Making
Waves
Rock the Earth Takes a Shot Across the Bow of the
Cruise Industry
 In
the January newsletter, Rock the Earth reported on
the incredibly damaging impact that cruise ships have
on ocean and coastal areas. The vast majority of cruise
ships utilize minimal water treatment, resulting in
millions of gallons of waste being discharged directly
into the ocean, sometimes in critical aquatic ecosystems
and in violation of federal requirements. These discharges
not only impact large numbers of fish and marine life,
but also coastal areas, birds and marine mammals.
Additionally, untreated air pollution from cruise
ships release tons of greenhouse gasses during each
cruise, and severely and negatively contribute adversely
to onshore human health. Rock the Earth believes that
cruise lines have a legal and moral obligation to
take measures to reduce their impact on the environment,
and we also believe that the growing collaboration
between the music industry and cruise lines provides
an opportunity to raise environmental consciousness
and make our voice heard to challenge cruise industry
practices.
Late
last month, in response to the EPA report on the cruise
ship industry, Rock the Earth joined with Friends
of the Earth and approximately 53 other groups, and
submitted a comment letter to the EPA. The letter
highlighted the key findings of the EPA report, and
made recommendations for immediate action by the EPA
and the U.S. Coast Guard to force the cruise ship
industry to reduce its harmful impact on the environment.
Continue
Reading...
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Patagonia’s
Rockin’ Contest – RtE Still Needs Your Help!
 With
the forthcoming opening of their Boulder, Colorado
store on April 5th, Patagonia has offered Rock the
Earth the chance to win a $5,000 grant by gaining
the most votes from the public. Between now and March
29, please go to www.Patagonia.com/boulder
and vote for Rock the Earth as your charity of choice.
Since announcing this contest in January, the competition
has been fast and furious and we need as many of you
as possible to please keep spreading the word.
To put things in perspective, $5,000 means 500 hours
of low-cost legal assistance to help preserve some
of America’s natural spaces like Grand Canyon
or Yellowstone National Park! Please help Rock the
Earth win by voting at www.Patagonia.com/boulder,
and please help spread the word! If you can
prove to us that you’re spreading the word by
posting contest information on your website, MySpace,
Facebook page or the like, you will be entered in
a contest to win a Rock the Earth prize package! Just
shoot us a link showing us that you’re spreading
the word to info@rocktheearth.org.
Contest ends on March 29. Thank you!
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Incubus’
Make Yourself Foundation Rocks the Earth
 We
are very happy and honored to report that this month
RtE received the single largest donation in the history
of the organization – and from a great, environmentally
conscious band to boot! On Feb. 4th, RtE received
a grant from Incubus’
Make
Yourself Foundation in the amount
of $10,000, to help underwrite our 2008 Summer Education
and Outreach tour! The Make Yourself Foundation
is a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit organization
that funds various causes and charities both locally
and around the world. The band funds the foundation
by donating a portion of the proceeds generated from
touring, record royalties, online auctions of Incubus
concert tickets and memorabilia, and special events.
The
Incubus
bootleg series has produced five bootlegs,
and all of Incubus royalties go straight to MYF. Incubus'
MYF VIP tour program has raised over one million dollars
since 2004. Make Yourself Foundation merchandise purchased
through the MYF online store also benefits the foundation.
We
are grateful for the grant and look forward to collaborating
with one of the most environmentally conscious artists
in the world again in the future!
To
read the RtE press release about this historic grant,
go
here.
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A
Rockin’ Earth Day in Denver – RtE to Head
Up Green Apple
 In
its third year, the Green
Apple Music Festival has announced
plans to expand to eight US cities, making it the
largest Earth Day celebration EVER. We of Rock the
Earth are honored to be playing a large part in organizing
the festival in Denver. Stretching over the weekend
of April 18-20, the festival will feature music in
over a dozen clubs throughout the Front Range, a full-on
greening program for the evening concerts, and culminating
in a large, FREE concert in Denver’s centrally
located City Park on Sunday, April 20th
from noon to 6 p.m.
