News and Insights

What a coincidence. The same week that Earth Month starts, NASA’s Artemis mission is heading out to explore the moon, following a 50-year hiatus. Plus ACES receives a Space-Time Gram from 50-years in the future. It comes from the grandson of an early 21st century climate and environmental steward and ACES alumnus, a native New Englander, who now (2076) lives on Mars.

Here is this very relevant insight about how many contributed to early efforts to safeguard the wellbeing of current and future generations.

“Dear early ACES members and the many other Merrimack Valley environmental stewards back on Earth. First, congratulations on the 300 the anniversary of the USA. You made it, working collaboratively, and you saved the earth. Our Environmental Sustainability Club that was launched on Mars in 2050 wants to recognize you and your many municipalities and stewardship communities for your forethought in planting all those varieties of walnut and hazel nut trees and other native vegetation throughout the Merrimack River Watershed beginning in 2026 that have now reached maturity

In addition to stabilizing your fields and river banks, reforested areas have served you as a tourism draw as mushroom foraging classes seek out the cool shade and tasty proteins to bring home for dinner. Their wood has also matured enough to harvest some it and furniture making is being taught in local trade schools, where people are coming to the see the furniture exhibitions in Amesbury’s furniture museum. Numerous, local Pollinator Gardens have allowed many species to thrive. It took a lot of patience and long-term thinking to be planting trees for future generations, even as your own times were struggling with pollution from fossil fuels and microplastics in your air and water.

Of course, we’d be remiss if we didn’t express our appreciation for dedication of numerous ACES Allies, Advisors, Partners and Resources toward ensuring a sustainable future. The restoration of the Merrimack River Watershed and its waterfronts by establishing “living shorelines” that catch silt and slow water flows as they clean the downriver flowing waters. The strategically selected set aside lands, lush vegetation, natural buffers, and thriving bird life and fish nurseries do all that while providing protection from flooding and erosion. It is important to note the value of the stretches of the Merrimack where people of the 2020’s first began establishing living shorelines. These are now favored picnic spots of 2076 where the black ducks and mallards swim in and the youth of your era now skim rocks across the water. The cleaner river water and revitalized ecosystems would amaze the leaders who first passed the Clean Water Act about 100 years ago during the 20th century.

And we should not fail to mention the leaders who facilitated community gardens in every Essex County and town. We wonder if the organizers and volunteers who established widespread community gardens fully envisioned how these gardens evolved into local food hubs, and community gathering spots along with the micro-farms that now exist and regenerative farming enriched with rich composting. And we hear via our occasional teleportation visitors that your harvest feasts are legendary.

These were not grand gestures by a few, but consistent, collective actions by the many as they had time and inspiration to turn hope for the future into action.

So, from your future alumni diaspora on Mars, please accept our deep gratitude for the foresight and care shown in 2026. Your work reinforced the idea that the present is always someone else’s future and just as 2026 planted for tomorrow, your future continues to plant forward, even as we are terraforming the land here on Mars.”

We invite you to stay updated on environmental matters by subscribing to our monthly newsletter on ACES’ website. Please consider joining our community of stewards committed to Make Every Day Earth Day and subscribe to our Instagram and Facebook.

This educational column was originally published by The Daily News of Newburyport on April 3, 2026.

It seems that there has always been tension between those in power and those who speak the truth. Spinning tall tales and half-truths are part of the repertoire of those seeking to gain or keep power. In the unpopular 1960s Vietnam War, the US likely misread the Vietnamese as a Soviet-aligned threat when it started as a colonial rebellion against the French.  But we pushed on regardless.  Two of the most powerful anti-war voices of the time were low key television folk musicians, the Smothers Brothers.  With brother Tommy acting clueless about world events, he would say and sing teasing jests at those in charge of the US and the war. His songs and jokes were effective in energizing and mobilizing public opinion against the war.

Today we need some new court jesters to not only point out the foolish and destructive nature of wars but also to callout the anti-science positions of those in executive power in the U.S.

Societies rely on cultural figures like jesters, poets, and storytellers to speak uncomfortable truths when political power pressures institutions like science to conform. Truth often shines when disguised as laughter and song.

Storyteller Hans Christian Anderson’s tale, “The Emperor's New Clothes," tells the story of an emperor who is led to believe that he is wearing magical clothes only visible to the wise. Fearing the emperor’s wrath and social nonconformity, everyone pretends to see them. But a child finally tells the truth. The child is simply telling what he sees, without the social and institutional pressures that silence the adults.

The Emperor's New Clothes is a metaphor for societies that are willing to collectively ignore obvious reality. Reality like last week’s approval of BP drilling oil wells in the deep sea in the Gulf of Mexico. Sound familiar? This latest ultra-deepwater well, Kaskida, will be located in water over 1 mile deep where it will face both extreme pressure and temperature conditions while relying on still-emerging technology.  Have they forgotten the Deepwater Horizon oil spill of 2010 that released almost 5 million barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico, coating over 1,300 miles of coastline in 5 states?  And that’s no joke.

Unfortunately, our political system is recreating “Emperor” dynamics when fact-based evidence is ignored. When science becomes politically inconvenient, officials are giving in to the pressure to pretend the emperor is clothed. The science-based evidence functions like the child in Anderson’s story—it states observable reality. We now have the need for new songs about fossil fuel’s threatening the environment and health effects ranging from drilling to refining to shipping and eventually to burning it.  We especially need to consider it is doing to our atmosphere.

We still have a few high profile, late-night society truth-tellers and jesters like Jon Steward, Stephen Colbert, Bill Maher, and Jimmy Kimmel who are willing to speak truth to power.  We will all have the opportunity to see some of our local, next-generation jesters next Wednesday at the Firehouse Center for the Arts.   Steve Sweeney, legendary Boston comedian, and some of his fellow funny folks will likely throw a few jokes our way about the anti-science mindlessness of the current Washington zeitgeist. Expect a few clever words and some truth telling if you choose to go. And it’s on April Fool’s Day to boot.

But our communities also need fact filled journalism, science, and art that expresses the truths in human terms. Supporting these people and institutions collectively helps prevent the emperor effect - a system where everyone fears stating the obvious. And more than ever society needs jesters and artists with the courage to speak plainly. America needs someone willing to say what others see but refuse to admit. Jesters laugh, poets imagine, scientists measure but all share a common duty: to tell truth to power when it would rather hear praise.

Our call to action to environmentalists this week is to seek out political climate-oriented comics strips, jokes, and music to share with friends as a way for you to speak truth to power.

Also share some of them on ACES’ website https://www.aces-alliance.org/. Please consider joining our community of stewards committed to Make Every Day Earth Day and subscribe to our Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/acesalliancenbpt/ and Facebookhttps://www.facebook.com/ACESAlliance/  pages.

This educational column was originally published by The Daily News of Newburyport on March 27, 2026.

Mayor Reardon of Newburyport presented  annual Community and Public Service Awards to City Hall auditorium was filled with thunderous applause throughout much of Tuesday night as city employees, youth organizers, and nonprofit leaders received Community and Public Service Awards.

“I was overwhelmed with the number of people who came out for these awards honoring the great work happening in our community,” Mayor Sean Reardon said, the following day. And ACES was well represented as Newburyport High School student Alexandra Yavarow was awarded the Youth Community Service Award for her work with the Alliance of Climate and Environmental Stewards (ACES), a nonprofit organization working to advance environmental sustainability at the local level. The Mayors’ citation read, “Alexandra has grown in many ways through the contributions she has made to ACES programs and projects. She connects easily with people, communicates effectively and brings strong writing and graphic skills to presentations and outreach. Her perspective as a youth corps director adds valuable insight to the ACES board, and her delightful persona makes her a joy to work with. “

This article was orriginaly publiched by The Daily News of Newburyport on March 26, 2026.

We can’t rest on our laurels. We can’t assume that the last few decades of prosperity seen in our North Shore coastal economies will continue uninterrupted. The economies of Newburyport, Salem, and Gloucester have benefitted from thoughtful preservation of their historical ambiance and architecturally consistent new development. Consequently, we have seen increases in North Shore tourism related to our colonial history, museums, boating, beaches, trails, and birding. We have also benefited from our proximity to the technology and health care economies of Boston. But many of those benefits are now at risk as tariffs, development, and environmental change wash up under the pilings of our strengths. Tourism can be badly damaged as tariffs isolate us and Canadian visitors avoid us.  Our fisheries industries are harmed by ocean warming and over fishing. And, in the face of sea level rise and more powerful coastal storm systems, there are now plans for establishing a voluntary property buyout program of waterfront homes and businesses, as part of the state’s long-term coastal resilience strategy.

It may be time to think about a diversification of our economies, a green diversification. One that encourages economic growth aligned with environmental sustainability and climate resilience.  We need to protect coastal assets, businesses, and jobs by investing in clean energy, climate resilience, new sustainable companies, and green focused educational opportunities.  We need to reset now.  We can’t rest on our laurels

Offshore wind and other green energy sources present one path for regional job creation and industrial revitalization. Now that offshore wind projects have the green light to proceed again, Salem will be a visible highlight for our region as its harbor is thoughtfully redeveloped in support of offshore wind. A supply chain will grow for marine engineering, fabrication, and maintenance. And there is every possibility that some of that will be in offices and marine resources in greater Newburyport communities, and Gloucester as well.

Hands-on workforce partnerships with local colleges and vocational schools will result in high-wage, long-term jobs and maritime green energy revitalization. But environmental and ocean related engineering jobs need skilled laborers who need to be trained ahead of time. We need to start now.  We can’t rest on our laurels.

Newburyport and our sister cities have already begun some of the resiliency work by flood-proofing downtown infrastructure, for example Newburyport’s City Council financial support for board walk restoration. But more work is needed on rain gardens and improved green stormwater systems. As the electrical grid is challenged by the growth of AI and increasing storm intensity, micro-grids and battery storage facilities will be needed to keep our lights on for schools and hospitals.

Focusing on green economic development will mean the protection of tourism, property values, and municipal tax bases.  Meanwhile our proximity to Boston’s academic, health and business powerhouses mean we need more and cleaner transportation. We need expanded EV charging infrastructure along our north-south road ways. These EV stations will improve commuter experience and mean people who live here can get there for a good Boston area job. While we’re at it, we should plan for more rapid electrification of school buses and municipal fleets.  We need to plan now.  We can’t rest on our laurels.

Green economic development is not just an environmental policy it is a long-term sustainability strategy. The North Shore has some unique strengths such as its working waterfronts, its historic downtowns, and its proximity to the Boston innovation economy. But after decades of similar economic strategies, the times and the climate require some fresh thinking and planning. The world is changing and we need to change with it.  We can’t rest on our laurels.

We need to begin realigning climate resilience with economic growth. It’s the only way the North Shore can continue as a model of coastal sustainability in the 21st century. It’s time for the civic, non-profit, and commercial leaders of our coastal communities to add green diversification to their ever evolving ‘to do’ lists.  We won’t rest on our laurels.

ACES invites you to read up on ideas to reduce plastics in your life at myplasticfreelife.com/plasticfreeguide and to stay updated on environmental matters by subscribing to our monthly newsletter on ACES’ website www.aces- alliance.org. Please consider joining our community of stewards committed to Make Every Day Earth Day by following our Instagram (@acesalliancenbpt) and Facebook (@ACESAlliance) pages to stay informed.

This educational column was orrigianly published by The Daily News of Newburyport on March 20, 2026.

In an era of online shopping and declining ‘MainStreet’ retail opportunities, corner stores should be encouraged and supported in our smaller towns and cities. In a thriving downtown area, these establishments often act as the heartbeat of their communities and typically provide more than just goods and services to their residents.  Taken together, they create a unique social and economic ecosystem that larger box stores cannot replicate.

These shops often serve as local social hubs, like Angie’s Diner, a place where neighbors catch up on news, or Kelly’s Hardware, where employees often greet you by name and offer expert personalized advice.

Maybe a better term for them rather than corner stores is neighborhood destinations. They don’t have to just fit the small retail convenience store model. In fact, it is better if a wide variety of destinations spots are encouraged. Places like hair care salons, pet grooming shops, yarn and knitting stores, and mahjong club spaces. How about an actors, authors and poets' cafe that can become a neighborhood hangout for creative exchange, like Jabberwocky. Or a place that hosts coffee ‘plus’, the “plus” being book readings, poetry slams, or amateur musician performers, like Chococoa, where some days you can enjoy tunes along with your coffee and food.

As neighborhood destinations, corner store softer setting and mood to residents along with their specialty retail services. West Newbury’s Food Mart has long served as a store and gathering spot. Considerthe setting consignment stores offer or gourmet food and wine shops like youcan find at Grand Trunk Wine and Cheese.  We have other good exampleslocally like Olive’s Coffee and Bakehouse on High Street and the Natural Grocera short walk away. Or the Black Duck in the Tannery and Abraham’s Bagels andPizza on Liberty Street. And it’s not just here in Newburyport. Other destination stores can be found in our neighboring towns and citieslike the Amesbury’s Marketplace Bakehouse in the Square and the notable AndymanDessert and Baking . 

