In 2013 we - Cats Cradle - will be once again presenting the Green Talks Dome and Gardens at the wonderful Sunrise Festival May 30th - June 2nd.

http://www.sunrisefestivals.co.uk/shire/green-talks-dome Check the website for full details.

2013 wouldn't be complete without the Full Live experience from Cats Cradle at Waveform 6th September to 2nd September 2013. http://www.waveformfestival.com/music-lineup/cats-cradle-stage/

Join us at all these excellent events, all with no compromise Site wide Organic Food and all Sustainably powered.

For inspiration check out.

www.theruss.org/
www.lovexperience.net/
www.sunrisefestivals.co.uk
www.waveformfestival.com
www.urbangreenfair.org
www.superhomes.org.uk/superhomes/london-lewisham-honor-oak-park-walters-way/

http://www.embercombe.co.uk/

http://opensourceecology.org/

http://www.ellenmacarthurfoundation.org/

http://www.c2cn.eu/

The Green Talks Dome presented by Cats Cradle @ Sunrise 2011 and Sunrise 2012 view all of last years amazing content on the facebook events page and also on the Sunrise Website Sunrise Celebration

In 2010 Green Innovations presented a choice selection of exciting new ideas that will revolutionise the way we live. The focus on services and products that help optimise our positive impact on our environment, our communities and our economy.

Our workshops, talks and debates look at solutions for the modern world and we welcome you to join us in the evolution of this project and to take part in all the varied activities. Within the Green Innovations arena you will also find stalls promoting innovative green businesses. This year we have also achieved a long standing goal to re-engage with the fantastic MSc programs running at CAT (Centre of Alternative Technology) from where the origins of Green Innovations were born.

In 2010 we presented two unique highlights for the Sunrise festival goers.

An international video link-up live on the Friday and Saturday nights of the festival.

  • One with a representative from MBDC (McDonough Braungart Design Chemistry) in North America focusing on Cradle to Cradle design and ideas.

  • ( MBDC)

  • The second live link up will be with the executive director of Greenpeace Africa. An inspiring oportunity to see what is happening on the African continent through the eyes of this international NGO

  • ( Greenpeace Africa)


  • For the full interview with William McDonough ( to view clink here)

    Waste = Food (Cradle to Cradle film)( to view clink here)

  • We showed "Waste = Food" in the solar cinema between the Activists and Green Innovations arena on Friday Night at 19:30 followed by a workshop from our very own Paul Capel at 17:00 looking at various aspects of Cradle to Cradle thinking including Braungart and McDonough's Fractal Triangle questions and the Cradle to Cradle design steps towards Eco-Effectiveness.

  • The two headline presentations were made possible with the help from the very excellent "VeryPC" (more info here), Innovators in UK built, Energy Saving Trust recommended computers. VeryPC's Broadleaf PC is extremely low energy , making it the prefect equipment to showcase this Green Innovation


    Contributors 2010

    Natural Spa Supplies

    Workshops and Talks 2010

    We will be having a very special guest running a Workshop on Friday Morning. Mark Standeven will be joining us for a morning workshop. Details to follow...


    V3 Power ...will be doing the following talks and workshops
    V3 Power are a group of engineers working as a cooperative, building renewable energy technologies from recycled and re-used materials. Working in the Green Innovations area, they will be providing drop-in workshops in how to build the following:


    WIND TURBINE TALK & BLADE CARVING
    The wind turbines we have are built from scratch, incorporating hand carved blades, a permanent magnet alternator and a welded steel frame. Come and have a go at carving the blades from wood, see how it all fits together and get advice on how to build your own wind turbine.

    Our turbine engineers give a talk, demonstrated by ready-made mountings outlining the 3 main elements involved in constructing a wind turbine:

    Blade construction - This involves turning three pieces of wood into blade shapes using hand tools.
    Alternator construction - This involves winding coils of wire (using a coil winder built by V3), soldering them together and casting them in fibre glass resin.
    Mounting/tower construction - This is metal work and involves arc welding.

