Sustainable Saratoga is a strong, influential local voice promoting sustainability and the protection of our natural resources. We accomplished great things in 2018 (read more here), and we have even bigger plans for 2019. We hope that you will be part of our efforts to bring greater sustainability and environmental stewardship to the Saratoga Springs area. Our success truly depends on the willingness of the community to get involved. We need your support, so please consider making a tax-deductible donation, signing up to volunteer your time, or participating in one of our upcoming events.
Sustainability Fair
Sustainable Saratoga and Skidmore College are partnering to bring a sustainability fair to Saratoga Springs on April 6, 2019. The goal of the event is to connect people to the resources and organizations that will enable them to live more sustainably and inspire them to contribute to a culture of sustainability in our community. Check back in early January for more details about this event. Would you like to help plan this event? Contact info@sustainablesaratoga.org to learn more.
A Children’s STEM Fair
Our second new event for 2019 is called WHIZ, BANG, POP! Adventures in Science – A Children’s STEM Fair. We are co-sponsoring this event on July 17 with The Children’s Museum at Saratoga and the Saratoga Springs Public Library. Our goal is to make sustainable science education accessible, fun, and appealing to children and their families. Each exhibit will encourage active participation with a hands-on learning activity that promotes reflection, awareness, and creativity.
Watching Your Waste
We have three popular events that focus on reducing our trash in 2019.
RECYCLING: Our second annual Saratoga Recycles Day was a tremendous success (read all about it here), and we are already planning improvements for our next one, tentatively scheduled for October 2019. And you can always find places to donate or recycle items in our Recycling Made Easy Guide here.
REPAIRING: The art of repair is really catching on in Saratoga Springs. Our next Repair Café is February 9, so start saving your broken items for our skilled volunteers to guide you through the repair process and help keep these items out of the landfill. Do you have a talent for fixing things? Email wendy@sustainablesaratoga.org to volunteer your repair skills at the next event, which is co-sponsored by Sustainable Saratoga and the Saratoga Springs Public Library.
REUSING: The environmental issues associated with food waste in our homes, restaurants, and grocery stores are gaining public awareness. Food waste is a huge source of methane when buried in a landfill. This source of greenhouse gas could easily be eliminated by composting our food waste. Join us at one of our Backyard Composting workshops this spring to get started.
Planting Trees for the Next Generation
Mark your calendar for our ninth Tree Toga! Our next Tree Toga planting event is April 27, 2019. Our Urban Forestry committee is expanding our efforts to plant the next generation of large trees that will benefit our community for decades to come, so stay tuned for details. But we need you to help us replant our urban forest. Let us know if you would like to have a tree planted in your front yard and help convince a neighbor or friend to get one too.
Throughout the coming year, we are going to focus some of our advocacy efforts on preserving and expanding the urban forest through engagement with local institutions and businesses, including our local government.
If you would like to volunteer to help with these efforts, email trees@sustainablesaratoga.org
Advocating for a Better Tomorrow
Sustainable Saratoga knows it is important to stay informed and advocate for sustainable decision-making in our local government. We are disappointed by the lack of progress on a number of issues this year, including managed parking, affordable housing, and the Unified Development Ordinance.
We continue to monitor and advocate for these issues because we know they are essential to our sustainability goals. We are planning a community forum on managed parking for the spring to get a better idea of what it really means to take a holistic approach to solving our City’s parking needs.
We Need Your Help
Sustainable Saratoga is a volunteer-driven organization that relies on our generous supporters to bring greater sustainability to Saratoga Springs. Please consider making a tax-deductible contribution to enable us to continue our efforts. Thank you!
