San Francisco Green Drinks
July 6th
“Independence from Oil”

Hello Green Drinkers!

Please join us next Tuesday, July 6th for San Francisco Green Drinks!

This month we as you to create a day of “Independence from Oil” with us!  Ride your bike, conserve energy, buy local - you name it, let’s do it!  Imagine a day when we are free from our dependence on oil.  Green Drinkers and citizens across the globe have been outraged and disturbed by the disaster in the Gulf. The BP disaster has already become the worst oil spill in U.S. history at “roughly 2.5 million gallons of oil a day, and it means an amount equal to the Exxon Valdez spill could be gushing from the well about every four days”.  (NY Times, 6/15/10)  It is easy to feel overwhelmed by how profoundly we, and the environment, will be effected by this disaster for many years to come.  But this is also an opportunity.  An opportunity to take a stand against off-shore oil drilling and to take a stand against our dependence on oil!  Come celebrate Independence Day!

This month we are asking attendees to share: “What is your green interest?”

July Sponsors:  Bioneers & Earth Island Presents…

Bioneers, a global nonprofit educational organization that highlights breakthrough solutions for restoring people and the planet, will hold its 21st annual conference at the Marin Center in San Rafael, California on October 15-17, 2010.  The Bioneers Conference features experts and innovators in areas including conservation, climate change, food and farming, technology, and social justice, who work to solve the world’s most urgent social and environmental challenges. Speakers include Jane Goodall, Ph.D., DBE, founder of the Jane Goodall Institute and UN Messenger of Peace; Dr. James Hansen, head of NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies; and Gary Hirshberg, co-founder and CEO of Stonyfield Farm. From how mushrooms can save the world to how Google Earth is protecting tropical forests, the solutions that come from the Bioneers Conference are fostering positive change and building local communities. Register now for 10% off the listed price on the website, or become a Bioneers member and get 15% off the 2010 conference fee! To register:  www.bioneers.org/conference

Earth Island Presents… In conjunction with the Earth Island Journal: In Deepwater: A report-back from the Gulf with Riki Ott + Diane Wilson on Thursday, July 15th, 2010 at 7:00PM in The David Brower Center, Downtown Berkeley.  Interested in finding out what’s really happening in the Gulf? Hear from two experts who have been in the region since the blowout occurred. Texan shrimper-turned- activist Diane Wilson and Exxon Valdez survivor and marine biologist Riki Ott take a break from their ongoing work in the Gulf to report on the clean-up effort, the effects on the environment and local communities, and how BP can be held accountable. Wilson is the author of An Unreasonable Woman: A True Story of Shrimpers, Politicos, Polluters and Ott is the author of Not One Drop. Together, they’ll provide an unflinching look at one of the worst environmental disasters of our time, with an emphasis on what we’re going to do about it. www.earthisland.org/events

Ongoing Partnership: The Hub Bay Area

The Hub Bay Area is a coworking space, event series, and professional toolset for changemakers.  The Hub is located in San Francisco at 901 Mission St, in Berkeley at The David Brower Center, and at 22 other international locations across 5 continents.  During the day, The Hub is a dynamic, collision-rich work and meeting space designed by its members for productivity and value exchange.   At night, The Hub transforms into an event platform for member driven collaborations, lectures, screenings, innovation labs, and some of the most compelling and imaginative minds from around the world.   Stop by for a tour and learn more about becoming a member The Hub; where you will find your next project, partner, funder, or muse.  www.hubbayarea.com

Event Details

Date: Tuesday, July 6th
Time: 5:30 - 9:30 p.m.
Location: 111 Minna Gallery
Bring: Please bring your green flyers, announcements, job postings, etc for the Community Board. And of course, bring your business cards!
Safety: Please be safe when coming to/from SFGD. If you would like someone to walk you to your bus/train stop or car, please let a greeter know. As always, please designate a driver if driving.
Cost: FREE!

Music:

5:30 - 7:30pm
DJ Tyer Reed will play a delectable downtempo set.

7:30 - 9:30pm (Live Set!)
The Real Dionysus, a San Francisco music composer, will be playing a live set that incorporates Jazz, Drum n’ Bass, House.

