Welcome to Hamilton! Home to some of the coolest green festivals, projects, businesses and peeps. After reading this Spectator article it’s no wonder that something like this is happening in our city. This Wednesday, April 13, is the kick-off of Hamilton’s 4th Annual EcoScene Film & Arts Festival. This festival raises awareness of environmental issues through critically acclaimed films, as well as bringing together local photographers, visual artists and environmental experts. This “first-of-its-kind” eco-arts festival aims to educate people on global environmental concerns and inspire people to become actively involved in the solutions. Purchase your tickets to the screening of David Suzuki’s FORCE of NATURE here. So excited! See you on Wednesday!

FYI Homies,

February 17th is WWF-CANADA’s National Sweater Day! Turn down your thermostat down by 3 degrees and wear your best sweater. You know, the one granny knit you…if it still fits.

So, you wanna save the planet do ya? And, while you’re at it save your favourite oceanic creature, the rainforest and then the rest of humanity? Well, first things first. Get the word save out of your Earthy vocabulary. Saving can come after we do one important thing, and that is adapting. Now, before I fill you in on some ways to adapt (which you’ll have in the coming weeks), I wanted to share with you one of the easiest things you can do if you’re needin’ an instant gratification fixin’. So what’s the answer? Donating of course! It has never been easier to help an organization – whether it’s an international one with a big following or a small grass-roots one down the street. When I say donating I’m not saying to give away a big lump of cash per say. There are other ways you can help an organization like, being a representative at an event, donating your skills to aid a specific project, attend monthly meetings and share your ideas or become a member of an organization and help them grow. Don’t get overwhelmed here, set yourself some do-able goals. Donating to an organization that aligns with your personal values just feels good. To give you an example, this year my friends received an adoption of a Canadian animal species from WWF-Canada and a protected woodland plot from Ontario Nature’s Trees in Trust program. Last month, I ditched the act of giving a material, meaningless gift and instead chose to support charities and invest in the future of our planet on behalf of a recipient. The best part was that it was all done online!

Here are some of my personal favourites:
http://www.fsccanada.org/default.htm – Making sure that trees are harvested responsibily
http://www.treesontario.ca/ – Planting 10 million trees a year across Ontario year by 2015
http://www.ontarionature.org/ – Protecting Ontario’s wild species and spaces through conservation, education and public engagement
http://www.350.org/en – Raising awareness and educating the world about climate change
http://www.environmenthamilton.org/ – Providing Hamiltonians skills needed to protect our green spaces
http://www.peta.org/ – Educating the world about the safe, responsible treatment of animals
http://www.niagaraescarpment.org/ – Protecting Ontario’s Niagara Escarpment
http://greenventure.ca/ – Community-based workshops to lead to a sustainable lifestyle
http://rbg.ca/ – Promoting public understanding of the relationship between plants and us
http://wwf.ca/ – Conserving Canada’s wild spaces and Canadian species

I bet if I walk into your office and open your cleaning cabinet I will see a pollution party of toxins leaching out who knows what into the air you’re breathing. It’s easy for us to justify this collection of chemicals because these products have been around for decades, so we think we can trust them (or so we think).

Now that caring for the environment is a cool thing to do, every company wants to get on board, but the key to becoming truly green is education. This may seem like a lot to ask but think about how much educating you do for yourself already. You educate yourself when purchasing a new computer, you educate yourself when purchasing an appliance for your house, you even educate yourself when choosing a new pet. Learning is what we do – we’re humans!

Companies know that we have busy lives and don’t necessarily have the extra time to learn about the better choices available. There are so many different products that claim to be green just because they have a pretty blue sky on the label, come in a recycled plastic bottle or (the worst) have the word, biodegradable, bolded in big letters on the package. Yep, this is green washing alright, tricking us into believing that we’re actually bettering our environment by purchasing this product. It’s not fair to lie to us and that is why I personally don’t support the companies that make these products.

Thankfully, there are a number of stores (Goodness Me! Natural Food Market, Grassroots Environmental Products), websites (Earth Day Canada, David Suzuki Foundation, The Story of Stuff Project, PETA, Green Living) and resource centres (RBG Nature Interpretive Centre, GreenVenture EcoHouse) that are helping us understand the ingredients that we have been spraying, scrubbing and soaking in the spaces we spend our days and nights. The key to green cleaning is to limit the products you’re using. You’ll be amazed at how much you can clean with baking soda, vinegar, lemons, essential oils and castile soap. The great thing about these everyday products is that they are reasonably priced and they are commonly available.

