Earth Day, Earth Week, Earth Month....no matter how you observe the occasion, it's upon us once again. It's been a couple years of some issues that might have been a distraction to some with the idea of keeping the earth and environmental concerns at the forefront, but as we settle in to 2022 and the pressure is up a little, it's time to maybe refocus your energies on to some of the things that do mean a lot to all of us, and those of us to come in future generations. Maybe the "downtime" even gave you a little more time to learn about some of the environmental issues that we're facing? If you did use some time to be more productive, good for you! A little deeper dive into some of what's alarming is good for all of us.
We hear the rabble among friends and social media. Gas v. electric cars. There's the old joke when it's snowing in April about "global warming". Let's not forget "hug a tree". Ya, all beat to death. The reality is, you're going to hear it from all corners. "Thinking Green" isn't an immediate fix and it's not going to change things over night and NO....you won't be forced to go out and buy and electric car tomorrow. It's the small steps that can be taken by you that will make a difference. While there are really BIG problems happening around the globe (if you have not heard of the "sinkholes" in the permafrost, I'd suggest that as a source of "big problems") it's the little things we can all do to move the needle down in the quest to reduce a carbon footprint. Can you recycle plastic? How about glass? Need a new lawnmower this year? Last year, I personally bought a Ryobi One push mower that runs on a 40v battery and it is 10x nicer than the old gas powered mower we had. Recycle paper? Compost in your yard? Small steps are what's being asked of all of us. 
Get Free Tickets to Think Green Apr 21st
Need some guidance on where to start? Here's the invite! North Grove Brewers! Montague is the place to be on April 21st from 5-8p. Live music from Tommy Foster is huge! There will be 10 or more organizations there with information and know how about all things "earth friendly" and there's even some talk of a small electric car rally so those who are curious about EV's can get a little closer look at what all the fuss is about. Great thing about North Grove Brewers too is that it's big enough to hold the festivities inside, but the plan is outdoors if it's nice out! It's being put on by WMEAC, the West Michigan Environmental Action Council with the help of with the White Lake Area Climate Action Council, Muskegon Area District Library Montague Branch, White Lake Community Library, Book Nook & Java Shop, Waggle Dance Honeybees, Consumers Energy, West Michigan Clean Air Coalition, the Muskegon County Environmental Coordinating Council, Muskegon Conservation District, and Weesies Brothers Garden Centers & Landscaping.
Tanya Cabala and Lori Coleman join me to talk about the issues and the event. We're at the Annis Water Institute, take a listen.
It's an urgent matter. Let's stop for a second though. We've all just been through the most "urgent" time we'll ever live through. No matter your stance on it, we'll likely never see anything bigger of an urgent situation. Urgent in climate terms means now and while we won't be seeing the level of problems we did with a pandemic that gripped the planet in a matter of a couple months, the problems are real and can be turned into over time by the smallest of our individual actions. WMEAC is there to help teach, promote and advocate for the greater good and if we can add in some great local craft brews, some good music and of course, some good old fashioned togetherness, well, we might be on to something. Learn more about WMEAC here or click on their logo below!
