REfill, REuse, 480 Main Street, sells eco-conscious essentials and bulk refill.

If you’ve been wondering where to compost, where to donate used clothing, how to plant a pollinator garden, or how to simply do better by the planet locally without becoming a fully-fledged activist, then read on.

April is Earth Month. Created more than 50 years ago to raise awareness of environmental issues, Earth Month is now a global movement focused on promoting environmental action and encouraging sustainable practices.

But, it can sometimes feel overwhelming wondering whether you really can make a difference or where to begin in a time of extreme weather conditions, wildfires, and loss of biodiversity happening so close to home. Tuning out can feel like the easiest option.

No one said tackling climate change is easy, but the good news is there’s plenty of small steps we can all take to help protect the planet for our children and our children’s children. Don’t just take our word for it, though. This “theory of small wins” was created by social psychologist Karl E. Wieck who set out to prove small achievable actions can lead to momentum and change, thus creating large scale impact over time. We at The Beacon Beacon are big subscribers to Wieck’s forward-looking, practical, and positive approach.

For Earth Month, we’ve taken the opportunity to dig into ways to easily incorporate eco-friendly actions into our everyday lives here in Beacon; ways handily facilitated by our local shops, businesses, organizations, and City Council.

Sign up for Beacon’s Earth Day Community Clean-Up

An environmental fair will take place at Hudson Valley Brewery on Saturday, April 26th.

Beacon has hosted an Earth Day Community Clean-Up every year since 2018, and 2025 is no exception. Taking place on Saturday, April 26th, this event is a feelgood, fun way to roll up your sleeves and clean up some of the neighborhoods around the city. This year, it will include the pollinator pathway plantings, too. Choose from Madam Brett’s Homestead, Beacon High School, Pete and Toshi Seeger Park, the east loop of the Fishkill Creek, and more. Visit Green Beacon Coalition to pick the site you’d like to help clean and sign up. The clean-up portion of the day takes place between 9 AM and 12 PM, followed by an environmental fair between 12 PM and 3 PM at Hudson Valley Brewery (7 East Main Street), where you can grab something refreshing to quench your thirst after all that hard work.

Among the stands at the fair Fareground will be hosting its much-anticipated Earth Day Plant sale. Last year we picked up some amazing Moroccan mint plants that lasted throughout summer, and we can’t wait to see what they’ll be offering this time around.

Be a friend to nature

Native plant, Heliopsis found on Mount Beacon.

It’s hard to know where to begin our love letter to trees. Every species contributes to biodiversity. They also capture and store carbon, absorb pollutants, reduce flooding, improve soil quality, and absorb contaminants which protects and cleans nearby water sources. And that’s just to start.

In 2024, the City of Beacon ran a pilot tree purchasing program for residents that proved so successful, it’s running it again this year. The goal is to pass along significant savings to homeowners interested in planting trees on their property to help build Beacon’s tree inventory. The trees offered in the 2025 program are close to 50% off retail and will be delivered directly to residents’ homes. What’s not to love about this program? Read here to learn more and order the trees you want. You can never have enough trees as far as we’re concerned.

Beacon also has a Pollinator Pathway program, which is part of a larger U.S. movement to create a corridor of private and public adjacent spaces that provide safe habitat for birds, bees, butterflies, and other helpful insects. The goal of the program is to make Beacon an uninterrupted part of the pathway by increasing the number of residential, commercial, and municipal spots that host native plants and remain pesticide-free. Contact beaconnypollinators@gmail.com or visit the Green Beacon Coalition website to create a Pollinator Pathway or learn more about getting involved.

Compost, compost, compost

A practical and highly effective way of reducing your family’s impact on the planet is by composting, and it’s never been easier ever since the City of Beacon introduced its compost program in 2022. The now-expanded program offers free drop-off at three convenient spots around the city: Beacon Recreation Center on West Center Street, Memorial Park (near the playground), and Churchill Street parking lot near Hudson Valley Brewery. Visit the City’s “how-to” page for an easy cheat sheet on how the program works and information on buying a low-cost bin to get you started.

The beauty of recycling

Kids grow out of clothes so quickly that buying the next size up every few weeks is a painful exercise! That’s why Wee Play’s annual Ree-Play Sale is still hugely popular after more than 20 years.

Taking place from Friday, April 25th to Sunday, April 27th at the University Settlement Camp Theater (724 Wolcott Avenue), this epic children’s tag sale is a win-win-win event that benefits children’s programming in Beacon while giving parents a chance to shop gently used children’s clothing and accessories, baby gear, maternity clothing, books, games, puzzles, and much more at amazing prices. Plus, it helps keep that clothing out of landfill for a while longer. There’s a sliding scale of discounts throughout the weekend if you’re willing to wait it out. For more details see here.

