Daily Loaf

What’s the buzz on the latest issues in the Green Community? Check out what you may have missed this last week:

Tampa joins International Day of Climate Action to take a stand for a safe climate future- On October 24, people from Tampa Bay joined Greenpeace to hear the importance of acting now for the climate and gather together to take a stand for the climate and a clean energy future as part of the largest global day of climate action ever.

Which big name food company is behind your organic food? – Did you know that some of your favorite organic food brands are owned by some of the biggest names in the food production business?

October 24 is the International Day of Climate Action (videos) – The biggest day of grassroots action on global warming ever.

The Age of Stupid showing at USF St. Pete campus (video) – The Student Environmental Awareness Society is starting their Environmental Film Series with the question, “Why didn’t we stop climate change when we had a chance?”
Read the rest of this entry »

11:11, Let There Be Light, Art, Sound This sneak peek of the exhibit (which officially opens Nov. 11) includes live music, artworks from local artists, a drum atrium and a costume contest on Halloween night. Visit studio620.org for more info. Oct. 27-31, noon-4 p.m. Tues.-Sat., reception 7 p.m. Sat., The Studio@620, St. Petersburg, free.

Ghost Ship Spooktacular Under the bay, there be monsters…and a few of them have surfaced for this scary fun tour of the decades-old “haunted” ship. Visit the galley, mess hall, hospital, and radio room, where ghouls, freaks and zombies lurk around every corner. Search for ghosts with the Florida Paranormal Research Group and the White Noise Paranormal Network, and visit the Demon Den Deck for a brew if your nerves get a bit jangled. The kid’s tour is a mite less macabre; bob for apples, play monster musical chairs, run in an eyeball relay race and compete in the costume contest. Visit americanvictory.org for more info. Oct. 29-31, Ghost Ship 7:30-11:30 p.m. Thurs.-Sat.; Kid’s Spooktacular 2-4 p.m. Sat., American Victory Ship and Museum, Tampa, Ghost ship, $20; Kid’s Spooktacular, $10 adults, $5 kids 4-12.

Hit the break for more on Guavaween, graveyard walks, haunted houses, weird art and more, and check back as we add to the list of spooky spectacles. Read the rest of this entry »

Tampa’s first annual Green Halloween event will take place in Old Hyde Park Village this Friday, October 23rd from 3:30pm-6:30pm.

Sponsored by Divine Events of Tampa, their initiative is to create healthier and more eco-friendly holiday events for the people of Tampa Bay.  This green event will include a pumpkin patch cake walk, bobbing for organic apples, best green costume contest, making your own Halloween bag out of old magazines.
Read the rest of this entry »

Looking for something green-related to do this weekend? Look no further than our own Green Community Calendar.

Dunedin Green Market- Every Friday; 8 am- 1 pm. The Dunedin Green Market is located in Pioneer Park at the cross streets of Douglas Avenue and Main Street in Downtown Dunedin and runs every Friday.

Dialogue on Climate Change and Coastal Conservation- Friday, October 23; 9 am-12 pm. On October 23rd, participate and be part of a lively discussion on climate change adaptation strategies and ways to maintain our coasts as places where people and wildlife can thrive. The Dialogue on Climate Change and Coastal Conservation will explore what we must do to prepare for the challenges of a changing coastline. The Dialogue will build on and increase cooperation for protecting natural resources and the economy in response to the effects of global warming. Free event. Seating is limited so please reserve your seats now. Hilton St. Petersburg Carillon Park, 950 Lake Carillon Drive, St. Petersburg, FL 33716.

Tampa Downtown Market- Fridays October-May; 10 am-2 pm. The vision of the Tampa Downtown Market is to provide local residents and businesses of the community with the freshest, highest quality, most nutritious, and most reasonably priced food & gourmet products. The mission of the Tampa Downtown Market is to serve as a community-gathering place where local farmers, producers, and artisans can offer fresh agricultural and related products to generate a sense of local pride and further the economic development of Downtown Tampa. With a strong focus on sustainability, the Tampa Downtown Market intends to provide a vehicle to educate the community on the importance of good health as we create more business opportunities and residential benefits. Located in Lykes Gaslight Square- Tampa St. & Kennedy Blvd., Downtown Tampa.

