Category: Blog

Perennial – a St. Louis-based nonprofit community workshop and store dedicated to creative reuse – offers educational programming to diverse populations, turning trash into treasure and teaching the community to do the same. Located in Dutchtown, Perennial was established as a resource for area residents to discover ways to reuse objects, reduce waste, and live a sustainable and self-sufficient lifestyle through the power of personal creativity. From eco-refinishing, to upholstery, to building new furniture from pallets, Perennial teaches creative classes to build a culture of sustainability in which discarded items are transformed into valued and cherished resources, and this month, the Clean Air Partnership is delighted to shine a spotlight on their green achievements having a positive eco-impact.

“Perennial enjoys being a leader in creative reuse education and a resource for anyone starting their sustainability journey,” said Katie Carpenter, executive director of Perennial. “The Challenge helps us prioritize efforts to strengthen, document, and share while connecting us to a local network of passionate partners committed to a greener region.”

As a participant in the 2023 St. Louis Green Business Challenge at the Apprentice Level, Perennial implemented several policies promoting sustainability in the workspace, including one to inform staff and customers of the organization’s commitment to sustainability and resourcefulness in both the workplace and the greater St. Louis community. Perennial also completed a Green Purchasing Policy to guide staff members in choosing environmentally conscious office supplies and class materials.

Furthering their dedication to waste diversion, Perennial scheduled an energy audit for the building to identify wasted energy and detect opportunities for energy efficiency upgrades. Additionally, the organization proudly increased the capacity of their clothing swaps, diverting more useful textiles from toxic landfills, including 2,400 pounds that were collected in a single afternoon event. The clothing swaps are a great way to build a new wardrobe with the planet and air quality in mind, allowing individuals to bring in clothes they no longer want and take home new-to-you items from the swap as a greener, economical alternative.

Perennial’s educational initiatives included installing signage showing how to properly dispose of waste in the workshop and encouraging recycling and composting to minimize landfill disposal. Moreover, the organization published an online resource guide to help people reduce, reuse or repair items when possible, as well as presented on the circularity panel for the Missouri Recycling Association Conference.

For more information about Perennial and how your company can get involved in the St. Louis Green Business Challenge, subscribe to their bi-monthly E-Newsletter or visit stlouisgreenchallenge.com. For more on the link between sustainability and air quality, explore the Clean Air Partnership’s website, like us on Facebook or follow us on X, formerly known as Twitter, @gatewaycleanair.

Located in the heart of St. Louis for more than 20 years, the Pulitzer Arts Foundation is an art museum devoted to presenting the art of today and works from the past within a global context. A place where ideas are freely explored, new art exhibited, and historic work reimagined, the Pulitzer’s expansive light-filled galleries host world-class art exhibitions and anchor an array of free programs, ranging from talks to concerts, literary readings, dance, performances, wellness workshops and more. The Clean Air Partnership is pleased to acknowledge the museum’s ongoing commitment to sustainability that helped earn them recognition at the Leader Level in the 2023 St. Louis Green Business Challenge.

“With our work, we want to consider environmental impact, whether through exhibitions and programs or via our building operations, properties, and day-to-day habits,” said Cara Starke, executive director of The Pulitzer Arts Foundation. “Joining the Green Business Challenge encourages us to improve our working methods while also making space for conversations about the ecological impact of our efforts.”

During the Challenge, the Pulitzer Arts Foundation hosted a Biodiversity Happy Hour for Green Business Challenge members, featuring a twilight experience of their living installation, Park-Like, which is designed to absorb rainfall from storms and reduce the impact on urban sewer systems while creating a site for both wildlife and people. Additionally, the museum featured spring exhibitions that explored how artmaking impacts the natural world and how human-environment relationships shape art, as well as led tours of their exhibitions and property with the Missouri Prairie Foundation and Missouri Department of Conservation to discuss the impact of prairies and native plants.

Other impressive accomplishments from their time participating in the Challenge include the implementation of rainscaping techniques to eliminate the need for irrigation and a system-wide HVAC evaluation to improve the museum’s environmental impact, which resulted in substantial reductions in energy use and CO2, all of which have helped benefit the region’s air quality.

