America’s first Earth Day was celebrated in April 1970 to raise environmental awareness in both politics and the media. Earth Day is now in its 47th year with events that extend around the globe. Respecting, appreciating and preserving our environment is a goal with universal appeal. Here are some app ideas to raise our environmental awareness all year long.
Get outdoors with Recreation.gov
Enjoy the great outdoors by making plans to explore our national parks and federal lands. Recreation.gov is the website and app that make putting trips together a breeze. Enter a destination, and then search for nearby campgrounds, forests and national monuments.
Use a scheduling app for local public transportation
Heading to a city? Is it possible to take the bus, train or subway? Find out quickly with an app that supports your nearest public transportation service. In the Bay Area, we use Caltrain to get to and from San Francisco. I found this Caltrain scheduling app with a quick search on iTunes. Now I can plan transportation quickly and easily.
Plant a garden with Montessori Nature
For some educational gaming fun, check out Montessori Nature by Edoki Academy. Plant, nurture, and grow a virtual garden while managing resources in the Montessori Nature digital ecosystem. Seeing your own seeds sprout online may encourage little gardeners to plant their own food sources!
Understand your recycling options
Search the name of your local recycling center on iTunes to see if they have an app. Recology is the recycling center for my neighborhood, and their app displays a recycling calendar for each service area, plus solutions for recycling different types of items. Approach zero waste by learning about strategies for recycling, reducing and reusing our resources.
Eat from sustainable food sources with Seafood Watch
Are you an ocean lover? Me too! Seafood Watch by the Monterey Bay Aquarium educates consumers about seafood that is fished or farmed in sustainable ways. Use the app to avoid choices that contribute to overfishing and pollution. Make choices that preserve the environment for us and for future generations.
Do you have more app ideas for boosting our environmental stewardship? If so, send them along!
Lorraine Akemann | Co-Founder and Editor | Moms With Apps
Photo credit [Flickr creative commons]