Corner store neighborhoods are also important environmentally and socially because they can reduce car trips for small needs, like offering places for neighborhood kids to get last minute school project supplies. They recycle used clothing and household products in antique and consignment stores. And they support local seniors, kids, and people without cars.

Cities like Amesbury and Newburyport have an opportunity for opening more of these shops if city leaders include them in their long-term visions. Controlling costs for potential corner store vendors is paramount. Lease costs need to be controlled so that the spaces don’t become too expensive for these mom-and-pop operations.  For example, in the South End of Newburyport there are former corner store destinations that have been permanently converted to residential use in their neighborhoods.

Our local towns and cities have a large collection of buildings from previous centuries that can be repurposed as hybrid models of neighborhood community and commerce. If regulations were reviewed and the neighborhood agreed, there might be mini-overlay zones for creative commercial or nonprofit destinations. Small footprint destinations for retail, services or clubs thoughtfully fitted into there sidential fabric could foster more neighborhood social life and healthierwalking lifestyles.  Think of all our Libraries with their activities. The unique Emma Andrews library is a great resource in the South End of Newburyport.

ACES strongly supports livable, walkable streetsand sees that the activation of creative corner store destinations are good forus as communities. Small corner store venues add to the variety and theeconomies of their neighborhoods and keep money circulating locally and act as informaldestinations where casual interactions with neighbors form social bonds andcultural continuity.

ACES team members don’t see these concepts as far outin any way. As the famous urbanist of the 20th century Jane Jacobs wrote:“Designing a dream City is easy, rebuilding a living one takes imagination.”

ACES invites you to read up on ideas to reduce plastics in your life at myplasticfreelife.com/plasticfreeguide and to stay updated on environmental matters by subscribing to our monthly newsletter on ACES’ website www.aces- alliance.org. Please consider joining our community of stewards committed to Make Every Day Earth Day by following our Instagram (@acesalliancenbpt) and Facebook (@ACESAlliance) pages to stay informed.

This educational column was orrigianly published by The Daily News of Newburyport on March 13, 2026.

An environmentalist who is frugal is focused on practical ways to save money while they help reduce environmental impacts. And that is especially relevant in a time when affordability is becoming so challenging. 

Going ‘green’ doesn’t have to be expensive. In fact, many environmentally friendly habits are rooted in frugality. By just rethinking how we buy, use, and maintain everyday goods, we can reduce our waste, lower expenses, and shrink our carbon footprint at the same time. First of all, we should maintain what we have in good condition so we don't have to buy something new. Newburyport is beautiful in part because great leaders, like the recently deceased Jack Bradshaw, worked hard and cared enough to keep it that way via preservation and upkeep.

A good starting point is changing our addiction to overconsumption. Overconsumption (buying too much stuff) isn’t just about how much we buy and use; it’s also about what we do with it after we’re done with it. The more we purchase, the more we throw away, creating the waste crisis that is spiraling out of control. By changing our consumption habits, we meet the criteria of the frugal environmentalist, reducing costs and saving the planet.

A first step might be to buy used instead of new wherever possible for significant savings and many environmental gains. For example, buying a used car instead of a new one saves on both price and taxes. Also new automobiles rapidly depreciate, losing money almost immediately and costing more to insure.

Environmentally it lowers overall resource use from the metal mining fields to the automobile assembly floor. Another suggestion is looking for factory-reconditioned electronics like mobile phones and laptops. Extending product life reduces electronic waste while costing less and warranties are often included. Amazon, Apple, and some of the telephone stores are good places to start looking for used electronics.

Take a clue from teenagers who embrace thrifted and vintage clothing. They creatively reduce textile waste and high-cost imported fast fashion demand. Try thrifting high quality used clothing at a fraction of retail price. Its trendy, creative, and socially responsible. Attending a professional awards gala or a 2010 graduating class sorority reunion?  Why not go retro and show up in style while not breaking the bank.

We can reduce household waste by patronizing a ‘refillery’ for personal care products. Getting shampoo, soap, and cleaning supplies from refillery shops also cuts plastic packaging waste. And it’s often cheaper per ounce than heavily advertised name-brand packaged goods. Shopping “Manager’s Specials” at the supermarket meat counter is a price saving and good eating hack. For example, food stores often offer heavily discounted packages of meat just because they are rearranging their displays for their weekend promotions and want to remove last week’s - but still fresh - items. With a bit of meal planning and freezing it’s easy to make major savings on groceries.

Everyone has been hit by high energy costs, with more bad news soon to come. Adjusting the thermostat down a bit at night, reduces fossil fuel consumption and emissions and saves money. And adding an electric blanket at night allows sleeping in cozy comfort by just heating you and your bed at night rather than the whole house. And while we’re discussion energy, consider installing a heat pump or solar panels, and consider saying yes to community vetted clean energy options, like Newburyport has negotiated for its residents

Frugal environmentalists, like the early Yankees, realize that saving money and environmental sustainability can go together and that efficiency, mindfulness, and long-term thinking save money and helps the environment. It’s a life style with simple demands. We need to embrace creativity and resourcefulness over convenience culture. Being environmentally responsible doesn’t require lots of money just good intentions and small steps. Like beginning a small savings account for our kids to teach them how to best use and save money, adopting small changes will compound over time into habits that can save our planet and save you money.

ACES invites you to read up on ideas to reduce plastics in your life at myplasticfreelife.com/plasticfreeguide and to stay updated on environmental matters by subscribing to our monthly newsletter on ACES’ website www.aces- alliance.org. Please consider joining our community of stewards committed to Make Every Day Earth Day by following our Instagram (@acesalliancenbpt) and Facebook (@ACESAlliance) pages to stay informed.

This educational column was orrigianly published by The Daily News of Newburyport on March 6, 2026.

current administration, with Congress looking the other way, replaces science-based and long-standing environmental law with pro-fossil fuel policies. It feels like a giant virtual game of Chutes and Ladders. Years of scientifically grounded steps forward and now one year of decadal backsliding.

Election cycles this Fall may move the country back up the ladder of safeguarding the environment again or it may send us sliding further down the perilous chute of deregulation.  Environmentalists groan as the federal government pulls back from climate leadership, but the game does not have to end here. Instead, state and local governments can pick up the dice, and innovate by building ladders of their own to advance the upward climb.

If Massachusetts and a few neighboring states join together, their collaborative regional efforts could be very effective. As the federal government backslides, governors, state legislatures, mayors, and town councils still hold powerful tools. They control many of the technological and regulatory hotspots on the game board where climate outcomes are often decided.

Recent history illustrates this dynamic. When the US abandoned the Paris Agreement, many states responded not with resignation but with resolve. Groups like the U.S. Climate Alliance, which is composed of governors committed to upholding the accord’s targets and is pledged to pursue emissions reductions independently. When California, the nation’s largest car market, expanded their clean air standards, their actions effectively influenced manufacturing decisions nationwide. Auto companies unwilling to build separate fleets for different states, often chose to meet California’s higher bar. This turned one state’s ladder into a platform for nationwide advances.

Many cities and towns have been responsive to these challenges. For instance, community leaders in the lower Merrimack Valley are currently teaming up to save money and reduce greenhouse gas production as they remove compostable organic waste (40% of waste by weight) from their waste streams.  Mayors and select boards can also retrofit their public buildings and electrify school buses. Permitting boards can streamline processing of rooftop solar installations. Each tailored policy becomes a small ladder, incremental but cumulative. 

Skeptics argue that decentralized action creates a patchwork of standards that complicates compliance and are inadequate. That concern is not unfounded. A messy game board can be confusing. But the alternative of waiting passively for new federal leadership risks continued backsliding. 

Moreover, city-level experimentation can create new approaches and serve as testing grounds, as successful policies can often scale upward. And renewable energy standards that began in individual states can set the table for broader national conversations about the environment.

Clean energy doesn’t just generate electricity it creates jobs, attracts investment, and spurs technological innovation. States competing for economic growth increasingly view proactive climate policy not as a burden but as a strategic advantage. Wind and solar projects revitalize rural communities. The pursuit of climate solutions becomes both an environmental and economic ladder.

As we know, state and local action cannot entirely substitute for federal power. National standards, international diplomacy, and large-scale funding require federal coordination. But like ecosystems, the genius of American federalism lies in its redundancy. When one level of government falters, others can advance. The game board has many starting points.

In this game of *Chutes and Ladders*, victory depends not on avoiding every setback but on rising up after each downward slide and then climbing upward again when another  ladder appears. The path to climate stability is uneven. Federal retreat feels like a steep slide down a chute, but states and cities have demonstrated that they are not merely pawns awaiting direction. They are active players, creating and climbing ladders square by square, ensuring that local progress continues even when national mis-direction falls short.

You can play this game with us. Please volunteer now to help ACES build and climb new ladders upwards toward sustainability.

ACES invites you to read up on ideas to reduce plastics in your life at myplasticfreelife.com/plasticfreeguide and to stay updated on environmental matters by subscribing to our monthly newsletter on ACES’ website www.aces- alliance.org. Please consider joining our community of stewards committed to Make Every Day Earth Day by following our Instagram (@acesalliancenbpt) and Facebook (@ACESAlliance) pages to stay informed.

This Educational Column was originally publish in The Daily News of Newburyport on Febuary 287 2026.

Elon Musk was recently interviewed by Bloomberg News and was extremely excited and animated about the future of solar power, advances in battery technology, and the financial savings they will bring to global societies as compared to maintaining our current dependence solely on fossil fuels. And despite the current US administration push back on investing in new sources of clean energy and constant campaigning for fossil fuels interests, a review of recent news items reveals that clean, green energy production is winning the race.

Germany, the UK, Denmark, and other European countries are set to commit to boosting their offshore wind capacity dramatically, aiming for hundreds of gigawatts by 2050 despite some political pushback. And clean energy generation has already beaten fossil fuels in the EU, where in 2025, wind and solar together produced more electricity than fossil fuels for the first time. China, which is already leading the world in renewable energy, reportedly aims to have 80% of its energy mix come from non-fossil fuel sources by 2060.

Governor Healey in her recent state of the state address spoke glowingly of all the new hydropower electricity that will be flowing to New England from Hydro Quebec in Canada beginning in January. It’s enough clean energy to power about 1.2 million homes, nearly 20% of Massachusetts' total electricity needs.  In Texas, an ACES friend had been driving through Texas along Interstate 10 and remarked that there were wind turbines lining the tops of mesas ‘as far as the eye could see.”  

But even as US national polices emphasize fossil fuel energy and roll back incentives toward green energy, new US solar and storage combined projects are projected to supply over 80% of all net new generating capacity here in 2026.  And with all the power-hungry AI data centers under construction, Axios reports that the solar industry is planning to dramatically increase battery storage capacity in 2026 by 21.5 GW, a 53% increase from record-breaking 2025 levels.  

Locally, the legal wins against the administration’s anti-offshore wind efforts are going to be a big help to the north shore as coastal communities like Salem begin to benefit from construction and staging of wind turbines off our own coast. That facility in Salem harbor is the site of an old coal fired electrical generation plant. A happy and delicious irony for all environmentalists 

It’s a wonderful time to be green and all environmentalists should remain optimistic. The tide is running in the direction of clean energy and that will slowly clean the air and put a lid on global warming. As that happens less coal will be burned, less oil will be burned and the respiratory health of millions of people on the planet will be improved. That said, we should all keep working with our eyes on the prize of a cleaner, greener future. Let hope and positive expectation energize our efforts. How are you doing with clean energy? Have you considered or installed rooftop solar panels? Are you considering making your next car an EV? What about choosing an electric heat pump as a low pollution option, especially with Mass Save Initiatives. These incentives and rebates also include appliances, insulation, windows, heat pumps and more. Check it out.

Finally, for those of us who remember “Sesame Street” arguably the best kids TV show on PBS, the song that Kermit the Frog sang is still true. "It' Not Easy Bein' Green” but it’s not hopeless and we should all take heart from that. Give some thought to how you can make our world a little bit greener.

ACES invites you to read up on ideas to reduce plastics in your life at myplasticfreelife.com/plasticfreeguide and to stay updated on environmental matters by subscribing to our monthly newsletter on ACES’ website www.aces- alliance.org. Please consider joining our community of stewards committed to Make Every Day Earth Day by following our Instagram (@acesalliancenbpt) and Facebook (@ACESAlliance) pages to stay informed.

This educational column was originally published by the Daily News of Newburyport on Febuary 20, 2026.

