E-vents
AFV
Alley
AFV Alley is SolWest’s Alternatively-fueled Vehicle display
area, in the corridor between Keerins Hall and the Pavilion. Check
out the latest vehicles fueled by hydrogen, biodiesel, waste
vegetable oil (WVO), batteries, human-power, or whatever (we’ve
had hydrogen-combustion SUVs and wind-powered amphibious vehicles in
the past). If you bring an AFV to SolWest to display at AFV Alley, we
will give you one weekend pass for the price of a day pass.
Pavilion
Parking Lot
The bus from the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS) of Lander,
Wyoming has a specially converted diesel engine designed to run on
recycled vegetable oil (RVO). As they travel around the country, they
fill up at restaurants and dining halls where RVO is available, and
get the word out about environmentally-friendly alternative energy.
Educational materials about solar power, vegetable oil fuel and
organic agriculture are available on board, as well as outdoor skills
education and awareness.
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SATURDAY
IS FAMILY DAY
CHILDREN
UNDER 12 GET INTO SOLWEST FREE!
Child
Care
Fairgoers can safely leave their young ones to nap and
socialize with their peers in a supervised environment. Games,
crafts, and indoor/outdoor play during fair hours in the Child Care
room at the south end of Keerins Hall. Childcare fees support SolWest Fair.
Special
Children’s Workshops:
41. STORIES AS A TOOL FOR CHANGE All ages, children and adult. The
power of a story is unique upon the earth. A well-told story can be
a dynamic and important teacher, a wonderful springboard toward
deeper insight and understanding. Let a master storyteller show you
how to pass on your vision with stories. Follow-up activities included.
Zoé Campbell, White Salmon WA. Saturday 10:00, South Classroom.
50. SOLAR HEAT FOR KIDS Ages 5-13. Explore how the sun's
energy can be converted to heat and used for cooking, warming our
homes, and other uses. Hand-on fun! Dan Bowden, Creation Speaks,
Grants Pass OR. Saturday 10:00, Solar Power Cage.
51. "WALKING ON THE SUN." Children ages 5 to 85. Don't
delay, experience solar energy toys/tools, theory of science for
understanding: angles, BTUs, kWhs, Amps, Ohms, CO2, wind, hydro,
biofuels, thermal dynamics...hands on for all! Geoffrey
Talkington, Harrington WA. Saturday 11:00, Solar Power Cage.
52. SOLWEST KIDS TOUR Ages 8 and up. Want to engage your kids
in the great solar exhibits and installations at SolWest? Take them
on the SolWest Kids Tour where they will learn all about solar hot
water, solar water pumping, solar electric systems, biodiesel,
renewable energy college programs, solar ovens, green insulation
strategies, and more! The tour will be exploratory and discovery
learning based, allowing the exhibits and kids to determine the
educational experience. Tania Parks, Solar Oregon, Portland OR.
Saturday 11:00, meet outside Solar Power Cage.
53. PIZZA BOX SOLAR OVENS Ages 8 and up. Bring your kids, ages
8 and up, to build a functioning solar oven. This solar over is made
with a regular pizza box and other materials. We will not only make
the ovens, but we will have some goodies on hand to cook. Each kid
takes home his/her own oven! This workshop teaches children (and
adults) the basics of using solar energy (the sun) to cook food.
Solar ovens are a great solution for cooking in developing countries
and remote locations. Solar ovens don't pollute, and are cheap to
make. Many thanks to the OutPost Restaurant, Lens
Drug, Ace Hardware and True Value Hardware for donation of materials. Kim
Brown and Jaff Latham, John Day, OR. Saturday 2:00, in the Solar
Power Cage.
54. FUN AND GAMES WITH SOLAR Ages 7-12. Introduction to
renewable energy concepts, plus discussion of Oregon energy sources,
electricity generation, and how solar electric system work. Shadow
tag helps kids to be aware of the sun's orientation, the Utility Game
challenges kids to pay for the energy they use with rewards for
conservation, and the Electron Action Game is full of fun and
movement enacting how electricity is produced in a solar module. Tania
Parks, Solar Oregon, Portland OR. Saturday 3:00, Solar Power Cage.
55. SOLAR ENERGY FOR KIDS. Ages 5-13. Learn how the sun's
energy can be turned into electricity and how that electricity can be
used. Hands-on fun! Dan Bowden, Creation Speaks, Grants pass OR.
