Earth Day - History, Wins & Ways to Celebrate!

“I wanted a demonstration by so many people that politicians would say, 'Holy cow, people care about this. That's just what Earth Day did." - Gaylord Nelson, on the first Earth Day.

Here at Local Refillery, we like to say that “every day is Earth Day”. But we also believe that Earth Day has created so much positive change, it deserves continued observation and celebration in order to maintain (and push forward) all the important work it’s done so far.

A little history… the very first Earth Day was in 1970 when US Senator Gaylord Nelson and activist Denis Hayes organized a teach-in, with the goal of influencing government to adopt environmental issues into policies. At that time, people had started to realize that - although industry may have had many advantages - it was also having some detrimental impacts on our air, land, and water. 20 million people joined in that first Earth Day, showing that this issue was important to many, and the Environmental Protection Agency was formed soon after as a result.

Over the past 5 decades, Earth Day has inspired tremendous change, including the creation of the Clean Air Act, Endangered Species Act, and Clean Water Act, to name a few. Canada was quick to follow in adopting many of these changes, and in 1990, Earth Day - and its impacts - went global. In 2016, April 22nd was chosen as the day to sign the Paris Climate Agreement, and in 2020, including climate education in school systems along with teaching civic engagement skills to youth became another priority. These are just a handful of the far-reaching changes this day has produced over the years. Now, over 193 countries and more than 1 billion people take part in Earth Day, making it the largest civic-focused day of action in the world.

This planet is our beautiful home and there are many reasons - and ways - to protect it. Here are some simple things you can do. Some may be fun ideas on/near Earth Day, while others are little changes that are easy to adopt into your daily life:

🌎 plant a tree or a garden

❤️ pick up litter

🌎 conserve water

❤️ attend a nature walk

🌎 learn about/start composting

❤️ learn about/embrace the many “R’s”

🌎 organize/join in a community cleanup

❤️ create beautiful art with repurposed items

🌎 switch to eco-friendly habits like biking, walking, or carpooling

If you’re looking for ways to get more involved, volunteering at a local organization, writing your governmental representative, and/or starting petitions regarding issues important to you can be powerful options. You could also hold your own info sessions and/or gather with like minded individuals to discuss solutions to issues like deforestation, pollution, climate change, and biodiversity loss.

It is the gathering of minds and small actions of many that has led to the legacy of Earth Day, and it will need the same ingredients to maintain its momentum. 💪🌎❤️