Starting at 6pm on June 22nd - E. 4th St. in downtown Cleveland
$40 covers a DVD, two drinks, gratuity & tax
Free hors d’œuvres until 8pm

A Unique Collaboration

The freshly opened, highly-acclaimed Greenhouse Tavern will host the DVD release party of PolyCultures: Food Where We Live - a documentary movie produced by Lake Erie South Shore (LESS) Productions, in conjunction with the New Agrarian Center, that portrays the diverse communities around Northeast Ohio coming together to grow a more sustainable and local food system.  It’s a natural collaboration, because the Greenhouse features local food sourcing, recycling, composting, eco-friendly building materials, refurbished furniture, numerous energy efficiencies - the list goes on (PD article).

For $40 ($45 at the door) you’ll receive a copy of the PolyCultures DVD, hors d’œuvres concocted by renowned chef Jonathan Sawyer using local ingredients, and drink options of “port punch” and beer.  You’ll be celebrating with local foodies, characters from the movie, sustainability advocates, members of the arts community, and the pro-Cleveland contingent. Consider staying for dinner as well.

Launching a Green Platform

This unique collaboration between two Cleveland startups will officially launch the national distribution of PolyCultures.  The movie was featured in the “Local Heroes” and “It’s Easy Being Green” series at the 33rd Annual Cleveland International Film Festival in March.  Now LESS is making it available for community screenings, theatrical showings, educational use, library circulation, and home use through lessproductions.com

Come on down to have a good time and help us begin to spread the seeds of a revolutionary way of eating throughout the nation!  It’s time for the U.S. to see how far Cleveland has come in transforming itself from a Rust Belt town to aleader in the local foods movement.

An Historical Event: The Cuyahoga as the Catalyst
In the 1960s Cleveland’s main waterway, the Cuyahoga, was one of the dirtiest rivers in the U.S.  So polluted with oil slicks and debris, it caught fire several times - including one episode on June 22, 1969 that caused Time Magazine to describe the Cuyahoga as the river that “oozes rather than flows.”  It was truly a low point in the long and storied history of Cleveland but helped spark national environmental reforms and was a catalyst for the restoration of this once great riverway. On the 40th anniversary of that fire, join us for a unique event that symbolizes Northeast Ohio’s environmental rejuvenation and, in fact, significant leadership role in issues of sustainability.

About PolyCultures
PolyCultures: Food Where We Live is a feature-length documentary movie that portrays the diverse communities around Northeast Ohio coming together to grow a more sustainable and local food system. PolyCultures is firmly rooted in the idea that local/sustainable food is good for the health of individuals, communities, local economies, and the environment. To balance the advocacy perspective, it features many national and international experts who place area food production in the bigger picture of sustainability. The term “polyculture” refers to the ecologically-minded technique of growing a diversity of crops/animals on one farm, but it also represents the documentary’s participants coming from very different backgrounds to arrive at similar conclusions and take coordinated action. The aesthetic is a mix of “agrarian” camera techniques portraying postindustrial Cleveland and surrounding farmland, symbolizing the ground-level nature of this movement. PolyCultures was produced by LESS Productions in conjunction with the New Agrarian Center from 2006 to 2009. The movie officially premiered at the 2009 Cleveland International Film Festival, where the number of theaters showing it was doubled due to audience demand!

Check out our blog for clips, more info, updates, and ways to get involved.