mexico City this October, 2010. The International Green Roof Association (IGRA) hosted the 2nd International Green Roof Congress 2009 in Nürtingen, Germany and the 3rd annual Green Roofs Australia Conference 2009 was held at the University of Melbourne. Longevity was evident with the 7th National FBB Green Roof Conference in Ditzingen, Germany and the 7th annual Green Roofs for Healthy Cities (GRHC) Greening Rooftops for Sustainable Communities Conference, Awards, and Trade Show in Atlanta, Georgia. By the way, look for the 8th annual GRHC conference to occur in Vancouver, B.C. on November 30 – December 2, 2010, rebranded as ”Cities Alive.” Look for many new 2010 events throughout the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Germany, China, Singapore, India and more under Upcoming Events, where you can also access Past Events.
7)Green walls are firmly becoming entrenched in sustainable design,evidenced by high media attention, as much for their green properties as for their edible gardening possibilities. We’ve had tons of news articles posted in NewsLinks, our huge database of global articles, concerning living walls and green façades! In fact, they were listed as #31 in TIME’s 50 Best Inventions of 2009 and Triple Pundit recently proposed: ”Gardens Grow Up: Are Vertical Landscapes the New Green Roofs?“ - both featuring the works of Patrick Blanc. In our business you’d have to be living under a rock not to know who the renowned French botanist is; his often fantastical “murs végétalisés” designs stretch the limits of horticulture and design. Since 1994, he has created over 140 public vertical gardens as well as many private installations, including his most famous, the Quai Branly Museum in Paris, shown below. Read more about green walls from Treehugger, Daily Telegraph, Daily Commercial News, The New York Times, Times Online and CNN.com, just to name a few.
In 2009 Green Roofs for Healthy Cities, the North American professional association, established greenwall research projects at the British Columbia Institute of Technology and the University of Maryland, and GRHC has included an award category for Green Wall Excellence in Design for a couple of years now. In 2008 Greenroofs.com added our 8th Contributing Editor, George Irwin - aptly titled The Green Wall Editor - to cover this growing vertical gardening field, and new for 2010 we have altered the title of our Greenroof Projects Database to reflect the inclusion of these: The Greenroof & Greenwall Projects Database.
6)Investing in green building and infrastructure makes good economic sense by integrating green building policies into wider economic development goals, and creates a new job market. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) has prompted a gigantic increase in federal green spending, providing new money to all levels of government, aimed at stimulating the economy, promoting job growth, and lowering energy costs, providing an unprecedented opportunity for advancing green building and sustainability efforts in the U.S. And last December, the American Institute of Architects (AIA) reported at least 138 U.S. cities with populations over 50,000 people have green building programs in place (compared to only 92 in 2007). Referring to the economic recession, the AIA said “The downturn has had a devastating effect on construction generally, but sustainable building design continues to maintain and improve its market share.” Read their 2009 in depth study “Green Building Policy in a Changing Economic Environment” to learn more.
American Institute of Architects 2009 Study of Green Building Programs by Cities
U.S. economic stimulus efforts encompass green energy and construction, including greenroofs along with other forms of green building, and just one such example of Recovery Act funds benefit Washington D.C., where the Washington Business Journal says “Nearly $4 million would go toward building more than 100,000 sf of green roofs on city buildings, including libraries, firehouses and a demonstration project atop the parking garage deck at University of the District of Columbia. The stimulus funds would also expand the city’s green roof rebate program to allow residents and small businesses to afford another 20,000 sf of private green roof space.”
And importantly, many green building programs are also creating “green collar” jobs. In late 2009, the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) and Booz Allen Hamilton conducted a study and stated “Green building will support 7.9 million U.S. jobs and pump $554 billion into the American economy – including $396 billion in wages – over the next four years (2009-2013). The study also determined that green construction spending currently supports more than 2 million American jobs and generates more than $100 billion in gross domestic product and wages…The full report can be downloaded at www.usgbc.org/greeneconomy, where one can also find other research, resources, tools and information about green building and its role in the economic recoveries of professionals, businesses and the nation.” According to an analysis by American Rivers and the Alliance for Water Efficiency, the Natural Resources Defense Council reports that a $10 billion nationwide initiative to install greenroofs alone would result in almost 200,000 jobs – the Senate is expected to consider its own version of the bill in early 2010.
