Take Action!
Our goal is to help you do more to combat climate change. Here is a list of some things that you can do to take action and make a change!
Plant Native
Native birds and insects are vital to the health of natural ecosystems and rely on specific native plant species for food and shelter. Unfortunately, garden centers are filled with trendy plants that are often not native to the area. These non-native plants do a poor job of supporting local fauna and often compete with local flora, disrupting native ecosystems.
You can help combat ecosystem degradation by choosing to plant native whenever possible. Though garden centers don't stock their selves with native plants, native plant nurseries can be found in most cities. On top of this, local park services or nature centers can often provide good resources on what plants are native to your area and how you can find them.
We're currently developing an image recognition tool to help identify whether a plant is native to its location. In the meantime, other great tools exist today that can tell you about plants native to your area, including the National Wildlife Federation's Native Plant Finder and the Audubon's Native Plants Database. Also, check out Picture This, a mobile app that helps you identify plants using image recognition.
Grow Creatively
Having your own yard might sound like a minimum requirement to starting a garden, but there are many different ways to grow that don't require a yard:
- Plant in pots on your porch or balcony.
- Plant in pots or jars on your window sill.
- Set up grow lights indoors and grow using containers or hydroponics.
- Find a friend or neighbor with a yard, a community garden with open plots, or a local church or business with unused green space.
There are alternative options to gardening in your own yard. You just have to think outside the box and find something that fits your situation. If you want to get started with hydroponics in your home, check out our guides.
Donate
When you don't have energy, space, or direction for your own growing, you can always contribute to the larger sustainability efforts by donating your time or money.
Find an organization your values align with—such as a local organization like Urban Permascapes, a national organization like The National Wildlife Federation, or a global organizations like One Tree Planted (to name some of our favorites) — and give within your means. Purpose-driven operations like ours rely on outside funding and a volunteer workforce to achieve our missions because significant change can't happen without a collective effort. Please consider contributing to our effort, and others like ours, to support our fight against climate change. Thank you!
