This Earth Day – April 22, 2020 – is different from all the rest. Yes, it is the 50th anniversary of the launch of the modern environmental movement. 50 years we have been trying to save this planet! The featured image in this post is of Earth Day buttons from some of the earliest Earth Day gatherings. It is courtesy of my uncle, Albert L. Feldstein, a historian who amassed a collection of literally thousands of buttons from campaigns and events in the United States of every shape, color, and size.

But this Earth Day is also, I believe, the first time we as a planet have marked this occasion during a global pandemic.

As a result of COVID-19, most of the planet’s population is practicing social distancing. Non-essential businesses are closed. People are discouraged from getting together in large or even moderately-sized gatherings with friends, loved ones, or like-minded individuals. Travel is prohibited in many areas. Parks and beaches have restricted access.

So how are we supposed to celebrate this Earth Day if we can’t actually, like, go out and celebrate the earth?

That is something I’ve been wrestling with in my head for the past week or so, as I’ve procrastinated on writing this post. Ordinarily, I might suggest joining your local beach or nature clean up volunteer group for the day. Or attend a class of vermicomposting to do your part in helping the environment. Tour your local recycling or landfill facility to see where your trash actually goes.

But being in self-quarantine, are there actually ways to celebrate Earth Day safely?

Well, in fact, there are! While they may not be as flashy or as Instagram-ready as some activities might have been pre-Coronavirus, there are still many ways you can do your part to help the planet, from the comfort and safety of your own home.

And by the way this is by no means an exhaustive list. It’s just meant to give you some simple ideas  and easily-executed ways to mark Earth Day at home this year.

 

#1 – Acknowledge Earth Day

This may seem obvious, because if you are reading this post, chances are very high you are already aware of Earth Day. But, you may be surprised how many other people in your life (older family, children, friends who live under plastic-covered rocks) don’t know what this day is.

So when you wake up in the morning, say Happy Earth Day! Mention it to someone you happen to interact with. Maybe it’ll brighten their day to know someone else cares enough about the planet to talk about it. Or maybe you’ll inspire them to look it up and learn why this day exists in the first place.

 

#2 – Enjoy Nature

Normally, this might be an easy feat to accomplish. But being self quarantined at home, with stay at home mandates all across the country in effect, it’s not so simple to just go out into nature for Earth Day.

If you have any private outdoor space where you live like a backyard – fantastic! You can enjoy nature right there by sitting outside and breathing in the fresh air. According to studies, the air you’re breathing is probably the freshest and least-polluted it’s been in decades! Where I live in Orange County, California, the air is so smog-free I can now see the Hollywood Sign in Los Angeles which is over 50 miles away!

If you don’t have private outdoor space but are able to go for a walk outside, that’s a great way to appreciate nature and all this anachronistically fresh air as well. Breathe in deep and think to yourself, this is what air used to feel like, before we had cars and freeways and factories pushing CO2 into the atmosphere nonstop.

See some wildflowers? Make them into an earth goddess crown using my easy DIY flower crown tutorial!

If you aren’t able to get outside due to the quarantine or your personal health, then perhaps you have an indoor plant that could use a little extra TLC and chitchat today. Or sit down and watch one of the new Disneynature documentaries that were recently released on Disney+: DOLPHIN REEF, ELEPHANT, and JANE GOODALL: THE HOPE.

 

#3 – Reduce / Reuse / Recycle In The Kitchen

Do you find yourself cooking at home more often now with the stay at home mandate in place? That’s a good thing for the environment. Take a moment to recognize that by cooking instead of getting take out from a restaurant, you are skipping the styrofoam or plastic containers, plastic utensils, and plastic bags that take out usually comes with.

Perhaps you ran out when COVID-19 first started to crest and bought big bags of pantry staples in anticipation of not being able to go grocery shopping for a while again. Changes are that means you just bought in bulk and saved on extra food packaging waste. Or maybe you’re baking bread now along with it feels like every other single person on the planet. That’s one less plastic bread bag that’s going into landfill.

Can you make a commitment to cooking more often at home once the COVID-19 restrictions have eased up?

Another idea: reuse the kitchen items you already have that you might otherwise throw away. Check out this post I wrote about upcycling plastic sandwich bags.

My daughter turned some old plastic spoons and pipe cleaner bracelets that she had made in preschool into a spoon family.

What other kinds of fun “people” or toys can you make with your kids by upcycling items you’d otherwise be throwing out?

 

This post contains links to products on Amazon which I as an Amazon Affiliate may earn a small commission on if you click on them, at no additional cost to you, which goes right back into the cost of running this website. 

 

#4 – Replace Disposable Plastic Products With Reusable Alternatives

Disposable products are only useful if you can buy them easily and often. Being quarantined at home, with every grocery run requiring near obsessive levels of disinfecting afterwards, means you can’t buy stuff as often as you may have been used to.

And that is actually a great thing for the environment. Instead of buying disposable disinfecting wipes in a plastic container, try mixing white vinegar with water in equal parts, and a few drops of your favorite essential oil. Pour that on a reusable cleaning cloth and you’ve got an easy and eco-friendly disposable wipes alternative!

I know you probably saw the news reports at the beginning of this pandemic of all those people buying up massive amounts of toilet paper and bottled water. Instead of hoarding plastic water bottles, consider investing in a portable Berkey Water Filter. Over time you will end up saving so much more money, and reduce the need for plastic water bottle production. You can read my post about this easy eco-friendly switch by clicking here.

 

#5 – Start A Compost

Since you’re probably cooking more often at home, you’re also probably creating more food waste as well. Turn that waste into “black gold” as they say with a compost! Not sure where to start with composting? Watch this cute and kid-friendly instructional video featuring Remy from RATATOUILLE:

https://video.disney.com/watch/how-to-compost-with-remy-disney-family-5a3726dc9a3eeebd6b4f2a72

 

#6 – Take The Eco Challenge

The Discovery Science Center is one of our favorite children’s museums in the world, and we are lucky to live within driving distance of it! One of my kids’ favorite exhibits there is the trash sorting game, where you pick a never-ending stream of toy trash off a conveyor belt (I Love Lucy style) and sort it into types: food waste, landfill, and recycling.

Although The Cube, as it’s known to locals, is closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, they’ve created a fun Eco Challenge that you and your kids can do at home! It includes kid-friendly information on organic food and composting, along with fun games and activities they can do to be more eco-friendly.

 

#7 – Explore The Great Indoors

If your outdoor access is limited right now, that’s okay! Famed (and aptly named) outdoorsman, Bear Grylls, has created 100 survival challenges that kids can do at home. If you’d like to encourage the little naturalist in your kiddo, click here to get them started on the challenge!

 

#8 – Read Your Child An Eco-Friendly Book

In a way, the best thing we can do to help the planet is to educate the next generation on the importance of caring for our environment so they can always have that as a priority as they get older and begin to influence the world.

The simple act of instilling in them a love for nature and an understanding of how our actions can impact the health of the earth can go a long way. Plus, by sitting down and reading with your children you’re showing them love and care, which nurtures their souls in a complementary way.

Click here to see my Eco Friendly Mama suggested reading list for kids!

 

By the way, if you’d like to learn more about these and other historical buttons from American history, Albert L. Feldstein’s vast political button collection has been donated to multiple institutions including the New York State Museum, University of Virginia, Michigan State University, and the State Museum of Pennsylvania among others. You can also find his historical books on Amazon. Thank you Uncle Al for letting me use this Earth Day button image!