Malibu Honors 50th Earth Day With Week Of Activities

MALIBU, CA — When was the last time you thanked your mother? It’s not Mother’s Day yet, but this week, the city of Malibu is asking its citizens to thank Mother Earth with a weeklong “Be Nice to Your Mother (Earth)” observance of Earth Week, from April 20 through 26.

The city’s Community Services Department and Environmental Sustainability Department have teamed up to create a series of virtual Earth Week activities focusing on environmental education and ways to combat climate change. A new community activity will be posted each day on malibucity.org/MalibuMondays as part of the broader Malibu Mondays initiative to help residents stay active, healthy, and entertained during the Stay at Home Order. Residents are encouraged to share their Earth Week activities on the Community Services Department’s Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram pages.

Yesterday, residents were invited to color in a 30 Days of Reuse calendar, and begin observing International Dark Sky Week by turning off lights at night to combat light pollution. Today, residents will compost food scraps. Tomorrow, on the 50^th celebration of Earth Day, residents can download a game of Earth Week Bingo, in which they place down a tile every time they “recycle one item”, “plant a flower,” or even “hear water” (never too difficult in Malibu.) The Malibu Library will also host an online Earth Day story-time. On Thursday, residents can download a list of ways to turn old materials into something new and interesting, like turning a piece of cardboard into a necklace pendant or turning an empty egg carton into a paint tray. On Friday, residents are encouraged to go paperless, and Saturday night will be Astronomy Night, in which families are encouraged to turn off their lights and observe the wonders of the night sky. Earth Week will end on Sunday with an invitation to Learn at Home with TreePeople, a local environmental organization that has posted a number of ways to save the planet on its website.

“Although it may seem like the world is standing still while we all stay home to help battle the coronavirus, the earth and its creatures still need our help to ensure that future generations will be able to enjoy blue skies, clean water and the beauty of natural habitats,” Mayor Karen Farrer said.