Profile: Brandon Reynolds

Brandon Reynolds first learned about the Civic Garden Center several years ago after reading an article about the green roofing industry in Chicago. The concept of roofs being made of anything other than shingles was completely alien to him. But this only further piqued his curiosity and he wondered if there was anyone doing anything similar in Cincinnati.

A co-worker mentioned that the CGC had a green roof installed on site and recommended giving them a call to investigate. After spending his entire lunch break on the phone with Kylie Johnson, the CGC’s Green Learning Station Coordinator, Brandon went back to his desk with a full page of notes about Cincinnati's sustainability community.

“How could I NOT stay involved?”

What started off as a phone call has morphed into what Brandon calls “my home away from home.” He says he can point to every green step forward in his adult life and trace its roots back to his experience with the CGC. “How could I NOT stay involved?"

Brandon attended the University of Cincinnati and appreciated its dynamic Co-op program, which provides students with years of work experience prior to graduation. “My biggest challenge, however, wasn't securing a job,” he said, “it was finding a career path that used my background in marketing to spark environmental reform.” He points out that it wasn't until he approached the CGC that he was able to discover a segment of the marketing industry hungry for people like him.

Brandon said, “Since joining the CGC, I've been connected with more leaders in the green industry than I am able to count on-queue. It has also shown me the magic of backyard composting; the ease of growing food for oneself—and for native wildlife; how to harvest rainwater; and even how to brew kombucha in my apartment that tastes better (and is healthier) than store-bought.”

Brandon considers the CGC as the "power strip" of Cincinnati's "green" community. For example, he says, someone can walk into the place—having never (successfully) planted anything in the ground before—and be face-to-face with a master gardener who's been working with plants their entire life. “It's that simple. It's where people go to level-up and connect with other people interested in—very literally—’growing’ together,” Brandon said. “CGC's UH-MAZING staff make it very easy for others to use their curiosity as a platform for hands-on learning."

What next?

Brandon believes that one of the biggest opportunities right now is the potential to harness the power of social media to make "going green" a more relatable goal for the average person. He points out how, at the click of a button, someone can learn how to make their own beauty products from a YouTuber in New York; how a married couple uses solar power to scramble eggs; and how to make homemade laundry detergent using four ingredients in a Vitamix. Brandon says, “It's like the floodgates have opened and the only limit to what people can learn now is their data plan. So, I'm excited to see how CGC and other social media influencers use this opportunity to inspire people to be more mindful of their environmental impact."

So now, when friends ask: ‘What is this Civic Garden Center?’ he tells them it’s his “green temple.” It’s a place where someone can literally go from "zero to hero" as a proponent for the environment.