Northern Liberties

We're trying to be the greenest city in the USA, but we still have a long way to go (although Philadelphia's starting to get a little bit of street cred. However, each year we see more and more progress in our city of sustainable love. Here's the top 6 green initiatives outta Philly that we're proud of from 2012:

Let's not let Black Friday get all the glory this year. Saturday, November 24th is Small Business Saturday 2012. Celebrate by hitting up local boutiques, vintage shops, independent coffee shops, farmers markets and the like! According to the National Federation of Independent Businesses Small Business Saturday is the most important shopping day for 36% of independent retailers. Using our wallets to show support for local companies will help these businesses grow - in turn fostering the economy. So skip out on Starbucks and Target for a day or two and throw your dollars to the little guys. Philadelphia offers an abundance of options - like Arcadia boutique and One Shot Coffee in Northern Liberties, for example. Readers, any Small Business Saturday 2012 spots you plan on hitting up?

I've had a few friends move and therefore ask this question lately: Where can I get a recycling bin?

Philadelphia hosted its 5th Annual Philly Spring Cleanup this past Saturday, April 14th from 9 AM - 2 PM.  Over 350 projects across the city encouraged citizens to volunteer to make our city a prettier place. The theme of the Cleanup is "Keep Up the Sweep Up", which emphasizes residents and organizations to sustain the effort towards a cleaner & brighter Philly year-round. Although we haven't received the exact stats from this past weekend yet, the past 4 cleanups have boasted 45,000 volunteers, collected over 5.8 MILLION pounds of trash - which is enough to fill Lincoln Financial Field up to 17.4 feet high. As we mentioned, we hosted a Philly Spring Cleanup Day site at 8th & Poplar this past weekend.  The fields are a host to many PSSC leagues, and many local residents use the fields for soccer games, taking kids & pets. At first glance, the fields didn't seem too bad. But when we started looking around, there was a lot of litter: (See more pics & stats from the day, after the jump!)

Hey GPB readers! Green Philly Blog and Philadelphia Sports & Social Club (PSSC) are joining efforts to host a Philly Spring Cleanup site at 8th & Poplar Streets in Northern Liberties, Philadelphia. The site is home to hundreds of Philadelphians participating in Kickball, Softball and other outdoor sports.  Although this area is loved by many recreational athletes, litter & debris affect the field’s beauty. (Bonus: PSSC is having the softball field diamond restored prior to coincide with the cleanup efforts.)  Plus, there's a few vacant lots & littered around the area that could use a cleaning. Join us on Saturday, April 14th* from 9 AM – 2 PM to help with litter pickup, tree tending, and other projects that will help clean up the fields.  We’ll provide supplies but feel free to bring your own gloves, rakes, etc. if you do own these supplies. Here’s how to sign up:

Psyched to "Keep Up the Sweep Up?" Philly Spring Cleanup Day is April 14, 2012 from 9 AM - 2 PM! Last year alone, over 12,000 volunteers helped with over 250 projects and collected an incredible 1.3 million pounds of trash. Let's make it bigger this year. Mayor Nutter kicked off the campaign at

Now that you've hauled out the holly and looted the gifts from Santa, it's time to figure out how you're handling those dead Christmas Trees - in an environmentally friendly fashion, of course. The Streets Department has announced the 2012 Christmas Tree Recycling Program is running Tuesday, January 3 (aka today) - Saturday, January 14th. There is NO curbside collection, so here's the Sanitation Convenience Centers where to take your trees:

The Junior League of Philadelphia is hosting The Green Carpet Fashion Show on April 2nd at 7:00 p.m. Featured retailers and brands include: Arcadia Boutique, Whitney Eve, JLP Thrift Shop, Lilly Pulitzer, Onassis Clothing Co., Priscilla of Boston and Saget’s Formal Wear. What is the Junior League?

"Solar Energy is way too expensive, can't work in cloudy places, unreliable, and ugly. Only people like Al Gore & millionaires can put it in their houses." Sorry guys, these statements are all wrong! Going solar is great for your home, pocket AND the environment. But where do you even start? Sunlight Solar Energy, Inc. is a leading national installer of solar electric and solar hot water systems. Located in Philadelphia, OR, CT & MA, Sunlight has stepped up to the plate to dispel rumors of solar energy through an ongoing educational campaign. The overall success of Sunlight Solar points to their reputation as a reliable source and easy approach of all things solar. Paul Israel, President of Sunlight Solar, attributes the company mission to "educate consumers and empower them to make informed purchasing decisions." Homeowners & businesses have plenty of factors to consider when going solar, (just learn what, after the jump!)