This week on Earth Day, April 22nd, the city of Minneapolis will activate its ban on using Styrofoam containers, a rule that will hopefully have a significant impact on the waste generated by restaurants and food vendors. Across the country, people celebrate Earth Day by picking up trash, planting trees and flowers, or stenciling storm drains. All of these activities are beneficial, but they’re a once-a-year effort.
What if we celebrated Earth Day in a manner more similar to what Minneapolis is doing this year? Imagine the effect we could have if instead of using Earth Day as the one day of the year that people focused on doing something for our planet, we used it as a day to make a permanent change. If we made Earth Day resolutions like we make New Year’s resolutions, we would be honoring Earth Day, making a permanent change to improve the environment, and assuring that we would increase the sustainability of our lifestyles year after year.
As we celebrate Earth Day, think about a permanent change that you could make to protect or improve our planet. Here are a few suggestions to get your brainstorming session started. They are by no means the only things you could resolve to start this week, so don’t let yourself be limited by our list!
- Begin composting your organics. This is relatively easy to do if you are lucky enough to have curbside organics recycling. If you have a yard that you can start a small compost pile in, it’s still pretty simple. Others might need to collect your organics and take it to a city or county composting facility.
- Collect plastic bags at work. Considering how many products come in plastic film or small bags, it’s hard to completely eliminate plastic bags. At home, many of us collect the plastic and take it to our local grocery store for recycling, but is anyone doing that at your workplace? Take a minute to think about all the plastic bags, wrap, and film that gets generated at your job. It’s fairly easy to put out a bin or box to collect it all and then drop it off to be recycled.
- Use heirloom and organic seeds. If you’re a gardener, it might be tempting to save a little money and buy the cheapest seeds out there, but those aren’t always the best. Make a small investment in high quality seeds for your garden, and then considering saving them from year to year. If you do that, you’ll quickly recoup your investment.
- Cut back on driving. If you’re someone who drives regularly, consider cutting 1-2 trips each week. This might mean consolidating errands, walking or biking to your destination, or using public transit. Reducing your time in the car will cut back on greenhouse gas emissions and save you money on gas!
Photo: NASA