For year-round clothes donations, there’s a Salvation Army drop off bin at the back of 372 Main Street for men, women’s, and children’s clothing and other small items. There’s a clothing drop off bin at St. Andrew & St. Luke Episcopal Church at 850 Wolcott Avenue as well.

Recycle empty cosmetics packaging

Witch Hazel, 176 Main Street, accepts clean and empty cosmetics packaging for recycling.

If you’re confused about what cosmetics and beauty product packaging can and can’t be recycled, stop by Witch Hazel (176 Main Street). Not only can you buy beautiful, natural skincare and cosmetic products there, you can drop your clean product empties when you’re done with them. Witch Hazel collects community drop offs for TerraCycle, a company that collects and turns packaging into all types of new products. We love that Witch Hazel even accepts packaging of brands they don’t carry. Just be sure to clean the empty bottles, tubes, and jars first.

Shop local

You’re doing your bit to tackle climate change simply by shopping local rather than driving to the mall or ordering online. If we all shopped local twice as much as we already do (whatever that frequency might currently be), there’d be less cars, trucks, and vans on the road, and less excess packaging ending up in landfill.

With a Main Street more than a mile long—and a Walkers’ Paradise Walkability Score of 96/100—shopping local is easy in Beacon even when it comes to finding eco-conscious products. Take REfill REuse at 480 Main Street, which started life as a pop-up a few years ago before landing on its current permanent home. This low-waste, bulk-refill store offers everyday household items like shampoo, conditioner, dish liquid, and laundry liquid to customers who bring their own containers. REfill REuse sells almost everything you need to keep the house clean without adding single-use plastic to landfill.

Shop consignment and vintage stores

There’s so many good reasons to buy clothing from consignment and vintage stores. Naturally, you’re helping extend the life of clothing by buying it second-hand. But that’s just the beginning.

Shoppers can score brand or designer names at a fraction of the original price at consignment and vintage stores. You’ll also be picking up unusual or one-of-a-kind pieces that are often higher quality than items typically found in fast-fashion stores. This means they’ll likely last longer and look even better at the same price.

If you’re looking for statement pieces, head to Another Door (468 - 470 Main Street) and Vintage Beacon (478 Main Street). Both shops are packed with curated collectible and everyday pieces. Plus, Another Door’s vast collection of clothes, shoes, accessories, and more caters to both women and men and includes vintage home goods and furniture.

Also in this category, you’ll find Blackbird Attic at 442 Main Street which has a great mix of clothing for women, men, and children as well as body and home goods. At Hyperbole (484 Main Street), you’ll find a small vintage selection of men and women’s clothing among new items and small batch clothing. They’ve also just introduced consignment for children’s clothing.

And there’s more

We’ve been known to seek out furniture or home goods from vintage stores, Beacon Flea Market, estate sales, or the twice-a-yearly citywide Yard Sale. This isn’t because we’re cheap (well, not entirely!). It’s because we find it’s more fun to seek out and secure an item that is one-of-a-kind. We once drove all the way to Binghampton, NY (admittedly this wasn’t the most energy-efficient way to go vintage-hunting), in search of a chest of drawers that we ultimately found in Another Door (on Instagram)!

One person’s trash is another’s treasure, as they say, and buying second-hand is another effective way to prevent quality items from ending up in the garbage. There’s plenty of opportunity to snap a vintage gem in Beacon, as you’ll see below.

188 Main | 188 Main Street | Small goods antiques including cameras, typewriters, maps, and more

Two Sparrows Homestead | 226 Main Street | Antique, vintage and modern home décor and gifts

Finders Keepers | 285 Main Street | Thrift store with a vast vinyl collection and home goods

Dickinson’s Antiques | 440 Main Street | Must-visit antique and vintage home goods, art, furniture, and more

Beacon Flea Market | Between Henry Street and South Chestnut Street | Absolutely everything you can imagine | Open on fine weather Sundays, April through December

City of Beacon Yard Sale | Across Beacon | Saturday, June 14th 2025 | Sellers can sign up here.

Eat less meat

Finally, reducing meat consumption is one of the most meaningful choices to make for the environment. But it’s okay if giving up meat altogether is a step too far. Eating less meat and dairy—and making thoughtful choices— can still make a huge difference. Large scale animal farms, often known as factory farms, cause pollution, lead to habitat destruction, and are incredibly water intensive (that’s not to mention the inhumane conditions the animals exist in).

If you’re buying meat, try buying local at shops like Barb’s Butchery (69 Spring Street) where all the meat is locally sourced, grass-fed, and pasture raised from small Hudson Valley farms. And if you’re planning meat-free days during the week, dig into our recent guide on the tastiest spots in Beacon to enjoy a meat-free, dairy-free meal.

So, there you have it. Eight easy ways to make a difference this Earth Month. Where will you begin?

Explore our directories for more inspiration on where to shop, eat, and drink in Beacon.

8 Local Earth Month Tips You Need to Know