On Earth Day!

Confession time: I love Earth Day. So much so that in college I wrote an entire paper on it's history and why it is so important! I believe every day is a day to celebrate and protect our planet, but I particularly love April 22^nd! I love that everyone talks about the facts, create beautiful art work, and share tips on how each and every one of us needs to change our ways to protect the only place we have to live.

Here are some Earth Day Facts. Some of these are about how Earth day came about and some are about why every day needs to be treated like Earth Day.

-Earth Day as we know it today was created in 1970 and marks the anniversary of our modern version of the environmental movement.

- It was a bipartisan effort. It was founded by Gaylord Nelson, a Democratic U.S. Senator from Wisconsin, whose co-chair was Pete McCloskey, a Republican Congressman.

-The first Earth Day led to the Environmental Protection Agency and the Endangered Species Act!

-It was originally just a US holiday, but in 1990 it went Global thus creating an even bigger impact.

I mentioned beautiful art work right? One of my favorite photographers, Joel Sartore's work is a big influence on me. His photo project the Photo Ark brings endangered animals to the forefront. He takes studio portraits of animals before they can go extinct. When you see his photos of these animals you can see their souls and you can't help but want to protect them. He always shares his work but it is particularly important when he shares on Earth Day. I also follow a lot of animal, environmental, and worldwide charities and they all share their favorite work. I always adore that google has a special doodle! This year it is of Jane Goodall!

And perhaps the best part of Earth Day is people talking about how we can all be better. There are so many small ways you can change your daily routine that will help so much in the long run! Some of my favorites are:

-Shut off the water when you are brushing your teeth! You can save gallons of water just by switching off that tap because you don't use it when you are actually brushing just when you rinse! So simple, but so important!

-Pass on plastic straws. When in restaurants just don't use them. There is no real need for them. If you are like me and use straws to avoid upsetting sensitive teeth, you can ask for no ice because your drink is already going to be cold. Plastic straws cannot be recycled and are so often found in oceans. If you really do need one for whatever reason you can get a heavy duty one and bring it with you! Every piece of plastic ever created since its invention is still on Earth. It takes near 400 years for it to break down.

-Another thing you can do in restaurants is bring your own tupperware when you think you will be bringing left overs home! Styrofoam isn't regularly recyclable and it takes 500 years to degrade. I got this tip from a friend of mine! I couldn’t believe I never thought of it!

-Bring reusable shopping bags when you shop! They are better for the environment and they fit more items which means less trips out to the car to bring them in the house.

I love celebrating Earth Day as well. For the past two years I have gone to river and park clean ups the weekend of April 22^nd. A team of people do a couple hours of work and all the trash that accumulates over the winter is easily removed! Last year on Earth Day I also Marched for Science! Earth Day is so important and it is so easy to change the world for the better if you just try.

~Laura!