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Ashland Climate Collaborative Newsletters

Ashland Climate Collaborative Newsletters

Welcome to our newsletter archive where you can find a treasure trove of news, ways to take meaningful climate action, Ashland water updates, and more.Ashland Climate Collaborative Newsletters 2025 July2025 June2025 May2025 April2025 January2024 December2024...

Updated Deadlines for Home Energy Tax Credits

Updated Deadlines for Home Energy Tax Credits

Use these federal home energy tax credits before they expire. Our friends at Rewiring America created the handy chart below with all the specific dates. Plus, there are still thousands of state, local, and utility-level incentives that can help you make clean electric...

Coping with Extreme Heat and Smoke

Coping with Extreme Heat and Smoke

As summers become hotter and smokier, it’s more important than ever that we look out for each other. In September 2020, the skies over Oregon and California turned orange. Wildfire smoke blotted out the sun, and it became hazardous to even step outside. The following...

Where to Take Kids on Smoky Days

Where to Take Kids on Smoky Days

When the summer gets hot and smoky, kids get hit particularly hard. Their smaller bodies are more vulnerable to dehydration and heat exhaustion, and they tend to breathe in more of the dangerous particulate matter found in wildfire smoke than adults do. But keeping...

Q&A with Chris Byrne

Q&A with Chris Byrne

Ashland Climate Collaborative board member and newly appointed Treasurer Chris Byrne is a true sustainability leader in our community. With an MBA in Sustainable Enterprise (GreenMBA), Chris has worked as a sustainability professional for the last 20 years, and now...

How to Make Your Emergency Plan

How to Make Your Emergency Plan

When disaster strikes, you don’t want to make decisions in the heat of the moment — instead, think ahead. Wildfires move fast. A level 1 evacuation warning (“be ready”) can escalate to level 3 (“go now!”) in a matter of minutes — not nearly enough time to pack...

Lessons learned from the Almeda Fire

Lessons learned from the Almeda Fire

By Kelly Burns - City of Ashland's Emergency Management Coordinator, Ashland Emergency Preparedness Emergency Preparedness in a Wildfire-Prone Urban Setting The day of the Almeda Fire on September 8, 2020, Kelly Burns was the Battalion Chief of C-shift for Ashland...

Trails Food Waste Audit

Trails Food Waste Audit

Student Studies Food Waste and Suggests Simple Solutions to Make Big Changes Alma Galicia, 14, an eighth-grader at TRAILS Outdoor School in Ashland, knew that food waste was an issue at her school. She also knew it was a major source of the climate-polluting methane....

Why a Local Landscaper Went Electric

Why a Local Landscaper Went Electric

In 2000, local landscaper Jeanine Sturm said ‘no’ to gas. She never went back. When Jeanine Sturm started her home maintenance business in 2000, one thing set her apart from other contractors in the Rogue Valley: she refused to use gas landscaping equipment. Aside...

Use It or Lose It – Heat Pump Tax Credit

Use It or Lose It – Heat Pump Tax Credit

If you have been thinking about installing a heat pump “someday,” now is the time to take action. If you pay taxes and own an old gas furnace, this year may be your last, best chance to earn a tax credit and save money. This year could be the end. UPDATED July 15,...

With Wildfire, a Defensible Space Makes a Difference

With Wildfire, a Defensible Space Makes a Difference

After the Palisades and Eaton fires in L.A., photos circulated of homes standing amid wreckage. Such a sight isn’t uncommon after wildfires — similar images emerged after the Hawaii wildfires in Lahaina, the Carr fire in Redding, and even the Almeda fire here in the...

What is the Cause of Global Warming?

What is the Cause of Global Warming?

How scientists know that humans are responsible by Samantha Harrington, Yale Climate Connections | March 27, 2020 [en Español] You likely have heard about global warming in the news, at school, or from a friend. And so you probably have questions such as, “What is...

How to Care for Your Trees

How to Care for Your Trees

The trees in our neighborhoods contribute a great deal to our daily lives: they lower stress, reduce rates of asthma, and even mitigate some of the effects of climate change by lowering ambient air temperatures and soaking up rainfall. The trees that grace our gardens...

