Rhode Island’s Annual PrideFest Celebration & Illuminated Night Parade will take place Saturday, June 15, 2024, at District Park in Downtown Providence with this year’s theme being “THRIVE.” Rhode Island’s first Pride was held in 1976 with fewer than 100 participants, and this year’s PrideFest will attract more than 50,000 people during the day and 70,000 people for the Illuminated Night Parade. The event is also New England’s largest LGBTQIA+ marketplace & business expo with over 200 vendors, exhibitors, and non-profit organizations represented. The vendor exhibition is a ka ..read more

Another of the Inns’ proud queer employees, Chef Lou Ruscitto-Donato, oversees one of the resort’s most unique attractions, Aurora Cooks!, a clever, engaging hybrid of restaurant, dinner party and TV cooking show. In the Finger Lakes region of Cayuga County, New York sits the tiny burg of Aurora.  Here, visitors can enjoy an unexpected 350 acre oasis of hospitality collectively known as The Inns of Aurora (391 Main Street, Aurora NY. Tel: 315-364-8888. innsofaurora.com). Located about 30 minutes from Cornell University and Ithaca College, the town of Aurora’s storied past has clear i ..read more

The Sullivan Catskills Visitors Association and Bethel Woods Center for the Arts will come together once again to create the second annual spectacular Catskill Cuisine event. The immersive culinary experience-filled weekend will bring forth an extravaganza of different events taking place from May 10 – 12, 2024. Catskill Cuisine’s inaugural event last year was met with great success and this year’s event will be even more outstanding, spanning the whole weekend. “Bethel Woods was honored to host Catskill Cuisine last year,” said Eric Frances, CEO of Bethel Woods Center for the Arts and Chair o ..read more

Reboot your earbud style and help the planet with Urbanears Boo Recycled Plastic Earbuds. Made from 97-percent recycled plastics taken from bottles, air-conditioner units, and other materials, these water-resistant wireless earbuds come with up to 30 hours of playtime and a splash-resistance USB-C charging case. For a smaller overall environmental impact, their full-charge capacity is limited to 90 percent, which extends the lifetime of their internal battery and therefore of the product itself. Count on nicely tuned sound quality, Bluetooth 5.2 connectivity, easy touch controls, and dual nois ..read more

Rechargeable devices are an integral part of our lives, but there are always some that require the old familiar C, D, 9V, and other batteries we associate with single use. Utah-based Paleblue aims to replace those one-and-done batteries with its line of fast-charging, super-long-lasting batteries that recharge up to four at a time via a USB port. The Paleblue Batteries Sustainability Kit is the perfect starter set, with eight AAs, eight AAAs, four USB charging cables, and four recycled-plastic travel cases (solar charger kits are also available). Each Paleblue battery can divert up to 1,000 si ..read more

Dive into the world of bullying with Mean Boys by Geoffrey Mak and celebrate the life of puppeteer Richard Hunt in Funny Boy by Jessica Max Stein. These captivating reads shed light on important issues & inspiring individuals! BUY BOOK Come and Get it by Kiley Reid No contemporary fiction writer is probing the complexities of class and race in America more accessibly and entertainingly than Kiley Reid. Her Booker Prize-longlisted 2019 debut, Such a Fun Age, was a suspenseful, satisfyingly soapy tale of a Black college graduate working as the nanny for a white family in Philadelphia. Her ..read more

Pack up your gear right with the Cotopaxi Allpa Roller Bag, one of the most eco-friendly wheeled suitcases available. Sold in carry-on 38L size or larger 65L and four colors, this roller bag is lightweight yet super sturdy, made from durable, water-resistant polyester and strong ballistic nylon paneling—and always from 100-percent recycled fabrics (A Cotopaxi brand trademark for its bags, clothing, and accessories.) The tough wheels and extendable handle hold up on cobbled streets, dirt roads, and stairs, and the hard-plastic back panel helps protect your delicate items. Better still, Cotopaxi ..read more

LifeStraw offers brilliant solutions for replacing single-use plastic bottles with safe filtration in the form of straws, pitchers, and reusable bottles. The LifeStraw Go Series bottle filter is a top choice for improving taste, reducing chemicals, and removing bacteria, parasites, and microplastics from water, whether you’re refilling from an airport bathroom, a tap in Mexico, or a side-road gas station. The 18-ounce stainless steel or BPA-free bottle is a great slimline option that fits in most car cupholders. It features a built-in membrane microfilter and long lasting carbon filter for two ..read more

Pack your bags and head to Key West to experience some of the best and most exciting LGBTQ+ events in the USA. “There is so much to do on this little island,” says Fritzie Estimond, Associate Director at the Key West Business Guild. “Since moving here 14 years ago, I have discovered why Key West has been dubbed the gay mecca of the United States. We have so many events that cater to all demographics and I am proud to be a contributor to a portion of that, working with The Key West Business Guild to proudly host Key West Pride, Tropical Heat, Womenfest, and the Headdress Ball (which is an offic ..read more

Beyond the world’s obvious LGBTQ+ capitals, no city keeps drawing me to it again and again like Manchester, London’s less splashy but more sassy northern sister. Just two hours northwest of the UK capital by train and 40 minutes east of Liverpool, Manchester is a city of constant renewal, perpetually finding bold new ways to reframe and repurpose itself. I first felt Manchester’s irresistible pull more than three decades ago in 1991, when the city’s rave-fueled “Madchester” music scene was in full swing. Until then my British experience had been limited to London, so I was instantly taken in b ..read more