Small Actions Spark Big Changes
You can make our planet more sustainable
At the Academy of Natural Sciences, we believe that individual actions can truly make a difference. Each month of
2022, we’ll guide our community in a conversation about how everyday choices can affect the health of our
environment. Follow along with us here, on our Blog, on social media @acadnatsci, through email and in the museum to
join the conversation!
November 2022: Start Composting
Composting is easy and there are many ways to use it. It enables you to turn organic waste — such as leaves, fruit peels, food scraps, coffee grounds and more — into a resource that can help nourish your soil and spruce up your yard. When thrown into an oxygen-deprived landfill, these very same items break down slowly and produce methane, contributing directly to global warming.
By taking just a minute each day to compile organic waste, you can reduce your contribution to the landfill, put your kitchen or yard waste to good use, enrich your soil and benefit the environment — all at the same time.
Learn about different types of composting and what to do with it over the winter on our Blog. And check out these other resources for more decomposing fun!
October 2022: Winterize Your Home (the Green Way)
Keeping our energy usage down not only saves us money, but also reduces pollution. When we consume less power, we reduce the toxic fumes released, conserve the earth’s natural resources and help protect local ecosystems from destruction.
As the winter creeps in, preparing our apartments, homes and dorms to help keep in the heat — and keep out the cold air — can be done with small efficient actions that help spark real environmental changes. Check out some of these helpful resources to prepare for winter and the Academy Blog to learn more about what you can do to winterize this year the green way.
Resources to Winterize Your Home
September 2022: Winterizing the Garden
Changes in the season mean changes in our gardens. The days get shorter, the nights get chilly and rainfall becomes unpredictable. Keeping an eye on the weather, the amount of daylight and fluctuating temperatures can help you best plan for proper plant upkeep now and in the wintry future. It can also help reduce our energy costs and support local wildlife and pollinators.
Here are a few helpful garden tips to keep in mind as the golden days of late summer transform into the colorful landscape of autumn. Check out these other resources as well to learn more about preparing for winter in your own garden.
August 2022: Engaging Mindfully with Nature
Many studies have found that getting outside can improve our health and restore our feelings of connection to nature. Being outdoors in parks, preserves or even your own backyard has overwhelmingly positive benefits, such as promoting better nutritional intake, relaxing the body and giving our busy minds a moment of peace.
If you've spent the last year reducing plastic waste and energy use, protecting nearby streams, biking to work and composting, take a moment now to enjoy the fruits of your sustainability efforts! New ideas and big changes are made possible when we spend a little time reflecting on and reconnecting with our amazing natural world.
Check out our blog for a few simple ways to easily and mindfully engage with the environment around you.
Spark July 2022: Let's Be Plastic Free!
There's no denying it, we’re drowning in plastic. About 18 billion pounds of it ends up in the ocean every year. Americans alone purchase and discard about 50 billion plastic water bottles annually, averaging 13 bottles per month per person, according to Green Cities. Scientists have even found plastic waste in the stomachs of birds and sea creatures that have ingested microplastics in remote corners of the Arctic.
It is time to reduce our plastic waste and make clean water a priority. Join the Plastic-free Philly movement and pledge to reduce your consumption of single-use water bottles. Then, check out our blog for more simple tips to help ease off plastics in your day-to-day life. Let's all be plastic free and keep our environment healthy!
June 2022: Protect Our Water
Clean water is necessary for every single person on Earth. In America, over half of our drinking water comes from nearby rivers and streams, with the average person using close to 100 gallons a day at home for drinking, bathing, washing the dishes and watering the plants. The Delaware River watershed provides this needed water to over 15 million people.
Protecting and conserving our water are critical to the health of our planet and ourselves. And fortunately, there are many simple ways to keep it clean! Together, let's ensure that everyone has access to safe water. Check out our blog to find out how you can take a few simple steps to help protect our waters.
Explore the important rivers and streams surrounding you. Then join an event to learn more and help keep it clean!
May 2022: Hike Your Watershed
We all live downstream. While the Schuylkill and Delaware Rivers provide drinking water for many of the people in the Philadelphia metropolitan area, the streams that feed into them are all part of our watershed. Also known as a basin, a watershed is simply the land in which all the water such as rainfall, snowmelt and runoff drains to a nearby river, creek or stream.
Looking to create a deeper connection to our watershed? Get up close and personal with the waterways that connect to our major drinking water supplies with these walks that explore them.
Click here to read 10 Hikes to Explore our Watershed on the Academy Blog.
Get involved in your local watershed too! Here are just a few:
Resources for Getting Outdoors
April 2022: Create a Water-Wise Garden
Gardens come in all shapes and sizes. Whether you have a small patch between sidewalks, a brimming window box, a wide landscaped yard or a medley of hanging baskets, there's one thing they all have in common: your plants need water.
But as our climate changes toward unpredictability and green spaces decrease as human-made infrastructure increases, our precious water resources become more important — and more burdened — than ever. Keeping our watersheds healthy, our sewers free of pollutants and our green spaces thriving all promote a healthier and more sustainable planet.
One simple and beautiful way to preserve water and keep the environment clean is creating a water-wise garden. Check out our list of resources and read more about water in your garden on our Academy blog.
Local Native Plant Societies:
Resources:
March 2022: Get Involved in Your Watershed!
From cities to farms and forests to plains, our whole country is made up of large and small watersheds that every one of us relies on for our living.
And there are so many watershed organizations that can use your help! Use the EPA's site How's my Waterway to discover your watershed, then research whether there is an organization or group managing it and do your part to make a change. You can also check out the Alliance for Watershed Education's listing of centers that promote engagement in the Philadelphia region.
You can learn more about what a watershed is and how to keep it clean by reading our Academy blogpost.
Get involved in your local watershed too! Here are just a few:
Here's what people in our watersheds have to say:
The Perkiomen Watershed not only affects the health of nearby communities and natural spaces, it also impacts downstream waterways and neighborhoods. The waters of the Perkiomen make their way from the Schuylkill River, to the Delaware River, then onto the Delaware Bay and ultimately enter the Atlantic Ocean. This means that the health of the Perkiomen Creek affects all of these larger water bodies. Watershed protection and management is vital to ensure that we have access to safe drinking water, recreational opportunities, increased property values, as well as reduced costs associated with flooding and pollution. Additionally, healthy watersheds are essential for the survival of fish and wildlife, reducing the spread of invasive species and increased protection from the threats associated with climate change. We all live, work and play within a watershed!
- Jessie Kemper, Conservation Coordinator, Perkiomen Watershed Conservancy
Improving the health of our watershed is core to the Tookany/Tacony-Frankford Watershed Partnership's mission. The health of our creeks translates into healthier green spaces and communities, as well as cleaner drinking water. Our focus is to restore degraded streams within our headwaters to improve water quality. Understanding that we share a common landscape is the first step toward understanding the challenges and opportunities, as is working together to build a constituency to effect solutions to impairment. Some of us may live upstream and some may live downstream, but we all share a geographic community defined by water.
- Julie Slavet, Executive Director, Tookany/Tacony-Frankford Watershed Partnership
The Musconetcong River Watershed has been continuously inhabited by humans for 14,000 years and has been an important source of food, power and transportation. In an ideal world, the idea of a watershed would be synonymous with the word “community,” because that space represents the minimum reach for the consequences of our actions. Taking the time to transition to more environmentally responsible behaviors will reverse the “death by a thousand cuts” effect that our collective actions have on watersheds. Additionally, committing time to volunteer with clean-ups, restoration, and education efforts will provide further improvements. It’s encouraging to think that if you live “upstream of others,” a single beneficial action you take will help not only you, but also many others.
- Ryan Jiorle, Community Engagement Coordinator, Musconetcong Watershed Association
The Partnership for the Delaware Estuary is a regional nonprofit organization that focuses on clean water, healthy habitats and strong communities in and around the Delaware River and Bay. If you live, work, and/or play in this region, the Delaware River watershed makes that possible. It supplies millions of people with clean drinking water, supports a multi-billion dollar economy, and sustains a variety of diverse and critically important natural habitats. Protecting these resources protects our way of life, now and for generations to come.
- Kate Hutelmyer, Senior Engagement Manager, Partnership for the Delaware Estuary
Cobbs Creek was in serious need of our volunteers' cleanup support, and the creek and surrounding trail system was left much cleaner and healthier than when we found it. Getting volunteers back out into the field for this cleanup was so impactful in multiple ways. From community engagement to environmental impact, it helped to revitalize our cleanups program during the pandemic. There is something so powerful about physically gathering together around a common cause!