Boosting Housing Supply

Boosting Housing Supply

How can a city be a home for working families if working families cannot afford to live there? Our nation is in the grips of a devastating housing, climate, and affordability crisis.  And Ashland is no exception. “It has become too hard to build, and too expensive to...

Are We Really Doomed?

Are We Really Doomed?

Katharine Hayhoe is a climate scientist and communicator. The following article is reprinted courtesy of her Substack, Talking Climate. These days, I’m often accused of being a “hopium peddler” – someone who promotes overly optimistic, even delusional solutions to the...

All About Mulch

All About Mulch

Mulch is a layer of material — like leaves, bark chips, or even rocks — that you spread across your garden soil. Among its numerous benefits: water conservation. In the average yard, half of the water used for irrigation goes to waste, trickling away as runoff or...

Heat Pump Cost Payback

Heat Pump Cost Payback

A look at three home electrification scenarios If you’re looking to replace your older gas furnace and an older air conditioner and are considering a heat pump, you might wonder if the switch is a smart financial move, or if you’ll save the most money by sticking with...

How Much Should You Water Your Lawn?

How Much Should You Water Your Lawn?

Stay up-to-date on water usage and recommendations. Ashland purchases a small proportion of our domestic water from the Medford Water Commission, so we get to take advantage of their services. One of the services the Commission provides is a weekly watering advisory...

The Pedal Power Community Bike Program

The Pedal Power Community Bike Program

Supporting Ashland’s kids and our growing bike culture. There’s a burgeoning bike culture here in Ashland: lots of kids joining the bike bus to school, First Friday revelers exploring town on two wheels, and bike racks at local pubs and restaurants frequently filled...

A Better Way to Get Kids to School

A Better Way to Get Kids to School

In 1969, just two generations ago, nearly half of students in the United States aged 5-14 walked or biked or rode a bus to school. By 2017, that number was down to 10.7%. A number of factors – such as increased distance to school, urban sprawl, and safety concerns –...

Compost for the Otterlifter Canoe

Compost for the Otterlifter Canoe

A big community thanks to Ashland Community Composting for donating compost to the Ashland High School Otterlifter Canoe! Our Compost Action Team volunteer, Magdalena Winter, recently donated two cubic feet of compost to Ashland High School. The rich compost, produced...

Landscaping Tips for Spring

Landscaping Tips for Spring

Early spring is the perfect time to get ready for the summer watering season. Performing a few important maintenance tasks now can help your landscape hold water and improve its water efficiency. The tips below help sustain healthy soils that cycle nutrients, minimize...

What’s the Difference between Weather and Climate?

What’s the Difference between Weather and Climate?

They’re closely related, but they’re not actually the same thing. Article by Brooke Bauman, Yale Climate Connections | July 16, 2019 One day, you see a forecast calling for sun, so you don’t bother to pack an umbrella. But just your luck: Clouds tumble in and suddenly...

How to Reduce Outdoor Water Use

How to Reduce Outdoor Water Use

Free programs and rebates to get your irrigation system ready for summer Did you know that more than one-third of all water consumed by households goes to irrigating our lawns, gardens, and outdoor spaces? In arid places, that number can be as high as 60 percent,...

How to Remove Your Lawn

How to Remove Your Lawn

One of the most important projects in low-water landscaping is lawn removal. Lawns guzzle billions of gallons of water each day, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. Studies suggest that replacing a lawn with native plants and drip irrigation can save as...

All About Drip Irrigation

All About Drip Irrigation

In the United States, our yards are thirsty. They drink up 8 billion gallons of water each day. To water them, most people use either sprinklers or surface irrigation, which involves using a watering can or hose to flood the soil and waiting for all that water to seep...

Fine-Tune Your Irrigation System

Fine-Tune Your Irrigation System

Save Money and See Better Results Summer brings peak demand for watering lawns, gardens, and landscapes in our region. A well-maintained system keeps your yard beautiful and healthy while minimizing water waste. Follow the tips below to get the most out of your water...

Ashland Community Composting

Ashland Community Composting

Looking for an accessible, affordable compost option? Ashland Community Composting has you covered. At the heart of the organization is Magdalena Winter, a longtime Ashland resident and member of our Compost action team. Three years ago, alongside her friend Ximena,...