ACES officially kicked off its Waste Watchers Workshop (WWW) with its first session on February 11. Despite the overnight snow, the classrooms of the Parker River Wildlife Refuge Visitors Center were filled to capacity with elected officials, city and town board members, and school leaders from across the region, including Amesbury, Groveland, Newbury, Newburyport, Rowley, and West Newbury, and the Triton and Pentucket regional school districts.

The morning began with presentations from Rachel Smith and Brian Walsh from MassDEP, informing the crowd about the state’s solid waste reduction plans as well as state grants, resources and technical assistance programs available to help municipalities track and reduce waste, including the Sustainable Materials Recovery Program (SMRP) and the Recycling Dividends Program (RDP). Four of the 8 targeted communities are currently enrolled in these funding programs. Molly Ettenborough shared the programs developed in the City of Newburyport over the last ten years and how the city has leveraged those resources to continue to expand its waste reduction efforts. ACES is hoping to facilitate a regional approach and Claire Golkowski of the South Shore Recycling Cooperative shared how communities in her region formalized that approach, collaborating since 2001.

“This workshop created the opportunity for municipalities to share success stories, talk through challenges, and explore possibilities for regional collaboration. Most importantly, it showed our communities that a 30% statewide waste reduction goal can become a reality,” says Brian Walsh, Municipal Assistance Coordinator for MassDEP’s Northeast District 2.

Following the speakers’ sessions, participants participated in 3 break-out sessions. The first, provided in-depth information and Q&A opportunity to learn more about the state-sponsored grants and how to expand programs where those grants are already being leveraged. The second session allowed for in-depth sharing and brainstorming of potential programs and strategies related to improving recycling and diverting food waste out of the primary waste stream. The morning capped off with each municipality creating a 1 year vision for how they would like to see their waste reduction efforts evolve. Results varied from those just beginning and needing to establish committees or policies to those seeking to set waste reduction targets for 2027.

Molly Ettenborough, Recycling and Energy Manager in Newburyport’s Sustainability Office, reflects, “The regional waste reduction workshop was a valuable opportunity for stakeholders across our region to learn about the state’s rising trash disposal costs and shrinking landfill and incinerator capacity, and to explore collaborative solutions and real-world examples of how working together can help alleviate these pressures.”

Mayor Kassandra Gove attended with the city’s Conservation Agent Amanda Armington and Energy Manager DJ Johnson. I really enjoyed the workshop for the big picture and small detail conversations among colleagues and experts. I was able to take statewide goals and data and work with my team on measurable and realistic steps for our community. The more I learn the better I can communicate our priorities and develop strategies for change. Many thanks to everyone who shared their expertise that day,” says Gove.

The second workshop will be held March 11, bringing together current and potential private sector collaborators who 1) are already working on solid waste management and reduction or 2) have unique experience and opportunity to support the municipalities in their efforts through convening and guiding action among residents or businesses.

Lyndsey Haight is facilitating the workshops as a volunteer member of the ACES team. “My greatest take-away was the energy in the room. These 6 cities and towns, facing so many local challenges and a snow storm, showed up ready to lean into this problem. As we move through this series, our next challenge is bringing the private sector together to help. Waste reduction happens at the human level, whether you are at home, walking downtown, or building your place of business. We would love to have the region’s Chambers of Commerce, churches, and private schools join us for workshop 2. We also welcome people who are passionate about this cause and are ready to be their neighborhood or town champion.”

Those interested should reach out to Haight at lyndsey.haight@aces-alliance.org. ACES, an all-volunteer organization focused on climate resilience and sustainability, is also still seeking underwriters to help cover the costs of these workshops and the work to track results. Those who would like to support this series are also encouraged to fellow ACES team member Lon Hachmeister, Lon.hachmeister@aces-alliance.org.

Background:

ACES has been convening members of the public over the last 18 months to gauge interest and expand awareness about the need to reduce solid waste. In 2021, the Massachusetts DEP set a target to reduce solid waste by 30% by 2030 and by 90% by 2050 from 2018 volumes. Reducing waste benefits our planet, reduces costs to our communities and improves health for everyone. This imminent mandate presents challenges to communities; ACES aims to build strength through collaboration between public and private sectors across the region, using these workshops as the launching point.

The third workshop will bring the two cohorts together in April. Each community will complete the series equipped with actionable, sustainable projects that they can grow within their communities. They’ll also have a large community of peers for support, continued learning, and momentum to get to the Commonwealth’s ambitious goals. If you represent a private sector organization, company or collaborative that would like to partner with local municipalities, or if you would like to provide financial support to underwrite this series, please reach out to Lyndsey Haight, ACES team member and WWW facilitator, lyndsey.haight@aces-alliance.org.

Imagine calm, greenish seas. A camera zooms in from the sky to reveal a rotund, 50- foot whale, dwarfing her comparatively tiny new calf. The mother exhales, her breath rising into the air as scientists in a small plane above snap photos. It is a scene that has thrilled scientists each winter as they conduct aerial surveys to study the distribution and behavior of one of the most endangered whales in the world: the North Atlantic right whale.

Each year, scientists and whale enthusiasts anxiously monitor news of right whale births. With a population of less than four hundred individuals, every calf matters. This year has been encouraging, with more than twenty calves born so far. This has given scientists hope, but they caution that whales are far from safe.

Like other whale species, right whales face threats from vessel strikes and entanglement in fishing gear. Climate change adds more risk. The Gulf of Maine is one of the fastest-warming water bodies on the planet. This warming causes shifts in the prey whales rely on, forcing them to change where they feed. Although calves are born in waters off the southeastern United States, scientists continue aerial and boat surveys off New England throughout the winter because right whale movements are increasingly unpredictable.

Whales play a crucial role in ocean health. They feed at depth but release their waste on the surface. In a process called “the whale pump,” nutrients from the waste fuels the rest of the ocean food web. Healthier whales support a healthier ocean, which is crucial for our own health.

Whales can also mitigate climate change. They store carbon in their bodies, and when they die, they sink to the seafloor, locking the carbon away. More whales mean less carbon in our atmosphere, and a healthier planet for all of us.

World Whale Day on February 15 is a welcome reminder that we have whales in our local waters, and we need to protect them. Each spring, right whales feed in Cape Cod Bay before spreading further north for the summer. Sightings of humpback whales, particularly close to shore, have increased in recent years. We are also fortunate to have the world’s second-largest species, the massive fin whale, off our coast. We have also recently seen an increase in sightings of common dolphins and sea turtles. While interest in whales and the ocean has grown, these animals still face constant threats from human activities. Protecting whales is a key part of ensuring ocean health. Thankfully, protecting them has been a group effort, with scientists, fishermen, and educators making a concerted effort to work together to help these magnificent animals.

There is still more to do – and everyone can play a role.

Ways We Can All Help Whales:

- Reduce plastic use and never litter.

- Buy local as much as you can.

- When boating, travel slowly and watch for whales. Reel in fishing lines when whales are nearby.

- Ask your representatives to support robust protections for whales. These include research funding, investment in safer fishing gear, and vessel speed limits where whales gather.

- Volunteer with or donate to conservation organizations.

We all must work together to find ways for humans and whales to coexist in the ocean. When this happens, both whales and people benefit.

Jennifer Kennedy is the Executive Director and Co-Founder of the Blue Ocean Society based in Portsmouth, NH, She can be contacted at jen@blueoceansociety.org

ACES invites you to read up on ideas to reduce plastics in your life at myplasticfreelife.com/plasticfreeguide and to stay updated on environmental matters by subscribing to our monthly newsletter on ACES’ website www.aces- alliance.org. Please consider joining our community of stewards committed to Make Every Day Earth Day by following our Instagram (@acesalliancenbpt) and Facebook (@ACESAlliance) pages to stay informed.

This educational column was origianly published by The Daily News of Newburyport on Febuary 13, 2026.

A sphere of plastic nanoparticles surrounds us all (tiny particles of plastic 100-1000 times smaller than the width of a human hair). They are in the clothes we wear, in the water we drink, in the food we eat, in the air we breathe, and in the rain that falls on us. They are also in our bodies and they may be modifying reproductive, brain, and immune functions in ways we are only now beginning to understand. We would be wise to pay attention to this emerging science.

A 2024 study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences used a new, high-powered laser imaging technology to analyze just how many nano-particles really are floating around in the average plastic bottle of water. They found that a liter of bottled water can contain an average of 240,000 tiny nano-particle fragments.

Once they get into your body, nanoplastics can move around to other parts of your body by crossing natural biological barriers that would normally block larger particles.  They are small enough to penetrate cell membranes and even pass through the blood-brain barrier or the placenta. Last year, CNN referenced an article in the Journal of Human Reproduction stating that microplastics were detected in 69% of the follicular fluid samples and 55% of the semen samples studied. Follicular fluid is the liquid that surrounds an egg in an ovarian follicle. Scientists are studying whether it is the chemicals from the plastic or the physical plastic itself, that poses the threat.

Much of the plastic waste in our environment comes from plastic packaging, single use plastic containers, and beverage bottles. If we are going to reduce this plastic threat we need to know a lot more about it. Where does it come from? Which product or types of products are responsible for the problem and need to be collected from the waste stream? A 2024 study found that 56 companies are responsible for 50% of plastic pollution.  The Coca-Cola Company products represent 11% of all plastic pollution, mostly single use beverage bottles, and PepsiCo follows closely with 5%. Single use plastic beverage bottles worldwide seem to be one of the largest sources of ingestion.

If you don't want to risk hurting yourself and your offspring from reproductive and other damage, minimizing the nanoplastic particles you and your family ingest is the most important step you can take. ACES strongly advises you to take steps to stop ingesting the plastic particles that are already in our food and water. Filter your drinking water from the tap. Avoid as much as possible drinking water or other beverages from single use plastic bottles because much of the plastic in them comes from the bottle itself. Stop buying, providing, and using single use beverage bottles including in all municipal and school buildings.

How are we supposed to understand and respond to this “never in human history” threat to our species? A 1931 science fiction story "The Shadow Over Innsmouth" begins in Newburyport when a student travels by bus south from Newburyport to Innsmouth, a fictional fishing village, and discovers a race of fish-like humanoids. These humanoids were brought to the area as young people from Pacific islands via trading voyages. The islanders had bred with marine creatures, producing hybrid offspring which have the appearance of normal humans but eventually slowly transform into ‘Deep Ones’. This is a fictional story of a cover up by officials as they try to keep the public calm about these revelations. But it is also a story of human mutation in a horrible and inconceivable way. Its scarier now than ever, as we begin to see the possibility of reproductive harm driven by the plastics that surround us.

Let’s not take that ‘bus’ towards Innsmouth. Let’s forestall human mutations due to plastic waste. Use non-plastic containers. Replace your plastic containers and utensils with glass, metal, or ceramic options. Avoid microwaving food in plastic canisters, as heat can release more plastic particles into the contents.  Be smart, be safe, reduce your plastic use and waste!

This educational column was originally published in The Daily News of Newburyport on February 6, 2026.

ACES invites you to read up on ideas to reduce plastics in your life at myplasticfreelife.com/plasticfreeguide and to stay updated on environmental matters by subscribing to our monthly newsletter on ACES’ website www.aces- alliance.org. Please consider joining our community of stewards committed to Make Every Day Earth Day by following our Instagram (@acesalliancenbpt) and Facebook (@ACESAlliance) pages to stay informed.

ACES is excited to announce the kick-off of its Waste Watchers Workshop (WWW). On February 11, representatives from municipal departments and commissions will meet at the Parker River Wildlife Refuge Visitors’ Center to expand and develop programs to reduce solid waste.

ACES has been convening members of the public over the last 14 months to gauge interest and expand awareness about the need to reduce solid waste. In 2021, the Massachusetts DEP published a target to reduce solid waste by 30% by 2030 and by 90% by 2050 from 2018 volumes. Reducing waste benefits our planet, reduces costs to our communities and improves health for everyone. This imminent mandate presents challenges to communities; ACES aims to build strength through collaboration between public and private sectors across the region, using these workshops as the launching point. 

Newburyport Mayor Sean Reardon has been instrumental in bringing this series to fruition, championing the effort among his peers. “Newburyport is incredibly proud of its leadership in sustainability and environmental stewardship. From the creation of our Sustainability Manager position to the many milestones it has helped advance including water quality improvements, composting initiatives, and more we remain committed to building on this progress. We look forward to expanding our efforts and sharing both our successes and lessons learned with other communities. We are grateful to ACES for leading the way.”

Workshop 1 is the first in a series of 3 sessions and will convene representatives from Newburyport, Amesbury, Salisbury, Merrimac, Groveland, Newbury, Rowley and West Newbury, including the Pentucket and Triton Regional School Districts. The session will bring the various communities together for peer learning and brainstorming, along with learning about successful models and available resources. Speakers for session 1 include Molly Ettenborough, Sustainability Manager for Newburyport; Kathi Mirza and Bryan Walsh from MA DEP; and Claire Galkowski, Executive Director of the South Shore Recycling Cooperative.

