Eco Avenue
2013 ECO AVENUE:
Eco Avenue is the block of Elm St. between 7th and 8th where booths of organizations working to promote a sustainable future can be accessed. Eco Ave. will be filled with information to empower you to make lifestyle changes that reduce your environmental impact. Find sustainable living tips and ideas for every aspect of your life.
Below is a listing of the organizations, agencies and businesses that will be participating in Eco Ave. this year, 2013. For almost all of these, we have embedded links to their websites. This should provide you with access to a wealth of information before, and after, the 2013 Columbia Area Earth Day Festival.
If you have questions about Eco Ave. or would like to have a booth on Eco Ave. in the future, please contact the Earth Day Coalition.
Eco Avenue Booths:
The Anthropology Student Association
This organization is a student-run group within the University of Missouri’s anthropology department. Their booth will showcase how one can merge a love of people and culture with environmental concerns. They do this by exploring applied anthropology as an academic discipline in relation to environmentally friendly living, including ethnobotany, ecological anthropology, archaeology and others. http://mizzou-asa.wix.com/asa
Blue Planet Natural Foods Buying Club
This booth provides info on how one can gain access to high quality natural and organic foods at a lower cost by pre-ordering through this local non-profit buying club. Volunteering is not required, but those who do, save even more. Contact Blue Planet via the Peace Nook at 804-C East Broadway, Columbia 65201 or 573-875-0539. http://blog.midmopeaceworks.org/p/blue-planet.html
Boone’s Lick Chapter of Missouri Master Naturalists
This Department of Conservation program focuses on natural resources, illustrating the impact that we as humans can have on the natural eco-system. They offer the Master Naturalist Training featuring natural resource experts and hands on volunteering opportunities. http://extension.missouri.edu/boone/masternaturalist.aspx
City of Columbia Public Works Volunteer Program
Part of the Public Works Department of the City of Columbia, this office focuses on waste reduction, reuse and recycling education. Check out their informational brochures and volunteer opportunities. http://www.gocolumbiamo.com/PublicWorks/
Columbia Center for Urban Agriculture
This local non-profit organization seeks to promote and work towards a functional sustainable local food system in the city of Columbia, They will have displays concentrating on urban agriculture, home gardening, backyard chickens and composting. They’ll also have info about workshops and other opportunities they offer at their urban farm location. http://www.columbiaurbanag.org/
Columbia Climate Change Coalition
This organization addresses the need to take individual and collective action on personal, local, regional, state, national, and international levels to reduce the human contribution to the global climate crisis, to help others understand that we must take significant and quick action now and to facilitate that action, as best we can, through every available means in our power. http://www.columbiaclimatechangecoalition.org
This farmers market is a local producer-only market. Their mission is to provide safe reliable, high quality food to consumers in a regulated, public marketplace. It’s a great place to find organic produce, pastured meats and value added products such as home baked breads and desserts as well as a place to get to know the people who produce the food. For information contact Laurel at 720-933-0834 or columbiafarmersmarket@gmail.com http://columbiafarmersmarket.org/
Quakers have a long tradition of simple living for sustainability. Locally they focus on recycling, organic gardening, and other means of sustainability that everyone can practice to help reduce waste, reuse and recycle anything that can be recycled. http://missouriquakers.org/
This is the City of Columbia’s Energy Services office. This booth will focus on solar power. They will have exhibits of solar water heaters and photovoltaic panels. http://www.gocolumbiamo.com/WaterandLight/
Dancing Rabbit is an ecovillage and intentional community of about 70 people set amid the hills and prairies of rural northeastern Missouri. Their goal is to live ecologically sustainable and socially rewarding lives, and to share the skills and ideas behind this lifestyle. They offer courses on Permaculture and other hands-on skills. Contact via: 1 Dancing Rabbit Lane, Rutledge, MO 63563, 660-883-5511 or tony@ic.org http://www.dancingrabbit.org
Deli Llama Orchestra Water Filters
Practical off the grid water filters. Contact Neal 573-698-4392 or fullstream@tranquility.net.