Special Drinks of the Month:

The Purist Lemondrop - $5
Rim two chilled martini glasses with a fresh lemon twist and dip into sugar. Fill a metal shaker w/ice, 2 oz of premium organic vodka and 8 oz of Purity.Organic Lemonade. Shake and Pour.

Strawberry Fields - $5
Fill a metal shaker w/ice, 2oz premium organic vodka, 8 oz Purity.Organic Strawberry Paradise, and 3 crushed fresh mint leaves. Shake and pour into two chilled martini glasses.  Also delicious when blended!

Community

* Green Generations, the 2nd annual benefit event to fund environmental education for under-served children, will be hosted by SFGD on Tuesday, August 3rd.  Don’t miss it!

* SFGD is thrilled to announce an ongoing community partnership with Hub Bay Area!

* Special thanks to Purity.Organic and 18 Rabbits for their tasty contributions!

* Post your green event on the Bay Area Green Calendar for free!

* SF Green Drinks is on Facebook. Please join the group ‘San Francisco Green Drinks’ for additional resources and information.

* SF Green Drinks is booking out Sponsors and Community Partners for 2011.  If you or someone you know is interested in connecting with our community, please get in touch!

See you on the 6th!

- The Green Drinks Team

SFGD is thrilled to announce the beginning of an ongoing Community Partnership with the HUB Bay Area. The HUB will provide a dynamic work environment for our monthly meetings as well as an exciting partner within our environmental community. To find out more about the Hub and their coworking space, event series, and professional toolset, please find them at the July Green Drinks. bayarea.the-hub.net

In the past few months San Francisco Green Drinks has connected two new organizations, Aion LED and MÁS Wine Company, to our environmental community and to our monthly host, 111 Minna.  Both companies made such a positive impression with their sustainable products that Minna has brought them in-house.  Aion LED was our February 2010 “Eco-Love” sponsor who set the mood with eight energy-efficient LED stage lights.  By the end of the night, Minna decided to purchase the whole set!  MÁS is a small, eco-friendly winery who discovered Green Drinks over the holidays and met with Minna shortly after in January.  After a short meeting and wine tasting with Minna, their wine is now being served from environmentally friendly, air tight mini tanks as 111 Minna’s new house wine!  Come by the March 2010 Green Drinks for a free wine tasting of their Merlot and Chardonnay.

Here are some comments from these two great companies:

“Thanks to SF Green Drinks for having us as sponsor for February’s successful event!  Aion LED is committed to helping the entertainment sector “go green” with our highly efficient Theatrical LED lighting line .  This can result in venues saving 10 times the energy usage while virtually eliminating the need to change lamps.  At Green Drinks we demonstrated that an energy saving alternative light could look great while minimizing the venue’s carbon footprint at the same time.” — Christine

“Since conception in 2006 MÁS has not used over 80,000 glass bottles corks and labels. This has saved our business over $70,000 in money we would have spent on trash and instead we have invested it a renewable technology. Without these expenses we are able to produce small lots of wine at competitive priced wines passing along these savings to restaurants and consumers, like 111 Minna. We hope our passion for great wines and renewable technology is shared by all.” — Andy

Click for more GRID volunteering photos

At the December 2009 Green Drinks Holiday Bash and Benefit SFGD held a fundraiser for GRID Alternatives, a local non-profit dedicated to empowering communities in need by providing renewable energy and energy efficiency services, equipment and training.  The donations raised at the December event went to sponsor and install a solar electric systems for a low income homeowner in San Francisco.  On January 30th and 31st, volunteers from SFGD came out  to work alongside the homeowners to install the solar system.  Special thanks go out all the organizers at Grid Alternatives and to those Green Drinkers who volunteered!

Congratulations Green Drinkers!

Because of you and our community’s amazing generosity, our final event for the year was a HUGE success!  At our December 1st Green Drinks Holiday Bash and Benefit we exceeded our $5,000 fundraising goal for Grid Alternatives and signed up 38 volunteers to help install solar panels on a low-income home!

Our Top Ten Donors and recipients of a free Green Zebra guide are:

If you would like to join us for the solar training session on Wednesday, January 13th please email us at info[at]sfgreendrinks.org by Friday, January 8th for more information.

Special thanks go out our SFGD Officers who helped put on an amazing event and contributed to the success of our fundraising efforts.

Happy Holidays!

- The Green Drinks Team