One of the tallest conifers in the northeastern US, this useful, native tree has a fascinating history.
Sustainable Living
Stratford Ecological Center: Interview with April Hoy by Simply Living Interns Abby Esch and Kenedy Witherow
Last week, with my fellow intern, Kenedy, I got to sit down (virtually) and talk with April Hoy, about Stratford Ecological Center. April is the Education Director at Stratford, a working organic farm, state nature preserve, and non-profit organization that was started back in the early 1990s as a family-run […]
Solarize aims to jump start residential solar in Central Ohio
If you have been thinking about going solar, now is the time to act. On Tuesday, July 12, a cohort of city and community groups including Simply Living launched the Columbus Area 2022 Solar and EV Charger Co-op through a program called Solarize. Check our Events Calendar for upcoming sessions. […]
100 Things You Can Do to Help in the Climate Crisis
In case you needed help getting started. By Sarah Lazarovic Sarah Lazarovic is an award-winning artist, creative director, freelance animator and filmmaker, and journalist, covering news and cultural events in comic form. She is the author of A Bunch of Pretty Things I Did Not Buy. Reprinted from the Winter 2022 issue […]
Be the Change Weekly Community Update December 10, 2021
Columbus Climate Action Plan Released GreenSpot will play a critical role in section 1.1 of the Plan: “Empowering a Community of Climate Leaders.” Over the next several months and years GreenSpot will work with residents, business leaders, academia, government, and nonprofits to increase climate change awareness, solutions, and making sure […]
Be the Change Weekly Community Update December 3, 2021
Co-Creating the Eco Future: Presentation & Discussion on Zoom Monday, December 6 at 7 pm Localizing Our Communities!Learn from examples around the worldand here in Columbus and central OhioTuesday, December 7 at 7 pm on Zoom We will explore the many ways our communities benefit when localization is a priority. […]
The Path to an Ecological Future for Humanity (Part 1)
This is Part 1 of a longer essay by Chuck Lynd published in 4 parts on Medium.com. You can read the full essay here. Part 1. The Path to an Ecological Future for Humanity As Yogi Berra observed, “It’s tough to make predictions, especially about the future.” We chuckle, but […]
Be the Change Weekly Community Update November 5, 2021
Global Warming: What Is It Going to Take? Ohio author Paul Robinson asks: Can It Be Stopped? Co-Creating the Eco-Future: Meetup & DiscussionMonday, December 6 at 7 pm EST on Zoom Hi there all you cultural creatives! Simple livers, renegades from the consumer society, green activists, arts and craft makers, […]
Simply Living relaunches Sustainable U
Following our mission to connect people to learning opportunities that promote sustainability, environmental justice, and our local economy, Simply Living is relaunching Sustainable U. This fall we will offer two discussion courses through EcoChallenge, formerly Northwest Earth Institute, a course through Local Futures, and three online courses from our members. Read on for more […]
Columbus Groceries – Love Local, Live Local!
by Kyle Garvey *North Market is a 145-year-old covered market space, representing Ohio’s best independent merchants, farmers, and makers. Their Columbus location is 59 Spruce St. (43215) and their Dublin location is 6750 Longshore St. (43017). *Weiland’s Market has been independent and family-owned for 50 years! Their Clintonville location is 3600 Indianola […]
Happy World Environment Day!
Celebrate the 49th World Environment Day on June 5th! It’s often said that we have three homes: our bodies, our families (physical home) and our planet, Mother Earth. This upcoming Saturday, June 5th, we celebrate our third home, Earth, on World Environment Day. The first World Environment Day was celebrated […]
Columbus Tools
Summer’s here and it’s about time for some home improvement. But owning every tool you need, while obviously impractical and far from cost-effective, just doesn’t fit into a sustainable and harmonious local economy. Every tool in every garage is a crazily wasteful state of affairs, in Columbus or anywhere. That’s […]
Want solar training? Get a discount!
We are super excited to announce a new partnership to provide a $50 discount for Simply Living members who sign up for online solar classes offered by Annie and Jay Warmke of Blue Rock Station. The online self-paced classes include: Introduction to Solar PV, for those new to solar, covering […]
People’s Solar Project to light up Columbus
The People’s Solar Project is a demonstration community solar and microgrid that will generate 5 MW of solar energy to power 80 homes, five churches and two city schools in a 300-acre area on Cooke Road.
Transition US – Resilience for a Time When Resilience is Mandatory
By John Crawford It’s impossible to miss the fact that we’re in a more “normal” weather pattern in Ohio this winter: we’ve already doubled our snowfall compared to last year; temperatures have been colder than normal, but we’re not getting the below-zero readings that have hit Oklahoma, parts of northern […]
Simply Living Annual Meeting to recognize best and brightest
It’s that time again! It has been quite a year since we last convened for the Simply Living Annual Meeting. This year’s event — a virtual dinner — will take place Sunday, April 18, from 5 to 7 p.m. We are excited to welcome our members, allies, and the public […]
ACTION ALERT: Will you speak out for renewable energy in Ohio?
Next week, the Ohio Senate Energy and Public Utilities Committee will hear testimony from opponents of Senate Bill 52. This bill subjects renewable energy projects to a new layer of government regulation in addition to the existing state process not applied to any other power generation source.
Action Alert: Tell Columbus to match the climate plan to the climate science
Last December, the city of Columbus released a draft Climate Action Plan. While we applaud the city for counting its carbon emissions and devising strategies in five areas to lower emissions, the goals do not go far enough. Climate science says we must cut carbon emissions in half by 2030 […]
Podcasts from the Post Carbon Institute: Crazy Town & What Could Possibly Go Right?
If you haven’t discovered the Post Carbon Institute (PCI), the brainchild of Richard Heinberg, it’s time you visited their website: https://www.postcarbon.org. Their tagline is accurate: “Leading the transition to a more resilient, equitable, and sustainable world.” The Institute has been exploring all aspects of the future worlds that are possible […]
Panel Discussion on the Story of Plastic
Our panel discussion/Q&A was held on Sunday July 12, 2020 at 2 pm and was streamed live on Simply Living’s Facebook page and on our new YouTube channel. We asked our panel: What can we do about the plastic problem? The panel included: > Elissa Yoder, Conservation Program Manager for the Ohio Sierra […]