Sustainability themes emerge at annual Harvest Fest
Local food, local farming and sustainable living will be in the spotlight at Harvest Fest, the eighth annual celebration of the event at Tillers International in Scotts.
The event is set for Sunday, Sept. 19. The gates open at 11 a.m., and Harvest Fest offers activities from 11:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.
Harvest began with a handful of exhibitors in 2002. This year it offers two large tents and more than 70 participants selling produce, artisanal goods, and artwork.
At the Harvest Fest Family Tent, parents and kids will find a variety of crafts and games. Tent activities are underwritten this year in part by a Good Neighbor Grant from the Kalamazoo Community Foundation. There will be seven different food and beverage vendors.
It wouldn’t be a festival without music. This year’s headliners are Joe Reilly and Schlitz Creek. Schlitz Creek performs high-energy blue grass standards. Other musical offerings are the Tex-Mex stylings of Los Bandits and swamp opera by Lonesome Moonlight Trio. There also will be music from representatives of K’zoo Folklife at the welcome tent.
More entertainment will come from acrobatic performances by members of the Aerial Angels, an international troupe with headquarters in Kalamazoo.
For those who want to talk sustainability, the event features keynote speaker Richard Heinberg, author and Senior Fellow of the Post Carbon Institute and the Western Michigan University Environmental Studies Gwen Frostic Lecturer. His discussion is made possible through a partnership with Western Michigan University. Heinberg takes a wry, unflinching approach to how we can manage the difficult transition to a different way of life — and a truly sustainable future.
Four Elements Energy will raise a 60-foot wind turbine during the day, plus offer an overview on renewable energy resources and household energy-saving tips.
Admission is $10 per carload, and $1 per bicycle or per person for a bus with 10 or more.
Writer: Kathy Jennings
Source: Vicki Berglund, Southwest Michigan Harvest Fest
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