BLOOMINGTON - When Jessica Poppe's sons are adults, she wants them to enjoy the same natural resources that she uses today.

"We have a responsibility to not be wasteful and to support our local vendors," Poppe, of Bloomington, said Friday.

As she held a hand of Isaac, 3, and carried Owen, 1, Poppe walked around the 2008 Illinois Sustainable Living & Wellness Expo at Illinois Wesleyan University's Shirk Center in Bloomington.

"I'm interested in sustainable living for my children," she said. She visited with one vendor who sold cloth diapers and another who offered household cleaning products with fewer chemicals.

"I think it's a very good thing for our community, and I brought the kids so they know that we care about our earth," Poppe said of the expo.

The annual expo is hosted by the Ecology Action Center and IWU's Wellness Program. The two-day event, which continues today, includes more than 70 exhibitors and is expected to attract 1,500 to 2,000 people, said Missy Smock, IWU wellness director.

The expo on Friday included information about a variety of health and environmental topics, including sexually transmitted diseases, recycling, gardening, smoking cessation, massage and energy healing. A tai chi demonstration happened at noon.

Smock said linking health and ecology makes sense.

"The links between health and the environment are so intimate," she said. "You can't leave the environment when you're talking about wellness."

A focus this year was involving some area farmers to help people attending the expo to understand how the area food system impacts our health, environment and economy, Smock said.

Patt Mitchell of Mitchell Farms Produce in Manito and Green Valley and Ken Ropp of Ropp Jersey Cheese in rural Normal were among farmers who exhibited in Shirk Center. Mitchell displayed Napa style cabbage and loose head lettuce called Red Sails, while Ropp gave away free cheese samples and sold cheese.

"The customer now wants to know where the products are coming from," Ropp said.

Kay Wilson of Normal talked with Mitchell before Wilson participated in the tai chi demonstration. "I want to see what's happening with health and energy savings," Wilson said of her time at the expo.

Dr. Robert Hermann, a Bloomington chiropractor, performed spinal analyses, including one on Carolyn Gray of Normal.

"My left shoulder is a little low, and my right ear is a little low, but overall I'm in good shape," Gray said.

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Wellness Expo

What: 2008 Illinois Sustainable Living & Wellness Expo

When: 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. today

Where: Illinois Wesleyan University's Shirk Center, 302 E. Emerson St., Bloomington

Sponsored by: Ecology Action Center and IWU's Wellness Program.

Highlights: Workshops on topics including recycling, meditation, pharmaceuticals, raising peaceful children and creating a meal with locally grown foods; food demonstrations throughout the day; and a tai chi demonstration at 9:15 a.m., poetry at 10:30 a.m., presentations of recycling awards at 1 p.m. and an affordable fashion show at 2 p.m.

SOURCES: www.islwe.org, Missy Smock