From raptors to earthworms to native tree seedlings, from compost bins to electric vehicles to solar panels, from potting soil to prayer cards to pollinator pathways, there’s something for everyone at 2024’s Earth Day on the Guilford Green. Sponsored by the Guilford Conservation Commission, this community-wide celebration will be held on Sunday afternoon, April 21, from 1:00 to 4:00 pm.
“A Place Called Hope,” which is a volunteer raptor rehabilitation program in Killingworth, will be bringing some of their magnificent birds of prey with them. Local garden clubs and the Parks & Recreation Commission will be hosting planting tables, where kids can plant seeds or seedlings to take home with them.
Conservation groups and religious congregations will have tables illustrating how they are responding to the climate crisis. State Senator Christine Cohen and State Representative Moira Rader will be on hand to provide updates on climate legislation at this year’s General Assembly. There will be live music during the afternoon.
The first Earth Day, which was held on April 22, 1970, brought 20 million Americans—10% of the population in 1970—into the streets to protest the life-threatening poisoning of our land, water, and air. In 2024, as we gather on the town green to honor the environmental legacy and spirit of that first Earth Day, we are facing another daunting environmental crisis: human-caused global warming.
This year, on April 21 (rain date April 28), adults and children alike will have a variety of opportunities to share with one another, and with the many conservation-oriented groups in our community, about our conservation, mitigation, and adaptation efforts in this time of climate crisis. We will celebrate that we are not alone in our determination to make a difference.
(For further information, or to sign up to participate, contact Doug Clark, Guilford Conservation Commission chair, revdlmc@gmail.com.)
