Rain Garden Volunteer Opportunity this Saturday!

Rain Garden Volunteer Training/Opportunity this Saturday, September 26th 10am-2pm!
Rain Gardens help to reduce storm water runoff and improve water quality. We will be discussing rain gardens, their role in stormwater management, how to locate a site and construct a rain garden, plant selection, care, and maintenance of a rain garden, and how to renovate an existing rain garden. The workshop format provides both classroom and hands-on instruction including working examples and a hands-on exercise in renovating an existing rain garden.

This Saturday we are offering an opportunity to our volunteers to learn about the basics of rain garden, and then get some hands-on experience working in a local rain garden.

When: September 26th, 10am – 2pm
Where: Bluegrass Greensource office and Morton Middle School
Schedule: Training 10am – 11:45
Lunch 11:45 – 12:30
Rain Garden Maintenance 12:45 – 2pm

Space is limited! Please register by emailing ashley@bggreensource.org by Friday September 25th!

*If you are interested in installing a Rain Garden, this workshop makes you eligible for a $250 grant to install one at your home!*

This training is open to new volunteers!
Please pass on this opportunity to your friends and family.

This work was funded in part by a grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency under §319(h) of the Clean Water Act.
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Holiday Open House: Saturday, December 6

Open house web slide

We’ve Moved!

Join us for a Holiday Open House in our New Location

Saturday, December 6th
11:00 am to 2:00 pm
835 National Avenue, Lexington, KY 40502

Check Out our New Home on National

We love our new space, and we can’t wait to show it off! Find out how Greensource is greener than ever, from our LED lighting to the recycled paint on our walls.

Crafts for the Kids

We’ll be making pinecone birdfeeders just in time for winter – bring beautiful birds to your yard with this quick, easy, and earth-friendly craft project!

Holiday Photos

Seasons Greenings! Put on your favorite ugly sweater and strike a pose.

Homemade Refreshments

Warm drinks and tempting sweets, coming right up.

Visit our Neighbors

Still got a little shopping to do? Head over to Lucia’s World Emporium and pick up some fair trade goodies, and 10% of your purchase will support Bluegrass Greensource. We’re located in a pretty cool neighborhood – check out some of the other open house activity going on this weekend.

greensource lucias

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2015 Green Business Challenge: Registration Walkthrough

Need help enrolling in the 2015 Challenge?  We’ve got you covered.  If you need additional assistance, or are encountering an errors with the Challenge website or registration process, contact us and we’ll do our best to get it worked out.

Jump To:

Create an account with GreenPSF
Property or Space?
Add your business to the GreenPSF database
Enroll in the Challenge
Navigate the activities index

 
1. Head to the Challenge page: www.LexGreenBizChallenge.com. Feel free to browse; when you’re ready to create an account, the link is in the upper right corner.

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2. Select “Property User” to compete in the Challenge; if your business is a contractor or other service provider you may wish to enroll as a “Solutions Provider” with GreenPSF at a later date.

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3.  Enter general information to create your account; ideally, the contact person listed should be someone actively involved in your business’s sustainability initiatives.

Create an account_2

4.  Select either property or space: If your business owns its facility/space, select property; if you rent your facility/space, select space.  The activity tracks for owners and renters are slightly different.

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5.  Your property (or property and space) will need to be in the GreenPSF database in order to compete.  Try searching for your address first; it may already exist in the database.  If not, click “Add New Property & Space.”

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6.  Fill in all relevant information for your property, or for your property and space if you rent – see below.  Renters: Property information refers to the building in which you are located (in this example, a shopping center called “Fictional Plaza”), and space information refers to the space specific to your business (“Suite 555”).  Add a photo of your business if you like, then click “Save & Continue.”

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7.  Once your property/space is added, you have two options: Complete your profile, or go to the Dashboard.  To enroll in the Challenge, click “Go to the Dashboard.”  If you opt to complete your profile, GreenPSF will walk you through a series of questions about your property/space; you can finish this all at once, complete it partially and come back at a later date, or skip it entirely.  It will remain an option throughout the Challenge.

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8.  Welcome to your GreenPSF dashboard!  From here, you can access your space/property profile, view financial incentives, sync your Portfolio Manager account, see suggested ways to save, and get to the Green Business Challenge.  You can add multiple spaces and/or properties to the same account if you so desire; each space or property can compete in the Challenge independently.  But to do that, you’ll need to enroll in the Challenge.

Click “Challenges” on the left side menu bar.

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9.  You should see both the DC Smarter Business Challenge (a national competition) and the LiveGreenLexington Green Business Challenge.  Click “Join the Challenge.”

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10.  Congratulations!  You are now enrolled in the Challenge.  Click “Get More Points” to access the activities index and start racking up points!  You will be able to view full activity details and begin completing activities on October 1, 2014.  From this page, you can also view the leaderboard and see where your business stands.

