~ 10 Ways to Celebrate Earth Day
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The first Earth Day was held on April 22, 1970. Major issues at that time were toxic drinking water, air pollution, and effects of pesticides.
Earth Day every April 22 is an international event that’s celebrated all around the world. It’s the day we can pledge and re-pledge to support the environment with sustainable living. And we can make efforts to protect the planet. The 2023 Earth Day theme is “Invest In Our Planet”.
David and I do our best to live a sustainable lifestyle. We’re fortunate that the waste company serving our area provides us with a regular waste bin as well as a recycle bin and a green waste bin. It doesn’t take much extra effort to properly distribute our waste. The simple task of doing so makes a big difference for the earth we call home.
(Photo Credit/ Noah Buscher)
Plant a Tree
Plant any kind of tree you want. Trees are beneficial to the environment. They help produce oxygen and also filter out pollutants to help clean the air. Do you have a favorite tree? I love pine trees!
(Photo Credit: Viktor Keri)
Ride Your Bike
Yup! Leave your car parked and ride your bike. If you live in the city and don’t own a bike, rent one instead. You’ll get a bit of exercise and give the planet a breath of fresh air. Have you ever rented a bike?
Use Reusable Shopping Bags
Reusable shopping bags go a long way in helping. You can make your own from our DIY T-Shirt Reusable Shopping Bag Step by Step Tutorial!
We keep several reusable market bags in each of our car trunks. We also wash all our bags on a regular basis. We throw them in the washing machine on a cold wash and hang them on the clothes line to dry. Easy peasy!
Another possible use: some market bags are cool enough to use as gift bags! We use Trader Joe’s reusable market bags as gift bags quite often. What’s your favorite reusable market bag?
(Photo Credit: Evan Wise)
Invest in a Reusable Water Bottle
We personally love our Hydro Flask and Klean Kanteen bottles. We use them for everything from water, herbal tea, and even fruit juice. They keep our drinks icy cold or super hot. But seriously, any reusable bottle can save money and and add to saving the planet. Do you have a favorite reusable bottle?
Conserve Water
There are so many ways you can conserve water. From installing water-saving shower heads and faucet aerators, to adding drip watering systems in the yard, and turning the water off while brushing your teeth. So many ways! Just go for it! What’s your favorite way to conserve water?
(Photo Credit: Phil Goodwin)
Use LED Light Bulbs
LED light bulbs are highly energy efficient. They seem to last forever! At least at our house. We’ve even switched out our Christmas lights to LED, including the lights on our tree. What are your favorite LED lights?
Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle
There are a plethora of ways to reduce, reuse and recycle. I’m betting you’re already doing a lot and may not even realize it. We seldom use disposable dinnerware, but on the rare occasion we do, we try our best to find biodegradable options. We’re lucky because our waste company provides us with three big wheeled waste bins for collection day. We have absolutely no excuse for NOT separating our recyclable and green waste.
We keep a small kitchen compost bin in our kitchen that holds any green waste we have daily. We line it with our favorite biodegradable bags that when filled we place in our freezer until our weekly garbage day. Those little frozen bags of green waste go out in our big green waste bin. We also keep a large bag in the garage just outside the kitchen door for all our recyclable waste. Easy peasy ways to recycle! How do you reduce, reuse and recycle?
(Photo Credit: Ocean Cleanup Group)
Volunteer for City Cleanups
Our community has opportunities to gather for cleanups in the area almost every Saturday morning. There’s a meeting place and then a designated city area to clean. Bags are provided and it’s an opportunity to do your small part at beautifying the landscape. But you can also have a cleanup activity by walking your neighborhood with family or friends. Back in the day I did this many times with my boys when I was a Cub Scout leader. Have you ever participated in a city cleanup?
Carpool
Carpooling is a fun and easy way to commute with co-workers, friends and family. Play it like a bus route dropping everyone off at their different destinations. Save wear and tear on your cars, and save fuel. Remember, it’s the baby steps that count and add up to helping the planet. Do you have opportunities to carpool?
Say NO to Junk Mail
Let me just say: we’re not very fond of junk mail. We’ve gone to great lengths to eliminate any unnecessary mail. Cancel catalogs and anything else you are able to access online. David is a current event guy and keeps up on the news. He does it most of the time on his phone from several different online news sources. What junk mail can you eliminate from your life?
Happy Earth Day! And many more to come every April 22!
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