 We recently launched a new Choose to Reuse website to help residents keep usable stuff out of the trash and obtain quality items without buying new. The website is a gathering space for Twin Cities green thinkers and helps people make sustainable choices for everyday living.
The website features:
- A listing of more than 600 local places to sell, donate, buy, repair, rent, and share items. The site guides you to the most convenient reuse option based on the item, your location, and what action you want to take.
- “Spotlight on Reuse” articles that take a deep dive into reuse topics, such as cloth diapering and the impacts of fast fashion.
- Local event highlights to keep you in the loop on area Fix-It Clinics, neighborhood garage sales, classes and more.
- Opportunities to suggest businesses, events or reuse topics to be added to the website.
A newsletter article, social media posts and images are available to promote the Choose to Reuse website.
 Clothing and textiles that can’t be reused or donated are now accepted for recycling at Hennepin County Drop-Off Facilities. Materials accepted include: bedding, curtains, pillows, shoes, stuffed toys, tablecloths, torn or stained clothing, and towels.
Items must be clean and dry and put in plastic bags. Remember that if your used clothes can be reused, give them away, sell or donate them first. See the Green Disposal Guide for more information.
A newsletter article, social media posts and image are available to promote textile recycling.
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 4th grade teachers can register now to bring their class to the Metro Children’s Water Festival, which is a free, full-day field trip focused on learning about water and actions we can take to protect the environment. The water festival will be held Wednesday, September 27 at the Minnesota State Fairgrounds in St. Paul.
Participating schools will be selected through a lottery drawing. Register for the lottery by March 31. The field trip is free, and schools selected to participate from Hennepin County may apply for a bus through the county to cover the costs of transportation to and from the field trip.
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 Clean Water Minnesota recently featured a partnership between Harmony Learning Center and the Ramsey-Washington Metro Watershed District that teaches adult students learning English about water issues. The students, who are recent immigrants to Minnesota, take field trips to see water-quality protection projects in action, learn new vocabulary words, better understand the water system and impacts to water quality, and discover actions that we can take to protect water.
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Other stories recently featured on Clean Water Minnesota include:
Share these stories to inspire your audiences to take action to protect water.
Rethink Recycling provides new posts on their blog monthly for partners to share through their communication channels. The following new articles are available:
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Watch out for wish cycling: There are lots of items that cause trouble for processing facilities. Wish cycling is when someone recycles something that they aren’t sure is recyclable or thinks should be accepted even if it’s not. This post offers suggestions for what you can do with commonly wish cycled items such as clothing, dishes and plastic bags.
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Ease on down the recycling road: Your recycling bin is just the beginning of the journey. This posts takes an inside look at what happens to recyclables after they leave your home – from being sorted at a processing facility to becoming new products.
Green Partners networking meeting
Waste in Hennepin County: how low can we go?
 Join Hennepin County and the Green Partners Network in a discussion about what it will take to reach our 75 percent recycling goal by 2030. This is an opportunity to provide input as Hennepin County begins developing its 2018 Solid Waste Management Master Plan. Your experience and insight as an environmental educator, project leader, volunteer or community leader will be valuable as the county determines priorities and education and outreach strategies to reduce waste.
The meeting will be held April 12, 2017 from 1 to 4 p.m. (with optional networking from 4 to 4:30 p.m.) at the Hennepin Energy Recovery Center Visitor Center, 435 North 5th Street, Minneapolis.
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 The meeting will start with a tour of the Hennepin Energy Recovery Center and a presentation about the progress we’ve made toward our recycling goals and what opportunities we have to reduce waste and increase recycling. We’ll then break into small groups to explore barriers to reducing waste and brainstorm ideas on waste prevention, organics, recycling, communications strategies, public outreach, and youth engagement.
You must RSVP and sign a waiver to participate in the tour. You do not need to take the tour to participate in the discussion. RSVP to Patience Caso at patience.caso@hennepin.us or 612-348-9352.
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Fix-It Clinics
 Before you start tossing broken items during spring cleaning, check out one of the upcoming Fix-It Clinics. Participants at Fix-It Clinics can get assistance from skilled volunteers to repair a variety of household items, such as small appliances, electronics, and clothing. A flyer is available to promote the upcoming Fix-It Clinics:
- Saturday, March 11 from noon to 4 p.m. at Burroughs Elementary School in Minneapolis
- Saturday, April 8 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Plymouth Creek Center during the Plymouth Home Expo
- Saturday, May 13 from noon to 4 p.m. at the Bloomington Center for the Arts
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Natural resource partnership meeting on emerald ash borer
 The next Hennepin Natural Resources Partnership meeting will focus on managing the emerald ash borer. The meeting will cover legislative efforts, tips and steps for dealing with the invasive tree pest, and table discussions about policy, partnerships and creative ideas.
The meeting will be held Tuesday, March 21 from 1 – 3 p.m. at the Ridgedale Library.