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11.  The activities index is sortable by category (drop down menu on the upper right), or by status (open vs. completed).

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That’s it!  You’re registered with GreenPSF, enrolled in the Challenge, and ready to compete.  Get your green on, Lexington!

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2014 LiveGreenLexington Games: Accolade Descriptions

Education Accolade

The education accolade recognizes organizations with a demonstrated dedication to community outreach and education on sustainability issues. Nominees should be engaged in impactful projects beyond their own organization, providing information, resources, and assistance to achieve greater sustainability in the broader community. Collaboration with other organizations is encouraged.

2013 Education Accolade Winner: Bluegrass Youth Sustainability Council, for their role in energy use monitoring and behavior-based energy consumption reduction in the Fayette County Public Schools Central Office Building and LFUCG Phoenix Building.

Innovation Accolade

The innovation accolade recognizes organizations addressing sustainability issues with creative or groundbreaking problem-solving. Nominees should be successfully reducing energy and water consumption, reducing waste production, or otherwise minimizing their environmental footprint through use of unique practices, infrastructure, and/or technology.

2013 Innovation Accolade Winner: FoodChain, for their 7000 gallon aquaponic system demonstrating sustainable indoor food production.

Stewardship Accolade

The stewardship accolade recognizes organizations embracing environmental stewardship in all aspects of their business and operations. Nominees should integrate sustainable practices into both internal operations and the product or service they provide to the community at large.

2013 Stewardship Accolade Winner: Town Branch Tree Experts, Inc, for their dedication to organic- and holistic-based tree care, including fertilization and insect and disease control.

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Elkhorn Creek Clean Up

Everybody loves Elkhorn Creek

Bluegrass Conservancy and Bluegrass Greensource are partnering for a Scott County creek clean-up. Are you looking for a fun way to make a difference with  your family this summer and play in a cool stream at the same time?

When: Friday, July 18th

Time: 10:00am – 1:00pm

Where: Bluegrass Conservancy-protected Riddle Farm on Fisher’s Mill Road in Scott County.  

FREE family-friendly: Water station and snacks, as well as garbage grabbers, bags, and gloves will be provided.

Call Ryan at 859-266-1572 to get more details and to sign up. 

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Locations for Move Out Madness

New MOM banners

How does Move-Out-Madness work?  Hippo Crate has donated storage crates to be placed at two Lexington apartment communities – Newtown Crossing and Campus Courts at Red Mile.  The crates will be placed at each property for one week during their busiest move-out times this summer, allowing tenants to place their unwanted furniture and items inside.

Habitat for Humanity ReStore will pick up the furniture and home items from the crates while God’s Pantry will collect non-perishable food items.  Tenants will be encouraged to take unwanted clothing items to Goodwill, the Hope Center, or Salvation Army.

How can I get involved? Look for the banner in the photo above on the Hippo Crate at Campus Courts at Red Mile from July 16 to July 23, or at Newtown Crossing from July 26 to August 2.

Click here to view our locations.

Move Out Madness is sponsored by the Greater Lexington Apartment Association’s Green Committee, LFUCG, Habitat for Humanity’s ReStore, Bluegrass Greensource, Hippo Crates, and God’s Pantry.

Please contact Lisa Conley or Beth Oleson with questions at 266-1572.

Poster

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Dive into Water Week with Live Green Lexington

UPDATE 5.28.14: 
Tuesday’s lunch and learn is filling up fast!  Please RSVP by 2:00pm on Friday, May 30th so that we can make sure you’ll have a lunch waiting for you.

Also, we would like to clarify that the stream clean-up on Thursday and the storm drain stenciling on Friday are rolling sign-in activities; come anytime between 2:00 and 3:30pm either day and stay as long as you like!  You are not obligated to participate for the full 2 hour period (although we’d be happy to have you if you did).


Grab your goggles, Live Green Lexington Partners, because we’re diving into Water Week on June 3rd!  The water stewardship season of this year’s Live Green Lexington Games runs through June 30th, so there’s still plenty of time to sign up and work on your scorecard; and if you’re getting a late start (or just really want that water stewardship award), Water Week is the perfect opportunity to earn a little extra credit.

Water Week 2014

Water quality and conservation issues are often overlooked in the workplace – especially for those of us who rent our offices and have little control over the big picture – but there are steps we can take to make a difference.  The goal of Water Week is to illuminate the many ways that we impact water quality and consumption, and the many ways we can make positive change without breaking the bank.

All of our Water Week activities are free and open to representatives of any Live Green Lexington partner business.  Email Beth for more info or to register for our Water Week activities, or to get involved in the Green Games…it’s not too late to sign up and take the Water Stewardship season by storm!

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