Earth Week Friday: Urban Environments

Bee the Change in Urban Landscaping

Did you know that every US state has a state bee? Bombus affinis, a.k.a. the rusty patched bumble bee, is the state bee of Minnesota, and unfortunately also an endangered species. The good news is that there are ways we can support all our state bees, beautify our local areas, and reduce long-term yard maintenance all at the same time.

It’s important to support all manner of pollinators, since we depend on them to pollinate our food crops and other plants. One way is to grow a bee-friendly lawn. In Minnesota, the Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources sponsors a program called “Lawns to Legumes” which provides workshops, coaching, and cost sharing for those willing to convert residential lawns into pollinator-friendly areas. Their website has resources on how to go about making those changes. Several of the pollinator-friendly options they describe involve far less maintenance than traditional lawns.

Litter-aly the Best Part of Earth Week

To conclude Earth Week celebrations at Thermo King in Minneapolis, we would traditionally gather a group to walk over to a local park and pick up trash that has recently emerged from piles of snow. This year, in lieu of a centralized park cleanup, we are encouraging staff and everyone across the country to consider going for a walk in your neighborhood, bring a bag and some gloves, and pick up any trash you come across.

Thermo King Green Team member Bryce shared this useful tip. “A great easy way to do this would be to bring a backpack and have a garbage bag inside and gloves in your pocket if you don’t want to hold the bag the entire time you are out and about”. 

This is a simple and easy way that all of us can make the planet a little bit cleaner and greener.