    Due to the nature of a festival we only offer the blade carving aspect as a hands-on workshop. After the talk we typically set up a Black and Decker  work bench and work on one blade at a time over the course of the festival. Suitable for those aged 14 and over

    Blade carving workshops and talks will be held on Friday 12 noon - 2pm and Sunday 2pm-4pm


    Bike Generator (Every day drop-in demonstrations)
    Bike generators use a car alternator and an old bike to produce electricity to charge batteries. Come and see the bike generators we've built, and have a go at pedaling to help power the music! We'll also be building some during the day so you can help out and see how they're built...
    We have built various designs of bicycle generator, three of which we will bring and have out on display for people to come and have a go on. This is run as a constant drop-in where people can ask questions and have the designs of the stands and generators as well as the 12V system explained. We also have a pedal powered smoothie maker. This is suitable for all ages.

    Solar Energy Discussion and Workshop
    This is more of an educational workshop, where we discuss solar energy and how to use it practically on a small budget and using reclaimed materials. We will demonstrate our working examples of solar photovoltaic (PV) cells, solar water heating, and solar cooking. We will lead a small discussion asking about peoples experience with solar energy and ideas on design and usage of the demonstrated technology. Suitable for all ages.

    Takes place on Thursday 3pm-5pm and Saturday 12 noon-2pm


    Wind-Up Torch construction (costs £10 and you get a torch!)
    We have recently been commissioned to run sessions in schools building wind-up torches. We will run this session with festival goers. Engineers lead the workshop, it involves soldering an electronic circuit and assembling the motor and handle mechanism, before putting it all together into the housing made from reclaimed plastic pipe. This is suitable for ages 14 and over. Workshop attendees can take away the torch they have made and due to the extra cost of the materials involved we ask for £10 per person.

    Takes place on Friday 3pm-5pm and Saturday 3pm-5pm


    For more info take a look at the website http://www.v3power.co.uk/(more info here)

    Workshops Descriptions


    Bryce is a Lecturer at the Graduate School of the Environment at the Centre for Alternative Technology (CAT). He also is a facilitator of the 'Economics of Sustainability' course, also taught at CAT.

    Bryce will be providing workshops:

    Thursday : Community Renewable Energy Co-operatives

    The creation of the renewable energy co-operatives is a small area of development in the United Kingdom. However, it has been demonstrated in other countries, with different regulatory environments, that they can be a viable option for community-centred energy development. The practise and pitfalls of a renewable energy co-operative will be discussed and the context for renewable energy co-operatives in the United Kingdom today, will also be examined.

    Friday : Economics for a Small Planet -

    This workshop will examine the global economy – its structure with a view to explaining the  economic drivers fuelling unsustainable economic, social and environmental practices. The course will also explore other economic models with a view to making change in the real world.  From free trade to  globalisation, from peak oil to local money, this is a open discussion about the economics that shape this world and how we might inspire alternatives.

    Duration: 1 hour, 30 minutes

    Saturday : Sustainable Economics

    This workshop will examine the ways that economics can be used to promote sustainable communities.  Traditional economics ignores the essential integration of social and ecological concerns into economic development. Community workers, local and international development organisations, small business owners and students would all benefit immensely from this program. From the development of co-operatives to the Fair Trade movement, from social enterprises to community currency systems, an exciting array of sustainable economics design, policy and activities will be examined to empower participants to help reclaim their local economy.

    Duration: 1 hour, 30 minutes

    Sunday : Feed-In Tariff & Renewable Heat Incentive

    The UK government has recently implemented a Feed In Tariff (FIT) for installation of renewable energy generation schemes and is planning to introduce a Renewable Heat Incentive next year. This workshop will discuss how the FIT and RHIs will work and the basic factors you need to consider before installing a renewable energy system.

    Duration: 1 hour

    Alyx is a current student on the AEES MSc at CAT

    Alyx  loves how life unfurls itself and is 'jaque of all trades'.  bringing far out, eclectic and often buried know-how to the fore,  delighting in liberated histories and minds, trippin out on the golden ratio, conjuring orgonite and creating edible, healing gardens/spaces.

    Alyx will be providing workshops:

    Thursday and Friday:

    Testing the 'Orgonite Effect': This workshop will include an introduction to  Orgonite, an experimental composite of metals,  polyester resin and crystals that studies indicate has a valuable range of beneficial health and environmental applications.  The aim of this session will be to make pieces of orgonite. There will be a £3 cost for materials for those who want to make their own 'take home' pieces. For those who are interested,  they can also participate in an on-going investigation of orgonites' obseverable effects on plants, collating results and photo evidence.  We will add our data to the continuing research happening in other parts of the country.   

