Indiana Sustainable Living Fair

What: Indiana Sustainable Living Fair
When: Saturday, June 26 from 9 a.m. until 6 p.m.
Where: Marion County Fairgrounds, 7300 E. Troy Ave.

The event is a hodgepodge of environmentally-focused seminars, demonstrations, workshops, exhibits, and vendors. Get your fill of information on local chemical-free food, renewable energy, gardening, holistic veterinary practices, and the like.

You'll find a full schedule of speakers, workshops, demonstrations, vendors and partners on their web site, www.sustainableearth.net.

Growing Places Indy - Community Workday & Rain Barrel Workshop

What: Growing Places Indy - Community Workday and Rain Barrel Making Workshop

Where: The Slow Food Garden at White River State Park

When: Sunday - June 27, 2010, 1-4 p.m.

The Slow Food Garden is located next to the Segway rental (just south of the main entrance to the State Museum) within White River State Park along Washington Street. (#17 on the map: http://www.in.gov/whiteriver/about/map.html)

Details of the day are as follows:

Community Workday – 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm
Growing Places Indy is committed to cultivating the culture of food and urban agriculture, and this is your opportunity to help cultivate our Slow Food Garden.

· Co-Directors Laura Henderson and Matthew Jose will provide volunteers with a tour of the farm and lead volunteers in the work of the day, be it weeding, seeding, transplanting or more.

· Snacks and water will be provided so please bring a cup/bottle for filling your own water.

· You can continue with work day tasks until 4 p.m., or join the rain barrel workshop at 3 p.m.

Please contact Laura Henderson (urbanearthindy@gmail.com) by Friday, June 25 at 5:00pm to let us know you will be attending. More information about Growing Places Indy can be found at www.growingplacesindy.org.

Rain Barrel Making Workshop – 3:00 pm to 4:00 pm
If you have been thinking about getting a rain barrel, but haven’t got around to buying or building one as yet, here is your chance!

· You can watch and learn how to construct and use your own rain barrel for FREE.

· Or, you can make one of your own to take home to start collecting rainwater for your own gardens for $70 (Cash or check only, collected the day of the workshop). Cost includes a 55 gallon food grade barrel, all hardware and materials and barrel conversion demonstration AND helps to raise money to keep the work of Growing Places Indy growing.

· Either way, you’ll gain the experience to make as many future rain barrels as your heart desires!

Space is limited in the rain barrel workshop, so please reserve a place with Tyler Henderson (tylerhenders@yahoo.com) by Friday, June 25 at 5:00pm.

Thanks to our good friend Renee Sweany and Green Piece Indy for the shoot-out today in the Green Piece Indy tip of the week! Join their e-mail list so you too can receive all of their fantastic weekly tips for greener living and to be in the know about events around town!

Indy Urban Farming Forum Tonight!

Laura Henderson, IWFM founder & co-director of Growing Places Indy, will be presenting as part of the Urban Farming Forum tonight about 8 p.m.

When: June 21, 2010 - 7 p.m. to 9 p.m

Where: Garfield Park Arts Center, Indianapolis IN

Who: Anyone interested in learning more about urban farming, gardening and farmers markets in Indianapolis

A public forum to discuss urban gardening and farming in Indianapolis. The event is organized by the City of Indianapolis’ Office of Sustainablity and the Brownfields program. Mayor Greg Ballard will kick off the 2nd annual forum with opening remarks. Topics covered include an update on Indianapolis area farmers markets, safe soil issues, urban gardening programs and more.
For more information, email sustainindy@indy.gov

Courteous Mass Bicycle Ride & Dine with the Green Riders

Shared by the Indianapolis Food, Farm and Family Coalition: Local Food Potluck with Special Guests the Green Riders Friday, June 11th at 7 p.m. Earth House basement on 237 N. East St., Downtown Indy Come celebrate Indy's healthy farms, families, and locally-grown foods at the IFFFC's first monthly Local Food Challenge Potluck The Indianapolis Food, Farm, and Family Coalition invites you to meet The Green Riders. A brother and sister team, Oliver and Catherine Bock, will give us a taste of what it is like to journey across the country on electric bicycles. They will also demonstrate how electric bikes are a fun and easy alternative to cars. IndyCOG Courteous Mass arrives at Earth House 7pm Dinner 7:15 Electric Bike Demo 8:15

