A boy sitting on the bridge near The Oceanside Hotel

Let’s Make It Earth Day Every Day

22/04/2021

Having dates on our calendars to recognize specific days is a great thing. It causes us to pause, take notice, participate in traditions and rituals. If ever there were a day worthy of marking, it’s Earth Day. This amazing planet of ours provides us with so much – and taking a moment to appreciate that is vital.

In reality, our Earth doesn’t benefit from a day of recognition. Our Earth benefits from supportive every day, consistent actions and attitudes. Actions that we do for one day, then two….then more until it becomes second nature. Want to test out a few things you could do to make a difference and show reverence for the Earth? We’ve put together some things you can do to make Earth Day a year-long affair.

Plastic is everywhere, and single-use items have been a difficult to avoid

 

1. Plastic Free

Plastic is everywhere, and single-use items have been a difficult to avoid reality during the last year. Could you go for one whole day without using/discarding a plastic item? From the produce bags at the grocery store, to Amazon envelopes, to food storage, plastic is pervasive to say the least. If a whole day is too much to comprehend, why not choose one thing you could do, and over time add a few more. Beth Terry’s website, and book, provide loads of great actions you can take. Some are admittedly difficult, but some are simple and easy. Challenge yourself. Challenge your family. Challenge your friends!

simply embraced “Meatless Monday”

2. Plant-based Eating

Meat and animal products are staples for many of us. It is estimated that if we all switched to a plant-based diet, the world’s food-related emissions would drop by 70% by 2050, according to a study by University of Oxford. The beauty is, to make a difference we don’t all need to go full vegan. Even if we simply embraced “Meatless Monday”, and built on that, we’d be moving in a great direction – both for our individual health and for the planet. Ever tried jackfruit tacos? Spoiler alert, they’re delicious. And with the quality of today’s meat substitutes, avid meat eaters sometimes can’t even detect the difference between the non-meat version and the real thing. Need some recipe inspiration? Check out The Minimalist Baker’s Jackfruit Taco recipe; Sweet Potato Soul’s Take-out Style Kung Pao ‘Chicken’; or Jillian Harris’ Captain Kale Caesar Salad.

3. Give to Support Earth-friendly Work

There are a lot of smart, passionate people doing great work to support the health of ecosystems around the planet. What most resonates with you? Whether you’re most attuned to ocean health, maintaining corridors for wildlife, local production and buying or expanding charging networks for electric cars, there are organizations and groups you can join – lending your time, your dollars or both. In addition to groups that surely exist in your own community, there are a number of international organizations worthy of getting to know including the Union of Concerned Scientists, the Rainforest Alliance, the Nature Conservancy, and World Wildlife Fund.

look for alternatives that generate lower emissions

4. Travel Greener

At Coast Hotels we love travel. We know how powerful travel can be in connecting people to one another, and to connecting people to places. And while we’re huge proponents of getting out and experiencing this amazing world of ours, we’re also very mindful of the impact that can have. There are things we can all do to help mitigate that impact when we travel. To be a little kinder to Mother Earth we can all evaluate transportation options and look for alternatives that generate lower emissions. Whether we’re making our way to a destination, or exploring a destination, electric vehicles, bicycles, and public transportation are all good options. During our hotel stay, opting out of housekeeping helps to reduce water and energy consumption. We recommend patronizing local businesses and buying local goods. We have Refreshingly Green™ practices in place, but we also know that we need to continue to do better. We have found that so many of our Ambassadors are passionate advocates for ecofriendly approaches, and we’re inspired by them to keep moving in a direction of sustainability.

Good luck as you try out some of these earth-friendly options. We look forward to welcoming you to one of our 35 Coast Hotels as you explore opportunities to reduce your travel footprint.