Corvallis Sustainability Coalition

Fostering a Sustainable Local Food System and Encouraging Waste Prevention: The Food Action Team continued to partner with Corvallis-Benton County Public Library to offer a Public Seed Library stocked with commercial seed packets. Over 1,000 new and partially used seed packets were donated and distributed. Five pop-up Vegetable Garden Plant Clinics were sponsored with support from Benton County OSU Extension and Master Gardeners. Also, the team distributed nearly 1,000 copies of the 2024 Corvallis Garden Resource Guide and organized an Edible Garden Tour in NE Corvallis that featured five home gardens, one school garden, and three local artists. Their Neighborhood Planters Kiosks, located at 28 residential and public sites, displayed new educational flyers and event announcements every week to support gardening and neighborhood connections. And, in partnership with Corvallis-Benton County Public Library and Corvallis Community Center, the team sponsored a 3rd successful year of "Cooks and Books", pairing library cookbooks with the talents of local chefs and showcasing a variety of ethnic cuisines. The No Food Left Behind program of the Waste Prevention Action Team continued to table at local farmers' markets and reach children and families through bilingual videos and classroom presentations. They also distributed hundreds of "Smart Strategies" in English and Spanish, teaching how and why to prevent wasted food at home. They also distributed hundreds of countertop composting pails to make sure inedible food scraps make it from kitchen-to-compost instead of from lunch-to-landfill. The Recycling Block Captains program distributed three separate handouts, educating their neighbors about reducing use of plastic bottles, the Library of Things, and upcycling items instead of throwing them away. The team continued to offer both print and online versions of the Corvallis-Area ReUse Directory to help residents find find local places that accept items for reuse, repair and recycling.

Protecting Natural Areas and Supporting Sustainable Transportation: The Water Action Team engaged 145 community members and 231 students in projects to regenerate local wetlands and creeks at 10 culturally relevant sites. They expanded the riparian buffer at the Bald Hill Natural Area next to the newly released north branch of Dunawi Creek, while at Starker Arts Pack they continued to regenerate a functional wetland. In addition, at Lamprey Creek in Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Park, the team removed non-native plant species and planted more than 200 native shrubs, trees and herbaceous plants, spread many loads of mulch, and watered young plants during the dry season. The Natural Areas Action Team organized the 15th annual Natural Areas Celebration Week to raise awareness and appreciation of Benton County's natural areas. The Transportation Action Team, which is working to make Corvallis more livable by promoting walking, biking and use of public transit, co-sponsored the 6th annual Open Streets with the City of Corvallis. The event featured a mile of walkable, bikeable streets for people to explore neighborhoods around Corvallis and fun activities for people of all ages. In addition, team volunteers turned car trips into bike trips by hauling portable bike racks (by bike) to community events such as SAGE Concerts, Greenbelt's Music on the Land, Open Streets, Septembeerfest, and Corvallis Fall Festival. And the team continued to raise awareness about safer multimodal street design by sponsoring a webinar series presented by OSU and Oregon Department of Transportation representatives. They also organized an electric vehicle Show & Tell event, bringing together current and potential owners of electric cars, e-bikes, and scooters.

Acting on Climate Change by Making Buildings More Energy Efficient and Shifting to Renewable Energy: The Energy Action Team continued its Shift Together initiative, a 5-year campaign to enhance energy efficiency and renewable energy access for the community. Generous federal and state incentives and rebates are key to the campaign. In collaboration with Seeds for the Sol and Energy Trust of Oregon, 99 home energy assessments were provided to low-to-middle income households and individualized consultations to upper middle- and upper-income homeowners to explore available energy efficiency incentives and improvements. In addition, a home energy fair connected community members with contractors and nonprofit organizations about their energy efficiency needs and funding opportunities. Also, with support from local donors and community investors, the team was able to fund solar installations at OSU's Beth Ray Center, Peavy Hall and Richardson Hall. Each Solarize Corvallis project helps reduce greenhouse gas emissions, while saving the host organizations significant costs on their monthly electric bills. Since 2020 Solarize Corvallis has completed 15 large-scale projects in the community. The Saving Green program provided free assistance to more than 100 Corvallis businesses and nonprofits, including promotion of Energy Trust's no-cost LED lighting and other Energy Trust incentives. Local workplaces that implemented energy efficiency upgrades reduced their carbon blueprints, saving both energy and costs on their monthly power bills.