This local business believes in making a commitment to help protect our environment and increase our financial legacy in the name of the present and the future by educating and helping the public in ways to reduce dependence on carbon-based fuels when possible. Their booth will feature a display on Solar Water Heating. Contact Dan via: 1001 Fay Street Ste. 101, Columbia 65201 or 573-424-2011. http://www.dogwoodsolar.com/
Past winner of the Earth Day Environmental Education Contest. They will be demonstrating their energy audit equipment, and they’ll have a computer presentation on common home improvements to help reduce one’s home energy consumption. http://www.goenergylink.com/
Environmentally Sound Products is a small business and a past winner in the Environmental Education Contest. Their booth will focus on vermicomposting with red wigglers and raising chemical-free plants. They will have a working worm bin and soil mix demonstration. They will also have information and supplies for drip irrigation. They will offer some of the 40 varieties of organic bedding plants, worms, worm kits and worm castings for sale. This is their 10th year in business. Contact Kathleen via: 17736 Keller Drive, Wright City, MO 63390, espofmo@earthlink.net or 636-456-3066. www.espofmo.com
Friends of Rock Bridge Memorial State Park
The Friends of Rock Bridge Memorial State park was founded in 1992 to promote understanding, appreciation, enjoyment, and preservation of the natural and cultural resources of the park and to aid in the protection of the park. http://www.friendsofrockbridgemsp.org
Human Environmental Sciences Extension
This program is part of the Department of Architectural Studies at the University of Missouri. They specialize in environmental design, housing, healthy indoor air, and community revitalization & sustainability. http://extension.missouri.edu/hes/architectural.htm
Laughing Oak Folk School is a Permaculture, homestead information and networking resource that encourages whole-system regional interdependence. Contact Hannah at 573-441-0068. www.laughingoak.org
League of Women Voters, Energy Matters Committee
This group is an important subcommittee of the Columbia/Boone County League of Women Voters. They provide info on sources for alternative energy and programs that help support green energy use as well as renewable energy for Columbia’s electricity. http://lwvcbc.org/
This eco-community is a demonstration and education site near Fulton which holds tours and provides space for workshops on sustainability related skills as well as classes on self-reliance and self-sufficiency. Their goals are to develop a lifestyle in harmony with the environment that can continue for indefinite generations, and be a resource for those wishing to change their lifestyles. Contact via P.O. Box 876, Fulton, MO 65251. www.mayacreek.org
Missouri Environmental Education Association
This association helps educators inspire Missourians to care about, understand and act for their environment by providing networking and high quality environmental education resources. http://www.meea.org
Missouri River Communities Network
This non-profit organization’s mission is to preserve the natural and cultural resources of the Missouri River. Their booth focuses on helping homeowners minimize the impact that they have on our streams by encouraging rain gardens, rain barrels, safe disposal of wastes and water quality monitoring. They will have a rain barrel display. http://www.moriver.org/
Missouri Solar Applications LLC
This business offers solar energy engineering from consultation and design to installation for commercial and residential use. Applications include solar electric and solar hot water, as well as energy efficiency and energy efficient lighting upgrades. Contact via 573-659-8657. http://mosolarapps.com
This office coordinates sustainability efforts all over the Mizzou Campus. They will offer general info sheets on topics such as recycling, bicycle repair and resource costs. Booth visitors can test their knowledge of storm water with a short quiz. http://sustainability.missouri.edu/
The Osage Group is Columbia’s most vocal and effective defender of Mid Missouri’s environment. The group boasts a large membership of nearly nine hundred activists and welcomes new members of all ages. Outings are also a large part of Osage Group membership. There are nearly 40 local outings planned annually. These outings take members into local conservation and wilderness areas to hike, canoe, and bicycle, in addition to purely social gatherings. http://missouri.sierraclub.org/osage/index.htm
Peaceworks’ Center for Sustainable Living
Peaceworks’ Center for Sustainable Living has worked since 1993 to promote lifestyles that foster simple living and a more sustainable future. Their scope includes everything from energy use to food and water, transportation to consumerism and voluntary simplicity. CSL volunteers touch the lives of hundreds of Mid-Missourians through classes, programs, and their annual Sustainable Living Fair. Their booth will feature info on the upcoming May 19 Edible Columbia Garden Tour. CSL is seeking more volunteers in order to reach more of our neighbors. Contact Laura via 573-875-0539. http://blog.midmopeaceworks.org/p/center-for-sustainable-living.html http://www.slfcolumbia.org/
A local non-profit organization whose goal is to encourage active travel such as walking, bicycling, and rolling a wheelchair, and to promote the creation of a safe and attractive network of paths, trails and multi-modal streets that provides health, environmental, quality-of-life, and economic benefits to the community. http://www.pednet.org/
Renew Missouri’s mission is to transform Missouri into a leading state in both efficiency and renewable energy by the year 2016. Renew Missouri’s approach to advancing policy is to bring stakeholders for energy issues together to educate and facilitate productive dialogue. They educate legislators and other policy makers while also promoting renewables and energy efficiency to the public. They evaluate what energy policies Missouri could implement and guide stakeholders as they use the policies that are put in place. Contact Paul via 910 East Broadway Ste 205 Columbia, 65201, 816-519-5047 or paul@renewmo.org http://renewmo.org
Just minutes from Columbia, Rock Bridge Memorial State Park contains some of the most popular hiking trails in the state, a wild cave experience and also offers solitude while hiking in the Gans Creek Wild Area. http://mostateparks.com/park/rock-bridge-memorial-state-park
Grassroots organized in 2007, Show Me Solar is a non-profit educational outreach organization based in the state of Missouri. Their mission is to educate the general public about the benefits of solar living and to advocate for the increased use of solar energy. Contact Kevin via 573-499-1969 or allemannk@me.com http://www.showmesolar.org/
This organization offers homes to unwanted pets and runs a spay and neuter program that reduces the strain of unwanted pets on the environment. http://www.columbia2ndchance.org
This non-profit student group promotes sustainability to the UMC campus and to students living in the community. They work on a broad variety of issues and provide hours of volunteer service for the environment. http://sustainmizzou.students.missouri.edu/