Furthermore, the Pulitzer Arts Foundation instituted energy-saving and recycling initiatives, including converting all lighting systems to energy-efficient LEDs; weekly recycling of paper, paperboard and other recyclables; electronic waste collection; direct recycling of metals; increased donations of reusable building materials; and the reuse of materials from previous exhibitions to cut down on waste and reduce emissions.

For more information on the Pulitzer Arts Foundation and how your company can get involved in the St. Louis Green Business Challenge, subscribe to their bi-monthly E-Newsletter or visit stlouisgreenchallenge.com. For more on the link between sustainability and air quality, explore our website, like us on Facebook or follow us on X, formerly known as Twitter, @gatewaycleanair.

The final countdown to Halloween is on as the day creeps closer and closer, and while it’s time to get into the spirit of frightful fun, it’s also important to recognize that the holiday can be a real nightmare for the environment. From single-use costumes to plastic decorations and mountains of candy wrappers, the significant amount of waste that Halloween generates each year is nothing short of a horror show.

However, spooky season can still be your favorite with a few eco-friendly adjustments to celebrate more sustainably with the region’s air quality in mind. Here are a few insightful tips to ensure those tricks and treats don’t add up to a hefty impact on our planet:

• Candy – While you’re out shopping for last-minute Halloween candy, consider trying to get organic options and opt for candy with minimal or recyclable packaging. Otherwise, forget candy altogether and give the kids another sustainable, healthy pre-packaged snack to keep kids happy without the added sugar rush. Additionally, if you’re hosting a Halloween party, forget about plastic wrapped candies and instead bake up some simple, fun treats for a boo-tiful spread.
• Costumes – Store-bought costumes are often made up of nonrecyclable, petrochemical based plastic and synthetic fibers that release harmful toxins in their creation and breakdown. With a little creativity, leftover boxes, paper bags, fabric and other items around the house can be upcycled into costumes at little or no cost and make for a much more air quality-friendly option. If you’re looking for more inspiration, consider swapping costumes with friends or exploring secondhand stores for a thrifted option that your wallet and the planet will thank you for.
• Decorations – Make a dent in the waste by creating your own homemade decorations with recycled household items. Solar-powered or LED lights will also help to conserve energy, as will refraining from using large, inflatable ghostly creatures that require running electricity to operate. Doing so will help cut down on costs and related emissions to help keep the air clean.
• Pumpkins – Don’t let your jack-o’-lantern end up in a landfill once Halloween is over. Remember to compost your pumpkins to reduce harmful greenhouse gas emissions that result from rotting in landfills. Once you’ve carved your pumpkin, save the pulp from inside for pies, muffins, soup and other tasty recipes, as well as the seeds that make for a sustainable fall snack when roasted with a bit of oil and salt.
• Trick-or-Treat – Rather than drive to other neighborhoods to take the kids trick-or-treating, stick close to home this Halloween and walk from house to house to reduce fuel consumption and air pollution. If traveling by car is really the only way to join in the Halloween fun, try carpooling with friends or family to do your share for cleaner air. And don’t forget to re-purpose a tote bag, bucket or pillowcase to collect candies and further reduce environmental impact.

Keep green in mind for Halloween and continue to lead an eco-conscious lifestyle to help St. Louis area residents breathe easier. To learn more about the link between living greener and our air quality, visit the tips section of our website, like us on Facebook or follow us on X, formerly known as Twitter, @gatewaycleanair.

Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis (CAM) works to enrich lives and inspire curiosity, creativity, and learning through experiences with contemporary art, while also being dedicated to fostering a sustainable future by integrating environmentally conscious practices. Located in the Grand Central Arts District, CAM provides 100+ events and community engagements per year, ranging from art education workshops in Saint Louis Public Schools to artist talks. CAM recognizes that, in addition to sharing contemporary art with the local community, it can inspire green initiatives through example. That is why this month, the Clean Air Partnership is proud to highlight CAM’s sustainability initiatives that are having a positive impact on the planet and communities it serves. 

