How You, as an Equestrian, Can Save the Planet
Written by Anna Zygadlo for Green Is the New Blue
April 22, 2021, marks the 51st annual Earth Day. Earth Day serves as a day of education and environmental awareness around the world in more than 140 nations. Following the first Earth Day back in 1970, environmental concerns rose to become a top national priority. As a result, a number of national environmental acts were passed including the Clean Air Act and the Endangered Species Act. To celebrate Earth Day in the equestrian community, Green Is the New Blue has identified a few impactful ways to support the movement for a sustainable sport.
For Earth Day 2021, the teams at BarnManager and Green Is the New Blue are inviting you to make an impact through the Equestrian Earth Day Challenge. Complete one of the following items, then document it with a photo, and tag us, DM us, or use the hashtag #EquestrianEarthDay. We will pick our favorites to be featured.
1. Create a Green Team
Create a Green Team with your barn mates and organize scheduled meetings to create meaningful conversation around sustainable action. Together, research and address environmental issues including waste management, energy efficiency, and water use. We recommend developing a calendar with environmental field trips or community service projects. Try to build a “Living Jump” as a team using native plant species to promote biodiversity, or design a jump course using upcycled materials.
2. Contact Your Representatives
Connect with the representatives of organizing bodies within the equestrian sport. Reach out to the board of your local horse show series or take it to the national level of our sport. Express your interest in a Sustainability Action Plan. Design it to address environmental issues at their affiliated horse shows. For inspiration, check out the FEI Sustainability Handbook.
3. Attend Eco-Conscious Horse Shows
As riders, we are the consumers who control demand. Support horse shows that enthusiastically exhibit a commitment to sustainability. Visit GITNB’s website for a list of partner horse shows. If your favorite horse show hasn’t yet gone green, reach out to the manager and share your desire to see sustainability initiatives put into place. Share Green Is the New Blue’s “Refuse to Use” and “Living Jump” campaigns for inspiration. Express interest in sustainable food vendors such as Perks with A Twist, whose owners use fresh local ingredients served in compostable packaging.
We hope that you are inspired you to join us on our mission to create a sustainable equestrian sport. We would love to see your Earth Day projects, please share with us via email (azygadlo@greenisthenewblue.com), Instagram, or Facebook.