Earth Day 2010 – 40 Tips for 40 Years

Today marks the fortieth anniversary of Earth Day. It was founded by U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson as an environmental teach-in that was first held on April 22, 1970. It is now celebrated internationally. Earth Day’s purpose is to make people aware of their impact on and promote appreciation of our environment.

I’ve heard people say that they don’t bother with recycling and trying to be earth friendly because whatever they might do is too small to make a difference. It is true that if only one person made an effort, those efforts would be statistically insignificant or if only one person was wasteful, that no impact would be felt on the environment as a whole. However, what one person does usually influences others, so it is worth your while to pitch in and do what you can to leave as minimal a footprint on our environment as possible. Consider your efforts multiplied by masses of people and all of a sudden you are part of an effort that does have a positive impact. Different people will be better at different things, so listen to the myriads of great ideas out there and add in the ones to your life that are a fit for you. You can and do have an impact. Will your impact be positive or negative?

Instead of rehashing the usual tips like upgrading your light bulbs, recycling your newspapers or conserving water, I’m going to share with you 40 items picked by Etsy that recycle, repurpose or upcycle materials to make something new or in some other way are green products. I’m excited that my rustic wood vase was included in this varied collection of earth friendly products. I hope that browsing these products encourages you to purchase one of these or other environmentally friendly finds or inspires you to recycle, repurpose or upcycle something in your own world into a great “new” useful item.

Please think about what you can do for our planet the rest of the year as well. Happy Earth Day!