Peats Ridge, the Australian music festival that might just be the world's greenest festival, announced its full lineup yesterday. Not being Australian, I've never heard of any of these bands, but that doesn't stop me from wanting to go to this festival in the worst possible way. Partly it's because it looks like one New Year's Eve party that actually doesn't suck, partly it's because January in Oz looks to be a damn site better than January in Boston, and partly it's because it looks like quite possibly the prettiest festival venue on the planet.
And if none of the more than 200 (!!!) musical acts, including sultry Aussie beauty Kara Grainger, do it for you, there's always the pure pleasure of being in a festival that sets the bar for all other green entertainment happenings. Check out this short list of what's being done at the festival: "100% biodiesel generators, odour free composting toilets, grey water management, container deposit system, organic waste composting, reclaimed materials for decoration, certified organic food at our stalls, biodegradable cutlery, onsite bike couriers, natural ink printing, chemical free cleaning products...and the list goes on!"
And before you say that it sounds like Rothbury or Bonnaroo, take a moment to ponder that the festival started in 2004 as a purely green festival, long before the idea caught on on this side of the Pacific, and that they're doing things that neither of the big two US green events are doing yet including using composting toilets and commissioning full environmental audits.
If you're one of the lucky ones who gets to the festival, make sure to let us know how it was in the comments! Meanwhile, enjoy this video of Extended Family, Australia's Best Blues Band of 2006, performing at the 2006 event.
In 2007, the citizens of Sydney, Australia took a stand against climate change and turned off their lights for one hour as a symbolic gesture of their support of climate change mitigation. The symbolic gesture had a notable bi-product--the hour without lights was equivalent to taking 48,000 cars off the road. Earth Hour was born.
Earth Hour happens again this year--tomorrow night. The movement has gone global and includes cities such as: Toronto, Chicago, Phoenix, and San Francisco are involved. Regardless of where you live, show your solidarity for the fight against climate change and try and use as little as possible electricity tomorrow, March 29, 2008 at 8 p.m.
The incredibly inspiring story of Earth Hour is here:
As well as his headline show at the Corner Hotel on Saturday February 9 (with The Lucksmiths + Ross McLennan - grab your tickets now!), Kelley Stoltz and a host of special musical guests are playing a carbon neutral show at Castlemaine’s Theatre Royal, Sunday February 10.
The Theatre Royal show, coined Tonnes Of Fun, is co presented by the Mount Alexander Sustainability Group, a non-government organization comprised of householders and local schools, businesses, and community organisations, all taking action as a community to combat climate change.
MASG will coordinate a competition Tonnes Of Fun at the show, where attendees can have their annual carbon emissions calculated by completing a short survey/questionnaire, with a Kelley Stoltz pack for the winner. The show itself is also carbon neutral.
It’s a fitting marriage. Kelley’s third album Below the Branches was the first record in music industry history to be packaged with the Green-e logo, promoting the use of renewable energy. Kelley tracked his electricity use and with the help of the Green-e program, offset all the electricity used to record his record with green tags from the Bonneville Environmental Foundation. In Kelley’s words:
“Using renewable energy to offset the electricity I needed to power my guitar amps and my recording machines was a simple and effective way for me to do something about my impact on the environment. Green-e certifies that I am buying 100 percent renewable energy. Hopefully, people will see their logo; check into what they do, and make renewable energy a part of their lives, too.”
Tickets are $20 + BF and on sale now for Kelley Stoltz at Theatre Royal, or ph 03 5472 1196). Support comes from locals Roostar and Archer, together with Melbourneites Sime Nugent, the sublime Lisa Miller, plus R&B garage party chaos from The Breadmakers. Doors at 2.30pm, Kelley Stoltz on stage at 8pm.
This segment is totally awesome. I think it does a really great job of explaining all the indirect emissions that result from our use of electricity. It comes from the Sustainability Victoria, an awesome agency located in Melbourne, Australia. I visited them last year when I was in Australia. They have a beautiful informational space and bookstore in their lobby which has lots of cool kiosks with helpful information. Check them out
