April 14, 2010 -- After a one-year hiatus, the annual “Earth Day on the Promenade” returns this month to mark the 40th anniversary of the day set aside in 1970 to help build awareness of the environment. The April 17 event will feature between 60 and 80 exhibitors, including non-profits and those offering organic products and other environmentally friendly services.

“It’s all environmental, how people can make practical decisions to help save the planet,” said Jim Stewart, organizing director for Earth Day LA.

A special feature for this year’s event will be “Women of the Green Generation.” One block of the Promenade will showcase female entrepreneurs exhibiting their products.

“There will be a divine feminine feature to the event,” said Kacy Palmieri, exhibits director. “There are a lot of women who are starting green businesses, and I wanted to showcase them in some way.”

Keeping with the female theme will be the musical entertainment from Mamapalooza, a group composed of award-winning musicians who are mothers.

Its mission, according to the group’s web site, is
“to enlighten and empower all women to claim their voice.” The group will perform acoustical music throughout the day’s events.

Other features will include an ecosystems exhibit from the California Science Center, live animals from the Children’s Nature Institute and llamas that are accompanying a man on a 1,500-mile walk to promote non-vehicle use.

The Promenade is the ideal place to hold the event, Palmieri said. “It’s a fabulous location,” she said. “It attracts people from all over the world and all over Los Angeles."

Palmieri hopes the event will help people find environmentally friendly alternatives that are readily available “to restore balance to the planet.”

The event will take place from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. For more information, go to www.earthdayonthepromenade.org.