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COVID-19 won’t shut down Earth Week.

Traditionally, the University of Virginia hosts a schedule of expositions, demonstrations and concerts to celebrate Earth Week. However, with social distancing instituted to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 virus and most of the student body at home, this year’s Earth Week has gone virtual.

Beginning today, UVA is working with the City of Charlottesville, Albemarle County, the College of William & Mary, community organizations and other Virginia universities to celebrate the 50^th anniversary of Earth Day with a new “Earth Day Every Day” campaign.

“There is usually such a great variety of events around Earth Day, some focused on climate action, some more reflective or educational, and others just celebrating our beautiful planet,” Dana Schroeder, outreach and engagement specialist in the UVA Sustainability Office, said. “The UVA Sustainability team wanted to see if we could help maintain that variety during this time when many of us may be feeling stuck or disconnected.”

This virtual campaign asks people to engage in an array of activities on different days throughout April.

“There has been incredible momentum locally to address our climate crisis,” Teri Kent, director of programs and communication for the Community Climate Collaborative, said. “So we invite people to be champions of both public health and climate action this Earth Day, because there are plenty of options to advocate or take action for a cleaner planet from home.”

The virtual campaign is sharing ideas and resources via social media and has developed some daily themes, including:

• “Monday Motivation” is for community members to share encouraging quotations, memories or images that connect them to the planet.
• “Teach Yourself Tuesdays” asks people to learn more about environmental challenges.
• “Chatty Wednesdays” suggests people discuss with friends and family their thoughts on Earth Day and ecological issues.
• “Take Action Thursday” provides an opportunity for people to reduce their environmental impact.
• “Fridays for the Future” suggests getting involved in influencing the future of the environment.
• “Service Saturdays” seeks to get people to help others.
• “Sunny Sundays” is a time for getting outdoors.

During April, Virginia schools and organizations will offer virtual events. Participants can follow @SustainableUVA on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter or visit sustainability.virginia.edu.

“This 50th Earth Day anniversary is special in so many ways,” Kristel Riddervold, environmental sustainability and facilities development manager for the City of Charlottesville, said. “We honor the champions of environmental stewardship whose decades of hard work have resulted in the cleaner air and water this nation enjoys. We also celebrate the energy and commitment of our community to learn, share and take action every day to make important improvements both locally and globally.”

The “Earth Day Every Day” campaign combines the efforts of the University with local organizations.

“Albemarle County is proud to partner with UVA, Charlottesville and community organizations on the ‘Earth Day Every Day’ campaign,” Serena Gruia, public engagement specialist for Albemarle County, said. “We know that mitigating climate change requires all of us to take action and many of those actions start at home. This Earth Week, though we will not be together in person, we will strengthen our community by sharing strategies, information and love for our planet.”