Earth Month 2022 | How will you take action?

8 Minute Read

Post Sponsored by EarthHero

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It’s officially Earth Month 2022!

And it’s the time of year when everyone gets the reminder that “Hey, I need to do something good for the planet. But the question is: what should I do?”

I love Earth Month because it reminds everyone to think about what I literally spend all day ruminating over. It’s also super inspiring to see so much motivation during the month of April. But in a way, I guess it’s also bittersweet because I wish the direness of the situation was top of mind for everyone all the time.

But I’m not here to bring you down about the climate crisis. I’m here to get you inspired so that you take action. And to, hopefully, empower you to take your climate activism far beyond the month of April.

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FUN FACT

Did you know that the first Earth Day happened over 50 years ago? Yup! Earth Day 1970 was the inaugural celebration. The objective? “To get a nationwide demonstration of concern for the environment so large that it would shake the political establishment out of its lethargy…and, finally, force this issue permanently onto the national political agenda.” Looks like we’re still working on it, but hey, at least we’ve made some progress!

History.com

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Now before we get started with our earth month challenge, here are a few questions to ask yourself:

• What’s your intention for Earth Month?
• What would be really cool to get done by the end of this month?
• What sort of impact would you like to have by the end of this month?

Set a goal for yourself and make it tangible. Throwing around loose ideas isn’t gonna cut it. And it’s not gonna lead to any real impact, which is the whole point. Am I right?

So what’s your goal? Could it be getting involved with a local climate action group? Or finally switching your bank to one that doesn’t support the fossil fuel industry? Or perhaps, it’s something smaller, like finally committing to becoming a master composter! Whether you’re just starting your sustainability journey, we need lots of action in lots of big and small ways.

Here are some ideas to get you motivated and moving for Earth month 2020

1. Educate yo-self!

The climate crisis, the insane amount of consumerism that happens every day, and the overwhelming amount of plastic pollution you see on a regular basis can be…overwhelming. To say the least! And there’s a lot of noise and mixed messaging out there (like fossil fuel companies funding huge PR campaigns to assuage their image as the good guys 🤦🏻‍♀️ ).

With all of that circling around in your brain, it can be hard to know where you can have the most impact. That’s why educating yourself on the big-ticket items is very important. That might be as simple as taking an online course to better understand the problems or even signing up for a local climate action seminar where you can find out which issues are most important to your community.

There are lots of options, but making sure the information you’re getting is backed by data is key. Perhaps, an easy first step is to start building your climate library! The Story of Stuff is a good eye-opener!

2. Align your money with your values

What does this really look like?

People throw around the phrase “shop your values” all the time, and we’ll get to that later on, but what does it really mean to align your finances with your values?

Do you know that when you have money in a bank account, it’s not just sitting there, idly waiting? The bank actually invests that money in projects and companies that you may or may not want anything to do with…like fossil fuel companies. In fact, as of 2021, JP Morgan Chase was the world’s larger banker of fossil fuels (Rainforest Action Network).

So the question is: are you ok with leaving your money in the hands of banks that might be using it to directly fund companies that have actively contributed to the climate crisis?

Now changing banks is not as simple as flicking a switch, but it’s really not that tricky either. There are banks like Bank of the West that have all the conveniences of the big banks, but with one big difference: they don’t support companies that are actively contributing to the climate crisis. In fact, they even have policies that prohibit them from financing things like “oil and gas projects in the Arctic region.” For a bank to take that stance, it’s no small feat.

3. Support Non-Profits that are Fighting Against Climate Change

So yes, the easiest way is to throw some cash at a climate organization. You know I’m always gonna start with the low-hanging fruit. But there’s also another much more impactful option here, and that’s to get involved with a local climate organization.

For my younger peeps, Future Coalition and Extinction Rebellion are two great options. And if you’re like me, and feel like you’ve aged out of that demographic, Citizens’ Climate Lobby has almost 600 local chapters across the globe.

Maybe there’s even a climate organization that’s specific to your area and is putting together some earth month events you can participate in. As long as you can get actively involved with an organization that’s moving the needle in terms of climate change or climate justice, you’re on the right track!

4. Support businesses that actually give back and actually give a sh*t!

Today more so than ever, you have a million options of where you can shop. Yes, there’s always Amazon and Target. But there are also online businesses that have put the planet at the forefront of everything they do. And if we wanna move the needle forward with how we want businesses to conduct themselves, we have to start supporting businesses that are doing things the right way. The way that actually gives us a future in the next 100+ years.

One of my favorite places to get sustainable goods is EarthHero. They stock everything from baby gear to badass headphones. They’re essentially an eco-friendly version of Amazon.

Now if you’re looking to align your values with the way you shop, make sure you’re vetting the businesses that you support. If you’re not sure how to vet businesses to see if they actually give a sh*t, a great hack is to see if they have any green certifications like 1% for the Planet or the B-Corp certification. You see, greenwashing is a very real thing and too many companies are jumping on that bandwagon, so it’s important to know how to spot them and more importantly, how to avoid them.

But can’t climate action also be fun?

Or course it can!

Ok, so I get it, maybe you’re not ready to take any of the above steps and are just dipping your toes into the water. If that sounds like you, here are some fun Earth Month activities that (let’s be honest) aren’t gonna solve the climate crisis, but hey they’re fun anyway and at least they get you thinking about your connection to the earth.

5. Let’s get creative + make your own seed paper

All you need are a few standard kitchen tools, some paper scraps, and any seeds of your choice. Ideally, you wanna go for native plants because they’re much more beneficial than plants that haven’t evolved to thrive in your area.

A few added bonuses of using native plants are: they require less watering and fertilizer, and they provide shelter for pollinators like bees. All good things!

Here are the instructions on how to make your own seed paper. You can use seed paper when sending gifts to your favorite peeps or just for your paper needs around the house. Once you no longer need the paper, you can plant it and see those beautiful native plants grow!

Side note: if you’re not sure which plants are native to your area, here’s a great resource that I’ve used in the past. I even used it to create a Pinterest board for my future garden.

6. Become a master composter!

I know becoming a composting master doesn’t sound like the sexiest thing in the world. But its super fun and rewarding, especially if:

• you like getting your hands dirty, and also if you don’t (there are composting options for both!)
• you geek out at cool sciencey things
• you’re one-with-your-garden and are ready to take things up a notch

There are a lot of common FAQs when it comes to composting. I had a ton of questions before I took the plunge. The most common question is: how will I know which option is best for me? You’ll see that there are many options to choose from. Rest assured, there’s a composting option that’s jusssttt right for you! And that might be dropping it off for someone else to do…there’s no shame in that!

Conclusion

These are just a few ideas to kick your earth month action into gear. So whether you’re just getting started on your climate action journey or are a seasoned veteran and are ready to align your values with the way you shop, save, and consume, there are soooooooo many ways to get involved.

I hope you accept this as your earth month challenge. And who knows, maybe your action will go far beyond earth month and bleed into every month. I’m talking about year-round 365 baby! Let’s do this!

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How are you planning to get active for Earth Day 2022?

Share your pledge in the comments below!