Natural Environment Blog

April 22nd will mark the 40th anniversary of the first Earth Day and with a new anniversary comes a new meaning for the day. Started in 1970, Earth Day was originally conceived as a day in which the people of the world could come together and educate themselves about the needs of the planet. However, with the “Green” movement in full effect, Earth Day has gone from a day of environmental education to a day of environmental action.

For this year’s festivities, a massive rally has been planned to take place in Washington that organizers are hoping will force Congress into signing a new and much needed climate bill. Organizers have also set up The Earth Day Network to give information about the day itself and give awareness to green campaigns that need members and support.

One of these green campaigns is A Walk For Water. This campaign will help raise funds to build permanent water resources in West Africa, which in the 110+ degree heat of the area, will both help save the water supply and countless lives of the impoverished West African communities. The Earth Day Network has also crafted other grassroots campaigns to help save important environmental areas like forests and wetlands. However, not every green initiative is of the grassroots variety.

The major conglomerate Siemens is getting in on the movement by running a green campaign called A Million Acts of Green that motivates customers to come up with green solutions for the upcoming Earth Day. Many other major companies like Globetrotters Engineering Corporation (an architectural company founded by CEO, Niranjan Shah) work every day to help the environment by designing energy efficient buildings and homes. This shows that the green movement is big enough even for companies like Siemens and Niranjan Shah’s Globetrotters Corporation.

Earth Day will celebrate its 40th anniversary, but in many ways this year’s celebration is somewhat of a rebirth. The day that was originally created to spread awareness and education of the planet’s problems has now become something more meaningful. It has now become a day in which the world works together to help and protect the Earth we all call home.

This post was contributed by Dan Grifen of Everything Left.

Earth Day is an annual observance aimed at raising an awareness of and an appreciation of Earth’s natural environment.

Actually, there are two different observances called Earth Day. Each have the same aim, but they are held on different days. The two different Earth Days are:

• The United Nations’ International Earth Day (or the “Equinox” Earth Day)- This is held each year on the March equinox (around March 20), and was founded in 1969 by John McConnell.
• The April 22 Earth Day - held each year on April 22nd in many countries around the world. Founded by Gaylord Nelson as an environmental teach-in. This version of Earth Day has been held annually around the world since 1970.

There are a number of different websites dedicated to the different Earth Days. For example, the US has an Earth Day website providing info about Earth Day and how to live in a more sustainable way. Here’s what it says about Earth Day:

Earth Day is a time to celebrate gains we have made and create new visions to accelerate environmental progress. Earth Day is a time to unite around new actions. Earth Day and every day is a time to act to protect our planet.

There is also the International Earth Day website, which includes the Earth Charter, as well as a plea from John McConnell, the Earth Day founder for there to be a singular Earth Day.

Whichever Earth Day you celebrate, it’s a good opportunity to think of the progress we’ve made so far, as well as consider the new ways we can help protect our environment.