Volunteers
Needed
We
anticipate that this event will be the largest
Earth Day celebration ever in Denver and we
need all the help we can get. We need folks to help
work the festival in City Park. If you are interested
in donating your time and being part of this HISTORIC
event, please write to volunteer@RockTheEarth.org.
Volunteers will be given special gifts and we’re
also hoping to throw a volunteer-only party following
the event.
Vendors
RtE
is also in charge of all vending at the event
– from sustainability oriented non-profit
organizations and green businesses to arts
and crafts vendors to healthy and organic food
vendors, the vending village at Green Apple will
have something for everyone! If you are involved in
a nonprofit or have a business that would like a booth
at the festival on 4/20, please write to info@rocktheearth.org.
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Planet
Defender - Nominations Needed
 On
Earth Day, Rock the Earth will announce the winners
of our annual Planet Defender Award. In our
January newsletter, we put out a call for nominees
and received some great submittals. There's still
time to nominate your 2008 Planet Defender! Rock the
Earth will be accepting nominations from its friends
and members between now and March 2nd. Help us
identify those people who have advanced the cause
of environmental protection. Nominees should demonstrate
a strong commitment to defending the planet within
the realm in which they work. Take a look at our categories
listed below, and send us nominations from the music
world, your local community, or prominent leaders
who have made a broad impact in environmental protection.
From
the list of nominees, Rock the Earth's Volunteer Staff
will vote on the three winners. Please send your nominations
to info@rocktheearth.org.
With your nomination, please include your reason for
nominating the individual or group. Rock the Earth
will include some of your comments when we present
our awards in each category.
You
may nominate individuals in the following three categories:
•
Artist - an individual or group
• Grassroots Activist - a community
activist or grassroots organization
• Community Leader - a leader in government,
business or other high-profile position
Please
help us find our 2008 Defenders. Send
your nominations to us by March 2nd!
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How
do YOU Rock the Earth? Let us see!
 Without
Rock the Earth's engaged members, we wouldn't be able
to have nearly the impact that we do. Rock the Earth
members consistently send project ideas, help table
at events, and help spread the word about our fantastic
grassroots organization.
We're
asking our members to step up once again. One of the
features in each month's newsletter is a Rockin'
the Earth photo, with members and friends in unique
natural or concert settings. The next time you head
out to one of these special places, bring along your
Rock the Earth gear and a camera.
Send
in a photo of you, your friends, or your favorite
musicians wearing a RtE shirt, along with a description
of where and when the picture was taken. Winners will
receive a FREE RtE tote bag to sport around
town and we'll feature you in an upcoming newsletter!
Send your photos to info@RockTheEarth.org
by April 30th and show us how you Rock the Earth!
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Calling
All Businesses - Help us Rock Earth Day!
 RtE
is seeking businesses to collaborate with on the 38th
anniversary of Earth Day - when events and celebrations
take place throughout the week of April 11-20th. By
participating in a coordinated campaign, our impact
can be more significant. Please consider donating
a portion of your business' sales throughout the week
to Rock the Earth, or pick a specific day to let your
customers know you are committed to doing your part
in helping create a sustainable environment. In addition
to cash donations, there are other ways that you can
be a part of this effort-- please call our office
at 303-454-3304 or write to Scott at info@rocktheearth.org.
As always, RtE will be a good steward of your contributions,
and by working together we can all be part of the
solution.
 Two
businesses already committed to helping us Defend
the Planet, One Beat at a Time.
Herbs
& Arts (2015 E. Colfax Ave, Denver,
Colorado) is donating 10% of all purchases made on
April 18, 2008 will be donated to Rock the Earth.
 Ethical
Planet
(1110 W. Davis St. Evanston, Illinois) is donating
10% of all purchase made between April 12 and 19,
2008, for anyone who mentions the organization by
name in the comments section when they place an order.
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In
the Key of Green: How
fine's your kettle of fish?
Only
as fine as it is sustainable. When shopping for seafood,
take along an easy-to-use pocket guide or tap into
a phone-text service that'll help you determine whether
that Chilean sea bass is eco-friendly-fine enough
for your kettle.
