Philadelphia’s Office of Sustainability released the latest issue of their annual magazine Greenworks Review this week! The Resource Exchange team joined local educators and environmental advocates in the Climate and Urban Systems Partnership’s Climate City to celebrate and reflect on the many ways Philadelphians are working towards a more just and environmentally friendly future.
The Greenworks Review put a spotlight on environmental education for the youth of Philadelphia as well as adults through community-led projects. The organizations in Climate City each featured a different hands-on activity to help visitors understand what climate change means for them, and what they can do about it.
“It’s no surprise that young people are some of the most passionate climate advocates, as they are the ones who will be left to clean up the damage caused by previous generations. In schools around the city, students are making a difference, from reducing energy use in schools, to cultivating green space schoolyards, to training for green careers. These students are also spreading the word, encouraging their peers, their families, and their communities to become a part of the solution.” -Mayor Jim Kenney
Trash Academy, a program supported through Mural Arts’ Restored Spaces initiative, promotes grassroots community organizing and advocacy, public education, and the creation of collaborative and innovative solutions that address the issue of trash through art and sustainability. At the event we heard from a student who has been working with Trash Academy for a few months about why taking care of the environment is important to them and learned some key facts about single-use plastics (did you know 2 million plastic bags are used worldwide every minute? Yikes!).
The Resource Exchange team debuted the new resourcePhilly Wheel to go with our resourcePhilly map at the Greenworks Review Party. The wheel was created by re staffers using only reclaimed materials. The map features a list of materials and coordinating locations that will help you reduce, reuse, and responsibly recycle in Philadelphia. Participants at the event spun the wheel to highlight materials and solutions we’re commonly asked about, including what can be done with house paint, e-waste, film plastics, and textiles to name just a few.
Thank you to Philadelphia’s Office of Sustainability and CUSP for bringing this community together! You can read the latest issue of the Greenworks Review, which includes a handy guide for the do’s and don’t of recycling in Philadelphia, here!
