Tickets Available at the door! Larchmont-Mamaroneck Sustainability Expo

Pre-Expo Events

8:30 – 11:30 AM         Compost Bin & Rain Barrel Pick-up  (By pre-sale only.) 

8:30 – 9:30 AM           Exhibitor Set-up

Expo

9:30  - 10:00 AM         AM Registration, Expo, Morning Refreshments

10:00 – 10:35 AM       AM Session One

Our water under siege: Our tap water in southern Westchester and the New York metro area comes from west of the Hudson River and is famous for its purity and drinkability. But very soon, several major natural gas drilling projects are set to begin in the watershed, and Marion Rose will explain why that is a potential disaster for the safety  of our water. Elizabeth Royte will discuss why every time you buy a bottle of water, you are weakening the municipal water supply and helping to create a mountain of plastic bottle waste in landfills. 
 

Slow Food Larch-Mamk!:  Slow Food is a nonprofit, eco-gastronomic organization founded in Italy in 1989 to counteract fast food and fast life, the disappearance of local food traditions and people’s dwindling interest in where their food comes from, how it tastes, and how our food choices affect the food supply of the rest of the world. If you’re worried about McNuggets, high fructose corn syrup, and childhood obesity, join Chris Roberts of Slow Food Westchester as he talks about the movement in our county and our country, where you can buy and eat slow, and the importance of today’s American farmer.
 

The Solar System:  In the past two years, solar power has benefited from two phenomena: technical innovation, and increased federal and local tax credits and even cash back to convert your home to solar electric power or hot-water heat. Craig Harrigan of Mercury Solar, a local purveyor of solar systems, explains how the technology works, which features make a home or structure qualify for solar panels, and how lucky we in New York State are: We have one of the best programs in the country offering significant tax breaks for alternative energy and energy efficiency.  
 

Sustainable Lawns & Landscaping:  Richard Heller, CEO of Greener by Design and a leader in New York’s sustainable landscaping industry, discusses the importance of building soil culture, the use of organic fertilizers and non-chemical weed controls, and why we should plant native plants wherever possible.  Richard will also discuss energy-efficient outdoor lighting and water-conserving irrigation systems.
  

Global Warming for Kids (Ages 5-10) – Lynne Crowley, a Larchmonter who was trained in Al Gore’s Inconvenient Truth seminar, adapts the movie to a short presentation for kids focusing on some of the fundamental causes and results of climate change and addresses everyday things families can do to reduce their carbon footprints.
 

Sustainable Stories:  Join Francine Lucidon, owner of the Voracious Reader,  as she reads Dr. Seuss’s The Lorax and other greats from the canon of eco-lit for kids.  Francine will also host the Expo’s book table, which will sell children’s books—Francine’s among them!
 

10:45 – 11:20 AM       AM Session Two

Home Composting:  Joanie Dinowitz, a Westchester County Master Composter and Recycler, presents a crash course in home composting. Don’t forget to order your discounted composter before the presentation; proceeds will benefit Sheldrake Environmental Center in Larchmont.
   

The Benefits of Our Community Trees:   Join Rick Harper, IPM Extension Resource Educator and Certified Arborist as he discusses the numerous benefits associated with establishing and maintaining a healthy urban/community tree population.  Also discussed, will be tips for proper tree selection and maintenance.

Chemicals, What They are Doing to Us:  Concerned with your family's exposure to environmental toxins found in products such as plastics, cosmetics, dental sealants, food cans and shampoos?  Looking for safe alternatives for your home?  Please join Rhonda Sherwood, Vice Chairman of the Mount Sinai Children's Environmental Health Center in New York, as she discusses the research linking environmental toxins and childhood diseases including autism, ADHD, breast cancer in young women and testicular cancer in young men.

Sustainable Building:  Join Jonathan Tuminski, co-owner of Measure for Measure, a sustainable carpentry company, as he discusses building sustainably, indoor air quality and energy efficiency.  Jonathan will discuss what he has seen in the past, how the market is changing and the simple things homeowners can do today to make their homes more sustainable.

Film –The Story of Bottled Water, tells the story of manufactured demand and how Americans buy more than half a billion bottles of water every week when it already flows from the tap. The film explores the bottled water industry’s attacks on tap water and its use of seductive, environmental-themed advertising to cover up the mountains of plastic waste it produces. The film concludes with a call to ‘take back the tap,’ not only by making a personal commitment to avoid bottled water, but by supporting investments in clean, available tap water for all.

