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Why is Earth day so important?

Why is Earth day so important?

By Ellie Peach


Why did earth day start?

Since 1970, Earth day has been held on April 22nd each year. It was initially created by Senator Gaylord Nelson in the United States; during this time, there was no clean air or water act and no legal framework to protect the planet from our harmful manufacturing and other processes. He recognised with other constituents that this needed to be addressed and created this dedicated day to bring awareness to the issues starting to arise.


What should you do this earth day?

Turn off lights and reduce heating- Try and use natural lighting as much as possible to save energy and reduce heating in your homes. You might find that you don't need to use these things as much as you already do, and this day might spur on habit change that will benefit the planet and your bank account!

Repurpose old items - Perhaps you could take some time today to sort out some old things and think up ways you could reuse or repurpose them into something else. This might be taking an old piece of furniture you have stuck in your attic or garage and deciding to turn it into something new. An old dressing table could become a new bookshelf, or an old bed frame could become a garden chair! The possibilities are endless. Repurposing is a great way to give old unloved items a new life while sustaining the materials you already have. This reduces the need to buy raw materials and is therefore very environmentally friendly. 

Meat-free- Earth day is a great day to try a veggie or vegan diet. Cut out all meat and/or animal products from your day and see if you like it. You never know, it might inspire a new era of healthy living for yourself! Meat and animal products use a lot of water and nutrients to produce; this, along with the transportation emissions and the way animals are often treated in captivity, are all huge reasons to give it up.

Clean up - If you want to go that extra mile this Earth day, a great activity to organise for yourself, friends, family, schools, and even the community is a street/beach clean up. Clean up your local area from pollution and actively recycle as you go. This will help get more people aware of the issue and may even go as far as to prevent people in the future from littering.

Support a small sustainable business- Earth day is an important day to show your appreciation for the smaller shops you love, doing as much as possible to be sustainable. Promote them on social media and rave about them to your friends because the more people supporting sustainable fashion, the less need for sweatshops, animals bred for their hide and un-recyclable plastics in fabric etc.

Fundraise for charities- Another fantastic way to involve the community in Earth day is by organising a fundraising event for a chosen environmental charity. For example, this could be a vegan bake sale, a sponsored fun run or activity, or even a car wash. 

    Charities to support


    WWF - worldwide fund is a non-profit organisation that aims to help endangered species all around the planet. They also support areas facing extreme climate change and address global environmental threats.

    https://support.wwf.org.uk/donate-to-wwf 


    Rainforest trust- A non-profit organisation. Their aim is to protect threatened rainforest areas worldwide and protect endangered wildlife. 

    https://www.rainforesttrust.org/fighting-climate-change/ 


    The wetlands initiative- Is a non-profit conservation organisation based in Illinois that works to restore wetlands in the US. These areas have a considerable impact on our environment as they produce cleaner water, act as a buffer to prevent flooding events, and have a significant effect on cooling down the planet.

    http://www.wetlands-initiative.org/donate  


    Ocean conservancy - A non-governmental organisation that takes action to tackle issues threatening the ocean, primarily ocean pollution and sustainable fishing. They have organised tens of thousands of beach clean-ups around the world. 

    https://oceanconservancy.org/ 


    Fashion revolution- a non-profit that aims to change the fashion industry into being as sustainable and ethical as possible. Human exploitation for fast fashion, eradicating throwaway culture and conservation of resources are among their primary goals.

    https://www.fashionrevolution.org/donate/ 



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