HOPE Gardens will come alive this Thursday as the Environmental Foundation of Jamaica (EFJ) and the Jamaica Environment Trust (JET) partner to bring to the public Earth Day activities.

“In this the 40th year, the Earth Day Network has adopted as it’s the theme “The Green Generation”, showing a focus on the youth. The EFJ for the past 17 years has been funding projects in this area and has decided to mark this significant milestone with the inaugural EFJ Earth Day Expo, which will be held at the Hope Gardens,” noted the EFJ in a release to the media. “The EFJ Earth Day Expo will be staged in collaboration with JET, one of our top grant beneficiaries, which will be launching the Jamaica Environmental Challenge Awards.”

The event targets a number of schools, partners and grant beneficiaries of the EFJ and seeks to highlight aspects of the four main areas of focus this year — climate policy, energy efficiency, renewable energy and green jobs.

While the expo is the main activity being undertaken by the EFJ, a number of other activities are being supported across the island. These activities are centred in Negril, Browns Town and Port Antonio and will be carried out by Negril Coral Reef Preservation Society, Brown’s Town Community College and the Portland Environmental Protection Association respectively.

The EFJ expo will begin at 10:00 am and run through to 4:00 pm. Among the activities scheduled for the day are exhibits by schools, partners and grant beneficiaries; launch of the EFJ Poster and Essay Competition; launch of the Shaggy Parrot book; a zoo tour for school children; a tree tour on the gardens and a lunch-hour concert featuring popular acts from the National Environmental Education Committee Voices project.

Admission is free.

Meanwhile, Shakti Mind Body Fitness and Ecco Magazine will host their own Earth Day event, under the theme “Earth Fest: Recycle for Life”.

“The event will be held at the gardens of Shakti and will include live music from Cezar, some of Kingston’s finest drummers and Voices for Climate Change — a musical group comprised of heavyweights like Queen Ifrica and other musicians who donate their time for the positive cause of spreading the word about caring for our planet,” said release from the magazine.

Two hours, from 3:00 pm to 5:00 pm, will be dedicated to kids, who will be guided in making Earth-friendly art and craft.

“The entire grounds will be decorated by Bamboo Jamaica, and many environmentally-friendly booths will be displaying art, jewelry, home accessories, healthy food, organic produce and much more,” the release said.