Streets for Everyone 2024 Highlights

Streets for Everyone 2024 Highlights

2024 was a good year for transportation improvements in Ashland —and Streets for Everyone played an important role in that effort. Green Bike Lanes and Bollards Earlier this year, the city installed bollard-protected bike lanes on Ashland Street from Siskiyou to the...

City Council Moves Forward on Energy Programs

City Council Moves Forward on Energy Programs

The December 3 Ashland City Council meeting was the scene of a rare “win-win-win” lovefest. The steps taken by the City Council on December 3 aligned with the Ashland’s Climate and Energy Action Plan (CEAP) in a multitude of ways:  Overall Goal 1. Reduce community...

How to Celebrate a More Sustainable Holiday Season

How to Celebrate a More Sustainable Holiday Season

Community, caring for others, and hope: these values are at the core of the winter holidays. But this time of year is also characterized by consumerism — from pressure to give that perfect gift to decorations galore. Between Thanksgiving and New Year, Americans throw...

Rogue Produce’s Community Compost Program

Rogue Produce’s Community Compost Program

Ever wish there was a smarter thing to do with your food scraps than throwing them in the garbage? Tried to start your own compost operation at home but found it’s too difficult to maintain or that it attracts unwanted critters? Rogue Produce has created a smart...

Let’s Take Some Bold Steps

Let’s Take Some Bold Steps

Housing costs are a challenge in Ashland – the right energy policies can help. Here’s some big news: Beginning in 2025, our city electric utility will have access to $10 million to help homeowners and businesses make energy efficiency and renewable energy upgrades...

How to Avoid Food Waste During the Holiday Season

How to Avoid Food Waste During the Holiday Season

Food waste is a common problem during the holidays. Every year at Thanksgiving, American families throw out 305 million pounds of food, according to the University of Minnesota. It’s possible to avoid contributing to the problem, by taking a few simple steps: Plan...

Welcome to Our New Ashland Energy Policy Series

Welcome to Our New Ashland Energy Policy Series

The City is getting ready to up its game in energy conservation. We’ve got ideas! The City of Ashland appears to be getting ready to make headway on several important issues simultaneously  – reducing the cost and improving the quality of life for Ashlanders who are...

Planning Your Low-Water-Use Landscape in the Fall

Planning Your Low-Water-Use Landscape in the Fall

Ready to switch to a waterwise landscape? Fall is the time to get planning. Fall is an ideal time to plant shrubs and trees because the temperatures are mild, and the autumn rains provide additional irrigation for the new plantings as they take hold. It is also a good...

Ashland Solar Cooperative Launches First Project

Ashland Solar Cooperative Launches First Project

This story was originally published on Ashland.News on November 14, 2024. Project could power at least 18 households By Isobel Whitcomb, Ashland Climate Collaborative Solar power plays a key role in Ashland’s plan to achieve net zero carbon emissions by the year 2050...

Green Gift Ideas for the Holidays

Green Gift Ideas for the Holidays

With the holidays right around the corner, the crew at Ashland Climate Collaborative wanted to share a few of our favorite things… Portable induction cooktops for gas stove owners who aren’t ready to convert. Induction cookware to go with the new cooktop! Electric...

The Power of Neighbors Connecting

The Power of Neighbors Connecting

It’s been almost two years since Jim started the Upper Clay Street neighborhood group in 2022. As he walks around his neighborhood, he sees the fruits of his labor of love. He waves hello to his friend Dana, a woman in her 80s.  Dana hosted a gathering of 21 that...

Heating our Homes: A Path to Net Zero

Heating our Homes: A Path to Net Zero

Doug Piper, a member of the Electrify Ashland Now! action team, shares his insights on how to rid our homes of gas furnaces by 2050. A gas furnace produces more pollution than almost anything else we use —  an estimated four to eight tons of carbon emissions per year....

Will Ashland Get a New Water Treatment Plant?

Will Ashland Get a New Water Treatment Plant?

The Ashland Climate Collaborative has not taken a position on the water treatment plant ballot measure 15-234 Below is the opinion of our Water Conservation Team. New Ballot Measure Would Finance a Hardier Water Treatment Plant Ashland’s water treatment plant has...

