Happy Earth Day! This eventful day has now become Earth Week or Earth Month – and hey, we are here to support that. Anything that helps to raise the awareness of Mother Nature and our role in preserving it is a good thing.

The waste and recycling industry never disappoints when it comes to celebrating Earth Day. Here are some of the ways the industry is engaging the community today.

Waste Management team members pledge to live sustainably.

At WM (Waste Management), Earth Day is truly every day, and this year they celebrated their commitment to the environment by asking team members to pledge to live sustainably today, for tomorrow — at home, at work or on the go.For each pledge received through their Pledge to Plant program, WM will plant a tree, up to 50,000, through their partners: National Forest Foundation and Tree Canada. No matter how big or small, every pledge is impactful.

Mother Nature wins many times over with this program. Team members have committed to planting pollinator gardens, switching to reusable bags, teaching family and friends to recycle right, planting their own trees, flipping the switch, shopping sustainably and more. Live Sustainably pledges and the trees accompanying them will help WM achieve sustainability goals while illustrating how they’re always working for a sustainable tomorrow.

Republic Services wants you to make Earth Day every day.

Republic Services wants to encourage entire communities to get involved in Earth Day with a few fun socially distanced activities – like a nature walk or game of virtual BINGO.

The Company also highlights simple actions you can take for the planet and a chance to brush up on the basics of recycling here. You can be an expert with these tips.

The Recycling Partnership shares seven Earth Day resources

The global pandemic has reshaped everything from where and how we work, to how households are producing more recycling and waste, and especially, how we connect. The Recycling Partnership worked hard to carefully curate fun and engaging ways to safely celebrate Earth Day. Here are seven free resources the organization shared for celebrating online.

RTS wants children to become Earth Day experts

With a focus on children from ages 5-12, RTS came up with a lesson plan to engage our youngest environmentalists to learn and have fun. It starts with videos and games and caps off with a quiz to help children reinforce their lessons.

Meridian Waste tries to brighten the world on Earth Day

Meridian Waste’s “Brightening the World” coloring contest introduces the concept of Earth Day and how environmental services and proper waste disposal play a significant role in the health and safety of communities throughout the U.S. and the world.

The two young winners’ work is displayed at MeridianWaste.com/EarthDayWinners.

The Carton Council survey shows consumers are confused about recycling language

Ahead of Earth Day, The Carton Council released the results of their latest survey – revealing that consumers are confused about some of the language commonly used by recycling stakeholders. Two key findings are that 62% of consumers say they are not familiar with the term “circular economy” and 74% of consumers said if they noticed a product’s package did not have a recycling symbol or language indicating it was recyclable, they would assume it was not recyclable. See the details of the survey here.

Earth Day creators focus on climate change.

The Earth Day organization is focused on three days of events this week all centered around climate change. Take a look at their focus this year the ways to keep the momentum alive all year long.

The Waste360 team celebrates Earth Day in their communities and homes

Stefanie Valentic, Waste360’s editorial director, and I are aiming to be more sustainable each day. One thing that Zero Waste Daniel showed us is that it is all about progress and not perfection. With that mantra in mind, we set out to see how we could be more sustainable in our communities and in our homes.

Stefanie has organized community and park cleanups in her hometown of Cleveland, Ohio. She rallied groups of people to clean up the parks and raise awareness about the litter challenges affecting these beautiful city settings. Thanks for your efforts, Stef!

Overseeing content for Waste360 has given me a greater appreciation for the immediate need to reduce food waste. And I am committed to reducing food waste in my busy household with two growing (and hungry!) boys. My town has recently added food scrap collection to its environmental services. Trust me, I feel fortunate about this because I know it is not offered in every community. Therefore, I am taking full advantage of this and doing my small part in curbing food waste. My hope is that it will make my children more aware of the issues surrounding wasted food as well. Wish me luck!

Do you have any Earth Day activities you would like to share? Email Liz [email protected] - or Stefanie - [email protected].