Christmas Tree Recycling

It's never easy to say "goodbye" to a Christmas tree, but when its time has come, you can make sure it goes back to the earth in a sustainable way.

Each village in Nassau County has its own yard waste & sanitation pick-up procedures, and many have special days for Christmas tree pick up & drop offs. These trees are used as mulch in landscaping. Some villages even offer this mulch for free for residents.

To find out how to recycle your tree, check your town's sanitation department website.

You can also put your tree to use as a birdfeeder in your backyard, or as a soil erosion barrier on a hill. You may also want to consider a rooted or potted tree for next year that can be planted at the end of the season. For more ideas, you can visit this site.

Recycled Shoes & Fashions

With Simple Shoes taking a creative break, the search recycled materials shoes had to get a bit more creative! Although many companies offer a style or two of shoes with recycled materials, it can make a much bigger statement (as a fashionista & a consumer) to buy from brands that consistently stick with the values you believe in.

soleRebels tooTOOS  [top]
& Okabashi Classic Flip-Flops [bottom]

The best-known online brands for recycled materials are soleRebels, for all types of shoes, and Okabashi, for recycled rubber sandals. soleRebels was founded in 2004 by Bethlehem Alemu to create jobs in her community in Ethiopia. They now carry WFTO/IFAT Fair Trade Certification & make literally hundreds of styles of shoes, from flip flops to sneakers to ballet flats & slip-ons, all with options to customize colors. Okabashi shoes are made in the USA from recycled materials, creating jobs & vegan styles since 1984. They also have a recycling program, where you can send in your worn out shoes to be recycled at their factory.
       

On Long Island, you can find new & lightly used shoes at many resale & thrift shops, to reduce and reuse footwear. Homegrown Boutique, a new store based in Babylon Village, creates handmade garments, bags & accessories from repurposed materials; they're made in the USA by Long Island artisans.


New York City is the home of Moo Shoes, a vegan accessory store that sells cruelty-free shoes, bags, belts & accessories. They also have an online store if you'd rather not make the trip to the Lower East Side. Moo Shoes isn't its own brand, but offers the vegan selections from other well-known brands (like Big Buddha & Madden Girl).

Luckily, many of today's brands offer vegan, fair trade & recycled options that don't look much different than mainstream shoes, so you can chose to stand out, speak up, or blend in as much as you'd like while still putting your dollars toward sound choices.

Long Beach Farmers Market Winter Hours

Great news! Friends & Farmers just announced that Kennedy Plaza Farmers Market in Long Beach will have extended winter hours this year!

Kennedy Plaza Farmers Market
Long Beach City Hall Lobby
1 W. Chester Street, Long Beach, NY
Open: Wednesdays from 10:00 am - 2:00 pm
December 14, 2011 - February 29, 2012

http://www.kennedyplazafarmersmarket.com

The Kennedy Plaza Farmers Market always has a great selection of food & plenty of vendors available so you can find everything on your grocery list at one stop. And, if somehow something's still missing, there's always Bob's Natural Foods across the street. Another reason to love this farmers market is the accessibility through the LIRR -- the Long Beach station is directly across from Kennedy Plaza.

This Wednesday, you'll find:

• Apples (Red Jacket Orchards)
• Root veggies (Madura Farms)
• Mushrooms (Madura Farms)
• Salad mix (Madura Farms)
• Pickes (Horman's Best Pickles) 
• Eggs (Millport Dairy)
• Bacon (Millport Dairy)
• Breakfast Sausage (Ronnybrook Farm Dairy)

• Eggnog (Ronnybrook Farm Dairy)
• Ice Cream (Ronnybrook Farm Dairy)
• Yogurt (Ronnybrook Farm Dairy)
• Pies & baked goods (Bread Alone)
• Wine - $2 off every bottle (Ronnybrook Farm Dairy)
• Coffee (Bread Alone, Gentle Brew)

• Ravioli (Papa Pasquales's)
• Pasta (Papa Pasquales's)
• Cheese (Papa Pasquales's)
• Breads  (Papa Pasquales's, Bread Alone)

• Soaps & lotions (Clean Essence)

Events: LI Small Farm Summit & Anti-Fracking Rally

There are two big Long Island sustainability events this week, starting tomorrow morning! For those interested in small- and mid-scale agriculture on Long Island, there will be a planning meeting for the 2nd annual Long Island Small Farm Summit. And for energy-minded residents, Food & Water Watch will be hosting a rally against hydrofracking in Manhasset, right next to the LIRR station.