The
Benefits
 •
Keeping sea critters around. Scientists predict that
there will be no more seafood by 2048 unless we change
current (unsustainable) fishing methods.
• Simplicity. These guides make buying
sustainable seafood so easy, even a Plunket's dogfish
could do it.
•
Blue
Ocean Institute FishPhone - send a
text to 30644 with the message FISH in all caps, followed
by the name of the fish you want to know about, and
it'll fire back sustainability info on that species.
• Oceans
Alive - download a pocket seafood selector
from their website and check its up-to-date list for
the skinny on the most and least sustainable fish.
• Natural
Resources Defense Council - mercury
info and another pocket-sized seafood selector that
focuses on mercury levels.
These
tips submitted by Nancy Civetta for Ideal Bite www.idealbite.com.
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New
Membership Benefits
 For
the second month in a row, our Members’ benefits
continue to grow. This new benefit is a 10% discount
on all merchandise from The
Faded Line Clothing Company. This fantastic
new company features apparel imprinted with images
from some of our favorite artists, such as Emek, Jim
Pollock, Jeff Wood and Todd Slater.
|
More Member Benefits: |
 |
20%
off beautiful nature ecards from Tree
Greetings that plant a tree
for someone special! |
 |
20%
off all Advice from Nature books, journals, t-shirts,
postcards, bookmarks and tree planting cards from
Your
True Nature |
 |
20%
off all products from Guayaki
Yerba Mate |
 |
20%
off Eco
Express gift baskets (or donate
20% of all full-priced orders to Rock the Earth
by designating donation in comments section of
each order) |
 |
20%
off Bamboosa
products |
 |
20%
off SCIGear
merchandise |
 |
Special
contests and discounts on concert tickets |
| To
find out how you can take advantage of these Members
Only benefits, write to info@rocktheearth.org. |
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Volunteer
with Rock the Earth
Like
any great organization, Rock the Earth relies on the
power of the human spirit to keep moving forward to
achieve our mission of defending the planet. In addition
to the valued contributions of our wonderful members,
there are many people (both members and non-members)
who contribute their time and energy to help further
our work on environmental causes. If you've never
volunteered before, we are prepared to provide the
training you need to make the most of your enthusiasm
and energy. If you've offered to volunteer in the
past, but have not yet had the opportunity to participate,
please feel free to contact us again. Simply drop
a note to volunteer@RocktheEarth.org
and a let us know how you wish to get involved, i.e.
by working membership/outreach events, providing expert
assistance, writing press releases, etc. Be sure to
include your name, geographical area, and way in which
we can contact you. We look forward to rocking the
earth with your help in 2008!
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RtE
Seeks Summer Outreach Interns
RtE Intern Melissa Plotkin educating at Ozzfest |
Are
you interested in a summer internship with RtE? This
summer we will once again tour the country! Our goal
is to educate music fans and environmentalists about
our mission and the environmental issues on which
we are working. We will be signing up new members
and volunteers, as well as continuing to build our
relationships with musicians nationwide. We had great
success during our 2007 Summer Tour, and look forward
to reaching even greater heights in 2008! If you are
interested in learning more about the Summer Outreach
Intern positions, please email us at info@rocktheearth.org.
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Rockin
the Fox Theatre in Boulder With Free Tickets and VIP
Upgrades!
In
the first in what we hope will be a year-long series
of events with Boulder’s Fox
Theatre, Rock the Earth will be tabling
at two upcoming shows this spring, educating and activating
fans about important local and national environmental
issues:
FREE
TICKETS: If you are already of Member of Rock
the Earth, you can win a pair of FREE TICKETS
to the above concerts at the Fox. Just write to info@rocktheearth.org
to enter your name (put either Outformation or PGroove
in the Subject line).
VIP
UPGRADES: If you are at the show, and either JOIN
RtE or RENEW your membership, you could win VIP
Upgrades to the Balcony!
