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Mrs. Green’s World, a green, global sustainability website, recently held a contest to determine who was “The Greenest of Them All” .

Nominees were mostly Tucsonans except as indicated, in the order they were listed on the webpage ballot: Hallie Luedtke, Pima County Supervisor Ray Carroll, Gary Homesley (Northridge, CA), Bob Oldfather, Tony Vaccaro, Jenny Gomeringer (Waterbury, MA), Lisa Hawkins, Nick Lepore, Libby Tobey, Holly Hutchinson, Gene Zonge, Tony Arranaga (Phoenix, AZ), Brad Lancaster, John Smith, Jason Tankersley. Read the nominations about these great individuals.

Online voting determined the winner, and about 1000 votes were cast.

And the winner is… John Smith of The Arizona Green Plumbers who won a two night stay at Loews Ventana Canyon Resort with a $100 food and drink credit, courtesy of Legendary World and Mrs. Green’s World.

John Smith, winner

According to the press release: Smith was nominated because he “is dedicated to preserving our natural resources for the future generations. He not only practices conservation in his own life, but promotes it via free seminars whenever possible. He is a walking encyclopedia of green plumbing practices that can save not only water, but money as well for those following his suggestions.” So if you want a licensed green plumber, call 520-884-0040.

Runners up were Holly Hutchinson, a community gardener and Tony Vaccaro (owner of solar-powered Brooklyn Pizza and Sky Bar, on 4th Avenue in Tucson).

Who is Mrs. Green?

“Gina Murphy-Darling loves being Mrs. Green. She was born to inform and connect individuals and businesses in the movement toward global sustainability. Mrs. Green is a messenger for Mother Earth and all her inhabitants, informing people how they can make changes every day that are good for them and good for the planet. Everyone from retired chemical engineers to design-school millennials appreciates her authentic communication.”

For more information contact:

Mrs. Green at 520-880-5678 during her live broadcast on NEWSTALK 790 KNST, 12:05 to 1 p.m. Saturdays, to ask a question of her guests. “Have a question for Mrs. Green, want to suggest a topic for her show, or have a press release to send?” Send an email to info@mrsgreensworld.com.

Buy green. Live Green.

Solar Rock 2010 poster

4th Annual free Solar Rock festival coming up on Saturday March 27 at Himmel Park, 12 to 6 p.m. There will be the usual 100% solar powered concert on Himmel Park’s “hippie hill”, speakers, food for sale, activities for children, and educational, environmental booths with lots and lots of info on solar power. Fun for all. You can also enter to win a bike donated by Fairwheel Bikes, & other great prizes in the Solar Rock Raffle.

Solar Rock is “an annual 100% Solar Powered festival that aims to educate individuals about renewable energy, climate change, and sustainability.” Live music to be performed by Spirit Familia, Kevin Pakulis, Run Boy Run, Mitzi Cowell, Leila Lopez, Bruce Phillips, Sonar, and others. Click here for the schedule of performers and speakers.

Confirmed speakers to date:

* Vice Mayor Rodney Glassman, City of Tucson Councilmember in Ward 2, co-author with his wife Sasha, of 2010 children’s book “Jeremy Jackrabbit Harvests the Rain”

* Bob Oldfather, Founder & CEO of Bookman’s Entertainment Exchange, champion of recent initiative to make Tucson into “The Solar City”-the capitol of solar design, manufacturing, and installations for the world

*Neil Armstrong, Director of the Department of Energy – Energy Frontier Research Center for Interface Science: Solar Electric Materials & UA Professor of Chemistry/Optical Sciences

* Tony Vaccaro, Owner of Brooklyn Pizza Company and Sky Bar (“an astronomy influenced solar powered planetarium bar”)

* Melanie Lenart, Researcher at the UA’s Institute of the Environment and author of the new book “Life in the Hothouse: How a Living Planet Survives Climate Change”.

* Marc Romito, Renewable Energy Program Manager at Tucson Electric Power (TEP)

Himmel Park is located to the east of Tucson Blvd. between E. 1st Street and E. 3rd Street, and goes as far east as Treat Blvd, all south of E. Speedway, in the Sam Hughes Neighborhood.

I’ve been attending every year and there are always new inventions/ideas/projects/booths in the mix of environmental groups there.

See www.solarrocktucson.com for more info.

Don’t forget the sunscreen.

Many of us “community bloggers” here at the Tucson Citizen website have never met each other. We’ve had a few trainings at the former Citizen office on web usage, etc. from co-editor Mark Evans, but we mostly work independently from home/internet cafes/free WiFi spots/ school & work sites/etc.

Thus, since December a few of us have been informally organizing blog parties to “meet and greet” each other, and form a sense of “community.” That’s right up my alley since I like to write about community events, and it’s been a lot of fun trying to match up the faces in person, with their respective blogsites. And also fun meeting talented writers.

Our next event in February is scheduled at the Sky Bar (536 N. 4th Avenue), where blogger “Logical Lizard” has been meeting and screening his “Meteorite Men” shows. He’s quite a TV personality on the Science Channel. I finally met him on February 3rd when he aired their show about the search for meteorites (not “meteor-wrongs”) in the nearby Santa Rita Mts.

The first December, 2009 gathering organized by “Humor: Fueled by Petrol” was at Coffee Exchange, 2443 N. Campbell Ave. And the second blog party in January was at the Ward 6 Council office (3202 E. 1st St.), organized by me, and assisted by “Urban Durband” aka “Meet Me Downtown” (no longer blogging with us as he now works there as an aide).

“Compound Captive” reported on the December event (click here), and “Veteran Veritas” chimed in for January (click here), calling us “citizen journalists”. He also eloquently wrote about December’s first blog party as well.

See you at the Sky Bar, which advertises itself as “an astronomy influenced solar powered planetarium bar.” It even has astronomy themed art on the walls by local artists Chrissy Goral and Gavin Troy.Hope you recognize me as “Carolyn’s Community”, and not some other blogsite.

Note: If you’re curious about whom these aforementioned blogsites belong to, click on the TC About Us page.