- Maria McDonald, Sustainability Manager, United By Blue
February 2022: Creating Bird-Friendly Habitats
© Johann Schumacher/VIREO
Winter in the Northeast is the perfect time to spot both local and visiting birds. The air becomes crisp, the trees are bare and the natural world can seem still and silent. Blue jays, mourning doves, crows, cardinals and others will linger throughout the season. Besides inclement weather, however, many of our feathered friends face a variety of other dangers — predators, overexertion, starvation and collisions — that can make their winter survival a challenge.
Some studies have shown that birds who make it through the winter in decent physical condition will see an improved nesting season to follow. Simply providing nutrient-rich food and places to nest for birds can help increase egg clutches, produce higher chick weights and support overall breeding success across a wide range of species.
To learn how to make your own environment a bird-friendly habitat this winter, read more on our Blog.
© Barry Miller/VIREO
Bird-Friendly Habitat Resources
Don't miss the Backyard Bird Count February 18–21. Participate in some community science by observing what birds are in your backyard.
January 2022: Tips to Use Less Water
Water scarcity and access to clean drinking water are life-and-death issues for countries all over the world. Climate change and other factors are driving these conditions closer to home no matter where you live. That’s why it’s more important than ever to be mindful of our water use every day and everywhere: at home, at work, at play.
In 2022, the Academy of Natural Sciences and Drexel University are celebrating Water Year to dramatically increase consumer awareness and responsible behaviors around water in every person who we can reach. Here are some easy tips to help you conserve water starting right in your own home.
December 2021: Reuse it!
If you find you're spending more time at home than usual, it's a great opportunity to consider reevaluating that stuff you've accumulated over the years. Discovering new uses for those old items that you might trash or recycle is an excellent small action to help sustain the environment for future generations.
And it’s never been easier to make a positive impact on the planet! Empty jars can be reused to store leftovers. Old clothing can be cut into cleaning rags or donated. Printed maps and newspapers can be repurposed as gift wrap. Here is some more information to get you started.
Resources
We’re Walking the Walk
The challenges put forth by our SPARK campaign are taken seriously by the Academy. Below, the staff shares some insight and creativity with the small acts they do to reuse and reduce at work and at home. Find out what steps you can take to reduce and reuse by checking out our post on the Academy Blog.
I repurpose/recycle Mentos gum containers and transform them for collecting insects. A thin layer of "smelling salts" (ammonium carbonate crystals) is poured into the bottom of the container and secured in place with a layer of polyethylene foam. Tissue is added to the container to give the insects a place to “hide” and to prevent them from knocking against the sides of the container and incurring damage during transport. Ammonia vapor fills the container and knocks out any insects placed inside. These gum containers are ideal because the lid is attached by a small tab (harder to lose), and it is a very tight seal so the ammonia vapor cannot escape from the container.
– Jason Weintraub, Entomology
In Animal Programs we reuse many items including boxes, paper towel tubes and cereal boxes as enrichment for our animals. Long shipping boxes make great tunnels for our armadillos. The rabbits, chinchilla and guinea pigs love pulling hay out from the paper towel tubes and ripping up cereal boxes! We also take donations of old and used blankets and some other clothing items to use for bedding for our opossum and armadillos.
– Karen Verderame, Animal Programs
At home, we definitely mend our clothes whenever we can. I borrow all my for-fun reading material from the Free Library. When grocery shopping, we put our fresh fruits and veggies in cloth bags and aim to only buy goods in paper or glass, such as our milk; we can even return the bottle for a refund. This year, we're also expecting a child so we're going to give cloth diapers a try.
-Brigette Brown, Marketing
In the Watershed Ecology Labs, we reuse sampling and field containers all the time. We carefully clean and store them between sampling dates.
– Tanya Dapkey, Watershed and Systems Ecology
One of the things I've found helpful is Facebook's Buy Nothing group. It has changed my life. With three kids under 4, I've gotten overwhelmed with buying stuff to keep them happy (and clothed). I've been able to score a ton of cool toys, games and clothing all free of charge. It feels good to not spend money on lots of plastic items or things that have a short time span (aka baby bathtubs and activity mats). The great part is that once I'm done with an item I can just repost and it goes back.
– Ria Capone, Library and Archives
We have virtually eliminated paper towels by using small, absorbent washrags for all the one-time uses of paper that seem to pop up every day. We also re-use ziplock baggies by washing and hanging them on an indoor clothesline, and in many cases we replace them with re-usable Tupperware or glass containers.
– Rick McCourt, Center for Systematic Biology and Evolution
I found a pair of old solid-wood end tables at a yard sale in Columbus, Ohio. I refurbished them by painting the base and refinishing the tops with a dark walnut stain. We’ve been using them in our living room ever since, along with other second-hand pieces I “flipped.”
– Katie Marquardt, Membership
I save old maps, wrapping paper, paper gift bags, ribbons and bows and reuse them, sometimes for years. I iron them with a warm iron so they flatten out. Family members know to save their used wrappings for me.
– Carolyn Belardo, Public Relations
November 2021: Composting: A Guide to Different Types
Together, yard debris and food waste account for nearly 30% of the materials disposed in U.S. landfills. However, both these items can easily be composted instead! Composting enables you to turn organic waste — items such as leaves, fruit peels, food scraps, coffee grounds and more — into a resource that can help nourish your soil and spruce up your yard. When thrown into an oxygen-deprived landfill, the very same items break down slowly and produce methane, contributing directly to global warming.
While this alternative waste method is becoming increasingly popular all over the country, not everyone has access to municipal composting systems or available backyard space to consider composting. In cities like Philadelphia, where renters make up almost half the population, it can be especially challenging in smaller spaces. However, if you have an empty kitchen or bathroom cabinet and a penchant for reducing your household waste, try vermicomposting!
Vermicomposting, or worm composting, is fairly simple and requires less space, effort and materials than regular composting. All you need is an empty bin, newspapers and some food waste — the worms will take care of the rest!
Read our Composting: A Guide to Different Types blog post to learn more about composting, and how you can start your very own vermicompost bin.
What items can go into compost?
- Fruit and vegetable peels and ends
- Coffee grounds and filters
- Tea bags
- Bread, crackers and cereal (fresh, stale or moldy)
- Eggshells
- Leaves and grass clippings without pesticides
- Newspapers
- Paper towels
What items should not go into compost
- Meat and dairy
- Household cleaners and chemicals
- Fats and oils
- Greasy food scraps
- Fermented products
- Non-edible materials (plastic, foil, clingwrap, etc)
Resources
October 2021: Reduce Energy Use At Home
When seasons change, so do indoor temperatures. Whether we're turning down the AC to cool off, or turning up the heat to get cozy, we use a lot of energy. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, in 2015 more than 76 million American households (64%) used a central air-conditioning system, an increase from less than 66 million households (59%) in 2005. And with increasingly irregular climate conditions, this number is only rising.
Whether your motivation is to save money or to decrease your carbon footprint, making small adjustments to your daily energy consumption can have a positive effect on the environment and help reduce the amount of energy consumed by your community.
Read our recent blog post to learn more about reducing energy use in your own home.
What's the Academy Doing to Reduce Energy?
The Academy’s commitment to combat climate change relies on the staff's willingness to take seemingly small, sustainable actions, as well as being able to save energy every day through a variety of recent building upgrades. Here are some recent efforts we've made to reduce energy.
- We switch off the ceiling lights, microscope lights and computers in our offices and labs after work hours.
- We exercise on Drexel University’s cardio machines that produce electricity when you pump your legs and arms.
- We installed a new, efficient HVAC system in the renovated Rare Book Room of the Academy Library.
- We also reclaimed more heat from this new HVAC system for maximum efficiency.
- We fitted most of the bathroom faucets in the museum to automatically turn off and on and the toilets with sensors to flush automatically.
- We use automatic light switches in the Library and meeting rooms throughout the building.
- We installed a white roof surface that reflects the sun’s heat and light.
Resources
September 2021: Bike to Work!
Even as we transition into new ways of living and working, bicycling has maintained its appeal: it's an affordable,
healthy way to get outside, enjoy our beautiful city and commute! And the data shows — the American Community Survey
states that more than 12,000 people in Philadelphia already bike to get around at least three times per week, making
Philly’s bicycle commuting rate higher than those of both Chicago and New York.
This September, join us as Philadelphia celebrates cleaner air, safer roads and healthier bodies with Love to Ride’s Cycle September.
What's it all about? Cycle September brings the National Bike Challenge to a close. Your rides will help your club or
group continue to climb the leaderboard and finish the National Bike Challenge on a high note. For September you can
also take part with your workplace and compete against others worldwide – to earn the most points by riding and
encouraging others to do the same.
Read Bike to Work on the Academy Blog to learn four reasons why the simple act of bicycling can help create a better world and a healthier you.
