Earth Day is right around the corner, so we’re changing the name of this page to Earth Blog. Well, not exactly, but in addition to our 10 green home tips for a sweet Earth Day, it’s time for another of our inspiring Earth Day posts — one that not only refreshes your history on the holiday but also guarantees to get you all fired up with suggestions on how you can help save the planet!
History
The grassroots movement that became our Earth Day creation culminated on April 22, 1970, with 20 million Americans participating in the first annual, official Earth Day celebration. This effort jump-started the modern environmental movement, the creation of the EPA, and legislation protecting the planet’s air, water and endangered species. Honoring our planet while raising awareness about the dangers of pollution, Earth Day began with urgency. Today, worldwide, more than a billion people take part in Earth Day festivities to highlight the still urgent need to protect our planet.
Looking within
Earth Day is a great time to examine personal responsibility. If we all calculate our individual carbon footprint and contribution to climate change in the interest of shifting our behavior to improve the environment, Earth Day serves its purpose. Today, the many topics on Earth Day celebration agendas worldwide range from personal responsibility to political activism, from protecting nature and the rise of extinction rates to planting trees, investing in renewable energy, environmental education efforts and deforestation.
What can we do?
We can start by resolving to appreciate nature more often and more thoroughly integrate it into our lives. This could be something as simple as going on more walks, hikes, jogs, runs or bike trips. We can decide to focus more on the natural beauty that surrounds us rather than taking it for granted, which is so easy to do when we lead such busy lives. We can resolve to get better acquainted with our park systems, greenways, bodies of water and forests. That’s not all. Here are several more suggestions on what we can do to celebrate Earth Day, every day.
Trees
Our frontline of defense against global warming, trees fight climate change by removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, which acts as a counterbalance to greenhouse gas emissions. Trees preserve fertile soil by capturing and retaining fresh water and fighting erosion so other plants have better opportunities to grow. Trees improve the quality of the air we breathe and the water we drink, filtering impurities, absorbing pollutants, and preventing related health symptoms and deaths. Celebrate Earth Day by planting planet-improving, life-affirming trees!
Gardening and landscaping
Grow your own garden. You’ll get closer to the Earth and gain a more intimate understanding of how it works. You’ll also enjoy the delicious benefits of a healthier diet — healthier for you and for the Earth. To start, contribute to or volunteer for a local community garden. You’ll invest in a team dedicated to making a difference. Incorporate planet-friendly decisions into your landscaping by composting, planting vegetables, adding shade trees, collecting rainwater and planting perennials. Each can help clean the air and water and preserve soil.
Recycling, repurposing and upcycling
If you’re not recycling yet, it’s better to begin now than to never start. Look into what your community offers for recycling. You may have a local pickup service or drop-off area. Look at what you throw away; how much of it could be recycled? The average American recycles less than a third of their trash, which appears senseless when you realize you could easily recycle much more than you throw away, especially if you start composting. Even things that aren’t recyclable can be repurposed or “upcycled” for additional, unintended uses. Get creative.
Empower the kids
One major priority for Earth Day is to find ways to inspire kids to do all they can to protect the planet. Once they know the goal, it’s easy to get them on board. Set up all sorts of fun activities to get them involved and impart lifelong habits. Make it educational and inspirational. Ask your kids how they’d like to help the Earth, and empower them to act on their suggestions.
More ideas for Earth Day activism
- Volunteering: Donating your time to local, state, regional, national or global organizations that inspire you, especially those dedicated to environmentalism, is always a great idea.
- Get political: Concerned about your local government’s approach to environmental issues? Remember, your voice matters. Be sure to vote, and maybe even run for office!
- Get involved: If your community has events planned for Earth Day, volunteer to help. If there’s not one already scheduled, you can spearhead the effort to make one happen.
- Shopping: You can fight climate change by making more of your purchases closer to where you live, requiring less fossil fuel to get what you need.
- Driving: Every time you avoid driving a car with an internal combustion engine, you put less pollution into the air, so walk, bike, hike and carpool more.
- Cleaner energy: Investigate solar, wind and geothermal alternatives to fossil-fuel-based technologies for heating, cooling and powering your home. Look for local incentives.
- Cleaner cleaning: Cut out all the toxic chemicals and extra plastics that come along with your average household cleaners and switch to sustainable spring cleaning.
- Leaks: You might not realize it, but American homes waste crazy amounts of water every year. If you track down and stop all the leaks, you’ll save thousands of gallons.
- LEDs: Switching all the lights in your home over to LEDs can make a significant difference in your electric bill and reduce related energy use by a staggering 80%.
Parting thoughts
There are so many more ways to celebrate Earth Day, but hopefully this gets you started. While you’re here and feeling inspired for more eco-friendly action, you may also be interested in how to turn your house into an energy-efficient home. There’s plenty more where that came from, too. Please consider our blog your own personal collection of virtually unlimited posts on all sorts of great DIY ideas for homeowners. Thanks for stopping by, and happy Earth Day!
The information in this article is intended to provide guidance on the proper maintenance and care of systems and appliances in the home. Not all of the topics mentioned are covered by our home warranty or maintenance plans. Please review your home warranty contract carefully to understand your coverage.