Humans have used art as a form of expression since the beginning of time. From cave paintings to modern museum galleries, artwork is made with intention. It has a message behind it. That’s why it’s so often used during movements, to rally people behind something better conveyed through image than words.

That link is something even scientists want to understand. Our brains process words in a specific way, but art? That’s completely subjective. 

Linking the Brain to Art

Everyone’s heard the phrase “a picture is worth a thousand words.” Well, it can be, but it’s more like it’s worth a completely different type of neurological stimuli, specifically how humans decide whether or not they “like” a piece of art.

Researchers at Caltech scanned the brains of volunteers over four days, who went through thousands of paintings and rated how much they liked the painting. What they found was that the medial prefrontal cortex that sits in an area in front of the brain assigns a subjective value to art right when a human first sees it. The brain breaks art into essential qualities and decides if it likes those qualities or not. 

Of course, it’s still all subjective. Even if we all use the same part of our brains to decide if we like art, it doesn’t mean we’ll all end up liking the same art. But that neural activity only explains the initial “gut-check” a person has towards a piece of art, and doesn’t account for one important aspect.

Knowing the message behind the art.

Modern Protest Art

“Protest Art” is a loose term for the art created by activists and social movements with a specific cause or action behind it. These types of art are hard to trace far into the past, but some famous historical examples include Paule Revere’s “The Boston Massacre” from 1770, displaying the event of the same name five years before the American Revolutionary War started. It, like other protest art pieces, captured the essence of the movement Revere was a part of.

In modern day, protest art pops up in many forms, but none are as classic as the mural. The British street and graffiti artist Banksy is one of the most recognizable “protest art” artists out there. His murals have often commentated on politics and current events. However, most movements aren’t heralded by a singular artist, but rather many coming together to create art that speaks to a wide range of people. The 2020 Black Lives Matter movement in the United States saw hundreds of murals go up in honor of George Floyd. Even the simple peace sign got its start as a sketch used on protest signs for an anti-nuclear protest walk.

Ultimately, a single piece of art isn’t the thing that unites a social or political movement visually, but the culmination of many pieces of artwork made by those most invested in that movement. .

This Year’s Poster

One of the many people invested in the good of the planet is Miles Wintner, who created the 2026 Earth Day poster. He represented this years theme of “Our Power, Our Planet” into depicting the Earth as a flower being held in a person’s hand.

To him, it represents both the tenderness and strength of humanity’s relationship with the plant. How ideally, the earth is cared for gently by humanity like we would a flower. It adds to the surreal nature of being human at a time when it’s critical to be planet-minded.

You can add your voice to the cause just like Wintner did and participate in Earth Day this year at one of thousands of events. Art is subjective, and a great tool to get a message across, but people need to make it, see it, and be inspired by it. So be inspired, not just by Wintner, but by the world, because it’s in the palm of our hands.

Order your limited edition poster.

This article is available for republishing on your website, newsletter, magazine, newspaper, or blog. The accompanying imagery is cleared for use with attribution. Please ensure that the author’s name and their affiliation with EARTHDAY.ORG are credited. Kindly inform us if you republish so we can acknowledge, tag, or repost your content. You may notify us via email at woods@earthday.org. Want more articles? Follow us on substack.

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Pulitzer prize winning poet Mary Oliver got her start in the woods, fiddling with miniature twig and grass huts. In the forest surrounding her childhood home in the suburbs of Cleveland, Ohio, hands muddied and hair no doubt strewn with leaves and sticks, Oliver encountered her beloved Mother Nature and wrote her very first poems. It was in these woods that Oliver discovered a lifelong love.

Across time immemorial, humble moments in connection with nature, like that of child Oliver in an Ohioan forest, have inspired impassioned artwork. From ancient China to the streets of Harlem, New York, poets across the globe have centered landscape, water, and flora and fauna in their writings. For instance, Wang Wei (701-761 C.E.) transformed tranquil Chinese landscapes into poems that resonated beyond the page. Langston Hughes (1901-1967 C.E.) wrote of rivers older than the blood in human veins, and his soul which had “grown deep like rivers.” Both found balance and expression in nature.

In a world harried by deforestation, fossil fuel giants, and man-made droughts and famines, it’s important to find moments of quietude to recalibrate, especially in stoic forests, rivers, and bright meadows. Like Oliver, let us sink into the surrounding landscape to escape our difficult earthly homes. That’s why for National Poetry Month, I’d like to invite you to explore the little occurrences of nature in poetry, and step for a moment onto the thin membrane separating humans from our brother animals.

Romanticizing Nature with the Romantics

What we know today as environmentalism was produced by Romanticism. Developed as a reaction to the Industrial Revolution and the Enlightenment, Romantics believed science cleft a great divide between humankind and the natural world. They viewed nature as sacred and uplifting rather than something to be wielded for human interest. Nature needed to be preserved, not degraded. Artists and poets like Wordsworth communicated the awesome beauty of the natural world to their audiences in the hopes of offering an alternative to ordered Enlightenment thought.

William Wordsworth (1770-1850) was a foundational Romantic English poet concerned about human relationships with nature. He spent his childhood in a rural paradise along the Derwent River in Derbyshire, England which featured prominently in passages in his poetry book The Prelude. Wordsworth believed the “dreary intercourse of daily life” in urban areas dampened efforts to elevate the mind, as poets attempt to do in their art. He believed, however, that nature could prevail over superficial city life.

Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772-1834) acted as Wordsworth’s sometimes partner in crime. The pair co-wrote the book Lyrical Ballads together and often traveled together, from a summer’s tour of Scotland to a brutal winter snowed-in in Germany. Coleridge and Wordsworth, both fascinated by nature, cemented the burgeoning Romantic movement in history. And Coleridge, like Wordsworth, left wonderful, nature-centered poems behind for generations to come:

Transcending Society with the Transcendentalists

Coinciding with the end of the Romantic movement, the Transcendental movement centered nature and the individual. Famous transcendentalists included writers and philosophers like David Henry Thoreau, Margaret Fuller, Ralph Waldo Emerson, and Amos Bronson Alcott. They urged people against blindly conforming to society, pointing instead towards finding “an original relation to the universe.”

