Green Communities

It takes a village. Or a city. Some PF Member ideas for turning whole communities green.

Connecting flights: Connecticut gardeners forge pathways for migrating pollinators
The pictures, one depicting a yellow butterfly perched on pink flowers, a bee perched on a red flower, and a brown butterfly on white flowers.

(Pamela Nobumoto)

Zareen Reza
University of Connecticut
Migratory pollinators are losing habitat due to human development. These Connecticut gardeners are fighting back.
In defense of native plants
An illustration of an acorn artfully sprouting different kinds of leaves.

Illustrations by Sachi Kitajima Mulkey.

Sachi Kitajima Mulkey
Planet Forward Correspondent | UC Berkeley
How three Indigenous teachers in California are fostering the future for native plants and educating others on how to build a reciprocal relationship with nature.
Get inspired with Candace Clark
A woman stands between rows of cultivated plants, wearing a large straw hat and a grey hoodie, smiling at the camera.

(Courtesy of Candace Clark)

Hannah Krantz
Planet Forward Correspondent | George Washington University
Hannah Krantz and Aleena Fayaz speak to Candace Clark, a Ph.D. candidate at Tuskegee University, in this high-spirited podcast that discusses the importance of black voices in climate solutions, sustainable housing, and much more. 
Create change on your campus with bees, trees, and the human spirit
A bee is perched on a light purple flower with a green stem.

(Hillsboro Parks & Recreation/CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

Eden Gardner
SUNY Environmental Science and Forestry
In this podcast, I speak with two environmental researchers about their collaborative efforts to become members of the Bee Campus USA program.
Reflections | Afternoon tea in Grandma's garden
A small blonde dong sniffs a flower in the garden.

(Kassidy Usry)

Kassidy Usry
University of Georgia
In Grandma’s garden. Hot tea, flowers, and squirrels. Cardinals and cats too. Come visit with me.
Reflections | Revisiting Shuang Qiao
The author as a young girl, standing in an orchard at her grandparents' farm.

A picture of me from when I was younger, standing in an orchard on my grandparents' farm. (Lei Zhi Kun)

Xinge Lei
University of Georgia
Floating back in time–to a village in China. Grandma’s village.
International student’s idea to repurpose barns becomes agro-plastic recycling company
Garden bed with green sprouts covered by a dome of plastic sheeting.

A hoop house composed with plastic sheeting and tubes provides cover for a raised garden in Washington, DC. (Lance Cheung/USDA (Public Domain Mark 1.0))

Sara Wiatrak
University of Maryland
University of Maryland international Ph.D. student Krisztina Christmon launched her award-winning idea of repurposing farm plastic as part of a university innovation challenge in 2020. One year later, she serves as CEO of Repurpose Farm Plastic LLC.
We deserve better tree-tment: Why street trees matter
Zoe Chan
Columbia University
Approximately 5.5 million people ride the New York City subway everyday making subway cars prime real estate for advertising and public service announcements –– like these about the benefits of street trees.
Green Africa Youth Organization: Climate action in Ghana and the Global South
Max Sano
Planet Forward Senior Correspondent | New York University
Learn more about Green Africa Youth Organization (GAYO) and their impact in Ghana and on the international stage, from the perspective of GAYO Project Coordinator Betty Osse Bonsu.
The edible alleyway: How a community garden transformed a Montreal neighborhood
A green sign reads "Ruelle verte" or green alley over a wooden pagado.

The sign on the wooden arch reads "Ruelle verte" or "green alley." (Clarice Knelly/SUNY-Plattsburgh).

Clarice Knelly
Planet Forward Correspondent | SUNY-Plattsburgh
William Borque said the alleyways that surrounded Rosemont-La Petite-Patrie's community garden in Montreal used to be a “wasteland.” Now, they’re brimming with fruit trees, mushroom gardens and local art.

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