5)Green Roofs for Healthy Cities launched the Green Roof Professional (GRP) accreditation for North America. The GRP is a measure of knowledge of established best practices and although a voluntary program, with the designation professionals can distinguish themselves in the marketplace. This association milestone was at least four years in the making! Currently with more than 250 GRP’s in 2009, GRHC hopes to add more professionals in 2010. Check their website for future testing dates, and consider attending one of their Green Roof Boot Camps to refresh and get you ready. See my interview with Jeff Bruce, president of Jeffrey L. Bruce & Company, Chair of GRHC and the GRHC Training and Accreditation Committee, which developed the Green Roof Professional program, to learn why the organization felt this accreditation was needed, how it evolved, and where it’s heading. For more info on the GRP, see “A Video Introduction to the GRP Program” from Green Roofs for Healthy Cities.
4)Within the U.S. industry, major contributions were made in the area to develop best practice wind and fire standards for greenroof design. Since 2007, leaders from various organizations have been working hard on prescriptive standards, and in 2009 standards were inserted into the International Building Code from members of GRHC and Single Ply Roofing Industry (SPRI). Read “Green Roof Wind & Fire Design Guidelines: After Three Years, Half the Battle is Won,” written by one of our Contributing Editors, Kelly Luckett, The Green Roof Guy, to learn about this winding road’s development of RP-14 and VF-1. And stay tuned for updates with his column here on Greenroofs.com.
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUe) Wind Tunnel Testing in June, 2009.
3) The global Greenroof & Greenwall Projects Database surpassed the 1,000 mark in December! So where are all these greenroofs and greenwalls anyway? Let’s continue to work together to grow, update, and share valuable case studies for our communal benefit, for free. Even in today’s openly transparent society (think Google Earth), some people worry about confidentiality issues, and we only post information that is submitted to us by owners/project principals or that which is openly available through various media channels, and we always list owners as “private” when requested. The Greenroof & Greenwall Projects Database is now searchable by 24 fields, including specifically for green walls. After our Home Page, the Projects Database is the next visited page on Greenroofs.com – make sure your projects and valuable experiences are included here.
2) My albeitly biased personal favorite, Greenroofs.com inaugurated our first episode of the Sky Gardens ~ Greenroofs of the World™ WebTV series. Premiering at Boston GreenFest in September, our new venture followed on the GreenroofsTV channel on YouTube, and next on our own greenroofs.tv, where you can now see it in its entirety at just under 37 minutes. By the way, you can also view our video offshoot, ”Greenroofs 101 from Greenroofs.com” (4:50) in Greenroofs 101 or directly below, which is a great way to introduce the concept to newcomers. Coming soon is episode 2, highlighting the gorgeous Cook+Fox Architects corporate offices in Manhattan, NY. Our third episode is in the works, and more are being scheduled, so stay tuned!
1) 2009 saw some serious support for greenroofs, championed by professional organizations and governmental bodies alike. Global industry support has grown over the years, and many advocates continue to actively promote them worldwide. For example, the City of Chicago, certainly the U.S. leader in greenroofs, now has over 7 million square feet of vegetated roofs completed or under development. New support in 2009 includes:
North America: In addition to offering eco-incentives for greenroofs, currently Toronto has the most progressive policy in North America – last May Toronto became the first city here to adopt a bylaw to require and govern the construction of greenroofs. The new bylaw will be required on all new development above 2,000 m² (about 21,530 sf) of gross floor area and have a graduated coverage requirement ranging from 20-60%. Working with a program budget of $800,000/year, owners of industrial and commercial buildings can apply for grants worth up to $100,000 (Canadian) to build a greenroof. Mayor David Miller predicts the rules and incentives will create 50 to 60 green-roofed buildings per year, in addition to their current 135 vegetated roofs. Green Roofs for Healthy Cities supported the by-law against pressure from developers opposed to the policy. See more details under Industry Support and at the City of Toronto website.
Here in the U.S., in late 2009 ASLA, the American Society of Landscape Architects, worked with Congress to include the Green Act into the House-passed climate change legislation. The Act would require the Dept. of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to employ greenroofs, tree canopy coverage, and other site planning techniques to help reduce heating and cooling costs in certain HUD facilities. Still pending before the Senate Finance Committee, last January Senator Maria Cantwell (WA) introduced the Clean Energy Stimulus and Investment Assurance Act of 2009 (S.320), legislation geared toward creating high-wage green-collar jobs and revitalizing the economy through clean energy investments. ASLA worked with Senator Cantwell’s office to ensure that a section of the bill was dedicated to green roof tax incentives, and GRHC provided technical support. Under section 506 of the bill, residential and commercial property owners will receive a 30% tax credit for qualified greenroof expenditures.
