Articles Written by Julie Hancher

Are you a little too obsessed with Cirque de Soleil or sneak into Barnum & Bailey’s Circus when it comes to town? The good news is you can try the Fly School Circus Arts whether you're a professional gymnast or despise most exercise. I'm a notoriously bad athlete. Just to give you an idea, my short legs damned me to the back of the crowd and on the sidelines instead of ever being a sports captain. I've had kickball teammates tell me I'm not the best of the team but keep receiving invites to stay since I'm the fun, supportive teammate. Yet I took my nonexistent athletic ability and fear of heights, straight to the top of the trapeze. Fly School Circus Arts - My Experience Mary Kelly Rayel was nice enough to invite me to try a class. I figured it was a sustainable alternative to a typical night, so I gave my inter-Cirque-de-Soleil a shot. Find out more about the Fly School Circus Arts experience, after the jump!

Philly Farm & Food Fest is coming to the Convention Center today with hundreds of local farmers, food vendors & artisans. Although thousands in our region will gain new insights and discover new tastes, they're not the only ones who will benefit. Marilyn Anthony is Eastern Regional Director for the Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture (PASA), a member-based nonprofit organization. We talked to Marilyn about how Philly Farm & Food Fest benefits PASA, Fair Food and the local community of local growers, producers & consumers: (Find out more in my Examiner article.)

Do you enjoy running, especially away from the exhaust pipes of cars and traffic? Come out for a 5K to support breathing healthy, clean air in sustainable neighborhoods and our region's overall health. The Clean Air Council's 5K Run for Clean Air is the Philadelphia's largest Earth Day Celebration. This year, the 32nd annual run is coming up on April 20th at 9 AM on MLK drive next to the Philadelphia Art Museum. The 5K Run for Clean Air is a certified-green run and zero-waste event, complete with (Find out more about the 5K and how to win FREE entry, after the jump!)

As many of you may see on our Instagram and Twitter feeds, my new pet Pouncey has quite the range of accessories since his adoption. Although he does try to reduce his carbon catprint, we were both offended when my 'Pouncey toys & treats' mail order came with a box filled of packing peanuts. So what can you do with this tiny styrofoam confetti? (Find out, after the jump!)

Philly Farm & Food Fest is back for locavore lovers this Sunday, April 14th! The 2nd annual Philly Farm & Food Fest at the PA Convention Center (Annex - Broad Street entrance) will be inviting local foodies from 11AM to 4 PM with food samples, 4 cooking demonstrations, 8 workshops & presentations, kids activities and much more. Over 117 farms, food artisans & businesses will sample, sell & share their stories of locavore perfection. Don't believe me? Exhibitors include a variety from GMO Free PA, Greensgrow Phila, Happy Cat Farms, John & Kira's, CSAs, FreshaPeel Hummus, Mompops, Yellow Springs Farm, Capogiro, and my favorite Dad's Hat Rye Whiskey. Find out more about Sunday's event and how to win a FREE pair of tickets, after the jump!

Spring is here and that means one thing: Time to clean the ish out of your house. Want to truly make the switch to green cleaning? You don't have to buy pricey 'eco-brands' for a green clean. Instead, stock up on pure, safe basics. Here's a short list of what to put in your cleaning cabinet: (Find out what to put in your kit, after the jump!)

Who's ready to Keep Up the Sweep Up again? The Streets Department's 6th Annual Philly Spring Cleanup Day will be return on Saturday, April 13, 2013 from 9 AM - 2 PM. 2012 efforts achieved over 350 projects, 12,000 volunteers and 1 million pounds of trash. Can we try to top it for 2013? We're happy to return to our hosting site of 2012, which is 8th & Poplar in Northern Liberties. We're co-hosting with (Find out the details and how to join, after the jump!)

I recently held a small gathering at my casa and wanted to welcome my guests with local, delicious beers. The more local the beer, the less carbon to get that beer from the brewery to my apartment. Plus, the added bonus of my choice to pick up the beer via hoof would only decrease those carbon emissions. However, carrying the beer on foot for a few (but long!) short blocks caused a dilemma: I didn't want to carry glass bottles all the way home. My new criteria was a case of aluminum cans. Find out more about these beer covers and where to recycle them, after the jump!

Mayor Nutter shocked environmentalists in Philadelphia today when he announced that he was lowering his ambition for sustainability in our city. Rather than aiming to be the greenest city in the USA in Greenworks Philadelphia plans, Nutter wants to hit less sustainable goals in lieu of reaching the top 10. As he mentioned today in a press conference: "Just like the rest of Philadelphia and especially our sports team - the Eagles, Sixers, Flyers and Phillies, we don't need to be the best to prove our dedication. We can settle for almost reaching the best without claiming the number one spot. We're not even the fattest city anymore! Not the healthiest, most attractive, nor a travel destination. Why should our greening efforts be any different?" The Greenworks plan is knocking down its 15 sustainability targets to a solid 10 and discouraging compositing where it costs too much. Find out more about this cut-back green plan, after the jump!