The second workshop will be held in March, bringing together private sector collaborators who are already working on solid waste management and reduction or who have unique experience and opportunity to support the municipalities in their efforts. The third workshop will bring the two cohorts together in April. Each community will complete the series equipped with actionable, sustainable projects that they can grow within their communities. They’ll also have a large community of peers for support, continued learning, and momentum to get to the the Commonwealth’s ambitious goals. If you represent a private sector organization, company or collaborative that would like to partner with local municipalities, or if you would like to provide financial support to underwrite this series, please reach out to Lyndsey Haight, ACES team member and WWW facilitator, lyndsey.haight@aces-alliance.org.

I am a senior at Newburyport High School interested in environmental science. Last year I was advised to get an internship in my field of interest. I did and it turned out to be one of the best decisions I could have made for my education. My name is Elisabeth DeGrano and I have been interning at C-10 Research and Education Foundation (C-10) since February of 2025. 

C-10 is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that works to protect public health and the natural environment in the coastal New Hampshire and Massachusetts communities surrounding NextEra's Seabrook Station nuclear power plant.

Through my experience as an intern at C-10 Research and Education Foundation, I gained far more than classroom knowledge—I developed real-world skills that have shaped how I understand both environmental issues and professional work. I learned the effects of air quality and radiation, explored the intersection of environmental science and computer science, and saw firsthand how our data is used to inform communities.

When I first began my internship, I was given simple tasks to help me get familiar with C-10 Research and Education Foundation and their mission. These early responsibilities helped me understand the organization’s commitment to public safety and transparency, especially through their efforts to keep the community informed. By supporting their social media outreach and communication efforts, I learned how important clear, accurate messaging is. This taught me practical communication skills, professional responsibility, and what it’s like to work in a real office environment. Overall, the internship not only strengthened my academic interests but also helped me grow as a communicator, collaborator, and problem-solver.

I have also contributed to the team's efforts in initiating the process of downloading historical radiation data and organizing it into a spreadsheet for long-term trend analysis. Originally, the primary objective of this work was to assess the extent and frequency of “down time” at each monitoring site over the past several decades. Understanding these patterns will help us identify opportunities for improving instrument reliability and performance. Additionally, these data allow us to provide accurate information to organizations concerned with public safety in the communities surrounding the Seabrook Power Plant.

I started this task by downloading the data and organizing it into files that I would later be able to access and reformat using the coding language Python. Python allowed me to query and format the existing data and to organize the results more clearly. Python allows users to retain every data point in each graph, which is vital when working with large datasets, such as those recorded by C-10, which collects their data every minute of every day. This formatting was essential, as it allowed me to generate clear and informative graphs and statistics that highlighted trends and comparisons between different sites. This was extremely complicated and tested my training and resilience. As a result of being able to work with the C-10 data, I was able to both strengthen my coding skills and gain valuable insight into working effectively on real analysis of large datasets.

In conclusion, my internship with C-10 Research and Education Foundation allowed me to gain insight into what a real-world job would look like and apply the mathematical and organizational skills that I learned in school. There is no doubt that I will carry the new skills I learned at C-10, such as communication, analysis techniques, and working with a team, throughout the end of my senior year and throughout college as well. I really appreciate the whole team at C-10 for guiding me through this experience and I am excited to see what other interns will do in the future.

Elisabeth is a senior at Newburyport High School in the Environmental Science Pathway and plans to major in Meteorology. Her internship experience and environmental research have strengthened her passion for science and community engagement. By advocating for better air quality and seeing firsthand the changes needed, Elisabeth gained a deeper understanding of how local action can meaningfully improve the environment. Elisabeth is also the Varsity Tennis Team Captain and Varsity Ski Team Captain.

ACES invites you to stay updated on environmental matters by subscribing to our monthly newsletter on ACES’ website www.aces-alliance.org. Please consider joining our community of stewards committed to Make Every Day Earth Day by following our Instagram (@acesalliancenbpt) and Facebook (@ACESAlliance) pages to stay informed.

This educational column was originaly published by The Daily News of Newburyport on Jaunary 30, 2026.

Just like an 8-oared crew boat, which Petra Amara calls “the fastest rowboat on the water” in her rowing 101 blog, the “eight” cities and towns of the lower Merrimack Valley and their school systems are planning to form up and row together toward a more sustainable future by working together to dramatically reduce their overall solid waste.

The “eight” we are referring to are the municipalities of the Lower Merrimack Valley that Mayor Reardon and ACES are convening at a February workshop to be followed by 2 additional workshops in March and April.  The first workshop will convene representatives from Amesbury, Groveland, Merrimac, Newbury, Newburyport, Rowley, Salisbury, and West Newbury, including the Pentucket and Triton Regional School Districts.  Representatives from municipal departments and commissions will meet at the Parker River Wildlife Refuge Visitors’ Center to expand and develop collaborative programs to reduce solid waste so that all eight programs can meet the looming State mandated 30% reduction in solid waste by 2030, when all state landfills are projected to reach their permitted capacity.

ACES is helping to coordinate the Waste Watchers Workshop (WWW) series and is looking forward to the kick-off of the first workshop on February 11th.  Lyndsey Haight, Dan Foley, and Alexandra Yavarow are leading ACES support team for the first workshop that will initiate sharing and learning new waste reduction ideas and best practices. In a press release last week, they explained that the workshop sessions will be instrumental in bringing this 8-member collaborative together for an initial peer learning and brainstorming session, along with introduction of successful models implemented in other parts of the country.  Examples of models have been researched by ACES team members and will be discussed by the group for their applicability to our situation.  

EPA has determined that nationally food waste is the single most common material sent to landfills, comprising almost 25 percent of municipal solid waste and most of that comes from schools. Only an estimated 5 percent is composited. When yard waste, wood and paper/paperboard are added to the food, these organic materials comprise over 50 percent of municipal waste in landfills.  But improvement is possible. The Senior Center in Newburyport began collecting compostable waste a year ago and has already collected over 12 tons of waste at their site.

Maybe our municipalities can encourage restaurants to begin recycling oyster, mussel, and clam shells to become paving materials or dune stabilizers rather than putting them into a disposal bin. Engaging restaurants to separate food waste from the general trash stream would require more planning but perhaps some have the space and kitchen tools to begin adopting such methods.

Newburyport City Councilor, Elizabeth Trach, introduced ACES to a great example of out of the box thinking from Bellingham, Washington. They are rescuing construction demolition materials and leftovers from the waste stream. They have developed processes to sort and stock reusable construction supplies, like a mini lumber yard. She told us that “friends outfitted much of their own ADU with materials purchased there.”  With new attention on ADUs, maybe recycling demo and left over construction materials can build a new supply chain that reduces both cost and waste.  We don’t know what other ideas our neighboring communities will be bringing to the table at the workshops but we look forward to the new energy they will create to stat rowing together Toward ZERO Waste.

The first workshop is scheduled for February 11th at the Parker River National Wildlife Refuge Visitor Center. ACES is convinced that it will be the start of something important and successful for our region and will provide ideas for other nearby communities served by the Daily News sister papers in Lawrence, Salem and Gloucester.

Sharing ideas on what Merrimac or West Newbury (or even Bellingham, WA) may be doing better than some other towns regarding waste will be extremely enlightening. Are there some solutions that work better in more rural communities like Newbury or Salisbury? What one little change in each town or city may get the ball rolling in the right direction? Let us know here if you would like to volunteer as a waste watching ambassador. Just drop us a note at info@aces-alliance.org

Meanwhile we invite you to stay updated on environmental matters by subscribing to our monthly newsletter on ACES’ website https://www.aces-alliance.org/. Please consider joining our community of stewards committed to Make Every Day Earth Day and subscribe to our Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/acesalliancenbpt/ and Facebookhttps://www.facebook.com/ACESAlliance/  pages to stay informed.

This educational column was originally published by The Daily News of Newburyport on January 23, 2026.

With artificial intelligence, AI, becoming a frequent topic of discussion over the last few years, ACES wonders how its ever-growing popularity may positively and negatively affect our lives, climate, and environment. While there are ‘major’ negative effects already identified, for instance the demand for more and more new computer farms, the electric power they will require to operate, and their potential for offsetting future clean energy generation gains and increasing local water usage. There are also concerns about AI generated products missing the mark on accuracy and misleading its users, since the nature of the question asked may skew the quality of the answer and give misleading or exaggerated advice.

There are many complicated questions and issues to be considered. But since AI is apparently here to stay, we think society should explore what positive things might result from the cautious use of AI.  We are already being told how it can reduce corporate expenses by reducing jobs, but what can it do to improve our lives, including for today’s topic, reducing food waste.

This note from the Harvard School of Public Health helps us size the problem “Wasted food has far-reaching effects, both nationally and globally. In the U.S., up to 40% of all food produced goes uneaten, and about 95% of discarded food ends up in landfills. It is the largest component of municipal solid waste at 21%.” https://nutritionsource.hsph.harvard.edu/sustainability/food-waste/

The World Wildlife Federation recently partnered with three other nonprofits and “conducted pilots using AI purchasing systems in two different grocery retail chains to reduce food waste and improve profits. The results were impressive: food waste was reduced by 14.8% per store on average."  It seems that by improving inventory management, enhancing demand forecasting, and analyzing food waste patterns to optimize purchasing and preparation processes, food waste can be significantly reduced

So, maybe AI can help on the front end of waste generation by calculating the right amount of food to be purchased by families (packaging), school cafeterias (timing and amounts), and restaurants (historic demands). AI also can help provide menus and recipes to utilize what may already be on hand and find cost savings by sorting through in season bargain food items.

In addition to avoiding waste in the first place by buying just what is needed, we are faced with the problem of preventing residential and restaurant food waste from being mixed in with non-food waste. Food waste, not mixed with random other stuff and collected efficiently, can be composted. And compost is a valuable commodity once aggregated for convenient use on farms and in gardens.  Composing food waste also produces less methane gas than landfills.  Better for our climate.

But in the end, are the physical processes and facilities needed to do all this are the practical ways to segregate food waste from trash. At home, maybe it’s as simple as doing a ‘Black Earth’ compost pickup. But in restaurants and cafeterias, there are more complicated questions of space, workforce training, and facility design. So, in the end, it’s the family or the restaurant or the food store that need to figure out the best way to first reduce waste and second to segregate it for proper disposal.  Can AI help develop the options to be considered?  Likely the answer is yes.

These approaches to food waste and AI are not, using a baseball metaphor, ‘home runs’ but rather, bunts and singles. But that’s ok. AI will bring big changes to our lives and culture and it won’t do it in one big change but rather with dozens of little changes. We just have to think outside the box and accept that things will have to change in our habits and processes of life and business to gain the benefits. Where can you see these ideas being used effectively? Just drop us a note at info@aces-alliance.org.

We need to dramatically reduce waste generation in our communities and in our society as a whole toward zero. Reusing things is one approach to get us moving in that direction. We need to think about waste in terms of supply chains. Establishing economical and effective supply chains that can match a need with a source. We need more 'pickers' to start their own businesses. A picker is skilled in the art of buying used goods from a range of sources and then selling them, at a profit, to antique dealers, thrift shops, and the general public. These people often develop deep knowledge of specific eras and furniture styles like mid-century modern or art deco that allows them to spot valuable artifacts. Others may be skilled in spotting Victorian or jazz age jewelry in jumble boxes at estate sales. Antique pickers can be even a bit more specialized

The supply chain side of reuse in goods is multifaceted and largely local. In that supply chain are numerous opportunities for individuals to supplant their income and reduce waste. Some of the parts include charity shops, consignment shops and specialist retailers, such as Green Plum Vintage Goods and Oldies.  

The work of making reuse a real business includes developing the knowledge needed to curate the things one collects so that reselling them is profitable. Knowledge of retail shops and what sells where is a skill that facilitates the circulation of these used and still valuable goods to someone who likes and wants them.

One local opportunity for individuals to assist in effectiveness of the reuse cycle that can also add to the individual’s income is adopting the role of a ‘picker’. This can be by literally picking up stuff put on the side of the street and loading into one’s truck or car to sell off later or by going to yard sales, flea markets, and thrift shops to collect objects that can be moved directly to the demand side of the supply/demand economy and sold online for a profit.

Part of succeeding in the reuse supply chain is to keep up to date about the vintage, antique and collectibles market. And learning from libraries, visiting the Custom House and other museums, and simple having fun doing it on weekend to start can be both an enjoyable cultural hobby but also lead to a side earnings activity. There are also jobs in helping people to declutter. One friend of ACES and the NBPT Senior Community Center offers their help around the region for people planning on downsizing. In that role, they point out to clients’ items that might be valuable and either helps them to find a home for them or sometimes offers to help them sell the items locally or online. If you need help with cleaning out an outbuilding or barn or a basement, ask around. Newburyport has people who can help you participate in the reuse market supply chain.

