Whoa, what a weekend! This year's sold out festival featured several new programs created by Global Inheritance and Coachella. These programs highlighted a new shift in the festival direction to inspire individuals, minimize ecological impact and create a better festival experience.

Our brand spankin' new Energy FACTory!
The Energy FACTory highlighted renewable energy sources and showcased the power of wind, solar, man-made, biodiesel, and ethanol energy. Festivalgoers were able to recharge their cell phones by riding in the Tour De Coachella. A variety of different types of cell phone chargers were available along with twenty-four bikes that were used to power your cell phone.


The Energy FACTory also included Make-It-Yourself Biodiesel demonstrations, an Ask The Energy Experts area, the conversion of a car from gas to electric, a wind-powered light box, a DJ Portal Potty station, solar-powered misters and lighting, as well as live screen printing of energy posters inspired by the La Verdura – the Mexican card game of chance.


Check out the Energy FACTory Flickr gallery here.

TRASHed :: Recycling Store
You had better chances of finding bootleg Battlefield Earth DVDs on the Coachella grounds then spotting an empty bottle. Festivalgoers received free bottles of water by recycling and enjoyed a spotless polo field. In its first year, the TRASHed :: Recycling Store proved to be a huge success - over 160,000 bottles were recycled!

Coachella Bamboo T-shirts
Coachella t-shirts made from bamboo were made available for the first time this year. These shirts sold out by the second day. Bamboo cloth makes Charmin feel like grip tape. We are looking forward to expanding the collection of bamboo and organic cotton shirts in 2008!
 
Carpoolchella: Free Coachella tickets for life
This year all festivalgoers were encouraged to ride four or more in the car to save time, save money, and put fewer cars on the road. People driving full vehicles with a Carpoolchella sign in their window were randomly selected to win Coachella tickets for life. Each day, our trackers selected a different car. This years winners are:
Calliope Gazetas - San Francisco, CA
Gateley Meeker - Los Angeles, CA
Michell Yoo - Alhambra, CA
Minsun Park - Los Angeles, CA
Alice Tang - Alhambra, CA
Jane Yoo - Santa Barbara, CA
Brandon Tomas - San Francisco, CA
Giselle Grieco - San Francisco, CA
Joseph Milne - Oakland, CA
Rebecca Soriano - San Francisco, CA

A HUGE THANK YOU TO ALL THE AWESOME PEOPLE AT COACHELLA AND THE INDIVIDUALS WHO MADE THESE PROGRAMS COME TO LIFE:
Julia Fuller, Jared Sopko, Chris Gee, Bill Fold, Lex Moloney, Brad Whaley, Juan Azulay, Michael White, Nascar, Rene Garcia Jr., Gadget, Sean E. Demott, Matthew Brady, Paul Tollet, Renee Lawter, Mark Farina, David Fletcher, Jenna Eyrich, John Carr, John Miner, Tranx, Chad Spider, Jasmin Zeger, Grist.org, Kristi Villegas, Sergio, Brian Maguire, Gregory Thorpe, Ryan Carney, Bruce Danziger, Phil Blaine, Theresa Parker, Jacqueline Pablo, Kalib Kersh, Nicole DeLeon, Jamez Smith, Kevan Wilkins, Casey McGonagle, Dani Lindstrom, Dan Fuller, Panama Bartholomy, and everyone else who we might have forgotten!