Hulbert Street Fiesta 2010 – the greenest street in Fremantle?

I think I’m pretty green, my friends think I’m pretty green, I:

Solar panels on my roof

• Have a moderately passive solar house
• Have solar panels on the roof  (and am in credit with the power company) and a solar desk light
• When I have to buy new appliances I try to get more energy efficient ones
• Turn off standby power at the wall and use timers and motion sensors on lights
• Have a rain water tank for drinking and the vegies and manually reuse some grey water
• Don’t possess a clothes dryer or airconditioning
• Grow some of my own fruit and vegies (with varing success)
• Have a worm farm and compost bin for food scraps
• Catch the train to work and cycle or walk for short trips
• Clean with microfibre and bicarb and vineagar
• Buy much of my clothing from op-shops – and work on my reduce, reuse, recycling…

Hulbert Street Sustainbility Fiesta 2010

…but I don’t have anything on the people of Hulbert St South Fremantle – today I went down and wandered through the third annual Hulbert Street Sustainability Fiesta.   Hulbert Street is a cul-de-sac for cars but you can enter at the top end by foot or bicycle and all the green goodness starts right there at The Painted Fish (sustainable accommodation in a seaside garden).   Tim and Shani started the popular eco accommodation in 2006 and their passion for sustainablity has flowed down through the street.  Each year green living and community spirit is celebrated by closing off the street, erecting booths and opening their homes and gardens to the rest of the world.  This was my first visit to the fiesta. (I’ve seen inside The Painted Fish before when visiting friends who were staying there and I often cycle down Hulbert St.)  So here are a few random observations from a first time Fiesta goer…

• Entry by gold coin donation, please recycle the flyer, wrist stamp (suspect water based ink as it ran and I had to be careful not to transfer it to my white T-shirt!)
• Music from a bee costumed bloke who incorporated whoever was passing into his song, and further down the street a buskers patch for community groups and locals
• Vege growing – the Hulbert St mob grow vegies anywhere – in their own yards and guerilla gardens on the street.  Lots of stalls selling raised garden beds plus equipment and seedlings
• Sustainable transport – cycles, electric bikes and modified cycles for sale in the stalls; billy carts, bicycles, scooters and the Freo motorised bathtub brigade (now solar powered) on the street
• Sustainable power – Solar Shop had a booth, many houses had solar power and there were a few exercise bike set up to generate power with kids trying out how hard they had to pedal to power a small TV (and other appliances)
• Food – home made, gluten free, fresh, raw – it was all there!  Thanks to the gluten-free lady for the free sample ginger and macadamia Wallaby bar, yum!
• Lots of the houses were open – demo’s of sustainable living and artists studios but we were on our bikes and short of time so we didn’t visit.
• Pre-loved everything – many books and clothes (I didn’t look closely as I was on the bike and hadn’t brought much money
• Guerilla knitting at the Duoro Road exit!

There was much more to see – next year I’ll go on foot and take a bit more time – it’s definitely worth a visit!

Hulbert Street Sustainability Fiesta 2010 - a flickr set

Tags: 2010, Australia, community, fair, fiesta, Fremantle, geurilla gardening, green, guerilla knitting, Hulbert, Hulbert St, Hulbert Street, Hulbert Street Sustainability Fiesta, South Fremantle, St, Street, Sustainability, Western Australia