In just a few days, people across the globe (and in more than 190 countries) will be celebrating the planet in a variety of ways. Earth Day, celebrated annually on April 22, brings together more than 1 billion people for festivities, civic participation, and political action. To help you prepare for the big day, we’re giving you a few Earth Day tips that will keep you engaged, active, and mindful of our planet on its day to shine.
Make Your Apartment Eco-Friendly
Perhaps one of the biggest Earth Day tip we can offer is to give your home or apartment a “green” makeover. Even as a renter, you can still make choices for your space that are better for our environment. Start by going through your cleaning products and deciding which ones you can create yourself with natural products, or which ones you can toss and replace with eco-friendly products. The fewer chemicals you have in your home, the better.
Consider becoming a household that composts food scraps. Composting is a great way to be kinder to our environment, and it can even be used as fertilizer for your home garden. While you’re at it, plant a small herb garden and start reaping the benefits (free herbs!) of growing your own. Buy indoor plants for your apartment–like aloe plants and peace lilies–that have added health benefits for you and the environment.
Earth Day Activities
It might come as a surprise, but there are things you can do every day to celebrate the planet. Here are just a few Earth Day tips and activities you can do not only on April 22nd, but every other day of the year:
- Plant a tree in your backyard
- Choose walking or biking over driving
- Use recycled containers such as egg cartons and plastic containers to grow herbs and succulents
- Unplug electronics when you’re away
- Take the Carbon Footprint Quiz and see how you impact the planet
- Use reusable shopping bags
- Make coffee with a french press made from recycled material
- Shop at local stores or farmers markets for produce
- Donate your clothing and home goods
- Lower the temperature on your water heater (and save money on your utility bills)
- Pull out invasive plants in your yard and replace them with native ones
- Go paperless with your utility bills and other documents
- Opt for aluminum foil over plastic wrap; foil is recyclable
- Use cloth towels in the kitchen instead of paper towels
- Use a low-flow shower head to reduce water waste
Make Your Own Celebration
Throw an Earth Day party! Invite your friends over for a celebration filled with food, drinks, and arts and crafts. Here are a few ways to create the perfect party:
- Food: make a plant-based, home-cooked meal (after shopping locally, of course). Since livestock alone accounts for 14.5% of global greenhouse gas emissions, cooking a vegetarian meal means you’ll also helping the environment in the process.
- Drinks: concoct earth-themed drinks made with natural flavors. Try a Tree Bark Vanilla Bourbon, which literally involves infusing your bourbon drink with tree bark. It’s about as earthy as it gets.
- Arts and Crafts: get in the spirit and make some upcycled crafts with your friends. Every year, we produce more than 2 trillion pounds of trash globally, so why not upcycle things you might consider throwing away and repurpose them? Turn coffee cans into planters, hangers into recipe holders, and tissue boxes into desk organizers.
We hope these Earth Day tips helped you narrow down the type of celebration you want to have on the big day. As you can see, you don’t have to go far to make a positive impact on the environment. Hang out at your apartment, use a few of these tips, and celebrate our planet from the comfort of your own home.
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