For both Emerson and Thoreau, this meant spending time alone in nature and with their writings. Near the tailend of the movement, many transcendentalists were engaged in social experiments and founded alternative nature-centered lifestyles and societies like Fruitlands, Brook Farm, and Thoreau’s cabin in Walden. Brook Farm, the most famous of the three, was a utopian experiment that lasted only six and a half years. Though the community’s population grew and its school drew prominent New Englanders’ children, shaky finances eventually led the community to close its gates.

Transcendentalists’ close relationships with nature and individualism over social conformity also bore powerful social critiques. They spurned the ethnic cleansing of Native Americans, the ongoing war with Mexico, and above all, American slavery. Emerson wrote a scathing critique of the treatment of Native Americans to President Martin Van Buren in 1838. He had this to say of the trail of tears:

Poetry Still Packs a Punch Today

Drawing on both the Romantic and Transcendental traditions, poets of today’s era have combined a deep appreciation for nature with urgent warnings on social issues — namely, the climate crisis. In their ballads for nature, from Oliver’s hymn-like poem “When I Am Among The Trees” to Ada Límon’s poetry book You Are Here, writers across the world still find solace, peace, and hope in their natural environments.

Environmental crises such as floods, drought, increasingly frequent natural disasters, and polluted air and water make those still beautiful nooks of nature all the more precious. Still, poets are critical witnesses with powerful voices tuned to cry out as the environment erodes. Poets like Joan Naviyuk Kane, who contend daily with environmental, social, and political threats to her homeland in the Arctic, confront these threats directly in their work:

Join Other Artists in the Fight for Mother Earth

Art expresses a wide range of emotions that might otherwise be difficult for someone to voice. Whether through painting, sketching, sculpting, writing, or poetry, I believe we all have a gift to share with the world — and for a good cause. With enough love and encouragement, the poet inside you can awaken in defense of the Earth too.

If Kane or Oliver or Frost’s passionate words moved you, I invite you to sign up to be an Artist for the Earth. Art builds community and community powers change. Combine environmental art with social and political advocacy in your preferred artform and share it with those around you. The time to act is now, and what more powerful way to inspire other people’s hearts to change the world than through the lyrical stanzas of poetry.

This article is available for republishing on your website, newsletter, magazine, newspaper, or blog. The accompanying imagery is cleared for use with attribution. Please ensure that the author’s name and their affiliation with EARTHDAY.ORG are credited. Kindly inform us if you republish so we can acknowledge, tag, or repost your content. You may notify us via email at woods@earthday.org. Want more articles? Follow us on substack.

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Finally, for many of us, it’s the holiday season. Time to lounge back on the couch, bundle up in your fuzziest blanket, and pour a cup of creamy hot chocolate. You might spend the holidays with your friends laughing over a board game, or having a hearty meal at the table with your family.

As conversations at the table roar on, the topic may switch to a political one … or an environmental one. Eyes roll, the room fills with groans, and suddenly you’re wondering when dessert will come out. So you offer something neutral, “Why don’t we put on a movie?” Because sometimes, movies can reach places arguments never will, especially environmental ones.  

Environmental storytelling isn’t all doom and gloom, and doesn’t even need to mention climate change. They’re stories where nature comes alive.That is what makes narratives so powerful; they don’t just tell people what to believe. They let people experience it. 

Nature Has a Mind of Its Own in Moana

Moana, the 2016 animated Disney film, follows a girl with a deep connection to nature, particularly the ocean. Her community on the small island of Motunui relies on nearby resources like fish and fruit, and life there is idyllic: resources are plentiful, the ocean stretches clear for miles, and sunsets glow pink every evening. That peace is shattered when the coast no longer teems with fish and the coconuts begin to rot. The island’s prosperity depends on Te Fiti, the life-creating goddess who formed the ocean’s islands. When her heart is stolen, that life-giving force collapses, and the islands she created begin to suffer.

The ocean chooses Moana to save her people and is personified as a playful, almost mischievous character with a mind of its own. Its ripples and waves take on limb-like qualities, grabbing objects or even giving high-fives. The ocean guides Moana to Maui, the thief who stole Te Fiti’s heart and helps her find Te Fiti herself but not before saving her seemingly every time she encounters danger. 

When Moana falls overboard, the ocean places her back on the boat. At one point, Moana and Maui are confronted by a crew of coconut pirates, and the ocean saves them by pushing their boat away. In Moana’s final battle against Te Kā, the ocean opens a safe pathway to where she can safely restore the heart of Te Fiti.  This anthropomorphization of the ocean creates empathy for the environment itself and makes the harm it faces feel personal, even without directly saying “climate change.”

Moana reminds us that nature nurtures us when we nurture it. The ocean takes care of Moana throughout her journey, and she returns that favor by restoring the heart. Moana cleverly highlights the importance of balance between us and the natural world without preaching to us. 

Lessons of Coexistence with Flow

In Flow, another animated film, the characters speak in sounds we are not fluent in. Barks, trills, grunts, squeaks, and sighs fill in where dialogue would typically be. Released in 2024, Flow took home the Academy Award for Best Animated Film. The film follows a curious black cat living alone in a forest near human-made ruins, and it’s clear that humans are no longer around. Soon, rushing water floods the area, and the cat struggles to find high ground. At the last moment, a rickety boat floats along, and the cat jumps in.

The cat makes alliances with an unlikely group of lonely animals: a capybara very focused on finding the best place to sleep, a lemur obsessed with collecting human artifacts, a golden retriever always trying to start a game, and a secretary bird, once exiled from his own flock and now the protector of the group. The world of Flow is lush and vibrant, where the absence of humans gives nature dominance. Very reminiscent of when animals and insects became more visible during the COVID-19 lockdown. 