On the demand side of reuse, Massachusetts has big, but dramatically underreported, circular economy and with the dramatic shift in costs for new materials it’s only going to get bigger. Venues like the Brimfield Antique Flea Market and others attract over 1 million visitors annually and feature thousands of dealers. In fact familydestinations.com lists 7 ‘massive’ flea markets in the state including our own nearby Todd Farm besides Brimfield along with others in Palmer, and in Hubbardston which the website describes as “like the lovechild of a country fair and an antique roadshow, with a dash of that weird uncle’s garage sale thrown in for good measure.”

As our American economy undergoes rapid fire changes due to tariffs and AI induced job losses, maybe a good idea here in greater Newburyport is to realize that we are on a tourist pilgrimage route and there are financial opportunities for fashionistas, interior decorators, and furniture restorers to make a part of their living in the reuse supply chains all around us. What’s in your attic could become what’s in your wallet! Purchasing and keeping or reselling reuse materials can help lead us locally toward zero waste. Let us know about your experience in the reuse supply chains locally.

Meanwhile we invite you to stay updated on environmental matters by subscribing to our monthly newsletter on ACES’ website https://www.aces-alliance.org/. Please consider joining our community of stewards committed to Make Every Day Earth Day by contacting acesnewburyport@gmail.com Subscribe to our Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/acesalliancenbpt/ and Facebookhttps://www.facebook.com/ACESAlliance/  pages to stay informed.

This educational column was orriginaly published in The Daily News of Newburyport on January 9, 2026.

Making resolutions is traditionally a big thing at the beginning of each new year.  Some folks are skeptical of making them because so many good intentions peter out by late February. But they can and do work over time and are a good thing for people to be doing. So, ACES proposes we adopt some resolutions for 2026 that will allow us to help the environment.

Resolutions are good, even if they need to be made over and over each day to become habits that will stick with us. In some ways these daily affirmations are like a string of mini resolutions that will eventually take root. What is the content of a resolution? First, it should have a purpose that we want to address and a specific goal that we want to achieve. It should also include a method or process for us to follow to achieve it. As environmentalists, we have access to lists of actions we can take personally to change things for the better and we can review them to choose doable New Years resolutions for ourselves. Here are just a few ideas to consider:

“Every day I will learn more" about some aspect of the environment that interests me by focusing on my social media feed, podcasts, the ACES’ Newsletter, or possibly bird watcher reports in the paper. I will look for stories about tree plantings, or new solar roofs on the affordable apartments the YWCA is christening. By learning a little more every day, you will gain the knowledge and motivation to help yourself and perhaps others.

“I will tend my garden well” by cultivating my own home and lifestyle to move toward a more sustainable one. I will adopt sustainable eating habits like eating more fruits and vegetables, while reducing my meat consumption. I will buy only what I need and minimize wasting my money and producing piles of left over food items. I will keep food scraps out of the trash and start composting to minimize landfill waste. Consider the composting options available in your community and maybe stop by the Newburyport Senior Center to learn about their free composting arrangement as a good start.

“I will reduce my fossil fuel use” by using electric appliances like slow cookers and griddles rather than my gas stove. And replace light bulbs that burn out with energy efficient LEDs. I will drive less and learn how to catch a ride on a MEVA bus for the fun of it. I know we’re better off environmentally driving less, but how many of us know how to actually do it. It’s free and convenient and trying it once or twice with my kids or a neighbor will get us all started.

“I will reduce my waste” of all kinds in 2026. I will double down on recycling and reject single use plastic containers. I will consider buying a certain percentage of things my family needs from used or vintage shops and prevent the waste of making new ones. And participate in one-time actions to help the environment by helping in community efforts to remove waste from parks, rivers, or beaches. Wherever I am volunteering or working already, I will think about how that group may add a bit of environmental shift to their efforts. Can they move away from single use supplies for food and drink items at team meetings?

ACES advocates for supporting local initiatives that have health benefits for current and future generations. For example, the Towards Zero Waste 2030/50 Program being launched in multiple Greater Newburyport communities will be needing ‘Waste Watcher’ outreach volunteers.

Defining and implementing daily resolutions can significantly contribute to safeguarding the well-being of the current and future generations. Sustainability means we each need to help create a healthier neighborhood and planet. You all know your own reasons for wanting to help.  Pick a specific goal and set up a little daily affirmation for yourself. You can do it - we can do it - help the earth heal from 125 years of the negative side effects of the industrial revolution. It will be a long road but we know we all can make a difference together. So, let's make 2026 a big right turn in the journey towards a healthier planet.

ACES is confident we can do it together, collaboratively and in the spirit of friendship. We are resolved! Happy New Year, 2026!

This educational column was originally published by The Daily News of Newburyport on January 2, 2026.

Meanwhile we invite you to stay updated on environmental matters by subscribing to our monthly newsletter on ACES’ website https://www.aces-alliance.org/. Please consider joining our community of stewards committed to Make Every Day Earth Day by contacting acesnewburyport@gmail.comSubscribe to our Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/acesalliancenbpt/ and Facebookhttps://www.facebook.com/ACESAlliance/  pages to stay informed.

It is said that ‘home is where the heart is’ but it is also where the rest of your body is.  And your body, as for all creatures, does best within an ecosystem that optimizes your life functions. So, we would like you to consider an analogy that your home functions like a small ecosystem. Whether it is your dorm room, apartment, or family house, it forms your ecosystem as you add all your objects and decor and make it truly your own habitat.

In 2026, you can resolve to build yourself a healthier personal living environment. A mini-ecosystem where you can adjust lighting, scenic objects, plant and animal life, temperature and humidity, food sources, and even energy use. If we have caught your attention, consider making some of the following adjustments to your home ecosystem to make it more sustainable for your needs. Here are a few basics that can get you started.

First, include house plants. They may seem like an afterthought, something to add to a bookcase or coffee table as decorative accessories, but they are much more than that. Houseplants are one of the living elements that can contribute to your home ecosystem. They improve air quality and oxygen levels; some even reduce indoor toxins. They are psychologically beneficial and create a calming, natural atmosphere. They bring color to your home and modulate its humidity to sustain a comfortable microclimate.

Next, choosing full-spectrum lighting can support your mood, sleep cycles, and even your circadian rhythm in low-light environments when natural light is seasonally limited. It’s good for both you and your plants. Switching to a few full spectrum lightbulbs, especially in work areas, reading spaces, or plant zones can lift your mood in subtle ways as well as making the space healthier.

You should also pay attention to the humidity in your home ecosystem, especially in winter months. Buying a small digital indoor hygrometer for as low as $20 on line can give you a clear reading of the level of humidity in your home, important for maintaining a comfortable and healthy indoor environment for you and your plants. Ideal levels of indoor humidity range from 40–60% and New England winter dry indoor air may benefit from adding a small humidifier, decorative pebble and rock water trays, or small fountains. Balance is key because too much moisture may lead to mold.

Our homes can be like a natural landscape in some ways with soft and hard features. Our floors, counters, insulation affect air quality, heat, and durability. Our soft features like rugs, drapes, fabric furniture, plants, and décor shape the acoustics, comfort, and mood. Together, these elements are the land forms and vegetation of your home ecosystem.

For some of us adding small birds from reputable breeders like finches, canaries, or parakeets to our ecosystem can bring gentle sound, movement, and life into the home, enriching the emotional environment. Their cages can be interesting design elements in your home decor and they can thrive in spaces with the same conditions that also benefit people. Birds can help with mental serenity because their presence encourages routines of feeding and cage cleaning and connect occupants more closely with daily ecological cycles.

ACES focuses on teaming up with environmental allies to promote a healthier earth for us all, but like every endeavor in life it should start at home with your own efforts and choices. Viewing your home as an ecosystem encourages healthier, more sustainable, and more natural living. Small steps like added plants, balanced humidity, more natural light, and even the companionship of birds create a thriving indoor environment can make a big difference. Imagine it’s February and a cold dry day outside.  Now imagine joining a friend or two in your own little Eden. It’s a natural environment of light, humidity, plants, and soft music or a bird song. It will be good for you and good for the Earth even if only a small way. ACES wishes you and yours a happy New Year. One that is less stressful, calmer, and environmentally more sustainable.

Meanwhile we invite you to stay updated on environmental matters by subscribing to our monthly newsletter on ACES’ website https://www.aces- alliance.org/. Please consider joining our community of stewards committed to Make Every Day Earth Day by contacting acesnewburyport@gmail.comSubscribe to our Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/acesalliancenbpt/ and Facebookhttps://www.facebook.com/ACESAlliance/  pages to stay informed.

This educational column was originally published in the Daily News of Newburyport on December 26, 2025.

In the biblical Christmas tradition, three wisemen traveled to Bethlehem from the East. Following the path of a wandering star, they arrived at a stable in Bethlehem and offered symbolic gifts and worshiped a child they found there as the long-prophesized messiah.

While titles, names and biblical language translations shifted across the 20 centuries since the story began, whether called magi, astrologers, kings, or wisemen, their story endures because it is more than history—it is a metaphor of faith, humility, and generosity. Maybe the lesson of their willingness to go out of their way to bring gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh can be seen as their example of gratefully giving from their bounty for the respect and benefit of others.

In our time, gold, metaphorically can take many forms. It can be a few extra cans of soup, a bag of rice, or a financial donation that can help a local food pantry or church group help families in need. When we give our “gold,” we are not emptying our treasure; we are certainly multiplying its worth.

Frankincense is a fragrant gum from trees today mostly grown on the horn of Africa near Somalia and Ethiopia. It is burned in sacred rituals, symbolized blessing, and presence. Today, our frankincense can be the small kindnesses we release into the world: the gently used coat warming shoulders through winter, a pair of shoes enabling someone to walk confidently into a job interview, children’s books igniting imagination in little ones who have so little.

Thrift shops like The Lighthouse in Salisbury or Lazarus House in Lawrence can assure these offerings go to the people they serve in their communities every day. What we dust off from our closets becomes a blessing on someone else’s back and a reminder that even simple things can make a big impact.

The third gift was Myrrh, a balm used for healing, representing compassion in times of hardship. Many who turn to community services do so in moments of quiet struggle - an unexpected layoff, a medical bill, or a single month when ends simply don’t meet. Our modern myrrh is the gift of care: donating items that soothe, warm, and heal. Blankets, winter gear, or basic household essentials can restore a sense of stability to those weathering life’s storms. Donating these items is also an act of reuse, recycling if you want to think of it that way.

The story of the magi and the Christmas tradition of gift giving teaches us that gifts need not be spectacular; they need only be sincere. If each traveler brought what they could, small or large, our collective giving gathered from many hands can become our star for families navigating hardship during the winter.

When you deliver a bag of pasta to a food pantry or place a well-kept jacket on the thrift shop’s donation rack, you are participating in an ancient tradition of care. You are joining generations of our species who understood that gifts have power, not because they are expensive, but because they are shared.

Today, with many signs of need but no star to follow, we too can carry gifts that have the potential to change people’s lives. As an environmentally focused organization, ACES sees these gift giving behaviors as not only helping our fellow humans but our planet. Donated clothing and cans of food culled from the back shelf of your pantry that don’t go to landfill. The whole point of environmental thinking is that we are all on this spaceship called Earth, our home, and “mutuality” is something that will help us all. Give for the recipients, give for the Earth, and give for yourself this time of winter solstice and religious celebrations.

All of us at ACES wish you, your families, and your friends a happy and green holiday season. See you in the new year.

Meanwhile we invite you to stay updated on environmental matters by subscribing to our monthly newsletter on ACES’ website https://www.aces-alliance.org/. Please consider joining our community of stewards committed to Make Every Day Earth Day by contacting acesnewburyport@gmail.com Subscribe to our Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/acesalliancenbpt/ and Facebook  pages to stay informed.

This educational column was originally published in The daily News of Newburyport on December 19, 2025.

I am so pleased to share information about a major climate project that The PEG Center has initiated in the Greater Newburyport area. The PEG Center is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to address social and climate justice through art, education and advocacy. Our vision for a world where we all care about the earth and each other has been the catalyst for numerous community projects over the last nine years.

“The Future We Choose Climate Initiative” consists of fostering inspiration for climate action through a community-wide book read, conversations, and identification of personal goals and community-level projects. Within a month of the launch in late October, we distributed 150 copies of the powerful book, The Future We Choose: A Stubborn Optimist’s Guide to the Climate Crisis, by Christiana Figueres and Tom Rivett-Carnac, through events, book drops and Free Libraries.