Photo credit: Macroscopic Solutions, LLC
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Upcoming community events
Hennepin County Environment and Energy will be providing information and resources at the following community events:
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Richfield Public Schools 10th annual community wellness expo: Saturday, April 8 from 9 a.m. to noon at Richfield High School. This is an opportunity to come together as a community and learn about health and wellbeing.
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Plymouth Home Expo: Friday, April 7 from 6 to 9 p.m. and Saturday, April 8 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Plymouth Fieldhouse. Attend presentations, shop, and learn about home improvement. A Fix-It Clinic will be happening during this event, and the county will also have an education table.
Grant writing clinics
The Minnesota Council of Nonprofits is holding grant writing clinics throughout 2017. Attendees will gain a foundation in grant writing and a variety of other skills. Granting writing for beginners, which is designed for participants with less than a year of grant writing experience, will be offered on March 16, May 25, July 11 and September 13. Clinics on advanced grant writing will be offered on April 20, July 27 and November 9. Learn more and register.
Green Partners environmental education grants
 Grants were recently awarded to 13 community groups to engage their community in learning about and taking action to protect the environment. The groups will work on reducing waste, recycling, composting organics, conserving energy, improving air and water quality, and protecting pollinators. Participants include families through early childhood programs, youth at school and during summer programs, and residents at congregations, community gardens, workshops and more. Learn more about the grants awarded.
For more information, contact Patience Caso at patience.caso@hennepin.us or 612-348-9352.
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Natural resources protection grants
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The county recently awarded 11 grants totaling $284,000 for projects to protect water quality. The six Good Steward grants are for smaller, community-based projects, and five Opportunity grants are for larger projects that will leverage additional funding sources. Grant projects will include a variety of activities, such as establishing rain gardens, planting native vegetation, restoring streambanks, installing tree trenches, and using permeable pavers. Learn more about the grants awarded.
For more information, contact Jim Kujawa at james.kujawa@hennepin.us or 512-348-7338.
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Lao Assistance Center trains recycling ambassadors
 Participants over age 50 took part in a training to become recycling ambassadors. Each ambassador trained 10 additional families. Hennepin County has provided translated recycling, organics, and trash signs in Lao, Thai, Cambodian, and Vietnamese for the community that the Lao Assistance Center is working on.
The ambassadors will tour the Hennepin Energy Recovery Center or Hennepin County Drop-off Facility in Brooklyn Park soon. Project ambassadors and staff will conduct additional outreach and education during the Lao New Year in the month of April.
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Families learn to be environmental stewards at Robbbinsdale Early Childhood Family Education
 The Robbinsdale Early Childhood Family Education program aims to inspire families to be positive stewards of the environment. Preschool children enjoyed classroom visits from Westwood Hills Nature Center where they learned about animals and environmental care and respect. Many of these children live in apartment communities without easy access to natural areas.
In parent education classes, parents created green cleaners to use in their homes. They were also encouraged to bring reusable mugs for beverages and keep track using a Saved Cup Tally. During the first semester, parents avoiding using 445 disposable cups.
Their annual Earth Day Event and Kids Stuff Garage Sale will take place on Saturday, April 22. The event will also feature TOLBY, the Turn-Off-Lights-Behind-You lightning bug mascot from the Center for Energy and Environment. The event is open to the public.
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Spark-Y starts sustainability programming at Northeast Middle School
 To learn about social, economic and environmental sustainability in a local context, students at Northeast Middle School explored food deserts in northeast Minneapolis and investigated aquaponics as a solution. Students worked in teams to design and engineer an aquaponics makeover to the school greenhouse, and students practiced their communication and professional skills by presenting their work in “Shark Tank” pitches to a panel of community experts. The panel included principal Vernon Rowe, Mayor Betsy Hodges, Senior Policy Adviser to the Mayor Phillipe Cunningham, Council Member Kevin Reich, Senator Jim Carlson, and nine passionate leaders from Minneapolis Public School District. The pitch event was a huge success with the mayor proclaiming Friday, January 13 to be Northeast Middle School / Spark-Y Sustainability Day.
The aquaponics system was constructed by students and Spark-Y staff during a big team build day. All participating students used a power tool at least once as they rotated through the six construction stations set up by Spark-Y. The system will be used as an interactive learning tool for teaching about biology, biochemistry, urban farming, sustainability, water use and conservation. It will also expose students to STEM and sustainability related jobs in Minnesota.
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Voyageurs National Park Association seeks National Park Teen Ambassadors
 Voyageurs National Park Association’s National Park Teen Ambassador program is a free, outdoor education program that introduces high school students to two national park sites in Minnesota and sparks a love for conservation and the outdoors. The program fosters thoughtful environmental stewardship and facilitates college preparedness through two summer immersion trips at Voyageurs National Park and on the Mississippi River. Curriculum focuses on leadership and critical thinking, wildlife and science, land and water conservation, and environmental career opportunities.
This program serves a diverse group of 30 Minnesota teens, primarily from low-income communities in the Twin Cities metro area and Voyageurs National Park’s neighboring communities. Applications to participate in the 2017 summer program are due May 1.
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