Moving Planet DuPage part of global effort to reduce reliance on fossil fuels
Organizers are aiming for 350 participants to bike, walk or car pool to the Prairie Path in Villa Park on Saturday, Sept. 24.
Why 350? That's the safe number of parts per million of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.
Moving Planet DuPage, sponsored by 350.org and the Sierra Club, is part of a global call to action to address concerns about climate change and help reduce the world's dependence on fossil fuels.
The activities take place from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Ruggard Gazebo on the Illinois Prairie Path at Ardmore.
Bicyclists can pick up decorative streamers for their handle bars and numbers for their jerseys at stations along the Prairie Path in Warrenville, Winfield, Wheaton, Glen Ellyn, Lombard and Elmhurst. The first 200 participants will receive a Moving Planet T-shirt donated by West Suburban Bank.
Warrenville Mayor David Brummel will lead a group of bikers to Villa Park, leaving at 10 a.m. from the Warrenville gazebo on the Prairie Path. A group of Elgin bikers will set out at 10 a.m. from Army Trail Road and the Prairie Path, and a Lombard group will leave at 11:30 a.m. from Lincoln and the Prairie Path.
Lombard activist Lonnie Morris will be presented with the Sierra Club's Special Achievement award for her work on the Cool Cities initiative.
Fifty-five Illinois municipalities - including Carol Stream, Elgin, Lombard, Villa Park and Aurora - are designated Cool Cities working to reduce greenhouse gases through energy efficiency, fuel-efficient vehicles and renewable energy resources. Aurora is also the first Illinois city to be designated a Green Power Community by the Environmental Protection Agency for meeting renewable energy purchase targets.
The schedule includes a group photo at 1:45 p.m. at the gazebo, followed by the Cool Cities awards at 2 p.m.
Music, food, speakers and exhibitors will be available starting at 11 a.m. Free bike tuneups will be provided by Performance Bicycle. Representatives from the Citizens Utility Board will offer tips on saving electricity and reducing monthly bills.
Biking plays a big role in Moving Planet events globally and throughout the United States:
Ÿ Students in the Dominican Republic will paint the country's first bike lane in Santo Domingo.
Ÿ Cyclists will bike 350 hours from Bali to Bandung in Indonesia for a clean energy rally.
Ÿ Thousands are expected to join a "Power Past Fossil Fuels" bike ride from Boulder to Denver, Colorado.
"Riding a bike doesn't use gasoline," said Bob Hoel, chairman of Elmhurst's Bike Task Force. "OK, so you do use fuel, but it is in terms of doughnuts or pasta. If you use a bike for those short errands around town, that is when an auto is the most inefficient … so the short trips have the biggest yield in terms of gasoline saved per mile."
No registration is necessary to participate in Moving Planet DuPage.
If you go
What: Moving Planet DuPage
When: 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 24
Where: Ruggard Gazebo on the Illinois Prairie Path at Ardmore Avenue in Villa Park
Details: Music, speakers, food, free bike tuneups, free decorative streamers for handle bars, and awards to people and communities that have demonstrated a commitment to local climate change solutions. Participant are urged to bike, walk or car pool to the event.
Sponsors: Sierra Club and