Public Service Alliance of Canada BC

On April 22, it is estimated that over 500 million people in more than 180 countries will be celebrating International Earth Day. Around the world these observances will highlight both local and world wide environmental issues. Some 6 million Canadians will participate in Earth Day events which can include the planting of trees and native gardens, neighbourhood cleanups, workshops and seminars, concerts, eco-fairs, parades, cultural events, waste reduction projects, the implementation/expansion of environmental programs, wildlife conservation projects, and much more.

Earth Day is celebrated in schools, community and youth groups, unions, and environmental organizations.

At a time when Canadians are concerned with the continual rise of Greenhouse Gas Emissions in Canada, our Federal Government continues to stall on implementing any effective measures to deal with this threat to our environment.

• The Canadian Labour Congress’ theme for Earth Day 2008 is “Take Responsibility and Action to get some satisfaction” (pdf).

Each of us can attempt to make this statement a reality by reducing the amount of energy we use in our homes, buying food and products that are produced locally and trying to drive less.

Please take the time on April 22 to think about your personal impact on our earth. Make a commitment to reduce your footprint on this day and every day.

Here are a few ways you can make a difference.

• Turn off unnecessary lights, at home and at work – We’ve asked PSAC Holdings to help with this!
• Print only when necessary and use both sides of the paper
• use email or voice mail instead of paper
• Have a garbage free day
• Bring your lunch in reusable containers and don’t buy bottled water – use your own reusable bottle
• Walk, bicycle, take public transit or car pool to work
• donate the stuff you don’t use anymore instead of throwing it out
• give your newspaper to someone else to read
• recycle glass bottles, plastic bottles, paper, and cardboard

We encourage all our members to make Earth Day a day to celebrate our achievements with regard to the environment. It is also, more importantly, a day to raise the consciousness of every citizen around the world on environmental issues critical to the surviving of our planet.

Important Links

• http://www.earthday.org
• http://www.earthday.ca
• http://www.jourdelaterre.org