The Great Lakes Zephyr - Wind Energy & Hydrogen Journal

From Earthtech at Yahoo Groups;

Message: 1
Date: Thu, 13 May 2004 09:54:32 -0500
From: "Ed Blume" eblume@renewwisconsin.org
Subject: Midwest Renewable Energy & Sustainable Energy Fair

I copied below a column about the Renewable Energy and Sustainable
Living Fair of the nonprofit Midwest Renewable Energy Association.

I want to share the column for two reasons -- first, to let people know
about the Fair and encourage them to attend; second, to invite anyone
and everyone to use the column in any upcoming newsletter they might
publish and to post it on any appropriate Web sites and list serves.

Ed Blume
Communications/Outreach
RENEW Wisconsin
222 S. Hamilton St.
Madison, WI 53703
608.819.0748
http://www.renewwisconsin.org

Feature material
Contact:
Katy Matthai
Midwest Renewable Energy Association
715.592.6595 katy@the-mrea.org

Fantastic Fair Features Renewable Energy and Sustainable Living
by Tehri Parker, MREA Executive Director

Wisconsin welcomes one of the country's most unique
gatherings in Custer, Wisconsin, seven miles east of Stevens Point, on
Friday June 18 through Sunday, June 20, 2004.

Thousands will gather from across the country and from as
far away as Europe for the 15th annual Renewable Energy and Sustainable
Living Fair, the largest and oldest of its kind in the world.

Sponsored by the Midwest Renewable Energy Association
(MREA), it's like no other fair in Wisconsin. The fair presents
classes, workshops, lectures, music, vendors and displays on renewable
energy systems - wind, solar, wood-burning furnaces and biomass
digesters. There is also information on alternative construction -
straw bale houses, green building techniques, super insulation, and
underground homes; as well as food and gardening - vegetable seed
saving, herbs for everyday and planting a yard without a lawn. Three
in-depth workshops cover solar water heating, PV (photovoltaics) solar
electric systems, and cordwood masonry.

Exhibitors will offer advice and products on energy and
sustainable living, including wind turbines, solar panels, landscaping,
gardening, energy efficient appliances and energy conservation.

Fairgoers can take in over 120 workshops and visit with more
than 175 exhibitors.

The ReNew the Earth Institute, located on the twenty-acre
fairgrounds, houses the MREA's offices and showcases practical
applications of solar electricity, wind energy production, green
construction, and renewable heating. Renewable home tours, originating
from the fair on all three days, show similar construction and energy
applications in nearby residences.

This year's fair also features several nationally renowned speakers -
Amy Goodman, host and executive producer of Democracy Now!; Richard
Perez, publisher and editor of Home Power magazine; John Stauber,
founder and executive director of the Center for Media and Democracy;
and, Richard Heinberg, author of several books, including The Party's
Over: Oil, War, and the Fate of Industrial Society.

Entertainment includes Baba Ghanooj on Friday night, with an
evening of favorite songs from the Beatles to Neil Young. Saturday
night, the Reptile Palace Orchestra, will play Balkan, Middle Eastern,
blues, swing, and metal-influenced music. .

Every great fair offers delicious food, and the day begins
with a breakfast cafe, which later transforms into a pizzeria serving
organic pizza and beer from Central Waters Brewery.

Camping is available at the nearby Portage County
Fairgrounds in Amherst. The site's grassy lawn and scattered trees
accommodate tents, car campers and RVs.

Fair admission for adults is $10 per day or $25 for the weekend. Admission for seniors and students is $8 per day or $15 for
the weekend. Children under 12 are free.

Full details on the Fair are available at the MREA Web site
at www.the-mrea.org , or by calling 715.592.6595.

Like every fair, the Renewable Energy and Sustainable Living
Fair offers something for everyone. Don't miss it, June 18-20, Custer,
Wisconsin, just east of Stevens Point.

END