My enviro-sense is tingling!

Hey y’all for my third blog of the day! Wowow, I can’t believe how time is flying by here at Osheaga and how much we’re seeing and doing! Tristan, Marilis, and I have all managed to find each other (and at this moment Tristan is just across the room from me on another computer), I’ve made some new friends (who I’ll probably never see again), I’ve thus far avoided the temptation to buy pretty things in the marketplace, and I’ve found coffee (read: oxygen).

Right now my posting soundtrack is the Sam Roberts Band, but just a few short minutes ago I had Martha Wainwright gilding my ears with her lucious voice and brilliant lyrics. If you have yet to see this woman live, you’re missing out. Martha Wainwright is utterly sweet to see. She’s completely unapologetic about being her zany self, but will indeed stop a song and apologize for getting the lyrics wrong. Maybe it was her intimate chatter, maybe it was her bilingualism, but something about her set made me want to back away from the stage (where I was focused in only on her) and cozy up to some new friends on the grass and relax while listening, leafing through the Osheaga program in a lazy but attentive manner. When my spooning-to-keep-warm gal pal fell asleep (hey, she was here yesterday too and I wasn’t), I went back through the program with a bit more attention and noticed a few things I’d like to point out.

• The program is printed on 100% FSC-certified paper using non-toxic vegetable inks. In case you don’t work in the forest sector and have no idea what I’m talking about, “FSC” stands for Forest Stewardship Council, which is one of the few major forest certification schemes recognized worldwide. FSC is the scheme most often preferred and heralded by environmental organizations (such as Greenpeace and ForestEthics). It began completely independently from the industry side with stakeholders from all interested “groups” (including industry, environmental groups, and First Nations), and continues to be governed by a board taking into account not only the environmental stewardship of the forests in question, but also human rights of the local community, especially indigenous populations. If you’re an artist who does a lot of printing, you might want to consider FSC-certified paper. There are plenty of options, ranging from virgin fibre (which I certainly don’t encourage) to 100% post-consumer recycled content!
• In the list of “beverage suppliers,” the program carefully points out that beer cups supplied by Molson Dry are bio-degradable, so please make sure to use proper composting bins for disposal. Much as I love them, vegan café Blue Monday doesn’t even have bio-degradable cups for their coffee! Props to Molson for their leadership on this issue; we know all too well that by the end of the evening, half the drinking attendees won’t be sober enough to avoid dropping, and losing, their beer cups.
• The David Suzuki Foundation is among the non-profits present on the site, and in case you weren’t aware before, 50 cents from your ticket — from every ticket sold — goes straight to the organization. Half a dollar doesn’t sound like much, but do the math: it makes a difference in their bank account.

Though not listed in the program, I thought I’d also give props to the recycling team on site who walk around with clear plastic bags picking up recyclables that didn’t quite make it to the bins provided (one accompanying every single garbage can). I just took a peek outside the tent to scan the ground, and apart from cigarette butts, the ground is remarkably clean. Dusty, yes, but mostly free of litter! Now, if only they’d add those garbage can-like ashtrays, so smokers could have somewhere to put their butts… Maybe next year? People are going to smoke anyway, so you might as well make it easy for them to be as litter-free as possible.