Resources
Indego's Special Offer
Don’t have a bike? No problem! With Indego, Philly’s very own bike-share program, there are pass options that allow
riders to check out bikes at their convenience. For a limited time, new riders can start their membership for $5 or
$2.50 for PA Access card holders, with the promo code INDELOVE21. Just in time for Cycle September!
Discover Indego Bike Share
- Indego offers free educational classes and community group rides in partnership with the Bicycle Coalition of
Greater Philadelphia. Check out an
overview of their programming, course details and upcoming dates.
- For a limited time, new riders can start their membership for $5 or $2.50 for PA Access card holders, with the
promo code INDELOVE21. This offer is eligible to any new rider regardless of whether they participate in the
Cycle September challenge.
- New to biking? Indego offers safe cycling and riding tips.
August 2021: Eat for the Planet!
Did you know that what you choose to eat impacts not only your health and waistline, but also the environment?
Eating
healthy foods that are sustainable can improve how you feel and also benefit the planet and your wallet.
Eating sustainably refers to foods that are produced in ways that have a minimal impact on natural resources,
ecosystems and biodiversity. Land use, water use and greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to global warming
all
affect the environment. Some of the most unhealthy foods are produced in ways that also are bad for the planet.
This doesn’t mean we all need to become vegetarians or vegans. But we have choices, and over time our
individual
choices — when multiplied by people around the country and the world — may once again lead to a
reversal
that would
make a real difference.
In this post, we offer six tips to sustainable eating. Read Eating for the Planet! on the Academy Blog.
Food Waste Matters. More Tips from Weavers Way Co-op
On average, 40% of food in America never makes it to a fork. It goes wasted. In landfills, these food scraps emit
greenhouse gases.
- Composted food does not have the same negative impact on our climate. Try composting at home or drop off food
scraps at an area
composting service.
- Lots of us waste vegetables. Get
tips from a Philadelphia chef on how to plan your shopping so
that every
vegetable you buy stays out of the waste stream.
- Save all parts of your vegetables and use them for making stock! Just throw them in a freezer bag. Skip any
vegetable from the brassica family, however.
Resources
Plant-Based Gyro Recipe and a Special Offer from Weavers Way Co-Op
With this recipe, you’ll convince even the most committed meat eaters that vegan alternatives are tasty.
Find
the
full recipe here. This gyro recipe comes from Bonnie
Shuman, executive chef at Weavers Way Co-op, which offers a
full vegan catering menu, lots of zero waste shopping options, local foods, grab and go vegan items, and is
committed to operating sustainably.
During the month of August, try shopping the Co-op – everyone is welcome! Use coupon code SmallActsAugust5
to
receive
$5 off $25 (one use per customer). You can also shop
the Co-op online if you cannot make it to Mt
Airy, Chestnut
Hill or Ambler.
July 2021: Easy Tips to Ease Off Plastic
As a society, we’re addicted to plastic, but the good news is that we can choose to reduce our use so we
can have cleaner streets, healthier wildlife and less polluted rivers and oceans.
Now is a good time to start, as this month heralds Plastic Free July, a global movement dedicated to inspiring
everyone to be part of the solution to plastic pollution. July 1 also marks the start of Philadelphia’s
ban on single-use plastic bags at retail establishments and a ban on paper bags that contain less than 40%
recycled content.
In this post, we offer 33 easy tips to help you on your path to reducing your reliance on plastics in your
everyday life.
Read Easy Tips to Ease off Plastic
on the Academy Blog.
What are you doing to reduce your use of plastics?
Resources
Special offer from United by Blue
Special thanks to our partner United By Blue coffeehouse and clothier, a sustainable brand of outdoor lifestyle
apparel, bags and accessories based in Philadelphia. Shop the sustainable kitchen and dining items including
beeswax, reusable food wrap and cork and copper straw kits, plus clothing, bags, gifts and more. During the
month of July receive 25% off with code: JulySmallActionsSparkBigChanges25. The code is good for 25% off, can be
used once per customer, and expires at midnight on July 30, 2021. Cannot be combined with other discount offers.
Which plastic containers can be recycled in Philadelphia?
The majority of household plastic containers are recyclable in Philadelphia’s single-stream curbside
recycling bin. This list of recyclable plastics is from our partners at Green Philly.
#1 – PET (Polyethylene): Soda and water bottles, condiment and peanut butter jars, etc.
#2 – HDPE (High Density Polyethylene): Milk, water and juice jugs, detergents, shampoo bottles, dairy
product containers, flower pots, some household cleaners
#3 – PVC – (Polyvinyl Chloride): Rigid plastic containers and juice bottles, Charcoal lighter,
mineral water, cooking oil bottles, etc.
#4 – LDPE – (Low Density Polyethylene): Plastic tubs and lids from butter, margarine or similar
products, Fabric softener bottles, lotion & sunscreen containers, etc
#5 – PP (Polypropylene): Yogurt containers and deli trays
#6 – PS (Polystyrene): Plastic cups, plates and to-go containers (clear, rigid #6 only, NOT Styrofoam*
products)
#7 – (Other plastic): Many mixed plastic containers and plastic products like ketchup squeeze bottles,
syrup bottles, microwave containers
You can also download the Plastics Recycling Fact Sheet for more info.
June 2021: Get Outside!
Five Tips and 100 Places to Inspire You to Get Outside
Doctors and psychologists have long recognized that spending time in nature leads to a healthier well-being. Time
spent outdoors is related to lower stress levels, decreased blood pressure, and a reduced risk of chronic
diseases such as asthma, allergies, diabetes and cardiovascular disease.
We've put together some easy tips and included 100 locations to inspire you explore the outdoors more.
Read Five Tips and 100 Places to Inspire You to Get Outside on the Academy Blog.
Resources for Getting Outdoors
Resources for local hikes:
Academy Nature Project
June is National Great Outdoors Month and we want to see how you are getting outside!
To encourage you to get outdoors this month, we're bringing back the Academy Nature Project. We'll
be posting a different photo prompt each week on our social media channels to encourage you to share both
current and past nature photos. Take a minute to get outside and snap a photo or to reflect on a previous
outdoor memory.
Upcoming prompts:
- June 3 - Green
- June 9 - Flowers and Fields
- June 16 - Water
- June 23 - Sunrise/Sunset
- June 30 – Trees/Forests
Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to see our prompts each week and share
your images in the replies or use #AcademyNatureProject.
Outdoor Opportunities via Philadelphia Parks and
Recreation
Looking for volunteering opportunities to get outside this month? Check out these ideas from the Philadelphia
Parks and Recreation Stewardship team.
May 2021: Sustainable Gardening
Seven Steps to Sustainable Gardening
Over the past year, COVID-19 has forced us all to spend much more time at home. For most of us, it has been a
stressful year, but many people have used this time to learn how to slow down and focus on the world around
them. With the pandemic's onset in early spring, many non-gardeners turned to flowerpots, raised beds and
backyard patches, both due to worries about food shortages and for something to do. As we collectively turned to
gardening, many found that time spent interacting with nature provided much-needed respite.
Gardening, whether in your yard, in pots on your windowsill or in a square foot of space between your house and
your sidewalk, is a wonderful way to enjoy nature while still adhering to social distancing recommendations.
Whether you're approaching this year's planting season as an experienced gardener, or you are trying it out for
the first time, consider how you can take steps to create a garden that is kind to the environment and does not
over-rely on natural resources. Below we provide seven tips on planning, planting and caring for a sustainable
garden.
On our blog, we provide seven tips on
planning, planting and caring for a sustainable garden.
Here's a sneak peek:
1. Think about your gardening goals.
Are you hoping to grow flowers, food or both? Do you want to cultivate unique plants? Have you considered ways to
use your garden to increase biodiversity or sustain local wildlife? Are you exploring a mix of the above?
It’s important to think critically about what purposes you want your garden to serve. Many people grow
gardens not only for the plants, but also for the cool native wildlife that the garden will attract, such as
bees, birds and butterflies. You can, for example, grow coneflowers to attract the American goldfinch, or you
can cultivate certain morning glory species to attract the golden tortoise beetle, which is the fastest
color-changing arthropod in the world! If you focus on planting native plants and on worrying less about holes
in leaves or petals, your garden may provide a nourishing space for local wildlife.
Learn more about sustainable gardening
on the Academy Blog.
Resources on Sustainable Gardening
We’re Walking the Walk
Many team members at the Academy have their own gardens or enjoy raising potted plants. A number of our
colleagues shared their own small, everyday, sustainable actions for gardening that we shared above. Here is a
collage of staff members at work in their own gardening spaces!
