April 22, 2015

April 22 is known as Earth Day. This is a day to make a difference for the betterment of the world.

Since it is in April, this day reserved for the earth itself should be celebrated every year.

Our Mother Earth doesn’t need one day to be helped, she needs 365 days. I encourage everyone to celebrate the earth every day of the year.

1,123,951,632 Acts of Green were reached according to the Earth Day Network. The Earth Day Network is an organization aiming to create a billion acts of green with anything from town hall discussions to sustainable investments.

This number can be increased by continuing positive Earth Day practices throughout the year, by making simple eco-friendly choices.

Choose to bike or walk to class instead of drive the few miles from your house to the lecture hall, or take a Saturday to walk down your street and pick up garbage.

While April 22 only lasts for 24 hours, consider what can be done in a week while walking around in your own community.

Even taking time to plant flowers to beautify the campus or paths around town can show others to do the same.

By doing this, most people will ask why you are taking so much time to make the community green.

The important thing is to tell those individuals why you are taking so much care of the Earth even though it is not on Earth Day.

There is also the option of alternative transportation such as a bus that can be used throughout  the week.

This allows people the opportunity to get somewhere without spending money on fuel.

This reduces emissions by using one vehicle instead of several to get to the same place.

Mornings before classes can seem hectic, and it is easy to be lulled into the peace and warmth of a morning shower.

Water conservation can start right now since it is easy to begin taking shorter showers.

One fact to remember is roughly 70 percent of the Earth is covered by water and 2.5 percent is fresh water.

The demands for fresh water are increasing around the world, according to science.howstuffworks.com.

It is easy to contact your complex director today to encourage all residents to begin conserving water.

The other thing to do is to conserve energy in your dorm or apartment by turning off all lights and unplugging all electronics upon leaving for the weekend.

By doing this, energy costs for the complex would go way down and doing it would promote sustainability.

One thing to consider is: we could prevent carbon emissions equal to over 800,000 cars if every American household replaced a lightbulb according to science.howstuffworks.com.

Make a Difference Day is only a couple days after Earth Day and offers a wide variety of activities that allow students to make a difference.

There is an opportunity to clean the Ice Age Trail to helping out with various projects.

This is a great way to keep the Earth Day tradition alive.

Although these are only a few suggestions as to what to do before and after and even on Earth Day, it only takes a passionate person and a text or post on social media to begin a mass movement.

The most important thing to remember is that it starts with us or else it will never be done.

To declare your action, go to http://www.earthday.org/takeaction/.