Spring, The Season of New Beginning
Spring Equinox
On the 20th of March, the northern hemisphere will enter the Spring equinox. The Spring Equinox symbolises new beginnings and rebirth. The event is called an equinox as in Latin it means “equal night”. This event marks the start of spring resulting in increasing daylight hours and warming temperatures due to the northern hemisphere tilting towards the sun. The clocks also go forward on the 28th of March as we enter British Summer Time (BST).
New Season, New Life, New Beginnings
Spring is considered to be the season of new beginnings and welcomes this change with nature emerging from hibernation. This season brings new life to flowering plants, trees, and other vegetations. It is estimated that plants take in around 25 per cent of the carbon emissions that humans produce, absorbing more than 100 gigatons of carbon through photosynthesis. As plants start to grow, they are taking the carbon out of our atmosphere, providing an important environmental service that reduces the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere each spring and summer.
As well as the new beginnings for nature spring can also encourage new beginnings in our activities. Eating seasonally can have great benefits on our health, wallet and planet. Seasonal produce ensures that food gets to your plate without being flown from around the world. Seasonal food also means that the nutritional value is much higher. “summer foods such as stone fruits help protect against sun damage as they are packed with carotenoids. Winter vegetables are perfect for warming healthy stews and soups, which is exactly what you need during the cold months of the year.”
Check out this season’s foods here
Make The Most of Those Extra Hours of Daylight
As we approach the spring and summer months, we gain extra hours of daylight to take full advantage of. As the days grow longer and the duration of sunlight per day extends, people start to sleep less and eat less, but also feel less depressed and more energized.
An article in the Journal of the Association for Psychological Science states that "pleasant weather improves mood and broadens cognition," A more common term used when are moods and behaviours are affected by sunlight is known as Seasonal Affect Disorder (SAD). The exact cause of seasonal affect disorder is not fully understood. However, it is often linked with reduced exposure to sunlight in the colder darker months. The increased light also triggers the release of serotonin, a brain chemical that helps us feel happier.
Earth Day
Seasons have a purpose for everything on earth, they bring us light, they bring us water, they bring us jobs and they bring us new life. Climate change is happening at this present moment, our seasons are being affected causing droughts, intense storms, rising sea levels and melting glaciers which is causing harm to not just our communities and livelihoods but that of nature.
Earth Day is a global event occurring every year, in the spring. Earth Day promotes the protection of the natural environment from pollution and other destructive forces. Every year more than a billion people celebrate Earth Day. This is a day where organisations, groups and individuals take part in activities demonstrating support for environmental protection. On the 22nd of April, we’re going to be inviting experts in climate change from around the globe to talk about strategies we should be implementing in the NHS. Click here for more information regarding our Earth Day, or get in touch with us.