If you know me then you know that I'm not too spontaneous. Therefore, when I decided to up and fly to New York to attend the
Urban Go Green Tour and Expo in Harlem, my friends were caught off guard. I felt it was a good decision in growing my "green" awareness outside of my Atlanta perspective/experience. I had a wonderful time and met some informative entrepreneurial people.
(See the small red letters to left, that's me peeping from behind the guy's shoulder)
Self-described social entrepreneur, networker and championship mentality speaker and coach, Osiris James founded the Urban Go Green Expo & Tour. I didn't have an opportunity to personally meet him at the Expo, but I did speak with him by phone before going to New York. Osiris has an extraordinary vision for the Expo and getting the word out to the urban community about saving the earth as well as taking advantage of new market opportunities. He is looking to take the Urban Go Green Expo around the country spreading the green word. Atlanta please look out for the Expo in the coming year!
The overall goals of the Urban Go Green Expo were to:
- Acquire stimulus funding for upgrading their home or business to renewable energy and energy efficient products;
- Access career and entrepreneurial opportunities in the emerging green economy;
- Get a clear understanding of the health and environmental impacts of climate change on their communities;
- Discover the trends and opportunities in the emerging green economy.
During my time at the Expo, I primarily focused on the health and environmental impacts. I visited the
African Holistic Health Chapter of New York's table where they had reflexologist
providing consultations. Here I let the reflexologist read my feet - very informative. There are parts of the feet that give clues to the health of certain organs in the body. Basically, I need to drink more water and reduce my stress level. Next, we talked about incorporating more natural and live/raw foods into my diet and getting dead/processed foods out. I really wish I could go vegan, but it's something about BBQ pork ribs that keeps calling me back... Anyway, that's another issue for another day. However, for the day I was vegan, the Expo had
Black Israelite vendors who prepare vegan and raw dishes. I had rice, black-eyed pea patties, plantains, bean curd and some other delicious dishes. For dessert, I had a raw cheesecake - so creamy. I think they used cashews with a mango puree and fresh fruit topping - Oh so good! One thing I noticed about New York City compared to Atlanta, there are many vegetarian, vegan and raw restaurants from corner to corner. Atlanta has a handful, but dispersed and none really downtown, except Soul Vegetarian in the West End and Virginia Highlands - they are run by Black Israelites.
Enough about the food I ate...
I met an entrepreneur who developed
Cell-nique a healthy juice with fruits and vegetables to give his family.
The kids and their friends took to the juice so well he started producing it to sell. The drink has super food ingredients that help balance the body's pH and provide a good supply of healthy fruit and veggies for the drinker. My personal favorite was the Orange while my friend loved the Pomegranate. Overall, I think it's an excellent idea as most American diets center on consuming meat excluding the consumption of important fruits and vegetables. Cell-nique provides health in a vehicle that most Americans want - fast and on the go...
In between visiting booths, I got an opportunity to take in local "green" artists' work. There was one huge piece in the middle of the floor - very interesting piece... Local "green" artist came together to decorate this work shed made from recycled materials. This goes to show you that some one's trash is another's art :)
I had to leave the Expo shortly after talking to the artists, but I must say the Urban Go Green Expo showed me how much I have to learn about this green movement. Special shout out to K. Heslop for getting me around the city on short notice in the rain. Another special thanks to N. Abdur-Rauf for giving me shelter for the night. Only in New York, New York!!!
Thanks for reading :)