To
volunteer, contact info@rocktheearth.org.
For more information: www.rocktheearth.org
or www.foxtheatre.com.
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...and
the Oriental Theater in Denver
On
April 4 and 5, two of our musical partners, New
Monsoon and Dumpstaphunk,
will be playing not one, but two benefit shows for
Rock the Earth. Both shows will take place at the
Oriental
Theater in Denver. $1 from every ticket
sold will be donated to Rock the Earth in honor of
Earth Day 2008! Please join us at the Oriental for
this awesome double-bill for a great cause!
Tickets
to these concerts will be on sale soon at
cervantes.baselineticketing.com.
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 February’s
Rockin’ Auction: Michael Weintrob/Dr. John
This
month's charity auction for Rock the Earth is a signed
and numbered (2/50) print by famed Rock photographer
Michael
Weintrob. Temporarily framed, this
stunning 3 foot by 2 foot picture of Dr. John at the
New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival would look
amazing on any collector’s wall. To bid on this
rare print, go
here.
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John
Butler Rocks the Earth: Interview
 John
Butler is many things to many people. To John’s
family he is a much loved husband, father, brother,
and son. To his ever-growing fan base it is about
the musical journey, the groove of the John
Butler Trio, the soul of the guitar
and the honesty and integrity of John’s lyrics.
To emerging independent artists John is an inspiration
and patron to young acts struggling to establish themselves
in an increasingly difficult and diluted marketplace.
For guitar players John has reignited interest in
open tunings, slide-playing and down-home tone, and
like his heroes singer/songwriter and slide great
Jeff Lang and multi-instrumentalist virtuoso Bob Brozman,
John has provided the motivation for many players
to pick up the guitar, practice and get deep. To people
everywhere who believe in social equity, justice and
the human spirit John’s words and actions have
provided an audible, considered and independent voice
and energy to many legitimate and universal concerns.
For John however, the importance and focus have always
been at the source: his family, his commitment, a
voice, a guitar, a song, and the path walked together.
In
2005, John and his partner Danielle Caruana founded
The
JB Seed Arts Grant Program. Initially
independently funded by John, the program is designed
to explore and encourage the social, cultural and
artistic diversity in Australian society. In its second
year the JB Seed developed and was nationally recognized
by industry peers and experts offering both contributions
financially and through shared knowledge and time.
In October 2006, the JB Seed dream was further enhanced
when its inaugural Managers Workshop/Conference was
held in Katoomba, the hub of Australia’s beautiful
Blue Mountains. Another vision become an actuality
for John and Dan and their team as twenty successful
applicants from around the country gathered for three
days of workshopping and networking with industry
experts, covering topics such as management, legalities,
copyright, publicity and promotion in an enabling
and trusting environment. The JB Seed continues to
grow; for more information visit www.thejbseed.com.
What
environmental issue(s) do you consider to be the most
critical at this time?
Man
there are so many, but I guess the one that links
to most of them is global warming. Whether it be through
clear-cutting huge tracts of forests which leads to
annihilation the of ecosystems, water stores, ground
stability, etc., etc., or the fight against nuclear
power being the answer to our clean energy needs (what
a joke that is)-- it all seems to come under the huge
umbrella of the causes and effects of global warming.
The good thing about this campaign though, is that
it’s not gonna go away until we have a massive
change in so many aspects of our society. This is
the issue that’s taking the environment from
being a fringe issue and an over-used word, to being
an essential part of our everyday lives that we have
to acknowledge and respect.
What
has inspired you to combine environmental activism
with your music?
To
cut a long story short, I got involved in some forest
campaigns back in 1995 in the south-west of West Australia,
and was also a budding performing musician at the
same time. I thought that I had to make a choice between
activism and music, and instead I decided to do both.
Where
is your favorite place in nature to go to find solace
or inspiration?
The
Murray River where I grew up in Pinjarra West Australia.
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Rockin’
the Earth with some cool ones: Photo
RtE
Summer Tour interns Chandra Ruff and Matt Schmidt
(Schaumburg, IL (2005))
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