Carbon footprints and Earth Day

by Mary Strate and Annabel Strate-Friesen  (April 2014)

Earth Day is upon us once again. Last year, I tossed the children into the car and chugged up to town to visit the Biosphere. Parking at the Biosphere costs 16$ for any stay over an hour…, even when I lock my husband in the car! Tickets consumed 27.50$ for me and the children…, various memorabilia necessitated at least 40$…all imported to Canada in large shipping containers. Within two hours we left. Did the children learn anything?

It would take a silly amount of trees to offset the pollution generated for said pedagogical trip. Teaching the tots that we need to cherish our earth this way was not just impractical, it was unethical. What was I teaching my children about environmentalism? Does being green have to hurt financially? Is environmentalism time-consuming? Should we all give up on weekend trips to save the planet? Did Peter really need to be locked in the car?

Maybe I was too ambitious…, or simply misguided. One of the problems we face is that there is nothing funny about global climate change. The twenty second of April was designated ‘Earth Day’ back in 1970 and a great deal of good has happened. My children have never questioned the gigantic blue bin hovering at the school bus stop every fortnight. Recycling bins are part of our landscape now because people are doing the right thing.

Unfortunately, like laundry, there is still a great deal to be done. Let us show visitors how proud we are to live in such a pristine canton by planting another tree, picking up wayward rubbish, or turning off the television on Earth Day. We do not need to spend money to celebrate Earth Day, just information.

For more ideas: www.earthday.ca