Celebrating birds and Houston’s importance as a migration hotspot
HOUSTON, March 30, 2022 /3BL Media/ — Discovery Green, the 12-acre park in downtown Houston, will be celebrating Green Mountain Energy Earth Day on Sunday, April 10, 2022, from 12 – 5 p.m. in partnership with Citizens’ Environmental Coalition. The event will feature a full lineup of programming to celebrate birds and Houston’s importance as a migration hotspot.Houstonians will have the opportunity to learn about the diversity of birds in the region and what our community can do to make the city a better place for birds and humans to coexist. Exhibits include large scale bird images and information created by University of Houston-Downtown students under the direction of Professor Natacha Poggio. Activities include live bird demonstrations from Last Chance Forever and Wildlife Center of Texas, Native American bird-inspired dances from Houston Aztec Dance and children’s activities, games, and crafts.
Since the park opened in 2008, Discovery Green has maintained a commitment to the highest standards of sustainability in its design and operations. Green Mountain Energy is Discovery Green’s official green energy provider, powering the park for the past 14 years with 100 percent renewable energy and avoiding 46 million pounds of carbon dioxide. That’s like planting more than 5,400 trees.
“At Green Mountain Energy, we celebrate the earth year-round, but April provides a great opportunity to raise awareness about the importance of taking care of our planet,” said Mark Parsons, Green Mountain Energy vice president. “We’re excited to join forces with Discovery Green for this annual tradition that includes fun activities for the whole family.”
Houston Artist Reginald C. Adams will debut a new labyrinth available for public use during park hours through June 30. Adams will lead meditational walks, sound baths, and speak about the spiritual practice at the Earth Day event from noon to 5 p.m. A public workshop, led by Adams, will be held on Saturday, April 2 from noon to 5 p.m. During this workshop, participants will help create the labyrinth. Adams will lead the inaugural Labyrinth Walk during Green Mountain Energy Earth Day on Sunday, April 10 at 4 p.m.
This year’s Green Mountain Energy Earth Day celebration marks the 20th anniversary of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Urban Bird Treaty (UBT). Houston’s location at the juncture of the East Texas Piney Woods, Columbia and Trinity bottomland forests, the nearby Katy prairie, coastal bays and estuaries and the Gulf of Mexico make the Bayou City a hotspot for migration with millions of birds passing through each year. Visitors will have the opportunity to learn more about the UBT’s mission to protect, restore, and enhance urban habitats for birds and educate citizens.
Activities throughout the day will include:
- Land acknowledgement / opening ceremony
- Aztec dancers from Houston Aztec Dance/Calmecac Indigenous Arts Organization
- Last Chance Forever Birds of Prey demonstrations
- ABC Birds / Splash (crafts)
- Wildlife Center of Texas bird display and presentation on how to coexist with birds in urban environment
- Farmer’s Market
- Electric Vehicle “Petting Zoo”
- Music by Charlie Perez and the Trade and The Free Radicals
- Children’s zone with family games and activities
- Short presentations made by environmental leaders, including representatives from U.S. Fish and Wildlife, Climate Justice Museum, Magpies and Peacocks, Green Mountain Energy, Native Prairie Association, and Texas Audubon.
- 40+ exhibitors with informative displays, actions, services, and products
Green Mountain Energy Earth Day is produced in partnership with Citizens’ Environmental Coalition. Other partners include Port Houston City of Houston Parks & Recreation Department, Houston Audubon Society, HARC Research and EcoRise.
SOCIAL MEDIA
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Twitter: @DiscoveryGreen
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ABOUT GREEN MOUNTAIN ENERGY COMPANY
Green Mountain Energy Company is the nation’s longest serving renewable energy retailer and believes in using wind, sun, and water for good. The company was founded in 1997 with a simple mission: to change the way power is made. Green Mountain offers consumers and businesses the choice of cleaner electricity products from renewable sources, as well as a variety of carbon offset products and sustainable solutions for businesses. Green Mountain customers have collectively helped avoid 90 billion pounds of carbon dioxide emissions. To learn more about Green Mountain, visit greenmountainenergy.com.
ABOUT CITIZENS’ ENVIRONMENTAL COALITION
Since 1971, CEC has been connecting people with each other and with hundreds of organizations doing environmental work and advocacy in the Houston / Gulf Coast region. CEC shares, supports, and enhances their efforts and environmental advocacy. CEC fosters and strengthens this community through publications that give a balanced perspective on environmental issues and through events that enhance understanding, including the Wild About Houston Green Film Festival and Earth Day Houston. cechouston.org
ABOUT DISCOVERY GREEN®
Discovery Green® is a highly acclaimed 12-acre park created by a public-private partnership between the City of Houston and the nonprofit Discovery Green Conservancy in downtown Houston, Texas. Since opening in April 2008, the park has welcomed more than 15 million visitors. Discovery Green ® features sprawling lawns, a one-acre lake, an interactive fountain, a playground, public art installations, gardens and an allée of century-old live oaks. The Discovery Green Conservancy works with hundreds of programming partners to present artistic, musical, educational, family-friendly and health-focused events each year, most of which are presented free to the public. The park also features two on-site restaurants, the award-winning destination restaurant The Grove and the fast-casual The Lake House, providing visitors with an array of dining options. As a nonprofit organization, the Conservancy raises all the funds needed for the programming that Houstonians enjoy. For more information, please visit https://www.discoverygreen.com. Arts programming is made possible in part by the City of Houston through the Houston Arts Alliance.
MEDIA CONTACTS
Heirloom Interactive
Shannon Waiter/ shannon@heirloominteractive.com / 832-289-1453
Meghan Bentley/ meghan@heirloominteractive.com / 713-824-1428
Green Mountain Energy
Estefania Joy/ media@greenmountain.com / 713-537-5735
