Get in Motion with Yourself!
We often forget that we too are a part of the earth, so in honoring the Earth today, it’s important to remember ourselves in the process.
By that, I mean through the practice of expressing ourselves in creative ways. Our ability to take the things we see in the world around us and craft something from that – whether it be spoken or written words or some other form of art – is something that is what makes us human.
We are creative beings, and art and expression are ways in which we can more closely connect with the earth, show our appreciation for it, explore the world around us, and explore ourselves.
So, check out these ways to mix art/self-expression and nature!
Draw and/or Paint Something (Freehand)
Image by Oberholster Venita from Pixabay 
Image by Margriet Forsten from Pixabay 
Image by Oberholster Venita from Pixabay
A lot of people who say that they’re not good at art overlook the fact that you don’t have to be an “artist” to enjoy making art.
Anyone can make art! So don’t let ideas of “good” or “bad” stop you from making some!
As for inspiration, it is all around us, especially in nature!
So, sit down somewhere with a pencil, pen, or paintbrush, and put it to paper.
Go outside and look around your yard, neighborhood, or view, and consider recreating what you see.
Find a blooming wildflower!
Look for a cool looking tree!
Check out the landscape around you, or up at the sky above (especially around sunset).
Don’t think too hard about making art! Just go with the flow, and enjoy yourself!
Color Something!
If you don’t want to free-hand your art, or have young children who prefer coloring, bust out some coloring books to find something nature-related, or print out some available online!
Here are a couple sites where you can print out coloring pages:
https://printablefreecoloring.com/
https://www.coloringnature.org/
Remember to share your finished drawings with us!
(Must be nature related to count towards a tree planting!)
Write a Nature Poem or Song
You don’t have to draw something to get creative for Earth Day!
You can also make art with your words!
Take a look around you outside, or look for some inspiration online, and put together the words that stand out to you the most to see how you can craft something out of them.
Write an ode to a flower, or a ballad for the Earth; a Haiku about a bug, or a melody from the birds!
Inspiration is all around us, we just have to look and be open to the suggestions.
Remember! April is also Poetry Month, and we are still doing our Poetry Community Challenge! Which means for any poem (or song) submissions, we will be planting a tree through OTP!
Which means this activity counts for DOUBLE!
It counts for a tree planting automatically for completing the community challenge, and it counts for one out of the three submissions needed for the additional tree planting for this event!
Write a Mindfulness Log
If you don’t want to create something of your imagination, then consider creating something of your present surroundings in a self-reflective way!
To do this, grab a notebook and writing utensil, and go outside somewhere.
Find a comfortable place to sit, and just breath for a bit. Don’t look at your phone. Just relax your mind, and try to meditate for a bit.
Focus on your breathing, while also listening to what your hear around you; what you smell; what you see; and what you feel.
The wind. The sun. The colors of the plants and flowers. The birds chirping. The many different kinds of creatures all around you. The swaying of the trees, and the buzzing of working bees.
These and many more things provide many different sensations for us to take in, but which we often block out and ignore.
Write them down and how they made you feel. Reflect on that and write down your observations!
Make Some Earth Day Resolutions
Lastly, take a look around your home, your routines, and your life in general.
Where can you commit to making dedicated changes in your life to be more environmentally friendly, and reduce your carbon footprint during the pandemic and/or when things go back to “normal”?
Here are some ideas!
- Find ways to use less plastic! Some things can’t be avoided in terms of plastic usage at this time, but there are still many opportunities around us! For example, refuse straws, utensils, and sauce packets at the drive-thru if you’re eating your meal at home. When possible, and when restrictions are lifted, find way ways to improve your recycling practices, use more reusable products, and stop using bottled water. (Check out some of our environmental articles for more ideas here: https://mimmag.com/environment-articles/)
- Be mindful of food waste! Every year, 1.3 BILLION tonnes of food is wasted globally, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2018). This is of course collectively, from all factors, not just consumer waste. If you find yourself throwing out food a lot, you might be buying too much, or are forgetting it too often (something I personally am guilty of!) So, make a resolution to cut back on your food spending (getting only what you need, when you need it), and/or look into composting your food scraps! If you are unable to compost yourself, look into a local compost pickup service, like our partner, Viva La Compost! Also, consider growing your own food! You’ll be less likely to waste it if you put the effort into growing it!
- Commit to Taking Action and to Holding Representatives Accountable! Much of the environmental issues in the world are not because of the actions of regular people, but rather the exploitation of nature and natural resources by much larger entities, such as corporations and governments. Meaning consumers/citizens need to hold these entities and their representatives responsible! For a resolution with this issue, make a list of the companies, politicians, and anyone else that would be responsible for decisions regarding environmental issues, and make a goal to contact them to make a change! Tell a beverage company to find an alternative to plastic! Petition for a plastic bag ban! Tell your congressperson or Senator to push for climate change action! Make or sign petitions for environmentally-related issues. Run for a local office to represent your community on environmental concerns. These are all great ways to make change actively!
- Live more minimally. Much of the time, waste comes from over-consumption and over-indulgence. We may find ourselves buying things just because they attracted our attention and we thought they were cute, or grabbed things off the shelf because they made us feel good, or buying the latest model of something to feel like we’re keeping up with the rest of the world. And while it’s okay to indulge on occasion, we’ve been conditioned to do it as a habit. Buy, buy buy! If there’s anything this pandemic has taught us, it’s that materialism is not essential. So, between now and next Earth Day, see where you can minimalize your life! Get rid of things you don’t use. Clear up some of the clutter in your home, and in your mind. Appreciate the little things and the simplicity of life.
- Whatever you can and are willing to do to make a change in the coming months, write it down – and do it!
Contact a Representative
Whether it’s a company or someone in our government, if there’s only one thing you do today/this week, contacting a representative of some entity in order to request action on an environmental issue, could potentially have the most impact!
Maybe you know of a company that uses too much packaging, or has a business practice that isn’t environmentally-friendly. Send an email or call their their HR/customer service department.
Want a local politician to write or support legislation dealing with an environmental issue? Write them a letter or send them a message through their contact page, or give their office a call! If a representative gets enough contacts about an issue, they are more inclined to push for it!
You can find and contact your federal, state, and local officials here: https://www.usa.gov/elected-officials/
Generally, for smaller issues, or issues affecting your local community, start at the bottom and work your way up! For larger issues, and issues that have the ability to affect the whole country (and beyond – like climate change), contact your representatives at the federal level, like your senators and members of congress.
That’s it for these activities!
The following pages have additional resources, content, and links to organizations to check out for Earth Day and for other environmentally-related topics!