Planting for the Environment
In Plant the Tiny Seed, Christie Matheson helps the youngest naturalists understand how tiny seeds bloom
into stunning flowers. Through delicate collage and watercolor graphics and poetic, simple text, she
demonstrates the steps involved in planting a few seeds, taking care of them and watching them grow.
Readers are encouraged to “push” the seeds into the pages, wiggle their fingers to water the seeds,
tap the clouds to bring rain and clap to wake up the sun. They then can follow the growth of a zinnia and better
understand the role it serves in a garden of bees, butterflies and other animals.
Find a digital copy of the book at your local library or on YouTube. Then, do the following activity (or help
your kids help plant a garden of their own) to learn more about the process at home. While you work, explain the
main things that plants need to grow, including sun, water, soil and space.
Don’t have the book at home? No problem! Follow the prompts in our Planting
for the Environment blog and learn about planting on your own!
April 2021: Plant a Pollinator Garden
Plant a Pollinator Garden: A How-to Guide
Spring is in the air! If you’re like most home gardeners you’re making a list of which flowers, herbs
or crops you want to grow. You’re picturing a centerpiece of colorful flowers and that first summer bite
of a juicy tomato.
Besides reaping the fruits of nature, it can also be rewarding to turn the table and consider how you can benefit
nature. The small act of caring for our environment helps us get closer to nature. One way is by cultivating the
right plants that will attract pollinators to your urban rooftop of container plants, suburban yard or stretch
of meadow.
Pollinators—including bees, butterflies, moths, wasps, beetles, bats and birds--are essential to our
ecosystem because they help plants make fruit and seeds by transferring pollen from flower to flower. (Most of
those insects don’t sting but if you’re allergic to stings, you need to be careful.) Unfortunately,
habitat loss, fragmentation and chemical pesticides are threatening these creatures around the world. Native
pollinators are among the most sensitive because they require specific plants to survive, which are also
threatened by habitat loss and invasive species.
Fortunately, even the smallest native garden can help. We have tips on our blog to help you on the path to
creating a successful pollinator garden.
Click here to read our
how-to guide on the Academy Blog.
Resources on Building a Pollinator Garden
Check out our guide to making a seed mixture that will help attract pollinator bees to your garden.
ICYMI, on Dec. 1, 2020 we presented the Zoom event Spark Change: Native Flowers and Grasses featuring Academy
scientists and guests. Watch it now to learn about native flowers for your pollinator garden.
We’re Walking the Walk
We’ve arranged to offer you a special incentive to help us make our planet more sustainable. Commit to
planting for pollinators this spring, and we'll send you a free packet of Showy Northeast Native Wildflower and
Grass Mix from Ernst Seeds.
You can also join Academy scientists, educators and local experts at these free virtual events to learn how and
why to plant these seeds. Click on each event title and it will take you to our get-involved page with more
information and how to register and get your free seed packet.
Spark Change: Plant a
Pollinator Garden
Thursday, April 29, 4 p.m.
Small Actions for Kids: Plant
for Pollinators
Saturday, May 1, 10 a.m.
Coming Up Next
- May - Sustainable Gardening
- June - Get Outside
March 2021: Using Less Water
Using Less Water: A How-to Guide
It seems like water is all around us — but did you know that only one percent of the water on our
planet is available for drinking? About 97 percent of Earth’s water is saltwater, and
another two percent is frozen in ice caps and glaciers.
Our world’s population, along with our need for clean freshwater, is growing, but our water
supply is not. According to the United Nations, about 2 billion people are currently living in areas facing
serious water scarcity. By 2040, it is estimated that one in four of the world’s children
under 18, or 600 million, will be living in areas of extremely high water stress. Our water
enables us to run our businesses, protect our communities and keep ourselves alive, so it is critical that we
work to reduce water usage in our everyday lives.
Do you know how much water you use each day? Most people have no idea! People in the U.S. use approximately
100 gallons of fresh, drinkable water per day for bathing, drinking, flushing, cleaning and yard care. And
this number only takes into account the amount of
water we use directly every day.
Everything we buy, the energy we use and the food we eat requires water to produce. In
fact, Americans’ actual water “footprint” – the amount of water it
takes to produce our food, energy, clothes and more – is about 2,000 gallons
of water each day. We consume about 95 percent of the water we use without ever seeing
it. Purchasing recycled goods, carpooling with friends and eating locally grown veggies all will help to
reduce our water footprint.
What else can we do to use less water? Check out our blog to find out.
Resources on Using Less Water:
We’re Walking the Walk
The Academy’s commitment to use less water relies on institutional changes, as well as staff members’
and vistors' willingness to make seemingly small, everyday, sustainable actions. Inside the building, the
Academy has chosen to install water-friendly fixtures where possible. Some Academy sinks have low-flow faucets,
which save hundreds of gallons of water each year! The Academy’s low-flow toilets save hundreds of gallons
of water per year.
The Academy encourages visitors to drink tap water rather than purchasing single-use plastic water bottles. The
Academy has hydration stations where you can fill your reusable water bottles and avoid buying plastic water
bottles during your visit.
February 2021 - Backyard Habitats
If you’ve been spending more time at home due to COVID-19, you might be finding yourself staring out the
window and getting to know your local wildlife a little better. Squirrels, birds, bugs and other animals
visiting your backyard, front steps or feeders can provide just a little distraction from everyday worries.
Creating a home for wildlife is a small action that not only helps the animals and the environment, but also
provides educational opportunities and hours of delight for family members of all ages — from toddlers to
grandparents.
To get you started, we’ve provided some tips for providing the birds, the bees and the bats a place to
live, at least for a time. Check out our
Backyard Habitats blog.
Backyard Habitat Resources
Tour a Bee Farm Without Leaving Home
*We were forced to postpone our trip to Greensgrow Farms due to the snow.
Look for a rescheduled date soon!
You’re invited to join the Academy and Greensgrow
at noon on Thursday, Feb. 18, for a virtual tour of a working bee farm in Philadelphia’s Kensington
section. The Academy is partnering with Greensgrow for the Facebook Live tour in collaboration with Philly Bee
Co., which has operated beekeeping on the site for 15 years and recently moved their honey house processing to
the farm.
Greensgrow is an urban farm and plant nursery with locations in West Philadelphia and Kensington for educating
the community on food, plants and sustainable living in the city. On Feb. 18, Greensgrow Director Meg De Brito
and Philly Bee Company lead beekeeper Don Shump will tour the bee farm and answer questions from viewers on the
Academy’s
Facebook Live.
Greensgrow will open both of its locations of Feb. 27 for in-person visits and shopping for annuals, trees, soil,
tools and fresh honey. Greensgrow will also host educational programs on native plants, pollinator gardens, seed
keeping and vegetable gardening. Their goal is to make a more resilient city infrastructure.
Watch Our Workshop Video
In our Dec. 15, 2020 Spark Change: Bee Hotels and Bat Houses workshop, local experts offer tips on attracting
bats and bees to your own backyard.
January 2021 - Recycling
Last January when we wrote about recycling
we suggested keeping your recycling bin contamination free, avoiding wishcycling and knowing what must go to a
special facility to be recycled. Many of our tips from that post are still relevant. But of course, 2020 has
been a year like no other, and plenty of things have changed.
What's changed since last January? Read about in our Recycling 2021
blog.
Catch Up on Recycling News
Recycling Resources
December 2020: Reduce and Reuse
You’re spending way more time at home than usual because of the pandemic. Enclosed in your homey abode, you
look around and suddenly wonder: Where did all this STUFF come from? Panic sets in: I need to get rid of it!
With the winter holidays upon us, now is a good time to consider reusing and reducing that STUFF. Taking old
items that you might consider trashing or recycling and finding new uses for them is an excellent small action
anyone can take to help sustain the environment for future generations.
Of course, the most effective way to reduce waste is to not create it in the first place. Reducing new purchases
and reusing old items helps the planet all around. It prevents pollution linked to extracting more raw materials
to make a product, saves energy, reduces greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to climate change, and reduces
the amount of waste that’s transported to landfills and recycling centers. Plus, it saves you money!
It’s never been easier to make a positive impact on the planet. Small actions by a lot of people can make a
big impact for everybody. Here are some tips to get you started.
Find out what steps you can take to
reduce and reuse your STUFF by checking out our tips on the Academy Blog.
Reduce Reuse Resources
We’re Walking the Walk
The Academy staff takes seriously the challenges put forth by our SPARK campaign. Here they share their insight
and creativity with the small acts they do to reuse and reduce at work and at home.
In Animal Programs we reuse many items including boxes, paper towel tubes, and cereal boxes as enrichment for our
animals. Long shipping boxes make great tunnels for our armadillos. The rabbits, chinchilla and guinea pigs love
pulling hay out from the paper towel tubes and ripping up cereal boxes! We also take donations of old and used
blankets and some other clothing items to use for bedding for our opossum and armadillos.
