Second Annual Living Lightly Fair Returns to Minnetrista

An internationally recognized conservationist and Indiana-based musicians with international and national reputations will headline Muncie's second annual Living Lightly Fair from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sept. 20 at Minnetrista.

The Living Lightly Fair will offer hundreds of practical tips to homeowners, nature lovers, gardeners, parents, children, do-it-yourselfers and others interested in greener living, alternative energy, recycling and healthier environments. The fair organizers describe living lightly as learning how to use fewer resources and reduce costs as individuals and businesses.

The fair also will feature 17 presentations, a community leaders round table, three musical performances, a visiting artist, four stations of activities and workshops for children. A green marketplace of more than 45 vendors and exhibitors will showcase local and regional providers of sustainable living products and ideas.

Local organic and ethnic food will be served during the day-long event.

Four community leaders will share their accomplishments and visions for creating more sustainable lifestyles for area residents at a roundtable from 9 to 10:30 a.m. Round table panel members will be Sharon McShirley, mayor of Muncie; Sue Errington, a state senator; Terry Murphy, Muncie/Delaware County Chamber of Commerce; and Kevin Smith, the former mayor of Anderson.

Moderator for the panel will be Muncie City Council at-large member Linda Gregory. After panel members make a brief presentation, questions from the audience will be taken.

The keynote speaker will be Jerome Ringo, who is president of the Apollo Alliance and the first African-American to lead a major environmental group. The Apollo Alliance is a national coalition of business, labor and environmental and community leaders who are catalysts for adopting clean energies, cutting carbon emissions and reducing the country's dependence on foreign oil.

Ringo has taken the concerns of the alliance to more than 75 audiences, including the U.S. Conference of Mayors, the National Conference of State Legislatures and the U.S. Green Building Council. He also appeared in Al Gore's film, "An Inconvenient Truth."

Ringo served as chairman of the board for the National Wildlife Federation from 2005-07 and remains on the NWF board as immediate former board chairman. He joined the NWF board in 1996. His reverence for the land started as a child in Southern Louisiana where he would fish, catch crabs and hunt for duck, goose and deer. Through his work with NWF, his major area of concern has been giving hope to the future of wildlife along Louisiana's coasts, in the Everglades and the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

Musicians Malcolm Dalglish and Carrie Newcomer will entertain fair goers. Both musicians are headquartered in Bloomington, Ind.

Dalglish is a hammer dulcimer player and a founding member of the folk/Celtic trio Metamora. His specialty is composing for choir. Children's choirs throughout the world have commissioned his folk-inspired music. He has recorded nine albums. He will perform from noon to 1 p.m.

Newcomer is a nationally known singer/songwriter who grew up in Elkhart, Ind. She got her start in the group Stone Soup, but as a solo artist she has produced 11 albums. Her styles include jazz, blues, folk and rock. Major media throughout the United States have recognized and praised her work. She will perform from 7-8:30 p.m.

Prior to Newcomer's performance, The Great Divide, a local musical group, will perform from 6 to 6:45 p.m.

Sponsors for the event are the Ball State University Bracken Environmental Fund, American Electric Power/Indiana Michigan Power, Muncie Star Press, Ball Brothers Foundation, Indiana Architectural Foundation, Indiana Office of Energy & Defense Development, The Community Foundation of Muncie & Delaware County Inc., Ball State Department of Art and Ball State College of Fine Arts. A media partner is Indiana Living Green Magazine.

To learn more about Living Lightly activities, go to www.livinglightlyfair.org.

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