Author Archives: Diana Bagley

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  Stage at Rock the Green

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  Kiss Me I’m Irish T-shirt repurposed for Rock the Green by Goodwill.

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  Each person received a water pouch that could be filled for free at fresh water filling stations. No bottled water was sold.

HY Connectors on the HY-brid marketing team don’t just talk green, they walk it. Heck, sometimes they even rock it.

On September 18, 2011, a group of people passionate about sustainability (and good music) converged on Veteran’s Park to Rock the Green. It was the Midwest’s very first, near-zero-waste sustainable music festival, but you’d never have known it. Despite the weather, the festival ran like a well-oiled biodiesel machine.

• The lineup included big names like Ben Folds, The Fray, Michelle Branch and Fitz and the Tantrums.
• All of the food was organic and local.
• The price of a ticket included a BPA-free, reusable water pouch. There was no bottled water sold at the event. Rather, there were several fresh-water refilling stations.
• Cyclists generated part of the power for the event. They also used solar panels and 100% B20 biodiesel generators.
• Concert tees were provided by Goodwill, who in the ultimate act of recycling laundered hundreds of t-shirts from its inventory and printed the Rock the Green over whatever was already on the shirts. (My very-Irish niece received a Kiss Me I’m Irish t-shirt with Rock the Green printed over it.)
• The proceeds from ticket sales went to support to great local organizations—the Park People of Milwaukee and the Urban Ecology Center.

Every cup, plate, knife, fork and spoon was compostable. I know, because I was right there in the trenches—or rather, at a composting station—explaining to people how to separate their disposables. At times, it was a dirty job, but it was fulfilling and I was glad to be a part of such a well-thought-out experience. A lot of people were there just for the music, but as I explained to them how InSinkErator was grinding all the food waste into slurry that was being transported by Veolia to MMSD to make Milorganite (a locally produced organic fertilizer), you could see the proverbial light bulb (energy efficient, of course) turn on. People weren’t just having fun; they were learning. That was really cool to see. Continue Reading…