As you may recall, Congress enacted Section 438 of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (EISA) to require federal agencies to reduce stormwater runoff from federal development projects to protect water resources and in October of 2009, President Obama signed Executive Order 13514 on “Federal Leadership in Environmental, Energy, and Economic Performance” calling upon all federal agencies to lead by example and address a wide range of environmental issues, including stormwater runoff. Federal agencies can comply with Section 438 by using a variety of green infrastructure / low impact development techniques including living roofs. Prepared by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in coordination with other federal agencies, the “Technical Guidance on Implementing the Stormwater Runoff Requirements for Federal Projects under Section 438 of the Energy Independence and Security Act” PDF is highly detailed and instructive.
State and municipal governments also provided policy support: Former Virginia Governor Timothy M. Kaine signed three bills promoting incentives in 2009: HB 1975 and SB 1058 authorize localities to grant regulatory flexibility and incentives to promote the construction of vegetative roofs on private homes and businesses. The incentives or regulatory flexibility could include a reduction in permit fees, a streamlined process for the approval of building permits, or a reduction in any gross receipts tax on greenroof contractors as defined by the local ordinance. The third bill, HB 1828, allows water authorities to offer rate incentives for vegetative roof construction, based on the percentage of stormwater runoff reduction. In late fall, the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (OEPA), Metropolitan Sewer District of Greater Cincinnati (MSDGC), and the Office of Environmental Quality created a Green Roof Loan Program utilizing money from the Water Pollution Control Loan Fund. OEPA has made $5,000,000 available for linked deposit, below market rate loans to install green vegetative roofs within the service area of MSDGC on residential, commercial and/or industrial buildings.
Already a city offering several greenroof incentives, in October Portland’s city commission approved a Climate Action Plan which calls for a 40% reduction in carbon emissions by 2030 and an 80% reduction by 2050. According to the Portland Business Journal, “The Plan calls for the city and county to take 93 actions over the next three years. City bureaus must immediately begin implementing 15 of the new climate-related initiatives, such as establishing a tax credit for businesses that install ecoroofs and solar panels together.” And last month, the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District invited governments, organizations, school districts, and businesses within the 28 communities it serves to participate in their 2010 Regional Green Roof Initiative Program. Among other prerequisites, proposed projects must minimize impervious roof area and maximize the reduction in the rate and/or volume of stormwater runoff.
The World:Singapore is targeting 50 hectares of skyrise greenery by 2030 and its Urban Redevelopment Authority launched the LUSH Programme (Landscaping for Urban Spaces and High-Rises) in April of 2009. Offering financial and planning incentives to developers to provide greenery at the upper levels of high rise buildings, their goal is to make 80% of all buildings in Singapore green by 2030. Quezon City, Phillipines has a new law requiring private and government-owned buildings to green part of their rooftops. New commercial/residential buildings, under the Green Roof Ordinance (Ordinance 1940) signed into law by Mayor Feliciano R. Belmonte, Jr. last September, should allocate at least 30% of their roof area for plants and trees. In Australia, the Queensland Government signed a “Memorandum Of Understanding” with the Singapore National Parks Board late last year to trial vertical gardens and greenroofs in various cities in an effort to benefit from Singapore’s experience with skyrise greenery.
Dubai Municipality launched a greenroof initiative in line with a Dubai law on green building specifications. The Municipality’s strategic goal is to raise per capita green area to 23.4 square meters by the end of 2011, with the green building project coming under the directives of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, United Arab Emirate Vice President and Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai. A public awareness campaign for greenroofs was announced last month, committed to the “development of laws and regulations to keep pace with international standards in the field of sustainable development by planting green roofs and facades in the Emirate of Dubai.” Traveling display models and educational publications will circulate residential neighborhoods and shopping centers and markets for a 12-month period. Read more on the Dubai Municipality Portal. One spectacular greening project currently on the boards in Dubai is the self-sustained system “Food City” below, designed by Green Concepts Landscape Architects (GCLA):
The proposed Dubai Food City, conceptualized by landscape architecture firm GCLA.
So here we are at the start of a whole new year – we hope you’re excited and optimistic about it, just as we are! Whatever 2009 offered you, we hope you embraced new friends and opportunities and experienced great personal and professional growth, and we thank you for your readership. What’s in store for our new decade? We’ll see, but as the green building industry continues with positive signs of sustained growth, let’s also continue to collaborate and create a more sustainable world with eco-architecture embracing greenroofs and greenwalls as part of the overall green living architecture strategy.
“I woke up one day to the fact that the earth’s surface was made for living plants, not industrial plants.” ~ Malcolm Wells
Here’s a gentle toast to continued health, love, and prosperity for you, your families, and all of our greenroof associates in 2010!
