Bring Your Bag Chicago founder to speak at next Green Drinks meeting
Jordan Parker, founder of Bring Your Bag Chicago, will be the guest speaker at the next McHenry County Green Drinks from 5 to 7 p.m. Wednesday, July 5. Parker will be introduced by Defenders' BYOBag Committee, which has been working for nearly four years on reducing the use of single-use bags in McHenry County.
On the first Wednesday of each month, environmentally-minded people gather at Duke's Alehouse & Kitchen, 110 N. Main St. in Crystal Lake, to network and talk about "greening" the future. Everyone is welcome to attend. Additional parking is available at the train station.
Parker got her start as an environmental advocate in 1994, door-to-door canvassing for the U.S. Public Interest Research Group in Hawaii as a summer job in college.
Nearly 20 years later, in 2013, she founded Bring Your Bag Chicago, a grass-roots organization that encourages reusable bag use through public education and policy.
The following year she spent several weeks in Africa and Australia volunteering and learning about international efforts to address climate change.
In 2016, after five years of work on Bring Your Bag Chicago, a citywide 7-cent bag tax was passed which resulted in a 42 percent reduction in disposable bag use during the first month of implementation. Jordan is now the executive director of Green City Campaigns, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit created to support and mobilize waste reduction campaigns started by grass-roots advocates in their own communities.
To be added to the Green Drinks email list, send a note to GreenDrinksMC@gmail.com. Or visit www.mcdef.org or follow www.facebook.com/GreenDrinksMcHenryCounty.
The Green Drinks network was founded in North London, England in 1989 and now is active in over 600 cities worldwide.
Interested individuals are always welcome to attend the McHenry County Green Drinks monthly event. Each month, there is social time and presentation on a different eco-topic, plus displays and/or demonstrations. Also, information about upcoming eco-events and green products and services is made available.
Nonalcoholic and alcoholic drinks are available plus a featured "green drink" selected by Chef Zak.
Green Drinks McHenry County is sponsored by the Environmental Defenders of McHenry County and Duke's Alehouse and Kitchen.