The Sustainable 19125 & 19134 initiative aims to create the greenest zip codes in Philadelphia by promoting sustainability as a tool to improve quality of life, beautify, and support one’s community. This resident-driven initiative was initiated by New Kensington Community Development Corporation (NKCDC), with support from the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society(PHS). In 2009, NKCDC brought together local residents, businesses, and numerous government, nonprofit, and for-profit partners to green the Fishtown, Kensington, and Port Richmond neighborhoods of Philadelphia. Sustainable 19125 & 19134 was formed to bring together and expand upon sustainability work those residents, businesses, and partners were already doing, and connect their efforts with larger-scale green infrastructure and planning projects in the neighborhood. 
 

The two main efforts that comprise the initiative are:
        

Residents and NKCDC work closely with partners through these efforts to make 19125 & 19134 the greenest zip codes in Philadelphia!
 

Sustainable 19125 & 19134 has been a flagship model for neighborhood greening nationwide. While cities like Cleveland and Portland (OR) have city-run sustainability programs, Sustainable 19125 & 19134 was started by more than 60 residents and groups and focuses on  resident-driven and neighborhood specific actions.

This concentrated effort makes participants’ efforts visible in 2 ways: on the ground in the neighborhood and online through our Green Actions mapping tool, which calculates the carbon and water savings of the initiative. It also builds community among residents as they work for a common goal of a greener, cleaner, safer, more beautiful place to live. 

Our Successes 

What makes for a successful sustainability initiative? Depending on how you measure it, sustainability success can include decreasing environmental impact, improving quality of life, increasing property values, clean and beautiful neighborhoods, and more! 

One way we measure the successes of our Green Actions are in terms of carbon and water savings, keeping reusable things out of landfills, and saving money, for both household and the City. You can see our successes in these areas below. These green actions would not have been possible without the initiative’s Green Guides and volunteers, 90+ organizational and governmental partners and over 40 local businesses!

See our Green Blocks, Big Green Block, and Partners pages to find out how we accomplished all this!