Silent but Deadly

Silent but Deadly

Earlier this year, ACC board member Rick Barth had a scary experience. Rick, who has devoted years to helping Ashland residents transition away from methane (“natural” gas), discovered that one of his last remaining gas appliances, his gas water heater, was leaking...

Electrification Progress in Ashland

Electrification Progress in Ashland

Ashland Homeowners are Switching to Heat Pumps The Ashland Climate & Energy Action Plan (CEAP) was legislated in 2017. It set a goal for the city and its residents to reduce carbon emissions by 8% every year. This requires a reduction in the burning of fossil...

Dry Farming

Dry Farming

By Patricia Acklin, Chair, ACC Water Conservation Action Team There is growing interest in the American West in a technique called dry farming, which allows growers to forgo irrigation. This does not mean growing plants without water. Instead, dry-farmed plants use...

Linda Electrifies Her Home

Linda Electrifies Her Home

Last year, I renovated an older and very beat-up bungalow, which required extensive and expensive work to make it livable and comfortable. I knew I wanted to switch from gas to electric, so I started my journey with advice from Candace Turtle, an Electrify Ashland Now...

Streets For Everyone: 2023 in Review

Streets For Everyone: 2023 in Review

2023 Year in ReviewACC’s Streets For Everyone (SFE) Action Team had an incredible 2023! Throughout the year, we identified several opportunities to advocate for safer streets and a connected and protected bike network through town. We asked you to speak up, and you...

Say YES to Protected Bike Lanes on N. Mountain

Say YES to Protected Bike Lanes on N. Mountain

Attention Ashland Transportation Committee!Please move forward to add protected bike lanes on North Mountain. May 23, 2023 We are writing to the City of Ashland Transportation Commission on behalf of the vocal constituency of Ashland residents who support moving...

We Can Create Safe Routes to School in Ashland

We Can Create Safe Routes to School in Ashland

May 2023 The City of Ashland was recently awarded Safe Routes to School (SRTS) planning assistance from the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT). Through this program, staff from City of Ashland, Ashland School District, and ODOT are working together to create a...

Happy Holidays from ACC!

In 2022 we've seen the passage of landmark climate legislation, grown as an organization and come together as a community. Here's to more of that in 2023. A big thank you for your support — The team at Ashland Climate...

Drought + H2O = Conservation

In this Ashland Climate Collaborative webinar, Oregon State Climatologist Larry O'Neill, and Medford Water Commission representatives Julie Smitherman, Customer Service & Water Efficiency Manager, and Cody Scoggins,...

Marsh Helps Deliver Major Climate Wins for Oregon

Marsh Helps Deliver Major Climate Wins for Oregon

As Chair of the House Committee on Energy and the Environment, District 5 Representative Pam Marsh was well-positioned this year to help ensure passage of legislation ranging from fire recovery and economic stimulus to “distinctly Oregonian” climate solutions.  “There...

Drought Tolerant Landscaping Offers a Bounty of Benefits

Drought Tolerant Landscaping Offers a Bounty of Benefits

Replacing your lawn with drought tolerant landscaping is a great way to save water, reduce your carbon footprint, and create a more beautiful and sustainable landscape. Water savings Traditional lawns require a lot of water to maintain, especially in arid climates....

Blower Door Test Blows My Mind!

Blower Door Test Blows My Mind!

Image sourced from: https://scotthomeinspection.com/blower-door-testing/ by Ashland resident and ACC Board Member Candace Turtle Last month, Ben Scott, ACC's volunteer energy expert, conducted a blower door (or air leakage) test at my home. This process exaggerates...

Ashland Parents Lead a Bike Bus!

Ashland Parents Lead a Bike Bus!

Have you ever heard of a bike bus? Imagine a group of happy children on bikes pedaling a fixed route to school, picking up more mini cyclists as they pass various “stops” — just like a gas-powered school bus. Adult volunteers work together to lead the group, sweep the...

Don’t Miss Out on Energy Tax Credits!

Don’t Miss Out on Energy Tax Credits!

photo by Anderson EV Energy tax credits are here! If you’re planning on taking on energy efficiency projects anytime soon, you could reap major savings on your taxes. For example, if you owe $5,000 in taxes, and you had a tax credit of $2,000 your new tax bill would...

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