The Review

Issue date: 3/25/08 Section: Mosaic

Media Credit: Lori Lake Green Delaware was formed to increase environmental awareness throughout the state.

While many students are still reeling from their green drinks during St. Patrick's Day weekend, a group of Newark "green drinkers" are trying to change the world, one monthly meeting at a time.

Green Delaware, the local chapter of Green Drinks Interntional, which is also located in 350 cities around the world, is an environmental group looking to make the state go green by becoming more environmentally conscious. The chapter, started by Lori and John Lake, held its first Green Drinks meeting in October 2007 and now meets at TGI Fridays across from the Bob Carpenter Center on the first Tuesday of each month. Green Delaware has gone from a small group of 10 members to one that welcomes approximately 60 or more.

The Lakes say they became environmental activists when they started renovating their house and didn't see many options to help make their home eco-friendly.

"We wanted to rebuild it green, but we had a hard time finding people who were knowledgeable about going green," Lori says. "People looked at us like we were from another planet when we asked about green products, so we started looking for people who had been there and done that. We came across Green Drinks and researched them. We thought it'd be great to go and visit with groups about the environment."

She says there were no groups in the northern Delaware area, so they decided to start their own.

John says their current project, Green TV, which involves producing short online video clips about the environment, is an important step toward making Green Drinks widely known throughout the area.

"It's about finding direction whenever it comes to promoting business," he says. "The best way to find more information is through small videos, not presentations or books. We want Green TV to be that avenue."

The concept of going green isn't as widely accepted in the Delaware area as in other parts of the country, John says. Green Drinks is trying to help people understand why it is so important to care for the Earth on which everyone lives.

"When we first started out, we felt really alone," he says. "People thought we were strange looking for non-toxic insulation and alternative energy. In this area, it's strange. On the West Coast, it's not."

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