Community Attends Garden Festivities at Long Beach Civic Center

(3BL Media) July 27, 2012 - The City of Long Beach held a public celebration for a new vertical edible garden demonstration project at the Civic Center Edible Garden, located just outside City Hall, 333 W. Ocean Blvd., this morning as the public and community members attended.

"We are seeing more and more residents interested in developing urban gardens to grow their own food," said Mayor Bob Foster. “The Civic Center Edible Garden shows the community just how easy it is to produce healthy food without using a lot of space.”   Vertical garden systems offer healthy, edible food cultivated by using even less space, and are more efficient in terms of production and the amount of water needed. The free demonstration project will feature gardening workshops, cooking demonstrations, local musicians and artist displays, and food trucks. A recycling and composting component will be highlighted.   The vertical edible garden demonstration project is funding by a grant from CBS EcoMedia Inc.'s EcoAd program, with support from Waste Management.    “This Civic Center Edible Garden project is a terrific example of a city utilizing its public space to showcase how simple and easy it is for citizens to incorporate meaningful sustainability into their daily lives.  EcoMedia is proud to support the expansion of the garden, thanks to our EcoAd advertising partner, Waste Management,” said Paul Polizzotto, President and Founder of CBS EcoMedia Inc.  “Our successful public-private partnership is not only providing multiple environmental benefits for the Long Beach community, it’s also adding vital wellness and education benefits as well.”   The Civic Center Edible Garden was established in 2009 to demonstrate the many ways that Long Beach residents can utilize small spaces to grow fresh produce and live healthy and sustainable lifestyles.    “Waste Management’s commitment to sustainability and the environment of the community are perfectly represented in this edible garden project and we’re delighted to be able to contribute funding to it through this our partnership with the City and EcoMedia,” said Susan Moulton, West Group Director of Public Sector Sales at Waste Management. “This demonstration garden provides exactly the kind of accessible example residents need to be able to easily grow fruits and vegetables the same way at their own homes and apartments and enjoy better health and nutrition for their families.”   For more information about the Civic Center Edible Garden and other environmental  improvement projects, visit www.sustainablelb.com.  

The City of Long Beach Office of Sustainability provides leadership and supports practical solutions to improve the environmental, social and economic health of Long Beach. The Office of Sustainability delivers policy and programs that integrate efforts related to buildings and neighborhoods, urban nature, transportation, water, energy, waste reduction and eco products and services. For more information about the Civic Center Edible Garden and other environmental improvement projects, visitwww.sustainablelb.com.   

Waste Management, Inc. is North America's leading provider of integrated environmental solutions. We partner with our customers and communities to manage and reduce waste from collection to disposal while recovering valuable resources and creating clean, renewable energy.  Waste Management, Inc. is a holding company and all operations are conducted by its subsidiaries. Our subsidiaries provide collection, transfer, recycling, and disposal services. We are also a leading developer, operator and owner of waste-to-energy and landfill gas-to-energy facilities in the United States.   

Our 45,000 employees are committed to Environmental Performance — our mission to maximize resource value, while minimizing environmental impact so that both our economy and our environment can thrive. Serving nearly 20 million residential, industrial, municipal and commercial customers, Waste Management posted $13.4 billion of revenues in 2011.  Drawing on our resources and experience, we actively pursue projects and initiatives that benefit the waste industry, the communities we serve and the environment. 

At EcoMedia, we're propelled by the desire to create positive social change; that's been our mission since we founded the company in 2002.  In 2008, after successfully partnering with CBS on a wide range of environmental projects, EcoMedia became the newest addition to the CBS Corporation portfolio, exponentially scaling our reach across television, radio, interactive, publishing and outdoor media. 

Through our patent-pending EcoAd, WellnessAd and EducationAd programs, an innovative twist on traditional advertising, advertisers are able to support much-needed local projects which in turn creates jobs, saves taxpayer money and improves the quality of life in communities nationwide.  In the process, we’re fundamentally altering the advertising landscape, elevating the ordinary, traditional commercial – and media, in general – into a catalyst for tangible, quantifiable social change.  Please visit ecomedia.cbs.com to learn more. 

By participating in EcoMedia’s EcoAd, WellnessAd and EducationAd advertising programs, EcoMedia’s advertisers agree to provide funding for projects we believe will have a beneficial effect upon the environment, health and/or education within local communities.  EcoMedia’s advertising programs are not certification programs nor are the EcoAd, WellnessAd or EducationAd logos seals of approval. EcoMedia does not in any way certify, endorse or make any representations about EcoMedia program advertisers, their products or services.