It’s Earth Day (Tuesday 22 April) so Hostelling International’s sustainability manager Brianda Lopez shares what it means for our organisation.
Our “everyday” Earth Day
Earth Day is the time for us to appreciate what has been given to us, our beautiful planet. At Hostelling International we are committed and willing to make this celebration into an everyday occurrence.
We may not have incredible and amazing worldwide campaigns to save our planet, but many everyday actions can help to preserve our environment, culture and local communities. At HI we believe every action counts and responsibility falls onto individuals who want to make a difference.
How can we help the planet within our everyday routine? There are countless actions I could name from my visits to hostels; from the newest building technology to events where people swap unwanted clothes, choosing local and seasonal food, growing vegetables, recycling, reusing furniture, improving water and energy-saving systems, car sharing, biking and so on.
At the same time we also believe that education and engagement is vital and you may find quite a lot of hostels run educational programmes, volunteer activities, discussions around a topic, beach rubbish cleaning, tree planting, a kitchen sharing cultural dishes, breakfast for all, and so on.
It is very difficult to write about everything we do, but we do a lot. Could we do better? Sure, we are working on it. But today is a day to celebrate; a day to congratulate those planet heroes who are actively committed to preserving our Earth by trying to do their best and providing a fantastic example for others to follow.
Happy “everyday” Earth Day!
Your actions count – find out more about being a responsible traveller
