Happy Earth Day, everyone!! Did you know that today marks the 50th anniversary?! Now THAT is something we can all celebrate! We wanted to share with you a bit of history about this important holiday and a handful of ideas on how you can commemorate this milestone, even while adhering to stay-at-home orders and proper social distancing.
Senator Gaylord Nelson, a Democratic senator from Wyoming, wanted to teach the nation about the environment. By tapping into the energy of the anti-war movement that was already vibrantly shaking the political landscape, Senator Nelson successfully put environmental concerns onto the national agenda.
Our home town, Philadelphia, was the first city to host Earth Day back in 1970. In fact, the city devoted an entire week to the environmental cause. Earth Week was organized by a group of local professionals, stakeholders, and graduate students at the University of Pennsylvania's School of Design. They were inspired by Senator Gaylor Nelson's call to teach the nation about the environment. They argued that one day wasn't enough, and organized seven days of events, bringing in speakers like Ralph Nader, Allen Ginsberg, and landscape architect Ian McHarg, the author of Design with Nature and the founder of PennDesign's landscape architecture program. Jonathan Propper, our founder and CEO, traces his environmentalist roots back 50 years, when he celebrated the first Earth Day in at Belmont Plateau in Philadelphia’s Fairmount Park! (It was the beginning of something big!)
That same year, Congress authorized the creation of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. In following years, Earth Day would be credited as the impetus for the Clean Air, Clean Water and Endangered Species Acts as well, according to the EPA. Since it’s first year, Earth Day has expanded all over the world and inspired billions of people to take action to protect the future of the planet! The theme for Earth Day 2020 is Climate Action.
Check out this fun throwback video we found for you of the original broadcast of CBS News Special Report with Walter Cronkite about the first Earth Day!
We don’t know about you, but we are feeling extra grateful for this Earth as we experience the nourishing effects of spring blooming all around us during a time of such global uncertainty. Let’s show Mother Nature how much we appreciate her, shall we?
HOW YOU CAN CELEBRATE EARTH DAY IN 2020:
- Tune into Earth Day Live, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. ET on April 22nd, 23rd, and 24th at www.earthdaylive2020.org. The event, organized by youth climate activists, features a star-studded lineup that includes numerous environmental leaders in conversation with leading scientists and journalists about the ongoing climate crisis. Musical performances and DJ sets include Jason Mraz, Angélique Kidjo, Emily Wells, Aimee Mann, Ted Leo, Jack Johnson, Questlove, Talib Kweli, Beverly Bond, Madame Gandhi, Soul Clap and others.
- Enjoy We Don’t Have Time’s free online climate conference. The program features the brightest minds to discuss solutions to the most daring challenge humanity has ever faced: the climate crisis. (https://www.wedonthavetime.org/event/earthdayweek)
- Switch from washing by hand to using a dishwasher to limit your daily water consumption! (Our Dish Detergent Pods make it easy to pop in a pod and start a load any time of day.)
- Skip today’s shower and save a bit of water as well. (No one cares if you’re a little stinky-- you’re inside!)
- Find a few small things you can switch out in your home for more eco-friendly options. (We love Bees Wrap, Eco Bags, Eco Lunch Boxes, Final Straw, and Stojo, just to name a few!)
- Start using Ecosia or Okeana to search the web. (These search engines clean up the ocean and plants trees with every search!)
- Unplug devices you aren’t using! (Did you know that devices plugged in on “standby” mode can account for 5 to 10 percent of a household’s energy use?)
- Go for a walk and express your gratitude for everything that is growing around you!
- Get out into the garden and start planting your own little vegetable patch! As well as saving money on shopping at the supermarket, you’ll be helping to eliminate the carbon emissions that are involved in getting shop-bought produce to your home.
- Plant trees and native wildflowers in your yard!
- Donate to an environmental or animal welfare charity.
- Cook a special Earth Day meal using organic ingredients. The more greens, the better!
Kathleen Rogers, President of Earth Day Network, shared that “Amid the recent outbreak, we encourage people to rise up, but to do so safely and responsibly — in many cases, that means using our voices to drive action online rather than in person.”
We have hope that this can be the best Earth Day yet!
What are you planning on doing today? Use #EarthDay2020 and #everydroppscounts to show us how you’re celebrating!