50th EARTH DAY TAKES

tive to document declining environmental conditions and participate in social media campaigns to raise awareness.

Help celebrate victories and support future progress by participating in these local Earth Day 2020 events.

GNC Earth Day participants removing invasive English Ivy from walking trails

On April 22, 1970, 20 million Americans—10 percent of the nation—took to the streets and campuses to protest environmental degradation so severe that rivers were literally catching on fire. That groundswell was followed by the passage of landmark environmental laws, including the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, Endangered Species Act and the creation of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, laws soon adopted by many other countries.

Half a century later, as temperatures approach 70 degrees in Antarctica, catastrophic wildfires race through Australia and species die off around the world, the planet’s status seems anything but golden. On this Earth Day, the climate crisis that precipitated these 50th EARTH DAY TAKES ON CLIMATE CHANGE Golden Anniversary Marks Call to Action events and trends take center stage: The goal is to mobilize millions, perhaps billions, of Earth’s human inhabitants to rise up in its defense. “The urgency has never been greater and the stakes have never been higher,” say the organizers of the Earth Day Network. “We are now in an environmental emergency and a climate breakdown. The world needs you—and your actions—for Earth Day 2020.”

To learn about personal actions, including step-by-step instructions on how to organize an event, consult EarthDay.org. Participants can join in a cleanup of trash from rivers, beaches, streets and forests; host a teach-in; take part in a climate strike or campus rally to show united action; join the world’s largest citizen science initiaEarth Day in Croton

Bedford 2020 Earth Day Festival Sunday, April 26, 12 noon-4pm Featuring music, food, family-fun, supplies and information to have a healthy yard this year, including: Plant and Seed Swap, free pollinator plants, great choice of native shrubs and trees, make origami plant pots and seeds for wildlife, information on landscaping without chemicals, composting tutorials, kids activities, info about gardening for pollinators and becoming an iNaturalist data collector. Free admission.

Location: Bedford Hills Train Station, 46 Depot Plaza, Bedford Hills.

Earth Day in Croton Saturday May 2, 10am-3pm Will feature environmental groups such as Teatown, Rewilding School, Croton 100, Saw Mill River Audobon, PlanItWild, Hudson River groups, Tree Care, mothers out front, Croton Point Park, Puffer and Biogas. Music will be provided by Strange Pools and David Goldman and guests. There’ll be farm markets, crafts, nature photo, Feed the Birds and Organic Kitchen. Village committees on hand will be Sustainability, Trails, Care of Creation (an interfaith group focusing on environmental issues). There’ll also be specialists discussing native plants and invasives and pollinator gardens.

Location: Vassallo Park , 1 Van Wyck Street, Croton-on-Hudson. Info: 914.271.4848 and crotononhudson-ny.gov.

Greenburgh Nature Center Earth Day Celebration Saturday, April 25, 9am-3pm. A day of volunteer projects and a sustainable thrift shop. Opportunities to get the

hands dirty including planting gardens, removing invasives, clearing our trails, and more. This year’s activities and events include: Earth Day Volunteer Projects, Composter & Rain Barrel Sale Pickup, Compost Giveback Day, Sustainable Thrift Shop and Compost Giveback Day. Free admission.

Info: greenburghnaturecenter.org.

Pound Ridge Earth Day Festival & Puppypalooza Saturday, April 25, 12noon Events including: first annual Pound Ridge Dog Show, Dog Agility Park, Tail-Gate Row Canine vendors and treats, Compost Outpost, Pound Ridge Conservation Board, Zero Waste Initiative, Go Green Colloquium, local food vendors and more.

Location: Pound Ridge Town Park, 199 Westchester Ave, Pound Ridge.

Tarrytown Earth Day participants

Tarrytown Earth Day April 18, 8am-6pm The Tarrytown Environmental Advisory Council (TEAC) and the Village of Tarrytown are hosting the annual Earth Day Celebration. A day of activities including bird watching, a mushroom walk, multiple clean-ups, community garden work, a scavenger hunt and more. There will be something for the whole family ending with a community (bring your own) picnic with live music. Free admission. Info: tarrytownenvironmental.org.

Green Ossining Celebrates 10th Annual Earth Day Festival

Westchester County’s largest community-run Earth Day festival, hosted and organized by Green Ossining with the assistance of the Town and Village of Ossining, is scheduled to take place from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. April 25, on the banks of the Hudson River. The festival is free to the public. Due to changing precautions regarding coronavirus, those planning to attend should check ahead to ensure that the festival is taking place as scheduled.

This year’s event is expected to attract more than 4,000 visitors and 100 vendors, having grown from just 300 attendees and 20 vendors its first year a decade ago. People from Brooklyn to counties surrounding and north of Westchester now come to Ossining to attend its Earth Day celebration.

There will be live music all day, featuring stage hosts Mike & Miriam Risko and the Mike Risko Band, and Kj Denhert, Honey Wild, All Wheel Drive, Blues Basement, Claremont School Chorus, Rio Nova, Julie Corbalis and Stella Blue’s Band.

More Hands-On Activities Suzie Ross, chairperson and founding member of Green Ossining, says that in addition to live music and entertainment, this year’s festival will have more hands-on activities and educational opportunities for everyone. Visitors can browse through artist and artisan vendor booths; join in drum and ukulele circles (bring your own); and purchase craft beer and local food, including vegetarian and vegan fare. There will also be a kids’ activity zone.

Attendees can see and participate in various eco-demonstrations and hands-on activities, such as Food Foraging with Violet Brill, and learn about environmental advocacy and local “green” services and products, including how to save money by reducing their carbon footprint. Community organizations will be on hand to explain their work and offer eco-tips. Algonquin-French Native elder Grandmother Nancy Andry will share teachings and river blessings.

Because the Earth Day Festival practices what it preaches, it will include an e-waste drive with textile recycling drop-off, and will model zero waste in action on the festival grounds.

“As we honor the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, we remain keenly aware of the great challenges affecting our natural environment, our planet and life as we know it,” Ross says. “We are also of the belief that there is much we can each personally do to affect positive change through the everyday choices we each have the power to make. You’ll find many things you love about festivals—food, music, artisans, activities—but we hope you’ll also join us in our recognition of the urgency to action that is needed. As well, we encourage you to show us what matters to you by bringing posters or signs that amplify your voice about environmental issues, reflecting your environmental concerns, thoughts on policy changes needed, or social justice impacts that you want to remind people of as a result of our changing climate.”

Location: Louis Engel Waterfront Park, Secor Rd., Ossining (adjacent to Metro-North Railroad’s Ossining station, on the Hudson River). Info, visit GreenOssining.org.