Earth Day was first celebrated on April 22, 1970 in the U.S., it became recognized worldwide by 1990. The idea for Earth Day was proposed by then-Senator Gaylord Nelson of Wisconsin. Nelson was so upset by the damage done in a 1969 massive oil spill in Santa Barbara, California that he was inspired to organize a “national environment teach-in” that focused on educating the public about the environment. On the very first Earth Day, 20 million people gathered in the streets of America to protest the industrial revolution. Still today, world climatologists predict that more natural disasters such as hurricanes, wildfires, tornadoes, heat waves, and blizzards will continue to happen anywhere, due to human activities. Past Earth Day’s have created public support for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), along with  contributing to various Acts in place today, such as the Clean Air Act, the Water Quality Improvement Act, the Endangered Species Act. Modern Earth day continues to teach and act by way of groups of people collecting garbage, planting trees, cleaning up coral reefs, and planning for better policies for the future for our planet.

Happy Earth Day to you! Go outside, appreciate and protect nature by respecting all living things. And continue to reduce, reuse, and recycle!