Green Jobs Rally

Green Job Seekers and Ideas Come To Nashville

Nashville, TN. A collaboration of national and local environmental organizations are coming together this upcoming Saturday, September 27th, 2008, from 1 – 4pm to rally for Green Jobs, Businesses and Services in Middle Tennessee.

The event will take place at the George W. Carver Food Park, 10th Ave. South and Gale Lane in South Nashville. "Green industry, entrepreneurialism and cottage businesses" are achievable goals which will help those most in need of quality employment in an upcoming sustainable economy" says Sizwe Herring, Director of EarthMatters Tennessee.

Gateway 2 Heritage Leadership Team, based at Tennessee State University, is a co partner with this event. Gateway students joined EarthMatters in a trip to Memphis this past April at Green for All's "Dream Reborn" conference. Here, over 1,100 primarily African American and other minority environmental leaders came together to promote, plan and plot this new green economy.

Charles Brown, President of Gateway 2 Heritage states

"The conference was an exciting an motivating experience proving that our movement is wide-spread. This rally is a greater extension of what we learned in Memphis and will further our work here in Middle Tennessee."

Oakland, CA based Green For All founder Van Jones, who is originally from Jackson, TN, spearheads this movement and has met with the Clinton, Bush and Obama campaigns on Green Job training and legislation.

Greenpeace's Global Story Telling Tour will be in Nashville at the event. This coast to coast outreach boasts of a truck featuring 256 square feet of solar panels. The stop is part of a nationwide tour that gives Americans an opportunity to show their commitment to ending the crisis and demand action from Congress. Video petitions collected will be sent to local representatives, insisting on their support of green jobs awareness, funding and legislation as part of a plan for global warming solutions.

Donald Plunk, local environmental organizer says "It's exciting to see people from different organizations in the community come together in support of local global warming solutions in Nashville. Green jobs are a real, local investment in people, the economy, and our climate. We need to let our candidates for Congress know that these are issues we are thinking about as the election approaches."

The day's activities will also include live music, motivational speeches, kid's activities and tours of the community gardens, composting land sculpture and the DeFord Bailey Tribute Rose Garden, all on-site.