Earth Day can sometimes get grouped in with “lesser” celebrations, but with only a matter of years left to reverse the worst impacts of climate change, it’s more necessary than ever. So while we’re living through a historic squeeze on household finances, what can you do to mark this occasion, celebrate the planet, and remind yourself how precious the natural world is?
1. Go outside
It’s the simplest, most obvious thing in the world, and yet in our digital age it can be difficult to find a reason to go outside- especially when the weather’s bad, or if you have nowhere to go or no money to spend.
If you live in a city, just walk down the street and notice what non-human life you can see. Are there birds in the sky or nesting on roofs? Do you spy any green making its way up through the cracks in the sidewalk? Is there a park nearby? Even better!
If you live more rurally, head out into the fields, woods, or coastline- and take a moment to appreciate the sights, sounds, and smells of the outdoors. Did you know that forest bathing is an ancient Japanese therapy that has been scientifically proven to improve wellbeing? Try it out!
2. Get curious
If you’ve been able to get outside, what did you notice? Was there moss on the buildings? Are there foxes behind your block of flats? Did you see a beetle, spider, or fly? Look it up.
It’s amazing how much we let pass by without ever questioning or investigating it. Whether or not we notice it, life is teeming all around us, and as fellow citizens of the planet the least we can do is find out where it comes from, how it works, what it does…
Did you know that foxes only came to London over the last two decades due to lack of food in rural habitats? Or that moss grows on buildings because concrete has tiny pores that can store water? You could even look up the weather systems that are impacting whether or not you want to go out.
This is a great activity with kids- go outside and ask them to make a list of everything they notice. Then when you get home or over lunch, you can look everything up together and learn a lot about your planet-sharing neighbours!
3. Write to your legislator or sign a petition
So maybe it’s those pesky April showers, or maybe you simply don’t have time to go for a walk today. Either way, today is the perfect excuse to make sure you put your name on something you care about.
You can find a list of all UK climate related parliamentary petitions here. Here’s all the equivalent United States Environmental Protection Agency petitions too. You can also look at Oxfam, Change.org, Friends of the Earth, and WeMoveEurope (there are others too).
4. Join an environmental action group
Start with Greenpeace, and then check out Friends of the Earth to find a group near you. You don’t have to protest, lay down in traffic, or throw soup on a painting- just being added to a mailing list can give credibility to groups that are trying to get media and politicians to take them seriously.
Similarly, following environmental action and sustainability accounts on social media can not only help you keep yourself informed and inspired, it helps boost those accounts algorithmically, which gets them seen and followed by more people. Your presence and support has value all its own.
5. Make a commitment
Check out our blog on easy ways to reduce your carbon footprint, and try one out for a while. Whether that’s giving up meat for a month, or taking cold showers for a year, use today as an excuse to start exploring your relationship with your carbon footprint and taking steps to reduce it.
If you don’t feel like you’re in a position to reduce your carbon footprint yet, remember that Switch2Zero offers comprehensive individual and family carbon offset subscriptions that can help you plant trees, remove plastic waste, and fund carbon offset projects at the most affordable rate on the market.
