Join Us! Earth Day Spring Clean-up April 23, 2022

Join GreenStar for an Earth Day Clean-Up!

The theme for this year’s Earth Day Celebration is ‘Invest in Our Planet’. As a new-age food co-op founded the year after the first official Earth Day in 1970, it should come as no surprise that the genesis of GreenStar originated from some of the same concerns that birthed the modern environmental movement.

More than 50 years later, GreenStar upholds its commitment to ecological responsibility, and endeavors to act with care and regard for the ecological consequences of our decisions. From its humble beginnings, GreenStar has consistently invested in our planet. From being the first grocery store in Ithaca to eliminate single-use plastic shopping bags to using 100% solar power and building the largest solar array owned by a food co-op in the U.S. at the time, to installing a fossil-fuel-free heating and cooling system in its adaptive-reuse flagship store at 770 Cascadilla street, GreenStar has not shied away from making environmentally responsible decisions, even if they came with a greater economic cost. While the Co-op may not be able to realize all of its sustainability ideals at a given moment, your local food co-op is continually working towards real solutions that will have a lasting, positive impact on our Co-op, our community, and our planet.

On Saturday, April 23, GreenStar Food Co-op is hosting an Earth Day Spring Clean-up of its adopted section of the Cayuga Waterfront Trail, and the grounds surrounding its flagship store at 770 Cascadilla St. While it’s possible to visit GreenStar’s main store without being aware of its proximity to Ithaca’s waterfront, it is but a stone’s throw from the Cayuga Waterfront Trail. In 2017, in support of our commitment to the environment and our community, the Co-op adopted the “West End Trail” section of the Trail, which runs from the Seneca St. bridge to the Ithaca College boathouse. Who could have known at that time that GreenStar would relocate just down the trail, but still be neighbors with the same trail section?!

As Trail adopters, the Co-op is responsible for keeping the trail safe and attractive — removing trash, addressing encroaching brush and vegetation, and removing autumn leaves, twigs, or other debris that make the trail difficult to use. This year, we’ll extend our clean-up to include the grounds at our 770 Cascadilla St. store.

Everyone is invited to the Waterfront Trail “Spring Cleaning” to kick off the adoption on Earth Day, April 23, at 10 am, but we appreciate your RSVP via this form no later than April 21. The clean-up offers a fun, communal way to spruce up the trail for spring. Some important points:

• Dress for the weather, wear boots and bring gloves, garbage bags, litter grabbers, rakes, brooms, or anything else that will help.
• Meet at the tent on the patio at the front of the store – we’ll provide water (bring your own bottle!), and snacks. We’ll have extra bags and gloves on hand if you don’t have your own.
• Masks and social distancing are optional.
• A parent or guardian must attend with all participating children. There must be a minimum of 1 adult per 3 participating children.

The Cayuga Waterfront Trail is a 5.5-mile, multi-use trail running along Ithaca’s Cayuga Lake waterfront and connecting the city’s most popular waterfront destinations — Cass Park, the Ithaca Farmers Market, and Stewart Park. Designed for use by walkers, joggers, bicyclists, inline skaters, mobility-impaired users, and parents with strollers, the trail opened its first section in 2002 and later expanded to its present length, which encompasses benches, scenic overlooks, native plantings, and interpretive signs.

To learn more about or RSVP for the clean-up, visit the Facebook event page.

Throughout the month of April, GreenStar is encouraging community members to engage with our Slash Your Trash campaign, empowering individuals to consider their personal waste reduction journey. We’ll share the numerous ways GreenStar supports its members in achieving their goals by highlighting products and resources the Co-op already provides to help reduce waste and, ultimately, address climate justice. Read more about Slash Your Trash here.