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Everyday ways to celebrate Earth Day 2021 Things to do on April 22 or any day to celebrate the Blue Planet

Mar 26, 2021 08:50AM ● By Chuck Tashjian

By Theresa Knapp 
This year, we celebrate Earth Day on Thursday, April 22. The now-worldwide event started in 1970 to bring attention to environmental issues. 
According to www.earthday.org, it was the idea of then-Senator Gaylord Nelson who, in 1969, witnessed a massive oil spill in Santa Barbara, CA, and “wanted to infuse the energy of student anti-war protests with an emerging public consciousness about air and water pollution.” More than 50 years later, Earth Day has mobilized more than one billion people for action every Earth Day in more than 190 countries around the world, according to the site. 
The following are several COVID-19-sensitive ways to celebrate Earth Day at home: 
• Go for a walk and take a trash bag to clean up your neighborhood while you exercise.
• Support local restaurants by purchasing to-go meals once a week.
• Turn off lights if you’re not in the room.
• Go vegetarian/meat free for the day, week, month or however long you choose.
• Get organized: Create donation stations within your home while doing spring cleaning. Keep the items until you are able to donate to a local organization or sell online.
• Create a compost bin in your yard. Turn all your food scraps and yard trimmings into nourishment for a garden. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency offers tips on how to compost at home. https://www.epa.gov/recycle/composting-home 
• Plan a garden. This is the perfect time to grow seeds and start a garden at home. By growing your own food, you may save some trips to the grocery store. Cornell University offers handy guides on how to grow vegetables and flowers, as we all as advice on how to design a flower garden. http://www.gardening.cornell.edu/homegardening/ 
• Plant a pollinator garden. For tips, visit http://putnam.cce.cornell.edu/gardening/pollinator-support 
• Build a bat house. Bats play a key role in pollinating plants. https://www.nwf.org/Garden-for-Wildlife/Cover/Build-a-Bat-House
• Build a bee boutique out of spare materials around the house. https://www.foxleas.com/make-a-bee-hotel.asp
• Make art out of recycled materials. Become an Artist for the Earth.
• Donate to a local food pantry. 
• Take an Earth Day quiz. https://www.earthday.org/earth-day-quizzes/