Category Archives: Events

Nature-Lover’s Guide to the State Fair Urban Jungle

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NatureLoversFairRoute

Getting There

metrotransit.org/StateFair

The busses and free shuttles still provide amazing service to the transit hub and the gate on Snelling. Or, if fair-goers are bent on American individualism, new Uber users can get up to $20 off their first ride by entering the code MNSTATEFAIR16 when signing up at t.uber.com/MNStateFair16. Uber has two designated drop-off and pick-up points: northeast end of the fairgrounds near Snelling & Hoyt (Gate 2 at 1806 Hoyt Ave.) and outside the northwest end of the fairgrounds (University of Minnesota St. Paul Campus CECC turnaround at 1890 Buford Ave.) To get home, use the Uber app to request a ride and follow the phone instructions to locate a driver.

 

First Stop, Eco-Experience (Open daily 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.)

Located at Cosgrove St. and Randall Ave.

www.ecoexperience.org

For people who love nature—and want to protect it, visiting the Eco-Experience building is a must. A partnership between the State Fair, Minnesota Pollution Control Agency and more than 150 organizations and businesses across the state, the Eco-Experience has it all. There are engaging exhibits around each turn and the “Sustainability Stage” features hourly demos/shows on reduce-reuse-recycle how-tos, healthy cooking, innovations in green technology, leisurely landscaping using native plants, transportation and more. View the schedule at www.pca.state.mn.us/ecoexperience/shows-and-demos.

Before entering the building, be sure to join the West Metro Water Alliance’s campaign Pledge to Plant—for Pollinators and Clean Water near the enormous windmill blade sticking out of the ground at the building entrance. There is even a native plant scavenger hunt near the pledge station to familiarize fair-goers with suitable native plants that offer benefits beyond just looking beautiful.

Inside, a 15-foot Paul Bunyan donning a new outfit and calls attention to a giant-sized waste problem: Minnesotans throw away nearly 12 grocery carts of clothing and textiles every MINUTE. Another symbol of Minnesota—hockey. Check out the Watershed Partners’ storm drain goalie exhibit to find out how to be a local legend in protecting water.

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Pollinator Puppet Show at Barnes & Noble

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Sat. Sept. 19th at 11 AM

Sat. Sept. 19th at 11 AM

Local Author Performs Children’s Book as a Puppet Show—Fun for All Ages!

­Barnes & Noble—HarMar in Roseville, Minnesota—Local author, Dawn Pape will share her love of nature and message about protecting our pollinators as she performs her new book, Mason Meets a Mason Bee as a puppet show on Saturday, September 19, 2015 at 11:00 A.M. at the HarMar Barnes & Nobel Booksellers located at 2100 N. Snelling Av, Roseville, MN 55113. She will also be reading her Thank You, Bugs! book with a similar message that celebrates pollinators.

Barnes & Noble Roseville has extended an unprecedented invitation to author Dawn Pape to return for another storytime due to the overwhelming response to her June 2015 appearance and books Thank You, Bugs! and Mason Meets A Mason Bee.  Dawn’s books and puppet show perfectly complement the Barnes & Noble National storybook of the month Bug in a Vacuum. “This time we need to order more books! We ran out last time,” commented Barnes & Noble Community Business Development Manager, Janet Waller.

Mason Meets a Mason Bee is about a boy who is afraid of bees until his life is transformed by an educational encounter with a talking mason bee—yes, a bee sharing his own name! Mason conquers his fear of bees and feels like a superhero on a mission to save bees. This rhyming picture storybook performed, as a puppet show, sends young audiences into fits of laughter as it teaches weighty topics in a light and fun way. Children and adults will likely come away with new knowledge about habitat, pesticide use, native bees, and native plants.

Ms. Pape got the idea to write “Mason Meets a Mason Bee” several years ago when Pape found ground-nesting bees under her deck where her then toddler, Mason, was playing. As a parent, her first reaction was to protect her son and eradicate the bees. But she soon learned that these native bees were virtually stingless and had a short lifecycle. Instead of getting rid of the bees, she just barricaded the area off for a few weeks. Although she determined the bees nesting under her deck most likely were not mason bees, she learned that there were over 400 species of native bees in Minnesota with important stories to be told. And, when she learned there was a fascinating and gentle native bee sharing her son’s name, she knew she had a story to share. She also added that not just the honey bee numbers are plummeting, but all bees—and they need our help. Pape said, “Since bees help make the food we eat everyday, it’s really in our own best interest to pay a little attention to them,” added Pape.

It took almost three years for the idea for the book to come to life, but the timing is perfect. There is a lot of buzz about mason bees also called “orchard bees” because of their tremendous pollinating abilities. Both of Pape’s children’s books retail for $9.99. She also has created a K-5 teacher’s guide for Mason Meets a Mason Bee ($19.99). Pape said she is eager to continue performing her puppet show at more schools, books stores, libraries.

When asked about the photography in the book, Pape said, “I knew I wanted to use my son as the main character for the book and he is so expressive and I love photography, so it was a perfect fit.” In responding to whether she took the pictures of the mason bees, Pape quickly replied, “Oh, no! Mason bees are are extremely fast. I couldn’t dream of catching those photos. My bee photos featured in the book are thanks to local author Heather Holm (Pollinators of Native Plants) and Dave Hunter with Crown Bees, a mason bee seller in Washington.”

Dawn Pape is a self-proclaimed “Lawn Chair Gardener” and specializes in intermingling native plants with vegetables and herbs and embraces the concept of “functional” yards rather than just purely aesthetic yards. She practices what she preaches in her own award-winning gardens. Lawn Chair Gardener, LLC was founded by Dawn Pape who has worked in education and the environmental field for over 20 years and has been a Master Gardener for 16 years. The purpose of the company is to promote eco-friendly multi-purposed gardens through speaking presentations and her books. For more information, contact Dawn at 651-485-5171 or dawn@lawnchairgardener.com or visit www.lawnchairgardener.com.