Millions of people all over the world are taking steps to help protect the environment and create a more eco-friendly future.

This week, we celebrated Earth Day, an international event started in 1970 to raise awareness of the impact our actions have on the planet.

This year, the theme is Planet vs Plastics which encourages people to learn more about the dangers of plastic, phase out of single-use plastics and reduce the production of fast fashion.

While there is lots of information about how to reduce your carbon footprint on the Earth Day website, you can also do your bit by getting out and exploring the wildlife that surrounds Kent.

Whether it’s spending more time in a nearby nature reserve or contributing towards a local conservation project, there are plenty of ways to connect with the environment that’s right on your doorstep.

An easy way to start is with a visit to Kent’s many Green Flag parks that have been recognised for their good standard of upkeep, high environmental quality and biodiversity.

These parks often have spaces for wildlife, plants, trees and natural growth, as well as well-maintained seating and play areas for families.

Brockhill Country Park in Hythe, for example, has been named a Site of Nature Conservation Interest, while Samphire Hoe in Dover boasts 220 species of birds and 30 species of butterflies and Reculver Country Park, near Herne Bay, is a Special Protection Area due to the wildlife living in the eroding cliffs.

Capstone Park in Chatham, Pegwell Bay in Sandwich, Shorne Woods in Gravesend and Mote Park in Maidstone are a few more of Kent’s Green Flag parks worth a visit.

If you want to try and spot even more of the county’s wildlife living in natural habitats, you can spend Earth Day at a nature reserve.

These include Oare Marshes near Faversham, where you can expect to see seals, wetland birds and Sussex cattle, and Elmley Nature Reserve in Sheerness, a 3,300-acre reserve where you will find water voles, grass snakes, birds of prey and dragonflies.

Conservation of both endangered species and their habitats is a huge part of protecting the environment and can help combat dangers such as deforestation and the global ecosystem.

Two of Kent’s biggest wildlife parks, Howletts Wild Animal Park in Bekesbourne and Port Lympne Hotel and Reserve near Hythe, have worked with conservation charity the Aspinall Foundation to breed more than 500 endangered animals.

The teams at both parks also help raise awareness of rewilding - the process of bringing wild animals back to their native habitats to support the environment’s return to its natural state.

These rewilding efforts have seen more than 75 critically endangered western lowland gorillas return to Congo and lions and cheetahs released in South Africa.

Howletts is also currently working on a first-of-its-kind project to rewild the UK’s largest herd of elephants to Kenya.

Now is also the perfect time of year to enjoy fresh, seasonal blossoms as spring flowers bloom all over the county.

There’s a carpet of vivid bluebells at Hole Park in Rolvenden, a wildflower meadow at Winston Churchill’s former home, Chartwell, in Westerham and wild cherry blossom growing in the woodland at Emmetts Garden in Ide Hill.

The Celebration of Spring event at Hever Castle is also still running until Sunday, April 28.

Visitors can admire hundreds of stunning spring flowers such as tulips, cherry and apple blossoms, magnolias, and early rhododendrons.

Finally, making changes to the way we eat and drink can have a positive effect on the environment.

Kent has a wealth of sustainable pubs and restaurants to try, such as the Small Holding in Cranbrook, which boasts a menu of homegrown food produced by their own biodiverse farm, and the Foundry BrewPub in Canterbury, which has taken steps to be more eco-friendly by reusing the heat from the alcohol’s distillation process to heat the restaurant.

Plenty of places in the county are taking huge strides towards looking after our planet, so you needn’t go far to support these initiatives and make a difference this Earth Day.