Last night I watched a bit of a documentary before bed. I can’t remember what it was called. It was late, and it was disturbing me (and I try to avoid being disturbed before I embark for dreamland), so I only watched a bit of it. The bit that I watched was enough to inspire me to action: “The earth has a fever,” the narrator said…. And, the climatic catastrophes that we’ve endured recently — hurricanes, tsunamis — are symptoms of the Earth’s poor state of health.

When your child has a fever, you do everything you can to make her better, right? Well, the Earth has a fever. What will you do to make her better?

Every single one of us can help heal the Earth by changing a few things, by making less of a mark, using less of the Earth’s energy. I’ve been doing research today, and I’ll share the simplest things you can do (without spending a cent) to help heal the environment. Here they are:

Reduce, reuse, and recycle all plastics, paper, glass, aluminum cans;

Turn off lights, televisions, videos, stereos and computers when you’re not using them;

Plug holes around doors and windows to eliminate drafts, which use up energy;

Make sure your house is well insulated;

Use your washing machine or dishwasher only when it’s full — and use the most energy-efficient cycles;

Don’t leave the water running;

Set your water thermostat at least 2 degrees lower than it’s at (bonus: you will save money);

Keep the fridge door closed when it’s not in use, and let your food cool down fully before putting it in the fridge or freezer;

Turn off your computer screen when you take a break at work;

Save paper (and energy used in paper production) by printing on both sides of the page and by recycling used paper;

Leave the car at home more often;

Bike, walk and/or use public transportation (i.e., the train or bus when traveling longer distances) more often;

Car pool with your work colleagues or friends;

Don’t leave your car running when you’re not driving it;

Plant a tree (okay, this costs a wee bit of money, but Earth needs more trees to absorb the excess carbon dioxide).

    While all this warm, sunny weather feels great to us, it’s bad news. When I left the house this morning, I opened my back door to an unusually warm and sunny winter day. I immediately thought about the polar bears and their imminent extinction. And, I thought sadly about the fever.

    The Earth is sick. Help me make her better.

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