2009 Audubon Assembly- Friday and Saturday, October 23-24. Come and enjoy two days of Audubon fellowship. Connect with nature and birds on expert-led and self-guided field trips. Celebrate Audubon chapter milestones, too: St. Petersburg Audubon turns 100 and Clearwater Audubon is 50 this year. Deepen your knowledge at exciting learning sessions. And share your stories of how climate change is affecting your life and the places you care about. See the full Assembly schedule. Register here. Hilton St. Petersburg Carillon Park, 950 Lake Carillon Drive, St. Petersburg, FL 33716.

Green Halloween- Friday, October 23; 3:30-6:30 pm. Who says Halloween has to be unhealthy? And who says healthy can’t be fun? Green Halloween® is about making Halloween happy and healthy and about creating community traditions we can all be proud of. Divine Events will host Tampa’s inaugural Green Halloween on Friday, October 23, from 3:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at Hyde Park Village. Event activities include a pumpkin patch cake walk, bobbing for organic apples, make your own Halloween bag out of old TBPM magazines, “best green costume” contest, and much more! National Sponsors Cascadian Farms, Glee Gum, Larabar & Surf Sweets will be providing healthy snacks for kids. Divine Events will also be collecting used children’s Halloween costumes, in good condition, to donate to The Alpha House of Tampa for use by less fortunate children. Local sponsors include Lowry Park Zoo, Tampa Bay Parenting Magazine, Seedlings, My Green Home, and Nicole Geller Photography.  To read all about Green Halloween® and find fun events near you, visit GreenHalloween.org/Tampa. You can learn how to get involved locally, sign up for the super nifty newsletter, and share DIY costume ideas, recipes, and more on the new discussion board. There’s even a trick-or-treat bag design contest for kids! For more information visit www.greenhalloween.org/tampa or contact Barbara Keskiner at barbara@divinetampa.com or 727.403.5868.
Read the rest of this entry »

What’s the buzz on the latest issues in the Green Community? Check out what you may have missed this last week:

Connecting of tribes at the Campus and Community Sustainability Conference at USF- Contributor Eric Stewart gives an overview of the seminars at the event and what Florida students are doing to make others aware of sustainablity issues.

USF Green Expo panel discusses high-speed rail- A speaker at the USF Going Green Expo, Nazih Haddad, Manager of the High-Speed Rail Program at the Florida Department of Transportation, said that demographics, geography, and growth management needs to create a perfect niche for high speed rail technology.

Keep Hillsborough County Beautiful receives $10,000 grant award as part of nationwide competition to “think green”- KHCB received a $10,000 cash grant for being one of 15 winners nationwide in a competition to present proposals for ambitious projects representing a wide array of stewardship, community outreach and educational projects.

Participate in ‘No Impact Week’ to lighten your carbon footprint-  Starting Sunday, October 18, use the No Impact Project guide and learn to gradually reduce your carbon footprint, step-by-step.
Read the rest of this entry »

Halloween has and always will be one of my favorite holidays. It is the one day of the year that you can actually walk out of your house wearing just about anything and you get a ‘free pass’ on weird or strange looks from neighbors. Hey, anything goes on this day, right?  Not to mention the candy – oh, the candy.

So how can one ‘green‘ up the holiday a bit and teach the neighborhood kids a good lesson about recycling and reducing trash? The famous candy aspect that the kids know and love is a start. Realistically, it is hard to give out any fresh made organic goodies as it has long been taboo to do such a thing with rumors of poisoned candy and the like that has been circling for generations. So, instead, hand out pre-packaged organic candy like the ones found at endangered species chocolate.  Then use a pillow case to hand out the candy, it looks funky and scary and limits the use of the regular plastic containers. The kids will happily be surprised to try something new and tasty that is also better for the environment.
Read the rest of this entry »