Preservation Month Activities
Check out this list of sample activities to help you celebrate National Preservation Month in your community:
- Host an open house to showcase a historic building that has been recently restored or retrofitted.
- Organize a work project to clean up a historic town square, park or cemetery. Share your stories and pictures.
- Conduct a walking tour or candlelight house tour through a historic district. Don't forget to take pictures or video.
- Organize a visit to your statehouse or Congressional home office and explain why preservation and sustainability matter to you.
- Organize a volunteer group to work on painting or restoring a local landmark or home.
- Hold workshops and demonstrations for owners of older and historic homes and buildings. For ideas, check out Weatherizing for Winter.
- Present green or preservation awards to those who are working to make your community sustainable.
- Encourage historic home and business owners to get an energy audit, the first step in achieving energy efficiency at home. Learn more here. You could even get your community to come together to donate funds for an enegery audit for a local historic landmark.
- Historic windows are often replaced in an effort to achieve energy efficiency, but can, instead, be adapted in ways that both help the environment and maintain the historic integrity of the building. Hold a photo scavenger hunt encouraging citizens to capture some of the best historic windows in your town. Share your finds.
- Do you have any buildings that are LEED certified? Host a tour of a LEED-certified building. If possible, ask the developer or owner to guide it.
- Hold a “Buy Local” fair or event along your main street. Encourage restaurants, shops and local farmers to participate.
These are just a few of the many creative ways that you can celebrate "Old is the New Green" during the month of May and throughout the year. Share your ideas for other activities.
