Earth Week 2016

Earth Week 2016 | Why Do We Need an Earth Day?

If you’re like us, you might be thinking – why do we need an Earth Day? What makes April 22nd so special? Eco principles are important to me every day!? But Earth Day is actually a pretty spectacular phenomenon with an incredible history.

Here’s the story:

Wisconsin Senator Gaylord Nelson had been working unsuccessfully to put the environment on the agenda of lawmakers for seven years. After touring the devastating Santa Barbara oil spill of 1969, he switched tactics, inspired by anti-Vietnam War “teach-ins.” He announced that Earth Day would take place on April 22nd to motivate local, grassroots, political protest. The results were awe inspiring – with over 20 million people attending rallies held in New York City, Philadelphia, Chicago, Los Angeles, Washington DC and many other US cities. Earth Day has catalyzed political and personal overhauls, from the establishment of the EPA to the Clean Water Act of 1972 to encouraging widespread recycling. Now, Earth Day is celebrated in over 190 countries!! Wow!! Pretty impressive Senator Nelson! Each year, The Earth Day Network selects one theme to help focus the grassroots efforts of Earth Day worldwide. Earth Day 2016 is Trees For The Earth, with the goal of planting 7.8 billion trees by 2020.

If you are with a mission-minded business, here are two unique opportunities posed by Earth Day.

First, take the time to market to your employees and the world all that your company does EVERY DAY to protect Mother Earth. In addition to informing them, you might just inspire them to adopt some new, eco-friendly habits. How, you ask?

• Support a like-minded local event through donations, product giveaways or marketing support.
• Pick a cause, association or charity to promote or participate in - one that embodies your values. If you sell clothes, consider joining the Textile Exchange. If you sell children’s toys, consider supporting the Children’s Environmental Literacy Foundation.
• Run a week or month long social media campaign, promoting specific eco-friendly actions your company takes.
• Who doesn’t love a contest! Have your customers share their ideas for how to celebrate Earth Day or suggest new eco products. Reward your winners with love and freebies!
• Borrow a line from the Google Doodle! Create a unique spin on your logo for the day or week, showcasing your eco-friendly actions and celebrating Earth Day.

Second, use Earth Day as a call to action. Chances are, you are thoughtful about your operations – you have a recycling bin (maybe even a worm composter!) and may have ditched bottled water long ago. But there are likely opportunities you are missing. Earth Day is a perfect time to do an internal audit, and identify some new ways to green your business. Some ideas that might not be so obvious:

• What are you doing with those old electronics and office furniture? Recycle and upcycle!
• Is your sourcing and supply chain strategy as green as possible? Are there opportunities to improve the material you use for those seemingly small things – like printing or packaging or post cards?
• How can you encourage your team to be more eco-conscious – and to have fun with it? Could you sign up for an office CSA? Or reward them for greening their commute? Or just take 15 minutes of each day to step outside for some yoga and appreciation for the sunshine and outdoors.
• What kinds of equipment and appliances do you have in your office? Can you get more energy efficient refrigerators or air conditioners? Can you decrease your energy usage (and your energy bill!) by unplugging things at night?

We at EcoEnclose are, first and foremost, grateful this Earth Day to be playing a small role in helping all of you amazing eco conscious companies build your business and operate in ways that protect Mother Earth. In addition to planting a tree for every order received during Earth Week, we’re also excited to support events near and far through sponsorship and product giveaways. And we are taking a good hard look internally – to find opportunities to improve how we serve you and Mother Earth. While most examples of this are “behind the scenes,” one change we are particularly jazzed about is our new, improved and more sustainably produced We Care Cards you’ll see in your future orders!