During two discussion/conversation meetings in November and December, we heard community members describe their enthusiasm for the book and the perspectives it shares about positive opportunities and potential actions for the future of humanity. A major milestone in this project will be an educational conversation which will occur on January 29, when The PEG Center will host a Climate Action event at The Newburyport Senior Center from 6:30-8pm. This event will feature both speaker-driven speed-dating to learn about various in- place climate initiatives, and a deep community brainstorming session to begin honing our ideas into a few collaborative projects.

It is our intention that these actions will draw us together as a loving community of caring individuals and families to create support and make choices for making our own lifestyle changes toward Net Zero50.

Our initiative is a grand idea with small actions. Our single-most important goal is to engage interested people and organizations together into efforts that sustain all of us physically, emotionally and spiritually toward climate action that is effective, important and hopeful.

The authors of Future were the creators behind the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement and most recently led the United Nations’ major global climate talks in Brazil, COP 30, which as we know was a difficult gathering. Fossil fuel proponents there were unwilling to limit production or convert operations to renewable energy, and the United States chose not to participate, although Gov. Gavin Newsom attended on his own, recognizing the importance of the event.

When you read the book—and it is never too late to join us—you will be confronted with some stark realities and scenarios. Just as powerfully, you will be presented with roads leading to hope, to action, and to community building and faith. The reality of climate change is huge and daunting. But small measures do add up and more importantly, introduce one family, one business, one community at a time, to actions that work.

All changes begin with a commitment. Climate change commitment will require a look back at our former decisions about consuming, production, and waste, and invite us all to look at what our actions mean to the health of our household, our futures, and our planet.

Think of “The Future We Choose Climate Initiative” as a support group and collaborative think tank for all interested in and proactive about safeguarding the wellbeing of current and future generations. The PEG Center hopes that by offering platforms for people to work together, we can accelerate climate actions for a future in which our children and planet will thrive, and where we can make these changes together in camaraderie and joy.

Please join us on January 29 at 6:30pm at Newburyport Senior and Community Center at 331 High Street. Contact us at www.thepegcenter.org for your free book and to join the initiative.

ACES team members believe everyone can make a BIG difference together. We invite you to stay updated on environmental matters by subscribing to our monthly newsletter via the “Subscribe to Updates” link on ACES’ website – https://www.aces-alliance.org/. Please consider joining our community of stewards committed to Make Every Day Earth Day by contacting acesnewburyport@gmail.com and follow our Instagram @acesalliancenbpt and Facebook @ACESAlliance pages to stay informed.

This educational column was originally published on December 12, 2025 by The Daily News of Newburyport.

Almost four years ago I made the choice to go to an Environmental Open House at Newburyport High School. My freshman self was not aware that for the rest of my high school career, I would learn some of the most valuable lessons in my life. The internship-based learning experiences I’ve taken with me to college not only as a student but also as a member of society are very valuable. I am Rourke Lee, a current freshman at Colgate University, who had the privilege during my time at Newburyport High School of working with Prof. Thomas Starr, Mr. Arthur Currier, and many other ACES affiliated stewards.

I played a key role in Prof. Starr’s Remembrance of Climate Futures project, a climate change awareness and educational program where I helped research, draft, propose, and install a series of plaques on the Newburyport Rail Trail. We used the same plaque system for important educational messages around the Indian Hill Reservoir as well. These eight-inch circular aluminum plaques provide information about past, present, and projected future events and projects related to the specific location of the sign. Research included attending city-organized meetings, researching news sources, and organizing in- person meetings.

I gained insight into the ongoing political and environmental sphere of Greater Newburyport regarding climate change-related programs. I gained confidence to begin to send cold emails, to speak to panels at city meetings, and to meet face to face with important leaders of my community. I learned to respect the time of others as I kept myself organized. I found myself starting to use Google Calendar to manage my meetings, which led to managing my schoolwork and my full schedule.

Drafting and proposing played hand in hand in this process. I would meet over Zoom to draft plaques using Adobe InDesign. This resulted in my presenting options to the water and sewer commission multiple times over the course of many months. We drafted, presented, redrafted, presented, and repeated this process until we settled on the language that was accurate for everyone. I learned to compromise and take critical advice. I found a better understanding and appreciation of the city employees and other workers in my community after getting to know each of them and gaining their perspectives not only on the project but Newburyport itself.

After unforeseen setbacks of new required permits, necessary redrafts, monthly meetings being pushed back, and other circumstances, there were points when it seemed like the installation day was so far out of my grasp, but I realized, looking back on things, that these all taught me an important lesson about persistence. I realized that I must always be prepared for what’s next, even if I may not know what is coming. I learned to be resilient in my ways to adapt. Most importantly, motivation may help for a couple weeks, but discipline and consistency are what really matters. After everything, I was left thinking what could be next?

The on-site action began after approval: installing the plaques. After choosing the locations of the plaques through multiple site-visits, we were able to install some of the plaques with ease using metal zip ties or screws. For others at the reservoir, a permit and a fencing company were needed to install the wooden posts. Having years of work go up in the span of an hour was not just a greatly fulfilling experience but, I admit, a slightly weird experience too.

Another lesson I learned was the importance and value of other perspectives and support. The support from my family, friends, Prof. Starr, Mr. Currier, the people of ACES, the Water and Sewer Commission, the Water Department, the Resiliency Committee, and so many others that would take up the entire page if I wrote them all was critical. I wouldn’t have been able to accomplish all aspects of this one-of-a- kind experience. Now that I’m at Colgate I see so much potential applying the competencies I learned. I’m excited about what these next four years have to offer and look forward to taking the lessons I’ve learned from these projects and high school and applying them here.

ACES team members believe everyone can make a BIG difference together. We invite you to stay updated on environmental matters by subscribing to our monthly newsletter via the “Subscribe to Updates” link on ACES’ website – https://www.aces-alliance.org/. Please consider joining our community of stewards committed to Make Every Day Earth Day by contacting acesnewburyport@gmail.com. and subscribe to our Instagram https://www.instagram.com/acesalliancenbpt/ and Facebook https://www.facebook.com/ACESAlliance/ pages to stay informed

This educational column was originally published by The Daily News of Newburyport on December 5, 2025.

The UN Climate Conference (COP30) convened in Belém, Brazil, for the past two weeks bringing together leaders from governments, businesses, and civil society to tackle the defining challenge of our era – Climate Change. With global temperatures hitting record highs and extreme weather reshaping lives worldwide, the stakes could not be higher. 

Unfortunately, the US is not present at COP30. The shame of it all isn’t just that the US is not actively helping work to forestall climate related disaster, rather it is that the current US government is actively hostile to the idea all together.

One attending South American leader said, "The president of the United States at the latest United Nations General Assembly said the climate crisis does not exist. That is a lie.”  British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, lamenting the loss of unity that was present a decade ago at the Paris Climate Conference (COP21) on addressing the climate crisis, noted in his COP30 speech that, "Today, sadly that consensus is gone."  French President Emmanuel Macron said, "Climate misinformation today poses a threat to our democracies, to the Paris agenda.” Meanwhile, the White House stated, "We will not allow the best interest of the American people to be jeopardized by the Green Energy Scam."

Whatever your political philosophy, it is fair to say that the current US administration is pro-fossil fuels, is supporting burning more coal, and is opening our National Lands to dig up more of it.  All the while, actively suspending private green energy initiatives like off shore wind power by its dramatic shifting of long-established permitting for ocean-based energy.

ACES, and all of us individually, know that we have to face the current facts. And the facts are that if we want to fight climate change, we are currently going to have to do it without Federal government leadership or financial support. If there is going to be any progress over the next few years, it’s going to be up to us at state and local levels for now.

An emerging model of how this might play out is seen in the example of the C40 Cities collaborative. Starting with just 40 original cities, C40 is now a global network of over 100 mayors taking decisive actions to confront the climate crisis and to create a future where everyone can thrive. This group asserts that they can help cities move forward and move rapidly toward collaborative local solutions. Working together with communities around the world and helping lead with ideas and examples, their 97 largest collaborating cities represent nearly 25% of the global economy. Their well-designed and activated pilot programs, their new ways of operating, and their proven solutions are pointing the way toward a more sustainable collaborative future for the planet.

For many years, both locally and at the state level, we have shown that we New Englanders care about the environment and the climate and have taken positive steps toward creating a more sustainable future for our region. Locally, Amesbury, Newbury, Newburyport, and Salisbury are all designated MA Green Communities and as early adopters of best practices for sustainability and environmental friendliness. These four communities, among many others state-wide that have supported the environment in practical ways.  In an early example from about a decade ago, we created a project allowing the flow of solar powered electricity from the Rabbit Road solar farm in Salisbury into our region. It was an astute move and it made our area just that bit better for our climate while providing our communities cleaner and more cost-efficient electricity.

As individuals, we can help too and we can save ourselves money while we help the climate by looking up MassSave https://www.masssave.com/get-started/homeowners.  Schedule an energy audit, and maybe consider getting an electric heat pump to save on oil or gas for heating. MassSave can also offer opportunities like insulating your home for free or a deeply discounted cost. Individuals also make a difference like we see on “This Old House” episodes where Newburyport area has occasionally been featured employing energy-saving home repairs and complete upcycling of older homes.

Reading Newburyport Mayor Sean Reardon’s column in the November 7th Daily News confirmed it for us.  ACES is going to keep working for the climate and the environment, even if it means going ahead without the US government for now.

Meanwhile we invite you to stay updated on environmental matters by subscribing to our monthly newsletter on ACES’ website https://www.aces-alliance.org/. Please consider joining our community of stewards committed to Make Every Day Earth Day by contacting acesnewburyport@gmail.com Subscribe to our Instagram www.instagram.com/acesalliancenbpt/ and Facebook www.facebook.com/ACESAlliance/pages to stay informed.

This educational column was originally published by The Daily News of Newburyport on November 14, 2025.

After forest fires and after floods, after tornadoes and landslides and war, the world must rebuild itself. Or is it better to say re-generate itself? With the worst environmental effects clearly present as heat waves, storms, floods and fire, its clearly time in the history of humanity for a new generation to lead a Great Regeneration of the Earth.

It’s time to start thinking about how we can regenerate a more healthy earth. The concept of regeneration is wide and deep with things we don’t talk about as often. And we need to find and adopt some new ideas and approaches. As ACES sees it today, there are literally dozen of niche but important techniques to choose among to help the environment. And rather than concentrate on a few big solutions to big problems maybe we can adopt the mindset of multiple small solutions to smaller problems which taken together will solve our bigger issues. In seeking to find such fresh thinking ACES has found this good reference online  https://regeneration.org/nexus.It's packed full of interesting informative and perhaps a few locally feasible ideas for progress.

With their ideas alphabetically arranged, let’s start with the “A’s”.  Afforestation involves the introduction of trees to areas that have never or not recently had trees in order to create a forest. Some examples of afforestation, some large and some small, include Iceland where forests were first cleared centuries ago, and Bangladesh on degraded coastal lands, and in Beijing to connect fragment forest patches in the City. In Massachusetts old military firing ranges and Nike missiles sites from the 60’s may offer such an opportunity as well as shuttered landfills that dot all of New England. Is proactively reforesting such landfills feasible? Maybe even in Newburyport on Colby Farm Lane?  Another “A” is agrovoltaics, or having animals grazing and growing under solar panels as has been done in the past on the solar farm in Salisbury off Rabbit Road. Goats, It is estimated that using just 1% percent of US farmland in such a way can meet our entire US clean energy goals. Do the Massachusetts and New Hampshire departments of Agriculture have any such plans to encourage or educate on ‘harvesting sunshine”? Agroforestry is the intentional integration of forests with agriculture, and according to Cornell’s Small farms program it “integrates the sustainable production of livestock, forage, and trees on the same unit of land, has the potential to increase farm productivity and soil quality when compared to conventional pasture systems." Raising pigs on a combination of pasture and woodlots can work very well for such farms. It combines trees, shrubs and vines with a crop and animal farming to mimic natural ecosystems. Already used worldwide for food, fiber and wood, and now it's a modern and well studied regenerative farming practice.

Skipping past all the “B’s”  we get to Composting. Newburyport has become a leader with its Towards Zero Waste effort including for example in composting, both with street side pick up as well as the highly successful Senior Center ‘Drop a bag, get a bag” food scrap collection. Another ‘C”, relates to cranberry farming on the south shore which has a regeneration twist of its own. The cranberry industry in Massachusetts is facing financial challenges make it difficult to renovate aging bogs. So a state program is helping farmers retire some of their land and restore it to its original wetland state. It focuses on more productive bogs while reclaiming land for ecological benefits. One such cranberry grower, Edgewood Bogs in Carver, will be taking 27 acres of their cranberry bogs offline and converting them back to native wetlands.

