The end of September means we’ve wrapped up the Food Policy Council’s first Farmer’s Market Tour! Some notable wins from the tour: the Society of St. Andrew rescuing leftovers from Hyde Park to redistribute; a WIC enrollment drive at the Northside market that signed up over 300 people for benefits they could immediately use; and growth in the Covington and Madeira markets for a stronger community.

The summer may be over, but many markets continue throughout the fall and winter. Check with your favorite local farmer’s market to see updated locations and hours.

Thank you to all the markets, managers, and farmers that hosted and connected with the Food Policy Council over the past months, and thank you to the Food Policy Council Members who helped make the tour a success.

Want to connect your market or farm to the Food Policy Council? Explore our website or reach out to our Food Policy Council Manager directly.

Think fall is when things calm down after a season of growing? Think again! Autumn is when we dive deep into orchard installations because it gives the young trees a whole winter to establish a strong foundation in the soil. We also get supplies ready to grow plants over the winter months that can be transplanted into orchards in the spring. That means we’re in extra need of volunteers to plant trees and help out at Camp Washington Perennial Farm!

It’s also the best time of the year to supplement your soil with Common Orchard Project compost! Our compost is manure-free, screened for quality, and virtually weed-free since it’s made from local food scraps. Put your garden beds to bed for the winter with the best compost out there by ordering individual bags and bulk compost here.

PS – As often happens at nonprofits, our budget doesn’t line up with our needs: we need help finding a donated F-250 for the heavy lifting of farm work. If you know of any companies with a vehicle fleet that might want to donate a truck for tax purposes, please connect them with Common Orchard Project Director Chris Smyth.

On September 23, Green Umbrella, Groundwork Ohio River Valley, and the City of Cincinnati’s Office of Environment & Sustainability hosted the first Climate Safe Neighborhoods Resilience Summit, highlighting the grassroots work of and progress in neighborhoods in the city. A standout from the night was a discussion panel featuring representatives from the CSN Community Groups in Avondale, Bond Hill, North Fairmount, and Lower Price Hill, where panelists shared what it was like connecting their lived experiences with climate data.

Marisha from Lower Price Hill described seeing the connection between her neighborhood’s lower air quality and the lack of tree canopy, saying “We see the national data, the state data, and you see – we ain’t got no trees. Trees give you oxygen. No wonder we can’t breathe.”

Climate Safe Neighborhoods works to provide an equitable community engagement model for neighborhood-led resilience, centering residents’ lived experiences to develop actionable solutions for lasting progress.

Happy Food Waste Prevention Week! Between methane from food decomposing in landfill to the amount of fuel used to transport food that isn’t eaten, food waste is a huge driver of greenhouse gas emissions. And with food insecurity on the rise in our community and nationwide, making sure that food gets eaten is an easy way to make an impact.

Want to join the conversation? Participate in the Food Waste Prevention Week Cooking Challenge! Before the contest closes on October 6, any time you make something that uses food products you already have, uses often-discarded ingredients, and/or prevents food waste overall, you can enter your dish to win. Five winners, including a raffle winner, will each receive $100. All entries will help normalize low-waste, planet-saving, money-saving cooking. No photo, recipe, or social media posting required, and you can enter as many times as you’d like. Maybe it’s your time to try making carrot-top pesto, chicken wing bone broth, or gnocchi with the potato peels on!

2,776 acres of Wayne National Forest were leased in September for more than $11 million by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to out-of-state companies for fracking. “Leasing is the first step in the process to develop federal oil and gas resources,” BLM said in a statement.

Wayne National Forest already has 1,200 conventional wells, but the BLM predicts the new wells will be horizontal, hydraulic-fracturing natural-gas wells.

Lake Vesuvius Recreation Area at Wayne National Forest in Ohio | Getty Images

More than 200,000 people visit Wayne National Forest annually, which is known for its hiking, biking, horseback riding trails, and off-road vehicle trails. Spending by visitors to the Wayne National Forest is about $7.4 million annually, according to the United States Forest Service.

The city of Cincinnati's Office of Environment & Sustainability is launching the Southwest Ohio 2026 Solar Co-op Program, which will allow residents to pursue renewable energy options through a community-based, bulk-purchasing model. “You go to Costco or Sam’s Club, and you're buying a whole bunch of toilet paper, and it's a discounted rate per unit, right? Same sort of deal,” said Nikki Vandivort, clean energy and climate resilience manager for Cincinnati. The deadline for new members is December 1, 2026.

Milkweed is an essential plant for monarch butterflies, but it’s toxic for other birds, mammals, and insects. While local species know to avoid milkweed, invasive spotted lanternflies are new to many regions in the United States area and haven’t learned to avoid milkweed yet. SARE has recently funded a study through Penn State University’s College of Agricultural Sciences to see if planting milkweed along vineyard borders can act as an ecological barrier for spotted lanternfly infestations. While specific results on the study are inconclusive now, milkweed is still a great plant to choose for your yard to support monarch populations.

Saturday, October 3 | 12:00 - 2:00 pm
Reser Bicycle Outfitters in Newport

Join Tri-State Trails and our partners on Saturday, October 3, for the Meet the Candidates Ride to demonstrate the demand for continued investment in trail and bikeway infrastructure.

This experiential ride is a fun way to explore Northern Kentucky by bike, experience firsthand what infrastructure is working well, and identify where safer, more connected facilities are still needed. One of the highlights of the event is the opportunity to meet and hear directly from candidates. Before we ride, candidates will have a few minutes to introduce themselves and share their vision for safer, more connected walking and bicycling in our region.

Don’t have a bike? Cincy Red Bike has bikes available from nearby stations along Monmouth Street in Newport. Short-term rentals are available through Cincy Red Bike, making it easy to grab a bike and join the ride.

Co-hosted by:
Reser Bicycle Outfitters, Ride the Cov, Queen City Bike, CORA (Cincinnati Off-Road Alliance), and Tri-State Trails.

Have an event to share? Green Umbrella members can submit events here. To learn more about the benefits of becoming a member, click here.

Join the Common Orchard Project in creating a new public orchard!

Orchards can be less work to produce food over time compared to vegetable gardens, but installation is quite labor-intensive. To get these new public orchards off to a good start, we are organizing these volunteer days to make the work lighter for all! Come learn how to plant trees, care for fruit trees, and meet neighbors who care as much as you do.

Event Info:
October 5, Monday, 2:00 PM – 4:30 PM
Hillsboro Highschool
550 US-62, Hillsboro, OH 45133

We will be planting 20-24 trees and laying down black plastic to remove the grass. If you are looking for a snapshot of what this might look like, check out this video we created with a funding partner back in 2022.

All tools and gloves provided; just bring a water bottle and wear appropriate outdoor clothing to dig holes and plant trees.

The Human Resources Administrator provides administrative support directly to the Chief of Human Resources. This position provides support to the Human Resources division, including Employee Services, Volunteer Engagement, and Safety & Risk. The position will perform general administrative duties and demonstrate excellent customer service with both internal and external customers. Learn more about the role and apply here.

Have an event, volunteer opportunity, or job posting to share? Green Umbrella members can submit them via the online Membership Portal. To learn more about the benefits of becoming a member, click here.