Celebrating Earth Day 2023

TEvery day is a good day to celebrate, discuss and take steps to preserve our planet. But Earth Day is a particularly special one – it’s considered to be the birth anniversary of the modern environmental movement.  

The U.N.’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) recently released a report that revealed we’re on a dangerous path to climate change disaster. The crisis is happening much faster than initially estimated. As a result, it’s more important than ever to use Earth Day to engage in meaningful conversations about environmental issues and to highlight the actions we need to take. 

What is Earth Day?

EARTHDAY.ORG organises Earth Day to inspire discussion worldwide about the importance of environmental protection.  

Its origin story dates back to 1960s America when environmental concerns weren’t taken very seriously. According to EARTHDAY.ORG (Earth Day’s official global coordinator, formerly known as Earth Day Network), “in the decades leading up to the first Earth Day… air pollution was commonly accepted as the smell of prosperity.” 

Then, in 1969, the Santa Barbara Oil Spill killed over 10,000 seabirds, dolphins, seals and sea lions. This spurred a chain reaction of events, including the founding of Earth Day in 1970. The event “inspired 20 million Americans — at the time, 10% of the total population of the United States — to take to the streets, parks and auditoriums to demonstrate against the impact of 150 years of industrial development, which had left a growing legacy of serious human health impacts,” the Earth Day website states.  

The first Earth Day is considered the largest single-day protest in human history. 

By 1990, the event gained global popularity, mobilising 200 million people in 141 countries. And by 2010, it had engaged 75,000 global partners in 192 countries. 

When is Earth Day? 

Earth Day is celebrated every year on the 22nd of April. However, you can participate in events throughout the week, and some last until the end of April. 

What is the theme for Earth Day 2023? 

The official theme for 2023 is Invest In Our Planet. It encourages individuals, corporations and governments to invest in environmentally friendly technologies and practices. 

“In 2023 we must come together again in partnership for the planet. Businesses, governments, and civil society are equally responsible for taking action against the climate crisis and lighting the spark to accelerate change towards a green, prosperous, and equitable future. We must join together in our fight for the green revolution, and for the health of future generations. The time is now to Invest In Our Planet,” said Kathleen Rogers, President of earthday.org.

Find Earth Day events that you can take part in here. 

In the beauty world, there are changes that need to be made – both big (on an organisational level) and small (on an individual level).

Clarins sustainability initiatives

Clarins’ vision is driven by a love for nature and plants. So, it has a solid commitment to caring for the environment and doing more to preserve the planet’s health. Here are some of the company’s initiatives. 

Eco-responsible packaging

When it comes to packaging, the Clarins team tries to find solutions that combine performance, ease of use and sustainability. By 2025, Clarins aims to have 100% recyclable or recycled packaging.  

Read: Sustainable skincare to buy now

Preserving bio-diversity

Clarins and PUR Projet (a global leader in nature-based solutions) partnered following a meeting between two visionaries passionate about nature: Christian Courtin-Clarins and Tristan Lecomte. 

 Seeds of Beauty is one of the projects by Clarins which aims to preserve biodiversity in cooperation with local communities who will benefit from the projects. To date, the programme has planted over 536,000 trees around the world. 

Read more about the initiative here.  

Organically cultivated ingredients 

The Clarins Herbarium has over 200 plant varieties. Currently, 40% of the plant extracts used in Clarins products come from organic farms. The aim is to increase that number to 80% by 2025. 

Responsible sourcing 

Clarins is improving its responsible sourcing policy, prioritising best farming practices, more local sourcing from France or Europe (or choosing fair trade when ingredients are sourced from countries with a low Human Development Index). Full traceability for harvesting areas and long-term contracts with their partners. 

Domaine Clarins is Clarins’ outdoor laboratory located in the French Alps, where plants are grown according to the season in a high-altitude environment. Here, the soil is always pollution-free and organic farming practices are used. 

Reducing their carbon footprint

In 2020, Clarins became carbon neutral. 100% of the electricity used in the company’s sites worldwide comes from renewable energy.  

The goal now is to further reduce its carbon footprint by 30% and achieve a B-corp certification (given to businesses that meet high standards of social and environmental performance) by the end of 2023. 

Sustainable beauty swaps you can make 

The Beauty Daily team share their favourite sustainable beauty swaps. 

Sarah Joan Ross 

Editor, Beauty Daily 

“When I first started in the industry over 20 years ago, it was ALL about the packaging – the bigger, the better. Products turned up on my beauty desk like Russian nesting dolls; you would peel back layers upon layers of fancy packaging, boxes, tissues and bows until you got to a teeny tiny product at the end – all of which was destined for landfill.  

Now, however, the brands paring back on their packaging have decent eco-friendly initiatives (think recyclable, compostable, refillable), and a care plan in place are the ones I look to. I’ve also ditched face wipes (some are terrible for both skin and the planet) and think before buying anything. If in doubt, check out EWG, the Environmental Working Group. The platform is led by scientists, attorneys, analysts, and data specialists – and it also has a search platform and blog so you can quickly check out the green credentials of your favourite beauty brands and products.  

One of the easiest sustainable beauty swaps has to be reusable cotton pads. Unfortunately, there are some very shoddy designs with skin-stripping cloths out there. However, I ordered mine from LastObject. The LastRound pads can be used over 1,750 times, and after being saturated in liquids, the shape-shifting fabric softens and is so utterly realistic that I have to stop myself from throwing them away in the bathroom bin.” – Sarah Joan Ross

Anne Lora Scagliusi  

Beauty and Wellness Writer, Beauty Daily

“I started to be planet-conscious at the start of the pandemic. The Covid-19 outbreak was a wake-up call for me, and I guess for all of us, that how we live determines the fate of our planet and everything that lives on it. My husband and I decided to consume less meat. I try to avoid fast fashion, we donate clothes to charity, and we set the home temperature within the recommended 20 degrees.

When it comes to beauty, my biggest beauty swap would be supporting eco-friendly and sustainable beauty brands like Clarins. My pledge for Earth Day 2023 is to use reusable make-up remover pads, cotton swabs, and organic or reusable period products like the Saalt menstrual cup.” – Anne Lora Scagliusi

Nishita Fiji

Beauty Writer, Beauty Daily 

“The process of removing make-up can be so wasteful – so many wet wipes, cotton rounds and swabs get used. But it’s also important to cleanse properly. So, I use the GLOV On-The-Go Hydro Cleanser to remove the bulk of my make-up. It’s a washable glove made of a unique fabric that takes off make-up without needing a dedicated make-up remover (although I follow up with a gentle cream cleanser because I need to double cleanse). 

I even use their mini finger-glove; they get rid of every last trace of mascara. I now have my eye on LastSwab Beauty: reusable cotton swabs perfect for cleaning up eyeliner mistakes. A genius idea.” – Nishita Fiji

Read: The Sustainable Steps that will Help Protect Marine Life