Hundreds streamed into St. Mary’s Park for the fourth annual South Bronx Earth Fest on April 16 for music, dancing and educational events, but one thing was clear: the environment was center stage.

Green-themed games abounded, such as a Butterfly Project table, where kids crawled around while learning about butterfly habitats, and Materials for the Arts, in which children created masks from recycled materials, with the help of the city’s Department of Cultural Affairs.

Members of the group GrowNYC provided recycling demonstrations and helped kids make solar ovens out of tin foil and pizza boxes. Although rainy conditions didn’t allow 12-year-olds Wasan Bonilla and Gavin Thomas from Mott Haven to make s’mores, , they were among dozens of kids busy crafting ovens.
“I think it’s great, because it’s helping people go green and help the Earth. It’s very helpful to show people how to help the Earth,” said Bonilla.

Contestants were required to get stamped by one of the many volunteers working the tables, in order to win a prize. In turn, the volunteers helped educate them about the environment.

“It’s not just a one-shot deal,” said John H. Johnson III of GrowNYC, which helped organize this year’s festival. “We want to make sure that people walk away with something other than a prize and free food, but some information and knowledge on how to make the planet a much better place.”

On the other side of the pavilion, volunteers staffed prize tables with books, frisbees and organic snacks, while two Green Carts loaded with mangos, apples and other produce added a nutritional component.

Mott Haven resident Donnie Jones Wilson came to spend the day doing something positive with his family. “I like the fact that it’s a positive thing, and I can bring my children out here and not have to worry about any negativity going on,” he said. “It’s just a good day. Even though it’s cloudy, it’s a great day.”

He said Global Man was his favorite part of the day, and he wasn’t alone. The green-masked avenger mingled with the crowd and pointed out litter. That needed to be thrown out. And he brought green-masked young acolytes along, to help him recruit newer members.

“I think the young people that support, educate, walk around and clean-up and recycle,” said Jean Pierre LaCour who played Global Man, “it shows a lot of faith that young people really believe what we’re doing.”
His message — that everyone can be a superhero for the environment — seemed especially plausible, as volunteers at every table recommended different ways for festival attendees to green the environment.

Adam Liebowitz, director of community development for Hunts Point’s The POINT CDC, told the crowd about some of that organization’s current initiatives, including teaching urban agriculture, helping plan construction and implementation of the South Bronx Greenway project along the East River, and launching a community garden in Hunts Point that will offer low-cost, locally-grown vegetables for low-income residents.

Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz, Jr. praised the volunteers, saying, “It really shows that we can care about Mother Earth,” he said,” pointing out projects such as the vertical farming project at Discovery High School, where students grow food.

Rain forced some tables to pack up early, but a committed crowd sought shelter under a tent while watching environmentally-themed performances like a hip-hop performance by Wildlife/ATM.

Despite the damp chill and dark skies, activists for the environment were undaunted. Marta Rodriguez, who administers a green jobs training program at Sustainable South Bronx in Hunts Point, got through the afternoon just fine. “It’s just Mother Nature telling us she’s giving back, so we have to give back to her,” said Rodriguez.

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