German Village was recently recognized as Columbus' newest GreenSpot Neighborhood. This honor would not have been possible without you.
German Village received this honor for our three-year commitment focusing on sustainability and green practices. Through our GreenSpot Committee, part of the German Village Society, we have:
* Achieved 200 GreenSpot homes with a goal of 300 by 2020.
* Partnered with Seminary Hill Farms to bring Community Supported Agriculture to the Platz.
* Collaborated with Compost Exchange to bring pick up to curb side.
* Been promoting the use of rain barrels.
How do you become a GreenSpot home? It's easy, free and you might already be doing everything required to qualify.
The first step is to go to Columbus.gov/greenspot, and click on home. Just like the GreenSpot neighborhood, being a GreenSpot home is a commitment to make choices that make your home greener.
The commitment areas are:
* Conserve energy -- Examples of this are using LED lights, driving 10 miles less per week, turning off appliances after use, shopping local and increasing your residence's insulation.
* Conserve water -- Examples include watering weekly or not at all, installing a rain barrel, running dishwashers and washing machines only when you have a full load, installing water-saving toilets and low-flow showerheads and planting a tree.
* Reduce, reuse and recycle -- Use reusable bags, donate unused unwanted items, choose products with less packaging, separate yard waste from garbage for pick up.
These are just a few examples. The choices are many and it is up to you to easily become a GreenSpot Home.
Another example of becoming a Green Spot home is to buy local.
What's more local than getting your vegetables on the Platz each Friday.
GreenSpot German Village has collaborated with Seminary Hill Farms for our very own Community Supported Agriculture program. The Friday produce pickup is for members only. You can become a member by going to seminaryhillfarm.org, signing up for the Spring CSA and choosing Meeting Haus as your location. All of the produce is grown locally and certified organic. Spots are limited so sign up soon.
After you have enjoyed your wonderful local organic vegetables, what do you do with vegetable scraps? Compost them.
Composting is an art and yards in German Village are not always spacious, so the Compost Exchange offers an affordable, easy way to compost. Each week on Tuesday members leave their bright yellow and black (raccoon proof, smell proof) 5-gallon pail at curbside, the Compost Exchange picks the pail up and leaves an empty one. It is easy and helps reduce our solid waste going to the landfill each week. Interested? Sign up by going to thecompostexchange .com and clicking on curbside composting.
Other things we are getting involved with include the PUP (pick Up poop) initiative and using rain barrels to conserve and protect water.
Please come and see us at the Garten Market and we will be happy to help you sign up for any of these programs, answer your questions and talk about ways to make our amazing neighborhood even more sustainable.
GreenSpot Co-Chairwoman Kim Cowie submitted the Village Notebook column .