Preparing for Earth Day 2011 - a countdown

Abe V Rotor

Living with Nature - School on Blog. It is open to all, welcome!
Lesson: Let's be a part of Earth Day 2011

Countdown to Earth Day April 22, 2011. These are some things we can do to make Earth Day significant in real terms and long range effects.

Home, Sweet Home with Nature
(Courtesy of Smithsonian Museum of Natural History, Washington DC)

Primeval Earth in acrylic, AVR 2005

Set 1 - Things to do spontaneously. Take heed and act now.

1. Keep clean and neat at all times, at home and in public
2. Have regular physical exercise through sports and work.
3. Eat fruits and vegetables, less of meat products
4. Save, save, save. Refrain from non-essential and luxury items.
5. Get rid of thrash properly. Donate materials which still have something of value like clothings.
6. Recycle bottles, old clothes to rugs.
7. Repair, don't throw away - furniture, appliances, clothes.
8. Refill: ball pen, printers, detergent dispensers.
9. Compost, convert kitchen and farm waste into valuable fertilizer. Practice organic farming.
10. Limit use of cosmetics, avoid those known to contain harmful substances like Pb, Hg and Cd.

Set 2 - Plan, Simplify and Organize. Just do it.

1. Organize a car pool in your area. Why not a carless day?
2. Check tires regularly. Underinflated tires give less mileage. Replace old tires.
3. Economize water. Check pipes and faucet for leakage. Recyle water.
4. Harvest and store rainwater in tank or pond for domestic use.
5. Build a garden pond to cool and beautify garden, raise fish - and safety in case of fire.
6. Walk the short distance, or bike. Do it regularly.
7. Plan your car route, avoid congested area, maximaize travel.
8. Be a handyman at home for simple house repair, school projects.
9. Plant backyard with vegetables, herbals, ornamentals - in this order.
10. Plant trees as personal or community project. Take care of them after.

Next set follows. Why don't you add to the list and be a resource person?

Every year, Earth Day - April 22 - marks the anniversary of the birth of modern environmental movement that started in 1970, brainchild of Senator Gaylord Nelson of Wisconsin.

Earth Day capitalizes on the emerging consciousness on environmental concerns.
Since then millions all over the world took to the streets, parks, and auditoriums to demonstrate for a healthy, sustainable environment in massive rallies. More than just talk and demonstrate, they rolled their sleeves took the rake and shovel and did the cleaning of cities, parks, rivers, the sea and air. Colleges and universities organized protests against the deterioration of the environment. Groups that had been fighting against oil spills, polluting factories and power plants, raw sewage, toxic dumps, pesticides, freeways, the loss of wilderness, and the extinction of wildlife suddenly realized they now share common values.

Earth Day was instrumental in the creation of the United States Environmental Protection Agency, and the passage of the Clean Air , Clean Water, and Endangered Species Acts. Earth Day paved the way for the 1992 United Nations Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, and subsequent environmental conferences.

Earth Day is just the beginning of Environmental Revolution - the revolution of this millenium. It's going to be the biggest change mankind aims to achieve, it means saving Planet Earth. ~