Earth Day: April 22
“You cannot get through a single day without having an impact on the world around you. What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make.” – Jane Goodall
April 22nd is Earth Day! Earth Day is a great opportunity to reflect on your individual impact on the Earth, and what you can do to make it a better place for generations to come. It is also a day where the world comes together to recognize our collective Ecological Footprint, and to make goals to reduce it for a healthier future.
Do you know what your Ecological Footprint is? Earthday.org offers an Ecological Footprint quiz that will tell you how many planets’ worth of resources you use. It is interesting to see what area of your life impacts the Earth the most, such as your commute to work or the amount of meat you consume.
At Apex, we are concerned about personal health and wellbeing, but the health and wellbeing of the planet has a large impact on us as individuals. So what can you do that will be good for the Earth, and also good for your health?
Be an Activist
1. Organize/volunteer to pick-up litter or clean up a river near you
Shoreline Cleanup is a Canadian website that helps people organize cleanups in our waters nationally! You have the option to join a cleanup or lead a cleanup. If you decide to lead a cleanup, the site offers suggestions on where to cleanup, when the area was last cleaned or if it has ever been cleaned.
2. Plant trees
Tree Canada offers suggestions for how you can get involved. If you are not able to plant trees yourself, there are options where you can volunteer your time other ways or donate some money to help the cause!
3. Choose an “Act of Green” to start today
What are you going to commit to, to help the health of our planet? Create your own “Act of Green” and stick to it!
Examples include:
- No longer using plastic bags
- Eating less meat, even just having one meatless day a week makes an impact
- Carpooling whenever possible
4. Cut down on the plastic that you use
Did you know?
- Enough plastic is thrown away each year to circle the earth four times.
- It takes 500-1000 years for plastic to degrade, and plastic in the ocean breaks down into such small segments that pieces of plastic from a one liter bottle could end up on every mile of beach throughout the world.
- One million sea birds and 100,000 marine mammals are killed annually from plastic in our oceans.
Stats via EcoWatch
The statistics don’t lie, plastic is extremely harmful to the environment and cutting back on the amount that we use would have a major impact.
Get Active
1. Go for a hike
Go out into nature and enjoy what the Earth has to offer! In Ontario we are lucky to have countless trails to enjoy. Take a look at Ontario Trails to find some trails near you and try a new one today.
2. Throw a football, or baseball around with some buddies
Gather your friends, go to the park and enjoy a good old fashioned game of ball! Whether it is football, baseball or soccer, being active in the fresh air is great for your physical and mental health.
3. Go for a bike ride, roller skate or skateboard
Take to the trails on your bike, pack a litter-free lunch and enjoy a day out of the house. Maybe do a lap around your neighbourhood on your old roller skates! Some cities also have skateboard parks available, if you’re interested in testing out your sweet tricks.
4. Join a recreational sports team
Sign-up to be a part of a team: this gives you the chance to meet-up and enjoy time outdoors with like-minded people at least once a week. There are so many recreational leagues out there such as ultimate Frisbee, soccer and even Quidditich!
The moral of the story is: if you want to be able to be active on this beautiful planet – you need to also be an activist and make the necessary changes to reduce your Ecological Footprint!