Recycle Craft for Kids:  Come find out why it is easy to be green!  Children's Librarian Rebecca Eller from The Larchmont Library will show us a fun and creative way to turn our glass and plastics into useful works of art through decoupage.

11:30 – 12:05 AM       AMSession Three

Recycling in Westchester County:  Join Emily Grotta, Westchester County Master Composter & Recycler, as she discusses the concept of reduce, reuse and recycle.  Learn what can and cannot be recycled in Westchester County as well as alternatives to sending unwanted items to the landfill.

Sustainability in Schools:  Join Steven Frantz as he discusses the three major areas of responsibility regarding sustainability education in schools: campus, curriculum, and community.  Steven will discuss the key elements of each of these, best practices from neighboring school systems,  carbon footprints (campus), teaching K-12 students about sustainability (curriculum), and engaging the larger community in meaningful activities (community).

The New Victory Garden:  Join Master Gardener and Larchmont resident, Toni Porter as she discusses how to get the most out of your new victory garden.  In addition to discussing minimum requirements for growing vegetables, Toni will discuss crops with the highest efficiency and yield, seasonal planting, creating raised beds, using containers to grow vegetables, and tips for a successful vegetable garden. The presentation will include a question and answer session and handouts.

Residential Energy Efficiency:  Join Matt Slattery, Technical Manager at Green Star Energy Solutions as he discusses how to better understand their home energy usage.  Matt will be discussing the ways in which homeowners can make their homes more comfortable, reduce energy usage, and save money.  Key topics will include an overview of home energy consumption, building science and the “house as a system”, small changes every homeowner can do that make big differences,  energy audits as well as state and federal government programs and incentives to help pay for energy efficiency improvements.

Film - The Story of Stuff is a 20-minute film that takes viewers on a provocative and eye-opening tour of the real costs of our consumer driven culture—from resource extraction to iPod incineration.  The Story of Stuff examines how economic policies of the post-World War II era ushered in notions of “planned obsolescence” and “perceived obsolescence” —and how these notions are still driving much of the U.S. and global economies today.

Sustainable Stories:  Join Francine Lucidon, owner of the Voracious Reader,  as she reads Dr. Seuss’s The Lorax and other greats from the canon of eco-lit for kids.  Francine will also host the Expo’s book table, which will sell children’s books—Francine’s among them!
 

 12:15 – 1:05 PM         Keynote Address

 End of Morning Session

Note:  The keynote address is overlapped by both the AM program and the PM program.  It is the last session of the day for the AM attendees and the first session of the day for the PM attendees.  The expo is open to all participants throughout the day.

Beginning of Afternoon Session

11:30 - 12:00 PM        PM Registration, Expo, Afternoon Refreshments

12:15 – 1:05 PM         Keynote Address

 1:15 – 1:50 PM           PM Session One

Sustainable Building:  Join Jonathan Tuminski, co-owner of Measure for Measure, a sustainable carpentry company, as he discusses building sustainably, indoor air quality and energy efficiency.  Jonathon will discuss what he has seen in the past, how the market is changing and the simple things homeowners can do today to make their homes more sustainable.

The New Victory Garden:  Join Master Gardener and Larchmont resident, Toni Porter as she discusses how to get the most out of your new victory garden.  In addition to discussing minimum requirements for growing vegetables, Toni will discuss crops with the highest efficiency and yield, seasonal planting, creating raised beds, using containers to grow vegetables, and tips for a successful vegetable garden. The presentation will include a question and answer session and handouts.

Reclaiming the Food Chain--Supporting sustainable agriculture doesn't have to be time consuming or complicated.  In fact, this is the one environmental movement that gives you instant and tasty results! In her presentation, Sherri Brooks Vinton offers simple steps you can take to have a more delicious dinner (and change the world one bite at a time!).

A Growing Crisis: Keeping Our Children Healthy in a Toxic World – Join Patricia (Patti) Wood, founder and executive director of Grassroots Environmental Education, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to educating the public about the relationship between environmental exposures and human health risks as she discusses what is causing the disturbing rise in the incidence of chronic childhood illnesses and disabilities.    From plastic toys to baby shampoo,  and cell phones to fast food packaging, learn how emerging scientific studies suggest that common environmental exposures are playing a significant role.

