This year for Earth Day 2021, we at Environmental Committee wanted to honour the voices of our Graduate Institute community and bring together people’s views on our shared home. We asked fellow students, what are you grateful to the Earth for and what would you like to see done for Earth? Together our voices are louder, and we have the power to create change. Enjoy Earth Day, it’s for all of us.
WHAT ARE YOU GRATEFUL TO THE EARTH FOR?
- I’m grateful for the mountains that have been a refuge during these uncertain Covid times. By now, we should all have already learnt how important they are to us, but a global pandemic had to come in to remind us of this. – Aloïs, MIA 1st year
- I’m grateful that Earth hosts and feeds and is made up of all these beautiful roots that I love eating – carrots, radishes, beets, turnips… – Sonja, MDEV 1st year
- I’m grateful for the everyday symphony of sounds the Earth creates for us to fall asleep to and wake up with every morning. – Ryan Maia, MIA 1st year
- I am grateful for the alps, and all the peace that comes from hiking and spending time there, or just glancing them through my window. – Clare Maxwell, MDEV 1st year
- Its regenerative qualities – it wants to help us make it better! Let’s not let it down!
- I’m grateful for the graceful morning sun, for comforting me against the sound of my alarm, thankful for the blissful afternoon sun, for beaming and warming my face on this cold April day, and blessed by the evening sun, for painting peace and watercolors in the sky.
- Being able to hear and see more than 10 different species of bird from my balcony every day ❤ – Hugo, Human Being 🙂
- I am grateful for the beauty and variety of ecosystems and how well they make you feel. – Maria Vittoria Berardi, MDEV 1st year
- Thankful to the Earth that we exist. A bit extra thankful this Earth Day. 🌍 Here I am, 23, staying safe in my home, and all I can think about is going back outdoors to the things that I have been missing out on. Grateful this year to this beautiful planet for good health, fresh and fragrant air to breathe and an abundance of sunlight. Grateful for the little bird on my patio every morning and for the moon reflection on the flat lake every night. Grateful to the earth for the simple joy of sitting by the lake and not doing anything except listening to my inner voice. – Simran Sinha, MDEV 2nd year
- Always taking my breath away when I am least expecting it.
- I’m grateful for evening swims in the lake during warm summers, for the call of loons from across the shore before they dive under, for blueberry woods and yellow chantarelles. – Iida, MDEV 1st year
WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE TO SEE DONE FOR EARTH?
- I wish we would respect the Earth rather than systematically enter in contact with nature to seek for extraction, and rethink this whole relationship. – Aloïs, MIA 1st year
- That we nurture the soil and all its life by taking out tiles, covering it with plants, adding manure, using compost toilets… – Sonja, MDEV 1st year
- I would like us to start putting a price on carbon emissions globally and use the proceeds to invest in green development. The externalities of our economic system have given Earth a deadly fever. Carbon cap and invest is key to aligning our entrenched economic desires with the health needs of our ailing plant. – Ryan Maia, MIA 1st year
- Making our human settlements more efficient and sustainable, and reducing urban spread so that we can leave more natural areas free from human interference. – Clare Maxwell, MDEV 1st year
- STOP EXTRACTION, Re-establish biodiversity- essential to human and earth’s health !
- A radical appreciation and humility for the generosity and abundance we receive daily.
- Having all my neighbours aware of the chance of hearing birdsongs every morning and committed to protect this natural beauty ❤ – Hugo
- I would like to see more respect from human beings and a greater awareness about the importance of sustainable solutions. – Maria Vittoria Berardi, MDEV 1st year
- Expressing gratitude for all that nature offers is best glorified by taking action to care for our Earth, the way she does for us. Foremost, I would like to see an international roadmap to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 50% by 2030, with developed nations (owing a significant track of emissions) taking future responsibility to reduce emissions cleaner and faster. – Simran Sinha, MDEV 2nd year
- That we recenter our relationship with nature to one of harmony rather than conquest.
- Radical action in all of our day-to-day lives that would allow us to reconstruct our systems in a manner that supports the biodiversity of oceans, forests and wildlife. – Iida, MDEV 1st year
Happy Earth Day 2021, let’s rejoice!
The IHEID Environmental Committee 