Red Earth Festival

The Screening Room was to have been an integral part of the recently concluded Red Earth Festival. It was meant to feature several short locally and international produced green environmental films and documentaries, and express our hopes for a better world, where all of our lives can be in harmony with environment and nature. Toward this end, we sought to share with you some of these films, found in the video section of our site. Feel free to visit the Green Film Channel, which features several great short films, such as "The Rising Tide", "Fragile Planet by Sting and Rhythms del Mundo", "World, Hold On", and more...

We can all do our part to protect the planet by using less and acting more. Going green is not as difficult as you might think. Here we walk you through a couple easy ways to green your daily routine, from the moment you hit snooze on your solar-powered alarm clock to the point when you crawl into your eco-washed, organic cotton sheets. Don't forget that you could also get others to get involved, and do so the same.

• Plant a tree! 
• Find needy homes or charitable organizations for things that you no longer need or want rather than throwing it away.
• It would seem to go without saying, but many of us forget that we can save water in simple ways like not letting the tap run while shaving, washing your face, or brushing your teeth.
• Using an electric razor or hand razor with replaceable blades instead of disposable razors goes a long way to cutting back on waste. And plant a tree.
• Use towels for drying your face and hands instead of tissues that are used and thrown away. Also, hang your towels to dry so that they can be reused several times. You are after all clean when you use them!
• When packing your lunch, opt for reusable containers for food storage instead of wrapping the food with aluminum foil or plastic wrap.
• As you leave the house, don’t forget to switch off all the lights and appliances at the wall unit (if you have this feature) and unplug chargers as they continue to consume even if they are not charging; saving energy helps reduce air pollution.
• Don’t go anywhere without your cloth bag so you can just say no to plastic whenever you shop.
• Do you have a morning hot drink routine? Using a washable mug is an environmentally-friendly alternative to non-biodegradable styrofoam or plastic cups.
• When you need a pad for lists and messages, turn over an old document and write on the back of that instead.
• If you’re in search of something to personalize your workspace, look no further than the humble houseplant. Houseplants are good for the environment because they remove quantities of pollutants present in the air.

Whether you are an individual, an organization, a business or a government, there are a number of steps you can take to reduce your carbon emissions, the total of which is described as your carbon footprint.

You may think you don’t know where to begin, but by reading this, you have already begun. The United Nations Environment Programme has compiled an excellent twelve step fact sheet, on the actions that you can take to indeed make a difference. View them all here.

May 2nd, 2009

We are pleased to announce the upcoming Red Earth Festival for 2009. With you all there, it is promised to be a memorable, enjoyable, and truly exciting event... as we aim to celebrate our Earth through performing arts.This year's Festival adopts the theme Dream Time, where in the time before time, the time of all things, we remember the Earth, her secrets and wisdom. We know her stories... she is alive. If we are to save the Earth, now is the time... We can dream a new dream... start dreaming.

We encourage everyone to visit our blog, and facebook pages for more information. We have also uploaded a flyer, which you can also share with family and friends. Stayed tuned as we would soon announce when tickets go on sale, post additional festival updates, news, and more.

You are also more than welcome to register here with us, and as well, join our recently added Red Earth page on facebook at http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/pages/Red-Earth-ECOARTSfestival/133591265402?ref=ts. 

Start Dreaming...

April 17th, 2009

Save the environment is now the motto for students at the Arima North Secondary School. While it may sound radical to some people, the school wants to be solar powered. They need giant solar panels to cover the rooftops of the buildings on the school compound where the sun's rays can shine down and the energy to be then transferred to a battery located at the side of the building where it is stored.

Unfortunately a mini-model of what they want to become a reality lacks one major component-solar panels. Teacher and coordinator of the group Arianne Dabreau said the only way to get the panels that they need is to import them for TT$150,000. Through various fund-raising ventures at the school, they have been able to come up with $20,000.

Seeing the long term benefits such a move would provide for the school, Dabreau thought it would be a great idea to see how far this can go.

Read the full article here.

April 15th, 2009

We would to thank every one who came out last year in support of the Red Earth Festival 2008. We are happy to announce that Red Earth 2009 is near, and we are planning the introduction of an e-newsletter, which would provide our friends, supporters, and other interest groups with Festival updates, news, information on events, shows, artistes, and more.

 We are therefore inviting you to become part of our mailing list. If you are interested, please send us an email to redearthnews@gmail.com, with your name, preferred email address, location, and contact number (if so desired). 

 We look forward to your continued support, and seeing you at the Festival...

March 24th, 2009

The Organizing Committee of the Red Earth Festival, is happy to announce that Descendance would be appearing at this year's Festival. Who is Descendance? Well, they are an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Dance Theatre based in Australia, which seeks to preserve and promotes Aboriginal culture.

Descendance has over fifty dancers from diverse tribes across Australia. They range from NSW to Mount Isa, across to Rockhampton, through the Central Desert, Western Australia, up to Cape York, and around the Torres Strait Islands. Descendance cultural program is exclusive to Far North Queensland. Descendance today is helping create work for many other Aboriginal artists in areas outside dance, from modelling, painting and popular music, to writing and acting.

Descendance has grown out of necessity for indigenous people of Australia, and has become a refuge for Aboriginal culture needing assistance. Descendance fills Australia's need for a wholesome, exciting, and world class traditional and contemporary performing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Dance Company. Today Descendance is providing Australia and the world with some of the finest in traditional and contemporary indigenous culture and music.

We have included a couple links of their performances from their travels throughout the world. Enjoy... :)

Xavier Rudd & Descendance Live Reunion Island:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NvRoJeJhfqM

Sea Eagle Fish Dance:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UzyFScFlZWw

Rugby World Cup opening ceremony, over 200 performers:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rvqo6BctYlU