Keep Saving the Planet: Museums Help Save the Earth

For those of you concerned abut the planet (and seriously, that should mean you), Earth Day has now morphed into Earth week. (And hey, New York, shouldn’t it really be Earth Day every day?)
In the city, museums and arts organizations have gotten into the act with installations designed to highlight the environmental issues facing the planet.
PS 1 and The Museum of Modern Art took on the issue of rising sea levels, with the resulting “Rising Currents: Projects for New York’s Waterfront,” on display through October 11. (MoMA is at 11 West 53rd Street in Manhattan; 212 708-9400.) The creative solutions include water-absorbing sidewalks and apartment buildings that dangle above the water. (We said creative, not necessarily realistic.)
The Brooklyn Children’s Museum (145 Brooklyn Avenue; 718-735-4400), which is being certified as the city’s first “green” museum, is offering the “Celebrate Earth!” Festival, a two-day, earth-focused extravaganza this weekend, April 24 and 25. An eco-fair and bark-painting workshop are among the offerings.
Also in Brooklyn, the Waterfront Museum and Showboat Barge offers “A Thousand Thousand Slimy Things,” a play focused on the problems facing our oceans and ocean life. It’s offered through May 9 for older kids and adults. (290 Conover Street; 718- 624-4719). The museum promotes historical preservation and the city’s maritime past.
Exit Art, (at 475 10th Avenue; 212 966-7745) is presenting “What Matters Most?”, through April 28. The exhibition was inspired by a "New York Times" blog that asked the question “What Matters Most?” Artists contributing to the exhibit either created works that related to a particular blog entry or presented relevant works.
So take in an exhibit--and keep saving the planet.

Shut Off a Light, Save the Planet: It's Earth Day

OK, New York: Flick off those lights, turn off that faucet, pick up that litter. Yes, you should do that every day, but today is Earth Day (the 40th anniversary, no less) so it’s time to take stock of your impact on the planet.
For starters, you can head over to Grand Central Station (42nd Steeet and Park Avenue). Two days of Earth Day events start tomorrow: The Earth Fair (Friday; 12-7 pm; Saturday; 11-5 pm) celebrates with music, art, “green” vendors and more. But you don't have to wait until then: Earth show images are being projected onto two of the north columns of the concourse, and will run 10 hours a day.
In New York’s Central Park, free Earth Day events are happening all day. Check out the Chess & Checkers House (mid-Park at 64th Street); where you can participate in eco-friendly crafts from 2-4 PM. (Call 212 794-4064.)
You can also view an exhibit called “Under the Canopy: Caring for Central Park’s Trees” at the Charles A. Dana Discovery Center (110th Street and Lenox Avenue); learn about the Park’s 24,000 trees. (Go to centralparknyc.org for more information on Earth Day events.)
Stores around the city are also getting involved: you can visit a green pop-up shop at the Port Authority Bus Terminal (625 8th Avenue) through May 1; or, for a larger-scale event, stop by Times Square between 11am and 2 pm for a public celebration today
FYI, Earth Day began in April, 1970 as a way to raise awareness about such environmental problems as pollution and ozone depletion.
Forty years later, everyone’s involvement is no less important.
Tomorrow: How museums and arts organizations around the city are getting involved in preserving the planet.