Encinitas Chant & O’side 2-Step

December 21 2008 | Rise Above Plastics,
by scott harrison

This video was shot a the Day w/o A Bag day press conference - and features Encinitas Mayor Maggie Houlihan chanting "Encinitas does not want the waste of single-use plastic bags!!" at Mrs. Bag Monster (Mrs. Monster was in town for the day). The short vid features local Surfrider RAP activist Shelly Kwik (blonde in initial frames of video) as well as Keri Conte (red shirt w/black sleeves, in crowd pan shot), the San Diego Surfrider RAP Program Manager. Niiiiice!

ALSO in attendance at this event, to receive awards for their support of the Day w/o A Bag day AND the upcoming bag "ban" proposal (now under construction), were representatives of all of the major grocery chains operating in Encinitas: Albertsons, Vons, Seaside Market, Trader Joes, etc. Thanks to them for understanding and "Rising" to the RAP effort.

After the Encinitas event, Keri and I shot up to the Oceanside Blvd Ralphs in Oceanside to distribute Surfrider's heavy-duty re-usable canvas bags to shoppers there - bags that were purchased with a GENEROUS donation from UPS/Mailboxes, Etc via their 1% For The Planet participation. Then it was off to Oceanside's Sunset Market outdoor farmer's market to exercise our new partnership with the City of Oceanside - where we engaged each other in a friendly competition to see who's canvas bags were the most "au populaire"...the numbers are still being totaled - stay tuned . . . .

Bottom Line: Bravo to all of the volunteers AND all of the commercial sponsors that understand the problem of plastics in our environment and for their support of our efforts to try to reverse that problem!