Raising Environmentally Conscious Kids
By: Evereal Care
Tags: Recycling, Climate Change, Eco Friendly, Protection, Small Change

WE DON’T INHERIT THE EARTH FROM OUR ANCESTORS; WE BORROW IT FROM OUR CHILDREN. — NATIVE AMERICAN PROVERB

If you love the world and love your children, you have a long term perspective of safeguarding our natural environment. And it takes perseverance to preserve.

And our perseverance is being weakened by the digital era. Today we are surrounded by many digital devices that consume our minds in very disturbing ways. Because of this digital dependency and thirst for social acceptance, our family time is less and less part of our daily routines. The cost of this digital dependence is an immense yearning to be in contact with nature. But such longing is eroded when we consume hours and hours of screen time. We must return this connection with nature to our kids. After all, they owned the earth; we only borrowed it from them.

I’m a mother of two, and the moments that I love the most is when my kids are in connection with Mother Nature. I see them most happy and full of energy when they are free in contact with nature. When my kids play with mud, when they chase a butterfly, when they are in contact with animals and take care of them, when they swim in the ocean or play with sand, their smiles create pictures that belong in my heart and not in a digital memory.

Because of threats against the preservation of our environment, it is crucial that we raise awareness with every new generation. We must make them feel and perceive that one of their key roles and responsibilities is to be respectful to our planet. It only takes one single educated human to take care of the earth. Yes, if we can induce such cultivation in each of our kids, such nurture will be replicated by hundred million times, and so in the future, preservation of earth will be a daily run and not a task. Because in the end, it is our children’s children who own the earth, so let’s pass on this tenancy.

“CLIMATE CHANGE IS NO LONGER SOME FAR-OFF PROBLEM; IT’S HAPPENING HERE, IT IS HAPPENING NOW” — BARACK OBAMA

One of the many consequences of climate change and the increase in water temperatures in our oceans is coral reef bleaching.

Coral reefs are home to 25% of all marine life on the planet, they provide food and shelter to millions of different species in the ocean.

Coral bleaching is when corals start losing their true colors, and so a process of extinction begins. Millions of species will be severely affected if these corals die, fish that live and feed on corals, will die or move away, larger creatures will also move away, and this exodus will very badly affect their ecosystems. It is sadly proven that a decline in marine life and fish population affects human food supplies as well.

Here are some things you can do to make a small change in your habits to prevent coral reefs from bleaching:

RECYCLE SPREAD THE WORD SUPPORT REEF FRIENDLY BUSINESS DON’T POLLUTE OR LITTER DON’T USE PRODUCTS WITH HARSH CHEMICALS, LIKE SUNBLOCK’S WITH OXYBENZONE AND OCTINOXATE IF YOU DIVE OR SNORKEL, DON’T TOUCH THE REEF PARTICIPATE IN A REEF CLEAN UP DON’T FISH NEAR A CORAL REEF DON’T PURCHASE CORAL SOUVENIRS MANIFEST THESE PAST 9 SMALL CHANGES TO YOUR KIDS.

Hawaii is the first place where they are banning sunscreens that kill coral reefs. Even though an increase in temperature is the main reason coral reefs are bleaching, it is also true that sunscreens with harsh chemicals also negatively impact the health of a coral reef.

“Approximately 14,000 tons of sunscreen slide off of humans into coral reef areas each year exposing the gorgeous underwater ecosystems to chemicals that can kill them”

Let’s first educate our children with mindfulness of how to take care of our planet. Let’s prepare them as keepers of this wonderful and admirable world. Let’s educate our children with profound respect for their next generation. It only requires small and intelligent changes in our daily life to improve the practices to preserve the health of Mother Earth. Let’s do it one kid at a time; let’s begin with our own kids.