This Earth Month, we asked our team to share what they are doing to celebrate and honor the Earth. We’re focused on learning together, taking collective action, and finding joy outdoors, and we hope you’ll join us!
How are you celebrating Earth Month?
Prep the garden for planting season, spend time alongside Mama Mississippi, and have morning conversations with the cardinals and the crows in the neighborhood. – Susan Phillips
I will be beginning my wildflower seedlings! – Gigi Kreibich
Picking up trash, writing my representatives, sending funds to front line protest groups, deepening my understanding of local Land Back movements, talking about Zero Waste – Lee Petre
Reconnecting with nature and the people that I do this work for. I think connecting with my purpose for this work is really critical for me to keep me going since I do this work year-round. I think I will also take the opportunity to talk with others about how we can work together to move beyond the climate crisis. This is something I think about a lot but not something people always want to talk about. Earth month allows for an easier entry point, a way for me to share my knowledge and get people excited about the work – hopefully. I think it is also a good time to show people that there are so many different ways to engage with this work and help people find something that fits them. – Claire Cooke
Prepare for gardening season, start composting, bike more places! – Trevor Cobb
Plant seeds, get my hands in the soil, admire my bird friends – Danielle Hefferan
I’m always looking for fun ways to pass on the tradition of knowing natural history and practicing land stewardship to my young children. We spend time on walks looking for and identifying birds, plants, and insects; we work in the garden; we talk about the changing seasons and what crops will be coming into season; and we give gratitude to the earth and the people who tend it. – Lindsey Kirkland
I live in a neighborhood very close to Lake Michigan. Every day, I take a walk to watch how the lake changes. Nature unfolds so quickly when you take the time to witness it! – Zoe Redfern-Hall
What books, movies, podcasts, or music would you recommend people enjoy this month?
Books: What if we get it right? by Ayana Elizabeth Johnson. The Ministry for the Future by Kim Stanley Robinson. The Windup Girl by Paolo Bacigalupi. Podcasts: We are the Great Turning, For the Wild, How to Save A Planet. TV/Movies: Extrapolation (AppleTV), Youth VS Gov (documentary on Netflix) – Susan Phillips
I am reading “Saving Us: A Climate Scientist’s Case for Hope and Healing in a Divided World” – Gigi Kreibich
The Red Nation podcast and the book The Red Deal; Podcast series with Timothy Morton through BBC “The End of the World has Already Happened” – Lee Petre
I really like the Local Energy Rules podcast by the Institute for Local Self Reliance. I love this active hope training: https://activehope.training/. Of course, Braiding Sweetgrass, Tending the Soil, and Undrowned are all great for books. – Claire Cooke
I’m reading What If We Get It Right by Ayana Elizabeth Johnson with my book club! – Danielle Hefferan
A Stone Sat Still by Brendan Wenzel, Up in the Garden and Down in the Dirt by Kate Messner, Christopher Silas Neal, Mud by Mary Lyn Ray – Lindsey Kirkland
I’m reading Gathering Moss: A Natural and Cultural History of Mosses by Robin Wall Kimmerer. I also must recommend A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers. – Zoe Redfern-Hall
Who are some climate leaders, artists, activists, or creators that keep you inspired during Earth Month?
Ayisha Siddiqa, Mitzi Jonelle, Dallas Goldtooth, Leah Penniman, Favianna Rodriguez – Susan Phillips
Rebecca Lee Kunz is an indigenous artist and citizen of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma. Her mediums are printmaking, paint, and natural materials – Gigi Kreibich
Stop Cop City movement, including forest defender Tortuguita, who was murdered by police – Lee Petre
Local activists working at the community scale in MN that I got to hear speak at MN lobby days at the capital this year. I think it is more critical than ever to be working at this local scale to protect each other and help the planet, so I found that really inspiring. – Claire Cooke
My current favorite follow on social media is @esthernewyork on Instagram! They are a drag queen that posts well-researched videos about the histories of colonization, capitalism, and exploitation of the environment. Super well-made informative content that I love sharing and recommending to people. – Trevor Cobb
I like to think about the movement history behind our celebration of Earth Month and Earth Day. I’m also inspired by the leaders in the food sovereignty and food justice space. In my local community, I’m inspired by leaders like Anton Seals Jr., the founder of Grow Greater Englewood, who I got to hear from at a recent food justice summit I attended. Learning the unique threads of the movement ecosystem and leaders like Anton who have been doing local-level, long-term organizing work inspires me and roots me during these times. – Zoe Redfern-Hall
Do you have any favorite Earth Month traditions?
Getting the garden ready for pollinators! – Gigi Kreibich
I love to write poems about Spring and the Earth and spend the whole month making art to celebrate her. – Trevor Cobb
See the birds come back! – Danielle Hefferan
Going outside daily on my lunch breaks from my home office to see what’s blooming. – Lindsey Kirkland
Every year, I love to document with photos the new flowers popping up whenever I see a new one on my walks through the neighborhood. During spring, I am constantly swiveling my head to search for flowers or interesting plants when I’m outside. It’s one of my most favorite things I do every year. – Zoe Redfern-Hall
