News & Opinion

Sometimes our Climate Change and environmental problems seem overwhelming. But there are a lot of people working on solutions. Here are just two stories to inspire you.

Bees, butterflies… they fly all around us but do we notice? We should because without them our food supply would suffer irrevocably. Saving pollinators is really about saving us.

You know we are following electric vehicle legislation in the General Assembly. One of several bills on this topic, HB696, Public Utilities – Electric School Bus Pilot Program is coming up for a hearing before House Economic Matters on February 10. It sets up a pilot program for electric school buses. If this is important […]

How well do you think you know other species that roam this incredible globe? We realize that to fully embrace the diversity of life on this planet, both flora and fauna, we could spend some time learning about some of them. We enjoyed a lighter read this past month, The Soul of an Octopus: A […]

Our friends at Refill Goodness wrote such a great blog that we wanted to share it with you. In it you’ll find easy things you can do in your own household to live more sustainably – that is, with less consumption of our finite natural resources and less waste. Making a to-go kit to eliminate […]

Today’s Sustainable Action: Consume Less Meat One of the easiest sustainable actions you can take is limiting the amount of meat you consume. Meat production, (specifically cows, sheep, pigs, and goats) has a very large carbon footprint. This is due to the fossil fuels used in from producing animal feed, transporting the animals, and the methane released by […]

And they’re back! The General Assembly opened on January 12, and many environmental bills have already been pre-filed – that is, already written and waiting for committee assignments and scheduling of hearing dates. Annapolis Green is again working with the environmental community to urge our elected officials to do good by the environment. One bill […]

Today’s Sustainable Action: Composting If you are looking to become more sustainable, one action you could pursue is forming a composting system for your household. Compost not only improves soil structure by containing a large volume of water and nutrients, but it also reduces the amount of waste that ends up in landfills. All of […]

To paraphrase Katharine Hayhoe, let’s show love for life on Earth by sharing how we care about climate change. Our book group recently met and discussed Saving Us: A Climate Scientist’s Case for Hope and Healing in a Divided World by Katharine Hayhoe. This book was universally liked and appreciated by everyone in our group. […]

Today’s Sustainable Action: Stop buying from fast fashion stores. One action you could take to be more sustainable is not purchasing from fast fashion stores! Fast fashion is a highly-profitable and exploitative business in which high-fashion designs are mass produced at low costs. The ramifications of this industry are a high amount of carbon emissions, […]

According to a recent article in the Bay Journal, “The Maryland darter, one of the rarest fish in the world, has been missing in action for 33 years. Now, it is headed to the extinction list.” And what is the reason? “According to an evaluation by the [US Fish & Wildlife Service] USFWS, the largest […]

I see many messages on social media these days to leave the leaves. While we’re at it, we can also leave flowers such as the spent purple coneflowers (Echinacea purpurea) because the Goldfinches love the seedheads. We could leave the winged sumac (Rhus copallinum) for the Eastern Bluebirds who eat the berries in the winter. […]

Our book group recently read the dystopian science fiction novel The Water Knife by Paolo Bacigalupi about water rights and climate change in the western United States. Most of the readers found value in reading the violent story because of the realistic portrayal of characters and the role of institutions and corporations. Given that it’s […]

by Rick Peters, Solar Energy Services Jared Littmann was a real pioneer in 2012, when he made a substantial investment in a rooftop solar installation at his business, K&B True Value, to offset a chunk of the store’s electricity consumption. At that time, Solar Energy Services (SES) designed a 17 kilowatt (kW) solar project (72 […]

Today’s Sustainable Action: Recycling! Recycling correctly is a critical job that every human must do. It is important to recycle so natural resources are saved and so extra, non-compostable trash doesn’t pile up in landfills. Not only does this take up room, but it is not healthy for the soil. Things like cardboard, plastic bottles, […]