– Karen Verderame, Animal Programs
In the Watershed Ecology Labs, we reuse sampling and field containers all the time. We carefully clean and store
them between sampling dates.
– Tanya Dapkey, Watershed and Systems Ecology
One of the things I've found helpful is Facebook's Buy Nothing group. It has changed my life. With three kids
under 4, I've gotten overwhelmed with buying stuff to keep them happy (and clothed). I've been able to score a
ton of cool toys, games and clothing all free of charge. It feels good to not spend money on lots of plastic
items or things that have a short time span (aka baby bathtubs and activity mats). The great part is that once
I'm done with an item I can just repost and it goes back.
– Ria Capone, Library and Archives
In the Invertebrate Paleontology collection, it is common to find specimens stored in all sorts of reused
containers. Collectors who have donated their fossils to the Academy used everything from cigar boxes to pill
bottles to ziplock bags to store fossils in. They usually remain in those containers in our cabinets until our
collection staff is ready to curate them. During curation, we try to reuse archival boxes and vials as long as
they are still in good shape, and we always reuse shipping boxes and packing materials when we send out loans to
researchers at other institutions.
– Katy Estes-Smargiassi, Invertebrate Paleontology
We have virtually eliminated paper towels by using small, absorbent washrags for all the one-time uses of paper
that seem to pop up every day. We also re-use ziplock baggies by washing and hanging them on an indoor
clothesline, and in many cases we replace them with re-usable Tupperware or glass containers.
– Rick McCourt, Center for Systematic Biology and Evolution
I found a pair of old solid-wood end tables at a yard sale in Columbus, Ohio. I refurbished them by painting the
base and refinishing the tops with a dark walnut stain. We’ve been using them in our living room ever
since, along with other second-hand pieces I “flipped.”
– Katie Marquardt, Membership
I save old maps, wrapping paper, paper gift bags, ribbons and bows and reuse them, sometimes for years. I iron
them with a warm iron so they flatten out. Family members know to save their used wrappings for me.
– Carolyn Belardo, Public Relations
I repurpose/recycle Mentos gum containers and transform them for collecting insects. A thin layer of "smelling
salts" (ammonium carbonate crystals) is poured into the bottom of the container and secured in place with a
layer of polyethylene foam. Tissue is added to the container to give the insects a place to “hide”
and to prevent them from knocking against the sides of the container and incurring damage during transport.
Ammonia vapor fills the container and knocks out any insects placed inside. These gum containers are
ideal because the lid is attached by a small tab (harder to lose), and it is a very tight seal so the
ammonia vapor cannot escape from the container.
– Jason Weintraub, Entomology
November 2020: Composting
It’s garbage day, and you’re dragging a heavy bag outside to the curb. You’ve just cleaned out
your fridge, and despite your best intentions, your blueberries got moldy, your spinach grew slimy and your
celery is gummy and yellow.
Feeling the burden of that waste is making you think, though. Is it ok to have this much trash? Is the landfill
the best place to send your food waste? And could you dispose of old food (or certain other organic waste) in
ways that are beneficial to the environment?
It turns out that the fall season is a great time to answer these questions. Starting with collecting the leaves
that are falling around you, there’s something you can do to make a difference.
Composting enables you to turn organic waste — items such as leaves, fruit peels, food scraps, coffee
grounds and more — into a resource that can help nourish your soil and spruce up your yard. When thrown
into an oxygen-deprived landfill, the very same items break down slowly and produce methane, contributing
directly to global warming.
Learn how to compost and find
out more about why it’s important.
Composting Resources
Compost Stew by Mary McKenna Siddals (Best for K–2)
This fun, rhyming ABC book takes readers through items that could be used to make compost but that may otherwise
be thrown away. Naming an alphabet’s worth of items from apple cores and eggshells (crushed, of course) to
dryer lint and zinnia heads, Compost Stew is an excellent tool to get youngsters interested in what happens to
our “trash.”
Already composting? You can do more! Check out
Philadelphia’s guide to local disposal, recycling and donation options for many types of
materials.
We’re Walking the Walk
Over a quarter of Academy staff compost at home, and more are starting every day.
- Manager of Membership and Appeals Katie Marquardt used to compost with her family in Ohio, but since they
moved to Philadelphia, they have been unsure about how to get started given their small outdoor space. Katie
has taken our November composting month as an opportunity to finally implement a composting routine at her
house, including solving the “space” problem that her new digs pose. Check back to our blog in
late November for updates from Katie on what changes she has made this month!
- Malacology Collection Manager Paul Callomon has been composting since he was a kid. To make composting
easier, his family has two staging bins (one in the kitchen sink!) and a main composter, which is a
purchased plastic bin with removable lids. Paul’s family uses the compost in his vegetable garden.
- Exhibit Designer Lauren Duguid learned to compost a few years ago when her friend showed her the composter
in her yard. She is a renter, so she uses a compost pickup service in her area. To mitigate the cost and
volume barriers, she has teamed up with neighbors in her building to pool resources. She keeps food scraps
in her fridge and periodically empties them into a shared compost bucket that lives on her porch until her
weekly pick up day. For Lauren, the reward of knowing she’s diverting material away from the landfill
is a huge motivator. “After starting composting, I’ve cut my household trash by about a
third,” she says.
- Like Lauren, Invertebrate Paleontology Collection Manager Katy Estes-Smargiassi also composts at home using
a local service. She points out that some compost services like the one she uses will provide free finished
compost soil to members once a year, so even if you don’t have your own compost pile, you can use the
finished product in your garden.
- Watershed and Systems Ecology Staff Scientist Tanya Dapkey became interested in composting while
participating in a Holistic Moms group. She adds her scraps to a bin on her counter and periodically takes
them outside to a larger bin that she can see from her kitchen window. Like Paul, Tanya uses her compost in
her veggie garden every spring. She recommends adding beer to the compost each spring to help boost the
breakdown process!
- BEES Operations Manager Roger Thomas has a compost pile adjacent to his garden. Composting “decreases
the need for store-bought fertilizers and decreases the amount of waste that ends up in landfills,” he
says. He suggests turning to the many online resources of Penn State
Extension for composting guidance.
- Director of Communications Mary Alice Hartsock started composting with her family about six years ago. Mary
Alice uses a 77-gallon plastic bin outdoors but keeps a smaller, odor-free bin under the sink to collect
food scraps, coffee grounds, plant trimmings and more. As a busy mom, Mary Alice likes the convenience of
the indoor bin, which helps her avoid throwing the constantly flowing scraps like banana peels and apple
cores into the trash.
- The Academy’s Catering partner, 12 St. Catering, uses locally sourced ingredients and eco-friendly
practices in bringing your vision of a green wedding to life. They also compost leftover ingredients in
their on-site facility in Philadelphia.
October 2020: Environmental Justice
Environmental injustice is all around us. Scientists, policymakers and activists have long recognized that
low-income neighborhoods and communities of color bear an unfair share of the nation’s environmental
hazards—a product of systemic institutional racism and chronic disinvestment.
If you live, work, visit or drive through Philadelphia, you’ve encountered the evidence: neighborhoods with
little to no greenspace, scorching summer temperatures, poor air quality.
Or you may have seen the headlines about the June 2019 explosion at the troubled Philadelphia Energy Solutions
refinery that released a deadly chemical and hurled shrapnel as large as a truck into the surrounding southwest
Philadelphia neighborhood. Or the lead exposure crisis in Flint, Mich., that began when the city switched its
drinking water supply in a cost-saving move. Or the 85-mile “Cancer Alley” corridor between Baton
Rouge and New Orleans in Louisiana lined with 150 chemical plants and refineries. The list goes on.
Click here to read more about
actions you can take to support environmental justice.
Need motivation to get involved? Think about this:
If you live in Philadelphia County, the air you breathe may put your health at risk, the American Lung
Association warned Philadelphians in 2019 after the PES refinery explosion near the Grays Ferry neighborhood.
Chester, Pa., a small city with a low-income Black community tucked amidst an affluent mostly white Delaware
County, is the site of a cluster of industrial polluting facilities that serve the county as a whole while
placing health and environmental burdens on the local community, notes The Public Interest Law Center.
Some 77,000 families living in federally assisted housing, including some in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, live
within one mile of a Superfund site (a place contaminated with hazardous waste and pollutants) designated for
cleanup by the federal government, according to the Shriver Center on Poverty Law. Philadelphia has four
Superfund sites and Camden, N.J., the nation’s poorest city, has two.
