David Attenborough Lifetime Achievement Award

Sir David Attenborough is in the category of "Environmentalist Greats" like Jane Goodall, John Muir, Teddy Roosevelt, Rachel Carson, and Sylvia Earle. (For more "greats," check out this Treehugger article. No doubt, the list could easily be 5 times longer!). 

At the age of 95, he has been an avid eco-warrior for 7 decades. It is for that reason, he certainly deserves the honor that was bestowed on him last week, just before Earth Day: The United Nations Champion of the Earth Lifetime Achievement Award for 2021. The Champions of the Earth awards are the highest award given out by the UN Environment Programme [UNEP] and is awarded to people for their contribution to biodiversity, pollution, climate change, other important environmental issues. They have been honoring environmental leaders since 2005. 

The Lifetime Achievement Award is not the only UNEP award given out annually. To date, the UNEP have honored "106 laureate, ranging from world leaders to technology inventors. They include 26 world leaders, 64 individuals and 16 groups of organizations." The categories and 2021 winners are as follows, and you can learn more about them here. Each award winner has a short video along with a tribute to their activities at the links listed below.

• Inspiration & Action Award: Nonprofit Group Sea Women of Melanesia
• Entrepreneurial Vision: Maria Kolesnikova from the Kyrkyz Republic
• Science & Innovation: Uganda's Dr. Gladys Kalema-Zikusoka
• Policy Leadership: Barbados Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley

Check out this UNEP link to see the Laureates across all categories since 2018. Further filtering can get you to individual laureates dating back to 2005.

Image from https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/04/movies/david-attenborough-a-life-on-our-planet-review.html; Video from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vlvn23rSt0M

Amanda Gorman's "Earthrise"

The beauty about Earth Day is that we have come to the point, after fifty years and if you've been paying attention, that Earth Day should not be only one day. More than a day, more than "Earth Week," more than "Earth Month," every day should be Earth Day.

Many of us had never hear of Amanda Gorman until we were blown away by at President Biden's inauguration with her poem "The Hill We Climb." Since then, she's perhaps a modern day poet rockstar to many. As her website states, she's a wordsmith and a changemaker: rockstar indeed!

A dear friend from my very green school of days gone by shared this video of Amanda Gorman's poem "Earthrise" on Earth Day. Powerful. Inspiring. Meaningful and moving. Created before Inauguration Day in 2021! 

While Earth Day has passed, the meaning of the importance of that day has not. Every day should be Earth Day

Image from https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-55738564; video from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xwOvBv8RLmo 

Earth Day 2022: What Are You Going To Do?

Happy Earth Day 2022.

With Earth Day this year on a Friday, it gives you not only Earth Day to make a difference, but the entire weekend.

My recent Earth Day post listed a lot of resources online to investigate. Excellent resources to learn from and, if you are a teacher, to help inspire you to bring environmental stewardship into your classroom. 

But Earth Day isn't just about education, it is also about "doing." It's about going out there and doing something that makes a difference to our planet Earth. Getting involved. 

For that reason, I'm referring back to a resource I listed in my April 13th post last week: EarthDay.org's 52 Ways to Invest in Our Planet. I love this list for so many reasons. It's a clickable list, so it is a great learning tool. I also love that there are 52 listed ideas. You could save one to do each week, giving yourself 52 weeks worth of planetary action to help make a difference. Additionally, you could print this copy I created and use it as a Bingo Board of taking action. 

How many things can you do this weekend to take action?

Bingo board created at www.canva.com using screenshots from EarthDay.org's list of 52 Ways to Invest in Our Planet: https://www.earthday.org/earth-day-tips/ . To print a higher quality version of this board, go to here: https://www.canva.com/design/DAE9f3yYDDw/s3FuUa50DTHnQedZ8-YzWA/view?utm_content=DAE9f3yYDDw&utm_campaign=share_your_design&utm_medium=link&utm_source=shareyourdesignpanel

How Well Do You Know Earth Day's History?

As a follow up to my recent post about Earth Day and with it swiftly approaching this Friday, it is time to test your knowledge! How much do you know about the history of Earth Day? Take this quiz and find out!

Video from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3F3KGYzN0lc, Image from https://www.cleanlink.com/news/article/The-History-Of-Earth-Day--13085

Holidays Abound

Surprisingly, it is not often when Easter Sunday, the eight days of Passover, and the month of Ramadan all overlap. 

