Earth Day activities are a fun way to celebrate while learning about our environment, the importance of preserving natural resources, and what each of us can do to be good stewards of Earth for future generations. This list of activities for Earth Day is a good starting place for making small changes that can have a meaningful impact on our world.
Start a Compost Pile
Compost is free, it works better than store bought fertilizer, and it does not contain chemicals that run off into our food and water supply. Composting also means you have less trash filling up your bin, and possible savings on your waste bill.
What You Will Need to Start Composting
For the composting process to begin, the pile needs to reach a size of about 3’x3’x3′.
Some people opt to use a purpose built composting tumbler, while others simply start a pile a corner of their yard. My grandmother’s method was to section off three areas with plywood, and move the organic material down the line as it progressed into finished compost.
I’ve found the easiest way to begin is with a pile of leaves raked up from the yard. Using nothing but coffee grounds and leaves is enough to get a compost pile cooking. Add your kitchen scraps throughout fall and winter, and you should have plenty of compost ready for landscaping by spring.
Whichever method you choose, your yard and garden will flourish after spreading a little finished compost.
What to include:
- Fruit and Vegetable Scraps
- Leaves
- Grass Clippings
- Coffee Grounds
- Crushed Egg Shells
- Chopped jack-o’-lanterns from Halloween
The list of what you can compost is long, and even includes things like cotton, wool and pet hair, but the items above will be a good start to easy composting.
What to avoid:
- Meat
- Dairy Products
Take a Hike and Collect Recycling/Garbage Along the Way
This is an easy one. Bring a trash bag on your next visit to your favorite hiking trail. Gloves or a trash grabbing tool are also nice to have.
Whenever you see a can, plastic, or other refuse, take it with you and dispose of it properly.
Doing so will make your local trails more enjoyable to visit, and keep plastic waste from eventually polluting our lakes, rivers and oceans.
Plant a Bee or Butterfly Garden
Bees and, to a lesser extent, butterflies are essential for pollinating plants, including our food crops.
Asters, black-eyed susans, blue giant hyssop, common yarrow, goldenrods, horsemint, purple coneflowers, and sunflowers are some favorites of pollinators.
These flowers also look wonderful in your yard. Since I was a child, my favorite flower to plant has been the mammoth sunflower. The flowers grow 10-12′ tall, and produce seeds for you to eat. Local birds enjoy them too.
You can learn all about the importance of bees with this free lesson plan from Nature Nate’s Honey
Plant Seeds from Your Food!
Regrowing plants from your food is a good way to learn about plants, as well as reduce your carbon footprint with food sourced directly from your backyard or balcony.
Seeds from peppers, tomatoes, avocados, mangoes, apples, cherries, lemons, pumpkins, even kiwi will all grow into a plant. Peppers are probably the easiest to grow from seeds.
Scraps from celery, ginger, pineapples (the top), basil, mint and cilantro, and many herbs will all grow if planted in the garden.
Replace Burnt Out Light Bulbs with LEDs, Which use up to 80% Less Electricity
Pick up a few LED light bulbs, and start phasing them in as you replace light bulbs around your house. LEDs use significantly less energy, saving you money and reducing carbon emissions. LED bulbs also last for years, which saves you time. I can’t remember the last time I had to replace a light bulb.
Build Bat, Bird, or Bee Houses
We have already talked about the importance of bees for pollination, but did you know that bats are pollinators too? Bats also eat mosquitoes and fertilize plants with guano (i.e. bat poop).
Birds help the environment by dispersing seeds, fertilizing, and turning up soil with their feet.
Bat and bird houses are relatively easy to make, you can even use materials you already have around the house. Bird houses can be created with old scrap wood, or empty plastic containers. A quick search will turn up plenty of bird house plans online.
A bee house is most often built for mason bees. Male mason bees do not have a stinger, and the females very rarely sting, making them an ideal addition to your garden. You can buy a kit, bind small bamboo stalks, or just drill a bunch of holes in a sliced tree branch to create a shelter which will attract mason bees.
Humans continue to encroach on animals natural habitat. Since we depend on animals, it is important to do all we can to provide shelter and give them the best chance for survival.
Place a Brick in your Toilet Tank to Create a Low Flow Toilet
Clean water is a resource we often take for granted. By displacing water in your tank with a solid object, like a brick, the toilet will use less water with each flush. You’ll save money on your water, sewage, or septic, bills and help preserve clean water for other purposes. This activity takes only a couple of minutes, and will conserve water all year long.
