Earth Week Reimagined
As Great River Greening celebrates its 25th anniversary, we also celebrate Earth Day’s 50th anniversary. We have come up with 50 tips, tricks and ideas for how to honor Earth Day in our less than traditional circumstances. For an extra challenge, select 3-5 of these and create “Isolutions”, resolutions while isolated, to work on throughout the month, season or year. All these tips were contributed by Great River Greening staff based on what they’ve been up to this spring.
Education
PollinatorLIVE (Photo by Becca Tucker)
Dakota County’s Recycling Game
1. Knowledge is power! Read about the history of Earth Day itself. As starting points, we recommend:
https://www.earthday.org/history/
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL3480E41AA956A42B
2. Take a deep dive into the State of the Earth. These facts relate to energy and emission, environment and climate, and air quality. The source, USAFacts.org, is a nonpartisan, not-for-profit civic initiative with no political agenda or commercial motive.
3. Explore city bird sounds. Visit the Urban Bird Sounds Project to learn how to identify birds simply by their calls, chirps and chitters.
4. Press ‘play’ on pollinators. Visit PollinatorLIVE at https://pollinatorlive.pwnet.org/ to learn more about pollinators through activities, webcasts and other resources.
5. Put yourself to the test. Try taking these Earth Day quizzes on a variety of subject matter areas. See how much you know, and learn even more.
6. Get yourself sorted. Do you know how to sort your recyclables? Take this interactive quiz from Dakota County to learn how to dispose of different types of recyclables.
Action
7. Take up nature photography. Nature can be anything from a blade of grass in a parking lot to a waving prairie. Photography can help you connect with your environment. You don’t need a fancy camera -- literally anything that saves photos will do.
8. Participate in the City Nature Challenge 2020. This annual event is still taking place virtually, and you can join now at citynaturechallenge.org.
9. Start seeing birds. Birding can be done in your own backyard. Observe and photograph the birds around you, then learn to identify them. This activity can be done year round and brings you closer to the natural world right outside your door. Visit the Audobon Society for tips on how to get started.
10. Bring all the birds to your yard. Make a bird feeder out of a recycled can to attract more birds to your neck of the woods.
11. Start seeing bees. Plan a pollinator garden to enhance your natural landscape. If you don’t know where to start, try the Pollinator Toolkit.
Join or begin a community garden.
12. Chalk it up to success. Draw hopeful or fun things on sidewalks with chalk for people to see as they take daily strolls.
13. Pass on your ski goggles. You can donate ski goggles to health care providers via Goggles for Docs.
14. Consider community gardens. Do you know if there’s a community garden near you? You can locate one or even start one by visiting American Community Gardening Association’s website, www.communitygarden.org.
15. Say no to napkins. If you’re ordering food delivery, ask the restaurant or delivery service to 86 the extra napkins if you already own cloth napkins, or if you have a substantial stockpile of paper napkins.
16. Start your own garden. Now is the perfect time to plan your vegetable garden, both because of the season as well as social distancing concerns. You can follow your meal from seed to harvest.
17. Free yourself. Donate unwanted goods through freecycle.org, or see if anyone is giving away something you need.
18. Kick the tires. Check to see if your tires are properly inflated and aligned to increase fuel efficiency.
19. Watch your waste. Purchase biodegradable doggie bags to decrease the footprint of your furry friend.
Electronic field guides are a great tool for identifying leaves. Photo credit: Becca Tucker
20. Pick it up! Collect leaves from your yard or from a walk in your neighborhood and see what makes the leaves the same or different. Ask yourself: How many points do the leaves have? What colors are the leaves? How would I describe the texture? Find a book or a website online to help you identify what trees they might have come from last fall.
21. Adopt a storm drain. Protect local waterways from runoff pollution by adopting a storm drain near you. Learn which drains need help at https://adopt-a-drain.org/ and learn more about the impact of adopting a storm drain at https://waterstothesea.org/AADInteractive/. Check with your city/watershed, as sometimes there are helpful cost-sharing options.
22. Sign up for a CSA. Community Supported Agriculture, or CSA, supports local farmers and community. Spots in CSAs have been filling up quicker than usual this year, so sign up soon at https://minnesotagrown.com.
23. Reach for the stars. Download a star chart app so even if you can’t see the stars in a metropolitan area like the Twin Cities, you can learn about astronomy and why our Blue Marble is so unique, and why it’s so important to take care of the only planet we have. Earth Day happens to coincide with the peak of the Lyrid meteor shower, so it’s a great time to start.
Find an app to help reduce screen time.
24. Reduce your screen time. Many phones have screen time tracking included as a standard feature. Pledge to spend 10% less time on your phone. Bonus points if you don’t spend that extra time watching television.
