DNC Goes Green

I haven't heard much "green" talk in the TV news coverage of the Democratic National Convention, but that doesn't mean there's nothing to talk about! Plenty Magazine just published and article discussing the party's efforts to green the conference. Take a peek...


Greening the DNC
Eric Mack

The City of Denver and the Democratic National Convention Committee haven't been able to do much about the hazy, brown cloud of smog plaguing the Mile High City and the Front Range of the Rockies as temperatures reach into the 90s. But you better believe the compost bins are in place.

Organizers have loudly declared that this will be the "greenest" convention ever, and just the fact that they're making the effort will be enough to reach that goal. Anyone who might have mentioned a phrase like “carbon offsets” at the 2004 convention likely would have likely met blank faces, yet more than half of the delegates are offsetting their travel this time around. And if you ever wondered what a stage made of 85 percent reused or recycled materials looked like, take a gander.

On Sunday night, as the media was settling in around the Pepsi Center, the only thing more ubiquitous than secret service, police, and other security forces were the trios of waste bins marked "Compost," "Recyclable," and "Landfill" located virtually every ten feet throughout the DNC compound.

By Monday afternoon, the convention will be reaching full swing and an army of volunteers will be unleashed with the central duty of making sure everything ends up in the correct bin, and if some of the already full bins I found Sunday afternoon are any indication, they'll have their work cut out for them.

As for getting around, I spent much of Sunday on foot. Too much. The Pepsi Center is in the Northwest corner of downtown, and it can be a bit of a hike from other key points like the state capitol. Fortunately, Bikes Belong, a nonprofit promoting bike transportation, is teaming up with the city starting tomorrow for a bike share program that will give out free, loaner bikes at seven stations around town. You better believe it'll be my first stop.

Last but least, we can't forget the food. Lots of local restaurants are getting in on the green scene and offering plenty of organic, locally-grown, and recently-harvested fare in the spirit of the DNC. I checked out one participating establishment not far from the capitol, and while the week is just getting started, it's already a highlight.