“Our Earth does not need saving, we do. And we must save ourselves.”
~Nadine Clopton
Every year on April 22, people around the planet celebrate Earth Day, the annual anniversary of the birth of the modern environmental movement in 1970. It’s been over 50 years since this movement began. Do you remember what the world was like back then?
I live in Michigan about 45 miles north of Detroit, and I still remember that back in 1969, the Rouge River was so polluted that it literally burst into flames. This was a result of over 150 years of the industrial revolution gone wild with no restrictions.
Back then Americans were driving massive automobiles while industries belched out smoke and sludge without fear. I remember driving downtown to Detroit with a continual haze of smog hanging over the city. People just thought, “That’s the way it is.” But not everyone was so complacent. People around the country were becoming fed up, and something needed to happen that would catch their attention in a big way.
Then in January of 1969, Santa Barbara, California experienced a massive oil spill. As a result, a group of activists lead by Senator Nelson, a junior Senator from Wisconsin, and Pete McClosky, a conservative Republican Congressman, organized the first Earth Day inspiring 20 million Americans (at the time 10% of the population of the US) to demonstrate against the impact of the last 150 years of industrial revolution.
This was a huge movement that included colleges, churches, and communities from coast to coast — all coming out to fight against raw sewage, toxic dump sites, polluting factories and power plants, oil spills and the extinction of wildlife.
It worked, and by the end of 1970 the EPA was created, the National Environmental Education Act, and the Clean Air Act passed through congress. In fact, the following year, the Clean Water Act and the Endangered Species Acts were both passed as well.
Since then, Earth Day has gone global and today it’s the largest celebration in the world with over one billion people participating. Would you like to find out about activities near you or even start something yourself? There is still time.
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Now, even with the Environmental Species Protection Act in place, these last 50 years of population growth have had a devastating impact on wildlife and wild areas. Imagine what it would be like on our planet if nothing had been done 50 years ago. Where would we be today? I don’t even want to imagine!
So, with all we’ve done, we have still lost over 70% of all wildlife on the planet. Remember how you used to get dead bugs on your windshield? Ever notice any bugs on your car anymore? Insect populations have also dropped, which will have a devastating affect on our farmers – starting with our food. This includes bees and our farming will suffer dramatic results if we continue to lose our bee population.
Consider this, according to the World Wildlife Fund’s (WWF) Living Planet Report 10/12/22: “Monitored populations of vertebrates (mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles and fish) have seen a devastating 69% drop on average since 1970.” Learn how you can help!
There are simple things we can all do, starting with our food, and this month, we are talking with two amazing women who are working in regenerative farming which affects the health of our bodies and the health of our planet. We will be learning how the benefit of healthy soil leads to healthy plants, healthy people and a healthy planet!
Dr. Amy Sapola is the Director of Farmacy at the Chef’s Garden. She works to help guide consumers toward a mindful relationship with food by connecting the benefits of healthy soil, to healthy plants, and ultimately, to healthy people. As a mother of two young children, master gardener, passionate cook, and long-time yogi, Amy has an integrative approach to health and wellness both personally and professionally.
Our second guest is Nadine Clopton, a Program Manager at Rodale Institute who will share how regenerative organic farming differs from industrial farming. How human health is connected to our soil and how we can collectively reimagine a more hopeful path forward!
Katana Abbott, CFP®, is a Retirement Income Coach, founder of the Midlife Millionaire® Solution, and the host Smart Women Talk with over a million subscribers. For over 30 years, Katana has shown women how to take charge of their life and finances and believes it’s never too early to plan for expected and unexpected events like retirement, encore careers, moving abroad, or preparing for long-term care. She has written several books, created a financial literacy course, and is a popular speaker. Katana has been honored by NAWBO as one of Detroit’s Top 10 Business Women, receiving the Breakthrough Award. To download her new retirement guide, Three Smart Strategies for a Midlife Millionaire® Lifestyle. visit www.katanaabbott.com