National Clean Up Day is Sept. 19, and Cobie Smulders is here to remind you to take care of the Earth. The actress, director, and avid outdoorswoman has partnered with Planet Oat and Clean Trails to get people excited about giving back to Mother Nature. "It seems like the simplest act that we as humans can do to help the environment," Smulders tells Woman's Day. "It’s the bare minimum to pick up after yourself, but so many people still don’t do it." Through the initiative with Planet Oat, Smulders hopes to encourage people to get out into their local parks, to connect to nature, and to leave outdoor spaces cleaner than they found them.
Growing up in Canada, Smulders always felt connected to nature. "I was always on a mountain, in the ocean, in a lake, hiking; I was always outdoors," Smulders says. "It's so beautiful out there, so it's hard not to go out and enjoy those things. And now with the state of the planet as it is, I'm doing everything I can to help protect it and reverse the damage."
The goal is to become "protectors of the environment," Smulders says, and Planet Oat is making it super easy to participate in National Clean Up Day with the whole family. They're giving away free clean up kits that have everything you need to tidy up your local parks. "I’m always getting my family out to go on hikes with me, and I get a little pushback," Smulders laughs. "I’m hoping that having this kit it becomes a bit of a game and a challenge of let’s clean up and let’s find as many pieces of trash as we can. And I hope it’ll make people aware of how people don’t clean up."
Whether you can dedicate an entire afternoon or just half an hour to cleaning up your local environment, every little bit helps. "We're not taking the greatest care of the planet at the moment," Smulders says. "And I'm hoping people get out and can see that for themselves, and hopefully they'll take a stand to help the planet."
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