Foreste e giardini Holden

Quali situazioni e iniziative uniche avete intrapreso o pensate di intraprendere per affrontare il cambiamento climatico che non sono state rilevate nel nostro sondaggio iniziale?

Holden Forests and Gardens è costituito da due campus, il giardino botanico urbano di Cleveland e l'arboreto extraurbano di Holden. L'Arboreto Holden possiede 3.000 acri di aree naturali, tra cui 2.000 acri di foreste. Il nostro progetto sui boschi da lavoro mira a dimostrare una gestione sostenibile delle foreste, grazie alla quale i proprietari dei terreni possono ottenere un reddito e allo stesso tempo gestire i loro terreni per aumentare la biodiversità e mitigare il cambiamento climatico (ad esempio, aumentando i tassi di crescita degli alberi, mantenendo i detriti legnosi all'interno della foresta). Questo progetto abbina la ricerca alla divulgazione didattica e ci permette di aumentare la capacità delle nostre foreste di sequestrare il carbonio.

Quali sono i problemi o le opportunità più urgenti nella vostra comunità che possono essere sfruttati per affrontare il cambiamento climatico?

Un problema urgente è il potenziale aumento delle temperature nelle aree urbane e il potenziamento dell'"effetto isola di calore" con il cambiamento climatico. In qualità di sostenitori della piantumazione di alberi negli ambienti urbani ed edificati, il nostro lavoro può aumentare la resilienza ai cambiamenti climatici nelle nostre comunità.

Quali caratteristiche uniche del vostro giardino possono essere sfruttate per affrontare il cambiamento climatico?

Come già detto, le vaste aree naturali di Holden fungono sia da laboratorio che da metodo per imparare, educare e mitigare gli effetti del cambiamento climatico.

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.