Earth Day 2010 marks the 40th anniversary of this very green holiday. What started out as a cry of concern from a senator named Gaylord Nelson in 1970 has become a worldwide phenomenon. Nelson represented Wisconsin, but didn’t let the state border confine him. He spoke to environmental groups and participated in rallies across the nation to raise awareness about how the earth is treated. Eventually, Nelson’s idea for a day to raise awareness about environmental concern caught the attention of the United Nations. Now many countries all over the world have variations of Earth Day.
What does one do to honor Earth Day? Anything that will help out the planet!
It could be as simple as picking up trash along a sidewalk or planting a tree.
While it’s true that we should be paying attention to our planet’s welfare every day of they year, the fact of the matter is that most of us don’t. Blame it on being too busy or maybe even too lazy, we could all sacrifice a little bit more to lower the amount of waste we generate. According to the Clean Air Council the average American produces 4.39 pounds of waste each day. That’s roughly 1,602 pounds a year! Every paper cup, plastic bag, juice box, and lunch tray has to go somewhere.
What can be done to help? The three R’s of course: reduce, reuse, and recycle. Use a lunch box instead of a paper bag, bring your own shopping bags to the store, take your own mug to the coffee shop, use glasses instead of paper cups when possible, and recycle. Decorated jam jars make very cute flower vases. Get creative!
This April 22nd spend some time brainstorming ways you and your family could go a little bit greener. Your planet, your wallet, and the future generations will thank you.
Earth Day Activities:
- Plant something – a tree sapling or a vegetable garden is a great idea.
- Decorate various containers to be used again. Soup cans, jam jars, baby food jars, boxes, and a little creativity can go a long way. Desk clutter will be clutter no more!
- Turn old t-shirts into grocery bags by sewing the bottom closed (start with the shirt inside out so the design will show when you’re done), cut the neck part off while leaving the shoulder seams intact, trim the sleeves to become handles, flip it inside out, and ta da! Reusable and washable bags. The average amount of time a grocery bag is used is about 30 minutes and takes up to 1000 years to degrade.
- Educate yourself! Go to the library and check out a book on the environment.
- Organize a clean up day of the local playground, school, sidewalks, or activity centers.
- Turn the lights off when you’re not using them. (I know, we all forget sometimes!)
- Carpool
- Do something for the plants or animals in your back yard.
Activity Page Downloads: (Click to download.)
Listen to these Environmental Songs while you make the world a better place!