Forêts et jardins de Holden

Quelles sont les situations et les initiatives uniques que vous avez entreprises ou que vous envisagez d'entreprendre pour faire face au changement climatique et qui n'ont pas été prises en compte dans notre enquête initiale ?

Holden Forests and Gardens se compose de deux campus, le Cleveland Botanical Garden urbain et le Holden Arboretum exurbain. L'Arboretum de Holden compte 3 000 acres d'espaces naturels, dont 2 000 acres de forêt. Notre projet d'exploitation forestière vise à démontrer une gestion durable des forêts permettant aux propriétaires fonciers d'obtenir des revenus tout en gérant leurs terres de manière à accroître la biodiversité et à atténuer le changement climatique (par exemple, en augmentant le taux de croissance des arbres, en conservant les débris ligneux au sein de la forêt). Ce projet associe la recherche à la sensibilisation tout en nous permettant d'accroître la capacité de nos propres forêts à piéger le carbone.

Quels sont les problèmes ou les opportunités les plus urgents dans votre communauté qui peuvent être mis à profit pour lutter contre le changement climatique ?

L'un des problèmes les plus urgents est l'augmentation potentielle des températures dans les zones urbaines et le renforcement de l'effet d'îlot de chaleur avec le changement climatique. En tant que défenseur de la plantation d'arbres dans les environnements urbains et bâtis, notre travail peut accroître la résilience au changement climatique au sein de nos communautés.

Quelles sont les caractéristiques uniques de votre jardin qui peuvent être mises à profit pour lutter contre le changement climatique ?

Comme indiqué plus haut, les vastes zones naturelles de Holden servent à la fois de laboratoire et de méthode pour apprendre, éduquer et atténuer les effets du changement climatique.

Teach facts and best practices to mitigate and reduce global climate change.

In FY23, our primary focus was on establishing recycling programs at both campuses. These campuses are now equipped to recycle everyday items, including glass. Composting initiatives have also seen significant growth with the introduction of the new composting area at ARB. We are actively exploring the potential for implementing food composting at ARB in collaboration with Rust Belt Riders.

In FY23, we identified Green Corps Interns as a key audience for climate education, equipping them with factual knowledge and practical strategies to reduce environmental impact. Interns applied this learning through hands-on sustainability actions, including ink-recycling initiatives that modeled waste-reduction best practices. Building on this approach in FY24, we hired a dedicated Green Corps intern to lead a food waste reduction initiative, focused on educating school groups about the climate impacts of food waste and implementing best practices to reduce lunch waste sent to landfills. Together, these efforts positioned interns as informed climate stewards who actively apply and share solutions that mitigate global climate change.

Additionally, to achieve this goal, we initially attempted to arrange a multi-day workshop for educators focused on climate change. Regrettably, the workshop was canceled due to low registration. Nevertheless, we adopted a new approach. In collaboration, our Education and Research departments hired a Teacher-in-Residence in the summer of FY24. This Teacher in Residence developed teacher-led lessons and educational materials on climate change and its mitigation. Lessons and other resources are available on our website for educators to download.

Eliminate all single-use plastic in food service, horticulture, gift shops, and all other facilities and operations.

We devoted significant efforts to pursue this objective, recognizing that eliminating single-use plastics may not always be feasible without viable alternatives. We have successfully addressed single-use options in both campuses’ food services by transitioning vending machines and water offerings to cans or self-serve stations. Our Horticulture department is actively experimenting with non-plastic alternatives for pots and other single-use plastic products. Moreover, our gift shops are switching suppliers to favor non-plastic packaging materials. In all other facets of our departments and operations, we diligently seek alternatives to single-use plastics wherever practical.

In addition, in FY24, the Sustainability Committee launched the Employee Single-Use Plastic Challenge to engage staff in reducing or eliminating single-use plastics across departments, events, projects, and programs at Holden Forests & Gardens. Through team-based planning and implementation, the challenge increased organizational awareness of the impacts of single-use plastic and prompted departments to more intentionally evaluate and adjust everyday practices. Results emphasized reduced reliance on disposable plastics, cross-team learning, and increased adoption of alternative practices, reinforcing a culture of mindful consumption and collective climate action.