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The Louisville Metro Office of Sustainability and the Louisville Sustainability Council (LSC) will co-host the fourth annual Sustainability Summit on Friday, October 27. Highlights will include local and national speakers and a focus on opportunities for residents to actively engage in creating a more just and sustainable Louisville.
“For the health of our residents and our city, we must focus on how climate change is affecting our city, particularly the lives of our most vulnerable residents,” Mayor Greg Fischer said. “Please join the 2017 Sustainability Summit to work with community leaders and stakeholders on how we can make progress toward being more resilient and adapting to a changing climate.”
“This year’s summit will help call attention to the themes of equity, resilience and climate change, which are inextricably linked,” said Maria Koetter, Director of the Office of Sustainability. “From national experts to local practitioners, the event aims to engage citizens and generate conversations that will help drive action toward addressing these themes simultaneously.”
Emily Chandler, Executive Director of the LSC, said, “This is the first time our community has come together to consider how Louisville will prepare to be resilient to increasing severe heat events, flooding, drought, insect outbreaks, and other local effects of a changing climate. As we see impacted cities across the nation we are reminded to focus on people that are most at risk to ensure we do not create further inequity.”
The keynote speaker of the event will be Vanessa Keith, author of 2100: A Dystopian Utopia—The City After Climate Change. Keith is a nationally-recognized architect and the principal at Studioteka Design, a firm headquartered in Brooklyn, which she founded in 2003. Studioteka approaches design through a multidisciplinary lens that spans the boundaries between architecture, economic and social development, and urban and environmental concerns.
A panel session on climate change and equity impacts in Louisville with local stakeholders will be held followed by breakout sessions focusing on local and equitable action related to energy, public health, agriculture, water, air quality and transportation/land use. Louisville’s Chief Resilience Officer Eric Friedlander will conclude the Summit with a session on engaging the community for a resilient and just Louisville.
The 2017 Sustainability Summit is proud to receive support from Convening Sponsors Yum! Brands, Humana, and Festival of Faiths; Session Sponsors TARC,PNC Bank, and M&M Cartage; and Connecting Sponsors K. Norman Berry Associates, Louisville Metro Air Pollution Control District, QRS Recycling, Partnership for a Green City, Stantec, and Harshaw Trane.
The 2017 Sustainability Summit will take place Friday, October 27, from 8:00am – 4:00pm at the Kentucky Center for African American Heritage Center. Thanks to generous sponsors, a limited number of free tickets are available on a first-come first-served basis. Tickets include lunch and access to the full event, and are $20 for LSC members, $30 for the general public, and $7 for college students. Discounts are available for groups of 5 or more and attendees of the Center for Neighborhoods Summit held the following day in the same location. Tickets, at an increased price, will also be sold at the door the day of the event.
More information can be found on the Louisville Sustainability Council website: http://louisvillesustainabilitycouncil.org
Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes on Monday said the statewide food drive she announced last month has begun.
The Commonwealth of Kentucky Bowl food drive is a friendly competition between Kentucky’s 15 area development districts in support of the Kentucky Association of Food Banks with a goal to raise 400,000 pounds of food or $50,000 in honor of the 50th anniversary of the state legislation that created the Area Development Districts.
“More than 700,000 Kentuckians don’t always know where they’ll get their next meal,” said Grimes. “That’s a stunning and heartbreaking number. We have to do everything we can to make sure no citizen of this Commonwealth faces hunger.”
Kentuckians can donate through Oct. 27. Donations and monetary contributions are being accepted by each area development district, and they will remain in the communities where they are given. $1 is equivalent to 8 pounds of food. Anyone can contribute at HelpFeedKY.com.
Grimes made visits to several area development districts over the last few weeks to discuss the vital need for hunger relief in Kentucky. She has been a champion for solving Kentucky’s hunger issues since she took office in 2012 and before she was elected to public office. As Secretary of State, Grimes was a vocal advocate for Farms to Food Banks, a law giving tax credits to farmers who donate to food banks. She is a longtime volunteer at the Salvation Army, serving the Thanksgiving meal at her local service center every year. She also has served on the board of God’s Pantry Food Bank in Lexington.
More information on the Commonwealth of Kentucky Bowl is at HelpFeedKY.com.
Councilwoman Barbara Sexton Smith (D-4) will join officials with the Louisville Archdiocese and other special guests for a special honorary sign unveiling on Monday, October 16th.
At the corner of Muhammad Ali and Cathedral Alley the honorary sign will highlight the history of this section known as “Bologna Alley” in honor of the thousands of meals served by the Cathedral of the Assumption and its volunteers since the 1930’s.
