The full blog (and more photos!) after the jump.

It was sometime during our parade, as the excited crowd of children was shouting their mantra – “WE ARE THE CHANGE MAKERS!” – as we marched, pranced, hula-hooped and danced through the festivals, as onlookers cheered and took pictures, that I was really struck by the power we possessed.  By our movement.  By our motion.

But it was only later, as I perused through the plethora of photos from events around the globe – from the tiny island nations that are the first affected by climate change to Copehnagen, to Vietnam, to D.C. – that it truly hit me, that I truly realized the magnitude of this.  Our movement.  Our motion.

On September 24^th, the Roadshow was at a festival called Mother Earth News Fair – so named after the publication that puts it on.  Though only in its second year, the festival is fantastically well attended, perhaps because Mother Earth News is the oldest environmental magazine still in circulation.  15,000 people paraded through the grounds over the course of the weekend and attended workshops and seminars on a diverse range of topics such as alternative energy, natural building, and herbs.

A large percentage of the people who visited the festival visited our area, as well, and a small portion of them took part in our parade on Saturday.

At first, I was a bit disheartened by the turnout for our parade.  We were at least 30 strong – perhaps 40 or more – and it was undeniably a powerful sight.  But compared to the crowds we marched through, ours was a very low number.  It saddened me that despite our efforts, despite our coaxing and encouragement, so many people chose not to participate in this global occurrence, this (in my humble opinion) amazing opportunity.  Were they really so apathetic?  Did this metaphor of feet-stomping and earth-shaking mean nothing to them?

Then I looked through the photos.  I saw the persistence of activists across the world – the small group of mostly older citizens in Moscow, marching resolutely with their Russian signs; the grandfather who walked with his grandchildren in Yemen, wanting to protect their future; the children in South Africa with their mouths agape and their signs demanding, “ARE YOU A FOSSIL FOOL?”; and the youngsters in my own notoriously conservative home state of Florida hoping for “renewable energy, sustainable peace” – and I realized.

I realized that this movement was so much bigger than us.  I realized that that moment I had, during our parade, was the same feeling, at least on some level, that was shared by citizens of the world, across the world, on that very same day.  I realized that the fact that we had done a parade at all was a beautiful thing.  I realized that we were standing with hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of people in our commitment to, our desperation for, change.

I realized that we were that change.

So we marched, we danced, we pranced, we hula-hooped, we devil-sticked, we drummed and laughed and giggled and wailed, all through the grounds.  Because if they weren’t going to join us, then we were going to join them, and regardless, we were going to rally.  We were going to get behind this movement and push it forward, inch by inch, towards becoming a reality.  It takes a village (or a transition town?), and this global grassroots movement is nothing but that – hundreds of thousands of villages, all laying aside differences and convening on one common issue: the ground which we share.

Remember that, change-makers.  The fight is not over, nor is it anywhere near won.  But it is being fought, every day, and in many ways, by people the world over.  If you ever begin to doubt that, just look through the photos from September 24^th, 2011 – you’ll be reminded very quickly.

Carry on, my global friends.  You’re inspiring us all.

So we finished our Spring Tour 2011, and boy, it was phenomenal.  From Wayzegoose fest at UC Irvine, to Earth Day at Butte College, to a whirlwind of an Earth Day event in San Francisco – we met many incredible people, carnied ourselves silly, and generally had a great time.  Thanks to everyone who came around and helped keep our eco-festival the wonderful place it always has been and continues to be.

So now… rest?  No, don’t be silly!  Now, it’s time to get geared up for Fall Extravaganza: THE RIGHT2KNOW TOUR 2011.

As you can see on our tour page (ta-daaaa), our fall tour focuses mainly on East Coast campuses (with a few stops along the way).  Our theme this year is the RIGHT2KNOW – about GMOs, that is.  We’re focusing on educating consumers about the harmful effects of ingesting GMOs and having them in our food supply.  The tour peaks in the RIGHT2KNOW march, a two week promenade down the East coast, demanding an initiative be put on the ballot in 2012 to require labeling of GMOs.  Pretty cool, right?

Throughout the march, we’ll be periodically stopping to set up our eco-fest — the conscious carnival and GMO freakshow being two of the major attractions — in hopes of educating and inspiring some folks along the route.  Should be a great time!

And now: the madness begins.

It’s time to start getting geared up for fall tour!  We’ve got build-outs to do, people to contact, events to set up, and lots and lots of beautiful collaboration to plug into.  Maybe even a show or two in the works – but I don’t want to give too much away.

Want to get involved?  Feel free to e-mail about volunteering: volunteer@sustainablelivingroadshow.org

I’ll leave you with a picture from one of our events – specifically, when our lovely presenting sponsors, Birkenstock, hosted us at their headquarters for a day.  Here’s one of our members doing a puppet show he’s pretty darn good at.

Happy May, everybody!

Johnathon, you're such a silly man. And we love it.

PS – Our PLACE for sustainable living is hosting their LAUNCH this weekend.  How incredibly exciting!  It’s going to be a joyous event, for sure.  If you’re anywhere near the Oakland area, make sure to come check it out.  For more information, just click this delightful blue line. Now go have a great day!