The environment manifests as its own character, behaving with its own intentional decisions rather than just an aesthetic background. The rising water isolates characters, brings them back together, and chooses where they go in this new flooded world. As a film that lacks dialogue, the viewer is dependent on following the ebbs and flows of the landscape to understand the movie’s direction. 

Chinatown: Lessons From the Landscape 

Under the blistering sun and still air of 1930s Southern California, a tale of corruption and resource manipulation unfolds. Chinatown, the iconic 1974 film starring Jack Nicholson, as detective Jake Gittes, is set in the dusty landscape of California’s Water Wars. During this time, the natural environment of Los Angeles is being manipulated for urban expansion, and the expanding city desperately needs water. The city proposes a route to bring water to the city, but at the cost of surrounding farmers and their livelihoods. 

You may turn Chinatown on to scratch that neo-noir detective itch, but instead walk away with a new understanding of how resources shape power. It reveals how nature can be manipulated as a political weapon. At one point, Jake Gittes hears from farmers who voice their concerns for their dry fields and withering crops. They insist that water is being secretly diverted away from their land at night, leaving them with nothing, while the city still receives its supply. 

Jake discovers that huge plots of bone-dry land are being bought up by mysterious investors. The land is useless, nothing but dust. Why would anyone want it? It turns out that the investors are buying the land for the value it will have once the city’s water supply is redirected back. 

Water is no longer just a resource for survival; it has become a commodity. Conflicts over water rights are not a modern issue; they are part of an ongoing struggle over who controls the fate of the natural world.

Narrative Storytelling Can Change Our Minds

By utilizing powerful stories, movie makers drop cognitive guards, allowing climate-skeptics to gain a deeper understanding of our codependence with the environment. 

Moana shows that the boundary between the natural world and humanity is much thinner than we’d expect. By caring about the animals in Flow, we might make subtle changes in what we value in the real world and how we respect other species. Chinatown exposes our dependence on natural resources and how that can be manipulated for power. These aren’t “climate movies,” but rather wonderful stories that remind us why the environment matters in the first place, and how every aspect of our daily lives depends on its success in some way.

If you enjoyed this article on environmental films, consider reading about how sci-fi films may predict our environmental future or how environmental films offer lessons to our climate crisis. Consider adonation to EARTHDAY.ORG to support further research and awareness, andsign up for our weekly newsletter.

This article is available for republishing on your website, newsletter, magazine, newspaper, or blog. The accompanying imagery is cleared for use with attribution. Please ensure that the author’s name and their affiliation with EARTHDAY.ORG are credited. Kindly inform us if you republish so we can acknowledge, tag, or repost your content. You may notify us via email at davies@earthday.org or fielder@earthday.org. Want more articles? Follow us on substack.

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Art holds the undeniable power to inspire change and spark global movements. Whether it’s the stroke of a paintbrush, an infectious melody, or the poignancy of a poem, art can shift not only the way we see ourselves, but our connection to the world. 

Art prompts us to reflect inwardly as much as it challenges us to consider our changing environment and role in impacting climate change. For centuries, trees have been powerful symbols in artists’ works, embodying themes of life, renewal, and strength. These complex living beings inspire us by representing resilience and the cyclical nature of existence.    

There are an estimated 60,000 different species of trees that grace the Earth. Here are three artists that have attempted to capture the beauty and vastness of trees through their work.

Bob Ross’s Happy Little Trees

Bob Ross was a beloved landscape painter, teacher and television personality of the late 80s. His PBS show titled in the U.S, “The Joy of Painting,” allowed viewers to bask in his soothing voice, feather-like brush strokes and positive words of encouragement. 

In his paintings, Ross used a wet-on-wet technique, which involves applying wet paint to a wet surface and thus, allows for colors to easily blend and creates dynamic movement across the canvas.  

While Ross’s show was quite simple in execution as he began with the same tools each episode (a blank canvas, paint palette and a few brushes), it was this consistency that continued to draw viewers in. Watching Ross create lush forests, serene and sparkling waterfalls, cozy cabins and towering mountains all under 30 minutes, was just half of the appeal. His calm demeanor and approach to art as a form of ultimate self-expression and endless possibility, are qualities that could make a viewer feel included and intrigued to begin a painting of their own.      

Ross would often use the phrase “happy little trees” when he began to paint trees into his landscapes. While many believe he coined the phrase, he in fact adopted it from his mentor William “Bill” Alexander, who had his own PBS show, “The Magic of Oil Painting” from the mid 70s to early 80s. Despite this, the phrase became largely associated with Ross due to his show solidifying itself as part of the great pop culture of the 80s. 

In its essence, “happy little trees” reflects the joy that can still be found in life’s imperfections. For Ross, the main thing is to embrace your creativity to the fullest extent. He viewed trees as needing friends and held the belief that everyone deserves a friend. He would reflect this in his work by painting several unique trees, representing the idea that individuality is important.   

In 2019, a reforestation program between the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and Bob Ross Inc. was born. Known as “Happy Little Trees,” the program is a rebranding of Michigan’s Prison Grow program, which allows inmates to plant and care for tree seedlings. Once big enough, the trees head off to state parks, all around the state, to be planted by volunteers. 

Since the program’s original inception in 2004, it has produced more than 100,000 native plants, shrubs and trees. Now with support from Bob Ross Inc., over 2,100 trees have been planted across 20 Michigan state parks. 

Michael Jackson’s Plea for the Planet

Michael Jackson, most famously known for being the “King of Pop” and arguably one of the most influential if not controversial figures of the 20th century, released “Earth Song” in 1995. This ballad, which was the last song Jackson ever performed before his death, touched on major themes of environmental issues, poverty, war and animal welfare. 

