Avant Gardening

7 Reasons You Should Celebrate the Independence to Make a Difference

The 4th of July, or Independence Day, is almost here. And with it, many small area businesses aren’t just celebrating one of the main summer holidays, but also taking part in a national effort to celebrate independent businesses. Avant Gardening and Landscaping is a proud member of Dane Buy Local, and it is working hard during what’s being dubbed “Independents Week,” to get the word out about the difference every locally-owned business makes in the community. You can read more about our efforts, here.

Our team also knows the potential we have–  to make a bigger impact in our neighborhoods, and the cities where we work. As Landscape Architect Mia Lehrer recently told the L.A. Times, “We make up just a small fraction of the design field, yet ours is the work that is the first to be seen. Ours is the work that brings function and beauty to parks, plazas, campuses, institutions, and transportation corridors. Ours is a profession that blends the power of design with ecological principals and environmental justice, so it is our responsibility to make our voices heard, not for our own betterment, but for the sake of our communities.”

Avant takes every opportunity to create awareness around issues like saving nature, fighting drought, and combating climate change. We want to be a guide towards thoughtful solutions, and with our landscape background, we believe we can be the best advocates for our profession, and our quality of life.

So, this Independence Day, we are:

  • Working on even more climate-appropriate designs to minimize resources, while maximizing benefits
  • Conserving existing habitat, and creating new local parks
  • Supporting systems to increase human access to nature, and its physical, mental, and educational benefits
  • Asking for policies to support rainwater capture and use
  • Fighting to ban plastic materials, like bags, bottles, furnishings, and grass to stop the addition of toxins in our water and food chains
  • Suggesting more pedestrian and bicycle options, and mixing land use to cut our dependence on cars
  • Educating about the need to design with plants which provide food for pollinators and people

We believe we are lucky to live in a place where our independence allows us to make a difference — in where we live, and how we live — and to make a better future for all of us.

We hope you do, too.