NEST - PMNA Neighborhood Environmental Stewardship Team

08/03/2026

Want to save money while reducing your carbon footprint? 🌞💰

☀️ Close blinds and curtains— keep heat out.
🪟 Seal your windows — keep cool air in.
🌡️ Adjust your thermostat to the highest comfortable setting.
🍽️ Run your dishwasher during the cooler part of the day — and skip the heat-dry cycle
🌀 Use fans to stay cool — just remember to switch them off!

Small tweaks, real savings! 🌍💡

07/08/2026

**Meeting Reminder***

Our monthly NEST meeting takes place tonight at the Innovation Barn CLT at 7 pm! Resident expert Nan Byars will speak about the importance of using energy efficiently to reduce both carbon emissions and electricity costs.

**MEETING WEDNESDAY!!**
The Plaza Midwood Neighborhood Association NEST is meeting Wednesday, July 8th at 7 pm at the Innovation Barn CLT!

Join us to learn about home energy efficiency (especially when our A/C is running hard!) from our very own Nan Byars, a certified energy manager and Professor Emeritus of Engineering Technology from UNCC!

https://plazamidwood.org/nest/

07/06/2026

**MEETING WEDNESDAY!!**
The Plaza Midwood Neighborhood Association NEST is meeting Wednesday, July 8th at 7 pm at the Innovation Barn CLT!

Join us to learn about home energy efficiency (especially when our A/C is running hard!) from our very own Nan Byars, a certified energy manager and Professor Emeritus of Engineering Technology from UNCC!

https://plazamidwood.org/nest/

04/23/2026

We’ve been selected as a recipient of a Resilient Futures Co-Lab microgrant! This support helps advance our work on our food waste diversion program, Plaza Midwood Composts!, contributing to a more resilient and thriving regional economy.

It will be used to purchase an advanced-tech food waste bin enclosure that will be linked to a user phone app that will unlock the bin enclosure and show its fullness level. We hope to have the 3 of these in place this summer.

If you’re not already participating in the program, please sign up. It’s free! https://portal.crowntowncompost.com/forms/PMNA/?utm_campaign=PMNA&utm_source=QR%20code

This project is supported by a Resilient Futures Co-Lab microgrant.

04/16/2026

We hope you will join us for our annual GLEE spring garden visit to see neighbors’ gardens that focus on sustainable, earth, and wildlife friendly gardening.

This year we will begin at the home of Erin and Kris Steele at 1812 Tippah Ave, where we’ll also have light refreshments. We will then take a stroll down the road to see the gardens of Pam Grundy, Laura Gardner, and Sharon Kugelmass.

To RSVP and for further information email [email protected]

02/27/2026

We are so excited that residents of have stepped forward and are getting involved with NEST. In March we'll celebrate three years of educating and activating neighbors to join together as we work to improve the health of our community through earth-friendly practices. Thanks to Plaza Midwood Neighborhood Association our waste reduction team is celebrating the 2025 launch of Plaza Midwood Composts! The six month pilot project ended on December 31 but we are now in the full implementation phase and still collecting food waste at the three same collection sites. Thanks to the 160 households that helped us divert 10.7 tons of food waste from the County landfill! Our GLEE group (Gardening, Landscaping, Ecology, and Environment) is also very active as they provide a six-week series of classes on how to design, create, and care for resilient, sustainable landscapes guided by ecological principles. We hope to hold another series in the fall. Our newest team will gather this spring to learn how to make your home more energy efficient and share personal experiences about the benefits of solar and battery storage. Look for updates about all of these teams in the PMNA e-newsletter and The Spirit and join us in the NEST!

02/23/2026

Calling Plaza Midwood residents who aim to tread lightly on our planet! Our next NEST meeting will take place at the Innovation Barn by Envision Charlotte on March 11th at 7 pm. Come out to learn how to from Mecklenburg County Government Solid Waste, and catch up with like-minded friends and neighbors! Learn more here:

NEST Neighborhood EnvironmentalStewardship Team In our daily lives and shared neighborhood spaces, NEST members actively support: Earth-friendly choices Environmental equity Sustainable living practices We model effective sustainable strategies and celebrate local ecology and our living planet. Focu...