Our premise, our need for a Great Regeneration, means its time to pass the torch to the next generation. Maybe regeneration starts as the new generation seeing the damage wrought by a century and a half of industrialization seeks to identify a mission for its adult years. We need new leaders like the many ACES interns who have worked with us over the last 6 years before moving on to college or the work world. We appreciate what they have achieved and who they are becoming. They will be the true drivers of regenerating the Earth.

Please send along your ideas for engaging with upcoming generations to help heal the Earth. Let’s plant seeds of a Great Regeneration locally. ACES believes everyone can make a BIG difference together. We invite you to stay updated on environmental matters by subscribing to our monthly newsletter on ACES’ website https://www.aces-alliance.org/. Please consider joining our community of stewards committed to Make Every Day Earth Day by contacting acesnewburyport@gmail.com and subscribe to our Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/acesalliancenbpt/ and Facebookhttps://www.facebook.com/ACESAlliance/  pages to stay informed.

This educational column was originally Published by The Daily News of Newburyport on October 24, 2025.

Judging by the number of cable TV shows, celebrity chefs, and new cookbooks coming out monthly, America is obsessed with cooking. It makes us feel good, creative, and connected to others. Finding ways to add a bit of environmental thinking into our cooking culture seems like it might be helpful to climate.

At first glance this may seem like a low priority approach for people concerned with the environment, but upon reflection it can be a positive approach to care for the planet, after all most of us eat multiple times per day. Let’s explore how our daily food choices impact climate and why. Then, hopefully, our cooking habits might evolve into more ‘climate conscious’ cooking’ activities.

To begin, let’s look at your choice of ingredients for your next food preparation activity. What might be the climate (carbon) footprint of your choices? Picking locally grown in-season produce is better for our climate than choosing out of season produce imported from distant states or countries. Produce from small local farms is much less likely to have the same negative impacts on health and climate as industrially grow, factory farm produce. 

Produce grown in the drier regions of the southwest using scarce water resources and depleted soil is usually viewed as more damaging to the environment. The same may be true of raising meat, beef especially, that may be raised in South America where forests have been cleared to graze the cattle. 

How can we change things for the better? First, we can choose low impact ingredients. Without going full on vegetarian, try leaning just a bit that way. Find and plan weekly plant-based meals using local seasonal produce. Or occasionally choose recipes with climate friendly swaps like replacing beef with lentils when possible. 

Shop smarter by asking for exactly what your recipe calls for at the meat counter. Just press the ‘butcher button’ at the super market and ask for the weight you want. Don’t pick up the pre-packaged pork chops if its more than you really need. Buy peak of season produce locally. And maybe get together with a few friends to prep peaches, tomatoes, or corn for freezing or canning.

When there are leftovers, use them creatively. Some of the best old-fashioned recipes include Monday or Tuesday ‘hash’ made from left over roast combined with potatoes, onions, and peppers to make a wonderful dinner. Freeze left over veggies for later use in soups. Cut corn off the cob if one is left over. Bag it and freeze it for easy use in Shepards Pie.

Try to use energy efficient cooking methods as well. Use slow cookers, electric griddles, and air fryers. Electric cooking generally has lower greenhouse gas impacts than cooking with gas. And you don’t need to reheat every leftover either. Just thin slice and artfully arrange left over meats antipasto style on a platter with uncooked veggies, olives, and hummus along with fresh bread from a local bakery.

If you are ambitious, consider learning how to forage to add interest to your cooking. Dandelions, wild garlic, mushrooms, wild blueberries, and more can be interesting and a good excuse for an inexpensive walk in the woods with family or friends. In the mid-20th century, many Italian grandmothers “nonnas” foraged for a bit of wild garlic and mushrooms. Your Polish “babcia” dried foraged mushrooms and used them all winter for both protein and flavor. Lebanese and Greek grandmothers in the Merrimack Valley foraged wild grape leaves to make dolmas, stuffed rollups with rice, meat, and tomato sauce. They are excellent appetizers and side dishes.

“Cooking for climate” may sound like a corny catch phrase but it contains a lot of truth. Making it a lifestyle can make a difference. So, let’s start talking about it when we run into friends at the supermarket or farm stand. Start sharing climate friendly tips and recipes. Maybe host a neighborhood Fall gathering where the menus have been chosen with Cooking for Climate in mind. 

Send ACES your favorite tips and recipes and let’s get this idea cookin’ in public consciousness. ACES team members believe everyone can make a BIG difference together. We invite you to stay updated on environmental matters by subscribing to our monthly newsletter via the “Subscribe to Updates” link on ACES’ website https://www.aces-alliance.org/. Please consider joining our community of stewards committed to Make Every Day Earth Day by contacting acesnewburyport@gmail.com and follow to our Instagram (@acesalliancenbpt) and Facebook (@ACESAlliance) pages to stay informed.

This educational column was originally published by The Daily News Of Newburyport on October 17, 2025.

Follow the money, a forensic accounting catchphrase popularized by the 1976 film “All the President’s Men,” was written into the film’s dialog as coming from “Deep Throat", the informant who took part in revealing the Watergate scandal that brought down President Nixon. It still totally rings true in today’s vocabulary used by both economists and environmentalists. 

That’s why the recent October 7th Science Daily article by researchers at Surry University in the UK “When Sunshine Became Cheaper Than Coal” excited us.  The article is summarized by the statement: Solar energy is now the cheapest source of power worldwide, driving a massive shift toward renewables. Falling battery prices and innovations in solar materials are making clean energy more reliable than ever.

Even in the UK, a country that sits well north of the equator, solar is the cheapest option for large-scale energy generation. And it’s not just a UK thing either. Globally, the total amount of solar power installed has doubled since 2020 with enough to power hundreds of millions of homes! 

Here in the US, from January to July of this year as reported by Reuters, solar power generation delivered 39% of California’s electricity, a record level. Fossil fuels provided just 26%, a new low.

That’s good news and doubly so on reading headlines published in multiple sources the same day that a Navajo tribe-owned company bid only $186,000 to lease 167 million tons of coal in southeastern Montana. Even at those dirt-cheap prices, coal still can’t compete with solar power. It was also reported that the offer from the Navajo Transitional Energy Company (NTEC) equates to one-tenth of a penny per ton, underscoring coal’s diminished value even as the administration pushes for more of the heavily polluting fuel.

It's wonderful long-term news and if we follow the money the world can now begin to remove carbon from the atmosphere. It turns out that by installing grid leveling devices, we can use excess solar power at certain times of day to capture and store CO2.

The Oct 8th announcement of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry award given to three different scientists relates to new chemical processes that can capture and stores gases in specifically designed ways. Application of these processes, known as metal-organic frameworks, have wide range of uses, including collecting water from air, capturing toxic gases, and trapping carbon dioxide. These frameworks can take CO2 out of the air by new grid adjusting technology in solar power generation.

So, what does that mean to Massachusetts and more particularly Greater Newburyport? It means that if we push now for more development of solar power it will bring down our high cost of living in the northeast by bring down sky high electric prices. We need our leaders to get creative on bringing down both the dollar cost and the environmental cost of power generation.

Maybe as giant ‘hyperscale’ companies seek more power for their emerging AI businesses, the states could follow the money and offer 30-year bonds to entice them to establish largescale solar farms to completely cover the energy needs of these facilities and their local communities. Or possibly accelerate reviews and approvals without causing harm. Shake up the process because this is "once in centuries transition" and the sooner we midwife its emergence the better off the world will be.

Perhaps new construction of apartments in the MBTA communities required zoning changes could be green-lighted more quickly if they include solar power on or off site. India is doing that. Perhaps the state can direct new funding to Whittier Tech and every other vocational school in the state to establish a solar power component on campus and use it for training students for future careers as well as generating needed campus electricity.

This is a huge and positive development coming into focus. Don’t underestimate the enormous positivity of these recent assessments in the cost of solar vs other forms of power. If we follow the money, the time is now. Let’s encourage the state to invest in the future while leading to more affordable power and a lower and cleaner cost of living. Let us know what you think.

ACES team members believe everyone can make a BIG difference together. We invite you to stay updated on environmental matters by subscribing to our monthly newsletter via the “Subscribe to Updates” link on ACES’ website – https://www.aces-alliance.org/.

This educational column was originally published by The Daily News of Newburyport on October 10, 2025.

The relationship within Indigenous cultures to the land is not centered in ownership or rights, but rather as a responsibility and primary relationship. The land holds deep knowledge, memory, and spirit that we respect and cherish. The land and waters have watched many generations grow from babies to old women and men and return to the land. The blood, sweat, and tears of countless generations before us are in the soil and water. Larry Spotted Crow Mann, Hassanamisco Nipmuc and Director at Ohketeau Cultural Center, reflected recently “We are the land and the land is us.” This might sound straight forward, but in today’s consumerist systems, it can be quite daunting to think about. Every time I am actively engaging with the Earth, I feel more connected and more grounded. With more and more land development happening, more and more wildlife are being pushed out of their natural habitat. We need to start, or perhaps, continue good land stewardship practices so that our flora and fauna can survive.

I know I am in the right relation with the Earth when balance is achieved. This is a continual practice. It means only taking what is needed and leaving some for others. It means offering gratitude and asking consent before harvesting berries, medicinal herbs, and trees. Our traditional teachings remind us to realize that what we do today impacts tomorrow and beyond. We often talk about seven generations, meaning what we are doing with the land and waterways impacts seven generations back and seven generations forward. Our stories, as Larry Spotted Crow Mann reminded me, are shaped by all that surrounds us - the rivers, stones, mountains and valleys, and the way that the stars and moon align.

Our teachings also reflect how the land is sacred and an ancestor. But how are we a good ancestor to the Earth? It is by treating the Earth with respect and reciprocity to start with. Respecting nature is more than just avoiding hail storms, but truly treating the Earth in a relational way. As Robin Wall Kimmerer wrote in The Serviceberry, “Reciprocity can be seen when we love the Earth, the Earth loves us back. Reciprocity is the way of the Earth.” The give and take of nature is reciprocity in action. Sarah Levenson, Mi’kmaq, shared that the Mi’kmaq (L’Nuk) view the environment through both traditional indigenous knowledge and western knowledge in a balanced way. Through this concept, there is a better relationship and understanding of the land and true reciprocity. We engage with the Earth and have dialogue, we don’t assume it’s inanimate and needs to be dominated over.

To become more connected to the land around us, it means that we are living as if our children’s futures mattered, to take care of the land so that both our spiritual and material lives not just survive, but truly thrive. Building community means not only connecting with the people around us, but all things including this Earth. We have a responsibility to continue building that community through ceremony, land reclamation, and honoring all that exists around us.

To learn more, you can join us on October 11th for Newburyport’s 5th Annual Indigenous Peoples Day Observance, where you can meet Indigenous community members including Larry Spotted Crow Mann. The event celebrates traditional and contemporary Indigenous cultural arts, knowledge and diversity, honoring our region’s Indigenous communities and all Native Peoples, and supporting recognition of Indigenous Peoples Day at the city, state and national level.

This year’s event includes Indigenous maritime cultural arts traditions in the Dawnland, including the creation, ceremonial launch and paddle on the Merrimack River of a traditional hand crafted muhsh8n (mishoon dugout canoe) made by Darius Coombs and Jonathan James Perry. "The Merrimack Mishoon Project!” See the mishoon being made and attend a fundraising feast October 4th at the Custom House Museum. Celebrate the inaugural launch and paddle of the Merrimack Mishoon, Saturday, October 11th Visit www.imaginestudios.org to learn more!

Jenny Tibbits is a Newichawannock Tribal Elder, Two-Spirit person, multi-disciplinary artist who may be reached at pennacook@gmail.com.

ACES team members believe everyone can make a BIG difference together. Team members invite you to stay updated on environmental matters by subscribing to our monthly newsletter via the “Subscribe to Updates” link on ACES’ website – https://www.aces-alliance.org/. Please consider joining our community of stewards committed to Make Every Day Earth Day by contacting acesnewburyport@gmail.com.

This educational column was originally published by The Daily News of Newburyport on October 3, 2025.

The Mass Oyster Project (MOP) is an exciting initiative dedicated to restoring and conserving oyster populations along the Massachusetts coastline! Its goal is to improve water quality, create habitat for marine life, and promote sustainable fishing practices.

Historically, MOP was begun in 2021 by a passionate group of conservationists and community stakeholders who saw a rapid decline in local oyster populations and realized their ecological importance, increasing biodiversity and improving water quality.

Oyster populations worldwide are severely threatened. Scientists estimate that over 85% of Earth's natural oyster reefs have been lost in the past century to overharvesting, habitat destruction, pollution, disease, and invasive species. In fact, oyster reefs are the most threatened of all shallow-water, structured habitats—even more so than coral reefs and wetlands.

