Friday, April 22nd is the 52nd celebration of Earth Day.  Back in 1970 Earth Day gathered together groups that had been fighting individually against oil spills, polluting factories and power plants, raw sewage, toxic dumps, pesticides, freeways, the loss of wilderness, and the extinction of wildlife.  Some of these groups have made tremendous progress in the years since 1970 while others continue to try to create change to benefit our planet.  Since the first Earth Day happened,  we’ve added more groups who are focused on climate change, reduction of our carbon footprint, and the reduction of nuclear power plants along with many others.  So how are we doing?  The stories from just this week include some hopeful news and some news that will give you some concern.

 

On the positive side of things, some of the largest tech giants are pledging more money to go carbon neutral.  This week Facebook and Google announced plans to join Apple and Microsoft in becoming carbon neutral in the near future.  We are hopeful that along with the investment of over 900 million dollars that they will bring some of their brightest minds to tackle what seems to be a huge challenge for future generations.

 

Meanwhile solar and wind prices are climbing – up to thirty percent this year – due to the global supply chain challenges.  Higher prices may mean that fewer homes will take advantage of tax credits by going solar and that will slow our transition from fossil fuels.

 

Vegans get a bad reputation for not having a sense of humor.  However, the egg alternative company “Just Egg” is doing a very funny bit of political pushback against Senators and Congresspeople who continue to deny climate change.  They are driving around DC with a truck and advertising on billboards that say their egg product has done more to fight climate change than any person in government.  Let’s hear it for their snarkiness and their goal of reducing factory farming by having more people switch to plant-based eggs.

 

Finally, the effects of deforestation are undeniable.  Forests play a vital role in the world’s carbon cycle by balancing greenhouse gas emissions, making the air breathable, and protecting against climate change.  For anyone who doubts what is being done to the Amazon rainforest, take a look at this video that shows the amount of forest that has been removed from May 2017-September 2020.  The video is a few years old, but in less than three years a huge path has been cleared where there were once ancient trees.

 

We hope you make some small changes in honor of Earth Day.  Whether you make choices on how you invest, how you eat, or even how you treat your garbage, every little step can play a big role in saving our planet.

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