One hundred and twenty five Magnolia residents joined forces at Discovery Park to plant 350 trees and make a statement about climate change.

The event was part of a global climate action day organized by 350.org.  The event was sponsored by Sustainable Magnolia, Seattle Parks and Recreation Department , and Dietz Design Group.  Purchase of the trees was funded by donations from many Magnolia residents and business sponsors.

Sustainable Magnolia is having an envelope stuffing party and get together on Monday , July 27th at 7:00 p.m. at the Community Center.  The group needs help putting the new Magnolia In Motion map and mailer into envelopes to be ready for mailing.  They will be stuffing 3,000 maps, magnets and mailers. 

For 10 weeks beginning July 31, Magnolia In Motion will encourage community members to try alternative modes of transportation rather than driving alone by asking residents to pledge to reduce solo car trips by two per week for 10 weeks. Solo car trips can be replaced by walking, biking, car pooling, or taking the bus. Trips can also be replaced by staying in Magnolia rather than leaving the neighborhood. Participants will receive fun incentives along the way.

The centerpiece of Magnolia In Motion will be the mailer to 3000 Magnolia households this week. Materials will also be available at Summerfest, the Farmers Market, and participating businesses.   Magnolia In Motion is sponsored by Sustainable Magnolia and King County Metro, with the support of the Magnolia Chamber of Commerce and funding from the Seattle Department of Neighborhoods.

The group says that everyone is welcome at the family event work party on Monday.  Participants will be the first to officially sign up for Magnolia In Motion.  It won’t be all work though, The Seattle Pie Company will also be there providing slices of pie for volunteers.

You can RSVP to Lyon Terry, co-chair of Magnolia in Motion, via email at  lyonterry@yahoo.com or just show up. They hope to be done by 8:30, but if more people show up they say they will be eating pie earlier.  

Magnolia’s annual SummerFest is coming up on July 31 and August 1 and this year the festival is going green with the help of Sustainable Magnolia. The group is looking for volunteers to help with the effort to bring recycling to Summer Fest.

Sustainable Magnolia plans to decrease the leftovers from the festival and parade with recycling bins and compost bins.  They received a $10,000 grant from the Department of Neighborhoods to reduce the amount of waste left behind by SummerFest. 

In the past, all of the waste has gone into the garbage. Last year, SummerFest produced 25 cubic yards of waste. This year, volunteers will help monitor the waste stations to help people sort their waste appropriately.

Sustainable Magnolia is a nonprofit orgranization dedicated to greening up the Magnolia community and beyond.  They say that since people are already recycling at their homes, its natural to extend that to Summer Fest. 

There will be 10 stations throughout Summerfest and four recycling canisters purchased with the grant will remain at the community center and be maintained by the Parks Department.

 Sustainable Magnolia is looking for volunteers willing to take on two hour shifts.  if you want more information email recycle@sustainablemagnolia.org.

Sustainable Magnolia is sponsoring a green building event on Thursday, May 14 at 7pm at the Magnolia Community Center.

The focus will be on green renovation and desconstruction, eco-friendly materials, water and energy conservation and community impact. The guest speaker is Thor Peterson from Synthesis Consultants.

Sustainable Magnolia’s mission is to educate and engage residents of Magnolia to help mitigate the climate crisis and promote a sustainable quality of life in the community.