Fresno Earth Day

FRESNO EARTH DAY ‘05: RESIST, RESTORE, REJUVENATE!


Hey people! It is springtime, a time of fresh rain, flowers, green foothills, and only slightly smoggy air. Springtime is high time for the Earth, and in the great tradition of the contemporary environmental movement it is time for Earth Day.

This year the Fresno Earth Day Festival will be held SUNDAY APRIL 24TH from Noon to Sunset at Avacado Lake—23 miles east of Fresno. Follow Highway 180 east and take a left on Piedra road a few miles beyond Centerville. (See information below for bicycling and car-pooling.) The theme for Earth Day this year is Putting the Earth First: Resist, Restore, and Rejuvenate. We are taking our cue in part from the recent World Social Forum in Porto Allegre Brazil (the counterpoint to the World Economic Forum) where activists and organizers from all over the planet proclaimed that “Another World is Possible.” Let’s all dream, envision, and dedicate ourselves to making a world in which our economy, society, and politics and our everyday lives are guided first by the well being of the Earth. Non-profits, activists, government agencies, artists, musicians and you are invited to inspire and inform. RESIST politics and economics that puts profit first and RESIST the urges that advertising has generated in you to do what is convenient, popular and destructive rather than what is conscientious, healthy and life-giving. RESTORE the air, water, and land so badly damaged by centuries of “development,” and RESTORE the sense of community responsibility that keeps the people happy and the local environment healthy. REJUVENATE the rivers and the life of the rivers; the marsh lands and the life of the marsh lands; the foothills and mountains and the life of the foothills and mountains. REJUVENATE in each breath your own physical, mental, and spiritual well being which is only as strong as the environment with which we are all always connected. Resist, restore, rejuvenate! It’s Earth Day. Except for a $4 charge to enter the park, the event is totally free.

Earth Day actually will begin Sunday, April 24th at 9 am with a walk to save Wahallich/Jesse Morrow Mountain—a beautiful and majestic foothill between Highway 180 and Tyvee Valley that is threatened by RMC Pacific’s plan to turn it into a gravel quarry. Local Choinumni people and neighbors will guide a walking tour and discuss the history and flora and fauna of the Mountain. Follow the directions to Avocado Lake and watch for signs from Piedra road. All are welcome to participate in the walk.

Ska/dub, folk, indigenous, and blues music from a solar powered stage will be featured throughout the day. Music will be interspersed with messages from powerful speakers who have dedicated themselves to the struggle for a healthy environment. Free vegetarian and vegan food from sponsors of the event and from Food Not Bombs will be provided. This year there will be no vending though groups and individuals will be presenting their crafts, art work, and food for donation. In this spirit a really, really, really free market is being organized. Everyone is encouraged to bring out items to give away. So dig out that stuff from your garage, attic or Derrell’s mini storage, and see if someone else can use or enjoy it. Maybe you’ll find something you can use or enjoy. This is shopping the old fashioned way, by mutual aid! If you get tired of shopping for free stuff there is swimming at Avocado Lake and there will be a drum circle at dusk to close out the event.

There will be info tables from dozens of local groups, experts, and agencies. But this year you will be asked to give information as well as receive. What will the Earth First source of energy be? How much energy do we really need and how can it be produced in an ecologically sound way? How about water? Are dams really necessary? How many? How about land? What if people changed their diets? How much land could be saved by cutting down on or eliminating junk food and meat? What about transportation? We all know that the internal combustion automobile is the most destructive technology in the history of the human race, but what is a sound alternative transportation system to auto-mania? And how about population and housing? As a culmination of the day’s event we will bring together all the insights and information in a follow-up meeting and construct a framework for (un)developing an ecologically sound future.

We agree that the distance to Avacado Lake is a problem both for the environment and for the pocketbook. We are currently seeking to secure bus service from Fresno FAX to the mountain. In any event we will have carpooling available. Also, a bike ride to Avocado Lake is being organized by the Fresno County Bicycle Coaltion. To access information about transportation or to get more information about Fresno Earth Day 2005 check us out at http://www.fresnoearthday.org. We look forward to seeing everybody at Avocado Lake. One peace, one planet.