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National Wildlife Federation recognizes Carnegie as ‘Monarch Champion’

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Courtesy of Deneen Underwood

A monarch butterfly rests on a native plant in the East Main parking lot in fall 2022. Mayor Stacie Riley has renewed her Mayors Monarch Pledge, to revitalize the monarch population, in 2023.

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Courtesy of Deneen Underwood

Monarch butterflies returned to Carnegie this year, thanks in large part to the borough’s conservation efforts, led by Mayor Stacie Riley. The borough was one of four to earn the title of Monarch Champion in 2022, and Riley renewed the Mayors Monarch Pledge for 2023.

Just south of the City of Champions lies Carnegie, whose 2022 conservation efforts were recognized by the National Wildlife Federation and earned the borough the title “Monarch Champion.”

The monarch butterfly population has decreased drastically over the last two decades, and in 2021, Carnegie Mayor Stacie Riley took the Mayors’ Monarch Pledge and committed to save the area’s monarch butterflies by completing at least three of 30 actions through the NWF.

That year, under Riley’s leadership, Carnegie completed 21 actions and earned a spot in the NWF’s Leadership Circle. Last year the borough completed 24 actions, including the launch of a virtual monarch classroom at carnegieborough.com/monarch, the Carnegie Shade Tree Commission’s milkweed planting initiative, the creation of a borough milkweed map, and the celebration of Monarch Butterfly Day in Carnegie, a one-day festival funded through the Duquesne Light community grant that both educated and entertained.

Carnegie was the only borough in Pennsylvania and one of four nationally to earn the title of “Monarch Champion” by the NWF for conservation efforts in 2022.

Riley has already renewed the Mayors Monarch Pledge for 2023, with a goal of completing all 30 actions in the New Year.

“I am proud to take this pledge, which illustrates Carnegie’s commitment to improving the local habitat for monarchs. We pride ourselves on being a leader in addressing the environmental issues important to our community,” Riley said in a news release.

To learn more about the Carnegie Monarch Conservation Project, or to get involved, visit https://carnegieborough.com/monarch/.

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