Both events are sure to be great networking opportunities with other Long Island citizens concerned about sustainability. You may also happen upon chef & Slow Food Huntington co-founder Bhavani Jaroff of I Eat Green, who shared these Nassau events in her weekly newsletter & radio show.

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Tuesday: Long Island Small Farm Summit Planning Meeting
9:30 AM at the Old Bethpage Village Restoration
1303 Round Swamp Road, Old Bethpage, NY

"Sold out in advance, the first Small Farm Summit held April 15, 2011 at SUNY College Old Westbury was attended by more than 600 people interested in locally sustainable agriculture on Long Island.

Organizers of the 2012 Summit are expecting to bring together an even larger, more diverse group of educators, farmers, parents, children, municipalities, land trusts, not-for-profits, community leaders, restaurant owners and chefs, and concerned citizens focused on strengthening the local food system and increasing community awareness of and access to more locally grown food."

Thursday: Rally Against Fracking with Food & Water Watch
3:30 PM - 4:15 PM at Mary Jane Davies Green

200 Plandome Road, Manhasset, NY

Facebook Event Page

"Long Islanders will be directly affected by hydraulic fracturing. Fracking upstate will increase our air pollution, and could send millions of gallons of toxic and radioactive wastewater to treatment facilities on Long Island. That is why this coming Thursday, December 15th, at 3:30 PM, Food and Water Watch, Grassroots Environmental Education and Reach Out America will be holding a rally to show that Long Islanders care about hydraulic fracturing. The rally will take place at the Mary Jane Davies Green in Manhasset- the small park right on Plandome Road, near the train Manhasset train station. Come, and bring as many friends and family members as possible!"

Nature Centers, Environmental Education & Childcare in Nassau County

Even though we're starting to feel the winter chill here on Long Island, it's still a great time to get outside & explore the natural world. Did you know that squirrels make nests? Ever see animal tracks or their winter homes? Watch migrating waterfowl over a harbor? 

Bare trees and clear skies can show many of the homes & processes in an ecosystem that are usually invisible, and a guided tour at a nature center can help you identify these things year-long with your children.

Here's the nature centers you'll find in Nassau County for some outdoor, kid-friendly winter activities:

• 
  

• Garden City
• "Our Backyard" at the Long Island Children's Museum
• 
  
• Glen Cove
• Garvies Point Museum & Preserve
• 
  
• Island Park
• Our Learning Environment Early Childhood Center

• Manhasset
• Science Museum of Long Island

• Oceanside
• Marine Nature Study Area

• Oyster Bay
• Theodore Roosevelt Sanctuary

• Rockville Centre
  Center for Science Teaching & Learning (CSTL)
  [ Holiday Camp 12/26 - 12/30 ]
• 
  Rockville Centre
  CSTL's Nature's Kids Nursery School
• 
  
• Seaford
• Tackapausha Museum & Preserve

Event: Organic Corner's "Survive the Holidays"

Organic Corner, the newly-renovated health food store in Massapequa, will be hosting a "Survive the Holidays" workshop with Letitia Fowler, founder and nutrition & health counselor at Personal Best Health and Wellness.

Organic Corner writes:

"As the holiday season approaches we wanted to help each of you navigate thru the never ending parties/celebrations (aka: season for binge eating) !!! On Saturday December 10th, Please stop by and learn some pointers to not only survive the holidays, but also enjoy them without all the stress and guilt that goes along with it." 