Saturday 4:00, Solar Power Cage.
EORenew
Awards Prizes for Science Projects Displayed at SolWest
If your child has done a school science project on a topic of
renewable energy or associated subjects, bring it along for display
at SolWest! Please submit your project by Saturday morning July 26th
at the Pavilion office. We’d like to show projects about
electricity, especially in combination with wind, sun, or water.
Projects about energy efficiency or energy comparisons should be
submitted. Associated topics like solar cooking, heat and thermal
properties, rolling resistance (go-karts), boats, or radios are good
ones. Categories are: 5th & 6th; 7th & 8th; and 9th through
12th grade. Winners will be chosen by a panel of RE industry experts.
Each project will be judged for its own grade level. Awards will be
given at 6:15 PM Saturday July 26th in the Pavilion.
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Live
Demonstrations and Hands-on Participation
FOR
YOUR COMFORT: SOLAR SHOWERS
Solar showers are being provided for SolWest Fair-goers by
Solar Assist of Eugene, OR, Mr. Sun Solar of Portland, OR. If you
need a refreshing break, check out the solar thermal technologies at
the “Wash Rack” near the east end of the big red barn!
John Patterson of Mr. Sun Solar and Scott Crawford of Solar
Assist will demonstrate and explain the technology that makes hot
water with sunshine at 4pm on Friday and Saturday, and 1pm on Sunday,
at the solar showers.
View
the Sun Safely Through Solar-powered Telescopes
Bob Yoesle has two telescopes that track the sun on a
motorized mount. One of the telescopes is equipped with a "white
light" filter. It provides a view of the Sun in all visible
colors of light, although greatly reduced in brightness. The major
features visible are the surface of the Sun and sunspots -- cooler
regions where powerful magnetic fields erupt through the Sun's surface.
The other telescope is equipped with a sophisticated
"Hydrogen-alpha" filter. This shows the Sun in a beautiful
ruby-red light, and reveals solar flares and "prominences"
that are often associated with sunspots. An H-alpha Hi-res module
significantly improves the contrast provided by the telescope, as
well as decreasing the amount of scattered background light, giving a
much more detailed and "crisp" view of the Sun's
chromosphere, flares, and prominences.
The telescope mount's drive (which tracks the Sun by
compensating for the Earth's rotation), and the temperature
controlled Hydrogen-alpha filter itself, are powered by a 12 volt
battery which is recharged by a photovoltaic (PV) "solar panel."
Take
the Tour to the Co-Gen Plant in Prairie City!
Co-Gen is an electric power generating plant. It recycles wood
waste to generate electricity, using scrap from its companion stud
mill, and forest thinnings that are too small-diameter to make a
sawlog. The company's goal is to use the entire log. After solid sawn
lumber and wood chips, residual by-products are utilized as fuel to
power Co-gen.
The electricity generated by the plant is sold to a local
power utility. The plant, rated at 7.5 MW, burns the wood fuel at
such high temperatures that emissions compare favorably to the
cleanest combustion-based power plants. The benefits of controlled
emissions, compared to the alternatives of open slash burning, are
considered to be advantageous to forest communities.
Transportation to Prairie Co-Gen will be supplied on a
first-come, first-served basis. Tours will take about 2 hours
including travel time. LIMITED TO 15 PEOPLE, ADVANCE
RESERVATIONS STRONGLY RECOMMENDED -- Call or email EORenew at
541-575-3633 info@solwest..org, to reserve space. Jim Munyon, Prairie
Wood Products and Co-Gen, Prairie City, OR. Friday 2:00, meet for bus
transportation (provided) at campground gate of the fairgrounds
(behind the classrooms).
Many thanks to DR Johnson Lumber and Prairie Co-gen for
providing transporation and hosting the tour.
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Renewable
Energy Film Festival
More filmmakers are addressing energy in creative ways. This
year’s Renewable Energy Film Festival will focus on our stuff,
how how much energy it takes to produce, use, and dispose of it, and
what it does to our lives. Come to the Sale Barn on Saturday at 4:00,
and join the audience in voting which films to watch. This year’s
feature is:
-- The movie is short, but it will leave you thinking and
talking about it for a long time. Film viewing will be followed by
discussion sessions moderated by Seattle radio host Tom Allen. If
time permits, other features will be available:
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Free fair entry Friday 5-7pm and
Sunday 1-3:30pm. |