The organizers of second annual Boston GreenFest 2009 have many ideals regarding their festival, what it represents, and view it as an ethic to live by. They have worked tirelessly to promote many aspects of green thinking, living and architecture – including green roofs, of course – but their scope is quite global and much more encompassing. Karen L. Weber, Coordinator of Boston GreenFest and Executive Director of Foundation for a Green Future, Inc., told me that last Thursday, August 13, 2009 was indeed ”a momentous occasion for the planners of Boston GreenFest.”
Massachusetts State House’s Grand Staircase; Photo taken by Halef Gunawan; Source: Boston GreenFest
Karen elaborates, “We held our first Green Town Meeting at the Massachusetts State House in front of the Grand Staircase with over 50 people in attendance. Rep. Frank Smizik, Chair of the Committee on Global Warming and Climate Change, opened the session. He reminded everyone about the importance of energy efficiency and working to make the changes we need to go forward. He also suggested that although Massachusetts has an excellent record about advocating for policy that addresses climate change, we must do more. Senator Marc Pacheco of Taunton, recommended that everyone continue to lobby and push hard for their legislators to strive for higher goals in regards to climate change and efficiency. Ben Wright of Environment Massachusetts, a group that works hard to advocate the weatherizing of everyone’s home and ways to reduce the cost on homeowners, acknowledged the remarks of Smizik and Pacheco.”
Karen read the draft of the GreenFest Manifest to set the stage for their brainstorming session, and continues, “Scotland Willis, a member of the GreenFest planning committee and candidate for City Councilor at Large, reaffirmed the work we had to do and the unique opportunity GreenFest provides to the community to bring everyone together. Raking Williams spoke about the fact that we have entered a time for change, for all life to be revered. Tito Jackson, another City Council candidate, praised us for doing the work we are doing. Craig Altemose, law student at Harvard, local coordinator of Massachusetts Power Shift and Green Town Meeting Coordinator for GreenFest, set the parameters of our work today. We were to break in three discussion groups, with reports back before lunch. After lunch, we were to constitute new groups and refine our ideas from the ones proposed at report back. Final summary at 1:45 – 2 pm.
“The GreenFest Manifest is a document that combines ideas and a plan for action. We decided to create a way to bring everyone on board to making changes in ways that could impact energy conservation and efficiency, global warming, and respect for life in a way that could establish clear actions for our city and commonwealth. We intend to read the Manifest publicly at Boston GreenFest and hope to have everyone at GreenFest sign it. It will then by sent to President Obama and our world leaders at Copenhagen to show them what we are ready to begin doing, and to inspire them to do that much more on a global level. We hope we can inspire every state around the country and groups across the globe to come up with their own Manifest and put it into action.”
Here is the preamble to the GreenFest Manifest, and when the final form is complete, Karen will share it with us:
Whereas Boston GreenFest invites all of our communities to come together regardless of race, color, background, and diverse beliefs to learn, connect and celebrate, today we reaffirm our commitment to protect and nurture life in all of its forms; to explore a balanced relationship with our complete self and our world; and to use sincerity, justice, discipline, kindness, wisdom, and principled determination to achieve a better union and universal peace.
We pledge to eradicate hunger and war so that peace will reign in our world; to educate each other so that we can create a world in which we live in harmony with nature and our surroundings; a world in which our children will not have to worry about carbon counts or rising tides; a world in which a stable climate will continue to provide us with the blessings of all our natural systems as well as the blessings of agriculture; a world in which the ties of family and community are placed above material possessions.
We commit to the principle that in all our decisions, we will consider their impact on all future generations.
Coming up this Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, August 20-22 is the second annual Boston GreenFest 2009 held on the steps of City Hall in lovely Boston, Massachusetts.
Even in its infancy, the inaugural Boston GreenFest 2008 was very well attended and created a lot of excitement among locals, visitors, and politicians alike with a fun combination of exhibits, presentations, food, dance, film and environmental awareness.
The organizer is a friend and colleague, Dr. Karen L. Weber, LEED AP, Coordinator of Boston GreenFest and Executive Director of Foundation for a Green Future, Inc. She is an extremely energetic person with a lot of flair, enthusiasm and commitment to greening our built environment, and has devoted countless hours to this wonderful festival celebrating many aspects of green thinking and green living. Karen is also a greenroof designer and her Foundation for a Green Future provides “opportunities to build an environmentally-friendly world from the rooftop down and the ground-up” focusing on greenroof technology and greening our urban spaces through education programs, community outreach, green jobs training, research and development, promotion of green businesses, and greenroof subsidies.
