Earth Day Global Warming Discussion and Wine Tasting

An afternoon of awareness and a wine tasting will bring together environmental activist luminaries at Bottlerocket Wine & Spirit on Sunday, April 22, in an all-day celebration of Earth Day. The public is invited to take away simple, practical tips about how to make a difference in the urgent fight to save our planet. All the while, visitors can sample wines from local, biodynamic and organic vineyards.

True to its upstart spirit, Bottlerocket uses its Flatiron shop to showcase ideas that matter. User-friendliness is the watch word. This wine shop wants customers to appreciate wine—and the environment—in a way that easily mixes pleasure with purpose. Businesses need to take every opportunity to be part of the solution, from conserving energy to reducing waste.

Environmental Defense's Chief Scientist, Dr. Bill Chameides, along with Dale Bryk, Senior Attorney from Natural Resources Defense Council, Dani Simons from Transportation Alternatives and NRDC media & communications expert Jon Coifman, will all be on hand to spread some wisdom and answer questions. The U.S. is the top global warming polluter anywhere. 2006 was the hottest year on record in the U.S.A. What can people do in the face of such a huge, seemingly insurmountable problem? Bottlerocket's guest experts will discuss the many things individuals can do to reduce their carbon emissions.

Held in its loft-like Flatiron retail shop, Bottlerocket’s event series, the Eclectic Salon, brings together people, wine and ideas, perfectly reflecting its credo: buying wine should be as fun as drinking it. Featured recent guests have included former U.S. Poet Laureate Billy Collins, wine writer Jancis Robinson, Alex Prud’homme, co-author with Julia Child of the best-selling My Life in France, sex therapist Dr. Ruth and restaurateur Danny Meyer. The Eclectic Salon cross-pollinates themes, exposing wine lovers to thinkers the store cherishes or admires, while offering tastes of wine from around the globe.

Founded in May 2006, Bottlerocket Wine & Spirit is a new generation wine shop, offering a unique, intuitive, thematic approach to choosing wine. Bottlerocket is child and dog friendly, built from environmentally sound “green” materials, has a wine and food reference library, and numerous educational opportunities for its customers—such as this exciting event.

 Attendees will include:

• Dale Bryk, a Senior Attorney with the Natural Resources Defense Council. She heads up the organization's state climate policy work. Her expertise is in the area of state energy and climate policy, including electric restructuring and utility regulation, energy efficiency and renewable energy programs, greenhouse gas emission registries and regulation, emissions trading, green building and smart growth. Since 2002, she has also taught the Environmental Protection Clinic at Yale Law School. Dale has a J.D. from Harvard Law School, a Masters Degree in international law and policy from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, and a B.A from Colgate University.
• Bill Chameides, the Chief Scientist at Environmental Defense. Dr. Bill received his Ph.D. from Yale University in 1974. After spending 30 years in academia, most recently as Regents Professor and Smithgall Chair at the Georgia Institute of Technology, Chameides joined Environmental Defense in 2005. He is a member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences, a Fellow of the American Geophysical Union, a recipient of the American Geophysical Union’s Macelwane Award, and, “in recognition of extraordinary service,” was named a National Associate of the National Academies.
• Jon Coifman, handles strategic communications for the Natural Resources Defense Council. He has specialized in the politics of energy and the environment for more than a dozen years, developing media and advocacy campaigns on a wide variety of issues at the state, national and international levels. Prior to that, Jon worked for two senior members of the U.S. House of Representatives. Originally from Minnesota, he has a Masters’ Degree in Public Policy from the University of Texas at Austin, and a BA in Political Science from the University of Wisconsin.
• Dani Simons, the Deputy Director of Development and Communications at Transportation Alternatives. For the past decade, she has worked on urban environmental issues on the city, state and national levels and coordinated a myriad of special events that bring community and media attention to the relationships between social equity, transportation and public space. She holds a Master's degree from the Yale School of Forestry and a BS from Brown University and is a daily bike commuter.