“This honorary sign is a reminder of the compassion of the Cathedral and the dedication of volunteers whose mission for more than 80 years has been to feed those who are hungry,” says Sexton Smith. “In the beginning of this compassionate mission, bologna sandwiches were a mainstay. So it is fitting that we immortalize what many have come to call this alley.”
The alley leads to the kitchen behind the Cathedral that has been serving lunches since the 1930s and in 2016 served more than 39,000 lunches.
Councilwoman Sexton Smith sponsored the Resolution calling for the honorary sign and it was formally approved by the Louisville Metro Council in May of this year.
The formal unveiling ceremony will take place at 11:30am at the corner of Muhammad Ali and Cathedral Alley.
Families can enjoy fall color and a variety of outdoor activities at Jefferson Memorial Forest during the Wilderness Louisville Forest Adventure on Saturday, October 21 from 9 a.m.-2 p.m. The Wilderness Louisville Forest Adventure is presented by Quest Outdoors, and is free to the public.
Participants can listen to live music, take a hay ride, and spend time in nature at the peak of the Fall season.. Children can spend time in a nature play area, climb a “rock” wall, decorate pumpkins with their families, and participate in archery and fishing. The Forest’s volunteer trail team and staff will lead hikes at various skill levels and volunteer naturalists will introduce visitors to the native plant gardens, bird blind and animal exhibits. The event is free to the public.
The event will also feature the Wilderness Louisville 5K trail run through the forested knobs starting at 9 a.m.
Theresa Zawacki, Chair of Wilderness Louisville, the non-profit foundation supporting Jefferson Memorial Forest, stressed the importance of Louisville’s community forest and the general role natural areas contribute to the city’s quality of life.
“All of us, young and old, benefit from being outdoors,” Zawacki said. “Being in nature helps us manage stress, gives us space to be both active and reflective, creates opportunities for families to bond, makes us more appreciative of the world around us,and of course, is just plain fun.”
Additionally, Mayor Greg Fischer and other local officials will be present when, at 11 a.m., the “ECHO Mobile,” the newest addition to Jefferson Memorial Forest and the Louisville Parks and Recreation’s Natural Areas Division’s “Louisville is Engaging Children in Outdoors” (“ECHO”) Program is unveiled. Louisville ECHO provides youth education and out-of-school-time activities at Jefferson Memorial Forest and other community spaces.
Funded through a $30,000 Meet Me at the Park grant from the National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA) and The Walt Disney Company, the “ECHO Mobile” is a mobile outdoor recreation and nature play unit to bring a bit of the outdoors to relatively nature-poor urban parks. The ECHO Mobile will bring activities such as biking, archery and fishing, anda variety of natural materials and nature play opportunities to youth throughout the community. .
“We’re excited to be unveiling the “ECHO Mobile” at the Wilderness Louisville Forest Adventure, but we’re also ready to hit the road and take it into the community starting in earnest next spring,” said Bennett Knox, Park Administrator. “It’s one more ECHO component that we can use to improve equitable access to nature for Louisville youth and families.”
The Louisville Cricket Club, part of the 42-team MidWest Cricket Tournament, has teamed up with Mayor Greg Fischer’s office to create a new playing facility at Hays Kennedy Park.
The facility is being named for Sunil M. Gavaskar, a legend in the sport who is known as “the Muhammad Ali of world cricket.” Gavaskar will be in Louisville for the fields’ grand opening at 10 a.m. Sunday, Oct. 15.
Mayor Fischer said he expects the city’s $150,000 investment in the fields will reap great rewards.
“We are an increasingly global community, and cricket is already part of our city’s sporting landscape,” he said. “We hope the investment at Hays Kennedy Park will open the sport to more local participation, and the city to even more global opportunities.”
The facility at Hays Kennedy will be the first outside India to be named after an Indian player. In an interview with the Times of India before his visit to Louisville, Gavaskar, who represented India in international matches for more than 16 years before retiring in 1987, said: “It’s a wonderful honor to have a ground named after you, especially in a country where cricket is not the premier sport.”
Photo: Louisville Metro Parks and Recreation
The Louisville Cricket Club has produced a quick guide to the sport, which is one of the most popular sports in the world but is relatively unknown by many Americans. You can view the guide here.
Metro Parks and Recreation director Seve Ghose said the long-term goal is for Louisville to become a destination for national and even international cricket competitions, with plans to eventually build a pavilion and practice facilities.
Ten percent of the funding to create the new fields was raised by Louisville Cricket Club’s 50 active playing members.
“We are very grateful to Mayor Fischer and Seve Ghose, for their support,” said Jai Bokey, president of the Louisville Cricket Club.
