Marc Bevis and I took a field trip to the Go Green Expo at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philly today.  Its always good to get out into the world and have a look around.  It was especially good to see the great variety of Green businesses exhibiting.  Today was the Business to Business day for the expo.  Tomorrow and Sunday (3/14 and 3/15) are open to the pubic.  There is a $7 per person admission charge, 50¢ of which goes towards offsetting the carbon footprint of the event. 

Marc and I tried to Go Green on our way in, utilizing public transportation.  We looked at taking the train from Elwyn station, but found the schedule was not going to work for us, so we drove to the Park and Ride lot at the stadium complex and rode the Broad Street Subway to center city.  It costs $1 to park in the lot and it cost $2.90 per person for a round-trip on the subway.  While SEPTA does a lot of good Green work, I was surprised that when you purchase two subway tokens, they are presented to you in a tiny plastic bag.  Ironically, the bag says 'go green go.'  I have to imagine there is some reason for the plastic bags, but I challenge SEPTA to find a way to get rid of them.

 So back to the show.  If you decide to go, you will find more than 150 vendors ranging from  installers of solar pv systems, vendors of reusable water bottles, to universities recruiting students to sustainability programs.  You'll also find much inbetween.  There are a handful of businesses that seemed to be a stretch (Bathroom shower refitters and basement waterproofers for example), however I didn't talk to each of them, so I'll give them the benefit of the doubt that there is some legitimate green aspect.  

Many of the vendors are local, at least to the Philadelphia region.   Here is a sampling of some of who you'll see if you go:

• Heat Shed Inc.:  Solar PV Installers
• Advanced Enviro Systems: Offering their solar-powered compacting trash cans (for municipalities and businesses)
• Beneficial Bank: Offering financing for Solar system installations
• Biotech Badge Systems:  Offering biodegradable name badge holders for trade shows.
• Candles by Claire: 100% soy candles with no smoke or soot.