Earth Day

Today is Earth Day.  Happy Earth Day!

When you talk about Earth Day to a variety of people, it seems it is somewhere between one of those crazy commemorative days that you read about in the newspaper (April 22 is also National Jelly Bean Day) and a national holiday.

Like a nominal commemorative day, no one has the day off of work or school.  Some people scoff at it or ignore it.  Like a national holiday, preachers and teachers talk about it.  People generally know about it and pay attention to it.  Magazines, newspapers and television stations all feel the need to buff up their green credentials and present articles and programs that talk about the Earth, pollution, nature and climate change.  Some have called it the largest secular holiday in the world, celebrated by half of a billion people worldwide.

While it is always good to pay attention to them, Earth Day isn't really about big environmental issues or the celebration of the masses.  Earth Day is about the difference an individual can make.  Earth Day is about promoting environmentalism on the personal level; increasing your awareness of environmental issues, and understanding the impact of your actions.  Earth Day is about learning about the things you can do that can make a difference the other 364 days of the year.  Earth Day is a day of  community celebration and individual education.  

I saw a cartoon in the blog I posted a link to below, in which the planet Earth is looking for a diagnosis from a doctor.  "I am afraid." says the doctor, "you've got humans."  Earth Day is about making that cartoon a little less true.

Happy Earth Day!  I would have gotten you a card, but I was afraid it would just end up in the landfill.

Related articles

• Happy Earth Day!
• It's 'Earth Day:' What Are Your Plans?

Happy Earth Day

On this 42nd Earth Day, I wanted to suggest a few things we communicators and marketers should consider:

• I think that it is a good thing to consider the environmental impacts of the media decisions that we make. I think it is valid to consider those impacts, along with the effectiveness of reaching your desired audience, when mapping out your media choices.  It is also valid to publicize the fact that part of your decision was made altruistically, with an eye to your organization's impact on the world you operate in.
• A lot of our media options require electronic equipment (smart phones, tablets, laptop computers, etc.) to create and to experience.  As you upgrade your equipment, please remember to be responsible with how you dispose of your old equipment.  Electronics and electronic media recycling is becoming more prevalent, although admittedly not convenient in most parts of the world.  Please take the time and effort to 
• find a reuse for your phones or computers when possible, 
• find a responsible recycling venue that will keep all components out of landfills, and find a reuse for as many of the components as possible.  
• Don't be afraid to initiate efforts.  Communicators have traditionally been heavy users of paper and other resources.  We can have an even larger impact on the environment if we can figure out ways to prevent from using the resources in the first place (electronic meeting minutes, web conferencing instead of traveling to a meeting, etc.) 
• Celebrate the environmental and conservation efforts that are going on within your office and organization.  If we all start talking about it more, "being green" and Earth Day will become less a matter of special focus than a way of life.