“Our CAM Green Team has brought together representatives from multiple departments to achieve one goal: to make our establishment more sustainable, eco-friendly and localized in any way that we can,” said Brandon Barr, Teen and Adult Programs Manager at CAM. “Our hope is that our efforts, joining with other institutions in the Green Business Challenge, will inspire more entities to do the same. Change is needed on a large scale, but it has to start somewhere. We hope that CAM’s small spark can aid in igniting a mass effort to make things better for generations to come.” 

Re-joining the Green Business Challenge in 2023 at the Apprentice level, Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis implemented several green initiatives under the direction of their Green Team, such as establishing a no-idling plan at their loading dock and installing idle-free signage. Likewise, CAM updated signage around existing recycling receptacles throughout the building and installed and distributed sustainability education signs and information for the workplace and at home. 

During the Challenge, CAM made updates to its HVAC system and window shades in the main galleries to protect artwork on view from light and moisture and reduce the museum’s overall energy usage and related emissions. CAM also installed motion sensor light switches in all its public restrooms to further reduce excess energy use. 

Other innovations included a partnership with a local vendor that upholds a green purchasing and compostable single serving policy to take over CAM’s café operations. The museum also eliminated the use of Styrofoam and single use plastic for meetings and events, replacing disposables with glass, aluminum cans and refillable serving options. Additionally, CAM adopted a Green Purchasing Policy for all janitorial, cleaning and maintenance supplies that are sourced from local green vendors.  

To learn more about Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis’ sustainability efforts and how your company can get involved in the St. Louis Green Business Challenge, subscribe to their bi-monthly E-Newsletter or visit stlouisgreenchallenge.com. For more on the link between sustainability and air quality, explore our website, like us on Facebook or follow us on X, formerly known as Twitter, @gatewaycleanair. 

CK Power has been a leading manufacturer and distributor of off-highway power products for nearly a century. Headquartered in St. Louis, the company keeps sustainability at the core of everything they do and remains committed to making choices that protect the environment and pass efficiency benefits on to their valued customers. This month, we’re pleased to shine a spotlight on CK Power for earning the title of 2023 St. Louis Green Business Challenge Apprentice for choosing action items from a menu of basic sustainability policies and practices to start the process of greening their business operations.

“The CK Power Family of Companies provides products and services to a wide variety of industries. We take seriously the responsibility to help protect the environment for current and future generations,” said Dewey Barsaloux, facilities manager for CK Power. “As a family-owned company, everything we do centers around our people. We take pride in our family culture and support our employees to protect the environment through education and our recycling programs.”

As a Challenge Apprentice, CK Power met twice with Challenge leaders – once for a “Sustainability 101” training and again for a report-out seminar to learn from peers’ experience and achievements, helping them to integrate recycling tips and other context they learned into their own daily practices.

Over the course of the 2023 Challenge, the company formed a Green Team to lead their sustainability efforts. As a result, employees are now working in a more sustainable environment with a no-smoking policy for indoor working areas and a designated area for smoking outdoors. Additionally, cardboard, cans, paper and bottles are being recycled in working areas, and a water bottle filling station was also installed to cut down on single-use plastic bottles.

Another major accomplishment included energy efficiency improvements across company facilities. CK Power opted for 95% LED lighting in all buildings after updates were made following a lighting audit and Ameren rebate. Similarly, HVAC updates made half of the company’s units work at 17 SEER (Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio) or higher, which is a win-win for higher energy efficiency and greater savings!

CK Power also worked with local service producers to recover special waste streams including metals, pallets, used oil and Crystal Clean, as well as participated in pollution prevention training to further reduce environmental impact and promote eco-stewardship.

For more information about CK Power and how your company can get involved in the St. Louis Green Business Challenge, subscribe to their bi-monthly E-Newsletter or visit stlouisgreenchallenge.com. For more on the link between sustainability and air quality, explore the Clean Air Partnership’s website, like us on Facebook or follow us on X, formerly known as Twitter, @gatewaycleanair.

Car Free Day is right around the corner, and people all around the world are preparing to ditch their keys on September 22. Today, an estimated 1.4 billion cars travel the roads throughout the world, and even though our vehicles offer a convenient way to get around, they also contribute a dangerous amount of pollution to the planet. Having a day off from driving is highly recommended to raise awareness about these concerns and to help reduce auto emissions.

