Earth Day
Through climate change, pollution, and habitat destruction humans have upset the balance of nature — now, species are undergoing the greatest extinction rate in more than 60 million years. If we don’t act now, extinction may be humanity’s most enduring legacy.
All living things have an intrinsic value, and each plays a unique role in the complex web of life. The rate of extinction can be slowed. Many of our declining, threatened and endangered species can still recover if we work together now to build a united global movement of consumers, voters, educators, faith leaders and scientists to demand immediate action. The first step is to learn what is now present in our living world.
The Mount Holly Biodiversity project is a small, local initiative to identify the living world around us so that we can know what we have and develop ideas to conserve the nature we need and cherish. Since its beginning in January 2021, 159 people have submitted 2,839 observations of 927 species seen in Mount Holly!
As we celebrate the 52nd Earth Day since its founding in April 1970 I’m reminded of the insightful motto of “Think Globally, Act Locally”. One easy way you can Act Locally is to contribute to the Mount Holly Biodiversity Project by contributing your observations to our community website at https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/mount-holly-biodiversity . The project uses the free iNaturalist program that helps you identify any plant, animal, or fungi you find in nature and simultaneously submit your observation to our project. Spring is here, Earth Day is Friday, April 22 and there is no better time than now to get out to explore the nature around us as a citizen scientist working for the planet.
