Jam, heated with a little juice (any kind; well, okay, something sweet. I wouldn't recommend unsweetened cranberry juice or anything.  :P) to thin it would be tasty I imagine. Blackstrap molasses... well, it would take a lot of getting used to, but if you're looking for a nice, healthy alternative, you couldn't beat it. But since most people equate its taste more equivalent to road tar than maple syrup, that one might not be good for company.  :) For a close, or perhaps even tastier substitute, you could try Agave nectar. Yum. I haven't done any background on what harvesting Agave does to the environment... but it's a cactus for goodness sakes, I'm not sure what sort of harm they could inflict to the dessert. (Though it seems like they'll go out of their way to do as much possible damage at times.) For a super cost effective one, albeit not healthfully attractive (not that any kind of sweetener IS when it comes right down to it, but you know, whatever), dark corn syrup works too. That's mostly what they put into pancake syrup anyway. You could also check into brown rice syrup or cane juice syrup, though they're tougher to find, and more expensive. When it comes to breakfast carbs though, my favorite topper is usually almond or peanut butter. :P Come to think of it, almond butter is good on everything. I think I'd douse a baked potato in almond butter if given the chance.

Hi, I was wondering if you had any website links about the environmental toll of maple syrup. I haven't heard anything about this before and I'd like to learn more.

I just googled around, but couldn't find anything. I'd like to know more, too.

I haven't seen any evidence to suggest that maple syrup is a product to be avoided for environmental reasons.  Here are a few links to demonstrate:

http://www.sustainabletable.org/features/maplesyrup/

http://www.csbsju.edu/maple/General_info/barr_jesse_paper.pdf#search='maple%20syrup%20environmental'

http://www.coombsfamilyfarms.com/story07.html