Earth Day 2023 - April 22nd
The theme of Earth Day 2023 is once again 'Invest in our Planet'
Churt's action theme this year is 'Less is More'
Since 1970, April 22nd has marked the official celebration of Earth Day, a day to reflect and take action to move towards a greener, more sustainable future. It was first commemorated to tackle environmental issues like climate change. 2023 sees a continuation of last year’s theme to “Invest in our Planet” and calls upon us all to come together in partnership for the planet, to dedicate time, resources and energy to solving the climate crisis, increasing biodiversity and accelerating change towards a green, prosperous and equitable future.
To help you in reflecting on why we all need to take action now, browse through this presentation which summarises work done by the British Meteorological Society and the Antarctic Survey to pull together facts about climate change, its consequences (globally and in the UK) and actions to reduce emissions and the UK pathway to net-zero. Also, check out the British Meteorological Society’s interesting answers to Climate Change FAQs.
For the younger members of the family, follow this link to learn about what Earth Day is and why it is important and about different ways we can get involved and “Invest in Our Planet”.
The theme for Churt’s 2023 Earth Day Project is “Less is More”.
Pledge something that you can do LESS in order to invest MORE in our planet.
View or download some very interesting information by clicking on the image above for adults and the image below for younger members of the family.
Pledge at least one additional small step that you can take right now that will help create meaningful change for the planet, its habitats and its people.
Please tell us what your pledged action is by email on churtenvironment@gmail.com including any related photos, so that we can pull them all together and present them on the Net Zero for Churt website, showing that together the people of Churt can make a difference. We won’t publish names.
Here are just a few ideas to get you thinking – but please come up with additional ones and be as innovative as you like in doing LESS to invest MORE in our planet.
Drive your car less - take the bus
Take advantage of the £2 bus fare cap available until end June when going into Farnham. It’s cheaper than the cost of fuel plus parking!
Double your donation at no extra cost to you
Nature in the UK is in crisis. From 20th to the 27th of April 2023, every donation made to The Wildlife Trusts will be doubled. Gifts will have double the impact.
Support Surrey Wildlife Trust in
saving Surrey's Hazel Dormice populations from extinction.
Waste less food
4.5 million tonnes of edible food is thrown away each year by UK households. 25% of this wasted food is due to cooking, preparing or serving too much, costing UK households £3.5 billion each year. Check out lots of tips to reduce your household’s food waste
Less food miles
Buy locally grown and seasonal produce to reduce all the carbon emissions caused by transporting food to the UK.
Support local farmers at farmer's markets and farm shops.
Do less gardening to make space for wildlife
Resist the urge to tidy up parts of the garden – especially in Autumn and cut out use of chemicals. Check out tips on sustainable gardening and link to lots of useful leaflets on gardening for wildlife.
Mow less grass to make space for wildflowers to
support pollinators and a wide range of other insects.
and check out how to make space for wildflowers
Use less energy
Turn the heating thermostat down one degree, open the conservatory doors when the sun is shining to heat other parts of the house etc. etc. Check out more energy saving tips
Take one less flight
Go by train instead or combine two short holidays into one longer holiday.
Cut out single use plastic
Use reusable water bottles, reuse plastic bags and boxes, wash and reuse freezer bags, take your own bags for supermarket veggies sold loose, recycle any soft plastics you get in the supermarket back to the supermarket etc
Use less water
Shorten your shower time and use a low-flow shower head, collect rainwater and use on the garden, re-use grey water on the garden if you can, turn off the tap whilst you brush your teeth etc.
Responsible Consumption
Only buy what you need, avoid fast fashion fuelling mountains of waste clothes
Recycle and re-use more to use less
Waste less of our planet's resources by recycling more. Add something new to your household recycling, e.g. plant pots, coat hangers, batteries, soft plastics etc. Find out where to take them at this useful Surrey Environment Partnership website
Make your voice heard through your choices and actions!
Please don't forget to tell us what your pledged action is so that we can summarise and tell you how Churt responded to Earth Day 2023. Just email Churt Environment Working Group at churtenvironment@gmail.com saying what your pledge is and attach any photos that we can publish. Let's all invest in our planet now!