Love your mother...

🌎 Today is Earth Day! This day is our opportunity to celebrate the beauty of Mother Earth and advocate for change around the issues most impacting the planet.

🙏 As people around the world continue to mourn and celebrate the life and legacy of Pope Francis — today we especially remember his climate justice advocacy, calling environmental degradation both a social and ethical issue.

Protecting nature

Featuring 300-year-old trees, a wildlife refuge along the Detroit River was recognized as old-growth forest

The Old Growth Forest Network has officially recognized 32 acres of old-growth forest within the Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge, which contains trees estimated to be 300 years old.

The newly designated area is part of Humbug Marsh, which is considered the last undeveloped mile of the Detroit River along the U.S. mainland.

The network now has its sights set on the rest of the state, aiming to recognize and preserve one old-growth forest per county in Michigan — as well as ancient forests across the U.S.

Why is this good news? Old-growth forests store much more carbon than young tree saplings, so finding and preserving them is a critical part of fighting climate change. Plus, the recognition raises awareness for old-growth forests, helping people appreciate and enjoy the feats of nature.

→ Read more

More Good News

​Nick Offerman is giving people the chance to go on a hike with him while raising money to protect the great outdoors. For a donation to the Natural Resources Defense Council, someone will win a hike for two in Los Angeles with Offerman, a self-described “notorious knucklehead who loves to walk out of doors” — a dream scenario for a Pawnee Ranger.

​Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge is expecting around 40 new baby bison to be born this spring. Once millions strong, by 1889, free-ranging bison numbers dwindled to almost zero and ushered in a century of bison-less Great Plains and natural habitat, grassland, other animal populations, and Indigenous communities all suffered.

​One week after a man went viral when no one came to his community beach clean-up, over 30 neighbors showed up to help. Instead of calling it quits when nobody showed up, Harvey stuck it out, documenting his slow-and-steady approach to cleaning up litter along the driftwood-dotted sands of Kitsilano — and it led to a huge show of support at the next one.

​Despite Trump administration orders, a coal-fired power plant in Colorado is still set to shut down this year. Tri-State Generation plans to close another two coal-fired units by 2028, largely because of how much cheaper renewable and other sources have become, pushing coal production out of economic viability.

​A colossal squid was captured on camera for the first time in the deep sea. Filmed in the South Atlantic Ocean, the squid was a juvenile about 1 foot in length, but full-grown adult colossal squids can reach lengths up to 23 feet — almost the size of a small fire truck.

​A free, three-week “Coding for Climate” program is teaching students to develop climate solutions. Tapping into young peoples’ love for gaming and coding, students in the program have used Minecraft to design a city that runs on clean energy, learned HTML code to create websites with climate information, or programmed devices to monitor soil moisture.

​The Ocean Cleanup recently announced that it can clean up the Great Pacific Garbage Patch in five years. Also focused on preventing new plastic from reaching the ocean in the first place, the organization’s new ocean cleanup technology measures about 1.5 miles in length and cleans up an area of the ocean the size of a football field every five seconds.

​A community in England is trying to purchase a forest and waterfall to prevent it from being sold to a private owner. Featuring a 20-foot waterfall, Goit Stock Wood has now been designated as an Asset of Community Value by Bradford Council, giving local supporters a six-month window to raise money to buy the site themselves and protect it for future generations.

Must-watch

In a new Earth Day TED Talk, environmentalist Xiye Bastida shares her ‘blueprint for climate hope’

→ Read more (and watch!)

Be the good

Take action to meaningfully celebrate Earth Day!

​Earth Day is an opportunity to celebrate, raise awareness, and advocate for change around the issues most impacting our planet — and celebrate the beauty of Mother Earth.

While the urgency of climate justice should inspire us all to spring to action — so should the exciting progress we’re already making. This Earth Day, celebrate that progress and let it fill you with hope as you make your own meaningful changes for the planet.

Here are some ways you can do that starting today:

• Spend time outdoors (we protect what we love and appreciate!)
• Learn more about both the problems and solutions facing the planet
• ​Watch a documentary about Planet Earth
• Make personal lifestyle changes that benefit the planet, like energy-efficient swaps, ethical shopping, and more
• Advocate for systemic change by contacting your elected officials​

→ 30+ more impactful ways to celebrate Earth Day!

Good Quote

→ More inspiring Earth Day quotes​

More Good bits

🌎 Would it be nice to have a planet-saving guidebook? Yes, and it exists.​

🚫 Engaging in greenwashing? You’re gonna pay for that.​

♻️ Recycling systems aren’t great, unless you live here.​

🎒 Sisterhood of sustainable fashion, with Mother Earth in mind.

🌳 One man is bringing trees back to the Rio Grande Valley.

🐦 We found the only acceptable place for citizen scientists.

*Some of these recommendations may include affiliate links, which means if you buy anything from this email, we may get something in return at no extra cost to you. (Thanks for your support!)

What’s good?

My one-year-old is absolutely obsessed with birds right now, so we spend pretty much all our free time out watching our new bird bath for sightings — you can guess how I’ll be enjoying my Earth Day evening.

Do you have any special Earth Day celebration plans?

Big or small, I’d love to hear how you’re appreciating our home today!

— Megan