Peak Environment

You can fight Mother Nature or you can work WITH her. Forest gardening is a way of landscaping that saves time, money, water…and the planet.  Learn all about this ethical style of Earth care, and how you can practice it in your own garden, from permaculturist Becky Elder. This episode is a recording of her Forest Gardening class at the 2018 People’s Tiny House Festival . This episode of Peak...

Can cooperation and collaboration trump competition and profit maximization in generating community wealth? Matt Noyes, son of Chinook Bookstore founders Dick and Judy Noyes, shares his vision for the variety of ways Colorado Springs can benefit from models of cooperative organization and solidarity economy. There are several cooperatives today in the city of Colorado Springs. The state of Colorad...

Everything you want to know about the PikeRide bikeshare program in Colorado Springs. How does bikesharing help us achieve the objectives of our sustainability plan ( Looking to Our Future – Pikes Peak Region 2030 )? What are the various ways it serves the needs of, and provides joy to, city residents and tourists? If you heard our interview with PikeRide Executive Director Jolie Nesmith in episod...

Everything you wanted to know about vaping, but didn’t know who to ask. How much do you know about the dangers of vaping? Did you know e-cigarettes contain toxins and carcinogens? That youth who vape are four times as likely to start smoking traditional cigarettes? That second-hand vape smoke can affect the health of bystanders? Our health and the health of those in our community is an essential p...

Did you know there are over 200 bikes in a 12 square mile area of central Colorado Springs available for you to borrow? Over a million calories have been burned by riders on PikeRide bicycles since bikesharing began in Colorado Springs ten months ago. Jolie Nesmith, Executive Director of PikeRide Bike Share, fills host Ellen Johnson-Fay in on how bikesharing works, the genesis of the bike share sy...

Who Gives a Scrap is a donation based scrap store in Colorado Springs and Fort Collins that carries an impressive mix of arts, craft and hobby supplies in addition to unique vintage finds. At the April, 2019 Green Drinks , co-founders Jayne Blewitt and Lorrie Myers shared their story and how the store works. It’s an excellent resource for teachers, and it’s a beautiful alternative to tossing scrap...

How do we get the sustainability message beyond the choir? Social media is an opportunity to tell your story, capture people’s attention, engage with supporters and build community. Skyler Leonard, digital communications specialist for the City of Colorado Springs, shares how to better engage the community about sustainability using social media. He highlights best practices and effective messagin...

“All mushrooms are edible – at least once,” quips environmental scientist and mushroom expert Mike Essam, president of the Pikes Peak Mycological Society. Mike shared the wonders of fungi in this very popular talk at the March 22 luncheon of the Pikes Peak Environmental Forum. The photographs Mike showed are a key part of the presentation, so it’s recommended you view the slides (see the links bel...

The chemicals used in firefighting foam, Teflon, stain-resistant carpet, outdoor sports apparel, and even the lining of your movie theater’s popcorn bags, are everywhere. Since they were first developed in the 1950s, they’ve become so widely used that traces of them have been found in the most remote regions of the globe, and in the blood of over 99% of the U.S. population. They’re correlated with...

Singer/Songwriter and climate/energy activist Lindsay Facknitz joins host Ellen Johnson-Fay to share how and why she added activism to the busy life of a mother of two young children. From January 2019 through August of 2020 Colorado Springs Utilities is developing a new Electric Integrated Resource Plan. Lindsay wants to mobilize citizens to let our utility know they want the coal-fired Martin Dr...

Local food and farmers, composting, permaculture, renewable energy and recycling are among the topics of conversation and announcements as we try something different – “Open Mic” at a Green Cities monthly Green Drinks event. At every Green Drinks attendees get the chance to introduce themselves and make announcements about important local environmental issues and events. We usually exclude these f...

The Colorado Springs Environmental Action Summit on March 5, 2019 brought together organizations and individuals working on environmental action  – in order to coalesce a more effective environmental movement. Members and leaders from over 50 organizations, including Sierra Club, 350.org, ENACT, Green Cities Coalition, the Pikes Peak Justice & Peace Commission, and GrowthBusters. Kevin Mitchell of...

We've heard about our Watershed and Foodshed, but did you know we have a Fibershed? Learn why it matters what cloth you choose and where you acquire it. Judith Rice-Jones shares what she has learned about the clothes we wear, the fabrics from which they’re made, and our “fibershed,” a concept originated by Rebecca Burgess. Judith is an ecological and edible gardener, master gardener, native plant...

