Earth Day – an entire day dedicated to celebrating, protecting, and preserving the world we live on. From the physical environment to the beautiful variety of creatures that inhabit it, our world is a wonderful kaleidoscope of color and life that needs to be protected at all costs. Modern life has certainly been taking a heavy toll on the environment in recent years. As a result, now, more than ever, we need to rally together and do everything we can in order to reverse the negative impact that we have had on this earth, and to preserve its natural beauty and grandeur. Read on to find out all about Earth Day; its history, future, and what you can do to get involved!
From Seed
The theme for this year is ‘Climate Action,’ working as an inspiration for everybody around the world to take action and work together to make a real difference. The date for Earth Day was initially decided with college campuses in mind, as April 22nd comes right between Spring Break and final exams. It also has links to Arbor Day, an earlier observance that focused on the planting of trees in April each year. Earth Day is now recorded as the largest secular observance in the world, and this year marks 50 years since it all began. The plan was set in motion by the U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson, who had witnessed the ravages of a massive oil spill in Santa Barbara, California in 1969, and the incident spurred him on to campaign for global environmental awareness.
One of his key goals was to engage the public worldwide, because we need the whole world working together in order to make a real difference. Earth day is now organized yearly by EDN (Earth Day Network). While Earth Day, in the beginning, was primarily focused in the United States, it has since become a global celebration with events organized all over the world in a combined effort to preserve our environment.
To Sapling
We actually have the inception of Earth Day to thank for many great incentives, agreements, acts, and events such as the foundation of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The EPA is an independent agency entirely focused on protecting and preserving the environment. There are now branches all over the world, making a huge difference in establishing and maintaining positive changes in how we treat the world around us. In the ‘70s, after the first Earth Day in April 1970, a great number of progressive and beneficial, environmentally-aware legislative acts were passed, such as ‘The Clean Air Act,’ ‘The Clean Water Act,’ and ‘The Endangered Species Act,’ to name a few. Each of these acts have played a major role in reducing pollution in the U.S. and protecting our more vulnerable animal species.
To Strength
As the years went on, Earth Day grew and grew, and so did its global impact. Another great initiative that we can thank Earth Day for is the ‘Billion Acts of Green’ project. This was the theme for Earth Day 2012 and it saw participants from all over the world register their acts of clean living on an online forum to show how every act of environmental awareness, large or small, can make a huge difference. Like we always say here at Zazzle, teamwork makes the dream work!
Another great project facilitated and organized by the Earth Day Network is the Canopy Project. This initiative works by planting new trees across the globe in order to combat deforestation and reintroduce fresh, oxygen-rich air into our environment. This project has a goal of planting 7.8 billion trees – one for every person on earth – to celebrate the 50th Earth Day this year. So why not get involved and plant a few trees in your community? They look good, they do good, and you’ll have a great time bonding with friends and family working towards a common goal!
Flourishing Future
Since 2020 marks the 50th annual Earth Day, it’s shaping up to be a great celebration with plenty of events to attend all over the world! Head over to the Earth Day 2020 website to view a constantly updated extensive map that will give you all the information you need about every registered Earth Day gathering, wherever you are. Embrace the occasion with group walks, clean-ups, performances, screenings, lectures, workshops, tree-planting parties, art exhibitions, fairs, and much more! Bear in mind that events aren’t just isolated to April 22nd, so you can also find a way to take part in the days leading up to and after Earth Day itself.
However, if you don’t find anything already planned close to you, why not take the initiative and organize something locally with your friends, family, and wider community? You could facilitate a big litter clean-up event in your local town or neighborhood, set-up a swap shop for second-hand clothes and accessories, or even just take a nice group walking or cycling to raise awareness about reducing the use of vehicles to get around. Earth Day 2020 is about everyone so don’t hesitate to get involved and have fun too! Take a look at some of these other articles for more handy tips and tricks to be a sustainable consumer, plan an amazing low-waste wedding, or even have a merry eco-friendly Christmas – this way, you can maintain the positive Earth Day vibes and give back to Mother Earth all year long!
So there you have it: Earth Day 2020 is set to be the biggest and best yet! But hey, why retain all of our environmental action for just one day of the year? Sure, we can gather together as a community on the 22nd of April every year for a grand gesture, but how about we make a little more effort for the rest of the year too? Let’s work together to make every day Earth Day! Join in on the celebrations with some festive badges and apparel to show your environmental support! Have you got any plans or ideas for how to make a difference in your community this Earth Day? Let us know in the comments below!
