Earth Day Events to Celebrate and Benefit the Planet

In an era of ever more heightened awareness of our connection and dependence on our Earthly home, it would seem that we don’t need the call to arms that the original Earth Day (held April, 22, 1970) was formed to preach. Unfortunately, we are just as reluctant now to claim responsibility for pollution, runaway population growth, and climate change as ever, and it is still the minority of forward-thinking innovators showing the masses the way to make change. So, once again, it is time to celebrate our planet and take a long hard look at what we are doing to her.

Santa Barbara’s Earth Day festivities will be held on Sunday, April 20, at the Courthouse Sunken Garden. From 10 a.m.-5:30 p.m., enjoy plenty of live music from the solar-powered stage, lots of educational and fun activities for kids, and many displays of “green” solutions to conserving energy and other resources. The festival is sponsored by the Community Environmental Council (communityenvironmentalcouncil.org) and UCSB Bren School of Environmental Science and Management (bren.ucsb.edu).

If you want to avoid the crowds but still do some good, the California State Parks department has scheduled Earth Day Restoration projects at several parks. You can volunteer to clean up our precious shared natural resource. Email earthday@calparks.org or call (888) 98-parks (987-2757) for more information.

The Environmental Defense Center’s Dine Out for the Earth! is back. On Thursday, April 17, if you have dinner at any of several area restaurants, they will donate a portion of their proceeds to the center to help in their work to protect and enhance the environment. Check the site (environmentaldefensecenter.org) for a list of participating restaurants.

Whether you publicly celebrate on Earth Day or spend the day working in your own garden, what we all do today will have consequences for years to come. Our consciousness about the fragility of our world may be on the rise, but we must continue to do better and enlist more people in our quest for survival solutions.