Black Americans are 75% more likely than others to live near facilities that produce hazardous waste, according
to a 2017 report from the N.A.A.C.P. and the Clean Air Task Force.
Black Americans are subjected to higher levels of air pollution than white Americans regardless of their income
level, according to a study by the Environmental Protection Agency’s National Center for Environmental
Assessment and published in 2018 in the American Journal of Public Health.
Indigenous communities are disproportionately exposed to environmental contaminants, often due to federal and
state laws that make it easier for extractive and polluting facilities to access tribal lands.
Environmental Justice Resources
Environmental Topic Books to Share with Your Children
Grades PK-2
Grades 3-7
Grades 8-12
Compiled by Amy Hoyt, Academy Youth and Family Programs Educator
We’re Walking the Walk
In a partnership with The Nature Conservancy, Temple University and Drexel University, Academy researches are
working on a project to identify regions in Philadelphia where private investment in green stormwater
infrastructure would support the city’s efforts to reduce combined sewer overflows while also
providing substantive community benefits to neighborhoods suffering from chronic disinvestment. Thoughtfully
designed urban greenspace provides local cooling, improved air quality, flood control, wildlife habitat, stress
reduction, and recreational opportunities. This yearlong project is funded by the William Penn Foundation.
Since 1982, the Academy has operated Women In Natural Sciences to
bridge the gaps in gender and cultural equality. WINS is a free after-school and summer science enrichment
program that has introduced hundreds of high school girls to future careers in science and other professions.
“Our WINS students learn about environmental justice, the impacts we have on our environment and how we
all can be part of the solution,” says Kimberly Godfrey, manager of social justice programs says.
“We connect students with Academy scientists, which gives them first-hand experience in the field and
exposes them to careers they would not have considered. WINS girls share these experiences with their
families and peers and will one day be mentors to young women like them in their community.”
In January 2021, the Academy will deliver a week of digital programs that define and explore environmental
justice to commemorate the work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. A variety of programs for both children and
adults will include both live events and downloadable content and resource guides that will explore the concept
of environmental justice and why it is critical to the work we do at the Academy and how we serve our
communities. There will be panel discussions for adults, conversations and storytelling with children, film
screenings, lectures, and expanded access to museum admission for underserved areas. Stay tuned for details.
September 2020: Register and Vote!
The 26th amendment to the U.S. Constitution gives every U.S. citizen age 18 and older the right to vote. Voting
is the fundamental right that people living in a democracy possess to voice their opinion on issues that affect
them and on elected officials who have the power to influence those issues, or not.
It may seem like a small action to those who have voted in many elections for many years, but voting can lead to
big changes in how we experience life and who makes those decisions in our neighborhoods, communities,
municipalities, counties, states and at the federal level. With the Nov. 3 general election right around the
corner, the Academy of Natural Sciences urges every eligible voter to research the platform of each candidate,
then make your voice heard. Register to vote by the deadline required by your state, and then vote on time.
Click here for important voting information on the Academy
Blog.
Resources
Important Dates
Election day is Tuesday, November 3, 2020.
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania allows any voter to request a ballot by mail. Click here
to request a mail-in ballot. Click here to
check your registration status.
- The deadline to register online to vote is Monday, October 19, 2020.
- The deadline for registering by mail to vote is (postmarked by) Monday, October 19, 2020.
- The deadline to register in person to vote is Monday, October 19, 2020.
- The deadline to request a ballot by mail is (received by) Tuesday, October 27, 2020.
- The early voting period runs from Monday, September 14, 2020 to Tuesday, October 27, 2020, but dates and
hours may vary based on where you live.
New Jersey
New Jersey will mail a ballot to all active, registered voters for the General Election. Click here to check your registration
status.
- The deadline for registering by mail to vote is (postmarked by) Tuesday, October 13, 2020.
- The deadline to register in person to vote is Tuesday, October 13, 2020.
- The early voting period runs from Saturday, September 19, 2020 to Monday, November 2, 2020, but dates and
hours may vary based on where you live.
Delaware
Delaware allows any voter to request a ballot by mail. Click here to check your registration status or request a mail-in ballot.
- The deadline to register
online to vote is Saturday, October 10, 2020.
- The deadline for registering by mail to vote is (postmarked by) Saturday, October 10, 2020.
- The deadline to register in person to vote is Saturday, October 10, 2020.
- The deadline to request a ballot by mail is (received by) Friday, October 30, 2020.
Read more:
We’re Walking the Walk
Back in 2008, Drexel University, with which the Academy is affiliated, joined the Philadelphia Bar Association,
Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce and Committee of Seventy to invite other employers to allow employees
time off in order to vote on Election Day. The University and the Academy now give employees up to one hour of
paid time off to vote.
August 2020: Reduce Household Energy Use
40 Tips to Reduce Your Energy Use
It’s hot and humid, and you just got back from a COVID walk-around-the-block break from your bedroom
office. All you want to do is open the refrigerator door and stand in front of it.
Don’t do it! You’ll feel cooler, but letting that cold air escape wastes enough energy to power 50
loads of laundry. Plus, it costs you money and affects the environment.
Whether your motivation is to save money or to decrease your carbon footprint, making small adjustments to
reduce your daily energy consumption can have a positive effect on the environment and help reduce the amount of
energy consumed by your community.
Although your own energy saving adjustments may seem inconsequential, small steps become great leaps when
multiplied by 7 billion others just like you. Try switching up some of your lifestyle habits in August with our
40 easy tips. Then share your tips on social and in the comments at the end of the blog post.
Click here for 40 Tips to
Reduce Your Energy Use.
What are you doing to conserve energy?
Resources
Tools and Calculators
On PECO’s
Tools & Calculators webpage, you can calculate your energy savings on six household features:
heating, heat pump, water heater, gas heat conversion, heater efficiency, and thermostat settings. In the
Heating tab, there’s an option to calculate you Cooling efficiency, which could help in deciding how much
to run your air conditioner this summer.
Click here to explore
PECO's Cooling Calculator (photo via peco.com)
We’re Walking the Walk
The Academy’s commitment to combat climate change relies on staff members’ willingness to make
seemingly small, everyday sustainable actions. This month most of the staff are still working from home most of
the time due to city and state regulations. We remember fondly switching off the ceiling lights, microscope
lights and computers in our offices and labs when we left for the night. We took the steps instead of the
elevators. We felt good about exercising on Drexel University’s cardio machines that produce electricity
when you pump your legs and arms. We’ve not lost these good habits! Now that the museum has reopened on a
partial schedule, our teams are renewing our energy reduction efforts both at work again and at home.
The Academy also is able to save energy every day through a variety of recent building upgrades. This year we
installed a new, efficient HVAC system in the renovated rare book room of the Academy Library. The library and
also meeting rooms throughout the building have been fitted with automatic on/off light switches. Most of the
bathroom faucets in the museum automatically turn off and on, and the toilets have sensors that allow them to
flush automatically. The most recent roof work was done with a white roof surface to reflect the sun’s
heat and light, and the building’s heating system reclaims heat for maximum efficiency.
Upcoming Topics
Each month in 2020, we’ll guide a conversation in the galleries and online to share how small actions can
spark big changes in our world.
July 2020: Reduce Plastic Use
40 Ways to Reduce Your Plastic
It’s Plastic Free July, and millions of people around the world are starting the month long challenge to
reduce their use of plastics. Plastic Free July is a global movement begun in 2011 in Australia. It’s
grown to be one of the most influential environmental campaigns in the world, and this month 250 million people
in 177 countries are expected to participate.
We created plastic 150 years ago; we love it and depend on it. But plastic waste has become a global plague, one
that industries and nations need to solve on a planetary scale. Individual acts alone can’t fix global
ills, but the Academy believes small actions on a global scale CAN make a difference and that allows more energy
to go into the search for solutions.
Consider taking the Plastic Free July challenge today. To get started, pick a couple tips that fit your lifestyle
from the list below. Then share your tips or social and in the comments section at the end.
What are you doing to reduce your use of plastics?
Resources
Which plastic containers can be recycled in Philadelphia?
The majority of household plastic containers are recyclable in Philadelphia’s single-stream curbside
recycling bin. This list of recyclable plastics is from our partners at Green Philly.
#1 – PET (Polyethylene): Soda and water bottles, condiment and peanut butter jars, etc.
#2 – HDPE (High Density Polyethylene): Milk, water and juice jugs, detergents, shampoo bottles, dairy
product containers, flower pots, some household cleaners
#3 – PVC – (Polyvinyl Chloride): Rigid plastic containers and juice bottles, Charcoal lighter,
mineral water, cooking oil bottles, etc.
