What to Know
- Thursday, April 22
- The Pacific Wheel at Santa Monica Pier will glow green
- LA Zoo has a virtual fitness fundraiser afoot, while endangered animal sculptures debut at California Science Center's "The Art of the Brick"
Hello from Planet Earth.
Oh, you're here, too?
Good news, then, that we're both simultaneously making the earthling journey as April 22, an occasion created for honoring, thinking about, and helping our home turf, rolls back around.
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Earth Day can trace its roots back to Santa Barbara of the late 1960s, where an oil spill aided to inspire its origin story, and today many Californians, and people well beyond our state, take pause to attend to the pressing concerns of the world beneath our feet.
But a twist this year, one that is similar to what happened in 2020: The major celebrations aren't happening as in-person affairs in 2021, and Santa Barbara's multi-day festivity, one of the largest celebrations around, is virtual.
But there are ways to still find the Earth Day connection, from the Walk for the Wild at the Los Angeles Zoo and Botanical Gardens to the Pacific Wheel going green in Santa Monica.
As far as the zoo's event goes? Here's something good: Join the virtual, walk-from-anywhere walk on April 22 and Skechers and a host of donors will make a $45 matching donation.
This applies to the first 500 people who sign up on Earth Day, so head over to this site as fast as a condor flies. Receiving this matching donation will "... automatically qualify these lucky individuals for a commemorative medal and get them that much closer to earning fundraising rewards that start at $150 in total donations," says the zoo.
Walk for the Wild concludes on May 21, which is Endangered Species Day.
And starting at sunset on April 22? The planet's sole solar-powered Ferris wheel, the Pacific Wheel at Pacific Park on Santa Monica Pier, will put on an Earth Day-themed light show courtesy of some 174,000 LED lights.
You don't have to be at the ocean's edge to watch; you can check it out on the live cam.
Finally, LEGO lovers have something sweet and poignant to see at the California Science Center: Some 13 new sculptures will debut as part of "The Art of the Brick" exhibition.
Each sculpture highlights an endangered animal, with a setting that summons the animal's natural habitat.
You'll need a ticket to "The Art of the Brick" to see "PERNiCiEM: The Endangered Species Connection," do note. It opens on Thursday, April 22 as a timely tribute to Earth Day.
