Vancouver’s Emily Jubenvill just might be the greenest person in the world. Emily, 22, is the Canadian winner of the Greenest Person on the Planet contest, launched on Earth Day by SFU prof Boyd Cohen. A self-professed guerrilla gardener, Emily grows her own food, composts the scraps, makes her own cleaners, walks or bikes to her job at a bioenergy company, and coordinates a community garden and a biodiesel co-op. The worldwide winner of the contest will be announced Sept. 16. A pod of beluga whales will be adopted in their name. 3rdwhale.com
David Diamond, artistic director and co-founder of Headlines Theatre (and a SharedVISION Visionary in January), has been awarded the Distinguished Book Award for his book Theatre For Living: The Art and Science of Community-based Dialogue. In it, David documents his unique approach to theatre and how it can be used to effect change on a grassroots level. The award was presented by the American Alliance for Theatre and Education. headlinestheatre.com , aate.com
We know and love YouTube, but Go Green Tube? Check it out: it’s just like YouTube, but instead of inexplicably popular homemade music vids like “Chocolate Rain,” you’ll see the latest and greatest uploads with a green bent. Highlights include a pre-teen Severn Cullis-Suzuki delivering an impassioned speech at the UN Earth Summit in 1992. What’s more, the site has partnered with carbonfund.org to offset one pound of CO2 for every video watched. gogreentube.com
Kelowna, well known for its wineries and vacation resorts, is installing solar-powered LED lights at city hall and in several public parks and bus stations. Kelowna receives more than 2,000 hours of sunshine a year, making it an ideal fit for the lighting system, which was developed by B.C.’s Carmanah Technologies. The LEDs (light emitting diodes) have a lifespan of 10 years. kelowna.ca , carmanah.com
Google Maps have long helped us get from point A to point B in our cars, and now they’re helping us hoof it, too. Google Maps added a “Get Directions” option for pedestrians in July, which lays out the shortest and flattest routes to your favourite destinations. The program is still in the beta stage, so be prepared to receive messages like, “This route may be missing sidewalks or pedestrian paths.” google.ca/maps
“Continuing education” usually brings to mind things like foreign language courses and learning to use Photoshop. Until now. Next month, Vancouver School Board Continuing Education will launch a Spirituality Program, aimed at introducing students to their “higher selves.” Courses include “In the Dervish Tekke: Inside a Sufi Learning Community,” “Wisdom of Kabbalah,” “Christian Spirituality and Mysticism,” and “A Course in Miracles.” For more info, schedules, and fees, visit continuinged.ca.
Brock Tully, author, speaker, and co-founder of the non-profit organization KindActs (and featured in SV in February 2000), is hopping on his bike this month for a nine-month, 18,000-km tour around southern B.C. and the western United States—all in the name of spreading goodwill. Brock, who also cycled for kindness back in 2000, will be speaking at schools, colleges, clubs, city halls, etc., in an effort to promote kindness as a powerful tool for change. See him off Sept. 8 at the West End Community Centre, 870 Denman St., time TBA. brocktully.com , kindacts.net
Rachel McAdams is so much more than just a pretty face. The Ontario-born star of Mean Girls and The Notebook is also a dedicated greenie. Check out her website-slash-blog, which she created with two of her buds, called “Green Is Sexy.” On it, you’ll find sexy tips for living greener, sexy sustainability projects, and other sexy folks with a passion for the planet. Hot stuff! greenissexy.org
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