BETHEL – Sustainable Western Maine will hold a Sustainable Building Showcase from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday at the Lewin Center’s Gehring House. The event is free and open to the public.

Doors open at 9:30, and visitors will be able to peruse an informational table and video displays. There will be three sessions of workshops, each lasting an hour, at 11 a.m., 1 and 2:30 p.m.

Sessions will feature a workshop on monolithic slab foundations by Greg Roberts of Design Concepts, a panel discussion on efficient housing, and a discussion on earth-sheltered houses by Jim Sysko.

Roberts will return for the second session for a discussion on super-insulated housing. Jerry Bernier will also speak during this time on insulated concrete forms.

In the final session, Noah Wentworth of the Evergreen Building Collective will speak on green building and Dr. David Kyle, director of Energy Efficiency Maine, will discuss the financial incentives of alternative energy.

The organization has invited anyone interested to sign a petition demanding action against human-caused climate change. This event will take place from 9 to 9:30 a.m. on April 14 near the gazebo in Bethel Common.

Both events are part of a national action by the Step It Up Campaign, an environmental group based in Burlington, Vt. According to the group’s Web site, the petition and forum are two of 1,364 events planned across the country for April 14.

More information on Sustainable Western Maine can be found at www.sustainablewesternmaine.com.