FINDLAY, OH (WLIO) - Saturday, April 22nd is Earth Day, and to educate families about what that means, why it matters, and how we can do our part, the Hancock Historical Museum put on an educational "Celebrate Earth Day" exhibit.
"Earth Day means it's the Earth, we live on it, and in order to keep living on it safely, we need to take care of it," says Deb Wickerham, the educational coordinator for the museum.
Experts ranging from natural resource officers to a local beekeeper set up demonstrations and activities to educate families about how all aspects of nature are worth protecting. "Saving the Earth" might sound like a big task for one person, but you don't have to change your whole lifestyle to make a difference.
"If you can just get the children to understand, don't waste water, don't throw litter, don't destroy habitats, that's a success," Wickerham adds.
If you enjoy gardening, you can help pollinators by planting more of a variety of native flowers that bloom at different times through spring to late summer. Without pollinators like bees, moths, and other insects, crops grow to be smaller and lower quality, if they bear fruit at all. Partly to blame is the way many of us maintain our yards.
"In a sense, let's say the last twenty, thirty years, our whole society has changed to, I always call it, the golf course mentality. Everything is green and if you look around it's like a sterile desert for pollinators. Not just honey bees, but all pollinators," explains Dwight Wilson, who has been a beekeeper for over fifty years.
Local parks are a great place for plants and wildlife to thrive, but it's important to appreciate those trails and habitats without damaging them during your visit.
"We don't want anyone to pick or collect anything in the parks because we want those wildflowers or things there for everybody to see," says Michelle Rumschlag, a naturalist for the Hancock Park District. "I know one thing we see in the parks is people carving their initials on some of the tree bark because it's flatter. I don't think they realize that's harming the tree, and then people walk by, I have kid groups saying, 'why did somebody do that?'"
Earth Day is about more than just recycling or using less electricity. The ultimate goal is to preserve the resources we need to live and make sure that future generations have the chance to look down into a river full of fish, turtles, and bugs, or sit in the woods and listen to the birds overhead.