“Earth Song” opens with soft cricket and bird sounds and gradually builds as Jackson cries out lyrics such as “did you ever stop to notice / this crying Earth, this weeping shore?” By personifying the planet, it adds a layer of emotional depth that carries throughout the song and calls for humanity to recognize the destruction it has caused.

There is also a music video that accompanies the song, which sits at nearly 500 million views. The video, which was shot across four vastly different areas including Warwick, New York, Tanzania, Karlovac, Croatia and the Amazon Rainforest in Brazil, speaks to the song’s lyricism of desolation.

The video begins with several shots of a lush and peaceful rainforest, but quickly turns into a scene where Jackson is quietly roaming through a wreckage of broken down trees under a burning red sky similar to that of an apocalyptic film. Throughout much of the video, there are multiple dissolve transitions between thriving life in jungles and safaris to stark instances of animal deaths, deforestation and pollution. 

Toward the end, the video uses time reversal effects to show the restoration of forests and wildlife, allowing for a hopeful conclusion that leaves viewers to think about their own impact on the planet.

Painting a Brighter, Cleaner Future

Alexis Rockman, a contemporary artist known for creating paintings that depict detailed futuristic landscapes as they might look with the impacts of climate change, designed this year’s Earth Day poster. 

The poster is representative of EARTHDAY.ORG’s 2025 theme, Our Power, Our Planet, supporting renewable energy like solar and wind over fossil fuels. It serves as a reminder of our continued need to push for a renewable energy future.

At the center of Rockman’s poster, which is a mix of watercolor with acrylic and oil based paint, a solar panel that stands tall amongst the bright and sunny sky, reflecting the positive impact renewable energy can have on our planet. A body of diverse hands are stretched upwards and are accompanied by rich and lush trees that hug the sides of the poster. A few monarch butterflies are interspersed in the piece and “Earth Day 2025” is free-flowingly painted in green lettering.       

If you support EARTHDAY.ORG’s work promoting renewable energy please sign our Renewable Energy Petition, urging global leaders to commit to phasing out fossil fuels and investing in renewable energy. We have never needed more support as the present US government does all it can to undermine the growth of the renewable energy business in favor of planet polluting fossil fuels.  

Beyond the Masterpiece 

Art allows us to understand and process the world around us. It is emotional, thought provoking and serves as a communal space where ideas can run free.  
Whether you’re an artist or an admirer, you can make a difference. Through EARTHDAY.ORG’s  Canopy Tree Project, we’ve planted tens of millions of trees worldwide with the primary goal of reforestation, and supporting local communities, as well as contributing to the ongoing goals of combating climate change and safeguarding biodiversity. Donating as little as $1 today can plant a tree.

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Art has always had a seat at the environmental table. The first Earth Day in 1970 featured everything from protest posters to poetry readings. Before that, moving photographs of the damage caused by the 1969 Santa Barbara oil spill helped ignite the movement. And now, celebrities like William Shatner, Ringo Star, Amanda Seyfried, and Zac Efron use their voice to promote climate action through Earth Day.

Students too use art as their voice for action and that is because art does what science often can’t. Arts stirs emotions, captures attention, and gives people something to believe in. 

That’s exactly what International Artist Day is here to celebrate. Founded in 2004 by Canadian artist Chris MacClure, this day honors artists for the way they shape culture, challenge perspectives, and make the world more beautiful. It is about more than gallery walls or museum halls. It’s a reminder to artists of all kinds that at its heart, art is activism.

Art That is Doing What Politicians Won’t

The Land Art Generator Initiative (LAGI) is charging the art scene with a creative current: renewable energy. Artists Elizabeth Monoian and Robert Ferry founded LAGI to challenge creatives across the globe to design public artworks that also generate clean power.

Since its inception, LAGI has hosted worldwide competitions in major cities like Abu Dhabi, New York, and Copenhagen. The goal? Turn energy infrastructure into something that powers both cities and imaginations.

One standout design is WindNest, a group of rotating pods made to capture both wind and solar energy. This art installation was made for the city of Pittsburg, and If approved it could produce enough power (8,000 kWh) for 260,000 people to charge their phones with just the sun and the wind each year!

Another eye-catching proposal is Windstalk. This piece makes you feel like a tiny ant, with a field of tall, flexible stalks that sway with the wind like oversized blades of grass. As the wind blows, the motion of each stalk generates electricity – a process called piezoelectricity. At night, the stalks gently glow, reflecting the energy they’re producing by dancing in the breeze. In fact, they are projected to produce enough energy (20,000 MWh) to power 1,800 U.S. homes for an entire year. An extra bonus; when it rains, water collects at the base of the art installation, which helps nourish a garden of native plants. 

Then there’s Solar Hourglass, and no, it’s not for keeping time. Imaging two mirrored saucers, facing each other and having a staring contest. With their mirrors, they are meant to “catch” sunlight. These mirrors reflect and bounce the sunlight into one superpowered beam, kind of like when you use a magnifying glass to make a bright dot on the sidewalk. This crazy hot beam is captured and turned into energy, and makes enough power for hundreds of homes. The project is estimated to produce enough energy (7,500 MWh) to run 2,200 electric cars for a year.

PULLQUOTE: “If we’re serious about 100% renewable energy, it will reshape the way our cities look. So why not make them beautiful?” Robert Ferry, CoFounder of LAGI – The Guardian

While many are still in development, cities like Glasgow are already working with LAGI to bring these visions to life.They show the potential for art to literally light up the planet.  

Earth Day Knows Watts Up with Inspiration

The Land Art Generator Initiative is certainly impressive and creative, but art for the climate isn’t new. For Earth Day it’s part of our roots. In 2025, EARTHDAY.ORG tapped environmental artist Alexis Rockman to create something unforgettable. With the theme Our Power, Our Planet, focusing on the global adoption of renewable energy, Rockman generated a powerful image of a solar panel rising above a joyful, diverse crowd, surrounded by a thriving forest. It perfectly captures the year’s theme and the urgent hope that renewable energy can bring us together, with people power.

