Eco-Moms 'Parties'

Hello All,

I dont have any information to offer on this topic, but I would like to add a further question. Does anyone have any information on existing programs that promote/offer or otherwise encourage eco-friendly birthday parties for small kids? This seems to be something that has come up in casual conversations around my circle of friends who all have small kids. Is there some way to promote less or no gift giving, eco friendly parties themselves (no paper plates, less waste, etc), and alternatives to the loot bag full of dollar store throwaways. I have some ideas of my own, but am interested in a larger scale program.

Thanks,
Theresa

Theresa Sauren
Executive Director
Reduce the Juice
p:519-943-0303
c:519-938-6601

Have you seen http://www.ecomomalliance.org/ ? There are several initiatives listed there that might be a starting point.

Best,
Jess

Jess Sand
Principal Roughstock Studios
PO Box 460010
San Francisco, CA 94146
p (415) 643-0121
f (415) 643-4896
http://www.roughstockstudios.com

There was a group in Vancouver, BC in the 80's and 90's that worked very effectively in this way. I belive it was called WHEN - Women's Home Environmental Network they had a newsletter and had great success with educating people in their homes about what they could do for the environment. WEN is active in the UK.

Judy Montgomery
Saskatoon

Hi Michael,

I had recently heard about this trend, too, from someone who read about it in the NYT. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/16/us/ 16ecomoms.html . A simple google search gives you more information that one can digest at once. I see it as a powerful form of behavior change through establishing new norms and applying peer pressure.

Best of luck,
Kat

Kat Donnelly, PE
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Engineering Systems Division
Ph.D. Candidate
Dual SMs in Technology & Policy, and Civil & Env. Engineering
[email protected]
619-263-2572

I recently attended a birthday party for a one-year-old friend of mine. It was a "presence not presents" party and we went to a stream restoration site to plant trees (Nooksack Salmon Enhancement Society is the non-profit www.n-sea.org ). It was a lot of fun, great to be outside. I'm sure that other activities could be incorporated into this that could be fun for older kids. And other volunteer activities could be done depending on the location or interest of the group. We all met at a local restaurant afterwards for more party fun.

Colleen Burrows

Whatcom County
IPM Coordinator
Washington State University,
Whatcom County Extension
1000 North Forest Street
Bellingham, WA 98225

Hello,

With Spokane Neighborhood Action Programs in Spokane, Washington we have a sustainability education program with what we call Home Gatherings being one of our main outreach methods. Home Gatherings are similar to "Tupperware Parties" in that we deliver the education inside someone's home to their friends and family, but of course we don't sell anything. It is not only for mom's, but includes families, low-income, and anyone else who will have us. The program is called Living Green with SNAP and it's paid in part by the Washington Dep. Of Ecology's Public Participation Grant. The program started as an Americorps VISTA project and it has been running for nearly six years. At SNAP, the programs are specific to low-income and homeless people, so our program focuses on the low-income population (especially working families) but we aren't limited to it. Usually women are more interested in the parties and the most enthusiastic are mom's who want alternatives to toxic cleaners. The parties cover energy conservation, waste reduction, recycling, composting, organic/local food, and homemade non-toxic cleaners. All of this is delivered with the message that living green saves money as well as resources, health and the environment. We also give classes and presentations in other ways such as for private organizations and clubs, and in publicly advertised workshops. I am the main educator and to get people interested in the classes we do a lot of outreach at farmer's markets, neighborhood resource fairs, and city events like Earth Day, Unity in the Community, Baby Shower Festival, Martin Luther King Day, etc. To further our efforts, we have a volunteer educator program that trains Community Educators to teach these classes as well. Right now we have four volunteers that help to teach and 5-10 others who are in training. I am more than happy to answer any questions you might have about the program. Please feel free to contact me directly or visit our website.

Argyle Baukol

Living Green Specialist
Spokane Neighborhood Action Programs
509-744-3370 ext 242
[email protected]
www.livinggreensnap.org

Hi,

The Moreland Energy Foundation (MEFL), a not-for-profit organisation based in Melbourne, Australia, runs a couple of programs that may be of interest re the 'eco-moms' thread: Talks and resources for New Mothers Groups: In our operating area (the municipality of Moreland) there are 16 Maternal and Child Health Centres that run regular New Mothers Groups, which meet weekly for a 6-week program. The sessions provide an opportunity for new parents to meet and share their experiences and a Maternal Health Nurse is on hand to weigh babies and talk with mums about feeding issues etc. Each week a guest speaker delivers a session on a topic of relevance to new parents; since 2003 MEFL has been a fixture of these programs, delivering a 45min-1hr session covering the ways in which energy use may be expected to increase when a new baby comes home, and giving practical advice for keeping the bills down. This topic often has extra relevance for new parents for a range of reasons, including:

- New parents have often switched from being a dual-income to a single-income household, and with one parent suddenly at home all the time energy bills can be expected to increase at a time when the focus is on keeping costs down

- Having a new baby at home can bring issues of comfort to the fore, and these often have crossover with energy use e.g. the need to keep baby's room warm/cool

- Bringing a new person into the world and experiencing a major change in lifestyle can make people more receptive to messages about sustainability and the future of the planet

- to put it crudely, new parents suddenly have a stake in the future that previously didn't exist for them MEFL has developed an info kit for new parents that we hand out at each session, along with other energy efficiency aids such as thermometers (these are particularly popular as they can be used to test baby's bathwater, bottle temperature etc). A pdf of the Baby Kit is available for download from http://www.mefl.com.au/household/resources/

In-Home Energy Workshops MEFL delivers community workshops on energy efficiency on a regular basis at neighbourhood houses, halls and other venues around the community; in 2007 we trialled a series of in-home workshops that borrowed from the party-plan model to deliver environmental info in people's homes. Householders were invited to bring together a group of friends, family, neighbours etc in their home for a 2 hour workshop on practical energy efficiency measures, from no cost behavioural changes and simple retrofits through to longer term investments such as solar hot water and major appliance replacement. The in-home environment allowed us to walk through the home and demonstrate opportunities for efficiency and created a more friendly, informal environment to encourage a deeper level of engagement than is often possible in a workshop setting. All participants received a free retrofit kit containing a water efficient showerhead, 2 x compact fluoros, draught sealing products, a thermometer, lagging and a self-audit guide. For more info on either program please feel free to contact me off list [email protected] or visit our website www.mefl.com.au

Anna Strempel

Household Program Coordinator
Moreland Energy Foundation Ltd
PO Box 276 Brunswick VIC 3056
P: 9381 1722
www.mefl.com.au