The Biosphere staff, our friends, family, and neighbors are going to be celebrating a little differently this year: at home. We know that you will be at home with your family too. The great news is, some of the most helpful things we can do for our planet start at home!
As Kids in the Biosphere, we know you'll be celebrating Earth Month all of April (and more!). But here are some ideas for Earth Week:
Monday is Energy Reduction Day
What Can You Do Today? Clean the coils in your air conditioner. When summer comes it will be up to 20% more efficient, saving your family money and energy.What Can You Do Next? Reduce your phantom load: the energy electronics and appliances use when idle or turned off. Phantom load can add up to 10% of the monthly electricity use in your house! To reduce your phantom load, unplug your: phone charger when it is not in use, T.V. when you are done watching, and toaster or microwave when not making food.
Tuesday is Local Food Day
What you can do today? Plant seeds! It can be as simple as a tomato plant and fresh herbs in a large pot. See the article below on seed starting.What Can You Do Next? Start a compost bin! Composting keeps nutrients from your food scraps local and out of landfills. Composting feeds organisms in the soil while reducing waste. Check back to last month's newsletter for compost set up tips!
Wednesday is Waste Reduction Day
What Can You Do Today? Make trash into treasure! Grab something out of the recycling box - an egg carton, a toilet paper roll, old newspaper - and give it new life by making a craft or new invention. Here is a list of 75 recycled material projects.What Can You Do Next? Make the choice to buy the least packaged items you can find. Try to buy only perishable items you know you will use. ADonate your old clothes and gently used items to good will instead of throwing them in the garbage.
Thursday is Water Conservation Day
What Can You Do Today? Time for a toilet test. Add three drops of food colouring to the holding tank. Leave and come back after a few minutes. If there is colour in the bowl you have a leaky holding tank. Getting this fixed will save water!What Can You Do Next? Create a homemade toilet dam! Save water in an inexpensive way using only a 1 litre plastic bottle and small, clean stones.
Friday is Celebrate Nature in Your Backyard
What Can You Do Today? Spend time outside! It could be anything: cloud watching, games, reading, eat a meal with family outside, go on a bug hunt. The options are endless!What Can You Do Next? Join the Georgian Bay Biosphere's iNaturalist project to document the natural species in your backyard! iNaturalist is an online community that allows people to share observations of the natural environment. Saving observations to your own personal account allows you to ‘collect’ them over time.
