Month: February 2025

The 2025 Soulard Mardi Gras season is in full swing, and the next couple weekends promise no shortage of excitement for area residents with a mix of fitness, food, floats and furry fun. But like many festivals, it’s easy for the environmental impact to get caught up in the frenzy. So, whether you’re planning to indulge in delicious Cajun cuisine, dress yourself or your pet up in festive fashion or line the streets for the Grand Parade next weekend, there are plenty of ways to show you care for clean air during any one of Soulard’s upcoming signature events.

As you’re making plans to head to the celebrations, let the good times roll by leaving the driving to Metro Transit to skip the hassle of parking and enjoy a stress-free ride. Riders can park their vehicle at any of the 21 free Park-Ride lots at MetroLink stations in Missouri and Illinois, purchase a $5 day pass on the Transit app or at a ticket vending machine – good for unlimited rides for one day – and take the MetroLink light rail to the Civic Center Station in downtown St. Louis. From there, riders can board a shuttle bus or walk to all the action in nearby Soulard or at Ballpark Village. Several MetroBus lines also serve Soulard during Mardi Gras events. For more on routes and schedules, check the Metro St. Louis website.

While catching and throwing beads and other trinkets during Mardi Gras parades may be exhilarating, many of these souvenirs end up polluting the city as they are dropped and long forgotten once the parades are over. Instead of littering the streets or tossing them into trash cans, consider dropping them off at a local business or organization that offers a bead recycling program, or channel your crafty side and consider creating a DIY art project or costume.

Speaking of costumes, though a major part of Mardi Gras, they’re often made of harmful plastics or materials that are not biodegradable. When looking for costumes for yourself or your furry friend for the pet parade, consider opting for ones made from sustainable materials like organic cotton, recycled fabrics or items you already have in your closet or around the house. You can also buy secondhand costumes or accessories, which reduces waste and the demand for new products.

With merrymakers expected to be out and about in massive numbers, it’s inevitable that trash will pile up quickly. To further reduce environmental impact, be sure to use the designated recycling bins around the event and separate recyclables from waste properly. Additionally, if possible, avoid plastic confetti and other non-biodegradable decorations that can create environmental hazards by winding up in toxic landfills and polluting the air we all breathe.

Together, we can work to make this year’s “Mardi Pardi” not just one of culture, but also of a sustainable future for St. Louis and beyond! To learn more about the link between living greener and our air quality, visit the Clean Air Partnership’s website at CleanAir-StLouis.com, like us on Facebook or follow us on X, formerly known as Twitter, @gatewaycleanair.

Coming off another successful year of delivering Triple Botton Line results (fiscal, social and environmental) to enterprises of all types and sizes across the bi-state area in 2024, the St. Louis Green Business Challenge continues to support integration of sustainability measures into the kinds of everyday operational practices common to every business. The Challenge – a program of the Missouri Botanical Garden – is focused on inspiring voluntary steps to help improve the environment and air quality in the region. As the Clean Air Partnership has a similar mission, we’re pleased to once again highlight its tremendous impact by recognizing some of the outstanding participants throughout this milestone year.

Since the program launched in 2010, more than 300 businesses, non-profits and municipalities have joined the Challenge, engaging over 160,000 employees and nearly 570,000 residents that have been influenced by this work. Ongoing commitment to sustainability remains strong as 60% of these companies have participated in the Challenge for two or more years and 50% for three years or more. Just this last year alone, 60 companies, non-profits, institutions and governmental bodies participated in the Challenge. An impressive 100% of these participants formed a Green Team to lead sustainability efforts, established or are developing sustainability policies, kept up with or started workplace recycling (even during remote working), and maintained sustainability communications with colleagues or constituents. Moreover, 99% continued or added to special waste stream recycling and 98% provided green learning opportunities or Green-At-Home resources for employees.

Now in its 15^th year, Challenge activity influences the business, higher education, local government and non-profit sectors of the St. Louis regional economy. The program works for building owners and tenants, supporting companies new to sustainability concepts, those already engaged and seeking to improve, as well as high-performing multi-year participants. 2024 Challenge companies benefitted from customized coaching, including annual site visits provided by expert staff of the EarthWays Center, the Garden’s sustainability division. These services supported company Green Teams in efficient and cost-effective sustainability work through policies and practices, in accord with each company’s unique goals and culture.

Other noteworthy sustainability service honors for the Challenge included being recognized with the 2024 Program Excellence Award by the American Public Gardens Association. Additionally, Challenge manager Jean Ponzi received the Lewis C. Green Environmental Service Award from Great Rivers Environmental Law Center, was named by Grow Native! as 2024 Native Plant Ambassador, and was also honored with the Gateway Lifetime Public Service Award from East-West Gateway Council of Governments. Talk about a clean air champion!

Registration for the 2025 Challenge is open now through March 31^st. A Green Biz Showcase happy hour event will kick off this year’s program on Thursday, Feb. 27^th from 4:30-7 p.m., hosted at Cortex Innovation District. For more information on how to get your company or municipality involved in the St. Louis Green Business Challenge/Green Cities Challenge, subscribe to the Challenge’s bi-monthly E-newsletter here or visit stlouisgreenchallenge.com. To learn more about the link between sustainability and air quality, be sure to check out our website, like us on Facebook or follow us on X, formerly known as Twitter, @gatewaycleanair.

(L-R) Jaclyn Jezik and Jean Ponzi, Challenge staff