Yesterday marked the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, which has since been recognized internationally as a day to demonstrate support for the environmental protection of our planet. While there are many ways to contribute to conservation efforts, such as purchasing offsets, donating to charities, and adjusting lifestyle choices to reduce personal emissions, there are also ways to make a positive impact on the planet through your online habits. Without much effort, you too can contribute to planting trees, donating, and support organizations by simply changing a few options on your mobile or desktop browser. Neither of these options require any financial support from you, and reward you simply for your time browsing the internet.
Plant trees by changing your browser's default search engine
One of the most prevalent tools of a browser is a search engine, so why not plant trees while using them? Ecosia is an amazing carbon-neutral company that plants trees whenever users leverage their search engine. Ecosia can easily be added as a default search engine to any mobile or desktop browser, and you can continue using the internet as you always have with the comfort that you are contributing to conservation. It is absolutely free, and they also publish their financial reports publicly so you can see exactly where they contribute their efforts.
On average, each search request removes 1kg of CO2 from the atmosphere. Over 91 million trees have been planted by Ecosia, simply through its users' everyday searches.
Donate to charities by simply opening new browser tabs
I am unfortunately guilty of having well over 10 tabs open on my browser at any given time, which is why you can probably hear the fans flying on my computer from a mile away. Tabs for a Cause is a company that takes advantage of that by donating money whenever you open a new tab on your browser. They have raised nearly $900,000 through unobstrusive advertisements placed on new tabs using their browser extension, laid out over a beautiful and inspiring image of the day. Each new tabs awards you with one heart, which is then used as currency that you can spend on donating to charities of your choice. Many charities have teamed up with Tabs for a Cause to help raise money for their programs, such as Conservation International, Water.org, Action Against Hunger, and many others. If you are also someone who likes to hoard tabs in your browser, this may be the perfect companion for you.
Many small changes add up to a large positive impact
While these two solutions are small ways to solve the environmental issues of today, every little bit helps towards making our planet green and healthy, without requiring lifestyle changes or financial contributions. You can now effortlessly contribute to conservation through your everyday internet browsing. So start opening up those tabs and launching those search queries!
