55.4 F
Davis

Davis, California

Wednesday, March 27, 2024

Food, Fun and Compost

Events:

Open Fashion and Stage Show by UC Davis students: 12:30 and 2:30 p.m. Fashion Stage at E Street

Ceremony and Cake Cutting: 12:30 p.m., PG&E Main Solar Stage at Central Park

Lounge Lizards: 1:45 p.m., UC Davis Stage on A Street Field

Breakdancers @ UC Davis: 2:45 p.m., UC Davis Stage on A Street Field

Leaving Stressville (Reggae Band): 3:10 p.m., Historic City Hall Stage at Bistro 3

 

Desperate for an excuse to take an afternoon break from reviewing lecture slides for that first midterm? Well, Sunday’s Celebrate UC Davis may be the only opportunity you will ever have to see 100 birthday cakes in the same place.

The Davis Chamber of Commerce has organized an array of festivities in celebration of the university’s centennial. The events, geared toward people of all ages, will take place from noon to 4 p.m. throughout the downtown area and the UC Davis campus.

The Chamber and the university have a long history together.

Formed 105 years ago, the Chamber’s original intention was bringing the university farm to Davis, said project director Kendle Pope. At the time, six or seven other communities were vying for that honor.

“In honor of the Centennial anniversary, the university asked the Chamber if we would host a community celebration,” Pope said. “It seems fitting that the very group that was formed to get the university here is throwing it a birthday party.

“Part of Third Street, from campus to about G, will be blocked off for food vendors, info booths for university departments and organizations, and alumni companies,” Pope said. “And, for this event we will experiment with this food area being open-container.”

Attractions include an alternative-energy vehicle exposition at Central Park and the grand opening of the California Bicycle Museum in the lower floor of Third and B Teen Center.

Live music and performances will be held in four different locations. The “Mad Cow String Band” and “Boca do Rio” band will be performing on the PG&E Solar Main Stage in Central Park, and there will be a DJ and fashion show at the Fashion Stage on E Street.

You can also take the opportunity to indulge in wine tasting at the Vintage Aggie Alumni Wine Club’s wine garden, or if you so choose, relieve some stress by having a bounce in the bounce house.

Celebrate UC Davis will distribute numerous prizes, ranging from Woodstock’s gift certificates to an electric bike from Davis Electric Cars. To enter the drawing, pick up an entry form from the Chamber booth at Third and C Streets and spell “Happy Birthday UC Davis” by collecting letter stamps from various vendors.

The university has also been excited about getting involved with the event.

“UC Davis is truly honored by this enthusiastic outpouring of support from the Davis community,” said Mabel Salon, director of community relations at UC Davis and program director of the UC Davis Centennial in an e-mail.

“The campus is excited about the opportunity to showcase many of our innovations of the past, present and future at Celebrate UC Davis,” she added.

Campus units represented at the event include the Mondavi Center, UC Davis Olive Oil, the Center for Biophotonic Science and Technology and UC Davis athletics.

Celebrate UC Davis is also aiming to be eco-friendly.

“Another interesting part of the event is that we’re trying to be zero waste, so we have a consultant who is helping us achieve this goal,” Pope said.

Michael Siminitus, a Davis local and founder of the company “Wastebusters” is the zero-waste coordinator for the event.

Siminitus said that, as events are frequently huge generators of waste products, food and beverage vendors have been asked to use compostable cups, plates, and utensils.

The cups and silverware are made with corn and potato-based plastics, and the plates are made with recycled, tree-free paper.

Seminitus and his crew will collaborate with the Davis Waste Removal (DWR) and Jepson Prairie Organics from Dixon to collect, transport and compost the accrued materials.

“Landfilling compostable organics produces methane, a potent greenhouse gas.” Seminitus said. “By greening up events, we can reduce global warming impact.”

Along with the Centennial theme of sustainability, UC Davis has made a commitment to go zero-waste. By 2012, the university hopes to achieve a 75 percent diversion rate, and 100 percent by the year 2020.

For a schedule of times and locations for the various events, or if you are interested in volunteering, visit the event website at celebrateucdavis.com.

 

DARCEY LEWIS can be reached at features@californiaaggie.com.

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