Earth Day turns 50 this year- Wednesday, April 22. Like everyone else celebrating a birthday in these spring and summer months in 2020, festivities might be a little subdued. Don’t fret- we can still go outside and give the Earth a high five and a birthday shout.<\/p>\n
There’s plenty more to be done, and hopefully you’re already doing some of it- like recycling, composting, combining trips, growing some of your own food, reducing your carbon footprint by using less single-use plastic and more reusable and biodegradable materials.<\/p>\n
It can’t be lost in the shuffle that during this global pandemic we are all living through, the environment has<\/strong> seen some positive changes. Images of canals in Venice, Italy are seen as being more clear than they’ve been in decades, since they’re not in constant use, you can actually see the fish! Cities all over Asia and where mass manufacturing takes place are seeing further (literally) to the mountains, Bourbon Street in New Orleans is clean, fresh and empty for the first time in most of our memories. There’s even been coyote spotted roaming the streets of downtown Chicago- probably trying to get into a store on Michigan Avenue, but they’re all closed.<\/p>\n This, of course, is coming at the loss of tourism and business for these areas and mostly every other civilized area, which is unleashing a whole new slew of issues, but the point remains- without constant human activity and interference- we are able to see how quickly nature will reassert itself in a given area, and what it can do.<\/p>\n For a day born out of the need to promote sustainability and raise awareness to an environment in crisis- perhaps there’s no better time to turn 50 than 2020. Being at home has pushed many of us out into our yards earlier and more often than normal, and the benefits have been many. The increased family time for some, the physical and mental rewards and health improvements of working in your lawn, some which were previously just seen by landscaping amateurs & professionals and grandmothers meticulously pruning back spent daffodil blooms (more on that later— don’t do it TOO early!)<\/p>\n The theme for Earth Day 2020 is climate action- which represents the biggest challenge we face in continuing to make our planet habitable.<\/p>\n