This year they do:

• Easter: April 17th
• Passover: April 15th--23rd
• Ramadan: April 2nd--May 2nd

The reason for this is in part due to Ramadan being the 9th month on the Islamic lunar calendar. Additionally, the Hebrew calendar follows a lunar calendar but adds a 13th month in 7 out of 19 years to meet up with the Gregorian/solar calendar that we all use to follow January to December. With these different calendars at play, the simultaneous timing of major holidays within the sacred traditions Christian, Jewish, and Islam religions only happens approximately every 33 years.

All of this, along with the also highly secular nature of Easter in the United States, reminds us that the world is filled with a beautiful variety of people. We are connected to each other on this planet of ours. Earth Day on April 22nd is another reminder of that. 

I ran across this quote from Ben Irwin on Preemptive Love's website that sums it up beautifully:

"Human diversity is a lot like biodiversity: once it’s lost, it’s gone. And we may not realize how much we need it until it’s too late."

May we all take this spirit of diversity and carry it throughout the entire month of April... if not the entire year. Whether you are feasting for Easter to celebrate the end of your 40 days of Lent, fasting for Ramadan to celebrate during Eid al-Fatr, or fasting from leavened grains yet feasting in other ways during your Passover seder, may your holiday be one filled with love, family, and joy.

Pictures created at www.canva.com.

Earth Day Is On The Way

With Earth Day 2022 less than a week and a half away, it's time to dive into some valuable resources about this valuable resource of ours: our planet!

Earthday.org always has a wealth of resources. Here are just a few:

• Information on Earth Day 2022's theme: Invest in Our Planet
• 52 things to do and ways to invest in our planet
• Fact sheets by topic
• Ideas of ways to take action
• Education and action resources
• Quizzes on a variety of environmental subjects
• Information on Climate and Environmental Literacy

Population Education is always one of my favorite resources. They have a vast array of Earth Day activities, with lessons and activity packets by grade level.

PBS has an Earth Day collection of grade leveled activities that blends together environmental awareness with social justice and conservation.

At the United State's Environmental Protection Agency's website you can find an Earth Day countdown, projects and lessons for teachers, history, and more.

What are you planning for Earth Day 2022?

image from https://www.polkcountyiowa.gov/conservation/events/earth-day-2022/

Have Yourself an Eco Easter & Planet Friendly Passover

Spring has sprung as evident with the popping of flowers and the warming of the weather. We all are probably ready to bid winter "adieu!"

With Easter ahead next weekend and Passover starting the 15th, folks are probably starting to get preparations in order. Here are a few ways to get a sustainable start to your holiday festivities ahead:

Celebrations in General--including Passover Seders:

• Cook less to have less food waste. Do we really need all those sides? Do we really eat all those leftovers? Plus it saves money and calories! And, if you do have leftovers, focus on eliminating those first with your next meal plans!

• Eat fresh and go plant-based when you can. Less of an impact on meat is always a healthier approach to the planet. Organic for the win!

• Candles make it cozy. Go for the eco-friendly variety and save some electricity with more lights out and build an ambiance.

• Decorate with natural items: plants make a beautiful table setting.
  

• Cut back on the plastic where you can. Whether that's cups, cutlery, or plates, less plastic always makes things more eco-friendly. Reusable items and washing those dishes is the better plan here. If that doesn't work, go with something that composts or biodegrades.

• 
  Go for zero-waste. If you are Jewish and turning over your kitchen to rid your home of grain items or only have kosher items on hand, give away the food you are eliminating. Donate unopened items to food kitchens or shelters. Plan early to reduce shopping for items you'll soon be wanting to remove.

• Tupperware items are always better than baggies and wraps when it does come to leftovers. Not only will it keep the plastic from leaching into your food (which is healthier for your body), but it saves valuable petroleum for something other than purchased throw-away plastic!
  

Easter Specific:

• Save those plastic eggs from year to year. Yes, it's fun to go on that Easter egg hunt, but you'll save money and resources when you can pull out that saved stash of eggs from year to year. Or, repurpose them into a DIY Easter wreath or centerpiece decorations. You also might be interested in investigating these plant-based eggs where no plastic was used in their creation.

• Same goes for Easter baskets. They don't have to come cellophane wrapped and new each year! Reusable baskets wooden or wicker baskets work just as well and can make for part of the annual tradition. 

• Likewise, Easter grass for those baskets does not have to be green plastic strips. That plastic grass won't recycle and will just fill a landfill. Plus, it gets all over the place. Instead use crinkled paper grass which biodegrades. Or, use seed-paper to create your own grass/basket filling!

