Earth Day - Seeing the possibility of a healthy world

Hey Jammers! Early post– surprised? Well, I'm mostly here because today is Earth Day, and I don't think it would be complete for me without a post on here :)

Before we start, a little notice:

A couple days ago, after almost two years of me being too lazy to update the Codes page... it has been updated. Finally. Big shout out and apology to all the Jammers who kept commenting saying that none of the codes work, to no avail. They should all work now!

I'm going to try to find a more reliable source to find codes– I still have no clue where the people who make lo-fi YouTube videos listing Animal Jam codes even get that secret knowledge. After so many years of playing AJ, I should know by now!

Now... time for Earth Day. 

Because 'earth' is another word for clay, maybe this panda I made out of earth clay is a relevant way to enter this post:

I actually found some clay on a trail at one of my favorite parks, filtered the pebbles out, and finally got around to shaping and firing it these past two days. I'm planning on painting it the colors of the default AJ panda (white and dusty blue), but the only paints I have are not super permanent, so I dunno how that's gonna work out :0

While you might already know that you can find clay in rivers and deposits under the ground, you might not know that you can also find small amounts of surface clay on some sloping hiking trails. If rain naturally flows down a trail, there is a mini river effect and some clay is produced; just enough for small craft projects like my panda up there :)

Clay is really just any soil where the particles are tiny enough to clump together smoothly without air pockets. If you're on a trail and find patches of soil that look more red or white (or any color) different than the surrounding soil, look closely and it may be clay! 

Moving on...

You may or may not be hearing about how social distancing is clearing up air pollution around the world.

(Photo of Himalayas taken from Northern Indian state Punjab this April 2020. Image from Weather.com.)

For over 30 years, the Himalayan Mountains have not been visible from the Indian state of Punjab due to severe toxic air pollution. Now they are.

It cannot be said that the reduction in air pollution is a silver lining of the virus, because it's only temporary. Temporary restrictions are not enough for us to change our "business as usual" into something healthier.

However, the practice of social distancing is beginning to show a future of the planet that could be. 

We have all gotten used to a toxic, polluted world-- so much so that it can be hard to imagine how things really should be. 

(Photo of air pollution in Delhi-- another Northern Indian state–– in November 2019. Image from Tribuneindia.com.)

With the example of Punjab, many many people there have gone their whole lives not seeing the Himalayas from their state, and the sickening fog that hides them has become normal. Even worse, the massive amount of air pollution related sickness and death has been normalized. 

This is true all over the world to different extents. Air pollution anywhere is a problem everywhere. 

One of the biggest obstacles to fighting the destruction of the Earth is the idea that it cannot be done; that humanity is on an unstoppable march to the end of all life because people and corporations are so stuck in their polluting, destructive ways. 

Most of us cannot imagine a world that is truly healthy, so it can be hard to fight for a goal we cannot even see. 

But this temporary global slow-down in destruction and pollution can show us a glimpse of what we need to fight for. Positive change is possible.

Don't get me wrong– a temporary slow-down is not enough to heal the world. Once this pandemic gets contained, you can bet that corporations will produce and pollute even more to compensate for the gap in profit. People are social distancing with their own lives in mind, not just for the greater good– and in this instance that's completely understandable. 

(Photo of unusually clear sky in Indian city during social distancing. "A nationwide lockdown has given Indian cities the kiss of life– the sky is clearer, rivers are less contaminated, and people have awakened to possible change." Image and quote from this New Yorker article.)

I guess my message is that if the Himalayas can become visible from Punjab for the first time in 30+ years after only ten days of lockdown, positive change is more possible than we think. 

Huge polluting corporations seem all-powerful and unstoppable, but now that more people are understanding that clear skies are within reach, that clear skies  without sickening fog are what we all deserve, there is so much more potential now behind the environmental movement. 

Here is another positive impact that may be closer to home: having less cars on the road will likely mean that more baby animals will survive this season.

Because habitats have become so fragmented by humans, animals old and young have to cross dangerous places from streets to freeways in order to get to the food and places they need. Cars and other vehicles are like dangerous monsters for animals, and they can be the cause of so much death– not only in terms of the air pollution they create.

Social distancing recommendations mean that you probably aren't riding in a car as much as you used to, and you can bet a baby animal somewhere is alive or will be alive because of that. 

Something you can think about moving forward beyond quarantine is rethinking how much you and/or your family ride in a car, and how you could maybe use it less. We've all been adjusting to a very different way of life for a temporary period of time, so that could make any long term changes feel more possible.

There has never been a better time to realize that the world as we know it can change for the better if we all work together and do our part. Keep yourself and your loved ones safe, but also keep this message in your heart. 

Thank you for reading, and Happy Earth Day <3

~DoomyPanda