While Car Free Day may be celebrated a number of different ways, the common goal is to take cars off area roads – benefiting the region with a day of less traffic congestion, a greener environment and reduced energy use – with the hope inspiring lasting change beyond a single day. Thankfully, there are plenty of resources available to help St. Louis area residents leave the car keys at home and explore some alternatives to the solo commute so they can continue to take voluntary steps that can improve the quality of air we breathe year-round:

• Take Transit – Public transit systems in the St. Louis region are designed to help eliminate the use of multiple vehicles on the road and offer great alternatives for the work commute or an option to hopping in your car for short trips. Serving St. Louis City, St. Louis County and St. Clair County, Ill., Metro Transit allows riders to walk to a nearby stop, or park and take a train or bus, or a combination of the two, to get where they’re going – safely, comfortably and conveniently. Those who live in Madison County, Illinois will find Madison County Transit to be a great alternative.
• Ridesharing – With transportation-related emissions being one of the biggest contributors to air pollution, RideFinders offers a path to reduce those emissions by providing a free carpool and vanpool ride matching service for commuters to help improve the overall quality of the air. Ridesharing services such as Uber and Lyft match drivers of private vehicles to those seeking transportation and are another great option to eliminate the use of multiple vehicles. Via Metro STL also allows passengers heading in the same direction to hail a vehicle directly from their smartphones using the Via app to get around parts of West, South, and North St. Louis County.
• Walk or Bike – For individuals who live close to work, choosing to walk or bike instead of idling in rush hour traffic helps take cars off area roads and reduces the amount of ozone-forming emissions generated. Walking and biking can also serve as eco-friendly alternatives to run errands and get around town when weather conditions are favorable to help keep air quality in healthy ranges. Walking and biking can also be easily paired with public transit.
• Telecommute – According to the Pew Research Center, roughly 14% of all employed adults in the U.S. work from home all the time. For those that can work from home, continuing to telecommute full-time or at least occasionally is encouraged to help reduce harmful auto emissions that contribute to ozone formation.

Drop the keys and pledge to be car-free on September 22 to do your share for cleaner air. For a host of additional tips on how to achieve cleaner air all year long, explore the Clean Air Partnership’s website, like us on Facebook or follow us on X, formerly known as Twitter, @gatewaycleanair.

The Clean Air Partnership is delighted to spotlight another Green Schools Quest winner – Fern Ridge High School of the Parkway School District in Creve Coeur – for its sustainability projects impacting the larger community. Deemed “Harvesting Harmony,” their Quest projects earned them the “Judges’ Choice” Award this past school year for standing out as unique and inspirational.

“Fern Ridge allowed their students to explore a wide range of sustainability topics, and their inclusion of student voice and student choice impressed the judging panel immensely,” said Deborah Rogers Curtis, Green Schools Coordinator for the Missouri Gateway Green Building Council. “The passion and impact of the students’ work was inspiring!”

Fern Ridge High School is a non-traditional program for Parkway School District high school students interested in an alternative path. Classes are personalized to meet the academic, social, physical and mental health goals of each student. The school day is shortened, and the program is self-paced for students so they can participate in work experiences or service learning. Fern Ridge’s work in the Green Schools Quest provided unique opportunities for the students to engage in sustainability, contributing to their school community, as well as communities around the region and even the world. There is a deep commitment to educating from a “whole child” approach at Fern Ridge, and their Green Schools Quest project touched on each of their core values.

With support from Green Schools Mentor Emily Forthaus of Jacobs Engineering and School Leader Rachel Metze, the students at Fern Ridge High School put their green thumbs to use, growing food on a tower garden to use in culinary classes and to give to local families, as well as planting a native pollinator garden featuring 10 trees. Students explored traditional recycling and terracycling items that are difficult to recycle locally to keep trash out of hazardous landfills and incinerators by turning waste into raw materials for new products. They also participated in “Wellness Wednesdays,” fundraised money for reforestation in Africa, and practiced sustainable waste management and energy conservation, all of which greatly helped benefit the region’s air quality.