#4 – LDPE – (Low Density Polyethylene): Plastic tubs and lids from butter, margarine or similar
products, Fabric softener bottles, lotion & sunscreen containers, etc
#5 – PP (Polypropylene): Yogurt containers and deli trays
#6 – PS (Polystyrene): Plastic cups, plates and to-go containers (clear, rigid #6 only, NOT Styrofoam*
products)
#7 – (Other plastic): Many mixed plastic containers and plastic products like ketchup squeeze bottles,
syrup bottles, microwave containers
You can also download the Plastics Recycling Fact Sheet for more info.
DIY Powdered Laundry Soap
Katie Marquardt, Manager of Membership and Appeals, makes her own powdered laundry soap for her family of two
adults and one child. This recipe lasts her about three months.
Ingredients measured as dry cups
- Scant 2 cups Arm & Hammer Washing Soda
- 3 cups Borax
- 2 cups baking soda
- ½ cup LA’s Totally Awesome Oxygen Base Cleaner
- 4 oz bar of Kirk’s Gentle Castile Soap, grated
Mix all ingredients in a large bowl. Add the finished product to a container with a tight-fitting lid.
We're Walking the Walk
When we asked the Academy staff for tips to pass along to our readers, we were flooded with ideas. This one came
from Carol Collier, the Academy’s senior advisor, watershed management and policy.
Check out www.loopstore.com, www.loopindustries.com and www.terracycle.com We buy products from Loop.
They come in reusable (not recyclable but reusable) containers. When we have finished using a bottle of laundry
detergent, hand soap, Clorox wipes, etc. we send the bottles back in a shipping box they provide and say whether
we want a refill of a certain product or not. It is the next big step past recycling. The company is in Trenton,
N.J. and also started TerraCycle (www.terracycle.com) where you can recycle things like snack bags, the bag inside cereal
boxes, toothpaste tubes, etc. There are pick up areas at the Weavers Way Co-ops.
June 2020: Get Outside
6 Tips to Get Outside Without Leaving Home
Nature is all around us, but a funny thing is happening now that people have been largely confined to their homes
for months because of COVID-19. They’re taking notice!
With vacations dashed and many destinations still shuttered, grand plans for fun and relaxation have shrunk to
what can be done in the backyard, front stoop, balcony, and looking out the window. Turns out there’s
plenty to do, and health experts advise dialing up your creativity to find new ways to enjoy the great outdoors
from your own home.
Studies by the Centers for Disease Control show that time outdoors boosts our physical fitness, immune system,
concentration and mental health, while reducing stress, fatigue, inflammation and mortality risk. Now, after
being cooped up for weeks with no school or work in the traditional setting, kids and adults are embracing
nature more and more as a comfort in this time of crisis.
On our blog we offer a few tips to help you enjoy the physical and mental benefits of nature despite
restrictions because of the coronavirus. Here’s the first tip:
Become an eco-traveler without traveling.
You don’t have to go to the beach or the park to find nature. Simply walk out the door or open a window
and you’ll find all kinds of flowers, trees, weeds, worms, beetles, spiders, ants, bees, butterflies,
birds, mice, squirrels, stray cats — you get the idea — hiding in plain sight. Be quiet, patient,
motionless and observant. For example, if a bird is your object of fascination, listen to its song and try to
imitate it. Think about what the bird is doing; pulling a worm out of the dirt? Look at the beak; the shape and
size give clues to what it eats. Sketch what you see. Watch for patterns; if a bird is building a nest it will
fly back and forth carrying something over and over. Take notes and photos. If that seems like homework, then
just enjoy the experience.
Click here to read the full
article.
What are you doing to get outside this spring?
We asked the Academy staff to record a short video of themselves explaining what they are doing to get outside.
Here’s a quickie compilation to inspire you:
Resources for Getting Outdoors
When home just doesn’t cut it, take a walk in the park.
Resources for local hikes:
Pennsylvania state parks near Philadelphia:
-
Benjamin
Rush, Northeast Philadelphia
- Ridley
Creek, Delaware County
- White Clay
Creek Preserve, Chester County
- Marsh
Creek, Chester County
- French
Creek, Berks County
- Nolde
Forest Environmental Education Center, Berks County
- Delaware
Canal, Bucks County
- Ralph
Stover, Bucks County
- Nockamixon,
Bucks County
- Tyler, Bucks
County
- Neshaminy,
Bucks County
National Parks near Philadelphia:
Nation’s First Urban Wildlife Refuge:
We’re Walking the Walk
In May, the Academy’s social media team announced the Academy Nature Project to staff, asking them to post
their nature photos on any of the Academy’s social media channels. The images poured in, and the project
was expanded to include submissions from the public. When the museum reopens, we’ll showcase many of the
photos alongside our Wildlife Photographer of
the Year exhibit. We can’t wait to see what photos we receive in June! For more information,
visit
ansp.org/nature.
May 2020: Eat Local
6 Tips for Eating Local
Eating is one of the great joys in life. We need to eat to survive — even during a pandemic. With the
spring bounty making its way to market in May, now is a good time to try new options for eating local.
The idea of buying fresh foods from growers and grocers close to home rather than from another coast or country
is not new; it went mainstream in the 1970s, after the first Earth Day. Today, shuttered restaurants, social
distancing and queues of masked shoppers remind us that not only is eating local healthy and good for the
environment, it’s also a lifeline for farmers, cooks and food-service workers.
On our blog we offer a few tips
to help you navigate the brave new world of coronavirus and still eat healthy and local.
To give you a taste, here’s the first tip:
Farmers markets have many safety measures to protect shoppers.
Many of the year-round farmers markets operated by the Food Trust, Farm to City and others remain open in
Philadelphia and the five-county region, but that could change so check their websites or Facebook before you
go. Resourceful vendors have adopted safety measures including pre-bagging produce so it’s not handled by
other customers, eliminating product sampling, online ordering in advance, and special early hours for seniors
and the immunocompromised.
“The producers are very confident they can do this in a safe and conscientious way,” Jon Glyn,
farmers market program manager for Farm to City told The Philadelphia Inquirer.
Unfortunately, the leisurely stroll and chit-chat with neighbors in the open-air market will have to wait for
another season.
Click here to read the full
article.
Why is it important to eat locally grown foods?
Resources for Eating Local
We’re Walking the Walk
Many Academy staff are passionate about buying locally grown foods locally. Here are some of their favorite
markets:
Philadelphia
Bucks County
Delaware County
Montgomery County
Chester County
New Jersey
Surprise surprise: our staff likes to cook and eat! We exchanged recipes, and you can see Exhibit Designer Lauren
Duguid’s favorite
omelet recipe on the blog. But what about the salad in that image?
Lauren: “I like to drizzle balsamic glaze and olive oil on colorful tomatoes and top them with fresh basil
and pink salt. It's great paired with a room temperature soft cheese, spread on sourdough toast. My go-to soft
cheeses for this are Bucheron, Humboldt Fog and Vermont Creamery's Bijou. If you go the Bijou route, it's
amazing on toast with honey.
April 2020: Plant!
Seven Steps to Sustainable Gardening
With the outbreak of COVID-19, people across the world are spending more time at home. Being stuck inside can be
difficult, and time spent interacting with nature often can provide much-needed respite.
Gardening, whether in your yard, in pots on your windowsill or in a square foot of space between your house and
your sidewalk, is a wonderful way to enjoy nature while still adhering to social distancing recommendations. As
you plan your garden this year, consider how you can take steps to create a garden that is kind to the
environment and does not over-rely on natural resources.
On our blog, we provide
seven tips on planning, planting and caring for a sustainable garden.
Here’s a sneak peek:
1.Think about your gardening goals.
Are you hoping to grow flowers, food or both? Do you want to cultivate unique plants? Have you considered ways to
use your garden to increase biodiversity or sustain local wildlife? Are you exploring a mix of the above?
It’s important to think critically about what purposes you want your garden to serve. Many people grow
gardens not only for the plants, but also for the cool native wildlife that the garden will attract, such as
bees, birds and butterflies. You can, for example, grow coneflowers to attract the American goldfinch, or you
can cultivate certain morning glory species to attract the golden tortoise beetle, which is the fastest
color-changing arthropod in the world! If you focus on planting native plants and on worrying less about holes
in leaves or petals, your garden may provide a nourishing space for local wildlife.
Learn more about sustainable gardening on the Academy Blog: https://www.anspblog.org/seven-steps-to-sustainable-gardening/
Why are plants important?
Resources on Sustainable Gardening
We’re Walking the Walk
Many team members at the Academy have their own gardens or enjoy raising potted plants. A number of our
colleagues shared their own small, everyday, sustainable actions for gardening that we shared above. Here is a
collage of staff members at work in their own gardening spaces!