PULLQUOTE: “Humans are an almost entirely visual species, and art can and should convey complex and highly emotional images that go directly to our hearts…There is still time to make a difference.” Alexis Rockman

In a time when data can be overwhelming and headlines exhausting, art cuts through the noise. It reminds us what we’re fighting for. It turns facts into feelings. It invites everyone into the climate conversation with beauty.

So on this International Artist Day, whether you’re a painter, poet, designer, or just someone who appreciates consuming art, you can make a difference. Sign our Renewable Energy Petition to voice your support for a triple in renewable energy generation by 2030. 

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From Sting’s buzzing jazz and reggae-infused tracks to Chappell Roan’s theatrical dance-pop, music pulses through the backdrop of our daily lives. The music streaming industry’s revenue sits at a whopping $17.5 billion, with over 600 million people subscribed to a music streaming service. And with Taylor Swift’s latest album playing in the grocery store, Doechii dropping stunning verses during her tiny desk concert, and sound bites from a wide array of underground artists capturing millions on platforms like TikTok, it’s no wonder people can’t get enough of their favorite musicians and groups.

The highlight of a listener’s music experience is often seeing their favorite artist in concert. Music festivals draw millions of fun-loving fans and artists every year, bursting with a wide array of colorful cultural experiences, exclusive merchandise, and head banging music.

How do Music Festivals Impact the Environment?

With so many music-lovers and fans crowding in to catch a glimpse of their idols, festivals have their work cut out for them balancing the energy consumption and waste production they incur. From single-wear, themed concert outfits to leftover plastic tents and tossed out merchandise, concerts and festivals generate solid and chemical waste in excess. 

For one, all that lovely glitter adorning festival-goer faces and outfits often ends up washing out into bodies of water like rivers and lakes. As a kind of microplastic, glitter does not break down and winds up polluting our natural water ways and being consumed by fish, birds and other animals. 

Flimsy plastic festival tents are another issue. They are often made with polyvinyl chloride (PVC), a toxic chemical pollutant resistant to breakdown. In 2022 in the UK, on average nearly 80% of festival goers left tents behind, and these tents are almost impossible to recycle.

Emissions from transportation add to these issues. Besides the hoards of fans driving or flying out to concerts, private aviation and long-haul trucking rack up CO2 emissions in the blink of an eye. A Greener Festival report notes that transportation emissions account for between 35% and 94% of festival goers’ total carbon emissions. 

To tackle these problems, many festivals and artists around the world are fighting for change, collaborating with waste management companies, updating stadium policies, and promoting educational outreach to inform attendees of their environmental impacts and recommended best practices. Let’s take a moment to shout-out some of these festivals striving towards change.

Calling all Shambhalans

The Canadian EDM festival Shambhala advocates for a “leave no trace” approach. Weaving their various stages into the landscape, Shambhala fuses nature with music, aiming to capture audiences not only with their impressive artist line-ups but also with the stunning wilderness vistas. They hope to follow in the footsteps of the Sylix, Sinixt, and Ktunaxa nations, honoring the land and water and protecting it for years to come. 

In 2024, Shambhala raised £147,758 for community and environmental initiatives. With their eco-travel plan, they helped over a third of attendees arrive on low-impact transportation including coach and rail. In terms of food, the festival composted 10 tonnes of waste, pioneered crew food with 47% organic produce — the majority of which was sourced within 200 miles of the venue, and offered meals with an average of 0.45 kg CO2 per plate. For reference, the average carbon emissions of a concert meal in the UK is 2 kg CO2 per plate.

Lightning in a Bottle

The U.S.-based Lightning in a Bottle festival takes “leave no trace” a step further. Adopting the slogan “leave a positive trace,” they encourage attendees to take care of their own waste, respect the land, and avoid littering. They opt for sustainable energy, including LED and solar lights for stage lighting. They avoid single-use plastic water bottles by providing free water. Attendees are asked to avoid trampling plants off the beaten path and not to disturb wildlife as a part of their push to honor the land.

DGTL Festival

The Netherlands boast one of the most sustainable music festivals in the world: DGTL Festival. Since 2022, DGTL has managed to be 100% fossil fuel free, committed to retackling the energy problem each year and avoiding harmful emissions. They explored solar, hydro, hydrogen, and even sound waves as potential sources of renewable energy. 

In addition to energy, DGTL offers no-waste, safe water, and entirely plant-based food. Artists flying in have their planes’ fuel replaced with Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF), a kind of biofuel made up of plant and animal materials. Machinery used on-site is all low emission or zero emission. Hard cups have been introduced to replace single-use and one-time-physical-tokens have been swapped for cashless card payments. 

Fans for Change

There are plenty of things fans can do to mitigate environmental impacts. If possible, consider taking public transportation, carpooling, riding a bike, or walking to your festival or concert venue. Explore your local thrift store for your next niche concert outfit rather than buying from fast-fashion brands. Consider using biodegradable glitter or bringing a reusable water bottle to avoid microplastic pollution. We all have a responsibility to our planet and some of the smallest steps, if done collectively, can have a positive impact.

So, the next time you’re reloading Ticket Master eight times in a minute for that golden ticket to your favorite artist, remember to tread lightly on the land and respect the water. Rocking out on Earth means dancing in tune with our planet’s rhythms too.
Read more about the creative side of environmentalism in our articles featuring Artists for the Earth. Make sure to sign up for our email list to get news and research delivered to your inbox on Saturdays.

This article is available for republishing on your website, newsletter, magazine, newspaper, or blog. The accompanying imagery is cleared for use with attribution. Please ensure that the author’s name and their affiliation with EARTHDAY.ORG are credited. Kindly inform us if you republish so we can acknowledge, tag, or repost your content. You may notify us via email at davies@earthday.org or fielder@earthday.org. Want more articles? Follow us on substack.

