The Cincinnati Park system launched a new website this week; making it even simpler to find a good place to:
Check out the new CincinnatiParks.com!
A new “green” service is available in the Cincinnati area. You might call it a version of Freecycle for moms.
From the release:
Freepeats.org connects Cincinnati-area parents with baby, children’s and maternity items.
Atlanta, Georgia – November 16, 2008 – Angie Wynne, founder of the popular frugal parenting website, Baby Cheapskate (babycheapskate.com), recently announced the expansion of Freepeats.org, an online forum which allows parents to pick up gently-used baby, kid, and maternity items for free from nearby parents who have finished with them.
“Preparing for a baby’s arrival is expensive,” says Wynne, “and so is raising one. Common estimates put the cost at $10,000 in the first year alone. And this is at a time when many families are trying to get by on one parent’s income. At the same time, many of the expensive baby items parents spend their money on get used only for a very short time. There’s still plenty of life left in them. If parents can find good-condition second-hand clothing, toys, and gear, they’ll shave hundreds of dollars or more off that $10,000 total. Besides that, we’ll keep usable items out of the landfills.”
Freepeats opened in the Cincinnati area on November 16. Freepeats groups are also up and running in 36 other major U.S. cities with dozens more openings planned for 2009. “I want parents all across the country to have access to the savings that Freepeats offers,” Wynne says. “We’re opening the forums just as fast as we can.”
For Cincinnati-area residents who join Freepeats there’s be a $4.95 nominal, one-time membership fee. Meanwhile, it is Wynne’s hope that residents will get hundreds of dollars’ worth of gently-used baby items for the price of the cost of the gas it takes to go pick them up locally.
Freepeats has now registered more than 14,000 members. Offerings have included bouncers, swings, cribs, infant formula, baby and toddler clothing, zoo tickets, diapers, strollers, high chairs, baby gyms, parenting books, toys, and more. The site has been featured at Discovery.com’s Planet Green website, Apartment Therapy.com, Nickelodeon’s Parents Connect website, Green Deals Daily, Readers Digest, and others.
Cincinnati Parks have been an integral part of local life for many, many years. The Parks have recently made huge environmental strides with solar and wind energy demonstrations, solar trash cans, rain gardens, and more - but they also have a rich history of making green available to all Cincinnatians.
Do you have a story about an experience in Cincinnati Parks? You can be a part of a documentary being made by CET about the history of Cincinnati Parks. Find the details and contact information online here.
The latest installment of I Make Cincinnati Green features Chuck Lohre. Chuck is a LEED AP and PR/Media chair of the Cincinnati chapter of the US Green Building Council. Want to learn about or tour an environmentally conscious building project in Cincinnati? Chuck is heavily involved in educating and promoting green projects in Cincinnati.
Find out more about Chuck and other people who make Cincinnati Green here.
Talking green
Since green has been heading toward mainstream over the past few years, a fresh new vernacular of catch phrases and pop slang terms is emerging.
But what are we saying?
Do any of these clever words work in your life?
Never a dull conversation in the evolving world of environmental awareness!
This afternoon at UC’s Tangeman University Center, the next speaker in the “Climate Commitment 101″ series will be discussing the controversial topic of nuclear energy.
From the website:
The next installment in UC’s “Climate Commitment 101″ lecture series is scheduled for Oct. 30 and features Gwyneth Cravens, author of “Power to Save the World: The Truth About Nuclear Energy.”
Craven’s new book explores the controversies and facts surrounding nuclear energy and its potential to help or hinder the environment. She will speak about her book and her research, and will be available to sign copies of the book that will be offered for sale.
This event takes place from noon-1 p.m. on Oct. 30 in MainStreet Cinema in Tangeman University Center.
If it peaks your interest in the future of energy, head to the event on your lunch hour and check it out. For details on this and more about sustainability initiatives at UC, visit the UC Sustainability website.
Keep Cincinnati Beautiful is one of the five finalists to receive an Impact 100 grant. KCB provides some incredible services, including free educational outreach. Interested in learning more?
From the KCB newsletter:
Keep Cincinnati Beautiful’s Education Department is dedicated to providing comprehensive education on litter prevention, recycling, and beautification. We would like to use this month’s e-newsletter to inform you about our many education programs.
We offer FREE environmental education programming to children pre-k through high school, in the form of classroom teaching, school wide assemblies, field trips and volunteer opportunities . KCB also offers teacher workshops each year to interested teachers on a specific environmental topic.
For more information about ANY education activity or opportunity listed on this e-newsletter please email Barb or call 352-4387.
A word to the wise - our programs are quite popular and our schedule fills very quickly. Be sure to call as soon as you know what your classroom’s needs will be.
Cincinnati has a large contingent of branding, marketing and communications professionals and companies. As the design and packaging industry has moved toward sustainable practices, Cincinnati has an opportunity to lead the wave.
Finally, there is news that a Cincinnati company will focus on branding for eco-friendly products. Read more about Marsh Eco from Soapbox Cincinnati.
Marsh Inc., an independent design consulting firm, has launched Marsh Eco to to specialize in brand identity, packaging and promotional design for companies that create consumer products supporting eco-friendly lifestyles. Ken Neiheisel will lead the Marsh Eco team from the Marsh Inc. headquarters in downtown Cincinnati, producing the creative work, and providing other project support. Sherri S. Henry will focus on new business for Eco in the Austin, Texas market and surrounding areas in the Southern U.S. She’ll be based in Austin.
In recent years, Marsh has worked with leaders in health and eco-conscious living such as Whole Foods, Save Your Skin and Nest Fresh Eggs. “Consumers are embracing the importance and value of eco-friendly, healthier products, and as a whole are rethinking their lifestyles,” Neiheisel says. “This paradigm shift represents an extension of our business – that also marries with our personal convictions.”
If you are a marketing or design professional, will you take your clients toward a sustainable future?
Looking for something to do this weekend? Sunday, September 14th is Second Sunday on Main in historic Over The Rhine.
It’s Eco Main-ia!
The event lasts from 12-5pm and includes Main St. shops, restaurants, galleries, vendors, a Samba parade, a live Mid Point Music Festival preview, kid crafts with Happen Inc, a celebrity chef demo, free reusable tote bag from Kroger for the first 200 attendees, and free bike valet and coffee from Park+Vine.
Live Green Cincinnati will be there as well. Stop by to say “hi” and check out our traveling solar panel!
The Enquirer wants to know what you’ve changed in your life to become more environmentally conscious.
Submit your tips for better recycling, smarter buying, reduced driving, water saving, and whatever else you’ve been focusing on in the home or at work over the past few months.
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