Five Ways to Celebrate Earth Day Without Spending Any Money

Greenwashing in the past few weeks has been hot garbage. I’m so embarrassed for so many brands. Oof!  There are some big misses out there, from big 5 polluters trying to convince us their plastic bottles are sustainable to smaller brands pushing materials as recyclable/compostable when they are clearly not. 

Let’s all take a deep breath and remember that consumerism will not save the planet. I’d love for you to buy my products but please don’t make it an impulse Earth Day purchase if you already have a closet full of shampoo/conditioner at home. Use what you have first and Green Ablutions will be here when you need us. We’ve added a bunch of new partners recently so check our updated locations list to find the neighborhood store nearest you. 

So, if we’re not going to buy into buying on Earth Day, what can we do? 

Here are Five Ways to Celebrate Earth Day Without Spending Any Money:

1. Cleanup trash in your neighborhood. The weather is beautiful! Go for a walk during your lunch break do it on the way to visit friends or pick the kids up from school and collect a bag along the way. I wander around the playground looking for misplaced bottles and wrappers while my kids hit the swings. It doesn’t need to be any more complicated than that. Feel good knowing you made your home cleaner and kept that garbage from polluting our rivers and streams.

2. Plant seeds to start a garden. If you want to enjoy the most amazing, home grown, sun ripened tomatoes all summer long we need to start those seeds now! Put dirt in a cup with seeds and water then place in a sunny spot. You can use just about any container to grow a plant - check your recycling/trash bin for items that can use a second life. Don’t have seeds? Check your local public library for a seed exchange program or ask a gardening friend because there’s no way I can use all 1000 of those tiny seeds that came in that little paper packet in my lifetime. Contrary to what the seed companies want you to believe, seeds are good for years so don’t be afraid to use ones you picked up a while back. You can even grow a tomato plant from the seeds of another tomato (heirloom varieties will work best).

3. Write you congressional leaders and urge them to take action on Climate Change. Remember the Build Back Better bill that Senator Coal Is My Family Business killed? It included nearly $550 billion in programs designed to curb Climate Change such as 

• Expanded tax credits for the adoption of renewable power and electric vehicles
• Advancing environmental justice by investing in disadvantaged communities (check out www.chesterresidents.org to see how this issue impacts our neighbors today)
• Civilian Climate Corp to creat jobs and conserve public lands
• Investments in coastal restoration, forest management and soil conservation to reduce the impacts of flooding, fires and other natural disaster

4. Compost your food scraps. Did you know you can start composting at home with just a small pile in the corner of the yard? Even apartment dwellers can participate through compost collection sites at farmers markets and grocery stores. Compost is the most nutrient dense, amazing product you can put on your garden! There’s a good reason it’s called “black gold.” 

5. Learn about waste management in your neighborhood. Do you know where your trash goes? How about which types of plastic your hauler accepts for recycling? Does your recycling even get recycled or does it go to a waste-to-energy plant where it’s burned? Hint: If you live in Philly much of your recycling is burned at Covanta in Chester. If you live in Montco then it’s burned at Covanta in Conshy. If you have a private waste disposal company, call or email them for this information or check your municipality’s website for more information. Knowing what happens with your trash will help you make better purchasing decisions in the future.