The post Rocking Out with Planet Earth appeared first on Earth Day.

Robert Redford, acclaimed actor, director, indie film luminary, environmentalist and activist, died today at age 89. Few celebrities have so notably or in such pioneering fashion thrown the weight of their star power into so many just and essential causes.

Those viewing “Earth: One Amazing Day” in 2017 were treated to Redford’s trademark gravelly narration. Passing his passion for the natural world onto children and the child in all of us, this upbeat documentary celebrates observing wild animals within their native environments, something essential to reinforce and remember as their habitats continue to be threatened. This is just one contribution capping a lifetime of environmental and political activism.

For 50 years he was a trustee for the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) and he founded the Sundance Institute, championing causes such as the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act and fighting projects like a Utah coal-fired power plant. Redford advocated for the Paris Climate Treaty, and supported initiatives to protect areas like Texas’ Barton Springs. In Austin, Barton Springs is a haven for all Texans and wildlife including several endangered species, and connects to a vast and vital underground aquifer that is essential for all life in the region.

He had the power and freedom to pick the films he both starred in and directed and his choices reflect a wide ranging vision spanning the person, political, and the environmental. From his academy-award winning directorial debut, Ordinary People, exploring loss and grief, and how they  can tear families apart, to All the President’s Men, about the Watergate scandal, an event that ripped at the fabric of our nation, and brought down President Nixon, the man who ironically inaugurated the Environmental Protection Agency. 

Plus my personal favorite, the lyrical A River Runs Through It. Based on Norman Maclean’s masterpiece, at once idyllic and brutally honest, Redford’s film contrasts the enduring power of nature with the corruption of human forces. Redford courted Maclean by going fly fishing with him, a story told to me by my college mentor, Joel Snyder, who provided the historical photos in the film. Redford voiced the narration for the film himself, and with his choices we get a glimpse directly into the heart of the man, as he expresses his love for the natural world and analyzes the tragic human corruption and greed that threatens it.

Robert Redford was the forerunner of Leonardo Dicaprio and others of later generations who embraced environmental activism. Like Earth Day itself, his legacy stretches back to the roots of the modern environmental movement. There will never be another like him, one of the last great stars of the old Hollywood system, using the full weight of the power available only at that time and place in support of saving the fragile ecosystems of our one and only planet.

May we be inspired by his memory and the gifts he gave us in so many forms to continue the fight and to remember that the river will continue long after we’re gone, as long as we steer clear of our worst tendencies and extend our generosity to future generations and all the world’s creatures.

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Today is International National Parks day, and as the present Administration in the U.S increasingly describes nature as simply a resource to be monetized, it is more important than ever that we take the time to appreciate our natural reserves as sanctuaries and hosts to essential ecosystems and environments. 

In the mid-19th century, artists travelled across the United States, braving the wilderness and summiting peaks to capture the magnificence of the sprawling, untamed West. As photographs, stories, and paintings made their way back to the East, people became passionate about preserving these landscapes before they were destroyed by human development. As a result, Yellowstone National Park became the first national park in 1872. 

It is a timely reminder that art has the power to move people to action. Hearing about the importance of preserving national parks can inspire people to advocate for them, but seeing or experiencing natural beauty through an artistic lens creates a uniquely emotional connection between the viewer and the land itself. 

Today, national parks welcome artists-in-residence, whose paintings promote conservation efforts and even help raise awareness about the dangers of oil and gas drilling in protected areas. However, it is also important to acknowledge the work of travelling artists and indigenous people in the past. Without the artistic storytelling of these groups, our national parks wouldn’t be what they are today. 

Painting a Canvas for Change

One painter who helped change the public perception of national parks in the U.S. was Albert Bierstadt. In the late 1800s, the German American painter depicted Western landscapes in parks such as Yosemite and Yellowstone. His dramatic, spectacular paintings powerfully promoted appreciation for American natural spaces and helped garner national support for public lands. When displayed in exhibitions today, his art moves viewers by conveying a profound connection to the natural world. 

National parks exist because people like Bierstadt saw landscapes and environments worth preserving. His work allows many people who do not have the privilege of spending time in these protected areas to still connect with them. 

Indigenous Art as a Tool for Conservation

When North American indigenous groups such as the Ute and Puebloan tribes traveled through western landscapes, they left behind drawings that told stories of their culture and the land. 

These stone carvings, called petroglyphs, have led to the conservation of land in many areas of the United States. For example, Arches National Park in Utah and Petroglyph National Monument in New Mexico protect drawings so that they can be studied and appreciated. Petroglyphs are visual evidence of changing climates, cultural practices, and historical events, and preserving them keeps the history of the land alive for future generations. 

Rock art has played a similar role in the preservation of national parks in Australia. In 2021, a uranium mine located in Kakadu National Park ceased production after decades of protests from Aboriginal owners of the land. When explaining the decision, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said that indigenous rock art in the park should be protected as “a reminder of the extraordinary privilege all of us have, to share this continent with the world’s oldest continuous culture.” 

The Hills are Alive with the Sound of Music

In addition to paintings and carvings, music written in support of national parks has touched listeners and sent them thronging to preserved lands. In celebration of the National Parks Service Centennial in 2016, parks across the United States held concerts to celebrate the milestone. 

They featured classical music by indigenous musicians, covers of famous compositions, and contemporary performances complementing a backdrop of dramatic canyons and towering mountains. The concerts contributed to an astounding 331 million visitations to U.S. national parks in 2016. 

Another example of the role of music in preserving national parks is the song “Grýlukvæði” by Icelandic musician Valgeir Sigurðsson. In the 1990s, projects to build hydropower dams in the Icelandic Highlands threatened ecosystems, geological formations, and cultural heritage. Songs like “Grýlukvæði” were written to evoke an emotional response to the environmental crisis, and they played a role in bringing awareness to the harms of some of these projects. In 2008, Vatnajökull National Park was established to protect a portion of the Highlands from damaging infrastructure. 