You love our Chesapeake Watershed. You love your neighborhood. Why not bring those two passions together and become an Anne Arundel County Watershed Steward. The Anne Arundel County Watershed Stewards Academy (WSA) is recruiting the next class — the 14th — right now. You can be part of it and of this amazing environmental group […]

by Tom Guay, Executive Director Severn River Association Boy, do we have some great restoration news in the Severn River! Thanks to donors who love oysters, the Severn River Association and the Oyster Recovery Partnership just planted 24 million baby oysters and created a new oyster restoration reef. The new bivalve arrivals are now ensconced […]

“We basically have three choices: mitigation, adaptation, and suffering. We’re going to do some of each. The question is what the mix is going to be.” – John Holdren, a Harvard energy expert, as quoted in the book, The End of Ice. The End of Ice by Dahr Jamail was a challenging read for many […]

We all love giving appreciation and celebration toward our loved ones, but birthday cards and thank you notes are most likely to be thrown away and are wasteful. So instead of the traditional card, or gift, maybe try a more sustainable option! This could mean making a PowerPoint presentation to give thanks on Mother’s or […]

For years we’ve done our best to bring the global issue of Climate Change to you at the local level as we increasingly see the effects of what we should now call Climate Disruption right here where we live. At the global level, the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) issued its sixth report […]

If you have a yard, then this tip is perfect for you. Along with other plants, you can grow species that attract butterflies! Plants such as Black Eyed Susans, Lavender, and different variants of Milkweed are some examples. These provide habitat and food for the butterflies. Butterflies are an important pollinator, so increasing their habitat […]

Our Green Reads book group recently discussed The Monkey Wrench Gang with an equal number of people on Zoom and in person, a true hybrid experience. The Monkey Wrench Gang is a novel by Edward Abbey, who was an anarchist and environmental activist; his writing heavily influenced the environmental movement, especially out west.  Our discussion really homed […]

by Jenny Vedrani Refill Goodness Crest, Colgate, Sensadyne, Tom’s, the aisle is full of options.  Fresh mint, blue mint, yikes – more choices. What’s the right answer? If you have started your low waste or sustainable journey, you realize very quickly, it’s none of them. Not only do you question the ingredient list – fluoride […]

After over a year of seeing an avalanche of plastic, particularly single-use plastic, everywhere in the name of COVID, we are happy to see that one local company is forging ahead with plant-based alternatives. BioSafe, the local company that created the black straws with a blue stripe that you might have seen in local restaurants, […]

Today’s Sustainable Action: Reusable Cleaning Supplies! This tip can be used for all sorts of supplies, but today we will be specifically focusing on cleaning supplies. Instead of buying a new bottle of soap or window cleaner every time you run out, you could buy a reusable and sustainable dispenser. This means that you will […]

Today’s Sustainable Action: Reusable and Washable Masks! Throughout this pandemic it was probably an easier option for most people to use disposable masks, but as the pandemic winds down please consider using washable masks. These are less harmful to the environment, for disposable ones often end up in waterways and in the ocean. They also […]

An online, collaborative initiative to raise funds for and increase awareness of 10 local, small environmental organizations… We have always said that we a tad different, “a different shade of green,” making us a unique partner in the GreenGive group. Our mission is to bring the community together, for the Greener Good, and we’ve been doing […]

Today’s Sustainable Action: Washable Towels! Paper towels use lots of trees and fossil fuels to make, and they also produce a massive amount of waste. A healthy alternative for drying your hands can be reusable and washable towels! Cloth rags and hand towels are more eco-friendly and will cut down on the money you spend. […]

Today’s Sustainable Action: Using Reusable Bags! Instead of using single-use plastic bags, you can use reusable bags. These can either be reusable plastic containers or reusable sandwich bags; these can be used for lunches and other everyday things. Using these cuts down on the amount of waste you produce that ends up in the landfill. […]

Rarely does a book come around that fills me with hope and inspires me with possibilities, much less shift my perception. In the shit storm of suffering that was 2020, Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants by Robin Wall Kimmerer was that book for me. Kimmerer is a lovely writer […]

The fun begins when you have a slew of hard cooked (not the rubbery hardboiled). Mix and match a lot of condiments as you wish for a hand at “designer,” but try to keep a theme in mind – to not get too much fusion happening (you know… culinary confusion). Go for Cowboy style… black […]

