FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (March 13, 2009)

Dallas Zoo Throws a Party
for the Planet on April 25 and 26

DALLAS – Visitors can celebrate Earth Day by attending a Party for the Planet at the Dallas Zoo. The event will be held the second weekend of Dallas Roars!, presented by Kimberly-Clark Corporation, Saturday, April 25 from noon to 5 p.m. and Sunday, April 26 from 1 to 5 p.m.

The Party for the Planet celebration will feature activity booths, each with an important message about the environment and conservation. Father Earth and a Living Vine, also will wander around ZooNorth to greet guests. Professor Pflugelhorn's Ecology and Me, a magical ecology show, will teach the three “Rs” - Reduce, Reuse and Recycle. This program features magic, music, games, puppets, comedy and audience participation, while teaching that going green will help the environment and everything in it.

“We have a special place in our heart for Party for the Planet,” said Gregg Hudson, executive director of the Dallas Zoo and The Children’s Aquarium at Fair Park. “When you see the challenges that animals face with human encroachment on their natural habitats and dwindling resources, it makes you reexamine your priorities and commit to making a difference, no matter how small. The changes we make today, can make the world a better place tomorrow.”

The weekend will be filled with other fun activities, including bounce houses for the kids, crafts, and carnival games with prizes. Visitors also will enjoy coloring activities from 1st Class Kids, an opportunity to meet the “Bayou Queen” at the Pierre A. Fontaine Bird & Reptile Building, and enjoy an expanded schedule of Keeper Encounters throughout the park.

  • Party for the Planet will feature the following booths (sponsors):
  • CeaseTheGrease – grease abatement program to decrease the amount of fats, oils, and grease in the sanitary sewer system, which can cause overflows and pollution (Dallas Water Department)
  • Native Plants (Dallas Native Plant Society)
  • SaveDallasWater – Sunday only (Dallas Water Utilities Conservation)
  • Rainwater Harvesting, presentations at 1, 2, 3 and 4 p.m. (Greenbee Organic & Sustainable Society)
  • Are you a Litter Critter? (Dallas Zoo)
  • Trinity River Audubon Center
  • North Haven Gardens
  • Green Mountain Energy Trees are Good (City Forester)
  • Flushed Away – water conservation in the home with a sink demonstration and examples of low-flow showerheads and sink aerators (Dallas Zoo)
  • Clean Green -- cleaning with green products (Dallas Zoo)
  • Sustainable Landscapes and Waterwise Gardening (Dallas Zoo)
  • No Wasted Watts – electricity conservation (Dallas Zoo)
  • Family Choices (Dallas Zoo)
  • How to Lose 41 pounds …of junk mail per year (Dallas Zoo)
  • Bowling for Rhinos (American Association of Zoo Keepers)
  • Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART)
  • City of Dallas Animal Control