25. Have a watershed moment. Learn more about what makes up a watershed, and quiz yourself to see if you hit ‘save’ on all that new information you took in.
26. When the moon hits your eye… Go look at the moon, and call a friend or family member who can look at the moon at the same time. No matter where you are in the world, you’re always looking at the same moon.
27. Install and use a rain barrel. Rain barrels are a great alternative to watering from a municipal supply. Learn how to DIY this here: https://www.treepeople.org/installarainbarrel
28. Get hunting. Take your family out for a nature scavenger hunt. While this site is a good place to start, many cities have their own scavenger hunts available on their websites.The linked list offers some extra credit options to add more difficulty to the hunt.
29. Try geocaching. If you want to take scavenger hunting to the next level, join the many Minnesotans who geocache across state parks with support from MN DNR and Three Rivers Park District.
30. Find and follow. If you’re active on one or more social media platforms, look for eco-friendly accounts or organizations to follow. They will enjoy the support and you will be more informed about environmental news.
Offer your skills to organizations that could use a hand.
Visit five national parks from the comfort and safety of your own home.
31. Donate your skills. There are organizations all over the country working in support of environmental causes. Through Catchafire (https://www.catchafire.org/) you can find one in need of project-based assistance. Not only will you help them make the most of their funds, but you can also build your portfolio if you’re just starting out.
32. Take a virtual tour of a national park. Many of our national parks have virtual tours available thanks to Google Arts & Culture. Click here to start.
In the Home
33. Revisit your reusable accessories. Many of us have reusable cups and grocery bags, but sometimes they end up gathering dust in our closets and cabinets. Look for any forgotten or neglected reusables and see if they can be brought back into rotation.
34. Add some flair. Decorate with this year’s Earth Day poster, courtesy of NASA. Each year means a new poster, and each poster has a story. You can download the poster here and learn about how it was made here.
35. Unsubscribe from junk mail. It’s easy to just keep throwing away junk mail, but there are a few easy steps you can take to greatly reduce clutter in your mailbox.
36. Download Microsoft’s exclusive Earth Day theme for Windows 10. You can still bring nature right to your desktop. This is especially helpful if you’re spending more time online than usual.
Find inspiration by trying different layering combos.
37. Host a #ThrowbackThursday fashion show. Challenge yourself to find clothing in your closet that you haven’t worn in a while, and find a way to breathe new life into these pieces with creative styling.
38. Change where you sit for a day. By now, your routine might include where you set up your workspace every day. Even changing yours to a window seat can change your mood. Spice things up and choose a different window to sit in front of every day.
39. Start a gratitude journal. With many businesses closed and friends at a distance, we can get focused on the negative. Yet there’s always something positive, a silver lining, that we can reflect upon. This journal can include things you’ve seen in nature that you normally wouldn’t have.
40. Scope out the Loon Cam. The National Loon Center posts livestream loon cams on their website, with videos running as long as 11 hours. Get as much of Minnesota’s state bird as you can handle.
41. Hit the replay button. Check out the website BuyMeOnce.com for durable products with lifetime warranties (in other words, they won’t need to be constantly replaced).
42. Secure the perimeter. Use dog/cat hair instead of chemicals around your garden to keep rabbits away.
Get started with home composting and reap immediate rewards.
43. Try to make your Mondays meatless. As a change of pace, you can try making one day of the week meatless (it doesn’t have to be Monday) and explore a wider range of food options. You can learn more at http://www.meatlessmonday.com.
44. Leave no leftover behind. Add a list of what you already have on hand to supercook.com, and the site will supply you with creative recipes. This can reduce waste in your fridge and pantry.
45. Finally try composting. You know you’ve thought about it. Now is the time to try it and reduce waste. Composting can also give a boost to any gardening you start this spring.
46. Clear buckthorn. Buckthorn is a problem, and you can be the solution. Read up on what your options are and take care of business. Visit the DNR’s website for removal and management tips.
47. Kick up the jams. Make your own Earth Day Spotify playlist. For inspiration, take a look at the Great River Greening staff playlist here.
48. Can I get a refill? Look at products you use regularly, such as cleaning solutions and toiletries, and research whether there are bulk refill options for each product. Many brands now offer refills -- you often need to hunt them down.
49. Fix something! Flex your handy work by fixing something that you would otherwise have to replace. Get started by finding small DIY projects and work your way up to more complex fixes.
50. Our last tip comes from Dan Handke, Great River Greening Grants Administrator:
“A lot of people are walking more. Myself included. Along my walk I've noticed a lot of trash along the shore of a local lake that parallels a major road. I'll be taking a trash bag and a pair of gloves with me next time to pick up trash along the shoreline.”