“The Clean Air Partnership is proud to continue to collaborate with the Green Schools Quest to recognize the important work underway by our local schools to build a more sustainable community and a greener future,” said Susannah Fuchs, Director of Clean Air for the American Lung Association in Missouri. “The amount of work and creativity that went into Fern Ridge’s projects was very impressive, and we hope it will inspire others to take action for the environment and clean air.”

Registration for the 2024-2025 Green Schools Quest remains open through September 15. For more information on the Quest and Fern Ridge High School’s sustainability projects, visit www.showmegreenschools.org/gsq/. To learn more about the link between sustainability and air quality, explore the Clean Air Partnership’s website, like us on Facebook or follow us on X, formerly known as Twitter, @gatewaycleanair.

With summer winding down and area students heading back to the classroom, the Clean Air Partnership is pleased to shine a spotlight on local schools who’ve implemented sustainability projects and made positive impacts on air quality. As a proud supporter of the Green Schools Quest, an annual project-based, student-driven challenge to devise and implement no-to-low-cost sustainability projects over a six-month period, we’re thrilled to congratulate Pershing Elementary School in University City for its air quality-friendly achievements.

During the 2023-2024 school year, Pershing Elementary was awarded the “Rookie of the Year” Spotlight Award in the Green Schools Quest. Participation in the Quest aligned well with the school’s mission to provide joyful and meaningful learning opportunities for its students by allowing them to drive the project from their own interests. The winning project – under the guidance of Lora Davenport, School Lead and Sustainability Facilitator, Principal Deitra Colquitt and Green Mentor Anne Cummings – entailed creating an afterschool program where students had the opportunity to gather with peers from their grade level and pursue sustainability initiatives.

“Pershing Elementary’s project is an excellent example of what is possible when teachers and administrators collaborate and put kids first,” said Deborah Rogers Curtis, Green Schools Coordinator for the Missouri Gateway Green Building Council. “Their after-school program met a need of the students and also introduced them to new concepts that will stick with them for years to come.”

At the beginning of the club’s program, students wrote an “I wish” statement about something they wanted to change at school. Then, they used the engineering process to find a solution. The overall goal of the afterschool club was to ensure a healthier campus for all students through the resolution of some of the identified problems, and each grade level focused on a different sustainability initiative.

For example, kindergarten students inspired by a visiting eighth grade student took on the project of removing styrofoam trays from the cafeteria. This was a great step towards improving air quality since the styrofoam manufacturing process releases large amounts of pollutants into the atmosphere. Meanwhile, second and third graders focused on recycling to promote waste reduction efforts important to minimizing the amount of trash that ends up in toxic landfills. Fourth and fifth graders also worked to attract birds to campus, which helps support healthy ecosystems that produce cleaner air.

“The Clean Air Partnership is excited to collaborate with the Green Schools Quest to share the great work being accomplished by schools across the bi-state region,” said Susannah Fuchs, Director of Clean Air for the American Lung Association in Missouri. “The project at Pershing Elementary is an inspiring example of how young people can practice sustainability and truly make a difference in their communities.”

Registration for the 2024-2025 Green Schools Quest is now open, with the deadline to sign up on September 15. For more information on the Quest and Pershing Elementary’s sustainability project, visit www.showmegreenschools.org/gsq/. To learn more about the link between sustainability and air quality, explore our website, like us on Facebook or follow us on X, formerly known as Twitter, @gatewaycleanair.

Transportation-related emissions are one of the biggest contributors to air pollution. The Clean Air Partnership and Citizens for Modern Transit are therefore launching a “Go for the Gold. Be a Champion for Clean Air. Take Transit Everywhere.” campaign in conjunction with the 2024 Summer Olympics – as late July into August is traditionally known as the hottest stretch of summer and poses the greatest threat for poor air quality. This two-week-long effort will work to remind individuals to take MetroLink and MetroBus to get to school, work, sports and entertainment venues and everywhere else they need to go. Doing so will help reduce auto emissions and improve regional air quality conditions, while saving transit riders money on gasoline, parking fees and the maintenance costs associated with personal vehicle usage.