Artistic storytelling from artists around the world shares the grandeur of national parks with people who otherwise wouldn’t be able to experience it. Every stroke of a brush, chip of a rock, and pluck of a string tells the history of the lands people deemed too precious to destroy. 

A striking depiction of a park or historical event stirs emotions that can change perspectives and drive people to activism. 

If you can’t visit a park this International National Parks day, take time to appreciate them by learning more about the artists who helped preserve the parks near you. To help keep them available for future generations, visit our Climate Education page to find ways to teach others about the importance of conservation. 

If you care about the environment, and are in the U.S., we need your voice. Add your name to our public comments on the EPA’s intentions to gut the agency’s ability to regulate pollution due to climate change, also known as the Endangerment Finding.

The time to act and protect nature is now. Do it for our park’s right to exist and for your children’s future right to roam free in unspoiled nature. 

This article is available for republishing on your website, newsletter, magazine, newspaper, or blog. The accompanying imagery is also cleared for use with attribution. Please ensure that the author’s name and their affiliation with EARTHDAY.ORG are credited. Kindly inform us if you republish so we can acknowledge, tag, or repost your content. You may notify us via email at davies@earthday.org or fielder@earthday.org. Want more articles? Follow us on substack.

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Today is World Photography Day, and we want to honor this incredible craft by sharing nature photos taken by our very own EARTHDAY.ORG staff and their reveals about why they love these images so much.

Emily Walker

Education Coordinator

The Trees of Virginia

West Virginia Mountains taken in the late winter at New River Gorge Bridge.

Shenandoah Area, Virginia: Tree tops in late spring taken from the mountain side of quaint Elkton, Virginia which backs up to the Shenandoah Mountains. 

I always find myself drawn to the mountains; not for the adrenaline or challenge, but for the quiet moments they offer. Most of the photos I’ve held onto come from hikes and camping trips in the Appalachians, often with close friends or family. There’s a rhythm to those days: being around the mist in the trees and the soothing sounds of the wildlife around us.

Growing up in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia, these landscapes are more than just beautiful backdrops; they feel like home. The rolling hills and soft, layered ridgelines have always given me a sense of peace I struggle to find elsewhere. 

When I look back at these images, I’m reminded of who I was with, and the ease that comes from being surrounded by both nature and people who know you well. That combination of connection and calm has come to define why I keep returning to these places, and why these photos matter to me so much.

Aminah Taariq-Sidibe

Manager, End Plastic Initiatives, EDO

Pink Waters Run Deep

Pink waters in Lac Rose, Cap Vert peninsula of Senegal.

I bought a 2007 Sony digital camera (Cybershot DSC-W55) second hand, and it’s incredible. The grainy look makes the present moment feel so nostalgic. Even though the camera is “old and used”, it doesn’t detract from its ability to evoke emotions through its unique perspective on the world. It’s a sturdy piece of technology, and I hope it lasts me many more years. It’s this camera that I used to take my two favorite pictures.  

Lac Rose is located in the Cap Vert peninsula of Senegal. It is known for having a pink glow due to algae (but it wasn’t super pink today) but beautiful nonetheless!

Terran Fielder

Media Specialist, EDO

Costa Rican Creatures 

In the summer of 2022, I had the incredible opportunity to visit my oldest and dearest friend in Costa Rica. Over the course of two weeks, we journeyed across the entire country, experiencing its breathtaking natural beauty: from volcanoes to beaches, and deep into the heart of its lush rainforests. The abundance of wildlife was astounding, and although I had only my phone to capture moments, one night stands out in particular. 

During a nighttime hike through the forest, we crossed paths with a couple of biologists who were there to study and photograph Costa Rica’s unique creatures. They kindly shared their knowledge and stunning images with us, identifying each animal and explaining their behavior. Now, whenever I revisit those photos, I’m transported back to that unforgettable trip and the deep connection I felt to nature in that moment. 

Yellow tree frog 

Family of White-headed Capuchin monkies 

Photography can reveal the beauty of our planet, it also reminds us of the importance of protecting it. We must ensure that future generations get to see these sights through their own eyes and have the opportunity to capture the natural world in all its glory. 

To make that possible, we need to take meaningful action. Reducing our plastic consumption is a crucial step; plastic pollution and microplastics and their harmful chemicals kill millions of animals every single year: from marine life,marine life, to birds, to land animals. 

Not only does it devastate nature it impacts our own well-being too, as plastic chemicals have been linked to serious health concerns, from heart disease to cancers to infertility to Alzheimer’s and more.

Investing in renewable energy is another vital move to protect our planet from the harmful effects of climate change. Solar, wind, geo-thermal, today and hydro naturally are finite energy sources that offer a steady supply of power without emitting the harmful greenhouse gases that come from burning  fossil fuels.

Finally, climate education must be prioritized to deepen young people’s appreciation  of the natural world and equip them with the knowledge and tools needed to protect it.

We all want to protect what is in these images. Right now in the U.S , the Environmental Protection Agency, the EPA, is under attack from the very man charged with leading it, Lee Zeldin. His actions to limit the EPA’s ability to counter air and water pollution by rescinding the Endangerment Finding is threatening the nature we hold so dear. 

We should remember that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was established by Republican President Richard Nixon in December 1970,  just months after the very first Earth Day on April 22nd – which galvanized 20 million Americans to march on the streets. Demanding environmental action to keep their families safe and healthy – with clean water and clean air. 

If you care about the environment, and are in the U.S., we need your voice. Add your name to our public comments on the EPA’s intentions to gut the agency’s ability to regulate pollution due to climate change, also known as the Endangerment Finding.

This article is available for republishing on your website, newsletter, magazine, newspaper, or blog. The accompanying imagery is also cleared for use. Please ensure that the author’s name and their affiliation with EARTHDAY.ORG are credited. Kindly inform us if you republish so we can acknowledge, tag, or repost your content. You may notify us via email at davies@earthday.org or fielder@earthday.org.Want more articles? Follow us on substack.

