Image via MySpace

Strawberries, green beans, cherries, asparagus, peaches… Hungry yet?

Fresh summer produce is beginning to pop up at grocery stores, farmers’ markets, and backyards all over the country. Which is going to make the Green Music Group’s Challenge #5 – to eat at least one meal with all local and organic ingredients – pretty darn easy (and tasty!).

And what’s not to love about local, organic food? It’s good for you, the environment, and the economy. Food tastes better because it’s fresher (it’s traveled less miles from the farm to your plate), and without those nasty pesticides and preservatives, too. Minimizing food’s transportation means using less fuel and generating less carbon emissions. Plus, buying from local farmers is a great way to support your community.

The band members of Guster will be taking the challenge along with us. They’re founding members of the Green Music Group, a coalition of artists, industry folks, and fans working towards making the music industry greener.

Adam Gardner, guitarist and vocalist for Guster and co-founder of Reverb, offers a few words of encouragement:

If one dish isn’t enough to satisfy your craving for local, organic food, no one’s stopping you from going back for seconds (or thirds). Try having more of these kinds of meals a week. Or take things to the next level by starting your own garden, participating in a community garden, or joining a CSA. You could even ask your favorite music venues to offer local and organic snacks at shows.

If you need some help, try the Eat Well Guide, a free online directory of places to find food in your area that was grown organically and locally. If you’re a musician on tour or a fan traveling to music festivals this summer, you’ll definitely appreciate the mapping tool “Eat Well Everywhere,” that helps you find good food on the road.

Just for eating a delicious, healthy meal, you could win a pair of 2010 season passes to either the Comcast Center in Mansfield, MA or the Shoreline Ampitheatre in Mountain View, CA. To enter the drawing for this challenge, just upload a photo to the Green Music Group’s website that proves you completed the task (creativity counts!) and tag the pic with the word “FIVE” by noon ET on Friday, June 18.

There’s also a grand prize – a Honda Insight Hybrid – that will be awarded at the conclusion of the Green Music Group’s series of nine challenges. Each challenge you complete will earn you a chance to win the grand prize.

Bon appetit and good luck!

Photo via Willie Nelson

Summer is on its way! That means it’s outdoor concert and music festival season.

Unfortunately, all that traveling to and from venues really takes a toll on the environment. According to the green tour gurus at Reverb, fans’ travel accounts for over 80% of the carbon footprint of a rock concert.

Yikes.

Seems like now is the perfect time to take on the fourth Green Music Group Challenge, which asks us to travel lighter. It’s brought to you by none other than the biodiesel king Willie Nelson.

So carpool to your next show or avoid the traffic entirely by taking public transportation. Biking is not out of the question either (it’s more common than you think!) and you can always walk if you’re lucky enough to live close to your favorite club.

Better yet, think about ways you could green your travel in other areas of your life, like your daily commute to work or school or your weekly trip to the grocery store.

Rails-to-Trails Conservancy has a nifty tool called TrailLink, which can help you find bike trails and walking paths in your area. Although I don’t know how many of us regularly travel via horse (maybe Willie Nelson does, actually…), TrailLink also includes information about equestrian trails.

Hear what Willie has to say on the topic:

Did I mention there are prizes? To enter the drawing for this challenge – and earn a chance to win a $500 gift certificate to Hard Rock – take a photo proving you completed the action and upload your pic to the Green Music Group’s website. Remember to tag your photo with the word “FOUR.” You’ll also be entered to win the grand prize – a Honda Insight Hybrid. The deadline for challenge four is noon ET on Friday, June 4.

And remember, there are nine challenges in all. We’ll be hearing from more of the Green Music Group’s founding members in the coming weeks on ways we can go green.

Photo via The Roots

How’s this for a motivator to start your spring cleaning: a chance to win DJ Hero and a $300 Best Buy gift card.

As part of the Green Music Group Challenge, the Roots are asking us to clean out our closets and give our unwanted clothing and other household items to reuse organizations like Goodwill.

Textiles comprise 4% of the solid waste stream – that’s 68 lbs of clothing per person annually! And we rarely get rid of clothes because they’re worn out. It’s more likely that we’ve changed sizes or decided they weren’t our style after all. Why throw away something that can be reused? Fashion is relative – one person’s junk is another person’s funk. Plus, donating to charities like Goodwill helps give back to the community. Or get more creative with your closet rejects and organize a clothing swap.

Here’s Questlove from the Roots with some words of encouragement:

To get in on the action, take a photo of all the stuff you’re donating and upload your photo to the Green Music Group’s website by noon EDT on Friday, May 21. Make sure you tag your entry with the word “THREE” to qualify for the prize drawing. If you need help finding a donation site, check out the Goodwill locator tool.

