Introduction

Few would expect the inky black-ness of our solar system to have a unique piece of rock like our planet. Yet it is there, a tiny blue speck, the only rock capable of sustaining life. A planet that is home to over 6 billion humans in addition to trillions of diverse organisms. A planet we call earth, our home. The rarest of rare permutations and combinations has allowed this planet to have habitable surface, a breathable atmosphere for carbon based life forms and almost every possible variety of environment for organisms to compete and excel in survival. In the earth’s recent history, man has proved to be the most adaptable and resilient creature to have so far evolved.

Unfortunately, mankind’s desire for more than the basic necessities of life, control over his environment and a total disregard for the fragile ecological balance of this planet has come to mean that man is killing his own mother.

Throughout the sixties and seventies, various groups of people have realised this threat and have taken steps to prevent further damage. This has included creating sensitivity and a sense of ownership among the people towards the planet. And what better way to sensitize the people than dedicate one day of our lives every year to stop and think of the blue speck in the large black ocean of space.

Origins

Earth Day is celebrated on 22 April each year. It was founded by U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson as an environmental teach-in in 1970 and is celebrated almost all over the world. The United Nations celebrates Earth Day on the March equinox, usually March 20. Earth day was first celebrated by the United Nations in 1971.

Across the United States, 20 million people and thousands of schools and communities participated in the first Earth Day. It is hailed as the largest organised celebration in the history of United States.

History

In 1990, the first official International Earth Day was observed. About 200 million people from 141 nations took part in a celebration of environmental conservation. It was a reminder of the great importance people were giving to protecting the earth.

People traditionally celebrate Earth Day with the ringing of bells, often bells of peace. The tradition of bell ringing is practiced all over the world on Earth Day. Representatives from Palestine, Austria, and Russia have all rung a Peace Bell in a ceremony celebrating the protection of the environment and of Earth’s many species.

Over the years however, the Earth Day Celebrations have taken a more proactive and innovative approach. Rather than ringing only a peace bell, in most of the countries, many organisations, schools, and so on, take an active part in celebrating the Earth Day. This day is chosen to execute plantation drives, hold quiz and poster contests and even take out rallies for cleaner technology. China and USA have issued commemorative stamps and celebrate nationwide theme parties for children. Nations like Kenya have declared Earth Day as national tree planting day. Australia bans cars from the streets of Sydney on this Day.

Earth Day serves to remind us that we all share the same planet. Sharing the Earth means taking responsibility for what we use and how we use it. It is a day to think of the environmental challenges we face and how to solve them. Protecting Earth is every person’s and every country’s responsibility.

All this to spread the word that our earth is fragile and we need to protect it. It is no surprise that over 50 years ago, an Indian, Mahatma Gandhi had issued us a warning “earth has enough for every man’s need, but not for every man’s greed”. A warning we have clearly ignored. It is still not too late and we can still make a difference. This year, let us all join hands to preserve the third rock from the sun.

Join the Earth Day party

Here are a few ways you can help Earth every day.
• Walk or ride a bicycle to school, the park, or the store. Encourage your parents to walk or ride to work, too. This is a great way to help reduce the pollution created by cars, trucks, buses, trains, and airplanes.

• Plant trees. Trees help keep the air clean.

• Do not litter. Pick up litter on the sidewalk, street, beach, or riverbank. This will help keep the environment free of contaminants.

• Create a compost pile for food scraps and plant waste from the garden. This is a good way to cut down on the amount of trash that goes into a landfill. As a bonus, compost helps create rich soil for gardening.

• Recycle! Recycling is an important part of keeping Earth clean. It is very easy to do. By giving old things a new life we put less pressure on important resources all of us will need in the future to survive.

Rethink, Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

Understanding how long something takes to decompose in a garbage dump or landfill can help motivate all of us to reuse and recycle everything we can. The best thing any of us can do for the environment is to rethink the way we use things and to use less. The fewer resources and products we use, the less stuff there is to throw away and recycle. Can you guess how long it takes for the things we use everyday to turn into soil in a landfill?

Graphic Gallery

Over the years, people have come up with various ways to depict the Earth day, right from posters to flags to stamps. All the graphical depictions have the same objective. To provide a common banner and platform in support of our planet. q

References
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earth_Day
http://www.globio.org/glossopedia/article.aspx?art_id=35
http://www.epa.gov/earthday/
http://www.ecoindia.com/education/earth-day.html

Aditya Lele
Shimla
alele@devalt.org