50 Ways to Celebrate
the 50th Earth Day

This year marks the 50th Earth Day Celebration. Did you know that, according to EarthDay.org, the first Earth Day, celebrated in 1970, is credited with launching the modern environmental movement and is now recognized as the planet’s largest civic event?
To celebrate, we have put together a list of 50 ways you can celebrate – while practicing social distancing, of course!
- Go for a hike or walk
- Plant a tree
- Watch the sunrise (or sunset)
- Practice yoga outside
- Pick up litter on your road
- Plant a garden – container gardens count too!
- Line dry your clothes
- Get yourself a reusable straw
- Ditch tampons and pads – make the switch to a menstrual cup
- Compost – if you don’t have the means to do it yourself, some refuse companies offer it along with recycling!
- Start a window sill garden – Did you know you can regrow your own food from food scraps like romaine lettuce and green onions!?
- Get a reusable water bottle
- Start using reusable snack bags
- Switch to paperless billing
- Wash laundry in cold water
- Invest in reusable grocery bags – consider canvas totes so they can be washed easily
- Recycle old electronics instead of tossing them
- Read up on recycling – what do all those numbers mean, anyway? [Pro Tip: Our standard deodorant sticks are made with 100% recyclable plastic!]
- Repurpose items like old tissue boxes to hold plastic bags and jars to hold small items– organizing under your sink is an added bonus!
- Feeling crafty? Use all of the wine corks you’ve been collecting during quarantine and make trivets/hot pads for your kitchen table - just make sure you don’t use the synthetic corks or they’ll melt!
- If it’s offered as an option, select “packaging free” when shopping online
- Commit to cloth napkins
- Clean out your closet – save any clothing in good condition to donate to a local shelter
- Have kiddos? Put them to work to make a bird feeder out of items that can be repurposed from around your home
- Look up your local watershed and find out how you can help support their efforts
- Join a virtual class – learn how to garden from master gardeners
- Get your kiddos on board – find out what ideas they have to help the environment
- Sign up for produce deliveries from a local CSA (Community Supported Agriculture)
- Don’t throw away your batteries, recycle them instead. Bonus! You can save them for recycling in a repurposed jar or container
- Find a virtual event to join on earthday.org!
- Step it up a notch and if you have the means, become a beekeeper – help save the bees and get some delicious honey!
- Donate to a conservation fund or environmental group you’re passionate about
- Take the Earth Challenge 2020 – the world’s largest coordinated citizen science campaign lets you gather important scientific data like air quality and plastic pollution and submit it to research advisory teams committed to mitigating environmental threats
- Shop eco-friendly products as often as possible. Companies like Grove Collaborative deliver it right to your door and you can find SmartyPits on their site.
- Build a birdhouse or animal habitat in your yard
- Plant wildflowers that will attract butterfly or honey bees
- Switch to LED lightbulbs
- Adjust your water heater to 120 degrees
- Use low-flow nozzles on your faucets
- Get outside to clean up brush and create a “defensible space” around your home
- Make a daisy chain crown like you did when you were a kid
- Repurpose recyclable products - jars, containers, boxes, etc
- Reduce food waste – try meal planning and build a grocery list based around just what you need
- Limit your trips – plan to run your errands all at once
- Walk or bike places instead of driving
- Grab your binoculars and spend the afternoon bird watching
- Make peace with your lonely, matchless socks then cut the tips off of them and use them as rags for cleaning and dusting. Wash, rinse, repeat!
- Keep paper that’s blank on one side to reuse for scratch paper
- Switch to loose leaf tea
- Go Green with our SmartyPits Sustainable Collection – entirely plastic-free and eco-friendly!
Throughout the week, our SmartyPits Squad will be celebrating too and we’ll be sharing those photos and stories on social, so be sure to follow along!