October 31st: National & International Days, Celebrations and Observances

This October 31, add some good to your neighborhood while you celebrate.

• Clear the streets and yards before sunset - it helps wildlife and keeps kids safe during trick-or-treating. Leave your car at home for local parties. The bus works fine, or just walk. Less traffic means better streets for everyone.
• Looking for a costume? Buy something sturdy you'll use next year, or get crafty and make your own. Those cheap plastic outfits just end up in landfills.
• Walking between houses? Share bits of local history with other treat-seekers. By the way, cities worldwide mark this date as their own special day too. At home, plant a few herbs if you like - people have done that at harvest time for ages.
• Switch those old Halloween lights to LEDs. They last longer and save on electric bills. Scatter some fallen leaves by your jack-o'-lanterns - nature takes care of cleanup later.
• Your elderly neighbors would love a quick hello during evening rounds. Those five-minute stops matter more than you'd think, especially on busy nights like Halloween.

A small Australian mining town set a heat record that still stands. In October 1923, Marble Bar's temperatures climbed past 100°F (37.8°C) and stayed there for 160 days straight. The handful of locals who live there now - around 170 people - share stories of those blistering months that stretched from fall through spring.

• Scientists study the data from that scorching stretch between '23 and '24. No other weather station has logged a longer streak of triple-digit heat.
• Years later, October 31st popped up again in global records. The UN picked this date in 2011 to track when Earth hit 7 billion people. By late 2022, we'd added another billion.
• This quick population jump led to the UN's "Seven Billion Actions" work. Their research showed how fast growth affects resources, while offering real steps toward managing our expanding numbers.

An unlikely thread connects five change-makers born on October 31st across different centuries.

• In the smoky haze of 1620s London, John Evelyn watched his city transform. His meticulous notes documented the effects of coal smoke on daily life, while his practical guide "Sylva" gave British landowners new ways to manage their forests.
• Bologna's scientific community raised eyebrows when Laura Bassi took her place as a physics professor in the 1700s. Yet her 13 papers on electricity and natural processes earned respect across Europe - the first woman to achieve such academic standing.
• When Muriel Duckworth founded Voice of Women, she had already spent decades pushing for practical change. Her work on sustainable farming methods would continue until age 100, with the Order of Canada acknowledging her lasting influence on agriculture.
• Urban theorist David Harvey studies how cities evolve at CUNY Graduate Center. His research shows clear patterns: when cities grow, environmental resources shift unevenly across communities.
• In today's digital age, Adam Bouska documents climate changes through photography. His NOH8 Campaign images reveal everyday environmental shifts that might otherwise go unnoticed.