2020 has been nothing short of an opportunity for relearning. It has been an incredibly impactful year – and it hasn’t come to an end just yet. A year of changes, challenges, and extreme hardship for many, it has also given us time for a pause, an opportunity to breathe and reflect and to deepen our understandings… a chance for the world to rethink many - if not all - of our so-called normals.
While we are still required to maintain physical distancing, respect protocols, work from home when possible, and keep up-to-date on the ongoing pandemic, we have also gained some time to focus on many social and environmental issues that are strikingly important. Learning more about the complex, destructive racism present within our society, for example, has led to further understanding of how this intersects with many causes we care about. The term “environmental racism” is a good way to demonstrate this, as it speaks to the intersectionality of how racism, more often than not, leads to degraded health, wellness and environmental stability.
We’ve put together three resources that will help boost your curiosity, learning, and #ActionForWater in the final months of 2020, and beyond.
Join a community cleanup near you.
While it may be more “distanced,” there are still many safe community initiatives taking place that are always looking for volunteers. Now is a great time to throw on a mask and gloves and pick up some garbage in your community. The Earth, and our waters, thank you.
Or if you feel more comfortable to show your support virtually, it’s never been easier to get involved in impactful community-driven campaigns via social media. You can TAP IT (the tagline from the Wellington Water Watchers most recent creative campaign), repost and share your support of grassroots organizations working towards effective, inclusive methods of positive societal change, or submit your favourite photo of a river to our latest photography contest – Watching the River Run. Liking, sharing and participating in the things that matter most to you can be a very effective and empowering way to spark change in your life and the lives of others.
Adopt better ways to manage your own waste.
With the unfortunate surge of single-use plastics, disposable PPE products and sanitary supplies that have become necessary this year, we need to hold ourselves more accountable than ever to reduce, reuse and be mindful of our waste. Studies have already demonstrated the significant environmental impact that the COVID-19 pandemic has created, and while we all need to keep safe and healthy, we need to find alternative ways to make those efforts sustainable. Purchasing reusable, washable cloth masks, for example, can significantly cut down on this waste, as we continue to see disposable masks showing up in all the wrong places around the globe. Buying larger, refillable bottles of sanitizer versus small individual plastic bottles can also make a big difference. These actions are small, but if we all pledge to do our part, we will hopefully see fewer reports of environmental destruction caused by this increase in waste.
Attend our film festival – now exclusively online!
The 2020 Water Docs Film Festival is back! 2020 will be our first-ever online film festival, taking place from November 4–8, and making it easier than ever to tune in from the comfort of home. We’ve put together an incredible lineup of impactful films that will surely quench our audience’s thirst. From deep ocean stories to animated folklore, we’ve programmed something for everyone and hope you’ll tune in. Tickets are now on sale! Find all the details here.
We hope these ideas spark your #ActionForWater and contribute to an improvement for the end of a very challenging year. Tell us how you are going to create some positive impact for water and the environment in the comments section below.
Also make sure to follow our NEW Twitter account – you can find us @waterdocsff.
Take care of yourselves, and for the love of water, take care of our planet!