Cleveland Metroparks Hosting Virtual Classrooms For Earth Day

CLEVELAND — Earth Day 2020 will be an odd celebration for many Ohioans. Confined to their homes or their essential businesses, Buckeye State residents will need another avenue to mark their appreciation for their planet. Enter the Cleveland Metroparks.

On Wednesday, April 22, the Metroparks will host an all-day virtual classroom on a variety of Earth Day topics, offer tips for a greener planet and collect a list of 50 ways to celebrate Earth Day from home.

“Cleveland Metroparks Zoo is dedicated to securing a future for wildlife,” said Cleveland Metroparks Zoo Executive Director Dr. Chris Kuhar. “By visiting the zoo’s website, you can join our conservation community to protect animals and the environment. Securing a future for wildlife is more important now than ever.”

The celebration will start at 10 a.m. on the Cleveland Metroparks Facebook page. Metroparks CEO Brian Zimmerman will give a virtual update on the Bonnie Park restoration project. Then, at 11 a.m., the virtual classroom will begin.

The park systems animal care team will showcase the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo's seal and sea lion training. That program is an attention-grabber and has consistently drawn praise during the park system's annual Earth Day celebration.

At 1 p.m., there will be a virtual tree planting. Park system experts will walk viewers through the planting process and provide info on how to care for a seedling and details on native tree species.

The metropark's virtual classroom website will provide access to additional Earth Day resources to educate children and adults about the planet. The park system will share 50 ways to celebrate Earth Day on its website.

“Connecting with nature and our planet has proven to be more important now than ever before,” said Zimmerman. “We hope families will join us for these virtual experiences and I assure you our team is hard at work preparing more nature and conservation-based programming and events once we are able to gather again as a community.”