What is Rock 'n Renew?

Rock ’n Renew is a non-profit organization that helps musicians, students, and their communities live and act in sustainable ways. Recognizing the connection between the health of culture and the health of the planet, we use art and music to generate excitement about green solutions as we custom-design eco-blueprints for concert tours, schools, businesses, and events. Since its inception in 2006, Rock ’n Renew has brought the message of sustainability to thousands of people through rock shows, festivals, lectures, and installations. To find out what events we are staging in your area, join our mailing list.

How Did It Begin?

Founded by musician Jonny Dubowsky, Rock ’n Renew is committed to the practical pursuit of environmental health and sustainability. As Jonny’s band, Jonny Lives!, met with increasing success, they began frequent tours of over 10,000 miles each. Concerned about fuel consumption, Jonny researched bio-diesel as an alternative to gasoline and ultimately transformed the group’s tours into carbon-neutral events. From this initial commitment, Rock ’n Renew grew into a multi-faceted organization with the resources and connections to make real environmental change happen. Our target areas of action —Energy, Ecology, and Society —represent a three-pronged approach that urges conservation, promotes stewardship, and recognizes collective action as the best way to protect our future. With an unapologetic rock-culture sensibility and a wide playlist of innovative events, Rock ’n Renew puts environmental responsibility center-stage, with a unique artistic edge.

Our Partners + Our Mission

Rock ’n Renew has teamed up with the Natural Resources Defense Council, StopGlobalWarming.org, The Campus Climate Challenge, Focus The Nation, DoSomething.org, and other dedicated activist groups worldwide to form a comprehensive network with one main goal —to bring the goals of sustainability to as many communities as possible. Our plan of action focuses on the following three areas:

Energy:

It is hard to believe that 19th-century technology is still being used to power the 21st-century world. It is now clear that our dependence on fossil fuel has directly affected the climate crisis we face today. Rock ’n Renew recognizes this connection and seeks immediate and practical solutions for this environmental and political emergency. We identify end-use efficiency as the most exciting source of alternative energy and outline simple, direct measures to reduce wasteful fuel consumption. We also take the dizzying array of information currently available on alternative energy technologies and condense it into a comprehensible plan of action for your school, business, or community. Rock ’n Renew promotes energy solutions that work and demonstrates how you can be part of the transition to renewable energy that is now happening on a global level.

Ecology:

Our natural environment is disappearing before our very eyes. The actions of consumers and industry are precipitating the extinctions of entire species and a staggering daily loss of land and vegetation. Rock ’n Renew works with concepts and curriculum elements from NRDC, The Land Trust Alliance, and The Land Conservation Fund to give students and adults the tools they need to protect our precious natural resources. We are working to build the Rock ’n Renew Ecology Center in Bayonne, New Jersey, to use the outdoor environment as a classroom to educate students about their role in safeguarding our planet. Through lectures and workshops on ecology and agriculture, we make audiences aware of the hazards posed by unethically-produced and genetically modified food, and show communities how to eat locally and seasonally. Fostering a close relationship between the land, its bounty, and its inhabitants is the first step to preserving the beauty and potential of our natural world.

Society:

Rock ’n Renew believes in the collective power of the voice. When individuals unite, they can incite massive change. If millions of people make deliberate choices as consumers, voters, artists, parents, and youth — businesses and policy-makers will listen. Our aim is to stimulate communities with ideas and information, unloosing creativity and inspiring action. A healthy society and culture cannot exist without a healthy place to live —the earth. In urgent response to the needs of our planet, we are calling for people to do more than just recycle. We are asking for widespread change to begin locally and to progress globally, and we work towards a future in which art, culture, and environmental commitment intertwine to create a diverse, vibrant, and caring society.