Film - The Story of Stuff is a 20-minute film that takes viewers on a provocative and eye-opening tour of the real costs of our consumer driven culture—from resource extraction to iPod incineration.  The Story of Stuff examines how economic policies of the post-World War II era ushered in notions of “planned obsolescence” and “perceived obsolescence” —and how these notions are still driving much of the U.S. and global economies today.

Eco Friendly Crafts for Kids of All Ages:  Join Richela Fabian Morgan, author and eco-crafter  as she instructs kids of all ages on how to make folders, wallets, books, and envelopes using brown paper bags, cereal boxes, and other  paper waste.

2:00 – 2:35 PM           PM Session Two

Solar Energy:  Join Carolyn Humphreys as she presents a slide show presentation on how solar technology works, what elements make a home or structure appropriate for solar energy production and how the current government incentives make this form of energy cost effective.   Additional topics to be covered include the regional incentives offered by NYSERDA, the state credits and the 30% federal tax credits available to local homeowners.   

Residential Energy Efficiency:  Join Matt Slattery, Technical Manager at Green Star Energy Solutions as he discusses how to better understand their home energy usage.  Matt will be discussing the ways in which homeowners can make their homes more comfortable, reduce energy usage, and save money.  Key topics will include an overview of home energy consumption, building science and the “house as a system”, small changes every homeowner can do that make big differences,  energy audits as well as state and federal government programs and incentives to help pay for energy efficiency improvements.

H20:  Join Nancy Seligson, Town of Mamaroneck as she discusses specific actions individuals and households can take to protect our water resources.  Nancy will discuss how we affect water quality, sewage treatment plants and nonpoint source pollution. Nancy will also discuss the actions the Town of Mamaroneck has taken to reduce its environmental footprint. 

Organic Farming:  Join Washington Square CSA partner Zaid Kurdieh, owner Norwich Meadows Farm, a and an organic, family-operated farm in Norwich, NY as he discusses the importance of fresh, locally grown, and in season produce. 

foragers.

Film –The Story of Bottled Water, tells the story of manufactured demand and how Americans buy more than half a billion bottles of water every week when it already flows from the tap. The film explores the bottled water industry’s attacks on tap water and its use of seductive, environmental-themed advertising to cover up the mountains of plastic waste it produces. The film concludes with a call to ‘take back the tap,’ not only by making a personal commitment to avoid bottled water, but by supporting investments in clean, available tap water for all.

Sustainable Stories:  Join Francine Lucidon, owner of the Voracious Reader  as she reads some of today’s great sustainable stories for children.  In addition, Francine will be hosting the Expo book sales table which will showcase a number of our speaker’s works.

“Green” Your Home to $$ave Green:   Would you like to lower the costs of operating your home, be more comfortable, and help the environment?   Join Judith Martin as she identifies the biggest uses of energy in the home and specific steps that can be taken to substantially reduce energy use.  This presentation will also include a discussion of energy efficiency measures to include when designing a new or fully renovated home including geothermal HVAC and solar PV.  Other “green” measures include construction recycling, water conservation and storm water runoff.

2:45 – 3:20 PM           PMSession Three

 "How Green Is My Town" is a national environmental assessment program created by Grassroots Environmental Education, a non-profit organization based in Port Washington, NY.  Join Patti Wood, founder and executive director of Grassroots Environmental Education and co-creator of How Green Is My Town as she discusses how this multi-faceted program is a blueprint for local grassroots action, a scorecard to measure local progress, a buyer's guide, and an active-learning opportunity for colleges and universities. Learn about what Westchester's environmental report card looks like, how green are Mamaroneck and Larchmont, and what can you do in your own town to positively impact some of the biggest global problems humans have ever faced.  (www.howgreenismytown.org) 

 "How Green Is My Town" is a national environmental assessment program created by Grassroots Environmental Education, a non-profit organization based in Port Washington, NY.  Join Patti Wood, founder and executive director of Grassroots Environmental Education and co-creator of How Green Is My Town as she discusses how this multi-faceted program is a blueprint for local grassroots action, a scorecard to measure local progress, a buyer's guide, and an active-learning opportunity for colleges and universities. Learn about what Westchester's environmental report card looks like, how green are Mamaroneck and Larchmont, and what can you do in your own town to positively impact some of the biggest global problems humans have ever faced.  (www.howgreenismytown.org)