“The St. Louis region is no stranger to poor air quality conditions,” said Susannah Fuchs, Director of Clean Air for the American Lung Association in Missouri, which oversees the Clean Air Partnership. “There is a lot of work to be done to protect our local communities from the continued risks to public health resulting from elevated air pollution levels, particularly during the peak of summer when extreme weather conditions significantly impact daily air quality. It’s imperative that area residents stay informed about the quality of the air we breathe and continue to take voluntary steps to reduce emissions to help improve outcomes.”

Area residents can visit www.GoForTheGoldSTL.com to complete a pledge form acknowledging their commitment to take transit between July 26 thru Aug. 11, in addition to their consent to receive color-coded, daily air quality forecasts via email stating if the forecast for the following day is a GREEN (good), YELLOW (moderate), ORANGE (unhealthy for sensitive groups) or RED (unhealthy for everyone) air quality day. The first 150 to do so will receive a “Going for the Gold, 2024 Clean Air Champion” vinyl sticker and a $5 Metro Transit Day Pass good for unlimited rides on MetroLink or MetroBus for an entire day. The site also provides detailed information about available modes of public transit provided throughout the bi-state area by Metro Transit and the St. Clair County Transit District – and links to associated schedules, pricing, programs, incentives and more.

“We know that auto emissions play a drastic role in what the air quality is on any given day,” added Kimberly Cella, Executive Director for Citizens for Modern Transit. “As the summer heats up and the potential for poor air quality days to be forecast increases, we want people to take action with alternate modes of transportation.”

Those who track their transit trips by responding to campaign text messages from July 26 to Aug. 11 will also get a free, patriotic “Public Transit” t-shirt mailed to them, while supplies last. Each time respondents track their transit trips, their name will be entered into a drawing to win one of 10, September monthly Metro Transit passes up for grabs – valued at $78 each.

Street teams from partnering organizations behind the “Be A Champion for Clean Air. Take Transit There.” campaign will also be at select MetroLink and MetroBus stops the morning of Thursday, July 25, 2024. These representatives will be handing out campaign-themed lanyards and card holders with an educational insert encouraging people to scan a QR code to commit to “Going for the Gold” by taking transit and signing up to receive the daily air quality forecasts.

To learn more about the region’s air quality, public transportation options and campaign efforts, visit www.GoForTheGoldSTL.com.

Years of scientific research have established that ozone and particle pollution are a threat to human health at every stage of life. Some groups of people, however, are more at risk of illness and death than others because they are more likely to be exposed, are more vulnerable to health harm, or often both.

According to the “State of the Air” report again this year, the health burden of air pollution is not evenly shared. Research has shown that people of color are more likely to be exposed to air pollution and suffer harm to their health from breathing polluted air. Over the years, decision-makers have found it easier to place sources of pollution, such as power plants, industrial facilities, landfills and highways, in economically disadvantaged communities of color than in more affluent, predominantly white neighborhoods. The resulting disproportionate exposure to polluted air has contributed to high rates of emergency department visits for asthma and other lung diseases.

Report findings revealed that, although people of color make up 41.6% of the overall U.S. population, they are 52% of the people living in a county with at least one failing grade for ozone and/or particle pollution. More than 27.5 million people of color live in counties that received failing grades on all three measures, including some 16.8 million Hispanic or Latino people. There’s also evidence that people living in poverty are more likely to live near sources of pollution since they have fewer resources to relocate than those with more financial security, as well as having less access to quality and affordable health care to provide relief to them when they get sick. In the U.S. alone, 16 million people with incomes meeting the federal poverty definition live in counties that received an “F” grade for at least one pollutant, and over 5.4 million people in poverty live in counties that failed all three measures. Children, older adults and people living with underlying health conditions may also be physically more susceptible to the health impacts of air pollution than others.

To help keep these individuals and other area residents informed about ozone pollution levels in the region and how those levels can affect their health, the Clean Air Partnership releases color-coded, daily air quality forecasts all summer long to let area residents know what the next day’s air quality is forecast to be and if they should alter their outdoor activities to minimize exposure to polluted air. This will be especially important later this month and next with a likely uptick of unhealthy air quality days.

For more a host of additional tips to beat the summer heat to help clear the air and protect human health, visit CleanAir-StLouis.com, like the Clean Air Partnership on Facebook, or follow us on X, formerly known as Twitter, @gatewaycleanair.