Earth Day 2020: Celebrating the 50th Anniversary from home
By Willow Beck, Project and Administrative Coordinator, Sea Smart
This April 22 marks the 50th Annual Earth Day. The first Earth Day took place in 1970, launching the modern environmental movement. In the US, this public outcry of the importance of environmental advocacy resulted in the creation of the Clean Air, Water, and Endangered Species Act and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) (1). Earth Day is a reminder of the power of individual and community action. This year, the theme of Earth Day 2020 is Climate Change - the biggest environmental challenge to humanity.
Students at the beach, soaking in all that our beautiful Earth has to offer.Earth Day and COVID-19
While the world faces the immediate crisis of COVID-19 by staying indoors, it reminds us of how connected humans are to each other and to the planet. Social isolation forces us to appreciate the positive impact that nature has on our physical and mental wellbeing. As the world slows down due to coronavirus restrictions, cities and countries around the world are reporting clearer waterways and significantly reduced air pollution (2). Perhaps humanity can learn from the coronavirus on how we can prepare for the ongoing climate change crisis.
Earth Day 2020 is going digital this year, specifically through the Earth Challenge app! This app is a massive citizen science project. Anyone with a smartphone can contribute to global databases on air quality and plastic pollution. This platform will soon expand to include data on water quality, insect populations, and food security. These are all important indicators on the health of our planet and important information to collect so scientists and governments can make informed environmental management decisions. Though we are physically distanced, we continue to share the Earth and will work to accomplish a collective goal. Climate change, like COVID19, is something we will get through together.
Daily Actions
There are many ways to celebrate Earth Day from home! Limit meat consumption, turn off lights, start an online community climate discussion, or hang an Earth Day sign from your window.
While Earth Day is a great opportunity to share Earth-friendly actions, we can implement many of these actions in our daily lives all year round. Here are some examples of how to help with climate change:
Use environmentally friendly cleaning products
Replace incandescent lightbulbs with more efficient CFLs or LEDs. You can reduce your carbon footprint by 450 pounds/year!
Reduce your carbon footprint by one pound for every mile you don’t drive my biking, carpooling or taking public transit
Reduce food waste - composting tips here.
Reduce single-use plastic consumption
Buy local and donate old items instead of throwing them away
Take shorter showers and use a water-saving showerhead
Take the stairs instead of the elevator
Wash your clothes with cold water and line dry instead of using the dryer
Turn off and unplug electronics you are not using
Looking for more ways to help out and save our oceans? Sign up as a Sea Smart volunteer to inspire youth to protect our oceans. You can also enrol your kids to be Ocean Defenders with Sea Smart’s new online programs!
References
Earth Day 2020. (n.d.) Retrieved from https://www.earthday.org/earth-day-2020/
NBC News: Coronavirus shutdowns have unintended climate benefits. March 31, 2020. Retrieved from https://www.nbcnews.com/science/environment/coronavirus-shutdowns-have-unintended-climate-benefits-n1161921
