Saturday May 7: Sun Dial Club Annual Plant Sale

The Annual Plant Sale will be at the train station from 8 am- 3 pm. From 8-12, youth members of  Kids For Earth will be selling baked goods to raise funds for supplies for the community garden.  To volunteer or help out on May 7, or to donate baked goods, bottled water, juices or organic milk or chocolate milk boxes, please contact Elizabeth Scholl at ejscholl@verizon.net or drop off with group at event.

Saturday May 7: Boy scout troops will be cleaning area behind Hillsdale Post Office- citizens and groups are welcome to join.  Will gather from 9-10 am, supplies provided.

Monday, May 16: Hillsdale Green Team Steering Meeting

Please join us in the Municipal Chambers from 7-8:30 pm, to help us plan or participate in our many upcoming borough-wide initiatives, including partnership with our local food pantry, recycling initiatives, developing green business recognition programs, ongoing community outreach programs, school and town-wide gardening projects, community clean-ups, and the launch of a community fitness initiative: Walk Around Town.  To contribute ideas, or for more information about how to get involved please email Meredith at mjkates@optonline.net or visit www.mygreenhillsdale.org

Sunday, May 22: Push Ups for Charity- 11:00 am Tiger’s Claw Martial Arts Studio, Hillsdale, NJ: Push Ups For Charity is an event where participants see how many push up they can do in 90 seconds. They will get sponsors to donate “x” amount of money for each push up they do. All of the money goes to the Wounded Warrior Project to help those who have been injured fighting overseas for our freedom  Event Website

Tuesday, May 24: Library Program: Understanding and Using the NJ Solar Residential Rebate Program

Ethan Horvitz from Solar Living Inc. will present information on the current state incentives and options for residential solar energy installation at the Hillsdale Library 7:00pm in the lower-level conference room.  Free program sponsored by the Green Team.  For more information please contact Aditi at (201) 594-9801 or email aditi.s.sen@gmail.com

Monday, May 30: Hillsdale Memorial Day Parade-

The Hillsdale Green Team will walk alongside other town commissions and groups in our annual Memorial Day Parade.  Any residents are welcome to join us (including children and families).  Please email Meredith to RSVP, and we will contact you with further information and details.

Other upcoming May events soon to be launched! –

-“Walk Around Town”

- “Abundant Harvest”

To get involved with these or any of our projects, please visit our website: www.mygreenhillsdale.org  We welcome collaboration and new ideas from community groups, scouts, houses of worship, businesses and citizens.

On March 24^th, the Hillsdale Green Team hosted environmentalist Marnie Vyff, who presented a program entitled, The Whys and Hows of Residential Composting. Marnie Vyff, a local environmentalist, spoke on how to compost, as well as how composting can be introduced into  municipalities. With state and national pressures to curb waste, many municipalities are turning to composting programs, resulting in a decrease in municipal solid waste costs.

Marnie runs The Mountain Lakes Organic Co-op, is a CommunityGreen.org organizer, and is a Commissioner on the Mountain Lakes Shade Tree Commission. She is also working on a masters degree in Environmental Management at Montclair State University. 

The library’s meeting room was filled to capacity with both beginner and veteran composters, as well as residents who were just interested in learning more about home composting options. Marnie shared a power-point presentation which explored the science of composting (how food scraps, garden waste and other “trash” items become compost), why it is beneficial to compost both for the homeowner as well as for the environment, and the variety of composting vessels, which range from chicken wire enclosures and homemade bins, to multi-compartmental tumblers. Marnie explained that it isn’t necessary to have a fancy composter; an open bin constructed from any type of wood makes a very adequate composter; in fact, even a simple compost pile will work.

Marnie’s presentation was followed by an informative question and answer session. She addressed questions about what items are acceptable to compost, why items in composters are not breaking down efficiently, how to compost in the winter, and helped “troubleshoot” a variety of situations that participants inquired about.

It was an educational evening for all. Hopefully, Marnie’s wealth of experience and well-researched presentation helped solve some people’s compost issues, and encouraged others to give home composting a try.

The Bergen County Utilities Authority will be selling compost bins in Paramus for one day only on Sunday, April 3, from 9 a.m.-2 p.m. The sale will be held at the Bergen County Community Services Building, located at 327 East Ridgewood Ave. Paramus. The event will be held rain or shine.  Earth Machine TM home composting bins will be sold for $53. The retail value of the bin is $100 at home improvement stores.

http://www.northjersey.com/shopping/downtown/118558149_Turn_your_waste_into_rich_soil_.html

Have you considered composting, but don’t know how to begin? Or would like to, but are concerned about having a compost pile in your yard that may smell or attract pests? By following a few simple procedures, backyard composting can reduce your home waste by up to one third, and at the same time, create rich, natural fertilizer and mulch for your garden that is absolutely free.

Marnie Vyff, a local environmentalist, will speak on how to compost, and how to set up residential composting arrangements at the Hillsdale Public Library, located at 509 Hillsdale Avenue, on Thursday March 24th, at 7pm. Participants will learn about the environmental, economic and social benefits of backyard composting.

Marnie runs The Mountain Lakes Organic Co-op, is a CommunityGreen.org organizer, and is working on a Masters Degree in Environmental Management at Montclair State University.

There will be a public Green Team meeting at the Municipal Building.  It will take place on March 10 from 7:15-8:30.

There will be a public Green Team meeting at the Municipal Building.  It will take place on February 10th from 7:15-8:30.

When: January 25th 7pm-9pm

Where: Hillsdale Public Library

The presentation will focus on Home Energy Audits, which is the process for determining how safe and efficient your heating devices are, and how relatively tight (through air sealing) your house is.

Our first meeting of the new year will be held next Monday Jan 17, 7:15-8:30 at the council chambers. This will be our monthly steering meeting where committee heads share updates on progress and ideas, and we also address general group issues and planning needs. The meeting is open to all green team members or citizens who would like to join us or learn more about our work.

On Thursday, Dec. 9th from 7:15pm-8:30 there will be a Hillsdale Green Team Meeting.  This meeting will be open to the public and will take place at the Municipal Building.

Also, after the meeting there will be a party (open to the public) at the Cornerstone to celebrate Hillsdale becoming Bronze Certified, a level of sustainability.  Please note that it will be a pay-for-yourself event.