Admission is Free: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Simply bring a potluck dish to share made with locally grown/produced foods plus a copy of your recipe for the Indianapolis Food, Farm and Family blog. Dining ware may be limited, so please bring your own plate and utensils for yourself and your family, if possible. Please RSVP, if possible, on Facebook: Local Food Potluck with special guests The Green Riders More about the Green Riders: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Oliver and Catherine Bock are explorers traveling across America from Palo Alto, California to Washington, DC learning about sustainable solutions happening right now and sharing those stories with others. The ride is designed to focus attention on what's going on locally that is moving human behavior towards sustainability. When they arrive in Washington DC, they hope to have lunch with President Obama and ask him if he would like to take a spin on one of their electric bicycles! You can track their ride on the blog thegreenriders.blogspot.com and find more information about their mission on their website thegreenriders.org About the Courteous Mass/Critical Manners and IndyCOG: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ IndyCOG is a bicycle advocacy group that is focused on uniting the voices of all people on bikes to push for better cycling infrastructure to make biking a safer and more viable mode of transportation in the city. As much as they are an advocacy group, they are also trying to help support and nourish the growing bicycle culture in Indianapolis. Recent CM/CM blog: http://www.theindycog.com/blog/?p=958

Strawberries and Pesticides

There is a message from Lisa Madison, Distribution & Outreach Coordinator, of FRESH the movie and the FRESH food campaign.

On a local note, I have yet to find anyone at any farmers market in Indianapolis selling chemical free or organically treated strawberries. Please keep encouraging our farmers to find chemical free and organic methods for growing this fabulous summer delight. Here's the news from FRESH:
_____________________________________

Strawberries are supposed to be delicious summertime treats; they shouldn't cause cancer.

Methyl iodide, approved for use as a pesticide by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 2007, is dangerously close to being approved as a soil fumigant for strawberry crops in California and spreading as a widely-used pesticide for crops around the country. The best way to make sure we stop the use of methyl iodide on our food supply is to get straight to the problem: the EPA's decision to approve the chemical in the first place.

Click here to sign our petition: tell the EPA to ban methyl iodide from our food.

http://action.freshthemovie.com/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=3268

Methyl iodide causes cancer. It is a known neurotoxin and thyroid disruptor and has also been proven to cause spontaneous abortions in late-term pregnancies. Methyl iodide is even used to intentionally induce cancer cells in lab settings. And yet, the EPA has decided that methyl iodide is fit for our food, for our communities and for our bodies.

The time has come to raise our collective voice in strong opposition to the use of methyl iodide as a pesticide on our food. Please join us in our effort to stop this pesticide from reaching our food.

Click here to sign our petition: tell the EPA to ban methyl iodide from our food.

http://action.freshthemovie.com/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=3268

We're joining in this petition campaign with our friends at CREDO Action, a group of progressive activists who recently organized more than 26,000 people to oppose California's effort to approve methyl iodide. The EPA can reverse its decision on methol iodide at any point. Now is the time to make sure they do so.

We have until the end of June to tell the EPA how we feel about this toxic chemical. We will deliver your comments to the EPA in collaboration with CREDO Action and the Pesticide Action Network North America.

Please add your signature today.

http://action.freshthemovie.com/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=3268

Let's make sure the EPA hears our momentous outcry. This is a truly horrific toxin that we must keep out of our already battered food system. Please share this widely, with those who you care about.

Eat safe,

Lisa Madison
Distribution & Outreach Coordinator
FRESH

Stadium Village Farmers Market

We are pleased to announce the opening - THIS EVENING - of a new summer farmers market.

What: The Stadium Village Farmers Market
When: Tuesdays 4-7:30 p.m.
Where: 808 S. Meridian St. in the Shapiro’s Deli Parking Lot

This is the only Downtown summer farmers market that is strictly grower/producer. It opens today, Tuesday, June 1 with all of your favorite products. Get organic, local, natural products made by the people that sell them. Visit on Tuesday evening and enjoy the time with live music and a prize drawing for visitors.

Market Master Theresa Stites has served on the IWFM advisory committee for the past season, spear-headed our composting and recycling program, and is an active member of Slow Food Indy and the local food movement in Indianapolis.

Find more information on Facebook by searching Stadium Village Farmers Market
e-mail: SVFMarket@gmail.com
(317) 840-0448 - Theresa Stites, Market Master