HUMANS ARE CAUSING alarming changes to the planet. Collectively, we are destroying ecosystems, polluting the ocean and altering our climate. As individuals, we can all play a role in making things better.
The third annual Call to Earth Day is on November 8, 2023. Call to Earth is a CNN initiative dedicated to conservation, environmentalism, and sustainability. Across TV, our website and social media, we tell stories about our incredible planet and the remarkable people who are protecting it.
The majority of the world’s population live in urban areas, and for many people exactly how our actions impact remote and wild areas can be difficult to see. For this year’s Call to Earth Day, we want to focus on the crucial connection between cities and wilderness.
CNN will be featuring stories from around the world, from the inner city, the suburbs, the plains, the mountains, the jungle, and more to show how people living in urban areas can still have a huge impact on both wild environments around the world and the hidden wilderness within our cities.
Across the globe, incredible individuals and groups are working to reverse the damage to nature from the wilderness to the city.
Your participation is key to a successful Call to Earth Day. Planning an event can be daunting, so here are our top tips on how to embark on your Call to Earth Day preparations:
Identify your goals
Whether you live in the wilderness and have firsthand experience of the dangers to the Earth’s natural spaces, or whether you can effect change at the source by altering your habits and educating others, you can help us to protect Our Shared Home.
To get started, it’s important to figure out what you hope to achieve with your event. It could focus on reducing plastic pollution, tackling deforestation, protecting biodiversity, or a different environmental issue that is close to your heart. (Shout out to: VSU Environmental Awareness Movement.)
Decide what to do
Last year, groups around the world carried out beach and river cleans, held tree-planting sessions, and crafted ambitious art projects. For inspiration, you can check out a selection of last year’s amazing events.
Decide which environmental issue you want to take action on and try to figure out how your group can help. Your event could fall under one of these categories or it could be something else entirely.
Spread the word
When the day comes, make sure to let the world know about your event. Please be sure to take pictures and videos of what you get up to and post them on social media.
Please use the hashtag #CallToEarth or #CallToEarthDay so CNN can find the posts and potentially feature them in a coverage of the day. By Manny Palomar, PhD (EV Mail July 17-23, 2023 issue)