Update from 10 minutes before close on Day 1:

So I have 4+ pages of unformatted notes on Van's speech (inspiring, even for a cynic… hopefully that will come through in my post), but haven't had a chance even yet to put it into publishable format. As you can imagine, time to sit, think, and type has been scarce today, but I'll get it up as soon as possible.

As for Jeff's post, we decided that Hightower's speech, while incisive and entertaining at the same time, weren't necessarily the best content for our site's generally non-partisan focus. However, Liam confirms that he will be posting about Bill McKibben's speech before the weekend is out.

We might not be able to make you feel like you're here at GreenFest with us, but hopefully, we can give you a glimpse of some of the highlights. Also, requests for specific coverage are welcome by comments or email. Although we can't guarantee all of them will be fulfilled, we'd love to hear what YOU want to hear about the action at GreenFest Chicago.

Hello from GreenFest Chicago. Just thought I'd post a little update about the day. I write a full post about Mayor Richard Daley's introductory speech this morning, but it was lost forever thanks to a wireless network error (technology: a blessing and a curse). I'll repost most of it in a summary of day one later, but for now, I just wanted to post a little announcement and a preview of what's to come for GO liveblogging at the Green Festival.

First and foremost, the announcement just came through that the newest GreenFest will be in…drumroll please… Seattle! Coming in April 2008, the Festival will continue to expand beyond Washington DC and San Francisco, its initial homes. So watch out, Washington State!

And also, a tentative schedule of live-blogging for the rest of the day:

Van Jones, "green collar" jobs and social justice advocate from the Ella Baker Center in Oakland, will be speaking in a moment and I will be blogging about it… Hopefully it will be submitted soon after he's done.

After that, Jeff will be covering Jim Hightower, Texas liberal extraordinaire, and Liam will bring you coverage of Bill KcKibben (of Step It Up 2007 fame).

Things are crazy here, but our goal is to give you coverage of events on the ground here in Chicago, and we'll do our best.

Stay tuned!