10 Earth Day Activities to Celebrate Our Planet

We have celebrated Earth Day since 1970, and now more than 50 years later, its purpose remains the same: to encourage social and political action by drawing attention to the cause.

Every year, around the world, the damaged state of the environment comes to the forefront, and millions of people take the opportunity to pitch in — if only for a day.

Participating in Earth Day can raise awareness about the environment and inspire future generations to continue to celebrate our planet.

How Teachers Can Celebrate Earth Day

Celebrating Earth Day in school is a way to encourage students to take an interest in environmental issues. Instead of your normal lesson plans, you can teach students how to complete Earth Day crafts with upcycled materials and paper scraps, add a recycling bin to the classroom or conduct a science experiment, like trying to harness wind power.

Since our cars are some of the greatest sources of pollution in our daily lives, it makes sense to start there. Even if you have a short commute to work, driving to and from your job could still be a major contributor to pollution. Let's break it down: If you drive 10 miles (16 kilometers) each way that means you consume about a 1 gallon (3.7 liters) of gas round-trip — at least.

But that single gallon of gas sends 20 pounds (9 kilograms) of carbon dioxide into the air. That's because 1 gallon of gasoline weighs about 6.3 pounds (2.3 kilograms) and that produces 20 pounds of carbon dioxide when burned. So by not burning that 1 gallon, you'll keep 20 pounds of greenhouse gas out of the air.

So how will you get around? Consider carpooling, taking the bus or train, teleworking from home for the day, or, riding your bike if feasible. Then you'll be getting healthier right alongside the planet.

If you consider the water shortages around the world, the amount of water we use to keep ourselves squeaky clean can seem a bit shocking.

The average American takes an eight-minute-long shower, and the average showerhead uses 2.5 gallons (9.4 liters) of water per minute. That means the average shower uses 20 gallons (75 liters) of water. To fill a hot tub, it takes much more.

So on Earth Day, why not skip the long, hot shower and just stay slightly less than pristinely clean? Or at least just skip washing your hair on Earth Day. You may even find it makes your hair look and feel healthier. Just don't stop washing your hands!

We all leave a carbon footprint. If you drive, travel, order online, have air conditioning, etc., you have a carbon footprint. The good news is you can calculate your carbon footprint and that of your family members. Why? It will help you determine how much you and your lifestyle contribute to greenhouse gas emissions.

You can also use this as an opportunity to teach kids how to reduce their carbon output — for example, taking a bike to the store or even going on a nature walk instead of driving to the park. Or you can purchase carbon offsets to help.

So now that you know your carbon footprint, consider purchasing carbon offsets. Many companies sell carbon offsets to both individuals and businesses.

They basically work like this: You pay for enough clean power (wind or solar, typically) to cover the dirty power you use. People buy them to offset travel, home power usage and any other energy-heavy expenditure. Terrapass, Tentree and 8BillionTrees are just a few places where you can purchase carbon offsets for Earth Day.

Writing an email might not seem like much, but it's very much in keeping with the spirit of Earth Day. Contacting your local representatives and senators — those with the power to make large-scale changes through legislation — can have some pretty lasting consequences.

To find the name and contact information of your members of Congress, just go to the website for your state or local government. You'll find both email and mailing addresses, and you can call if that's more your thing. Just pick a cause that's important to you like clean water, forest preservation, air pollution or recycling and tell your congressman or congresswoman how you feel.

If you know of pending legislation you can weigh in on, tell your representatives how you want them to vote. You never know when your opinion will have an effect. Of course, the effect will be even bigger if you get some friends to write letters along with you. Earth Day email-writing party, anyone?

And get your kids in on it, too. This can be a great civics lesson. For example, they can send an Earth Day art project that illustrates why a certain cause is important to them. It's a great way to inspire kids to continue to speak up about what matters to them.

If you want to be a part of Earth Day, there's nothing like joining other like-minded individuals in a common task. If you have the time, there are lots of opportunities out there where you can pitch in.

You can search the web for a list of Earth Day activities in your area. You can get in on cleaning up a park, helping to plant a school garden or if you have some extra time to get a few pledges, doing a walk for a green charity.

Or have some fun but skip the work. You'll find museum programs, festivals, parties in the park and parades on the list, too. Some hands-on fun at a science museum can be a great way to celebrate Earth Day with your family.

Organizations like the Sierra Club, The Nature Conservancy and even NASA also have tons of activities planned around Earth Day.

There's no time like Earth Day to make your world a little greener, literally. Planting trees, bushes and any plant life will not only beautify your outdoor space, but it also will help absorb some of the CO2 from the air.

In fact, in 2018 the United Nations' Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report suggested an additional 2.5 billion acres (1 billion hectares) of forest could limit global warming to 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit (1.5 degrees Celsius) by 2050.

So, why not get a jump-start on that and plant trees in your yard? It will likely be around longer than you will, and aside from removing carbon from the air, it will also help prevent soil erosion. Just make sure the tree isn't something invasive or one that will require excessive watering. Remember, water's a valuable commodity.

Earth Day is as good a day as any to replace your lightbulbs with energy-saving light-emitting diodes (LED) bulbs. They're superior to compact fluorescents (CFLs) and can last 10 times longer than incandescents. They emit light in a narrow band wavelength so they're super energy-efficient.

LEDs are more expensive than CFLs and incandescents, but they'll last around 25,000 hours (compare that to the 1,000 hours that incandescent bulbs typically last). Some stores might even have CFLs on sale for Earth Day, so make today the day you finally swap out all your bulbs.

Every time you throw out coffee grounds, veggie scraps, egg cartons or grass clippings into the trash, you're just adding to the waste going to the landfill. You can compost tons of stuff instead of trashing it — and compost is like gold for fertilizing your garden and yard.

Once you set up a composting system (basically a bin in your kitchen to put in compostable waste, and a bin in your yard where it can decay) all that rich fertilizer is free.

Setting up a compost bin takes only a few hours. You can build your own out of wood, chicken wire or even an old trash bin; or you can save time and buy one at any garden or home-improvement store. It's an ideal way to celebrate Earth Day because it's not a one-time thing. You'll be reducing waste and building up your soil for as long as you stick with the program, which shouldn't be hard.

It's great to do something nice for the environment on Earth Day. What's even better is to keep Earth Day projects going beyond that.

So if you commemorate Earth Day by setting up a compost bin, make sure you stick with composting. Don't let it be just a short-lived exercise. If you skip a shower to conserve water, make it a habit to conserve water in other small ways, like only running the washer or the dishwasher when they have full loads.

Try to telework at least once or twice a week or get a carpool together for the days you drive into the office. And don't just replace your light bulbs; remember to turn the lights off when you leave the room. Make planting a tree on Earth Day a yearly tradition. Volunteer at an environmental organization as often as you can — monthly if possible. The Earth will thank you for it, and Earth Day will have done its job.