Boston GreenFest 2009 will bring together community groups, corporations, small businesses, nonprofits, government agencies and citizens to share new technologies and ideas that can immediately change our daily lives and help bring about a more sustainable future.
Boston GreenFest 2009, the Foundation for a Green Future, Inc., and local volunteers will seek to connect with a broad audience from across all Boston neighborhoods to bring an inspiring message of action and change. Together they will work toward sustainability through art, music, fashion, discussions and interactive exhibits. By engaging participants, young and old, they will search for new ideas to reduce our impact on our planet.
Festival-goers will learn what it means to eat and grow local organic food, improve nutrition and health care, make better decisions about what we wear and the products we use for our personal care, green our city, build healthy communities, take action politically and personally, create green jobs and engage in a sustainable, green economy.
“Boston GreenFest 2009 is a celebration of our environmental progress and a call to action for communities, citizens and corporations committed to an even brighter future,” says Karen Weber, Coordinator of Boston GreenFest 2009. “We can no longer wait for someone to tell us what to do to improve our world. We need to find the solutions ourselves. The answers are within reach and we applaud the many groups in and around Boston already making positive change worthy of celebration and recognition.”
Jim Hunt, Chief Advisor to the Mayor on Environment and Energy, writes: “Mayor Menino and the City of Boston are excited to welcome GreenFest back to City Hall Plaza. This year’s program looks to encourage and support local community development, promote health and wellness strategies, educate the public on energy conservation and alternative transportation, and update the public on sustainability initiatives that are being pursued city, state, and nationwide. The festival looks to combine educational programming with art projects and interactive components for area residents. It offers something for everyone interested in sustainability issues.
“The city is proud to serve as host for this event and we hope residents will take advantage of the myriad workshops, exhibits and demonstrations to learn what steps they can take to “go green.” Please join the Mayor and me at Boston GreenFest 2009. It will be a great festival and we look forward to your participation.”
For more info, please contact:
Dr. Karen L. Weber, LEED AP
Coordinator, Boston GreenFest 2009 www.bostongreenfest.org
Executive Director, Foundation for a Green Future, Inc. (Green our roofs, green our planet!)
4 Archdale Road, Boston, MA 02131
Tel 617-477-4840/Fax 617-522-5447 www.foundationforagreenfuture.org
If you live in the Boston area, don’t miss out on a lot of (wicked) fun and entertainment, especially some wonderful music with three stages including over 40 live acts, and the GreenFilmFest: A series of films about going green, including The Greening of Southie, Fresh, Out Of Balance: ExxonMobil’s Impact on Climate Change and “Flow: the Film.”
The Kick-off Concert is on Thursday, August 20, 2009 from 5:00 pm to 10:00 pm and the Festival runs from August 21- 22 from 10:00 am to 10:00 pm. I hope you attend, and make sure to go and say hello to Karen and crew!
Looking to do one more important thing in 2008 to make it memorable? I know it’s a little 11th Hour, but… Our colleague Karen Weber, Executive Director, Foundation for a Green Future, Inc. and Coordinator, Boston GreenFest 2009 (August 21-21, 2009), is urging us to vote for greenroofs to be on the Obama Administration’s agenda, but it has to be done by midnight, tonight, December 31, 2008!
There’s a movement of citizens inspired by the presidential campaign who have submitted ideas for how they think the Obama Administration should change America, called “Ideas for Change in America.” And Karen’s is called:
To vote for this idea, click above now and please ask your friends and family to do the same! The top 10 ideas are going to be presented to the Obama Administration on Inauguration Day and will be supported by a national lobbying campaign run by Change.org, MySpace, and more than a dozen leading nonprofits after the Inauguration. So each idea has a real chance at becoming policy.
We know that the President-Elect has his sights set on many programs to bring our country into balance, in political, economic and environmental terms. And if you’re reading this, you don’t have to be convinced of the many advantages of living roofs, and I’m sure you realize that green architecture crosses political and geographical boundaries, benefiting the entire community that is our Earth.
So if you are an American citizen, whether or not you voted for Obama, he’s our next leader and you have to admit it’s an exciting time in the U.S. Help us continue to promote greenroofs here in the United States of America as one part of a healthy, prosperous and ecologically sound New Year and beyond.
Karen writes, “Let’s make it a truly green new year!” Speaking of which, after you do Vote for Greenroofs, we also want you to have a safe and enjoyable New Year’s Eve, and many good wishes for a 2009 full of health, happiness and love, in a world full of green.
Speaking of “EcoThemes,” don’t miss one of our contributing editors, George Irwin – 
If you live in the Boston area, don’t miss out on a lot of (wicked) fun and entertainment, especially some wonderful music with three stages including 