In four short years, MOP has evolved to incorporate scientific research and expanded community engagement and now stands as a significant effort to promote a healthier, more resilient coastal ecosystem for future generations. It is an inspiring example of how collaborative actions can make a real difference for our environment and our communities! MOP has grown over 1 million “upweller” oysters, of which more than 950,000 have been transplanted back into Massachusetts’ coastal water. An upweller is an incubator for baby oysters. The program currently manages a network of 7 upwellers, including those in Yarmouth, Nantucket, Gloucester, Manchester, and Newburyport.

The Newburyport upweller is located next to the Harbor Master’s office. We started in June with about 60,000 spat, or baby oysters, each about the size of a grain of sand. We have grown the spat in our upweller throughout the summer months. Our volunteers check on the upwellers every day or two, sorting the oysters by size, cleaning the upwellers, and making sure everything is in working order.

By the end of this month, the oysters will have grown to about a quarter inch in size. While our ultimate goal is to plant our spat in Newburyport’s waters, this year we will plant the fledgling oysters in a hospitable spot in Plum Island Sound. These baby oysters will then grow about one inch per year, achieving maturity in roughly three years. Our 60,000 oysters will collectively filter over 3 million gallons of water each day. Additionally, our newly planted oysters will grow in clumps, creating oyster reefs that promote the growth of diverse marine habitats. And this happens quickly: studies have found that restored oyster reefs see a rapid increase in marine biodiversity in as little as two years.

Our work in Newburyport and across the Commonwealth continues well after our once-baby oysters are released into the wild. MOP also runs a successful shell recycling program, where we partner with local restaurants to collect, cure, and use shell to establish reefs. MOP has collected over 58 tons of oyster shells over the life of its recycling program that will not go into landfill. We hope to extend the shell recycling program to the North Shore within the next year.

We also partner with state government, nonprofit and for-profit organizations, and academic institutions which help educate, inform, and raise awareness of the role oysters can play in restoring and protecting coastal areas. The City of Newburyport, and especially the City’s Harbor Master’s office, has been instrumental to this summer’s successful upweller installation in Newburyport.

If you want to know more about us, we will be discussing the Mass Oyster Project next week on October 1 st at the ACES sponsored Community ECO Conversation held in the Newburyport Senior Community Center, 331 High Street, Newburyport beginning at 1:00PM. There will also be tours of the Newburyport Upweller Installation at the Harbor Master Dock following the Eco Conversation.

We are looking for interested, enthusiastic volunteers in Newburyport. Mass Oyster Project’s is a 501(c)(3) non-profit supported by grants, sponsor donations, and volunteers. You can learn more about our project, and our wonderful sponsors, at both the Harbor Master’s office and online at www.massoyster.org.

Mike Connor, local Newburyport lead for the Mass Oyster Project, who will be participating in the ECO Conversation, can be reached at mconnorhome@gmail.com.

ACES team members believe everyone can make a BIG difference together. We invite you to stay updated on environmental matters by subscribing to our monthly newsletter via the “Subscribe to Updates” link on ACES’ website – https://www.aces-alliance.org/.

This educational column was originally published on September 26, 2025.

In a lecture at Boston College last week, world-renowned author and climate justice activist Bill McKibben made the case for why climate justice is a worthwhile fight—and why clean energy is far more realistic than people think.

Bill talked about pockets of hope within the country, like California’s use of renewable energy, which has decreased its natural gas consumption by 40 percent over the past two years, and Texas’ regulations that slant toward free-market energy, historically allowing wind and solar energy to thrive in local communities (although now possibly facing Republican efforts to roll back the competitive advantages of renewables over natural gas generation).

The point Bill was making, and a lot of other reports are showing, is that new renewable energy generation can—and is—moving past old, dirty fossil fuel use not only in the U.S. but also internationally. "Sun Day,” celebrated on Sept. 21, was created to convince local leaders that wind and solar energy are the future, and cities across the country will be observing the holiday as people advocate for change. Solar, wind, and batteries provide the least expensive source of power on the planet. Their rapid adoption around the world gives new hope both for the climate and for the economic health of the countries that utilize them.

As the podcast Volts reported on the Sun Day site, Pakistan has seen an explosion of small, distributed solar sites, with almost none on utility-scale solar farms. Inexpensive, Chinese-produced solar panels are going on Pakistani roofs, barns, and over irrigation canals. Volts states, “Distributed solar is breaking over Pakistan like a tidal wave, despite utilities and a grid that do not seem entirely prepared for it.”

At home, despite the U.S. administration favoring its fossil fuel allies, clean energy is here to stay and expanding. In fact, the dramatic increase in AI data facilities around the country leans toward creating mostly clean energy sources for power.

Washington State farmers are building out solar arrays on their land to protect their apple crops from the heat and sun while eliminating their energy bills and supplementing their crop revenues (agrivoltaics). On even larger scales, in areas where water has become ever more scarce, livestock ranchers are leasing their land for solar farms as an alternative to traditional ranching.

Even closer to home, Newburyport should be credited, at least in a small way, with helping jump-start this solar-powered revolution locally. In 2012, Newburyport participated in Solarize Mass, a state program that encouraged adoption of residential solar power. Back then, it was unique to see power being generated on our local rooftops. Now it’s not only common, but it has become a mainstream option for many homeowners.

The Tannery, Newburyport’s iconic industrial buildings converted to a retail shop destination, proudly installed solar on its roofs years ago, and more recently, that same developer’s Hillside Center for Sustainable Living is a beautiful solar-powered addition to our housing stock.

So, this Sunday, which we will recognize as “Sun Day,” why not read about your own options to adopt solar power? (https://www.sunday.earth/).

It’s not too late to help the Earth and bend the curve leading to climate disaster toward a less-polluting and less-expensive energy future for us all. Why not explore your own possibilities to enjoy solar power?

ACES team members believe everyone can make a BIG difference together. We invite you to stay updated on environmental matters by subscribing to our monthly newsletter via the “Subscribe to Updates” link on ACES’ website – https://www.aces-alliance.org/.

This educational column was originally published by The Daily News of Newburyport on Sepetember 19, 2025.

Localizing supply chains needs to happen globally so we can maximize environmental and economic progress by eliminating as much of the transport-related environmental and cost burdens as possible. This applies especially here in Northeastern Massachusetts, where we can do much to improve our supply and demand systems.

An interesting new development that doubles down on both the invention of new green production processes as well as the minimization of supply chain transport costs was recently published by Bloomberg. They wrote a story on May 22nd entitled “Why Microsoft Just Signed a Deal for Green Cement.”

The story explains that a Somerville, MA start-up company, Sublime Systems, has a new technology that produces “green” cement. Sublime uses an electrochemical process that eliminates the use of limestone, which is cement’s main ingredient and which releases carbon dioxide when it’s heated during the cement production process. Limestone is also very dense, and delivering the raw material is itself environmentally burdensome. Right now, at its 250-ton-per-year pilot plant in Somerville, Sublime has reduced its cement production emissions by 90 percent compared to the traditional process, according to their chief executive as quoted in the Boston Globe.

To help the company further commercialize its plant, Microsoft has offered to purchase up to 622,500 metric tons of the company’s cement over a period of six to nine years and claim the carbon reductions associated with that cement. Sublime will start delivering on its deal with Microsoft when its first 30,000-ton commercial plant is operational, currently slated to be completed in 2027.

This gets ACES thinking: as new, greener processes are invented or improved, why not emphasize that those new processes become part of our own regional supply chains? For example, why not a central MA or southern NH cement plant servicing all of New England’s needs? Situated close to both the Mass Pike and Route 495, it could easily access highways to service the concrete needs of the region.

Another new green technology that could use a nudge to become a bigger and better process is vertical farming in old industrial buildings across the region. Why not grow year-round veggies under solar-powered grow lights, hydroponically, in old mill buildings in Amesbury, Greater Lawrence, or Haverhill? If the newish cannabis growing facility in Salisbury has shown us anything, it’s that we can grow lots of different things under artificial lighting.

What else, you ask? New York State has regulations and farm laws that now allow forest-farmed venison to be managed and harvested. The Hudson Valley has since become a mini-mecca for chefs utilizing this high-quality regional product, and it has grown dramatically in popularity. Apparently, collaborating with the Culinary Institute of America along the Hudson River, venison has expanded its menu adoption. While studies need to be done concerning its greenhouse gas effects, they are likely to be much less problematic than industrialized beef production. Venison also doesn’t require the corn and other feed crops grown to feed cattle or the nationwide transport required to distribute them. Maybe New England should encourage a venison supply chain of its own.

In the ‘big picture,’ we need to look at all the smaller local pictures and find ways to encourage regional economic development that enhances small-scale, green, and cost-effective supply chains. The development of such supply chains will create three important and positive outcomes. First, it will provide jobs and economic development regionally. Second, it will insulate us from global supply shocks that may be impacted by tariffs, wars, or transportation breakdowns. Third, it will give us the opportunity to encourage new, greener technologies to emerge and benefit our region.

Environmental leaders think new and localized supply chains, emphasizing greener processes and reduced transport emissions, represent a promising view of the future. We’d love to hear your thoughts about it, too.

ACES team members believe everyone can make a BIG difference together. We invite you to stay updated on environmental matters by subscribing to our monthly newsletter via the “Subscribe to Updates” link on ACES’ website – https://www.aces-alliance.org/. Please consider joining our community of stewards committed to Make Every Day Earth Day by contacting acesnewburyport@gmail.com.

This educational column was originally published by The Daily News of Newburyport on September 12, 2025.

That’s the same weight of two or three adult elephants, equivalent to roughly six giraffes. You’ve got to admit that’s a lot of kitchen waste diverted from going to a landfill and turned into compost by the intake at the Newburyport Senior Community Center (NSCC). Just since the soft launch of the program in late 2024 and beginning to hit its stride this year. The “Drop a Bag Get a Bag” initiative is part of the Senior/Community Center’s journey to become a “ZERO WASTE” facility.

Lead by NSCC Director Sara Landry and ACES Board Member Ben Iacono and Nicki Girouard, a waste collection campaign for composting is one of two programs being ramped up as we go into the Fall. NSCC is truly bringing best practices to waste reduction efforts.

The NSCC is more than just a social and recreational gathering spot. It has also become an epicenter of seniors helping address and solve community problems by tackling key needs in our community. One of those needs is to reduce waste being generated in our community and carry a high disposal cost in the City’s budgets.

This waste is more than just physical material. It carries with it throughout its supply chain journey a host of health, climate and environmental costs. Like plastics and their chemical leaching and the methane gas released from landfills where we send it. Humans think out of sight, out of mind. But that’s not really true, is it?

Focusing on waste reduction, under the leadership of Sara Landry, the Center and the Community who make it so vibrant a space have launched several initiatives to move towards zero waste.

Using the slogan, "Drop a Bag, Get a Bag" and offering free compostable 1 gallon kitchen zip lock food waste bags, the Center now is now spinning a virtuous cycle of saving organic waste, including bones and some paper product such as tea bags and coffee filters. Since launching the effort 11 months ago the daily removal of waste from the landfill path has grown steadily. Composting prevents filling landfills and prevents the greenhouse gas methane from being generated as the material is professionally processed by the ‘Black Earth Compost” service. Composting not only prevents waste and air pollution, it recycles the nutrients needed to keep our farm fields and gardens productive.

A second initiative, the monthly ECO-conversations co-sponsored with ACES, has included important topics for a healthy city, like plastics pollution and waste reduction. These sessions engage 25-30 folks at a session and have yielded ideas and personal commitments to be more attentive to reducing waste.

And now the NSCC team has created and has begun to train and staff a cadre of Waste Ambassadors to provide community outreach and education. The first of these are Audrey Clarkson, Charles Boelke , Fran Norton, and Nicki Girouard. By engaging folks both in the Center and in their own circles of influence, they are creating a ground swell of seniors focusing on waste. And measured by the amount of compost bags being returned and questions and suggestions about reducing plastics in our lives and in our bodies, they are making a difference. It's starting a course correction that is putting future generations on a better path to a healthy earth.

Molly Ettenborough, Newburyport’s Recycling and Energy Manager, is excited by the program and its potential to change behaviors at the grass roots level. Having everyone, at every age and stage of life, paying attention and changing how they approach waste in their daily lives, really models the kind of behavior we all need to practice. This community modeling and Waste Ambassador program is brilliant”

So, listen to your elders, grandparents, and kids when it comes to organic, kitchen food waste, composting is a better way to help the planet and the health of the neighborhood. Let us know of your ideas in this effort.

ACES team members believe everyone can make a BIG difference together. Team members invite you to stay updated on environmental matters by subscribing to our monthly newsletter via the “Subscribe to Updates” link on ACES’ website – https://www.aces-alliance.org/. Please consider joining our community of stewards committed to Make Every Day Earth Day by contacting acesnewburyport@gmail.com.

This educational column was originally published by The Daily News of Newburyport on September 5, 2025.