Planting for the Environment
In Plant the Tiny Seed, Christie Matheson helps the youngest naturalists understand how tiny seeds bloom
into stunning flowers. Through delicate collage and watercolor graphics and poetic, simple text, she
demonstrates the steps involved in planting a few seeds, taking care of them and watching them grow.
Readers are encouraged to “push” the seeds into the pages, wiggle their fingers to water the seeds,
tap the clouds to bring rain and clap to wake up the sun. They then can follow the growth of a zinnia and better
understand the role it serves in a garden of bees, butterflies and other animals.
Find a digital copy of the book at your local library or on YouTube. Then, do the following activity (or help
your kids help plant a garden of their own) to learn more about the process at home. While you work, explain the
main things that plants need to grow, including sun, water, soil and space.
Don’t have the book at home? No problem! Follow the prompts in our Planting for the Environment blog and learn about planting on your
own!
March 2020: Using Less Water
Using Less Water: A How-to Guide
It seems like water is all around us — but did you know that only one percent of the water on our
planet is available for drinking? About 97 percent of Earth’s water is saltwater, and
another two percent is frozen in ice caps and glaciers.
Our world’s population, along with our need for clean freshwater, is growing, but our water
supply is not. According to the United Nations, about 2 billion people are currently living in areas facing
serious water scarcity. By 2040, it is estimated that one in four of the world’s children
under 18, or 600 million, will be living in areas of extremely high water stress. Our water
enables us to run our businesses, protect our communities and keep ourselves alive, so it is critical that we
work to reduce water usage in our everyday lives.
Do you know how much water you use each day? Most people have no idea! People in the U.S. use approximately
100 gallons of fresh, drinkable water per day for bathing, drinking, flushing, cleaning and yard care. And
this number only takes into account the amount of
water we use directly every day.
Everything we buy, the energy we use and the food we eat requires water to produce. In
fact, Americans’ actual water “footprint” – the amount of water it
takes to produce our food, energy, clothes and more – is about 2,000 gallons
of water each day. We consume about 95 percent of the water we use without ever seeing
it. Purchasing recycled goods, carpooling with friends and eating locally grown veggies all will help to
reduce our water footprint.
What else can we do to use less water? Check out our blog to find out.
Visit Us and Join the Conversation
Just beyond the Academy’s lobby in our Science at the Academy gallery, you’ll find a temporary
exhibit space where you can join the conversation about what using less water means to you. Using a magnetic
talk-back wall, write down what small actions you’ve taken to benefit the environment, and watch a video
to find out how others have done the same.
How can we use less water?
Resources on Using Less Water:
We’re Walking the Walk
The Academy’s commitment to use less water relies on institutional changes, as well as staff members’
willingness to make seemingly small, everyday, sustainable actions. This month, we’re teaming up with our
colleagues for the following initiatives:
In April, May and November, the Academy and Philadelphia clothier United By Blue have formed a community
partnership aimed at removing 25,000 pounds of trash from the Delaware River in the Philadelphia area. Cleanups
will take place at designated streams and creeks along the Delaware this spring and fall. The cleanup schedule
will be posted on the Academy’s website and on unitedbyblue.com.
Inside the building, the Academy has chosen to install water-friendly fixtures where possible. Some Academy sinks
have low-flow faucets, which save hundreds of gallons of water each year! The Academy’s low-flow toilets
save hundreds of gallons of water per year.
The Academy encourages visitors to drink tap water rather than purchasing single-use plastic water bottles. The
Academy has hydration stations where you can fill your reusable water bottles and avoid buying plastic water
bottles during your visit.
In other environmental news, Drexel University (including the Academy) is participating in RecycleMania, a
friendly, nationwide recycling competition among colleges and universities. Throughout the months of February
and March, we are tracking the amount of paper, cardboard, aluminum, glass, plastic, cell phones and computer
equipment recycled to be benchmarked against the other participating institutions.
February 2020 - Talking About Climate Change
Talk to Someone You Love About Climate Change
Why is it that talking about our changing climate can lead to such discomfort among ourselves and our loved
ones?
“The debate over climate change in the United States (and elsewhere) is not about carbon dioxide and
greenhouse gas models; it is about opposing cultural values and worldviews through which that science is
seen,” writes Andrew J. Hoffman, University of Michigan professor and author of How Culture Shapes the
Climate Change Debate.
“Those cultural values create a pattern of shared basic assumptions that tell us the correct way to
perceive, think, and feel in relation to problems and situations we face. […] As a result, when different
groups view the same science through opposing cultural lenses, they see something very different.”
Even the most dedicated advocates may feel uncomfortable disagreeing with a close relative or friend who
doesn’t share their worldviews on climate change. This might be because of a desire to preserve a
relationship or it may be due to something else, like concerns about creating awkwardness, spurring an argument,
sounding “too smart” or sounding not smart enough.
So what do you really need to say or do to have an effective conversation about climate change? Are there times
when you should (or even shouldn’t) provoke or join in the conversation?
On the Academy blog, we take
you through some simple ways to approach a conversation about climate change with people in your life.
Visit Us and Join the Conversation
Just beyond the Academy’s lobby in our Science at the Academy gallery, you’ll find a temporary
exhibit space where you can join the conversation about what climate change means to you. Using a magnetic
talk-back wall, write down what small actions you’ve taken to benefit the environment, and watch a video
to find out how others have done the same.
What does climate change mean to you?
Resources on Talking About Climate Change
Resources on Managing Climate Change’s Emotional Toll
Global Temperature Anomalies from 1880 to 2019 (make sure to watch until the end!)
We’re Walking the Walk
The Academy’s commitment to combat climate change relies on staff members’ willingness to make
seemingly small, everyday, sustainable actions. This month, we’re teaming up with our colleagues for the
following initiatives:
Talking About Climate Change
By informing, initiating and convening conversations that matter, the Academy creates a trusted space for civic
discourse. Academy evening programs such as Town Square and Academy Conversation are designed to engage and
provide relevant, accessible educational content to the public on environmental issues. Our programs focus on
critical global issues in environmental science by featuring prominent thought leaders and their findings on
biodiversity, freshwater issues, climate change and evolution.
Environmental advocates, scientists and community members come together for an opportunity to further their
knowledge about environmental and sustainability matters through accurate, real-time scientific information.
After participating in these programs, attendees have told us that they feel confident discussing climate change
outside these special forums, with family members, friends and others who are close to them.
Sustainable Love Notes
Yep, that’s right we’ve got sustainably packaged, customized candy hearts for our staff featuring
sayings such as “science matters,” “climate change is real” and “be a force for
nature.” Fun? Definitely. Frivolous? Maybe not. We’re hoping that staff will take them home, share
them with relatives and friends and help their loved ones digest the important messages featured on the hearts.
January 2020 - Recycling
Recycling 101
In January 2019, we learned that over 50% of Philadelphia’s recycling was being sent straight to an
incinerator in Chester. The problem was part of a larger issue with recycling nationwide — that the market
for purchasing recycled goods, with China being the primary buyer, had shifted greatly. In 2018, China decided
to no longer accept recycled materials that didn’t meet new stringent rules around contamination and mixed
materials. Soon, recycling, which had actually been profitable for Philadelphia, became an expense for the city.
One of the main reasons that much of Philadelphia’s and the United States’ recycling is so expensive
to sell is that it is deeply contaminated. You can help address this problem by knowing what you can recycle and
how best to clean your recycling. On the Academy Blog, find out the answers to these common questions about recycling in Philly:
- How clean should my recycling be?
- What can and can’t you recycle curbside?
- What can you recycle at a special facility?
- How can you reduce the amount of recycling you create?
- What does yard waste and composting have to do with creating less waste?
- What resources can help me recycle properly in the Philadelphia suburbs?
What question do you have about recycling?
Sometimes recycling properly seems like such a difficult code to crack that you may want to give up. But
you’re not alone, and we encourage you to keep trying! Together, we can make a difference by sharing what
we know and supporting others as they learn. Here are some questions that our visitors and staff have about
recycling. Do you know the answers?Join our conversation on Facebook!
Recycling Resources
We’re Walking the Walk
The Academy’s commitment to combat climate change relies on staff members’ willingness to make
seemingly small, everyday, sustainable actions. This month, we’re teaming up with our colleagues for the
following initiatives:
Recycling
The Academy recycles every day — not just in January! In additional to single stream recycling items, we
also have spaces to recycle plastic bags, chip bags, batteries and small electronics.
Academy Swap
In January 2020, the Academy is holding our first "Academy Swap." Employees can bring in everything from unwanted
holiday gifts to used household goods and clothing. We’ll donate leftover clothes to charity and recycle
or dispose of other items properly. We’re also having a battery recycling and paper shredding event for
our staff.
