By: Hannah Hadikin (VOW Co-Chair)
Our planet is precious, and this is something most of us can agree on, no matter where we come from, what language we speak or cultures we treasure. At the same time, many people feel sadness, disappointment, and even heartache when they look at the state of the natural world. In the northern hemisphere, spring has Mother Nature getting ready to greet us. Flocks of birds are returning from their southern wintering grounds. A spring migration occurring from March through to mid June. Snow from higher elevations offering for aquatic ecosystems to form. We cannot help but notice that life on earth is changing. The harm caused by climate change with the level of carbon pollution in the atmosphere continuing to rise. Suzanne Simard alerts us that forests are disappearing at an alarming rate. The biggest, oldest trees are being felled at breakneck speed, by a disease of greed and folly. Many of the wild places and natural wonders that inspire us are under threat. Each year, the world is losing 10 million hectares of forest, and an estimated one million plant and animal species now face extinction.
“Globally, forests represent one-third of earthly ecosystems, store more than four-fifths of terrestrial carbon, and take up one-third of man-made greenhouse gases. The photosynthetic energy they produce drives our biogeochemical cycles: purifying our air, and storing organic carbon and nutrients…These systems exist in a fragile balance that supports life on this one planet, Mother Earth.”
Mother Earth is sending a clear message: it is time for action. We need to move toward a more sustainable way of living, one that supports both people and the planet.
This year’s Earth Day theme, Our Power, Our Planet, is a reminder that environmental progress doesn’t happen in isolation. It happens when communities come together. Small actions, multiplied across millions of people, create real change. International Mother Earth Day is observed every year on April 22, a date proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly in 2009. The Day honours the Earth and its ecosystems as our shared home, and calls on all of us to protect her: to support people’s livelihoods, address climate change, and halt the collapse of biodiversity.
Today, climate change and human-driven damage to nature are accelerating the destruction of ecosystems around the world. Deforestation, land-use change, intensive agriculture, livestock production, and the illegal wildlife trade are all contributing to the loss of biodiversity.
In the Kootenay Boundary region, work is taking place on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territories of the Sinixt, Ktunaxa, Syilx, and Secwépemc First Nations, and in the homeland of the Métis, alongside many diverse Indigenous communities. Honouring and appreciating the land and the people who have cared for it since time immemorial.
“We are a non-partisan group of doctors, nurses, and other health professionals who live and work in the Kootenays. A healthy ecosystem helps protect human health. Biodiversity can reduce the rapid spread of pathogens and support stronger, more resilient communities. The health of the planet and the health of people are deeply connected.” https://www.facebook.com/KBDrsNurses4PH/
This is why environmental education matters. Imagine the difference it could make if children were taught, from kindergarten through graduation, to understand and value the healing power of the Earth.
In 2015, all United Nations Member States adopted the Sustainable Development Goals, a shared global plan to end poverty, reduce inequality, and build more peaceful and prosperous societies by 2030.
But the widespread destruction of the natural world is putting those goals at risk, and threatening humanity’s future. We are now facing a human-driven planetary crisis: Ongoing wars and conflicts, increasing extensive lands to fossil fuel companies and mining expansion, climate change, biodiversity loss, pollution and waste. Together, these forces are pushing nature to its breaking point. And when nature is under threat, so are we. The food we eat, the air we breathe, the water we drink, and the materials and resources our societies depend on all come from a healthy planet.
To embrace the 2026 theme, EarthDays Nelson and Area suggested: “Making a date with the Planet.” From the 1st of April to the 30th, the calendar is filled with a variety of activities. earthdaysnelson.ca
Taking up some activities in our communities, such as joining a rally or a peace event, watching a nature film, a walk in nature without street or road noise, identifying the sounds, water, breeze, bird watching. Breathe deeply, sitting quietly, sketching, or writing about the surroundings.
Suzanne Simard encourages taking immediate action to protect and restore old-growth ecosystems for their value in storing the greatest amounts of carbon, providing habitat for endangered species and wildlife.
Let us not only treasure and celebrate our beautiful precious planet, but also come together to reflect on the kind future we are shaping and caring for future generations. Together we can take simple steps right now.