Add Rain Water Barrels to Your Home
Continuing on the subject of water conservation, this project is a little more involved. Placing rain water collection barrels at the base of your home’s gutter system allows you to store water for future use, typically on your lawn and garden. Rain barrels also reduce the volume of runoff, keeping fertilizer, pesticides and other chemicals out of nearby bodies of water.
Most hardware stores sell rain barrels, and you could re-purpose other containers as well. Whichever you choose, make sure your container is safely secured, as a full rain barrel can weigh several hundred pounds.
Walk or Bike, Instead of Driving
Walking or biking a route you typically drive can give you a new perspective. You’ll appreciate things, and discover places, you may have missed while driving by. It is also good exercise, which most of us need more of anyway, and good for the planet.
Stargaze
When is the last time you went out to look at the stars? Stargazing is a free family activity, which fosters curiosity an imagination. Looking up at the stars is an exceptional reminder of just how unique, and invaluable, this tiny planet of ours really is.
Go Barefoot
Find a beach or some grass, take off your shoes, and connect with nature.
Swim in a Lake or River
Swimming in a lake, pond, or river is an entirely different experience from swimming in a pool. Much like stargazing, it can be a serene experience, and reminder of our interconnectedness with the natural world.
Learn how to Repair Clothes or Gadgets, Instead of Buying New Ones
Our society rarely uses consumer goods to their full serviceable potential. If our jacket zipper breaks, our computer is running slow, or we just see a product cooler than what we have, we buy a new one.
Most of the time, we are disposing of perfectly good gadgets and clothing, if we would only take a moment to identify the problem and fix it.
Most clothing issues can be easily repaired, while sitting in front of the TV, with a needle and thread. You can repair almost anything else with a few minutes research on YouTube.
If you don’t want to repair your own clothes, companies like Columbia and Patagonia offer to do it for free.
Before you toss something aside for a new one, take a moment to consider if it can be repaired or re-purposed.
Plant a Tree
The classic Earth Day activity. Planting a tree is an activity that can provide fulfillment for the rest of your life. It is fun to visit trees you have planted, and see how much they have grown.
For Earth Day, some organizations even offer free saplings for you to plant. The Arbor Day Foundation offers 10 free trees with a $10 membership. You can also collect seeds and grow your own!
Visit our State and National Parks
America is blessed with numerous parks and public lands. From Yellowstone, America’s first national park, to the redwoods, the everglades, Big Bend, or Niagara Falls, no matter where you live, there is state or national park just a short drive from your home. They all have something to teach us, and much to appreciate. The health benefits of immersing yourself in nature have been proven, so get out there and relax!
Take a Friend Camping
Not everyone grew up in an outdoor family. If that’s you, ask a friend to take you along and teach you the ropes. If you were fortunate enough to discover the outdoors as a child, invite a friend with you next time you head out into the woods.
Make a Reusable Lunch Container Kit to Replace Your Plastic Bags
Do you pack you lunch using single use plastics? Why not put together a kit of reusable containers? While stainless steel containers are nice to have, and will last for years, you don’t necessarily need to buy anything new. Many restaurants provide reusable, microwavable, containers with takeout and to-go orders. Collect of few of these, and you’ll be set.
While you are at it, save a large plastic bottle, or pick up an insulated steel one, and stop buying packs of plastic bottles. There are places to fill up wherever you go now.
You’ll save money and reduce plastic contamination of the environment. Here are a few more ways to use less plastic.
Pack a Picnic
Grab your friends, family and those reusable containers you’ve collected and pack a picnic. Its a relaxing, affordable, way to spend time with your loved ones and enjoy the outdoors.
Make Your Own Non-Toxic Cleaners
Vinegar and baking soda will take care of 99% of your household cleaning. There is also castle soap, lemon juice and essential oils. Using natural cleaners is better for the environment, just as effective, usually less expensive, and you won’t expose yourself to chemicals that could cause health problems down the line.
Share Some Nature Photos
Nature photos inspire us to get off of the couch, visit new places, and appreciate the natural world. Share some of your recent pictures of animals or landscapes, to inspire your friends to get outside.
Go Fishing
Arguably America’s true national pastime, fishing is a wonderful way to spend an afternoon. Growing up in Minnesota, I assumed everyone was an angler. To this day, when asked how he is doing, one of my uncles will respond with what amounts to a fishing report. Even if you don’t catch anything, it is hard to complain about spending a day on the water. If you are new to fishing, check out this post explaining types of fishing lures to get started.
Make Every Day Earth Day
It’s great to have a yearly reminder, but there are small things we can do everyday to show our planet some love. Hopefully, this list of activities for Earth Day demonstrates that small changes can have a meaningful impact on our environment, and will motivate you to continue your efforts all year long.
