On 22 April 2013 approaches yet another Earth Day. This international movement that aims to protect the planet and secure a sustainable future has been around for 43 years and now has more than 22,000 network partners in 192 countries participating in the event and supporting the activities. This year more than 1 billion people are going to take part in Earth Day. Are you?

The theme of the movement this year is “The Face of Climate Change.” I can’t see a more relevant theme even just considering how ‘weird’ the weather has been this year. In Germany, it is still terribly cold and there are barely signs of the spring approaching, non-less the summer. On 1 April it was snowing here, which isn’t normal. Yes, Germany is not the warmest country in the world, but for the three years I have lived here I have never seen such a long winter. So, believe it or not climate change does exist and it impacts us all.

I like the initiative, because Earth Day gives people an opportunity to come together and do simple acts of green that have an actual impact – joining the strengths of the many is always more powerful than just a few people trying to make a change.

But it’s not just on Earth Day that you can do something for the planet. I urge you to think and find ways of how to become more green because the pressing environmental challenges are not going away, we need to find solutions and do so fast. Why? Simply because we only have one planet. The future of the next generations lies in our hands and we better do something to offer them the possibility of living a fruitful and joyful life.

Here are some suggestions of how you can change your ‘normal’ habits and go environmentally-friendly (if you haven’t already):

• Recycle – this is probably the simplest thing you can do.
• Save water – for example, while brushing your teeth or washing your hands don’t run the faucet (here some more simple water conservation tips).
• Save energy – for example, turn off lights and appliances and unplug chargers and other electronic devices when not in use.
• Walk or cycle to work/uni – try to reduce driving or using public transport as much as possible.
• Buy organic and natural products and support local businesses who grow, produce and sell fruits, veggies, meat, cheese etc. on the market.
• Cook fresh and organic meals at home rather than having ready-meals, take-out or often eating out.
• Don’t throw food away – make fruit that is going soft into smoothies or vegetables into soups, and make use of your leftovers for other meals.
• Don’t throw your old clothes or shoes away – donate them to charities or give them to H&M for their Garment Collecting initiative.

These are small changes you can easily make. It all starts with taking one simple step towards moving to a more sustainable lifestyle.

How are you going to support Earth Day? What are you going to do to help save the planet?