• 
  Who says an Easter hunt has to be eggs. Scavenger hunts can come in all shapes and sizes. They can include small meaningful toys (don't just buy junk at the dollar store) or self-created coupons for fun surprises or events! Also, create a list of natural items like certain leaves, acorns, pinecones, and more to make it a memorable outdoor event to connect to nature.

• Individually wrapped candy creates a bounty of packaging waste--most of it plastic and not recyclable. Consider making tasty treats instead! Along the way, Fair Trade Chocolate is also more planet-friendly.

• Cheap disposable decorations are just that--cheap and disposable. Decorate with natural elements. Use cloth table cloths. Think outside the single use throwaway posters and cutouts.

• Use natural dyes when coloring your eggs. Steer clear of the plastic wrapped paint pellets that we see so often on the shelves and rely on some of the recipes linked above. Plus it is a good way to do some science experiments with your littles and have them literally thinking outside the egg dye box!

• When buying eggs, go for the compostable cardboard egg cartons versus styrofoam, which never biodegrades. 

Many thanks to these resources for the above ideas: 

• Lemarc Agromond's "5 Ways to Be More Sustainable This Easter"
• Sophie Hirsh's "5 Tips for Keeping Your Passover Seder Eco-Friendly" from GreenMatters.com
• The Chicago Botanic Garden's "Tips for an Eco-Friendly Passover"
• Emily VanSchmus' "Skip the Plastic Eggs: 6 Ways to Be More Sustainable This Easter" from Better Homes & Gardens
• Kane County Connects "Countdown to Earth Day: Invest in a Sustainable (and Less Wasteful) Easter" by Jesica Mine
• Earth Friendly Tips' "How to Have an Eco-Friendly Easter"
  

Images from https://ssfu.wordpress.com/2015/04/06/sustainable-easter/, https://www.greenchildmagazine.com/eco-friendly-easter-basket-fillers/, https://www.bhg.com/holidays/easter/decorating/easter-table-setting-ideas/; https://www.brit.co/seder-table-settings/, https://ecoadventures.org/special-events/

The Grist 50 Environmental Fixers

When we all start talking about environmentalism, it gets easy to get caught in the doom and gloom. That land of weight and worry tends to do nothing for our sense of hope for the future. "Hope" is a word that I've seen in a lot of my environmental reads lately. Likewise, it is part of the name of Jane Goodall's podcast: Hopecast. Truly, it's what we all need to keep fighting the good eco-fight and give us momentum to keep going!

Inspirational environmental innovators can be a way to see that hope and be energized. Since 2016, Grist.org has been focusing finding these "fixers." They see these people as folks who go forward as problem solvers and "solutionaries." Gaining nominations from their readers, Grist makes a list of their Grist 50--50 environmental leaders who are charging forward in the areas of sustainability, climate, and equity. These men and women fall in the categories of art, business, tech, media, science, health, food, politics and more. They are chosen by their ability to work toward a healthier, more sustainable future while making a positive impact in their community, going the distance to come up with new and creative solutions to environmental challenges.

This year's categories find 2022's fifty folks falling in these categories: 

• Arts & Media: Meet 10 creatives shaping a new climate narrative
• Business & Tech: Meet 9 founders jump-starting the green transition
• Climate & Energy: Meet 9 visionaries powering a cleaner, more just future
• Food & Farming: Meet 9 trailblazers transforming how we eat
• Policy & Advocacy: Meet 13 leaders creating a more equitable system

Be sure to check out their archives introducing you to the annual Grist 50. Going back to 2016, that gives us 350 eco-heroes to celebrate! Plus, Grrist's digital tribute is visually amazing and different each year, bringing innovation into each year's presentation of people. It's an energizing and inspiring way to learn about seven years of fascinating people and what they are doing for all of us!

Image from https://grist.org/fix/about-grist50/

Little Seed Libraries

I've written before about my love of the Little Free Libraries before. They are darling and promote such a love or learning and reuse. Every neighborhood should have one!

Along the lines of this, I ran across a Seed Library when I was perusing Facebook. I found the following image on the FB page The Heirloom Gardener - John Forti. Can you imagine if we had these waterproof cuties out in the world, along people's path? It would promote gardening and perhaps even community gardens. What a wonderful way to spread the love of nature to young and old alike!

Image from https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=521529449334892&set=a.235991337888706