The Greenest Earth Day Yet?

Maybe it’s because I’m immersed in it on a daily basis, or maybe it’s just because we can’t escape it. Whatever the reason, I think this year will be the greenest Earth Day ever. Every magazine, website, commercial, television channel, and radio station is devoting some amount of space or time to this important topic of going green.

Already this morning, my pastor sent me an email about an upcoming conference: Faith and the Environment, and my snail mail included a magazine with the headline “Go Green Today!” Even the green band I wear around my wrist serves as a constant reminder of my daily commitment to live green. With so much coming at us from every form of media, I wonder if we’re approaching the saturation point at which people start tuning out the message of ‘going green.’ Are we becoming burned out on even the utterance of the phrase?

Although I feel this is certainly the year to shout it from the rooftops, I fear we’ll see and hear a lot less about it this same time next year. Will that be because it has become less important? Certainly not! In fact, we have years of lost ground to make up for, and no matter how much we say or do, it will take years of sustained efforts and awareness to begin to turn the tide.

So when do we focus more on actually doing what we say to do, rather than simply saying what we need to do? Years ago would have been a good time to start, and for some, that was the case. For others, the adoption of a greener lifestyle is a transition, begun at some point more recently – catching a ride on the big green wave. Yet, there are many who still don’t see we’re facing a global crisis that requires us all to make some changes in how we think and live in order to heal our planet.

By this time next year, my hope is that there’s a little less talk and a lot more action. The stage is set, the word is out, and now it’s time for each of us to act in a way that makes every day Earth Day!