The event will take place this Saturday, December 10th from 2:00 - 3:00pm in Organic Corner's lounge, 37 Broadway, Massapequa NY 11758.

LI HomeGrown Open House

Last night, I was excited to attend the LI HomeGrown Open House at The Congregational Church of South Hempstead -- even the building that hosted the meeting is taking green initiatives!

LI HomeGrown is a proposed project of LI Launchpad, a business accelerator that works to start up sustainable social enterprises on Long Island. LI Launchpad is headed by Chuck Schwartz of LI Green, Rev. Patrick G. Duggan of Abundant Communities Together, and Francis Fragola of Collaborative Energy Group.

LI HomeGrown will collaborate with local growers on Long Island to facilitate the production, market development, distribution, and sale of local foods. They would also like to establish commercial kitchens, so that growers can add value to their produce by canning, jarring, prepping, and freeze-drying their fruits & vegetables. Kitchens could also provide a space for cooking classes, healthy food access, and value added processing for entrepreneurial residents of LI. Marketing these locally grown foods will also encourage educational programs about the existence and benefits of small-scale agriculture in Nassau County and western Suffolk.

To download LI HomeGrown's slideshow presentation 

from the 12/6/11 meeting, click here. 

This kind of venture is just beginning to be recognized nationally & internationally as a "food hub". A food hub, according to the USDA's working definition, is "a centrally located facility with a business management structure facilitating the aggregation, storage, processing, distribution, and/or marketing of locally/regionally produced food products." These facilities have an amazing potential to make small- and mid-scale agriculture a competitive option for the average consumer in the marketplace.

Usually, if small-scale farmers want to sell their produce, they can do so through a  farm stand, CSA, or co-op. However, these methods can often be an inconvenience for both a busy, small-scale farmer and a potential buyer, who might have to travel far out of their way to support local agriculture. Food hubs can solve this problem by making locally-produced food more convenient for both farmers & buyers. Food hubs' services can include picking up produce from farms to cities, sorting & grading produce, marketing and advertising, and coordinating sales.

The USDA has a great resource for
food hub news, information & research.

On Long Island, LI HomeGrown is working with Abundant Communities Together, Friends & Farmers, The Congregational Church of South Hempstead, Hobbs Community Farm, Westbury Divine Congregation & Unified New Cassel Community Revitalization Corporation (UNCCRC), and is looking for more partners.

To get involved, contact Rev. Patrick Duggan
at 516-489-3610 or pd@actogether.net .

Locally LI will also post updates for future LI HomeGrown meetings.

Long Island Winter Farmers Markets

This weekend marks the first of G&G's Winter Farmers Markets on Long Island for the 2011/2012 winter season. G&G Winter Farmers Markets offer three locations: Melville, Garden City, and Northport. On December 3rd, the Melville location will open, with live music & regional vendors. For a full list of vendors, you can visit their website.

Melville G&G Winter Farmers Market
Sweet Hollow Hall
West Hills County Park
98 Gwynne Road
Melville, NY 11747
Open: Saturdays (8am - 12pm) & Sundays (10am - 2pm) in December
December: 3rd, 10th, 11th, 17th, 18th


Garden City G&G Winter Farmers Market
Unitarian Universalist Congregation
223 Stewart Ave (corner of Stewart Ave & Nassau Blvd)
Garden City, NY 11530
Open: Sundays in January, February and March from 1:00pm - 5:00pm
January: 8th, 15th, 22nd
February: 5th 12th, 19th
March: 4th, 11th, 18th


Northport G&G Winter Farmers Market 
St. Paul's United Methodist Church
270 Main Street
Northport, NY 11768
Open: Sundays in January, February and March from 1:00pm - 5:00pm
January: 8th, 15th, 22nd, 29th
February: 5th, 12th, 19th, 26th
March: 4th, 11th


Although Nassau County-produced food might be slim pickings over the winter compared to the summer, there are always the stores listed under Local Links (on the right side of the page) to supplement your conscious cold-weather food shopping.