Host a Project
What does a Project Host do?
As a project host, you will design and organize a project, register it on the Earth Day website, provide any materials needed, and engage your constituents as participants. Projects should address one or more climate impacts we are already experiencing or anticipating. See below for project ideas.
The general public also will be invited to participate in projects. A link will be available with your project description for participant registrations, including your constituents, which will give you an idea of how many people to expect. You can check your registrations at any time.
For more information, see Local Climate Impacts. The Earth Day Project Task Force can provide guidance. See Ideas and Guidelines for Projects as you scroll down on this page.
Project hosts may also have a table at the celebration event at Smiley Park to continue outreach and community engagement.
Who Can Be a Host Group?
Nonprofit organizations
Service clubs
Businesses
Communities of Faith
Schools
HOAs
Groups of neighbors
Groups of friends
Book clubs
Bike clubs
Any other willing group
Guidelines for Projects:
Proposed projects must fulfill the following:
Be hands on or educational/informational
Be able to be accomplished (or a significant start) in 2-3 hours on Saturday morning.
Ability for group to cover cost of project. (Note: If participants are going to make something to take home, e.g., worm bin, you may charge for materials that you need to purchase.)
Address one of the local climate change impacts:
Increasing heat
Increasing drought/water shortages
Food Insecurity
Increasing health threats
Loss of biodiversity
Increasing weather-related disasters
Rising greenhouse gas emission
Project Ideas
Here is a list of suggested projects. You can decide what would be most appropriate and doable for your organization. Some may require your group to do a little research. Please reach out to the Earth Day Coalition if you need guidance on resources or expertise.
Reducing Carbon Emissions
o Workshop on how to buy an electric vehicle and/or electric bicycle
o Workshop on how to go solar
o Workshop on energy efficient appliances
Planting trees
o Plant a tree(s) where shade is needed. Choose from list of trees for a hotter, drier future. Make sure there is a care plan.
Composting
o Composting piles can be set up in backyards, neighborhood site, places where people frequent such as churches, schools, neighborhoods, community gardens, etc.
o Workshop on how to compost in your kitchen
o How to do backyard or neighborhood composting
o Build worm bins. Worms are needed to help regenerate the soil, and can speed up the composting process.
Rain gardens/rain barrels
o Build a rain garden
o Install a rain barrel to help make the most of rainfall.
Vegetable Gardening
o Revitalize an existing community garden.
o Start a new community garden.
o Build boxes for raised beds.
o Plant a small Resilience Garden (think Victory or kitchen garden).
o Workshop on how to organic gardening
o Workshop on aquaponics
o Workshop on permaculture
o Seed or plant give-a-way or swap
o Demonstration of how to preserve food (canning, drying, pickling)
Pollinator gardens
o Plant a pollinator garden. By planting certain plants, you can provide a food source for important pollinators like bees and butterflies. See list and instructions at https://gardenplanner.calscape.org/.
Decreasing Water Home Usage
o Removing turf and installing drought resistant landscaping has the biggest impact on our city water supply. Choose a small area and do the whole process as a learning experience or aim for a large group and just remove turf in a larger area. See planting suggestions at https://gardenplanner.calscape.org/.
o Installing drip irrigation
o Information session on water efficient appliances, etc.
Disaster Preparedness Planning
o Sponsor an educational event on developing a neighborhood and/or family disaster preparedness plan.
Native Plants
o Workshop on native plants. Give information about the importance of native plants and instructions in planting and caring for them. Have seedlings that participants can plant and take home.
o Plant a native plant garden. See https://gardenplanner.calscape.org/ for guidance.
Plant-Based Eating
o Host a talk on why a plant friendly diet is necessary. Eating less meat is critical to the future of the planet to reduce methane emissions and free up arable land now used for grazing.
o Demonstrate how to cook a plant-based meal. Provide recipes, other essential information.
o Demonstrate how to cook with edible weeds.
Cleaning Up the Environment
o Show how to eliminate harmful chemicals from our environment by making cleaning solutions from harmless ingredients. Workshop to make earth-friendly, home-made cleaning solutions.
o Clean up the Zanja.
o Workshop on Do’s and Don’ts of recycling
o Workshop on understanding our air pollution challenge
Political Action
o Workshop on how to take political action for the environment
Environmental Art
o School art project
o Plein air art event
o Organize doing a community mural or permanent art installation on an environmental theme.