What: Ottawa Living Green Expo 2013
When: Saturday & Sunday April 27 – 28, 2013
Where: Ottawa Convention Centre, 55 Colonel By Drive, downtown Ottawa

The Ottawa EcoFair, ECO EXPO and the Ottawa Convention Centre (OCC) are collaborating to create the best environment and health event in the history of the National Capital Region! This event will coincide with Earth Day celebrations and be offered at affordable rates. The Ottawa Convention Centre is the ideal location for this exciting new event as it exemplifies a truly sustainable public facility.

There are lots of ways to get involved. Local organizations and businesses with an interest in sustainable and healthy living should apply to be an exhibitor. Spaces are limited so apply early. We are also seeking sponsors, donors, and volunteers. For more information please go to our Contact Us page.

More information: Ottawa Living Green Expo 2013

Would you buy a gift if you knew it was made in a sweatshop or by slave labour? Or something made by a company that is clearcutting forests, poisoning  our water or causing climate change? What about a gift that could hurt your loved one’s health and happiness?  There are plenty of gifts that do all of the above, but disguised by deceptive marketing, shiny packaging and greenwash.

Ideas for a green Christmas:

• Buy local or Fair Trade if possible
• Buy from eco-friendly stores such as Arbour, terra20, bike stores,  and other Ottawa green businesses (2)
• Buy local food, natural snacks or treats from a natural food store, Ottawa Farmers Market Christmas Fairs, or other Ottawa Farmers Markets. Better yet, purchase a weekly organic food box from a local CSA farm or garden.
• Second hand is not second class! Buy used from Ottawa second-hand stores or online.
• Buy a book and pass it on once it’s been read. Check out the eco-books at Arbour Environmental Shoppe or Octopus Books, both in the Glebe. Or visit other independent bookstores or used book stores in Ottawa. (More Ottawa bookstores)
• Give a thought-provoking magazine subscription like Yes! or Grist, and donate them to the doctor’s office when finished
• Give a membership to a local environmental group or charity
• Choose battery-free toys
• Give gift certificates for local services or stores, or your own personal service (massage, fixing something, gardening, whatever)
• Pay for a course at an Ottawa Recreation Centre, high school, college or university (more)
• Draw names – have each person buy for one family member only
• Bigger is not better. “The bigger the toy, the smaller the boy…”
• Write a letter, poem, song or make something else creative
• Pool your money together with other family members for a shared meal, outing or other purchase
• Plan activities, indoors or outdoors, instead of gifts. Or how about a season pass to Gatineau Park or Ottawa-area conservation areas?
• Shop for a family that can’t afford gifts — ask them what they need — or make a donation to the Ottawa Food Bank.

Top 5 Gifts NOT to Buy: 

• Perfume or other scented products
• Battery-operated toys
• An airplane ticket
• Television
• A new car — get a Vrtucar membership or other alternatives instead

“The Harper government is about to ram through a second omnibudget bill that claws back environmental legislation and greases the wheels for industry to pass through pipeline and other projects without regard for water and environmental protections. And this has been done without democratic debate.”  With Megan Leslie, Elizabeth May, Ben Powless, Emma Lui, more.  More information

Ottawa is a mecca for enjoying nature and outdoor activities. Three rivers, the Ottawa River,  Gatineau River, Rideau River and Rideau Canal are great for canoeing, kayaking, sailing and swimming.

Canoes can be rented or purchased at stores such as MEC, Paddle Shack or other local outfitters (2).  Or join a local outdoors club (2) and go hiking, skiing or canoeing with them. If you’re a beginner, the Ottawa River Canoe Club offers a one-day course, Recreational Canoeing Basics; Paddlesport will also be offering lessons in 2013, as well as the Ottawa Canoe Camping Club.

You can also walk, hike or bike along any of these rivers: see the Rideau Trail Association, Ottawa Capital Pathway and the village of Wakefield, Quebec, which is on the banks of the Gatineau River about 30 minutes north of Ottawa.

Please leave no trace while walking, canoeing or camping. And if you’d like to help protect  these great rivers, check out these local organizations: Ottawa Riverkeeper, Save the Gatineau, Rideau Valley Conservation Authority, Algonquin to Adirondacks and other local groups.

Looking for a job canoeing? Work is available as wilderness guides, summer camp instructors, guidebook authors and more. Search GoodWork for wilderness, outdoor, canoe, etc. Many jobs are found through word of mouth, so get involved with local outdoors groups, check the bulletin board at Mountain Equipment Co-op, contact Ottawa Outdoor Education Centres and other Outdoor Education Organizations in the area.

PowerShift, Friday October 26 – Monday October 29, 2012, Ottawa, Canada.

End fossil fuel subsidies! This October hundreds of youth will gather in Ottawa to be a part of a historic gathering to build the movement for just, sustainable future. For more information, how to help, or register:
http://www.wearepowershift.ca/

Relaunching in June 2012, Green Ottawa is a unique gateway to everything green and sustainable  in the Ottawa area.

Check out the events calendar, job postings or volunteer opportunities — and feel free to post your own.  Doing some research or networking? Don’t miss our popular environmental directory of everything from grassroots groups to government departments.

The National Capital Green Pages is a regional print and online directory containing listings of local products, services, businesses and organizations of Eastern Ontario and Western Quebec. This directory is designed to celebrate and support the many sustainable groups and businesses in the National Capital Region and to connect the public with eco-friendly options in their community.

The Green Pages were initially a print directory published by Seventh Generation Community Projects and available at community fairs and events. It has evolved over the years as a collaborative project that includes a print and online edition put together by Tucker House Renewal Centre, the Peace and Environment Resource Centre, and hosted online by Sustainable Eastern Ontario.

National Capital Region Green Pages | Submit a listing

Green Ottawa adds:
–> Green Pages 2008-2009 (.pdf)
–> Ottawa Environmental Directories, Resources & Networks

Want to support green initiatives & opportunities? Please help spread the word!

• Subscribe to our updates using the form at top left (we’ll send you one or two updates per month)
• Share us on facebook
• Tweet us on twitter
• Join us on LinkedIn
• E-mail our launch announcement to your contacts, newsletter or list
• Print our flyer

3i Summit on Sustainability
Fri May 4 to Sat May 5, 2012

For the first time in Ottawa, leaders and change agents from many different sectors are coming together to collaborate and take action toward realizing Ottawa’s potential to be an environmentally sustainable city.

The “3i Summit on Sustainability: Collaborating for Action” will be held on May 4 & 5 at Dow’s Lake Pavilion. Local leaders and change agents who want to advance sustainability in Ottawa are encouraged to take part.

A goal of the Summit is to expand and tap into the pool of leaders and mentors from different sectors that can support new community greening projects and eco-business ventures. Catalyst leaders such as Moe Garahan, Executive Director of Ottawa’s Just Food, Stephen Guilbeault, Founder of Québec’s Equiterre and Tom Heintzman, Co-founder of Bullfrog Power will provide inspiration. A cultural celebration of the community’s accomplishments will take place during the Friday evening Sustainability Soirée.

Register on-line now.
Two-day registration is only $75 and includes two lunches and the Sustainability Soirée. Passes for the Soirée only may be purchased for $25.

For more information visit 3isummit.com or contact Laura Leet
projectcoordinator   3isummit.com, 613-656-7800.