December 9, 2020  -  View online

Sustainability Spotlight: 

Common Orchard Project to Become a GU Accelerator Project in 2021

We are excited to announce that we will be adding the Common Orchard Project as a Green Umbrella Accelerator Project in 2021. The Common Orchard Project plants and cares for fruit orchards on vacant and community lots, with the goal of supporting 50 orchards in the next 3 years. It provides increased food access, tree canopy, walkable greenspace and community building in neighborhoods that have experienced disinvestment. Common Orchard Project will be an affiliate of Giving Grove, which is supporting the development of little orchards across the country. We'll be welcoming Chris Smyth as a member of the Green Umbrella

staff in January to direct this project he has cultivated for the past 3 years into its next phase.

2030 District Re-Grants $65,000 for Energy Efficiency Improvements

Cincinnati 2030 District is excited to announce that is awarding $65,000 from the Duke Class Benefit Fund Business Incentive Grant to four of its building members. The projects selected demonstrated significant energy reductions and will be completed in partnership with at least one of the district's professional partners:

• Cincinnati Art Museum will make improvements to an air handling unit in the Fath auditorium with Siemens and CMTA.
• MCA Center will complete an LED lighting retrofit on the Mercantile Center office tower with Johnson Electric.
• Our Lady of Grace School will complete an LED lighting retrofit Paff Electric and Pro Lighting and Solar.
• Sleepy Bee Café will make improvements to their kitchen hood system with Melink.

Beyond 34 Toolkit: Seeking Businesses for Free Waste Audits in 2021

Green Umbrella is partnering with Hamilton County Recycling and the US Chamber of Commerce Foundation to create an exciting new Commercial Waste Audit toolkit for Greater Cincinnati (and beyond). We are seeking businesses across our 10-county region to help make this toolkit relevant to various industries and different size organizations. We are seeking:

• organizations that would like to participate in a free waste audit in 2021 and be documented case studies
• organizations who have already conducted waste audits to provide short video testimonials for the toolkit
• organizations willing to review the toolkit as it is developed and provide feedback
• volunteers to assist with conducting waste audits

Learn more about the business case for waste audits and our project plan for developing the toolkit. Please reach out to Mary Cropenbaker to participate.

HB6

Much has happened since we first opposed HB6, a bill that paves the way for a $1B nuclear bailout, $450M coal subsidy and the elimination of Ohio's energy efficiency and renewable portfolio standards. Ohio's Speaker of the House was indicted for a $60M+ bribery scheme in connection with the bill. The cities of Cincinnati and Columbus filed a lawsuit to block the bailout fees set to start January 1. And now lawmakers are primarily considering two bills: HB 798, which delays the subsidies until 2022, and SB 346, which calls for a full repeal.

Without a full repeal, Ohioans are still on track to pay for bailouts and lose policies that save money, protect public health and foster quality job growth in Ohio. Green Umbrella wants solutions that increase energy efficiency and renewable energy investment. Learn more about action that can be taken to repeal HB6 and address its impacts.

Greenspace Gem: Riverside Natural Area

This 200-acre preserve in Butler County primarily consists of meadows and wetlands surrounding a pond in an old channel of the Great Miami River. An extensive trail system leads to the 17-acre pond, a 5-acre marsh, and an observation mound overlooking the meadows. Protected by Hamilton Parks Conservancy, most of this area sits on a sludge disposal site reclaimed by the City of Hamilton in the early 1990s. The Hamilton Conservation Corps, a volunteer organization whose purpose is to help preserve Hamilton’s Natural Areas, oversees this site. Discover our region's greenspace gems!

Make an investment in the sustainability and resiliency of our region. 

Donate and become a Green Umbrella member today!

Sustainability in the Headlines

SustainableCincy Rolls Out New Six-Week Accelerator, Cincinnati Business Courier
Working in Neighborhoods Wins EPA Grant to Reduce Water Pollution, Soapbox Cincinnati

Residents Hope MSD Study Can Help Prevent Further Sewer Backups, WCPO

Thomas More's Ohio River Research Center Earns Long-Term Financial Support, NKY Thrives

Next Phase of Wasson Way Trail Now Open, FOX 19

Temporary Outdoor Dining Sites to Turn Permanent in OTR and Downtown, CityBeat

Cincinnati Unveils Court Street Overhaul Focused on Pedestrians, Cincinnati Business Courier

Bills to Repeal or Change House Bill 6 Resurface in Ohio's Lame-Duck Session, CityBeat

Eight Mayors: We Need a Marshall Plan for Middle America, Washington Post

Ohio Groups Applaud "Seismic Shift" in Clean-Energy Landscape, CityBeat

Heritage Acres: Our Area's Only Dedicated Natural Burial Preserve, Cincinnati Magazine

Where to Recycle Unwanted Holiday Lights in Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana, WVXU

Professional Opportunities   

City Parks Alliance Equitable Park Funding Hub provides easy access to information on funding sources for parks and recreation in low-income communities and communities of color.

Boone County Conservation District is offering 2020-2021 Education Grants for teacher or student led school projects that foster learning about conservation and our environment.

Kids Gardening is offering a 2021 Youth Garden Grant to support school and youth educational garden projects. Applications due December 18.

OPWC NRAC is offering grants to acquire greenspace and protect and enhance river and stream corridors in Hamilton County through the Clean Ohio Conservation Fund Program. Applications due January 15.

Boone County Conservation District is offering two $1,000 Student Scholarships to college students enrolled in a major related to the field of conservation. Applications due January 31.

Ohio EPA Recycling & Litter Prevention Program supports communities, nonprofits, businesses and academic institutions that initiate or expand recycling. Applications close February 5.

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