Earth Day - 22nd April 2023
By Catherine Davis
Image description: Picture of the Earth being held up by 6 hands. A plant with green leaves is to the left. The title reads ‘22nd April 2023 marks Earth Day’.
Each year we celebrate Earth Day on the 22nd of April.
From promoting environmental excellence and pollution prevention to purchasing products which have greater recycled content, here at Equal Education we deeply appreciate what our planet has given us and we are committed to protecting the environment. We even have an amazing group of individuals within our team who form the Environmental Impact Committee. The team meets regularly to review our practices and create both short-term and long-term goals to lessen our impact on the local and global environment by conserving energy, water and other natural resources; reducing waste generation; recycling and; reducing our use of toxic materials.
We are living in the world that humanity will have to live in for centuries after we as individuals are gone and because of this, it is important to educate young people and ourselves about how to properly take care of the environment. By teaching students about the importance of sustainability and environmental action, we can empower them to speak out and take action to build a better world to live in.
Here are some simple ways students can help build a more sustainable world:
Advocate… Many children are led to believe that their voices are not ready to be heard, they are told to wait until adulthood and then they can have a say in the political sphere but many young people are able to make a large impact. Greta Thunberg was only 16 when she was declared Time person of the year for her protests surrounding climate change. And while it is not expected that every young person will be as well known as Thunberg, they can use their voices to change perspectives in their own communities.
Avoid fast fashion… With brands such as Shein and H&M, it seems as though there is a new fashion trend every week and you have to continue to buy clothes every few months if you are going to keep up. However, the fuel behind fast fashion of buy, ship, wear, and throw away, is having a disastrous impact on our world. The Ellen Macarthur Foundation estimated that a truckload of clothing is sent to the landfill or incinerated every second. Furthermore, it is estimated that people are buying 60% more clothes and wearing them half as long.
Reduce plastic waste… Bags for life have been increasing in popularity over the past few years as more companies charge a small fee per disposable plastic bag. Reusable bags such as these are an excellent way to make a small change in your life that will also help the world. There are several other ways to reduce plastic waste as well, reusable food containers allow you to pack a lunch with no waste, and reusable straws (or compostable paper ones) keep plastic straws out of the landfill. When it is necessary to use plastic, try to use recyclable plastics, Recycle Now has an excellent website that allows you to see what can be recycled and how based on your location.
Lead a community clean up… If you are looking for a way to help the environment even more, consider going to a local park or beach and cleaning up any trash that is lying around. You can even ask friends and family to participate in the clean up so you can cover more ground. Make a day of it! Cleaning up litter is important because it can end up in the oceans, the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, a massive collection of debris that has landed in the ocean, is 1.6 million square kilometers. That’s three times the size of France.!
Vote in ways that help the environment… This might not be an option available for young people but individuals of voting age can support politicians with environmentally focused goals. This allows changes to move beyond your own backyard.
We only have one planet and we need to treat it with respect and love. This Earth Day, let's remember to take care of our planet and to educate ourselves and young people about what can be done to save it!