Project SunShare brings affordable rooftop solar power to working homeowners in Southwest Colorado who otherwise couldn’t afford it. This close-to-home initiative is a shining example of how we can work together to create a more sustainable and equitable future.

By helping these income-qualified households, we contribute to their energy independence and reduce their utility costs, resulting in years of significant savings. By making solar power more accessible, we aim to lower energy bills, reduce carbon footprints, and contribute to a healthier environment for future generations.

It’s starting to warm up. Nothing is more refreshing than a glass of ice tea with a sprig of mint. Did you know you can make tea in the sun? It’s best to use loose tea (green, black, herbal) and a tea ball to avoid microplastics. Afterward, keep the jug in your fridge for a healthy, sugarless beverage.

At Earth Day Durango, the Climate Group presented to people who came by their booth the list of the most powerful things households can do for the climate. What are you already doing? What do you want to try next?

WHAT YOUR NEIGHBORS ARE DOING

At Earth Day, people who stopped by the booth indicated which of those 20 practices they had already done and which ones they wanted to work on in 2025. Take a look. Remember, this is not a scientific study, but it is indicative of what people have done and want to do.

• The top actions people had already taken included:
  • #1 eating a plant-rich diet,
  • #2 reducing food waste and
  • #5 using LED lightbulbs.
  • #14 reducing plastic
• Quite a few had put solar on their roofs (#3)
• Eating a plant rich diet and reducing food waste were also the actions most often checked as something they wanted to work on this year.

Join your neighbors to clean up downtown before summer sets in. Please register at durangobusiness.org/events.

https://www.facebook.com/reel/1655687048409394?fs=e&fs=e

Downtown Clean Day is a partnership between the Durango Business Improvement District and the Durango Chamber of Commerce. For 22 years, both organizations have been coming together with 100 volunteers to make downtown look its best for the start of the summer season.

Please join us at 8:30 a.m. May 23 at the parking lot for Keller Williams Realty Southwest Associates, located just north of Seventh Street and Main Avenue. Doughnuts, coffee, water, work gloves and cleaning supplies will be available for you. You can come as a team with friends or co-workers, or come by yourself. We ask that all DowntownClean Day volunteers register in advance at web. durangobusiness.org/events. Scroll down on the calendar to May 23 and click on 22nd Annual  Downtown Clean Day.

There will be prizes for teams and individuals who register in advance, as well as prizes for the most trash collected. Thank you in advance for helping us make our beloved downtown look its best!

—Durango Herald

 In Durango, you can start planting potatoes in May. No yard? No problem. Here’s a way to grow potatoes in your next Amazon box. It’s a fun project for kids or apartment dwellers. All you need is a roomy box, some leaves and potting soil, and a couple seed potatoes. Add sun, water and time.

Note: Do NOT use potatoes you got from the grocery store. They’re typically sprayed with something to prevent sprouting. Get seed potatoes at a nursery or garden center.

It’s tempting to get an early start on your vegetable garden. But putting seeds or plants in the ground too early actually stunts their growth. Durango, with its 30+ degree daily temperature swing and unpredictable weather, it can be especially challenging. Here are two tools. https://darcyhitchcock.wordpress.com/2025/04/26/when-to-plant-veggies-so-you-dont-stun-them/

April 29: Two Methods for Rainwater Harvesting (Columbine Landscapes and 4CORE) Please register.

Go to Earth Month Events page for instructions of what to bring and other details.

May 2: Beyond Zero film (Citizens Climate Lobby)

Hear the inspiring story about Interface Carpet, how they achieved zero waste to landfill and stopped taking oil from the ground. Then enjoy a facilitated discussion to learn how to use your money (whether you have a little or a lot) to encourage other businesses to do the same.

Gardeners, do you suffer from Summer Vacation Anxiety! You’ve planted a vegetable garden but worry it won’t survive your absence. You don’t have to count on the neighbor kids or dog sitter to water while you’re gone. Make a self-watering system with clay pots. It’s a really efficient way to water all summer.

Gardeners: Ancient watering system lets you go on vacation

At Earth Day Durango, we had several booths addressing specific species or improving justice for ecosystems and groups. If you missed any of these booths, feel free to follow up with the organization.

Bear Smart Durango	Learn how to reduce human and bear conflict with an ultimate goal of making the community safe for both people and bears.
Audubon Rockies & Weminuche Audubon Society	We will host an activity station where people can create window decals onsite, including Bird Savers (textile curtain hangings), and other educational resources to protect birds from striking windows.

Earth Law Center	Learn how different kinds of Earth Law initiatives are giving rights to rivers, forests and more in Colorado and around the U.S. and the world
Companeros	Learn about social justice and how it is important to sustainability

A few booths at Earth Day Durango focused on how to recreate responsibly, enjoying the out of doors without harming the land or animals.

4Corners Broadband Great Old Broads for Wilderness	Learn ways that you can be allies for mother earth, what it looks like to responsibly recreate outdoors. More specifically we are hoping to educate the community on what a Green Amendment is, and how as a state we can obtain one.
Durango Outdoor Exchange	Recreate in the outdoors sustainably, minimize waste, and enjoy new activities.
San Juan Mountains Association	How to visit our outdoor spaces respectfully

A number of booths at Earth Day Durango this year were focusing on climate change. If you missed any of these booths, feel free to follow up with the organization.

Unitarian-Universalist Fellowship of Durango	Recognize the dangers of continuing our current path of environmental destruction. Note their panel discussion on April 25.
Citizens’ Climate Lobby	Take steps to reduce your carbon footprint and learn about climate change.
Durango High School Green Team	Learn how to make impacts on climate change at the local level, and how to be sustainable throughout the community and your own home.
Climate Study Group	Learn about eating a plant based diet, car share programs, no-shop days, regional resources development for an alternative economy.

At Earth Day Durango, we had a number of booths focusing on food: what to eat, how to grow it, and what to do with any food waste. If you missed any of these booths, feel free to follow up with the organization.

4 Corners Worm Farm	How to use worms to compost garbage and create sustainable soil amendment
Climate Study Group	Learn about eating a plant based diet
Durango Natural Foods Co-op	How to deal with worms in a garden setting
Good Food Collective	Reduce your carbon footprint and become an engaged system through the way that you eat!
La Plata County CSU Extension	Grow sustainable agriculture and gardens, and how to become a Colorado Master Gardener
Shelby Shakes	Put your own food byproducts (such as spent gran and chickpea water) to use in new recipe, how to make your own granola at home (Simple recipe attached,) tips for zero-waste food shopping at the market!
SOIL Outdoor Learning Lab	Select plant varieties, timing, and planting methods to grow food at your home.
Table To Farm Compost	Do your part and divert food waste – compost at home, give it to a farmer, or use our sustainable services.
Tico Time’s Permaculture Picnic	Grow your own food in any space, from a backyard garden to a small apartment. Understand the basics of permaculture design and how to apply it at home.