Alternative Earth Day Celebrations Pop Up

If you’ve been sulking over the cancellation of Eugene’s traditional Earth Day celebration, then dry those eyes, because now you’ve got options.

A community group cleared the regulatory hurdles and is holding Earth Day in the Park — an Earth Day alternative. The goal of Earth Day in the Park, says event organizer Sabrina Siegel, is to bring Earth Day back to a park and to emphasize the urgency of the issues facing the Earth.

The event will feature a bike repair workshop by Paul’s Bicycle Way of Life, an assortment of live music, a planetary healing ceremony and more. Mayor Kitty Piercy is also scheduled to speak.

Earth Day has been an “automatic exercise everyone goes through without paying attention to the seriousness of the issue,” says organizer Jack Dresser. The aim of the new event is to “celebrate what we’ve got and to try to figure out how to save it,” Dresser says.

If the park isn’t your thing, then you can still help save the world by getting your reuse on at BRING Recycling’s 44th anniversary party, where most used items will be on sale for 44 percent off.

The party will feature local marimba band Kudana as well as Hot Mama’s Wings food cart. The Science Factory will also be on hand, with Earth Day themed children’s activities.

“The best way to help the planet is to help consume less new stuff,” says BRING Recycling Executive Director Julie Daniel, and people can help by buying the items for home improvement projects at BRING.

“Every day is Earth Day here at BRING,” Daniel says. “We love the idea of celebrating Earth Day, but it shouldn’t be something you are doing one day a year.” BRING Recycling’s 44th anniversary party is 9 am to 5 pm Saturday, April 25, at 4446 Franklin Blvd. For more info, visit bringrecycling.org.

Earth Day in the Park is 2 to 7 pm Saturday, April 25, at Alton Baker Park. More details can be found on the event’s Facebook page or by contacting Siegel at sabrinaseigel@gmail.com or 343-1913. In addition to Mayor Piercy, the speakers list as of April 22 includes:

• Shawn Boles of the Eugene Sustainability Commission on “Climate Change Action, a Quarter Century of Successes and Failures.”

• Thomas Wheatley of Renew Oregon on “The Campaign to Put a Price On Carbon Emissions In Oregon.”

• Francis Eatherington of Cascadia Wildlands on the Pacific Connector LNG Pipeline.

• Julia Olson of Our Children’s Trust on “Intergenerational Equity and the Lawsuit on Behalf of Future Adults.”

• Kaia Hazard of Divest UO on “Divesting Public Funds from Fossil Fuels.”

• Dr. Orestes Gutierrez on “Healthy Planet, Healthy Person — Why A Plant Based Diet is Best.”

• Will Newman of the Sustainable Agriculture Land Trust on “Sustainable Agriculture Helps, Industrial Agriculture Hurts the Climate.”

• Ann Kneeland on “The Community Rights Movement.”

• Brian Dystra on “For the Love of Bees.”

• Charles Stewart on “Farms, Not Factories on Seavey Loop.”

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