Founding One Hundred Spotlight As next door neighbors, RASA Juice Shop and Annapolis Green have been joining forces to keep our community (and especially Maryland Avenue) Clean, Green and Healthy. RASA is a big supporter and believer in Annapolis Green’s initiatives and has been a partner in promotion – helping sell the yoga blocks that […]

Founding One Hundred Spotlight Paradise Float Spa opened its doors in December 2016 and has been providing relaxation and serenity to Annapolis ever since. And don’t we need some of that now. Providing the highest level of customer service and a soothing atmosphere, Paradise Float Spa is making the world a better place, one float […]

The Green Reads book group discussed E.O. Wilson’s Half-Earth: Our Planet’s Fight for Life. What a thought-provoking read from a highly respected biologist and renowned naturalist. He methodically laid out facts and observations in a way that reminded me of a spider weaving a web. Next thing I knew I was the meal at the […]

Do you ever find yourself envying the koala for its singular diet of eucalyptus or the monarch caterpillar for its love of milkweed? At the extreme end, maybe you envy the flora that, with photosynthesis and good soil, just needs to reach to the sun to grow and flourish. To be human takes those food […]

by Karen Grumbles I am looking out the window into my backyard at the marcescent light brown beech leaves all uniformly fluttering in the rain. The view comforts and entrances me. ‘Marcescence’ became one of my favorite words in the last few years when we planted a young beech sapling in our yard and I […]

by Karen Grumbles You know the experiences where you are walking through a nature area and you hear the sounds of many birds, see all the different bugs skittering around on the ground and the strikingly beautiful butterflies fluttering around above the shrubs? We all tend to gravitate to places like Quiet Waters Park and […]

Seasoned gardeners break into a smile when they talk about planting edibles in the fall By Rita Calvert For your second harvest: Start late summer and fall months and you can double your yield this year and enjoy homegrown flavor into fall and winter. When I tracked down Homestead Gardens’ expert Gene Sumi to ask […]

by Elvia Thompson (October 19, 2020) – The Severn River Association has been monitoring water quality in the creeks and main stem of our capital river for several years. This year it’s been doing this since early spring – even with the pandemic. Yesterday I joined in so see how it’s done. SRA executive director […]

Fig Talk on the World’s Most Ancient Fruit Figs are my passion – the fruit and the tree. Figs just have a certain cachet! Maybe it’s the ancient history, or the Mediterranean origin which makes them so alluring, or possibly the exotic ingredients which complement them in pairings. Different varieties of figs can be paired […]

by Rob Savidge The Tesla website allows you to put in the exact features you want and it searches its inventory across the entire country. You can do the same thing for used Teslas. That’s what I did and I bought a 2018 Model 3. I submitted my payment online and after that, the worst […]

Stone fruits—peaches, apricots, cherries, nectarines, and plums—are some of the great mouth-watering joys of summer. They are packed with phytochemicals, vitamins and minerals plus they are low in calories. Stone fruits are super fruits, with plums as emerging stars. One of the benefits found is that plums inhibit breast cancer growth in lab cells. Now […]

Garden Leadership/Garden Eating with Rita Calvert Before we get to recipes, look at this gardening inspiration on showing the way to be a creative leader. To those of us who garden, the lessons are rewarding and incomparable. “There is a lot that gardening, design, and creative leadership have in common,” states Tim Brown, Executive Chair […]

Local & Seasonal Cooking with Rita Calvert from The Grassfed Gourmet Fires It Up! We’re well into grilling season, so here is one of my favorite recipes from The Grassfed Gourmet Fires It Up!, which you can find at Annapolis Green on Maryland Avenue in Annapolis. First comes a Grilling 101 section, a primer actually, […]

by Cory Bonney When Consumer Reports gave Tesla Model S its highest car rating ever… at 100%, and designated it the safest automobile ever made, I was completely hooked. All I needed to do was to figure out a way to own one. I started driving during the gas crisis of the 1970s, taking my […]