Keeping It Green For Earth Day: Things To Do, See, Read, Consider

Go green today and forevermore is the rallying cry of a movement that took root 42 years ago today, with the first Earth Day in 1970.

That was a time when the word “environment” was more likely “to appear in spelling bees than on the evening news,” according to the .

And although most Americans remained "oblivious to environmental concerns, the stage had been set for change by the publication of Rachel Carson’s New York Times bestseller, ‘Silent Spring,’ in 1962."

Earth Day 1970 capitalized on this "watershed moment for the modern environmental movement,” in turn "channeling the energy of the anti-war protest movement and putting environmental concerns front and center.”

To aid in doing just that — celebrating and remembering the life of the planet we call home — here's a list of things to consider, with local links to help guide your way:

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Top Things To Do on Earth Day 2012

• Visit the library, download or purchase Rachel Carson’s “Silent Spring.” The Brandon Regional Library is open 12:30 to 5 p.m. The book costs  $14.95 in paperback at . Online at BN.com, the books sells for $11.15 in paperback, $10.16 for the NOOK e-reader.  Conor Jameson, winner of BBC’s Wildlife’s Nature Writer of the Year Award in 2010, is the author of the upcoming “Silent Spring Revisted,” with an availability date of May 28. A book critical of Carson’s work, “Silent Spring at 50,” is set to be available Sept. 16. Advertised as way to “make the earth a little better,” a Vera Bradley Shopper Tote is free with any Vera Bradley purchase on Earth Day, April 22, at Greg’s Hallmark at 863 East Bloomingdale Ave. in Brandon. (While supplies last.)

• Disney Store guests who bring in five used plastic bags for recycling will receive in return a free, re-usable shopping tote featuring Oscar, the young chimpanzee from Disneynature’s newly released true-life adventure film, “Chimpanzee.” The film marks the sixth release of the Disney nature film label, Disneynature, launched in 2007. The label’s roots date back to 1948, and founder Walt Disney’s passion for nature and wildlife, through the company’s premier of “True-Life Adventures.”

• Disney’s latest true-life adventure, “Chimpanzee,” is showing at AMC Theatres Regency 20, at 2496 West Brandon Blvd. Show times for the G-rated film are 10:30 a.m., 12:40 p.m., 2:50 p.m. , 5 p.m., 7:10 p.m. and 9:35 p.m.  The film is set in the forests of Africa and is based on a baby chimp named Oscar “and his entertaining approach to life in a remarkable story of family bonds and individual triumph.”

• Join the Home Depot garden club for how-to videos, monthly lawn and garden ideas, members-only discounts (reportedly valued at $300). Featured, among other things, on the Home Depot garden club Web site at the time of this posting: how to create a garden container and make a soft path. Check out the garden club blog and forum. is at 1524 East Brandon Blvd.

• Share your gardening and green expertise with a blog on Brandon Patch.  

• Reflect on these quotes about Earth Day, recommended Earth Day reading for kids and Earth Day books for all ages.

• The Nature Conservancy, which has a store at the shopping mall, is attempting to set a Guinness World Record for the most people picnicking in 24 hours. Each picnic must have at least 25 people and take place within a 24-hour time period through 8 p.m. April 22. The picnic must be outdoors and each picnic must have three eyewitnesses who can attest to the event taking place and count its participants. At least one photo is required. Download the informational packet to participate. Information must be mailed or e-mailed back by May 4.

• Looking for a good place to picnic? The Hillsborough County Parks, Recreation and Conservation Department provides an interactive map to its parks throughout the eight regions of the Tampa Bay market. The Greater Brandon area including Valrico, Riverview and Seffner is in Region 5; among the noted locations are the Brandon Community and Brandon Recreation centers on Sadie Street and Providence East Park, the location for the newly opened Brandon Skate Park. The Greater Brandon including Lithia, Dover, Sydney and part of Valrico is in Region 6; among the noted locations are Aldermans Ford, Lithia Springs and Edward Medard parks.

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Keep Tampa Bay Beautiful Cleanup Sites

Looking for more outdoor sites to visit? Consider this list of sites included in the April 21 Keep Tampa Bay Beautiful effort for the Great American Cleanup.

GREATER BRANDON LOCATIONS