You wouldn’t announce to the world how wealthy you are or how built your body is. This is something that other people can sense without saying it. So, don’t just talk about how green you are, actually BE GREEN and set a positive example for others.

In between all of the glass shattering, car stomping, fire lighting and other animal behaviours found in Toronto’s core this weekend there was one collaborative group that used their brains before their fists. WWF (World Wild Life Fund) Canada, Fédération des coopératives du Nouveau-Québec and Équiterre put their noggins together to raise awareness (it’s amazing that we still need to do this) about climate change. Their idea? Think BIG…and a bit chilly. These three organizations worked with British artist Mark Coreth, Duncan and Jamie Hamilton from London, England, and Inuit brothers Peter Boy and Juanasie Jack from Puvirnituq to bring a giant polar bear life from a 10 tonne block of ice. As the polar bear melted in the warm temperature, Toronto citizens were encouraged to touch the polar bear and share an experience, but with every touch from a warm hand the polar bear would melt away a little faster. 1,729,458 individuals signed up on an online petition asking the G8/G20 leaders to provide a whopping chunk of money to help out less developed countries adapt to life in a changing climate, up the investments in renewable energy and energy efficiency. This petition was presented to our Prime Minister this week. What an eye-opening concept! The best part? No one had to lose an eye!

kitestring wants you to grab your hat, trowel, watering can and boots because we’d like to introduce you to our newest pro-bono brand, Sprout Summer Growing Camp. This down-to-earth day camp will get the kids in our community back to nature with lots of exciting activities. Everyone knows that the easiest way for us to learn is through hands-on fun and that’s exactly what kids will get when they attend Sprout. Campers will spend lots of time outside making eco-conscious crafts, playing educational games, getting their hands dirty in organic teaching gardens, going on green culinary adventures, learning about the big “sustainability” word and lots more! Sprout Camp sessions run from the beginning of July to mid-August for kids ages 4 to 13 years old. To register a camper visit www.sproutcamp.ca or send Sprout leader Kelly an email at getgrowing@sproutcamp.ca. Have a buggy, muddy and veggie filled summer at Sprout Summer Growing Camp!

Today, the kitestring team carpooled into Burlington to visit our friend Rob at Battlefield Graphics Inc. Rob re-introduced us to the world of offset printing and some printing options that can help reduce our impact on the environment. Chris, Jenn, Meg and myself got to see, touch and smell all sorts of beautiful paper and varnish samples. We talked about responsible forest management and what to look for when choosing the best paper and ink for your project. For those who who haven’t heard, the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) is an external certification that indicates that a product (paper or wood) has been managed in a responsible way – from forest, to mill, to merchant, to the printer and then to us (the end-user). Battlefield Graphics Inc. is a FSC certified printing partner of kitestring’s and also happens to use vegetable-based inks for offset printing (which is pretty awesome). We’re looking forward to sharing more of these eco-friendly options with you soon!

The kitestring gang had a blast at the Green Living Show today in TO. We met lots of cool people, learned a bunch, and even ate some organic ice cream!

Thanks to everyone who followed along on twitter and facebook submitting their questions and helping introduce Swatch 383. You all rock our socks!

Check out the video below to see how our day went.

Our client, Citizen Kid, is set to open their doors this Saturday on Locke St. in Hamilton.

Chris and I were lucky enough to drop by the store today and get a sneak peak. We were like two kids in…well…a toy store!

The store is beautiful and the toys are absolutely wonderful! With a commitment to providing natural toys of quality, integrity, and lasting value – you can be sure to find something fun, adorable and safe for your kids (or the kid inside) at Citizen Kid.

I promised myself that I would not make a purchase until I had the opportunity to bring my little guy on Saturday so he could make his own ‘selection’ but, I just couldn’t help myself. Both Chris and I left with several fun things in-hand.

Be sure to check out their website: www.citizenkid.ca for further details on store hours and location.

Now…I just have to find room in our house for a playroom. Happy playing!

- jenn