This is the third of nine challenges that the Green Music Group and its founding artists are asking us to take to help bring about positive environmental change. In addition to the challenge three prize pack, every entry also gets you a chance to win the grand prize: a Honda Insight Hybrid.

Stay tuned to Rockin’ in the Green World for more opportunities to win.

Photo via Bonnie Raitt

Rock the Earth has bestowed the honor of 2010 Planet Defender in the artist category to Bonnie Raitt. And with good reason.

Bonnie’s environmental resume includes dozens of benefit concerts promoting awareness of environmental issues like forest preservation, water protection, the effects of mining, and the need for alternative energy. She was a founding member of MUSE (Musicians United for Safe Energy) and the Green Music Group. She even got arrested not once, but twice, for her activism on forest policy.

Sometimes referred to as the “godmother of green touring,” Bonnie started Green Highway on her summer 2002 tour. Green Highway was one of the first comprehensive green touring programs: it included using biodiesel, purchasing carbon offsets, and connecting fans to environmental nonprofits through a traveling eco-village. Green Highway continues to be a feature of all Bonnie’s tours. The program has not only inspired other artists to go green, but also served as the model for Reverb.

Here’s what Bonnie had to say about her latest honor:

“As a long-time advocate for the environment and safe energy, it is such an honor to receive the Planet Defender award from Rock the Earth.  This organization has been a faithful non-profit partner in my ongoing effort to share the message of ultimate environmental responsibility with fans at my concerts. Thank you, Rock the Earth, for helping to spread the word about protecting the environment and encouraging people to get involved at the local level. Keep up the great work!”

I think I can speak on behalf music fans everywhere when I say, thank you, Bonnie Raitt!

via Rock the Earth

Image via Sheryl Crow

The Green Music Group is at it again! A few weeks ago, Stefan Lessard from the Dave Matthews Band kicked off the organization’s Green Music Challenge by asking us to volunteer in our communities.

Challenge two comes from Sheryl Crow, who urges us to write a letter to our Representative or Senator in Congress in support of strong, effective environmental legislation. It’s all part of the Green Music Group’s plan to help the music industry  - and music fans – to be better environmental citizens.

Writing a letter sounds like a lot of work, but maybe the fact that it requires effort is the reason why it’s such a successful advocacy tool. Taking the time to share your opinion on environmental policy sends a powerful message to Congress that this issue matters to their constituency.

To enter the challenge’s drawing for a Patagonia prize pack plus a shot at winning a 2010 Honda Insight Hybrid, take a photo with your local representative or Congressional office staffer or even a shot outside your district office. Upload the shot to the Green Music Group’s website by noon EDT on Friday, May 7, tag it with the word “TWO,” and you’re entered to win!

Headcount is sweetening the deal by giving away a free “Best of Bonnaroo” compilation download featuring exclusive tracks from the Dave Matthews Band, Jack Johnson, Ani Difranco, Wilco, Guster, and more to everyone that uses the Headcount tool to write their Senator, local newspaper, or the President.

Image via Green Music Group

Green Music Group (GMG) – a new initiative introduced by Reverb earlier this year – is on a mission. By building and mobilizing a coalition of musicians, industry leaders, and fans, GMG aims to green the music business and beyond. As you may recall, Reverb is a nonprofit organization, founded by Guster guitarist Adam Gardner and his wife Lauren Sullivan, that’s been helping to green concert tours since 2004.

They’re already off to a great start with a noteworthy list of founding members and partners. Now they need us! They’ve launched an online community, and as an incentive to sign up and take some green actions, they’re giving away some fabulous prizes. (As if we need a reason to socialize with like-minded green music folks? Okay…the lure of prizes is pretty enticing, especially since rumor has it that VIP tickets and a coveted Apple iPad may be amongst the offerings.)

Every two weeks, a GMG artist like Willie Nelson, the Roots, or Sheryl Crow will kick off a new challenge to make an eco-friendly change in your life. All you have to do is upload a picture to the GMG website as proof you’ve done the deed and you’ll be entered to win that challenge’s prizes as well as the grand prize – a 2010 Honda Insight Hybrid LX! They’ll be nine challenges total.

Challenge number one comes from the Dave Matthews Band’s Stefan Lessard. We’re tasked with getting involved in our community by volunteering. If you need some ideas, head over to GMG’s partner, Do Something, to search for volunteer opportunities in your area. The prize for this challenge is a Specialized Bike and a Rossignol Dave Matthews Band Limited Edition Stefan Lessard Signature Snowboard. You have until noon EDT on Friday, April 23 to complete the first challenge, so get going!

And this is just the beginning. GMG also plans on facilitating large-scale changes in the music industry by creating standards for tours, venues, and labels; offering a Green Grants program for emerging artists; and creating a green music guild to support artists in green efforts.

Sign me up.