    Duration: 1 hour, 30 minutes

    Saturday:

    Small steps to Food Autonomy: Information and ideas for all those thinking about growing more of their own food in whatever space they've got, from the use of containers and trellises to  methods of increasing soil fertility and yield, we will look at and consider useful techniques to make the most of 'growing your own'.

    Duration: 1 hour

    Sunday:

    The wonders of Ecological Sanitation: An introduction to  Ecological Sanitation,  focussing on waterless toilet systems that 'close the loop' to manage human waste using innovative hygenic techniques that also capture and reuse nutrients.  With an overview of global ecosan projects from around the world.

    Duration: 1 hour

    Natural Spa Talks: Saturday:

    ‘How 21st century washing is making us ill and what we can do about it.’

    ·   Outlining conventional washing and body care practices and the chemicals/toxins they contain.

    ·         Where the toxins go in the body and the diseases they cause.

    ·         How to remove toxins (clay detoxing etc).

    ·         How to avoid/reduce exposure through strip washing.

    ·         Energy saving showering techniques.

    ·         Making your own toiletries and using the raw products of nature.

    Duration: 1 hour

    Sunday:

    ‘Why animals detox with clay in the wild, and what humans can learn from them.’

     It would cover:

     ·         how and why mammals, especially herbivores and primates use clay to neutralize food toxins, eliminate parasites, treat injuries, to absorb radiation and heavy metals etc.

    ·          the archaeology of clay use by humans and areas of current usage

    ·         the status of clay RE food supplement law

    ·         detox methods

    ·         illness caused by build up of solvents, dental metals, parasites + clay case studies

    ·         first aid

    ·         detox methods

    ·         traditional water purification

    ·         opportunities to taste clay water

    Duration: 1 hour

    Full 2010 Workshop details below

    Green Innovation Program (See Notices onsite for Updates)

    Thursday 3rd June

    15:00

    - V3 Solar Energy Discussion and workshop

    17:00

    - Finish

    V3

    17:00

    - Community Energy Coops

    18:00

    - Finish

    Bryce

    18:15

    - Organite workshop

    19:45

    - Finish

    Alyx

    Friday 4th June

    10:00

    - Mark Standeven- Workshop (info to follow Not to be missed!)

    13:00

    - Finish

    12:00

    - V3 Wind Turbine Workshops

    14:00

    - Finish

    V3

    14:00

    - Organite workshop

    15:30

    - Finish

    Alyx

    15:00

    - Wind-Up Torch construction

    V3

    15:50

    - Economics for a Small Planet:

    17:00

    - Finish

    Bryce

    17:00

    - Cradle to Cradle workshop

    19:30

    - Finish

    Paul Capel

    19:30

    - Solar Cinema showing "Waste = Food" (Cradle to Cradle)

    20:30

    - Finish

    21:00

    - Live Video Link up with MBDC

    22:00

    - Finish

    Saturday 5th June

    10:30

    - Sustainable Economics: This workshop will examine the ways that

    economics can be used to promote sustainable communities.

    12:00

    - Finish

    Bryce

    12:00

    - V3 Solar Energy Discussion and workshop

    14:00

    - Finish

    V3

    14:00

    - Small steps to Food Autonomy “Growing your Own”

    15:00

    - Finish

    Alyx

    15:00

    - Wind-Up Torch construction

    17:00

    - Finish

    V3

    17:00

    - ‘How 21st century washing is making us ill and what we can do about it.’

    18:00

    - Finish

    Sally Mittuch - Natural Spa

    19:30

    - Solar Cinema presents Green Innovations

    20:30

    - Finish

    21:00

    - Live Video Link up with Greenpeace Africa

    22:00

    - Finish

    Sunday 6th June
    12:00 - The wonders of Ecological Sanitation
    13:00 - Finish Alyx
    13:00 - Feed-In Tariff & Renewable Heat Incentive
    14:00 - Finish Bryce
    14:00 - V3 Wind Turbine Workshops
    16:00 - Finish V3
    16:00 - ' Why animals detox with clay in the wild, and what humans
    can learn from them.’
    17:00 - Finish Sally - Natural Spa

    Please contact:-


    john@greeninnovations.org.uk :: 07747 145364
    paul@greeninnovations.org.uk :: 07802 647827

    www.opticfibre.org
    www.freerangestudios.com
    Email giles@flatspin.co.uk