“This is about much more than just creating a purpose-built space for Louisville Cricket Club to play,” he added. “Cricket is an important part of culture and community life in places like England, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, Sri Lanka, and throughout the West Indies. Having such a superb facility will help to bring people and business to Louisville from all over the cricket-playing world.”
In what has become the must-see event of the Halloween season, the Jack O’ Lantern Spectacular is returning for the fifth consecutive year to south Louisville’s Iroquois Park, where 5,000 artistically carved pumpkins will greet visitors from Oct. 12 through Nov. 5.
The pumpkins will illuminate a 1/3-mile trail adjacent to the Iroquois Amphitheater, and Metro Parks officials estimate up to 85,000 people will visit.
The trail is open from dusk until 11 p.m., Sunday through Thursday, and until midnight on Friday and Saturday nights. Tickets range from $9 to $16, with discounts for seniors and children 12 and under. Proceeds from the event benefit the Louisville Parks Foundation.
The wooded trail begins just outside of Iroquois Amphitheater (1080 Amphitheater Road, Louisville, KY 40214) and weaves its way through the trees with themed vignettes set to music. The carved, lit pumpkins rotate on a weekly basis, creating a different experience each weekend.
The event is held rain or shine. Coach drop-off and on-site parking is available.
Jack O’ Lantern Spectacular is produced by Louisville Metro Parks and the Louisville Parks Foundation in conjunction with Passion for Pumpkins, a multimedia production company with more than 25 years’ experience in redefining fall by transforming any landscape into an illuminated organic gallery.
This year’s sponsors include Louisville Convention and Visitors Center, Papa John’s, Delta Dental, WellCare, Republic Bank, LG & E, Falls City Beer, Kentucky Select Properties, Kentucky Department of Agriculture (KY Proud), Waste Management, Girl Scouts of Kentuckiana, Metro Fence, Louisville Eye Center, Louisville Independent Business Association, Porta Kleen and Julips Catering.
TICKET INFORMATION
Sunday – Thursday
Adults $12
Seniors (62+) $10
Children (3-12) $9
Friday
Adults $15
Seniors (62+) $13
Children (3-12) $12
Saturday
Adults $16
Seniors (62+) $14
Children (3-12) $13
Individual tickets may be purchased in advance for specific nights at the Iroquois Amphitheater Box Office or online at www.jackolanternlouisville.com. Visitors are also encouraged to use the hashtag #502Pumpkins on social media to share images or experiences they enjoy while touring the show.
Tickets for groups of 20 or more can be purchased in advance by calling 502/368-5063, or in person at the Iroquois Amphitheater Box Office at 5 p.m. beginning October 12.
Group tickets are discounted at $10 Sunday through Thursday.
The event is held rain or shine. No refunds will be given, but advanced purchased tickets may be exchanged for another day.
Gov. Matt Bevin today announced the community of Paintsville as the winner of the 2017 “Beautify the Bluegrass” competition — a statewide initiative calling on Kentuckians to come together to make their hometowns shine.
The Paintsville/Johnson County Trail Town Committee rallied local volunteers to repaint city hall and five other downtown buildings, refurbish Paint Creek Park, and manicure/landscape public flowerbeds and abandoned properties.
Congratulations to the citizens of Paintsville and Johnson County,” said Gov. Bevin. “Already, other Kentucky cities have taken notice of what has been done there and said: ‘We are going to do that in our community.’ That’s exactly the kind of contagious activity we hoped would happen, where good things capture the fascination of people and start to spread.”
Gov. Bevin and Lt. Gov. Jenean Hampton will host a catered barbecue (not provided at taxpayer expense) in Paintsville to celebrate the community’s achievement — at a date to be determined.
“Our committee knew we wanted to do a project in our community; and when we heard Gov. Bevin issue the ‘Beautify the Bluegrass’ challenge, we were all the more energized,” said Paintsville/Johnson County Trail Town Committee member Laura Pack. “Our projects have done so much for our feeling of community here in Paintsville. It is great to have bright, freshly painted buildings and a refurbished park, but even better than that is the good vibe that has been created as we all worked together. Our feeling of community has been greatly strengthened through this project.”
The cities of Island (McLean County) and Corbin (Whitley/Knox Counties) received honorable mention in the competition. Island transformed an abandoned hardware store into a new retail facility, adorned with a mural celebrating the town’s history. Corbin brought together numerous community groups to clean up litter on State Highway 312 and other local roadways.
“Selecting a winner for the 2017 ‘Beautify the Bluegrass’ contest was not an easy task,” said Gov. Bevin. “Thank you to all of our outstanding applicants; and thank you for everything you do day in and day out to beautify your communities and make them shine.”