Water is in short supply on the Front Range of Colorado. You probably knew this, but the details might surprise you in this episode of Peak Environment . Where will the 20-plus metropolitan water districts in El Paso County get their water in the future? Water rights are already being shifted from farms in the Lower Arkansas Valley to cities in the I-25 corridor. What’s being done to protect farmi...

From growing gardens to creating community to transforming lives, take a peek at what your community library's Green Team is all about. Pikes Peak Library District Regional Manager Michael Doherty and Senior Library Assistant Debbie Vitulli join host Ellen Johnson-Fay for a tour of the Green Team’s many activities.   LINKS: Green Team on Facebook Food Not Bombs Colorado Springs Contact the Green T...

Keeping our local farms intact and productive is in everyone’s best interest, but it takes much more than just shopping at the farmers market. Creating, nurturing and growing local agriculture will be explored at the Foodshed Forum in Colorado Springs February 22-23, 2019. In this episode of Peak Environment , co-producer Ellen Johnson-Fay discusses the forum with Sean Svette, Asst. Manager of the...

You’ve probably heard palm oil production is causing deforestation and biodiversity loss on a massive scale. You might be surprised, however, how many products contain palm oil. The Cheyenne Mountain Zoo’s Tracey Gazibara shares how the zoo protects species and habitat by supporting efforts to produce Sustainable Palm Oil. The Cheyenne Mountain Zoo was the first zoo to join the Roundtable on Susta...

What is permaculture? According to Becky Elder, it’s not what you do, but how you think about what you do, using nature as a guide. The co-founder and chair of Pikes Peak Permaculture joins host Ellen Johnson-Fay for a very brief permaculture primer. The conversation includes a great tip on eliminating some or all of your lawn. Also, why you may not need or want to do battle with weeds. Becky prov...

Agriculture and local food play a vital role in the Pikes Peak Regional 2030 Sustainability Plan. Three local food practitioners share how local groups are promoting agriculture and local food in the Pikes Peak region. The speakers share how their work is supporting the goals to: promote urban agriculture and knowledge about food encourage regional collaboration and cooperation promote healthy beh...

Locally grown grains are essential to successful and sustainable local food economies. Beyond environmental impacts, there are also social, health and economic benefits to our communities. UCCS Sustainability, Wellnss & Learning Manager, Associate Professor of Health Sciences, and mastermind behind Grain School, Nanna Meyer, joins Peak Environment Co-Producer Ellen Johnson-Fay to briefly describe...

Now that Coloradoans ARE able to collect rainwater, with some limitations, you’ll want to pick an expert’s brain about smart rainwater harvesting. In this episode of Peak Environment, we’re sharing permaculturist Becky Elder’s “Rainwater Harvesting” class from the 2018 People’s Tiny House Festival. This episode of Peak Environment comes to us courtesy of Pikes Peak Permaculture, celebrating 15 yea...

Local nonprofit organizations play a key role in creating a healthy, sustainable community. Many nonprofits are working towards the goals of the 2030 Sustainability Plan and need community support in various ways. This episode features a discussion of the giving nature of the Pikes Peak Region. This episode of Peak Environment is courtesy of the Peak Alliance for a Sustainable Future. It features...

There is a lot of good sustainability practice happening in the Pikes Peak region. The Green Cities Coalition was formed in 2008 to connect the good people and organizations working in this area and foster collaboration. In this episode of Peak Environment, Green Cities Chair Konrad Schlarbaum chats with podcast co-producer Ellen Johnson-Fay about the history of the Coalition, and exciting future...

“Stop Dissing the Grass,” was the cry of turf expert Nick McNamee to permaculturist Becky Elder. In the arid southwestern United States, thirsty, manicured grass lawns have been getting a bad rap. Is it deserved? Or is there more to the story? This episode of Peak Environment brings you a fascinating discussion held at the October luncheon meeting of the Pikes Peak Environmental Forum. The Pikes P...

October’s Sustainability in Progress meeting, hosted by the Peak Alliance for a Sustainable Future, gives us a glimpse of the amazing powers at the disposal of Colorado Springs citizens through the city’s website and its app for smartphones. Jay Anderson, Open Data and Citizen Engagement Administrator for the city, provides a tour of the myriad ways you can get information about what’s important t...