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In an era defined by climate change, deforestation, and ecological crisis, some of the most profound reflections on our relationship with our planet come from film. Through emotional storytelling and compelling imagery, movies have the power to shape public consciousness, especially around environmental issues. Here’s some that stand out and few that may surprise you.

Bambi: An Early Wake-Up Call

Disney’s Bambi may appear at first glance to be a simple coming-of-age story about a young fawn , but beneath its gentle animation lies one of cinema’s earliest and most emotionally grabbing environmental messages. The film throws the main character, Bambi, into a harsh world where woodland creatures must fight to survive. ‘Man’.

The infamous scene in which  Bambi’s mother is killed by a hunter still resonates decades later, not just because of  its emotional impact, but for what it represents. The presence of people almost haunts the forest, even though we never actually see any human beings in the movie, we know that they bring only fire, death, destruction and fear. Long before environmentalism was a widespread movement, Bambi released in 1942  asked us to reflect on our attitude to wildlife and the exploitation of nature  and indirectly challenged us to do better.  

The Wild Robot: Can Technology Live in Harmony with Nature?

In The Wild Robot, viewers are introduced to Roz, a robot marooned on a remote island after a shipping accident. At first, Roz is clunky and alien to the animal inhabitants of the island. But over time, she learns to adapt, communicate, and eventually even raise an orphaned gosling. Roz becomes a part of an  ecosystem she was never meant to enter.

Right away, this film does an amazing job at making us understand the beauty of nature. The artstyle and the animation are gorgeous. The special moments when you see Roz connect with nature, like when he reaches his hands out to touch the butterflies, is simple yet beautiful. The look and style of the film, almost demands that we care about the natural world and all of its creatures instantly

What makes this movie especially compelling though, is its thoughtful meditation on technology and the environment. Most films pit technology against nature, but here we see an instance of technology adapting to work with nature. Even to be humbled and changed by it, as Roz is. 

The message is poignant: while machines may be built to serve humans, they too can evolve. And when guided by empathy and understanding, they can even possibly become allies in the fight to protect the environment. With society hardwired to strive for advancements and the constant battle to develop more, this film addresses what people can use that development for. It is a truly thought provoking film that stays with you long after the movie has stopped playing. 

The Day After Tomorrow: When Nature Strikes Back

In contrast to the fables and animated dramas above, The Day After Tomorrow delivers its environmental message through the spectacle of disaster. The film imagines a not-so-distant future where climate change has accelerated abruptly, triggering a series of catastrophic natural events with superstorms, floods, and a new Ice Age.

While grounded in some real climate science, the film takes dramatic liberties, using rapid glaciation as a metaphor for nature’s breaking point. Cities are swallowed by tidal waves, weather patterns become erratic, and millions are forced to flee. At its core, this film is a tale about the consequences of continuing to pollute and exploit the Earth.

What makes the film especially relevant is how it reframes climate change not as a slow, distant threat, but as an immediate crisis. Given the way in which extreme weather events appear to be happening more frequently around the world in reality, this device in the movie is extra terrifying. It portrays nature as a system with limits that, once crossed, will retaliate with force.  While the film is heavy on disaster-movie tropes, its underlying message is clear: if humanity refuses to change its behavior, nature will change the world for us, just not in the way that we envision.

Princess Mononoke: Balance Between Progress and Beauty

No list of environmental films is complete without one of Hayao Miyazki’s. Perhaps most famously  the Oscar winning The Boy and the Heron, but no Miyazki film highlights the nature of environmental conflict better than Princess Monoke. 

The film follows Ashitaka, a royal prince who is looking to break a curse placed on him, who finds himself in the middle of a war between humans and forest spirits.

What makes Princess Mononoke so compelling is its refusal to simplify. There are no clear heroes or villains. Even Lady Eboshi, the leader of Iron Town, shows her compassion for her people despite exploiting the land around her.  Miyazaki presents both the wonders of nature and the needs of civilization with nuance. It culminates with the theme of balancing progress with nature. What makes the journey so compelling is that while Ashitaka helps to achieve this balance, he can’t do it alone. It involves every character doing their part to help out.

By the film’s end, the forest suffers, but it does not disappear. Likewise, human progress continues, but at a cost. Princess Mononoke leaves us with an uneasy truth: we can’t undo our impact on the environment, but we can choose to live more responsibly. 

Despite this bleak turn of events, the film still remains optimistic. While everyone has suffered it’s not too late to turn back and rebuild. 

A Shared Vision: Warning and Wonder

Despite their differences in genre, format, and tone, Bambi, The Wild Robot, Princess Mononoke, and The Day After Tomorrow all converge around a shared understanding of our place in the natural world. 

Each film shows us that humans are not separate from nature but deeply embedded within it. Our actions ripple through ecosystems, sometimes in subtle ways, and sometimes have huge consequences. Nature, on the other hand, is portrayed as both beautiful and vulnerable. It is capable of resilience, but constantly threatened by the excesses of human industrialization and carelessness.

Ultimately, the lesson threaded through all four films is that ignoring the well being of our environment and wildlife, has consequences. Some are as quiet as a fallen tree, others are as thunderous as a collapsing climate. But even in the face of loss, these stories offer hope. They urge us to rethink our role on this planet, not as masters of it, but as stewards. 

This month support the well being of the planet and consider getting involved in EARTH ACTION DAY or even donating to The Canopy Project. 

This article is available for republishing on your website, newsletter, magazine, newspaper, or blog. The accompanying imagery is also cleared for use. Please ensure that the author’s name and their affiliation with EARTHDAY.ORG are credited. Kindly inform us if you republish so we can acknowledge, tag, or repost your content. You may notify us via email at davies@earthday.org or fielder@earthday.org. Want more articles? Follow us on substack.

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